Weekend Bliss

I've been MIA recently because I haven't had a whole lot to write about. I figured instead of blogging about things that would probably bore you to tears (like my fall TV show list and how much time I spend looking for apartments online), I would just stay silent until something worth blogging about came along.

So here it goes, this weekend I took another trip to Rochester. It was the weekend from Heaven. The first few weeks from when I got back from Rochester the first time seemed to go by pretty quickly. I was busy enough that October got here earlier than expected, but the last two weeks have dragged on and this weekend couldn't seem to come soon enough.

I took a red eye Wednesday night so by the time I got to Rochester Thursday morning I was exhausted. But after a shower and a nap I was ready to go, and Christian got home early from school so we got to spend the afternoon together.

We did a lot of my favorite things this weekend. Living in Provo by myself, I haven't gone out and done a lot this semester (which has been admittedly hard for me), so not only was it amazing to be with Christian, but it was so fun to get out and do things together. 

The weather in Upstate New York is my favorite of all time currently. Chilly with a crisp breeze, and crunchy leaves under our feet. The leaves were just at the final moments of their fall transformation this weekend, right before they fall and leave the forests barren for Winter. 

Between the colors and breathtaking landscapes, I spent the whole weekend telling everyone, "I can't believe how pretty it is here!"

You would have thought that I had never been to the Northeast before- let alone lived there. 

Here are a few shots from one of the best weekends I can remember:

A shot from our walk around Mendon Ponds Park, a park close to my parents' home.

Thursday afternoon we went to Powers Farm Market, a small local produce store that I've been going to during the fall since I was a child. In the fall they have fresh apples, a pumpkin patch, a petting zoo, and man-made corn husk TeePees that they fill with lit jack-o-lanterns.

Chin and I spent the afternoon drinking hot cider and eating pumpkin donuts, exploring the TeePees, feeding the goats, and picking out the perfect pumpkin. In my definition, pure bliss. 

A few more shots from our walk in the park:

On Friday we went with my parents to one of my favorite eating spots in Rochester, Olive's Greek Taverna.
I've mentioned it a lot on here (like, it's a strange obsession), but I always find myself wanting to go here every time I visit. 
Their chicken gyros and Greek feta dill fries are incredible, and so fresh and light (as light as french fries can be). 
Post dinner we went to see Perks of Being a Wallflower. I haven't read the book so I'm not sure how it compares, but the movie was amazing. Funny, but touched on a lot of intense issues that don't often get portrayed in film.

My view from my parents' deck Saturday morning.

Saturday night we had some of Chin's friends from medical school over for dinner. I had met them once before but felt like I knew them already because Chin talks about them so much (and they lived up to all the hype- here's hoping I did too!). 

On Sunday, my flight left in the early afternoon. After church Chin and I took my pup Rusty on a walk around my parents' pond and the neighborhood. Rusty decided to be rebellious and run off and get himself in a little trouble, but we had so much fun chasing him around and keeping him out of his pond. 

Overall, it was an amazing weekend, and it was really REALLY hard to leave. Sometimes I wonder if it's wise for me to even visit at all, because every time I leave it gets harder and harder. But, it's so worth it to see Chin. 

P.S. Sorry for the picture overload, I'm trying to document our time together as much as possible this semester.

How was your weekend?

all things pumpkin: Sunday Morning Pumpkin Waffles

did i ever tell you guys that the Ping household is heavily obsessed with breakfast?

i make it for dinner on a regular basis, and on the lucky occasions that Chin is home on Sunday mornings and not at church meetings,

we sleep in lattteeeee,

and make a huge breakfast.

is there anything better than pumpkin and chocolate in October?

you might try to argue with me, but let's face it...

nothing.

i do declare that nothing is better.

turn that combination into waffles topped with fresh whipped cream and syrup?

oh hello sweet child of mine.

i can't begin to tell you about these waffles.

they are fluffy beyond belief, and melt in your mouth. they taste like Halloween and smell like pumpkin pie baking in the oven on Thanksgiving.

trust me on this one.

and now i leave this gem of a recipe with you.

to brighten your Sunday morning (or ANY morning for that matter).

Ultimate Pumpkin Waffles

1/4 cup brown sugar

3 tbsp. cornstarch

1 1/4 cup flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 3/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

2 large eggs

1 cup milk

1 cup canned pumpkin

4 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

Spray your waffle maker with cooking spray, set aside to let heat. Combine brown sugar and cornstarch in a large bowl, whisk together. Add rest of dry ingredients, whisk to blend. Separate eggs into two separate small-medium sized bowls. Add milk and pumpkin to egg yolks, whisk to combine. Slowly add melted butter, whisking to combine. set aside. 

With a hand mixer or your kitchen aid stand mixer, whip the egg whites on high speed until stiff peaks form, about 2 minutes. set aside.

Add the pumpkin mixture to dry ingredient, mixing until just combined. Little lumps are fine.

Slide the whipped egg whites out of their bowl into the pumpkin batter. Gently fold them into the batter until no more white appears. 

Cook in your waffle maker, serve with fresh whipped cream, chocolate chips, syrup, or all three.

:)

Fall Treats #12: Cinnamon Swirl Bread

remember how i'm terrible at making bread?

you probably don't. but i do.

the only form of bread that i have ever been able to even remotely make, is pizza dough.

because i have the best, easiest recipe for pizza dough ever.

but that's about it.

i tried to make rolls once, and they turned out like rocks.

itty, bitty, flat, chewy rocks.

nastayy.

so when this bread turned out like a dream come true, i wanted to cry for joy.

and since it looked so pretty, i didn't really care how it tasted.

until i tried a bite.

then my mouth was swirled into cinnamony-sugar sweet pandemonium.

does cinnamon swirl bread bring back childhood memories for you too? to me, it reminds me of my grandma jane and how she would always let me have cinnamon swirl toast when i would eat breakfast with her and grandpa in the summer time.

those were my favorite mornings.

so let's talk bread.

layers of gooey ooey cinnamony bread that's all swirled up into one. with a smooth crust and slightly crunchy bottom. add the cream cheese glaze and you might as well whisk me away to a nostalgic paradise.

plus, it works. the dough rises. and isn't flat as a rock and doesn't taste like playdough.

leading me to the best part:

if bread-challenged Hayley can make this bread, anyone can.

meaning you. so you should stop everything you're doing, and make the bread. and eat it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and midnight snack like i did.......

Cinnamon Swirl Bread with a Cream Cheese Glaze

adapted from Apartment Therapy

makes 2 loaves of awesomeness.

1 cup warm water

1 packet active dry yeast

1 cup milk

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted

2 tsp. salt

5 1/2 - 6 cups flour

for the filling:

1/2 cup white sugar

1 1/2 tbsp. cinnamon

2 tbsp. butter, melted

2 loaf pans, greased with cooking spray

for the glaze:

4 oz. cream cheese, very soft

1/2 cup confectioner's sugar

4 tbsp. milk

1/4 tsp. vanilla

In a medium bowl, combine glaze ingredients with a whisk until well-blended with no lumps, with a nice glaze consistency. set aside.

Pour the cup of warm water into the bowl of your electric mixer. Sprinkle yeast over top. Wait 2-3 minutes, then stir to fully dissolve yeast into water.

Stir in the milk, melted butter, and salt into water. Add 5 1/2 cups of the flour and stir with a wooden spoon to form a shaggy dough.

Knead with your dough hook in your mixer on low speed for 8-10 minutes to form a smooth, slightly tacky dough. If halfway through kneading dough is very sticky, add a little more flour. 

Spray a large bowl with cooking spray and put ball of dough into the bowl and cover. Let rise in a warm, draft-free place (i use the microwave) for one hour, or until doubled in bulk.

Meanwhile, combine sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and melt 2 tbsp. butter.

Once the bread has risen, divide the dough into 2 pieces. Working on one piece at a time, roll the dough out onto floured surface. The dough should be slightly less wide than the loaf pan you will use, and as long as you can make it. 

Brush the surface of the dough with melted butter, leaving 2 inches at the top without butter. Sprinkle generously with cinnamon-sugar. Starting at the end closest to you, roll up the dough. Once rolled, pinch the seam closed. Transfer to your greased loaf pan seam-side down. Repeat with other half of dough. 

Let the loaves rise in their respective loaf pans (covered with a dish towel) until mounded to at least the top of the pan (35-40 minutes). Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until golden brown on top.

Remove the loaves from pan and drizzle glaze over top. Sprinkle with any remaining cinnamon-sugar.

Serve hot, warm, or room temperature and be prepared to be knocked off your feet.

:)

apple picking

when i was a little girl, my dad used to take me and my sister, Maren, to the apple farm to pick apples every september. back then it seemed as though we were picking apples for hours and hours, and that the tractor ride lasted a few miles. 

this past weekend, we went as a family to the apple farm, and while the tractor ride only took us up the hill of the orchard, i felt right back at home,

filled with nostalgia from my childhood.

to document:

i love this picture of my grandma, she was mid-apple bite and i still insisted on taking the picture.

 thoroughly love him with all the strength i can muster

mama

 not like any apple you'd ever find practically anywhere else. fresh off the tree, tart, sweet, juicy, and crisp.

 what i wore:

gifted satchel, Gap pants, Target boots, Anthropologie tee, Fossil watch

 such a cute picture of one of the cutest families i ever did see. i loved being home with Noel and Amber and their kids. Because they don't live in Utah like my sisters, I don't see them nearly as much. Any chance we get to spend together I am so grateful for.

 mutant over-grown tractor?

 Noel and his boys

 i loved looking through all of their baked goods. i may have drooled.

 pure nostalgia.

 spoils of war: fresh apple cider (that doesn't taste like Provo's sickeningsweetappleciderthatreallytasteslikejuicemadefromconcentrate) and cinnamon and glazed donuts.