Currently... 01/13

Hello, hello! Happy Thursday! 

So, despite my WIAW absence this week, I totally feel like blogging today! It was convenient that I just so happen to see this survey-type-thing on Heather's blog, and felt like it was a current must-do! 

Current book: we're reading The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom in English IV, and I love it so far. I'm not much of a reader (unless it's a blog... or about food...), but this book is genuinely interesting and thought-inducing! Totally a recommended must-read.

Current Music: Ho Hey by The Lumineers.

... and maybe some Beauty and A Beat by Justin Bieber.

(Sorry, I love me some Biebs! Not so much Nicki Minaj, though...)

Current Guilty Pleasure: Arizona Heat spicy mustard! Holy guacamole is it good!

Also, the combination of cinnamon sugar anything with cream cheese... Which calls for one of my newest creations... (Inspired by these babies!)

Cream Cheese Stuffed Cinnamon Sugar Protein Banana Bread

Ingredients:

1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 scoop (28g) cinnamon roll (or vanilla) protein powder

1/4 c (26g) ground flax

2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon

1-2 tbsp sweetener

1/2c (113g) plain Greek yogurt
1/2c liquid egg whites

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 large ripened banana (or just microwave it without the peel for about :30 to soften if it doesn't seem ripe enough)

Cream Cheese Filling:
1/4 cup cream cheese
1 tbsp powdered (confectioner) sugar

1-2 tbsp milk of choice (I used almond)

Directions:

Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees and spray a loaf pan with non-stick baking spray.

In a bowl, mix all dry ingredients aside from your sweetener.

Now blend yogurt, sweetener, egg whites, vanilla extract, and banana until smooth or desired consistency.

Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Combine ingredients for filling.

Pour about 3/4 of the batter into your loaf pan, then spread your filling through the middle. Use a spoon or spatula to evenly distribute, then pour the rest of the batter on top. Distribute the rest of the batter the best you can, then sprinkle extra cinnamon and sugar on top.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.

(Inspiration and adapted recipe/directions from here.)

Current Nail Color: Simple glitter nails!

Strobe Light by Sally Hansen

Current Drink: Sugar Cookie Tea

Saying I'm obsessed is putting it lightly! I've gone through over 5 packs of these since October... 

Current Food: smoothie bowls, inspired by Heather herself...

Oh, and Cascadian Farms' organic Cinnamon Toast Crunch!

Holy WOW is this stuff so delicious! CTC is my favorite, and this tastes almost identical! It's so nice to have the flavor and deliciousness minus the sugar and continuous processing.

Current Favorite Show: Full House or Zoey 101!

Current Wish List: Zuzana Light's new DVD, and maybe some new nail art "stickers"...

I LOVE these things!

They work and stay on AWESOME! And the best part is, you don't have to wait for them to dry!

Current Needs: more time... and to do better in pre-calculus... a 40% is not a good way to end math in high school! 

Current Triumphs: I... I don't know! I've been quite confident lately, and I've been feeling so much stronger... Do those qualify as "triumphs"?? 

Current Bane of My Existence: math!!!!! Math, math, MATH!! Ahhhh!

Current Celebrity Crush: ironically enough, me and my friend were talking about this in class today!

I guess I can say Louis Tomlinson...

*Drools* 

Current Indulgence: does cereal count?!

This stuff is the equivalent to crack.

I mentioned how Cinnamon Toast Crunch was a love of mine, but this stuff tops that by a long-run! I used to eat Blueberry Muffin Top cereal, but then they stopped existing out of the blue and I have been craving them ever since! This 'Blueberry Crunch' from Target is just as amazing.

If not, then definitely PB2. Not much of an 'indulgence', but I add it to nearly EVERYTHING!

I just got two new jars, less than a month after purchasing the first two!

Current Blessing: Heather said it perfectly! My health, life, family, friends...

Current Slang: "is this real life?" "Did that really just happen??"

(Hahahaha... It's okay to laugh at me. I can't help but laugh at myself!)

Current Outfit: I started off wearing this while typing the beginning of this post...

(+ shorts and neon sneakz)

and am ending it wearing THIS:

Current Excitement: to finally hangout with a close friend this Saturday! We're going to Applebees' "half-price apps" to get some half-priced appetizers for some ultimate snackage on Saturday night with her friend that she wants me to meet so we can all be the three best friends that ANYONEEEEEE can have! (High fives and kudos to you if you know where that's from! ) I also get to conquer some "fear foods" that night and I am READY!

Current Mood: happy, but quite hungry... Putting a whole new meaning to HANGRY!

 Current Link: uhhhhm... hmm... What about my current favorite boy & girl YouTubers!?

Rachel & Byron Talbott and Nikki & Dan Phillippi!

Yes, they exist.

I know what you're all wondering... Alissa, WHAT exists?!

Well, my lovelies, clean cream cheese filled cinnamon sugar cookies is what exists.


Inspired by a Chocolate Covered Katie and Skinny Taste recipe, I came up with these 65 calorie fiber-rich, simple, healthy beauties.

But, before I get onto the recipe, I'm sure you're all wondering why I actually remade Katie's recipe.
And that's simply because, even though her recipe is incredible (like all of her others!), they came out to be super tiny... and I mean like, half-the-size-of-my-palm tiny! I don't know if I did something wrong or if they're just supposed to be that small, but I felt like they needed a bit of a boost!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar (Stevia or any other type of regular white sugar or sugar substitute would work)
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 tbsp ground flaxseed
1 egg white
2 tbsp mashed banana
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
cinnamon and sugar, for rolling

Cream Cheese filling:
2 tbsp light cream cheese
2 tsp powdered (confectioners) sugar

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350°F.

In one bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt. Stir.

In another bowl, whisk the sugars, egg white, mashed banana and vanilla together until fluffy.

Whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in two additions until the batter is very well blended. Add bits of water until it looks and feels completely like cookie batter (and less crumbly-like).

Now mix together the cream cheese filling.

Roll your cookie dough into 12 balls, then lay on cookie sheet. Smoosh them down with the palm of your hand, then add in about 1 tsp (more/less) of the filling. Roll back up into a ball (it's okay if the filling comes out of the cookie dough a bit -- don't be alarmed!)

Roll each ball into a combination of cinnamon and sugar until covered with desired amount.

Bake for 10 minutes.

Check on the cookies after about 8 minutes. If they haven't expanded, smoosh them down with a fork until desired size. Bake for another 2-3 minutes. (Don't over-bake, though! You want these soft!)

Let cool for a few minutes before eating... then devour with no regrets. 

I hope you guys make these and enjoy them! Lots of people were asking me for the recipe on my Instagram, so I had to post it for y'all! Love you and thank you for the constant support!