I'm Back... Valentine Update!

I ended up taking a little time off to figure some things out, but now I'm back! I had the chance to finish a little DIY project I did for my nephew (Photos will be coming soon!), a new Valentine's Day DIY (I know a bit late but still a good little easy project to decorate for next year), an easy peesy Valentine/February polish design, and a few recipes we have tried that were pretty darn amazing! I'll be posting all of those real soon... I sure do have some catching up to do!

How was your Valentine's Day? We ended up staying in and I made a lasagna and paired it with a nice bottle of pinot noir, while Mike made a new recipe I found a while back for Carrot Cake Cheesecake! It was yummy!

So I didn't get any good pics of our carrot cake cheesecake but here is the original recipe with a pic by Sarah at Sugar Cooking!

Mini Carrot Cake Cheesecakes
Ingredients: 

• 1 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 4 tablespoons sugar
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted

• 8 0z cream cheese, softened
• 1 egg, room temperature
• 1/3 cup of sugar
• 1 tablespoon flour 
• 1 tsp vanilla extract 
• 1 medium carrot, peeled and finely grated
• 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 lemon extract (or a squeeze of lemon juice) 

Directions: 

• To make the crust: Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray mini cheesecake pans with non-stick spray, or line mini muffin tins with paper liners. Combine graham cracker crumbs, butter, and sugar. Press into pans (I used about 1 tablespoon per cheesecake). Bake for 10 - 12 minutes until golden brown. 
• To make the cheesecake: Beat cream cheese and sugar with a mixer on medium speed until fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the egg. Add carrots, flour, spices, and vanilla extract. Spoon on top of crusts so they are about 3/4 full.
• Bake until set, about 18 to 22 minutes.
• Transfer pans to a rack and let cool. Refrigerate until ready to frost.
• To Make Frosting: In a medium bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, confectioners' sugar and extracts. Beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Frost with cream cheese icing. Enjoy! 

If you try this recipe, make sure you stop by and say hi to Sarah and give her props on a great recipe!


By the way, Mike got me the Meaningful Beauty skin care kit I had been wanting! I am on the third day/fourth night and I can honestly say, I can see a difference already!! I love it!

He also got me these super cool earrings from Nervous System

They have some amazing stuff. Go check them out!

What did you guys do for Valentine's Day? 

Damarys