Saturday, June 10, 2017

Summer 2017 Bucket List

Hey everyone! I hope all is well :) It is getting toasty here in the Northeast just in time for the weekend. I thought it would be appropriate to post my summer bucket list to go with the blazing summer heat! Unfortunately summer is the busiest time of year for us here at work but I'm hoping to still make the best of the time that I do have. I would love to hear what you have planned for the summer as well!


Like every year, getting to the farmers market is always something I like to do during the summer. Unfortunately, my local market is VERY small. I'm talking 12ish vendors small and only two produce vendors. I still like to go and support them and get what I can. There is a slightly bigger one about 20-30 minutes away from me and I usually go there once or twice a year so I'm looking forward to getting there too. I actually went for the first time today and I didn't really get much because I just wanted to see what they had. But I do have to show you something I did find!!


You guys!!! It's a vegan macaron!! What?! I saw the Macaron vendor on the farmers market Facebook page and took a total shot in the dark and visited their page. I knew it was possible now with aquafaba but didn't think it would actually be an option! As of right now the only flavor they have is Raspberry (pictured above) but we were chatting on Facebook and they are developing a chocolate mint flavor!! That is much more my speed. Raspberry is not my favorite flavor but I did still want to try it! I'll let you know how it is! She said that she is hoping to have the Chocolate Mint in two weeks :D


With all that being said about the macarons, another one of my goals for the summer is to really start baking again and I really want to play with aquafaba. As you all know, I'm a huge fan of the Great British Bake Off and there are so many recipes that I want to try that require egg whites and meringue and now we have the opportunity to try those out!! One of my biggest goals is to figure out a vegan tri-color cookie recipe. I also want to try to make macarons (although the humid NY summer may make that difficult) and now I can make almond paste (I'm pretty sure that has egg whites in it too). Anyway, I'm really excited to experiment with aquafaba.


When I was a kid I couldn't read enough. Once I hit high school and reading for class became a chore I slowed down quite a bit. I recently started reading again before bed and I have really been enjoying it as a way to relax before I go to sleep. I am a non-fiction kind of gal and prefer memoirs and things like that. I think I just like to learn about other people and read their stories. I am always looking for recommendations so if you have any good ones please let me know in the comments below!


I am fortunate enough to live on Long Island which is rich with history and just has a lot of cool stuff going on and a lot of interesting places to explore. I really want to explore a little more this year. A few years ago I did a post on Sands Point and talked a little about the Gold Coast Mansions. I'd love to check out more of the mansions and beautiful preserves that we have here. There is one place in particular (going to keep it a secret for now) that is REALLY cool and I really want to go photograph so I'm definitely going to have to make time to do that.


I've mentioned in the past that I'm really inspired by minimalism. I don't necessarily think it is a goal for me for this summer to become a minimalist because realistically speaking I don't think that's going to happen. I do really want to start cutting down my "stuff" though. I have a lot of "stuff" and I don't use a lot of it. I am looking forward to really cutting down on what I have limiting the clutter in my life. I feel like there is a lot of clutter inside of my head so to live with it around me just makes everything more chaotic for me.

So I think that is it for my main goals for the summer! What aquafaba recipes would you like to see me make? What are some of the items on your summer bucket list? Let me know!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend <3 I'm looking forward to starting mine soon :)







10 comments:

Beverlee said...

Oh. My. Dog. Such an excellent post! Where do I start? We are such kindred spirts that I just can't. Raspberry is my last choice in anything; it always tastes so artificial. I love reading memoirs and any book about ordinary people that have done extraordinary things and stores about perseverance. I live like a monk because I like minimalism and hate stuff that clutters. We are such a culture that worships consumerism and "he who dies with the most stuff wins", but I'm not buying it (no pun intended). If I don't have it, it's probably because I don't need it. Please post history about Long Island! I don't have any summer plans but a summer-long history lesson would be great! :)

Hillary said...

Raspberries are in my top five of favorite fruits so that Macaron looks delicious!
I have never been the best baker, and ever since going gluten free I'm really not a baker, so I'm super excited to see what you make. Especially if you experiment with aquafaba which is really interesting to me.
I'd love to learn more about Long Island as I don't know much at all.
I love memoirs too, but I also love fiction. Reading is seriously one of life's pleasures.
I became a minimalist against my will years ago in Seattle, but looking back it's one of the best things to ever happen to me. It's freeing and I feel so much more connected with what's really important. I could go on for hours about it but I won't bore you.
Amazing post!!!

Jennifer said...

So many similar goals! Or problems? XD There aren't many produce booths at farmer markets! I was surprised how many are pre-made foods, meats, and cheeses! And some non-food items. I guess it doesn't matter too much for me since I am part of CSA. But sometimes crops are bad and it would be nice to get things from other local farmers.

I wanna try aquafaba too! I haven't yet, and I see all the cool baked goods from The Great British Bake Off. My husband wants to give them a try but most are out of our reach.... I mean he probably should use an already existing recipe instead of trying to make up his own. XD

Long Island I make fun of a lot but it does have some great places. (It's like a smaller New Jersey- lots of outside hate, lots of pride inside) If you don't live on the island it is such a pain to make day trips. I mean there really isn't many different roads to get onto the island- and you have to drive through a city! I would love to hear about the places you visit. Maybe it will give me some inspiration to do more than just visit my Grandmother.

Ingrid said...

I haven't made it yet to a Farmer's Market, and you are reminding me to get there! How gorgeous is that macaron! You should totally try to make some!

I don't get my hands on a lot of new fiction, so my recommendations are going to be based on classics. I want to get back into the handful of titles I have sitting on my desk at home, so if they are worthwhile - I'll let you know!

I remember your post about the Gold Coast Mansions, and I would love to see another installment!!

I'm so with you on wanting to cut down on stuff. Living in 700 sq ft means that everything feels like a lot!

I love all of your bucket list items, and can't wait to see what you do!!

Sarah said...

Aww we are kindred spirits! I always feel like the weirdo that isn't into raspberry but I think you are right, there is something artificial tasting about it… even regular jam or jelly. Do you have any memoir recommendations? I really need to start cutting the clutter. It's been driving me really nuts lately.

I will definitely do my best to get to some cool spots on Long Island and share them. Although I can't do the 95 degree weather we've been having, haha!

Sarah said...

The macaron was good but super sweet. I think it was the jam filling that was super sweet. I can't wait to try the new flavor though. It is a chocolate mint flavor so I think that the sweetness should hopefully be cut. I can't wait to experiment with aquafaba!

I will definitely share my adventures on Long Island and I'll be looking to you for some more book recommendations! I'm going to start How To Murder Your Life this week and I'm really excited! I think you are so right, it's really a great way to connect to what you do have and to really understand why it is important to have in your life.

Thank you :)

Sarah said...

How funny is it that there aren't a lot of produce vendors! We don't have any craft vendors, they aren't allowed at the markets. I actually wanted to sell jewelry but was told that it's only food and plants/flowers I guess. I should look into CSA boxes.

I am obsessed with all of the cool stuff they make on the GBBO. I think the first things I want to tackle are pavlovas (summer berries!!!) and I also want to try to make tri color cookies. I hope to see your experiments too!

Haha everyone makes fun of Long Island, especially Long Islanders. In high school our Friday and Saturday night was going to get coffee and driving around for hours listening to stupid music. And we had the best time :) It's a pain to get to a lot of places but there are a lot of beautiful spots and some more vegan places popping up too! There is a place in Northport called The Purple Elephant that has TONS of vegan options that I'm hoping to get to. I really want to visit a lot of the parks and preserves too.

Sarah said...

From what I remember from your pictures, your farmers market looks amazing! I hope you get to go soon! I really want to try to experiment with macarons!

Thank you! Any recommendations are great!

Aww thanks! I don't know if I'll do the mansions or other spots but I'll try to get out to some when the weather is a little more mild.

I just hate the clutter! It drives me nuts and it's so unnecessary.

Thank you! I'm hoping this will be a great summer :)

Vegan In The VI said...

How exciting about the Macarons? I have never had one so I dont know what I am missing, but I want to find out. If someone could make a Vegan Lemon Meringue Pie, that would be awesome!

I remember your Gold Coast Mansions posts as well, cant wait to see what secret place you are gonna show us.

I am a fan of minimalism. Already collecting too much crap in this new place after getting rid of everything in Virginia.

Awesome and thought-provoking post!

Sarah said...

I am so excited about the macarons!! The raspberry one was very sweet but I'm hoping the chocolate ones won't be as sweet. Ooooh! A lemon meringue pie is a great idea! I'll have to figure out how to make lemon curd with no egg yolks I guess.

Haha it's not this crazy secret place but it is VERY cool for sure! I'm really excited to check it out myself!

The clutter is seriously driving me nuts. I have been sick since last week but I'm really going to try and get my big clean out started this weekend.

Thank you so much, I'm glad you enjoyed it!