Month in Review: Month of Macro

Well folks, it sure has been an interesting month of "close-ups!" Thanks for joining me as I played around with my new lens!

In addition, starting next week I'm going to cut back a bit on my blog posts until things settle down a bit. I'm planning to post at least once a week, and will get back to my daily (Monday through Friday) posts as soon as I can. Thanks for understanding and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Month of Macro: White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies

Every now and then, I take homemade baked goods to church on Sunday mornings to share with my friends. I've been doing this for years, and have cycled through lots of recipes, including tried-and-true home runs as well as experiments in seasonal ingredients.

Well wouldn't you know it- a couple of weeks ago, a friend admitted to me that even though I'd brought lots of yummy treats to share with the group over the years, I hadn't ever brought one of his favorites. I was shocked, and made sure to bring the elusive treat to church as soon as possible.

In case you haven't guessed from the pictures by now, he had been hoping to see White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies when he arrived at church for years. Unfortunately, since someone in my immediate family is extremely allergic to these tropical little nuts, I never think to use them! Add to that fact the sad reality that white chocolate isn't my thing, and my poor friend could have gone decades without ever trying his favorite cookie from my kitchen... I'm so glad he spoke up when he did!

Since I'd never made this type of cookie before, I was a little nervous about finding a good recipe. After a bit of internet research I stumbled upon one that looked tasty. Although it took me several days (and 5 different stores) to find the nuts, it was definitely worth it.

If you'd like to bake these cookies someday, here's the recipe:

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
(Recipe courtesy That Winsome Girl)

Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips
1 cup chopped macadamia nuts

Directions:
Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl. In a large bowl, beat the melted butter and sugars together with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Beat in the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla until combined. Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add the flour mixture until combined. Mix in the white chocolate chips and macadamia nuts until incorporated. Working with 2 tablespoons of dough at a time, roll the dough into even balls and lay them on the baking sheets, spaced about 2 inches apart. Bake the cookies until the edges are set and beginning to brown but the centers are still soft and puffy (which took about 14 minutes a pan in my oven). Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.

As you can probably imagine, my friend really enjoyed the cookies (as did lots of the other people who got to enjoy them). After a bit of cajoling, I even mustered the courage to try one myself... and it wasn't half bad! And if that's not a ringing endorsement for this lovely recipe, I don't know what is!

Thanks for stopping by- I hope you have a great day!

Month of Macro: Crochet projects

For a while now, I've been crocheting hats to donate to a good cause.

The other day I wanted to count up how many I had crocheted so far...

And once they were all unpacked from the various places I had stored them, I decided to snap a few photos with my macro lens.

It was so interesting seeing what the hats looked like up-close.

Even though I used the same stitch for all the hats...

Since I used different yarns...

Each one looked so different up-close!

See what I mean?

I especially like this shot, because it makes my stitches look really even (even though they usually aren't)!

And this one shows the braided tassels on a snowboarder-type hat!

Of course, I'm always in the midst of a new project...

So I took some photos of that as well. From the hook...

To the yarn...

I think it looks pretty cool- and I can't wait to see the finished product!

Thanks for stopping by- I hope you had a great weekend!

Month of Macro: Sephora shopping

It is no secret that I love Sephora.

And I recently renewed my love interest with the make-up superstore during a quick visit the other day. I actually pass a Sephora on my walk to and from work each day, and it is a HUGE testament to my willpower that I don't stop in to go shopping more often than I already do!

So on my recent visit, I picked up this adorable bottle of perfume.

Not only did it smell wonderful, but it came packaged in the cutest little box!

And bottle itself is decoupaged with abstract floral accents.

So cute, right?

I also picked up a new palette of eye shadows.

I don't know about you, but I love the possibilities that come with a pristine set of shadows...

And with this particular package full of sparkly and matte choices...

I know I'll have some make-up fun in the upcoming days and weeks!

Thanks for joining me for this up-close look at my make-up! I hope you have a great day!

Month of Macro: Peaches

Wanna see some peaches...

Up close?

I took a few shots before I started canning them the other day...

And I kept thinking the focus was acting up because everything looked all "fuzzy".

But I suppose that can be blamed on the peach fuzz and not my camera!

Thanks for stopping by- I hope you had a great day!

Month of Macro: Art project

I made a little art project the other day...

Featuring my favorite state (my home-state of Michigan).

I am by no means an artist...

But I did get a kick out of taking photos of my handiwork after the fact. I was trying so hard to paint smoothly, but as these photos show, I still have a lot of work to do!

But you can't tell from a normal distance, so that's good!

Thanks for stopping by- I hope you have a great day!

Month of Macro: Plums

Over the weekend, I bought some plums.

Since I'm into canning at the moment...

I wanted to take advantage of the great price on plums I found at my local grocer... 

So I picked up a few pounds and made some jam.

Of course, before I started the canning process I took some macro photos.

And while the exterior of the plums were fun to photograph....

I also liked shooting the insides!

I'll admit, I had never taken a close look at a plum slice.

Did you know there were so many veins and juicy protrusions?

I didn't... and now I'll never look at a plum slice the same way again!

Thanks for stopping by- I hope you had a great weekend!