Dominican Republic Trip Reminiscing

One year ago I was on a warm, sandy beach looking out at crisp blue ocean. And drinking unlimited frozen drinks. ::sigh::

There was even a cabana on the beach in which to obtain said unlimited drinks:

This would have been a perfect picture if I had taken it before random bikini-top woman had walked into view:

Our room welcomed us with tropical flowers and cute towel creatures:

(ok, these weren't all in our room...)

(I sorta have an obsession with taking pictures of my drinks.)

We stayed at one of the Riu's there and loved it. You could walk across the coastline from one end of their property to the next, which spanned 3 different hotels. Plus, nothing is better than ALL INCLUSIVE. Seriously, I may never go back.

Tell me- what's your favorite sunny vacation spot? Have any good vacation stories? I'd love to hear!

Swedish Fish in Newport, RI

Ah Newport, Rhode Island.

Home to mansions, yacht clubs, and the infamous Swedish Fish.

The bf and I went for a quick weekend away in Newport this past weekend. We discovered many things, and I got to try my borrowed 35mm slr (?) camera. Take a look and see the weekend as we toured it.

Saturday late morning: beautiful pink trees in the Upper Thames Street shopping area.

Then we got lucky and found some street-level seats at a Panini shop. So we ate some delish panini's in (Portabello Mushroom one for me) in the sun while people-watching:

Browsing cute shops in Newport is a must, and this one (P.S. Too I think it was called) was super fun:

They had a  purse made out of can tabs-

I found some dogs. This one was tied to a tree, it's owner trusting him to stay put (and friendly, since a bunch of people tried to pet him as they walked by)

(second pic is him yawning. I know he looks all tough...he wasn't).

Ok, we discovered Thames Street. Very cool, especially on a nice sunny day. But I wanted ocean pictures! So we went for the scenic drive:

 (have to give credit to Ryan, he took some of these while I was messing around with my borrowed camera...which didn't capture pictures quite as well as the ole' point and shoot).

Drinks at H20 on the water is a must. Go at sunset, and the reflection of the water (5 feet away from you/under you) is just stunning.

Ok, so then we went to the Red Parrot for dinner. This is the home of the Swedish Fish, a surprising frozen blend of respberries, banana and tequila, topped with 3-4 real Swedish Fish candies. I'm not sure how those flavors work, but it tastes EXACTLY like a Swedish Fish. (No picture due to previously mentioned drinks and poor Droid-picture-taking skills, but check out the Red Parrot Frozen Drink Menu).

Sunday!

The Cliff Walk is a 3 1/2 mile ocean-side walk along Newport's coast. It's romantic....and breezy. And truly beautiful. My pics don't do it justice since it was sort of cloudy when we went, so I won't include a lot.

I loved the mixed terrain. It would go from sidewalk to rocks to sand to...a tunnel!

...And then there were mansions.

I learned more about the Vanderbilt's and old, Gilded Age society than I ever thought possible. Yet it was super interesting and I highly recommend going to at *least* the Breakers.

As we were leaving Newport, I stumbled on this bright pink tree and unique little house (may have been on the Salve Regina campus, which bt overlooks the Cliff Walk and omg why did I not go there):

Hope you enjoyed the tour through Newport, RI!

Vegan Brownies

 Let me preface this post by saying I am not vegan. At all.

However, I was searching for a healthier, less-guilt version of brownies and came across this recipe. The original called for an egg, and I tried it that way first. Not bad. Then I did some more research and found out that a half of a banana can be substituted for an egg, so I tried it this time and YUM.

Vegan Brownies
Dry Ingredients:
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Wet Ingredients:
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce (I use a store brand for baking)
1/2 cup Hershey's baking cocoa (or other, but Hershey's has shown the best results)
1/2 cup honey (I used an expensive local kind and it came out delicious, but I bet store brand would work just as well)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 medium sized banana

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Stir together dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl. In a separate medium sized bowl, stir together the applesauce and unsweetened cocoa.

Mash or blend the banana really well. Add mashed banana, honey, and vanilla to applesauce and cocoa mix. Beat well.

Combine both sets of ingredients. Spray an 8x8 pan with a non-stick spray and pour mixture into the pan.

Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until cooked through the center.*

Yummy brownies with a hint of banana flavor (hey, banana and chocolate love each other, right?). Enjoy!

*Note: The first time I made this recipe, I put it in a glass pie pan (because I didn't have an 8x8 pan) and I felt like the brownies were too thin for my liking. So this time, I used a bread load pan. Meh. Ended up coming out like a brownie loaf (really thick) and took like 45 minutes to bake through. Go for the 8x8.