gluten free vegan cinnamon swirl banana bread

banana bread yumminess 

this is a recipe i found on pinterest that i wanted to try gluten free, which i successfully completed, but with  some of my favorite people having to cut out not only gluten but dairy and eggs as well i gave myself the challenge of doing this bread vegan as well as gluten free and it turned out so well i had to share! this is what you need:

3 overripe bananas
1/6 cup smart balance butter like spread (i noticed they have a soy free version as well)
1/6 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp xanthan gum
1 dash salt (i put a few dashes)
3/4 cup tapioca flour
3/4 cup brown rice flour

for the swirl and topping:
1/3 brown sugar
1 Tablespoon cinnamon

1. preheat oven to 350
2. grease a loaf pan (it only makes 1 loaf)
3. mix together bananas, sugar, vanilla and salt
4. melt the butter spread and coconut oil in microwave and add to banana mixture
5. sprinkle baking soda and mix
6. sprinkle xanthan gum and mix
7. add the flours and mix till just mixed together
8. mix together the swirl topping in separate bowl
9. put in a little less than half the batter into the loaf pan
10. sprinkle half the swirl mixture on top of the batter
11. add the rest of the batter to cover the sugar mixture (it's ok if some is peaking through just try to cover as much as you can)
12. add the rest of the sugar mixture to the top
13. bake for 35-45 minutes (checking for doneness to make sure it doesn't get dry)
14. enjoy all you sensitive stomached lovelies!

samoa brownies aka german chocolate brownies

the question on your mind is, "do they taste as good as they look?" the answer, yes.... yes they do. they are caramely and chewy and pretty much as sweet as you can possibly make something. i converted this recipe from one i found called samoa brownies but in retrospect they are much more like german chocolate brownies than anything else, so if you like caramel, chocolate and coconut, read on brother, read on. there are basically 3 elements to this decadent dessert, making the brownies, toasting the coconut and making the caramel, the rest is just flair to make it look good. i started with the caramel first because it needs to cool a little before adding the coconut and being poured on the brownies. a word to the wise, this dessert needs time to cool, you can't just eat it hot or it will be, literally, a hot mess. so here we go!

the caramel sauce is the same that is in my previous post, i doubled the recipe and that was the perfect amount for topping of the brownies. let it cool in fridge but not till it gets hard.

Fudgey Dark Chocolate chip brownies (amazing by themselves too!)

Ingredients:

1. 5 unsweetened chocolate squares
2. 1 1/2 sticks of butter
3. 4 eggs
4. 2 cups of white sugar
5. 2 teaspoons vanilla
   
6. 1 1/3 cups gluten free flour combo (i use 2/3 cups potato starch 2/3 cup brown rice flour)
7. 2 pinches of salt
   
8. 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
9. 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

directions:

1. preheat oven to 350
2. grease 9x13 baking dish
3. in saucepan over med heat melt together unsweetened chocolate squares and butter, stirring occasionally. set aside and let cool slightly.
4. in a large mixing bowl whisk together eggs, sugar and vanilla until creamy
5. whisk in melted chocolate, slowly pouring in the chocolate (so you don't cook the eggs)
6. switch to a large spoon and mix in the flours, salt and xanthan gum
   
7. fold in cup of chocolate chips
   
8. pour batter into pan and smooth top
9. bake for 20-30 minutes (check after 20, do not over cook, the world hates a dry brownie) test with a toothpick in several places
10. let cool (for this recipe put in the fridge to cool quickly)

melted chocolate squares and butter

eggs
sugar added to the eggs
vanilla

adding the chocolate to the eggs
the flour
flour added to mix
mix till smooth
add chocolate chips

pour into the pan

toasted coconut:

1. take 3 cups of shredded coconut (i use sweetened, next time i might do unsweetened since it is smothered in caramel anyway!) and place in a large non-stick pan
2. turn burner to med high heat and stir coconut continuously until golden brown
3. set aside

coconut in pan

the toasted coconut

the toasted coconut added to the caramel

assembly:

1. take all but 1/2 cup of the toasted coconut and pour into the bowl of caramel, stirring until the coconut is covered thoroughly
   
2. pour and smooth the coconut/caramel mixture onto the brownies
3. let cool in fridge for at least an hour
   
4. once cooled , take 1/2 cup of semi sweet chocolate chips (i did not mention this earlier but you should have some left over from the bag you opened to add to the brownies) put in a bowl and microwave it until melted and smooth
5. drizzle the chocolate over the bars, not to cover completely but so you can see little chocolatey squiggles over the top of them.
6. take the 1/2 cup toasted coconut that you had put aside and sprinkle over the top of the bars.
   
7. get a HUGE glass of milk and enjoy!
   

salted caramel sauce

i have, what you call, an obsessive nature, it's a good thing drugs never had any appeal to me, what does appeal to me is sugar. especially browned delicious caramel-y sugar. i have made this recipe several times and it is always amazing and so very easy to make (in fact a little TOO easy since i could sit with a spoon and just eat a bowlful myself). make this recipe to top on ice cream or throw it on your brownies to make them even more decadent. once you see how easy it is you to will be eating everything with caramel on top, trust me on this one.

salted caramel sauce

ingredients:
1/3 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons water

1/3 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

get er done:
1. put the white sugar and 2 tablespoons water in a small saucepan over low heat and let the sugar dissolve completely (stirring occasionally)
2. bring to a boil and cook until the syrup turns to an amber color (no stirring necessary)
3. take off the heat for a moment and add the brown sugar and butter stirring until dissolved
4. put back on medium heat and add cream stirring until incorporated and the caramel is coating the back of the spoon (you have to be your own judge in this, i wait till it is a thicker coating on the back the thinner it looks the thinner your caramel will be)
5. take off heat and add the sea salt
6. put it in a dish and place in the fridge to thicken it up more. i often double this recipe and it works great in larger volumes as well.
7. enjoy!

the water and sugar
getting to the caramel color
adding the butter and brown sugar
adding the cream
waiting for it to cover the back of the spoon
adding the sea salt

done!

gluten free chai tea cake with honey ginger cream cheese frosting

i have done a lot of baking since the last post and for some reason i can never find the time to post the recipes! lameous o'mally. ANYWAY i love converting gluten filled recipes to gluten free ones. it makes me feel like i am adding 1 more thing to someones arsenal that they wouldn't try on their own. when i saw this recipe on pinterest i knew it was a must make. i love spice-y cakes and i love honey even more, how could i go wrong?! so here is the converted recipe from tender crumb

1 and 1/3 cups of milk
6 chai tea bags, without added sweetner, such as Tazo
4 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup brown rice flour
1 1/2 cups potato starch
2 cups of sugar
1 tsp xanthan gum
4 and 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon of salt
2 sticks butter at room temp.

Preheat the oven to 350 Degrees F. Grease the bottom and sides of the pans and line with parchment paper. Grease the paper as well.

In a small saucepan bring the milk to a simmer over low med-low heat. Add the tea bags, careful not to let the paper tag fall into the milk. Remove from heat and allow the tea to steep for 5 minutes. Remove the teabags and squeeze out the milk. Let the chai milk cool completely.(i put mine in the fridge)

In a medium bowl mix the eggs, egg yolks, vanilla, and 1/3 cup of the chai milk. Whisk together.

Combine the flour, potato starch, sugar, baking powder, xanthan gum, cinnamon, cardamom, and salt in the bowl of a mixer. Beat on low for 30 seconds. Add the butter and the remaining chai milk, on med-low speed.

Raise the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy. Add the egg mixture in three additions scraping the between additions. Divide the batter evenly among the pans.

Bake the cakes for 26-28 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for 10 minutes.Remove cakes from pans and peel off parchment paper. Cool completely.

To assemble the cake place one layer flat side down a serving plate and top with 1/2 the icing. Spread to the edge and repeat with second layer. then frost sides.

Honey-Ginger Cream
2 and 1/2 cups of confectioners sugar (i increased it about 1 1/2 cups to make it thicker)
6 ounces of cream cheese at room temp.
6 tablespoons of unsalted butter at room temp.
1/2 cup of honey (any kind as long as liquid)
1/2 teaspoon of fresh grated ginger

whisk together the butter, honey, ginger and cream cheese and slowly add the sugar till whipped to perfection.

flourless peanut butter chocolate chip cookies

so many people have been asking for this recipe as of late that i needed to post it, the thing is i never remembered to take a picture of said delicious cookies! so forgive the post without the picture but here are the best peanut butter chocolate chip cookies ever and there is NO flour and NO butter in site!

1 cup chunky salted organic peanut butter
1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon vanilla

mix all these together in a large bowl then add
1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips (if i double the recipe i add 1/2 cup chocolate chips and 1/2 cup butterscotch chips but it doesn't work as well with a single batch)

grease or use parchment on a cookie sheet and drop tablespoon sized dough balls on to cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes. you will know they are done when they are SLIGHTLY browned on the top.

these are amazing cookies but are very dense. i calculated it out one day and it was about 120 calories per cookie, but because of all the peanut butter that is to be expected. there are the easiest cookies i have ever made and the ones i get the most requests for. i hope you enjoy them!

chocolate chip crackle cookies

i'll make this short and sweet (haha punny) these cookies were one of my favorites before going gluten free but with just a few tweaks i made them just as delicious as i remember.

chocolate chip crackle cookies
1 cup brown rice flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 large eggs
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup confectioners sugar (for rolling the dough in)

1. in a bowl sift together flour, granulated sugar, cocoa, baking powder, xanthan gum and salt.
2. using fingers blend in butter till the dough looks like coarse sand
3. stir in both the eggs and vanilla
4. add chocolate chips and stir until incorporated
5. spread dough in a thin layer along the sides of the bowl and pop into the freezer for 10 min to firm up the dough.
6. preheat the oven to 375
7. put powdered sugar in a bowl and once you get the dough out of the freezer take teaspoon sized dough balls and roll one by one in the powdered sugar until the dough ball looks completely covered and place on greased cookie sheet or parchment paper 2 inches apart.
8. bake for 7 to 8 min or until you see the chocolate peeking through the sugar.

maple pecan pie gluten free

one of the easiest pies to make and SO delicious! sorry my picture uploader is not working so i will be posting a picture as soon as i can.

maple pecan pie:
3/4 cup pure maple syrup
3/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter


3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (gluten free)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups pecan halves

1.stir syrup, brown sugar, corn syrup and butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves.
2.increase heat and boil for 1 minute
3.cool till lukewarm (about 45 min, wait to start #4 till cooled)
4.preheat oven to 350
5.whisk eggs, vanilla and salt in a medium sized bowl.
6.gradually whisk maple syrup mixture into egg mixture.
7.stir in pecan halves
8.take strips of foil and cover edges of pie crust, leave on while baking until about ten minutes before it's done
9. pour mixture into unbaked pie crust.
10.bake for 40-55 min depending on oven heat, watch for a slightly puffed area around the edges and the center to be set.
11.cool completely and serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice-cream
enjoy!

apple crumble pie gluten free

hands down my favorite pie. the yummy crumbly top, the sweet cinnamon-y apples and the flaky crust. the only thing that makes this pie better is some vanilla icecream, i hope you all enjoy it as much as i do!

apple crumble pie:
filling:
6 cups of thinly sliced apples (i use 4 granny smith and 4 fuji apples)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3/4 cup white sugar
3 tablespoons corn starch
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

crumble topping:
3/4 cup brown rice flour
1/4 cup corn starch
1 cup brown sugar
1 stick butter, cold

1 unbaked pie shell (see previous post for super easy pie crust recipe)

1.preheat oven to 375
2.place sliced apples in a large bowl (if you haven't already done so)
3.sprinkle with lemon juice and mix
4.sprinkle with sugar and mix well
5.sprinkle with corn starch and mix well.
6.sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg and mix well. set aside

crumble top:
1.in a small bowl mix together brown rice flour, corn starch and brown sugar
2.cut stick of butter into small pieces into the flour mixture.
3.using your fingers incorporate the butter until the mixture looks like course sand.
4.pour apple mixture into unbaked pie crust
5.sprinkle crumble mixture over apples
6.loosely cover pie with foil
7.bake in preheated oven for 25 min, remove foil and bake an additional 25 to 30 min until top is golden brown.
8. let cool completely before cutting.

a little bit of work but totally worth it!

pumpkin pie gluten free

since thanksgiving is just a few days from getting us all stuffed more than the bird in the oven, i thought i would post these pie recipes for all to enjoy. i used the super easy gluten free pie crust recipe with all the pies that i am going to post. first is the thanksgiving favorite pumpkin pie. not even someone with celliac should miss out on the deliciousness so here it is.

pumpkin pie gluten free:
1 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons ground cinnamon (and to be perfectly honest i always use more to taste)
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons ground ginger (again more to taste)
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
1 cup evaporated milk
2 eggs

1 unbaked pie shell (see previous post for super easy gluten free pie crust)


1.preheat oven to 425
2.combine all the ingredients together, blending until smooth
3.before putting batter into the pie shell take foil and cover the edges of pie, i find if you don't do this the crust gets to brown while the middle is still soft. you can take this foil off 10 min before taking the pie out of the oven.
4.bake at 425 for 15 min, then lower oven temp to 350 and continue to bake for another 30-40 min or until pie is firm. do not over bake.

enjoy!

SUPER easy gluten free pie crust recipe

i don't know about you but pies are something that i usually leave to martha stuart and marie calanders. they are a little temperamental, a whole days worth of work and the difference in taste from the ones you get at the store is well, slim to none. that is until i found the easiest, most perfect pie crust recipe. pie filling generally is not that difficult to put together but the crust, is too much dang trouble. well set your worries aside and get a load of this. there are only 4 ingredients. that's right 4! 3 if you use wheat flour. you have to admit that sounds pretty amazing. i will keep you in suspense no longer.

gluten free crust: (makes 1 pie shell, double if you need a full top and bottom crust)

4oz full fat cream cheese softened to room temperature
1 stick salted butter softened to room temperature

whip together in mixer until very creamy and fully mixed (switch attachment from whisk to beater) then add:

1/2 cup brown rice flour
1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum (for those who eat wheat omit the xanthan gum and use regular flour)

mix thoroughly then add:

1 cup brown rice flour until a ball forms on the beater

put a little brown rice flour on your hands and work the ball till it's flat
*note: gluten free dough is difficult to roll out, the best way i have found is to flatten as much as possible and then in a greased pie pan place the dough in the middle and work it with your fingers till it starts working up the sides and fills the pan. i did this today and it worked like a charm!

use with any of your pie recipes and enjoy the buttery flaky easy crust!
p.s. pictured here is my pumpkin pie that i will be posting shortly.

gluten free s'mores bars

there is nothing better in the world than a s'more. these are amazing but VERY VERY sweet, i wondered if i should double the recipe to make a bigger pan and i am glad i didn't because you only need a small piece to be satisfied! thanks charity for the recipe, it was easy to convert and to make! enjoy:)

S’More Cookie Bars gluten free
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups flour mix (3/4 cup brown rice flour, ¼ cup corn starch, 1/3 cup sweet rice. ¼ teaspoon xanthan gum)
3/4 cup gluten free graham cracker crumbs
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 king-sized dark chocolate bars (if you can't find king sized go for 4 reg. sized, i used ghirardelli baking bars)
1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme/fluff (not melted marshmallows)
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light. Beat in egg and vanilla.
In a small bowl, whisk together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture and mix at a low speed until combined. Divide dough in half and press half of dough into an even layer on the bottom of the prepared pan.
Place chocolate bars over dough. 2 king-sized ghirardelli bars should fit perfectly side by side, but break the chocolate (if necessary) to get it to fit in a single layer no more than 1/4 inch thick.
Spread chocolate with marshmallow creme or fluff.
Place remaining dough in a single layer on top of the fluff (i took large handfulls and patted them like a hamburger patty until flat and laid them on top of the fluff).
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until lightly browned.
Cool completely before cutting into bars (seriously if you don't you have a mess, i who like everything warm, liked them even better the next day when it was completely cool and easy to cut)
Makes 16 cookie bars.

gluten free summer berry cobbler

i have been doing a lot of baking these last few weeks, i think there is something very therapeutic in taking ingredients mixing them together and making something that your friends and family can enjoy. here is one of my all time favorites, taken from one of my mom's recipes and made gluten free. i use frozen berries because it is WAY easier and very inexpensive, i once made this with fresh berries and it cost me fifty dollars for the berries alone! so i would go with the frozen and then you can have a cobbler with berries that are not necessarily in season. my favorite combo is blackberry and raspberry because the tartness goes well with the sweet dumpling like topping. i hope you enjoy it as much as i do!

Summer berry cobbler with coconut pecan topping (gluten free)

Toss together:
8 cups blackberries (or other berries, if frozen thaw slightly)
1 cup sugar
¼ cup instant tapioca (granulated)
juice of ½ a lemon
pinch of salt

after tossing the berries with the sugar, tapioca, lemon juice and salt spoon into a 9 by 13 baking dish and set aside

dry ingredients:
1 cup sweet rice flour
1/8 teaspoon xanthan gum
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup sugar
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
½ cup pecans coursly chopped

wet ingredients:
½ cup cold butter cubed
1 egg

1.Preheat oven to 375
2.in a med bowl combine all the dry ingredients together
3.Add the butter to dry ingredients and knead the butter until incorporated (mixture should look like course sand)
4.Blend in egg and arrange topping over the berry mixture in baking dish (the mixture should be sticky and clumpy)
5.Bake the cobbler for 45-50 min or until the entire top is golden and crisp and the filling is thick and bubbly.
6.Let cool and serve with vanilla icecream

gluten free blueberry crumb bars

This recipe was posted to one of my favorite fashion blogs and i wanted to make it instantly. Of course, she isn't gluten intolerant so i had to tweak it to make it work for me but it was buttery and delicious and turned out just like what i thought it would. Here is my tweaked recipe but i will add a note for those who just want to make it with regular flour. i hope you enjoy it as much as i did!

Blueberry crumb bars

2 cups brown rice flour
3/4 cup sweet rice flour
1/4 cup corn starch
1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
(or use 3 cups all purpose flour instead of above ingredients)
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
the zest of 1 lemon
1 cup cold butter
1 egg

4 cups fresh blueberries
the juice of the zested lemon
1/2 cup white sugar
4 teaspoons cornstarch

1. preheat the oven to 375 and grease a 9 by 13 pan
2. place the blueberries in a med sized bowl and set to the side
3. in a med bowl stir together sugar, flours, xantahn gum, baking powder, salt and lemon zest.
4. using your fingers mix in the butter until a grainy, sand like mixture then add the egg and mix. the dough will be slightly sticky and crumbly.
5. pat half of the flour mixture into the bottom of prepared pan
6. in a another small bowl mix together the 1/2 cup sugar and 4 teaspoons cornstarch
7. take the bowl of blueberries and pour the lemon juice over the top mixing gently
8. add the flour/cornstarch mixture to the blueberries and mix gently until coated
9. pour blueberries on top of the crust in pan
10. crumble remaining dough over the blueberries
11. bake for 45 min or until top is golden brown (mine took about 55 min, this one is better to cook longer than too short) cool completely before cutting into squares

gluten free white chocolate cranberry cookies

Gluten free white chocolate cranberry cookies

Dry ingredients:

2 cups brown rice flour

½ cup corn starch

½ cup sweet rice flour

¾ teaspoon xantan gum

1 teaspoon baking soda

¾ teaspoon salt

Wet ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

1 cup packed golden brown sugar

¾ cup sugar

2 large eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 ½ cups dried cranberries

1 pkg. white chocolate chips

1. pre-heat oven to 350
2. in a large bowl wisk together dry ingredients
3. in standing mixer (or hand mixer) beat butter until fluffy
4. add both sugars to butter and beat until blended
5. beat in eggs one at a time, then the vanilla
6. switch standing mixer to paddle attachment and on med speed add dry ingredients a cup at a time until well incorporated.
7. Using a spatula stir in cranberries and white chocolate chips
8. Spoon onto greased cookie sheet and bake for approx 10 min, or until the top of cookies is just golden (do not overcook)

gluten free yellow cupcakes with chocolate frosting

So since realizing that i was gluten intolerant months ago i have been trying to replicate all of my favorite baked goods, some with success some...lacking. One of the biggest challenges has been cake. Every time i tried a different recipe it would be grainy or tasting slightly of beans...yummy in a burrito but not so much in a cake. Well, i finally scoured books at the local Barnes and Noble (to the chagrin of the employees who had to put them all away) and found this recipe. It is the closest i have come to what i remember yellow cake is supposed to taste like. It's fluffy and light, just the right amount of sweetness and actually tastes yummy warm (a requirement in my book). First of all the trick was to change up my flour, i realized that the Red Mills gluten free flour is good for many things but for sweet things like cakes i needed a more finely ground and sweeter flour. This recipe calls for white rice flour, which is not very healthy but let's face it, if you are making cupcakes is not really a requirement. i found it easy to make and topped with my favorite chocolate frosting it was delish! Even my mom, who is an amazing cook and baker, said she couldn't even tell they were gluten free which is the ultimate compliment! So here you go!

Classic Yellow Cake

1 cup plus 2 Tbls. white rice flour

1 cup corn starch

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. xantham gum

1 tsp. salt

1 cup butter softened

1 cup granulated sugar

4 large eggs

1/2 cup milk

2 tsp. vanilla

1. preheat oven to 350

2. grease pans or prepare cupcake papers

3. in med bowl wisk together dry ingredients (except the sugar)

4. in another larger bowl beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy, add eggs and beat.

5. add dry ingredients and mix until combined

6. add milk and vanilla and blend until batter is thoroughly combined and fluffy.

7. bake rounds for around 25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean, if cupcakes it's right around 18 minutes.

8. frost with your favorite frosting.

(from Elizabeth Barbone's book Easy Gluten Free baking

pandora

So the other day daniel had music playing through the computer when i came home and i asked him what he was listening to and he replies, "pandora" HUH? What is pandora?...and thus my world has changed. I think that I am the last person in the world to figure it out but if you are like me and you have no idea what i am talking about prepare to be amazed. Go to www.pandora.com to try it. All you do is put an artist or a song in, for example regina spektor, and they CREATE a station for you based on whatever band or song you put in. So you get to hear all sorts of amazing music that sounds similar to the music you love! i KNOW i couldn't believe it either AND it's totally free. I am LOVING it and finally feeling like i can be cool enough to say, “have you heard of the broken bell?” now all i need is some some jorts that have the pockets hanging out, oxfords and a bowler hat.

clothes i need

under shirts

another summery dress

a perfect leather jacket, soft and light but still tough

how CUTE is this?!

i love dresses

summery dresses

a floral skirt

floral watercolor (i truly had this description on my list and i think this dress hits the nail on the head)

more summer skirts

though not on my list exactly it is now

this just says "wear me to the beach" but can also be great for work

a fun flirty blouse

a button-up white blouse

casual "weekend" pants

black trousers

kind of like wearing my yoga pants but not so shlumpy

i couldn't decide which ones i liked better so i put both "black heels for work"

So, i have an ever growing list on my phone of items that i need to buy, so that when i am out shopping i don't say to myself..."what am i forgetting that i need?!" What tends to happen anyway is that i pick up things i like and not the staples i need to stretch my wardrobe. Buying a white button up is infinitely less interesting than buying a flowered skirt or bright heels, so i am going to go through my list and post pictures of options for myself so i can get inspired to get the pieces i truly need.