one dollar finds

Sometimes, it's really the little things in life that can bring so much joy! This summer,  I found a few edibles that I could buy for $1, which really made my heart happy and got me through long work days. I will continue to hunt for sweet deals like this, but for now I wanted to share what I've discovered so far. xo.

Dollar Days at Schakolad

As a lifetime chocolate lover, I find it kind of strange I never wandered into Shakolad before this summer [after living in the city for almost 4 years.] Nonetheless, I read some tweets announcing the chocolate shop's dollar days this summer and figured it was worth a shot. Two words: life changing! I have tried the chocolate covered strawberry, which was divinely ripe, assorted truffles galore, and the chocolate covered cookies. I'm not sure how long these deals will go on, so I highly recommend you check them out asap!

Where: 106 E. 4th Street, Fort Worth 76102

Breakfast Tacos at Oliver's

Sometimes, cereal or yogurt just don't cut it. Or I just plain overslept and had no time to fix breakfast. Either way, 99 cent breakfast tacos are a satisfying solution to start my morning off right! Besides a growing menu that includes delicious fish tacos, Oliver's serves breakfast tacos every weekday morning from 7-11 a.m. Hint: If you are calorie-concious, ask for egg whites only! There are only two options: bacon or sausage. Perfect for my inability to make decisions early in the morning. One of these days, I'll make it on a weekend to try out their brunch.

Where: 415 Throckmorton Street, Fort Worth 76102

Happy Hour Pizzas at Frankie's

Despite less than stellar service every time I've gone, I have to say the dollar pizzas really made up for it. After attending a happy hour with coworkers a few weeks ago, I was pleasantly surprised that Frankie's had yummy, perfectly proportioned, cheesy pizzas for only a buck! I am not sure if this is a consistent happy hour special or only on certain days, but you should definitely check it out for yourself next time you're in need of a drink after a long day at work.

Where: 425 W. Third Street, Fort Worth 76102

m.i.a. and a cheesecake recipe

Boy, where is the summer going?

I blinked and July is halfway over. And I also realized it's been a few weeks since I've worked on the blog. Truth be told, I started my MBA July1, celebrated my birthday and 4th of July, visited my family, etc. and have thus had little time for writing about the things I love!

I still plan to continue writing and hope to zone in my focus a little more on my wonderful city, Fort Worth. It's just going to take a little time for me to get the hang of this school thing first! Sometimes being a grown up isn't fun but it's necessary, right?

I'll leave you with a recipe and picture of some adorable [and delicious] mini cheesecakes I shared with my coworkers in celebration of the 4th of July. Not only are they less than 100 calories each, but they are just sooo yummy! If you try them, let me know how you like them! xo.

Red White and Blueberry Cheesecake Yogurt Cupcakes 

Recipe via Skinny Taste

Ingredients:

12 reduced fat vanilla wafers
8 oz 1/3 less fat cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
6 oz fat-free vanilla Greek yogurt
2 large egg whites
1 tbsp all purpose flour
8 oz strawberries, hulled and sliced thin
8 oz blueberries

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°.

Line cupcake tin with liners. Place a vanilla wafer at the bottom of each liner.

Gently beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth using an electric mixer. Gradually beat in fat free yogurt, egg whites, and flour. Do not over beat. Pour into cupcake liners filling half way.

Bake 20-25 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool to room temperature then chill at least 1 hour in the refrigerator.

project cupcake | mckinley's

My previous three project cupcake posts have been about cupcake food trucks, but today I'm writing about an actual bakery with a storefront. McKinley's, conveniently located in University Park Village, has been one of my favorite places to get a cupcake fix for years. I actually got my first cupcake crush when I was introduced to their delicious strawberry cupcakes!

Aside from an awesome food menu [the turkey pesto panini and barbie salad are my faves], their bakery is unreal. Everything is baked from scratch each morning, so you have to get there earlier in the day to truly see the entire selection. They have a huge variety of cookies, cakes, pies, monster cinnamon rolls... I'm getting hungry just thinking about it. But the star of this post is obviously the cupcakes.

Cupcake flavors I've tried and liked: Lemon and Strawberry. The end!

Description: These cupcakes are the perfect size. The frosting is always delicious and the cupcakes are always dense, moist, and flavorful. Although I love chocolate as much, or more than, the next girl, I have to say I found the chocolate cupcake verrrry rich. Thus, I usually alternate between Lemon and Strawberry flavors. Also worth noting, the prices for baked items--especially the cupcakes, I've noticed--are the best I've seen so far in Fort Worth. I'm a sucker for a bargain.

Address: 1616 University Drive, Suite 301, Fort Worth, TX 76107

Bakery hours: 8am - 6:30pm Monday-Saturday, 11am - 5pm Sunday

post-workout banana protein shake

I've been focusing a lot more on weights in my workouts these days and in turn, have incorporated more protein in my diet on the days I lift. I'm by no means a heavy weight lifter; I usually stick to the 5 or 10 lb. dumbells depending on the exercise I'm doing.

After one of my most recent workout sessions, I wasn't feeling super hungry but knew I needed to fuel my muscles I'd just worked. I came home and whipped up a little banana protein shake using what I had on hand, and it actually turned out pretty delicious. 

Ingredients

1 medium ripe banana, cut into small chunks

1/2 - 1 scoop vanilla protein powder*

1 large tablespoon of creamy natural peanut butter

1 large tablespoon of fat free plain greek yogurt

1 tsp. cocoa powder

1 tsp. cinnamon

5-8 ice cubes, depending on how thick you like your shakes

a splash of cold water

*If you are doing lots of reps or heavy weights, opt for more protein. As I mentioned, I lift fairly light weights, so I use about 1/2 a scoop of protein in my shakes.

Directions

Toss ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. You may need to add water a little at a time until the ingredients begin to blend--just not too much or it will taste, well, watery! Once blended, you can add more ice cubes for thicker consistency.

Enjoy your post workout treat! xo.

project cupcake | red jett sweets

I wish I hadn't waited so long to write about one of my favorite Fort Worth cupcake vendors. Red Jett Sweets has been a go-to stop when I needed a quick fix for my sweet tooth when I was in the West 7th district, as their truck could often be found at the Fort Worth Food Park.

As of June 9th, the business closed due to the increased amount of time and energy the owners were putting into the business, which resulted in less time for family and friends. Though my heart was deeply saddened with this news, I can only hope some good soul out there will buy the brand and keep these cupcakes going! Because honestly, they are phenom. xo.

Top left: Nuts for Kentucky. Bottom Right: Spotty Dotty Lemon.

Cupcakes I've tried: Red Jett Velvet, Coconut Comet, Nuts for Kentucky, Spotty Dotty Lemon, and Peter Pumpkin.

Description: Perfection. Fantastic texture and density. Perfect frosting consistency. Flavor packed without being too sugary to handle. Normal sized--not too small, not to large.

Address and Hours: None right now! Fingers crossed Red Jett Sweets 2.0 will hit the streets in the coming months.

Twitter: @RedJettSweetsFW