Yogurt & A $250 Allen Booth Giveaway!!

Thursday, July 27, 2017



Handmade Raspberry Yogurt 
A $250 Allen Booth Giveaway!

Boy have I got a great post for you guys, and to make it even better there's a great giveaway. Let's start off with the raspberry yogurt that I made. I have the easiest recipe, who woulda' thought that it would have been so easy to make.

Homemade Raspberry Yogurt

Ingredients 
1qt (4 cups) or pasteurized whole milk.
1 1/2 teaspoon of unflavored gelatin
1/4 cup of plain greek yogurt (or 1 yogurt starter pack)
1/4 cup of homemade raspberry compote (any berry compote will work)
Fresh Raspberries (or the berries of your choice)
2 trail mix granola bars

Instructions
1. Heat the milk over a medium to medium high heat until it reaches 165 degrees, making sure to stir the milk constantly. Do not allow the milk to come to a boil
2. Once the milk comes to temp, turn off the burner and place the pan on a roller area on the stovetop. Allow the milk to cool to 110 degrees. (or you can use a cold water bath method to speed up the cooling process)
3. When the milk finally cools and reaches the 110 temp wish in the gelatin for a minute or so or until its thoroughly mixed in.
4. Now add the yogurt starter pack and whisk for about a minute or until is to is thuroughly combined.
5. Now place the mixture in a yogurt maker, and allow it to culture for 8-12 hours. (Exactly how long depends on your taste preference). The longer the culture the more tangy,
6. Now whisk your yogurt mixture to be sure its combined. Next fold in your berry compote, but be sure not to over mix it, this is good for your flavor profile.
7. Now take 1/2 of your mixture and divide it evenly, then place it in the bottom of two small mason jars. Then add a layer of fresh raspberries, and then add another layer of yogurt with the rest of your mixture. Then finally top the parfait off with some granola. I like to break up a trail mix granola bar and use that, because it's crunchy and chewy along with some almonds and raisins mixed in. I love it  because gives the parfait a fantastic texture. Then I top it off with a fresh raspberry or two.
(If you want the granola to remain very crunchy, just wait ti add it right before you eat it.)

Raspberry Compote 

Ingredients
1 pint of fresh raspberries
1 quart of water
1 cup of sugar

Instructions
1. Bring water to a boil
2. Add the raspberries
3. Allow to boil until you get your desired thickness (25-45mins)


See I told you easy peasy!! I thought it would be much harder, but turns out it wasn't that bad. The compote can also be used as a yummy topping, it all just depends on your taste. I am a sucker for a good parfait, so I made 10 of them and left the granola aside so that I could just add it to the yogurt when I'm ready to eat it. I'm one of those people that loves the super crunchy granola with the creamy yogurt, it makes for a perfect texture and an amazing flavor profile. I'll admit it's much easier to buy the yogurt at the grocery store, but it definitely doesn't taste better. It's a bummer that I'm always so on the go, or I would have fresh yogurt in my fridge all the time, it's one of my favorite snacks. i love the fruity flavors they have like cherry, raspberry, and blackberry. There's even this one yummy pomegranate blackberry flavor, and it's delish. I find that by topping a store bought yogurt with some fresh ingredients will really make it amazing. One of my favorites is fresh fruit like mango, pineapple, and berries. then add some trail mix granola, and look out. I feel like I'm talking a little to much about yogurt today....LOL! 


Now let's talk about the beautiful pieces that I got from Allen Booth, I'm so excited to share them with you. Everything they sell is handcrafted, and made in the USA. Not to mention that it's all durable and made of real quality. Now a days things are so expansive and made so cheap, it's a real shame. I got 2 cutting boards, with a matching mason jar lid, and two wooden spoons. The cutting boards are beautiful, I especially love the look and how they match the mason jar lid. The multi wood design includes maple, walnut, cherry and poplar, it's so beautiful I almost don't want to use it..lol! Same with the spoons, I really needed a couple good ones so I stop scratching up my pots and pans with the metal ones. I hope to replace all of them, espceially since I plan to get a whole new set of pots and pans when we finish remodeling the kitchen, and we all know that a good set costs a pretty penny, and I'm definitely not down with the flimsy plastic cooking utensils, so Allen Booth is definitely the way I'm gonna go. 



They also carry so many other cool things like picture frames, beautiful cherry wood bowls, coasters, wood and metal utensils of all kinds, measuring spoons and much much more, Plus did I say that everything is made in the USA ...lol! and it comes at a very affordable price point. You definitely have to check them out, I know you'll love their products. 

When you go to out use the code STARGAZER11, and get 10% off of your purchase.

(SWIPE 2 THE LEFT for more pics!!)Now for the surprise, I've partnering up with them to bring you guys an amazing giveaway!!

ALLEN BOOTH GIVEAWAY!!
One person will win a $250 gift card to Allen Booth!!
To enter just follow the below link to their website, type in your email address and zip code, then click enter. It's that easy!!
What are you waiting for, hurry up and go enter before it's over!!


This was the smaller cutting board of the two, and boy is it going to make the perfect placement for my cooking posts :o!!




Now on another note this is a shot of how I spent a few hours yesterday, it was so relaxing and nice. Plus the weather was amazing here in Baltimore, it's been in the mid to high 70's for three days now. Now let me tell you guys a little about me, I HATE super hot weather, ever since i hit my 30's I am always hot and un-comfy, so every season but summer is good for me. I look at it this way, with winter you can put on a comfy sweater if you're cold, but with summer you can only take off so much and you still remain hot. I know people think I'm crazy for thinking this way...lol! Anyway check out the video of this view that I posted on Instagram -> @DanaStargazerTruitt 
Make sure you watch for 15 secs so you hear the music, it's my official theme song!!
 Well here's to a fabulous weekend, thanks goodness tomorrow if Friday!!




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Wonderful Wonderful Watermelon & Family Mobile Fabulousness!!

Monday, July 17, 2017


This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser, Walmart Family Mobile. All opinions are mine alone. #SummerIsForSavings #CollectiveBias #WFM2

Wonderful Wonderful Watermelon!!


I was sitting around the other day racking my brain of cute dinner party ideas, when I saw a great little article on watermelon, and all the cool ideas of what to of with it. Now watermelon is definitely one of my favorite summer fruits, I mean come on who doesn't enjoy a juicy sweet watermelon on a hot summer day. It's always been a staple in our family cookouts and get togethers. Now that we have revamped the patio, it's so nice to go out back, hang out, and take in the summer air. Nothing makes it better than some sweet treats to enjoy whilst doing so...lol!! I have three fantastic and fun watermelon creations. First up is the watermelon keg. With a neat little keg kit that I ordered from online, I made the coolest drink cooler ever. All you have to do is cut the top off of the watermelon, and then scoop out all of the inner flesh. In this case I used a melon baller for the first half (Make sure you put the melon balls aside in a large bowl, for the watermelon salad recipe coming up.)
The second half of the flesh I scooped out with a spoon, and also put that aside for the refreshers we're going to be placing in the keg. Then I just inserted the three little stabilizer feet in the bottom of the melon rind. These help it to stand up straight, and they work perfectly, then push in the tap, and your all set. Now comes the good part, our 
Watermelon Mojito Coolers!!

Ingredients: (4 drinks)
*2 cups pressed/strained watermelon juice
*1/4 cup of freshly squeezed lime juice
*1/2 cup of simple syrup
*a handful of mint leaves
*a generous splash of ginger ale
*ice cubes

Prep: Begin by straining your spooned watermelon flesh, and limes, to the tone of 2 cups. 
Mix: Now start making your mix into a  pitcher, using the 2 cups or watermelon juice, and the 1/4 cup of lime juice. 
Serve: In each glass add crushed
 ice, or ice chunks along with your mint leaves. (give them a roll in between your finger tips before dropping them into the glass to release the flavor). Now fill the glass about 3/4's of the way with the watermelon/lime juice mixture. Top it off with a big splash of ginger ale, this adds some bubbles, and really heightens the flavor profile. Then you will serve the glass with a lime slice, and a mint leaf. I have also seen them garnished with a melon ball or two, it just depends on your taste. 
Now in my case I tripled the recipe to make enough to fill the watermelon cooler, which I poured inside and let sit and chill in the fridge for 2 hours. Then when I made the drinks later i did it straight from the watermelon tap. This gave such a fun feel and completely fit into the watermelon theme, and my goodness was it a hit with my guests! 



I didn't stop there with the watermelon fabulousness, I also made a delicious watermelon salad. It to was a hit with the guests and quickly disappeared. It was so simple and quick to make, which made it easier for me. Any delicious recipe thats easy and fast to make, is number one on my list. Not to mention it looked really beautiful, and when food looks amazing that's half the battle right there...lol!




Now to make this all you need is a few things, one being the first half of the melon that we scooped with the melon baller. 

Ingredients:
*5 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice.
*2 teaspoons of kosher salt.
*1/2 teaspoon of freshly cracked pepper
*1/2 large mellon balled watermelon
*1/2 lb of Miller's Kosher feta cheese.
*1 cup of coarsely chopped mint leaves

Preparation:
Super easy just combine all of the ingredients but a small bit of the mint leaves, toss gently and coat the watermelon balls. Then garnish with the left over mint, and place in the fridge to chill. 
See super easy, once it sits a few minutes and the flavors combine it will be amazing. I also recommend cracking some fresh pepper, and a tad more lemon juice over the top for extra flavor

As you can see I went a bit over board with the watermelon theme, but it was fun and everyone enjoyed it. I also had slices on popsicle sticks, they looked so cute....but went so fast! The cool thing is every part of the watermelon went to good use, even the rind. I made a stop to get a few things for the set up, and I spotted some of the prettiest flowers.



 





















I'm always the one standing over them with my camera, I've always had a fascination with flowers, which means you guys will probably see lots of them in the lifetime of my blog!
I sported my usual leggings and tank top because they're super comfy and it was so darn  hot. When I'm on the go like that comfort is number one, and these outfits give you that, with an added plus of cuteness...lol! I also had to hit up Walmart for a few things, it was a more than busy day setting everything up. As I was running around in the store, I spotted the cute cell phone display. I really didn't have time to take care of my cell phone craziness, but it was so quick and easy that I just couldn't resist. I decided to make the switch to Walmart Family Mobile, powered by T-Mobile. It makes my busy as heck life that much easier. I have more time to enjoy with my friends and family on days like these, thanks to Walmart Family
 Mobile. http://www.familymobilehub.com





(All prices for phones and plans included in this post are accurate as of the date of posting; however, these prices are subject to change. Please refer to http://www.familymobilehub.com or your local Walmart for current 



I got the $49.88 plus plan, it's TRULY Unlimited Talk, Text & Data◊. It's Definitely Walmart's best pricing in no-contract wireless plans.
It also includes a free VUDU◊ movie rental credit valued at $7.00 each time you renew your service. I really love it because there's no contact, no activation fees, no late charges...you just pick a phone. pick a plan, activate and go. It's so easy and so fast. You can even switch and keep your phone, and you get TRULY unlimited data◊. Having my internet is very important to me, especially since I'm a blogger and I'm always working online. I will be able to work on the go now because I'll have more than enough data◊. I won't have to worry if I'm going to run out, which will allow me to be more carefree, and spend more time away from home this summer..woo hoo! Also I feel confident in the service because it's run on 
T-Mobile's Nationwide Network, so I know the service will be spectacular. Even Nunah approves, and the phone is so sleek and cute, it fits right in the front pocket of my saddlebag. I have to say all in all it's been a fantastic day, and the Feldman household is all smiles. I'm so happy I made the switch, I definitely recommend the $49.88 TRULY Unlimited Plan with Walmart Family Mobile, powered by T-Mobile.

For more information check out their website http://www.familymobilehub.com




Please always refer to the latest terms and conditions at myfamilymobile.com
◊Limited time offer. Available for lines active with the 
TRULY $49.88 plan only. VUDU enabled device and account required for digital viewing. Customers must be 18 years or older to open a VUDU account. Movie rental only available in the USA. Free movie rental provided in the form of a movie rental code to the value of a $7.00 VUDU credit. Movie rental code allows for selection from available movies for rent. May not be readily redeemable on all new releases. Code will be delivered within up to 24 hours of the effective account renewal date. Must be used within 30 days of receiving code. Offer is non-transferable. Limit 1 per customer. Additional terms and conditions on VUDU's website: http://www.vudu.com/termsofservice.html 



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Fourth of July Fun at the Dundalk Heritage Fair!!

Wednesday, July 5, 2017

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!


I hope everyone had a safe and Happy 4th Of July Holiday!
I wanted to write this post and get it up before July 4th, but then I wouldn't have been able to get all the details in, so I decided to finish it up today. We started off the holiday weekend by going to the Dundalk Heritage Fair, it ran the 30th through the 2nd. It's an event we attend every year for the past 5 years n a row. All weekend they have live bands and music, rides, yummy food, and lots of fun activities. The first night we saw a long time favorite of ours, it's a Baltimore band called Kix. They have the all to popular hits like "Close your Eyes", and "I Got the Itch!" We go to see them when they  make an appearance in MD, because their a great and super down to earth band. Nothing is more annoying then a snobby group...lol! We arrived early to scout out a spot by the stage, and post up our folding chairs. It's the best way to get a good spot, and hold onto it without actually being there. That way we can leave and walk around, get something to eat, and people watch while we wait for them to come on at 8pm. The only real annoyance of the evening was that it was 95 degrees, and I'm the worse when it comes to really hot weather. I got myself a big grape snowball, with marshmellow piled high on top to cool myself down. 


I also scored myself some oh so yummy cotton candy. We walked around for an hour or two waiting for the band to come on, and there were so many different stands. Craft stands, food stands, all kinds of t-shirt stands, and there was a face painting spot also. The line was really long, there were so many little ones waiting to get their faces all done up. Then there was the beer garden, it was packed full of people. Now me personally I don't like draft beer, especially in a plastic cup on a super hot day. Within ten minutes it gets luke warn, and tastes so so nasty, I just decided to skip having a drink. I did have a yummy daiquiri later that evening which turned out to be pretty good, it's a shame I didn't know they were there sooner. After schmying around for a couple hours, and looking at all of the interesting items for sale, we decided to get something to eat, and play a few games. Half of the festival is a full on carnival, and the other half is a  crafts fair meets music festival. This is why we love it so much!!



I always love the pretty carnival view of the ferris wheel, and the cotton candy flags waving in the wind. I was really bummed that I couldn't bring Noon along, but I was afraid that the loud music would bother her, and I also feared that an intoxicated person may step on her or something stupid, and I would have got into some heated altercation. So to avoid all of that, I just left my baby home. I know she would have loved the little petting zoo, and the racing pigs. YES...racing pigs!! They had this little event set up where the cutest little oinkers ran around a little race track. I thought it was super weird, but others didn't, there were so many people crowded around waiting to see them go. Now I have to admit they were adorable, and there was also a little tent where kids could ride miniature horses round and round. It was so cute, they all looked so excited. 





 We took a ride on the ferris wheel, and tried to land the ping pong ball in the fish bowl. not that I wanted a goldfish but it's fun just to give it a try, obviously I'm not to good at it...lol!! We stopped by a BBQ stand and got two pit turkey sandwiches, pilled high with raw onions, and BBQ sauce. Needless to say they were very good, and believe it or not they had big ole cups of sweet tea for $1. I couldn't believe it, nothing is a dollar now-a-days, and to top it off it was so so good. Now I don't know if it was the 95 degree weather that made it so good, but I didn't care because it was so refreshing. We sat down at the picnic to do a bit of people watching while we ate, this is always a great spectator sport...lol! Especially when your in a town like Dundalk MD. There are all kinds of people, of all ages, and walks of life, that travel from all over Baltimore City and the surrounding counties to attend the fair. plus with the cost of admittance only being $8, and you getting to see a great concert you just can't beat it. And you know a concert brings in all kinds of interesting people, especially a free one...lol! The Kix concert was fantastic. Steve Whiteman always puts on a great show. 




After eating we walked back to and sat down in our chairs with snowballs in hand, and cotton candy to the side, and got our groove on. As always Whiteman danced around like a crazy fool, yelling with that high-pitched voice of his. I was also happy because as the sun started to fall, the temperature did as well, and once it was dark it dropped to 80 degrees, which is much much better than 95. I got smart when I picked out my outfit, I  wore a simple all black VSX spots bra, with a cute stars and stripes tank that I got on our trip to the Ohio Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. I figured it was perfect for the holiday theme. It's super thin and soft, so it kept me cool. I paired it with my American Eagle, dark denim shorts, and my white Converse. I love how the red and blue pinstripes on my cons match my tank to perfection.


I then accessorized with my new Tory Burch sunglasses, and my brown leather saddle bag. Earlier that day I got a mani/pedi, and as usual I went with pink. The only difference is my ring finger nail has a glitter layer. I added a cute red bow to my hair, with my blush pink on pink Apple Watch. All in all it was a cute outfit, and I was comfy. I did forget to put on my sunblock though, and I paid dearly for it later. We also forgot to the bug off spray from the car, and oh boy did those mosquitos tear us up. I had to walk to the car to get the bug spray, I just couldn't take it! I'm just so glad that we had it. Next time I won't forget them, I can tell yah that much...lol!





































After the concert we headed home, it was about 10pm. The 2nd night we didn't go, but we went back on the 3rd night to see a band called 38 Special, another oldie but goodie!! That was a great concert too, there were so many people packed in the crowd for that one as well. Then last night for the 4th, we went to the firework show at Catonsville High School. They've been doing a show there since I was a little kid. On the way there we stopped by Rita's Ice for a yummy 4th of July treat, it's a special gelato that they have. It's red, white, and blue, with three layers of custard...oh my was it good!! I already can't wait for it to come around again next year. You can get it with any red flavor, and any blue flavor. I got Strawberry Kiwi with blue Raspberry. I love the extra custard, it's my favorite part of the whole thing. We made it to the fireworks show about a half hour early, so we could walk from where we parked. An best believe I didn't forget that bug off spray, especially since were we were watching the show from was right by a wooded area. We took our chairs and made a comfy spot to watch the show, and what a great show it was, with some length too, and WOW was the finale awesome. We were so glad that we went to Catonsville instead of the Inner Harbor, because downtown there's a huge crime element, and it's not so safe. Plus you're rubbing shoulders with so many people all packed in like a can of sardines. At Catonsville everyone was calm, with a lot of families, it was so much of a better experience. If you plan to see the fireworks next year, definitely make Catonsville High School's Show an option ...I'm so glad we did. I was able to enjoy the show without worrying if my bag or phone was gonna get snatched. I took a clip of the fireworks to share with you guys, and I also posted some in my stories on Instagram. I really hope you all enjoyed hearing about my holiday weekend, how was yours? I'm eager to hear all about them. Maybe you have some good ideas for next year already??


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