A red and blue swirled Midnights album smoothie bowl – perfect for celebrating February and Taylor Swift’s Grammy nominations! The Grammy’s and Midnights The Grammy’s are now just a few days away, so you can bet I’ve got Midnights on my mind. Will you be watching? It’s …
Sourdough bagels but make it 1989 (Taylor’s Version) – these ‘Welcome To New York’ bagels are a fun and delicious way to use up sourdough discard! There are two Taylor Swift songs I have long associated with New Year’s. One is New Year’s Day – for obvious …
Taylor Swift’s Chai Sugar Cookies recipe – including both Taylor’s (handwritten) version, and my veganized version for any plant-based Swifties!
If there’s something you should probably know about Taylor Swift, it’s that she’s an amazing baker. I mean, I don’t know from personal experience (I wish 😅), but people who have tried her baked goodies seem to rave about it. And she’s been an active baker for years.
Back in 2014, for a 1989 ‘Secret Session’, Taylor Swift baked these Chai Sugar Cookies – and then shared the recipe on her Tumblr. Every year, especially around this time of year, I’ve been meaning to try out her recipe – and this year I finally did! Coming off of the 1989 TV Era, it just feels right to make these cookies. Plus they’re full of all those seasonal spices, perfect for this time of year!
Here’s her original recipe – handwritten and shared on her Timblr.
I’m plant-based, so I also veganized the recipe – it’s super simple to do! I just swapped the butter for vegan butter (I used Miyoko’s unsalted butter) and made a vegan egg using Bob Red Mill’s Egg Replacer (you could also make a flax egg using 1tbsp ground flax + 3 tbsp water). I also didn’t have vegetable oil on hand so I used coconut oil instead.
The cookies came out of the oven quite soft, but they firmed up quickly, and let me tell you – the texture was divine 😍
Allow to cool and top with icing (I used store-bought icing and then sprinkled nutmeg on top)
Have you tried making these cookies? Will you?! If you do, I’d love to see it! Tag me @bitesbybekah on Instagram.
My Swiftie Gift Guide – organized by Taylor Swift Era, with a wide range of prices and items to fit different budgets and interests! ‘Tis the season! The holidays are here, and whether you’re looking for a gift for the Swiftie in your life, or …
How to make Dong Geu-ra-mi’s Gimbap, as seen in the show Extraordinary Attorney Woo: a meal that’s just as fun to make as it is to eat! Extraordinary Attorney Woo On August 28th, 2022, ma and I watching the season 1 finale of the show …
A blue-tiful overnight oats ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ breakfast bowl, with all the fruit toppings to take you to Cousins Beach.
This summer I finally started watching The Summer I Turned Pretty. And I have to say, I’m kinda obsessed. It’s your typical teen drama – except that it isn’t. The relationships, conversations, narratives, everything feels so natural and authentic. There’s drama, and a love triangle that’s really pretty awkward. But overall it feels like an open door into the lives of two families, and how the waves of life affect their different relationships.
I started Season 1 enjoying the show, but I wasn’t super invested until a few episodes in. I’m not sure what exactly did it for me. The fact that cancer became part of the storyline definitely left me feeling a bit more raw than I’m used to by the end of the season. (My mum recently went through breast cancer treatment.) It’s handled really carefully in the show, and you don’t see any of the cancer itself, just the effects of it – which is quite powerful and really well done.
Even without such a personal tying factor, I think the show would have gripped me regardless. The actors are all so talented, and at any given time I could be in love with each of them, and then equally annoyed and frustrated with them all. Which sounds about right for a teenage drama, don’t you think?
If you want to follow along with my live reactions to each episode as I watch it, you can follow along with my Thread. (Yes, I’m on Thread! I just never got into Twitter and then Instagram made it so easy to set up a Thread account. And now I cannot stop LOL.)
Of course I had to made a The Summer I Turned Pretty breakfast bowl. And overnight oats are the perfect summertime breakfast to pair the show with. While making my typical bowl of hot porridge this morning, I found myself thinking that it was definitely way too hot for that. It’s been in the 90s this whole week, and the humidity in Washington DC is no joke. So move over hot breakfasts, cause it’s about to become the summer of overnight oats for me!
A bowl like this is the best way to start the day when you want something equally refreshing and delicious.
To get this gorgeous blue color, I use blue spirulina powder. You really can’t taste it at all. Plus it brings some health benefits along with the prettiest blue color to your bowl. The Summer I Turned Pretty gives me all the blue vibes. I was picturing the blue of the beach and the pools that are so frequently highlighted in the show. The rest of the toppings are adaptable, but I went for vibrant fruits to make the bowl as pretty as possible. Hopefully it lives up to the shows’ title.
I’ve also recently gotten into making music mashups (putting those music degrees to good use!). I’m having the best time mashing up Taylor Swift songs! Her songs are so prominent on The Summer I Turned Pretty soundtrack. (To be honest, it’s the main reason I started watching in the first place!). Season 2 is already off to a flying start with the first three episodes. I wanted my mashup to be meaningful to the show, so I used the songs This Love and Back to December. Or, as someone commented on my mashup post, Conrad and Belly’s love song and break up song (tears). You can go give it a listen here!
My top tips for picking the perfect ripe watermelon, every single time! Are you a watermelon lover? For me, summer time is all about digging into a perfectly sweet and refreshing ripe watermelon. But do you feel like you can never quite pick the ripest …
Two ways to make easy vegan teriyaki tofu, a perfect meal prep option for dinner any night. Raise your hand if you’re a fan of stir-fry 🙋🏻♀️ Stir-fry is one of my favorite go-to dinner options, especially on busy week days. It’s a great meal …
Easy homemade crunchy tacos made with simple, healthy ingredients. Create a fun taco night spread, build your tacos and enjoy!
Growing up, Taco Bell was a frequent fast food stop for our family. We often hit the drive-through on our way home from church or after school, and I always got myself a few crunchy tacos.
After I started eating healthier, and definitely since I began eating plant-based, I hadn’t had a crunchy taco for ages. That’s despite making tacos for our family almost every single week – we always use soft tortillas.
Well, let me tell you, a crunchy taco shell really levels up your taco night. Try it out and thank me later!
I’m sure you can find crunchy tacos in a number of stores around you. I got this box of crunchy tacos at Trader Joe’s (for a great price), and immediately had to buy.
The ingredients are very simple, which I love: Organic stone ground yellow corn, organic sunflower oil and /or organic safflower oil, trace of lime.
All you have to do to prepare them is stick them in the oven for a few minutes. They toast up to a beautiful golden color, and the flavor is definitely worth the extra step!
TOP TIP: These shells are a bit crumbly once you bite into them, so my advice is to use a plate underneath as you’re eating.
For crunchy tacos, I used basically the same components I use for my usual Vegan Taco Night – you can read all about how I prepare the whole spread over on that blog post. But for these crunchy tacos I was going for a more Taco-Bell-style taco, which meant I needed some vegan meat to fill the bottom of the shell.
I did a quick google search, found Sweet Simple Vegan’s recipe for Vegan Taco Meat, and was sold. I love a quick and easy recipe, and this one used mushrooms and walnuts – two of my faves!
For the rest of the taco I put together my standard spread:
Now it’s time to build your crunchy taco. I add each component in this order:
That’s it! Homemade Crunchy Tacos, to level up your next Taco Night spread. Let me know if you try it out, and what other components you’d add to your taco night!
Check out more easy and healthy bites of food and life on my Instagram.
My review of Yumi Komatsudaira’s cookbook, Japanese Superfoods, a beautiful and comprehensive book filled with appetising recipes and beautiful food photography. This post may contain affiliate links. You can find more information under the Disclaimer at the bottom of the page. A Short Introduction Yumi …