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Buttery Almond Pastry Braid (and How I Managed to Have a Crazy Cheap Wedding for under $1,000)

Buttery Almond Pastry Braid Recipe from Willow Bird Baking
Buttery Almond Pastry Braid

I made you another pastry braid, because I can’t help myself. But before we get to that, how about some wedding talk? My wedding was over a year ago, but it only just occurred to me that I could share how I threw together an inexpensive wedding.

Have you noticed that just adding the word “wedding” to any product increases the price exponentially? Wedding plates are more expensive than regular plates. Wedding shoes are more expensive than regular shoes. Wedding venues are more expensive than regular venues. My friend was drowning in her own wedding costs recently and threatening to throw herself off a (scenic, perfect for weddings!) cliff. When she asked for advice, I decided to put together a little outline of how I managed to have a crazy cheap (less than $1,000) wedding.

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Four-Ingredient Protein Pancakes (and 16 other simple, healthy meals)

Recipe for Four-Ingredient Protein Pancakes from Willow Bird Baking
Four-Ingredient Protein Pancakes

Okay, I did it. I went to a hot yoga class.

Some context: I’m trying to be healthier. I’m trying to get more fruits and veggies in my diet, trying to exercise more often and in different ways. So when this coupon popped into my inbox for hot yoga classes, I bought it.

And then I realized just buying it doesn’t actually do anything. You actually have to go to the class or whatever. Oh.

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Peach Cobbler Pastry Braid

Peach Cobbler Pastry Braid recipe from Willow Bird Baking
Peach Cobbler Pastry Braid

I wrote this post as part of the Plugrá Butter Brigade. Thanks, Plugrá, for sponsoring this post and for making my favorite butter! I use Plugrá in pastries, especially, since its low moisture content ensures a flakier texture.

My 8th year students are completing a project to deepen their service passions this year. “Projects” in my class aren’t just projects; they’re journeys designed by the students themselves within a supportive framework I provide. Some of the kids have taken off. Their path was smooth and they fell right into the service fit for them. N.S. continued work she had already begun serving at her dance studio, where she was inspired daily. I.P. created bluebird habitats on our campus last year and decided it was a natural segue to rebuild our beekeeping program this year.

For many kids, though, it’s been a challenge. This is far from disappointing to me: this is exactly what I expect and prep them for. We call the inevitable obstacles during their project work “mountains and moats.” They require collaboration, problem solving, analysis — the very skills I want them to develop. This is where learning happens. My job is to support kids as they learn how to react responsibly to these situations. The unexpected part this year is that I’m facing plenty of mountains and moats myself.

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Almond Coconut Pastry Braid

Almond Coconut Pastry Braid Recipe from Willow Bird Baking
Almond Coconut Pastry Braid

Even though I teach middle school, I forget how critically embarrassed middle school kids can be. I don’t even mean how embarrassed they can be when something embarrassing happens. I mean just their every day basal level of embarrassment. If the general population is on ground level, they’re up on the 25th floor of Embarrassment Tower. And probably hiding in a closet.

I’m sure there are some kids who don’t struggle with this, but there are plenty who do. Even the ones who are outwardly thriving will privately acknowledge the ways social anxiety affects their choices. It’s normal and thankfully it fades away by college, where you realize that singing “Hakuna Matata” while dancing around the student union in your duck pajamas won’t make your friends look at you funny — perhaps because they’re in their Ninja Turtle pajamas and singing Pumbaa’s part. But in middle school, every kid is watching the dude next to him, trying to decide what’s normal.

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Simple Sandwich Spreads: Pimento Cheese and Olive Cream Cheese

Simple Sandwich Spreads: Pimento Cheese and Olive Cream Cheese
Simple Sandwich Spreads: Pimento Cheese and Olive Cream Cheese

A few times a year I get an intense craving for pimento cheese. Not lame pimento cheese: it has to be fresh, spicy, homemade pimento cheese. And not served in just any way: it has to be piled onto a slice of plain white bread, folded over and served with a Coke.

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