Quarantine Challenges Taking Over Social Media

Peggy Lu — Sat, 23 May 2020 08:02:29 +0000

With the Covid-19 quarantine challenges happening world wide, people have been finding ways to keep entertained. Taking to social media is even more of a trend than ever before.

Most of time with these quarantine challenges, it’s entertaining to watch. However now with being stuck at home, I have to admit I’m doing challenges that I normally would find a waste of time doing. Now I find it a great way to past the time and have social interaction.

What Are Social Media Challenges?

Anything you can think of doing and then getting others to participate to do the same thing.

In the past, there’s the iconic #icebucketchallenge where it started off as a fundraising campaign to internet sensation as people posted creative ways to dump bucket of ice on themselves. From then on, it lead to many other types of challenges. A favorite of mine was the #chairchallenge.

Some Challenges to Do With Your Pets

I’m sure your pet is loving that you are home more now. However, resentful that for now no more doggie parks or fun car rides. Keep them occupied with some of these quarantine challenges!

Cat and Dog Obstacle Course Challenge requires you to set up a little obstacle with pretty much any small things that can stand upright. Then have your dog and/or cat walk through it without knocking it over.

Toilet Paper Wall Level Up Challenge is where you build a wall with toilet paper and have your dog or cat jump over it. Then keep building the height to see how high the wall can be without being knocked over. Great way to make use of all that toilet paper you realized your overstocked.

Some Food Challenges For the Adventurous

With the “safer at home” happening, people are being more and more creative in their cooking. For example, there’s the Dalgona Coffee that was trending all over social media a few weeks back.

If you take it up a notch, then you have these viral food hacks that people are recreating inspired from Tik Tok.

Here are some of our favorites! FYI you got to try the Oreo cake food hack!

This video below has a mac-n -cheese cooking hack that is super easy and saves so much time. However, the MUST try quarantine food is the chocolate chip cookie recipe she shows in the video from a Tik Tok post.

Family or Couples Challenges For Fun

Being quarantine at home with your love ones can be fun till you run out of things to do. Then you might started running out of ideas and start finding each other annoying. Don’t worry! Try

Horse Challenge or Ride Me Challenge is one of the most hilarious thing to happen during this quarantine and we are loving it. Watch below to see why.

What’s more fun than Family Dance Challenge? One of our favorite is this family dancing to “Ice Ice Baby.” What would be your family theme song?

Check out my recipe of Dalgona Coffee. My version has a twist!

The post Quarantine Challenges Taking Over Social Media appeared first on The Hangry Girly.

Easy Recipe For The Best Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Peggy Lu — Tue, 05 May 2020 00:29:47 +0000

How do you like your cookies? Do you prefer it to be crispy or chunky? How about soft and chewy cookies? For me nothing beats a cookie with chewy and soft inside yet slightly crispy on the outside.

If you’re looking for an easy recipe for the best chewy chocolate chip cookies, then this is it! After making many batches and fails, I finally found a great ratio of butter, sugar, egg, and flour that makes the best soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies. The right amount of crunchy edges with soft and chewy interior is what makes a great cookie.

Use Cake Flour or All Purpose?

Most cookie recipes only use all purpose. Which is fine if you’re looking for somewhat of a store bought type of cookie. Meaning it will be harder in the texture.

This recipe calls for all purpose flour along with cake flour. This will help create a softer cookie texture. Cake flour helps to achieve that denser cookie without the cookie turning out like a scone.

Use Cold Butter or Melted Butter?

So the debate is whether to use cold or melted butter. I have tried with both and I found butter left outside for maybe 5 minutes till it’s soften, but still cold works best. I like to cut the butter into cubes and then leave for a few minutes. You don’t want the butter to be too hard because it will cause over mixing when you add the sugar.

Using cold butter helps with the cookie in maintaining their thick shape just like Levain’s Bakery in New York where they are know for their bumpy and chunky looking cookies. *note this recipe will be regular height and not like Levain cookies because that wasn’t the type of cookie I was trying to make. I have another recipe for the Levain cookies.

Like a typical cookie recipe, melted butter will cause the cookie to spread. Therefore, when you shape the cookie, you do not need to worry about it spreading too flat during baking. Also, too much butter will also cause it to spread out.

Tips

Do not over mix the dough after you add in your dry ingredients. It will cause the cookie to become more like a scone.
The ratio of brown sugar is important to keep the cookie slightly chewy.
Do not over bake. The cookies will continue to harden a little even if it feels soft to the touch.
Cut the butter into small cubes for easier mixing.
Walnuts gives these cookies extra flavor and texture, but of course you can omit it and just put more chocolate chips. However, I feel the taste won’t be the same.
Chocolate chunks are also great to use but for these I made I didn’t have any.
Make sure not to use oiled baking sheet because it will cause cookies to spread out flatter than you want.

Best Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Recipe: Best Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Time to prep: 15 mins

Chill time: 20 mims

Cooking time: 12 mins

Ingredients

3/4 cups of cake flour
2 and 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour
1 tsp of baking soda
1 tsp of baking powder
1 tsp of salt
1 and 1/4 cup of cold but slightly soften cubed unsalted butter (1 and 1/4 stick of butter)
1 Tbsp of vanilla extract
1 and 1/4 cups of brown sugar
1/2 cup of granulated sugar
1 extra large egg and 1 extra large egg yolk
3 cups of semi sweet chocolate chips
3 cups of chopped walnuts

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
Shift the all-purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder, and baking soda in a medium sized bowl.
Add the salt and whisk together. Set aside.
In a stand mixer, mix the unsalted butter, vanilla extract, brown sugar, and granulated sugar on medium speed for 2 minutes. Butter and sugar should be all incorporated together into like a paste.
Add the whole egg and egg yolk and beat on low for 30 seconds.
Next, still on low, incorporate the flour mixture in three separate batches. About 30 seconds each batch. Do not over beat. Only beat till flour is mixed in.
Stir in chocolate chips and chopped walnuts. Just stir a few seconds.
Put the cookie dough into the fridge for about 20 minutes.
After, remove from fridge and use a cookie or ice cream scooper to form the balls. *use a scale if you want the cookies to the same size. Mine weighed 50 grams each.
Place each ball of dough onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Do not over crowd the balls. *I put about 8 balls on each baking sheet.
Bake for 12 minutes at 350 degrees F. *every oven is different so around 10 minutes check to see if the edges are getting too burnt. If it does happen then turn off the oven, but leave the cookies inside for about 3-4 minutes to let the middle bake thoroughly.
Don’t worry if it is soft in the middle when you touch it. Let stand for 10 minutes and if will continue to harden to a chewy texture.

*can make about 16 medium size cookies

Hope you enjoy this chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe!

Check out a twist on the trending Dalgona Coffee Recipe

The post Easy Recipe For The Best Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies appeared first on The Hangry Girly.