Instalately - October

Hey everyone!

I quite like this format, I think I'm going to do these kinds of posts every month just as a sort of recap of the past month. Seems nice :3

Mum's dinner was too spicy so I made my own. 👌oatmeal with apples 🍎, flax seeds, honey and cinnamon! So delicious 🌱

Ein von Besa Baggins (@besasam) gepostetes Foto am Okt 10, 2014 at 10:43 PDT

I've spent some time back at home at the start of this month, because I finally got through my second round of final exams. So I took the week off work and it felt really really good. I'm also quite happy that I'm visiting home almost every weekend again... During exam time I used to be away for weeks on end and that really doesn't do me good :(

😍

Ein von Besa Baggins (@besasam) gepostetes Foto am Okt 10, 2014 at 2:48 PDT

Adding to that, my brother moved back home recently because he's almost done with his Bachelor's degree and we can do lots of cool stuff again! Like cook together. One day before I went back to uni we whipped up this super yummy chicken roast and the picture really doesn't do it justice, it was sooo delicious.

Finally done with freshers week! Time for the important things in life (like Korean food.) Just kidding, got a ton of work to catch up on

Ein von Besa Baggins (@besasam) gepostetes Foto am Okt 10, 2014 at 8:51 PDT

The first week I didn't have any classes yet, however I was a tutor for the new freshmen and it was very fun, but also very stressful. I don't think I'll be doing it again, I think I could use the time to prepare for my own studies. However I did have a good time with my friend (who is their mentor and looks after them for the rest of the semester) and the freshies~
So to unwind, I had lunch at my favourite Korean place for the first time in forever.

First day of uni! I'm totally gonna show up late with Starbucks. (pls ignore my dirty mirror k)

Ein von Besa Baggins (@besasam) gepostetes Foto am Okt 10, 2014 at 12:27 PDT

And this is what I wore on the first day of uni! My mum bought me the skirt and it's soooo pretty and flowy and I'm crazy about it. I'm also wearing a second-hand cardigan I got off Kleiderkreisel (that place is truly a magical place). I had a good start into the semester! Especially because I finally got accepted into a Japanese class. I applied last semester but didn't get picked, but this time it worked! Along with learning the language I've been wanting to learn since forever, I'm getting some points towards my degree which is good, since I did flunk a couple of exams and I'm currently dragging behind with my credit points. But I have ambitions to turn it around and make it all better :3

#Pusheen helped me with my work at @bitstars yesterday! 😺

Ein von Besa Baggins (@besasam) gepostetes Foto am Okt 10, 2014 at 2:31 PDT

We all know the sticker I'm trying to imitate here :D Yes I have a real-life Pusheen! Actually, it was a birthday gift for Wanja, but it didn't arrive in time and he left on a business trip to the States, so for the time being, she was our office cat. But by now she has finally met her new owner, hehe :3 I seriously can't wait for Christmas to get gifts for all my friends.

How to properly dine as a student

Ein von Besa Baggins (@besasam) gepostetes Foto am Okt 10, 2014 at 11:10 PDT

I felt like making myself a fancy dinner one night. Nothing special, though it was yummy :D

Get a load of these forehead wrinkles. I'm gonna be a very serious looking old lady some day.

Ein von Besa Baggins (@besasam) gepostetes Foto am Okt 10, 2014 at 2:08 PDT

Yes, finally a selfie! This was actually from yesterday, I really liked my eye make-up that day ^^ Also I live for that caption. I think I've inherited the wrinkles from my dad, he has a very expressive and serious forehead lol.

That's it for this month~ I've really not been using Instagram a lot lately, back when I was in school I would upload pictures almost every other day... But I'm trying to make my life interesting so I can post more pictures again haha, bear with me.

So tomorrow it's Halloween and after that it's November and I'm not gonna lie, I've already decked myself out with scented candles and Christmas-y incense and my apartment smells soo good, I've literally been burning candles all day. Can you tell I'm totally thrilled for Christmas this year?

Okay see you guys in the next post! Hope you'll have a great Halloween and a good start into the next month!!

Lots of love,
Besa

[Recipe] The yummiest, juciest apple pie!

Hey guys!

Autumn is in full swing and I couldn't be happier. Finally it's sweater weather again ♥ I'm full of love and I've been listening to autumn playlists for days on end. Good times.

So a couple of days ago I really felt like having apple pie, but it was a Saturday night, the shops were about to close and there was nowhere I could get any. :(
But my brother had the best idea to just bake one. (Why didn't that cross my mind?)
Checking the pantry and fridge revealed that we indeed did have all the ingredients at hand. Rejoice!
So we whipped up this super yummy pie, and it was amazing. Also I just remembered that I saved up two slices in my fridge :D

You really need to try this. It's sooo yummy and not hard at all! Though I did realize that I need to work on my pie crusts (they're very thin on the bottom and thick at the sides, not really the way I like it.)
The orange juice and soft cooked apples in the filling is probably what makes this so juicy and delicious. Unfortunately it's not a pie you can eat warm (because I live for eating baked goods straight from the oven. Soooo good!), it does have to cool off overnight so the filling will go firm, but the waiting is SO worth it.

Without further ado, the recipe!

Fruity Apple Pie

Prep time: 1 hr
Baking time: 1 hr

Prepare a day a head

Ingredients:

For the crust:

170g flour

70g ground almonds

1 tsp baking powder

a pinch of salt

70g sugar

a packet of vanilla sugar

120g butter

1 small egg

For the filling:

1kg apples

1 tbsp lemon juice

200ml water

500ml orange juice, no added sugar

2 packets custard/pudding powder, vanilla flavor

130g sugar

1 tsp cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice

shaved almonds (for the topping)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C.

2. Mix flour, ground almonds, baking powder and a pinch of salt in a large mixing bowl. Add sugar, vanilla sugar, butter and the egg and knead it into a smooth, not too firm dough. Wrap in cling film and let it rest in the fridge.

3. Peel and core the apples. Put about 350g away. Cut the rest into very thin slices and add them to a large pot. Add water and lemon juice and bring to a boil. Strain the pot, catching both the liquid and the apple slices. Fill the liquid back into the pot along with the orange juice.

4. Mix pudding powder, cinnamon and sugar in a smaller bowl, add some tablespoons of liquid from the pot and stir until there are no lumps left.

5. Bring the liquid in the pot to a boil again, remove it from the heat and stir in the prepared pudding. Put it back on low heat and cook it to a thick consistency, stirring continously. Remove it from the heat and add the cooked apple slices.

6. Grease and flour a springform pan (26cm diameter). Lay out the dough, making a 2cm high crust on the sides. Pour in the filling.

7. Cut the rest of the apples into slices and cover the pie. Sprinkle or cover with shaved almonds.

8. Bake for 20 minutes at 200°C. After that, reduce the heat to 180°C and bake for another 45 minutes. If the top is getting too brown, you can cover it with tin foil for the last 15 minutes of baking.

9. Take it out and let it cool overnight in the pan.

10. Serve with whipped cream and enjoy!

Happy baking!

Love, Besa