Technical Jargon

Html, A-C control panel, ctrl + shift – THERE IS TOO MUCH OF THIS! At least, inside my head right now and it is spinning 100% out of control. Megabyte, gigabyte, kilobyte – can someone just hand me an aspirin right now?

I pride myself on knowing a little bit about computers. I did not believe myself to be technically impaired when it came to them until I started blogging. Sure, figuring WordPress out was a little bit of a hassle, but now I have made some monumental computer decisions which I need you for! 😀

WordPress.com was peanuts to what I was considering, will be and am considering.
Over the years (haha… months), I have seen lots of bloggers expand and take over what is called a ‘self hosted website’. Huh?
*Insert dummy face here*
Some of my favourite examples are Vanilla Bean Baker, Cravings of a Lunatic and Sally’s Baking Addiction. If you visit these guys, their websites are wow. Wow and only wow 😀
I also love Orgasmic Chef’s amazing look, though it is not one of the ones to change in front of my eyes 😉

berry pancakes 10
Well, one day I dream for my simple blog to look like theirs. But I need your help. You see, I contacted Sally who was kind enough to give me some advice on how she started it up and after researching further some technical jargon (keeping up the dummy face right now ;)), I realised that for this moment in my life a.k.a senior work, getting a self hosted website was a little time consuming. Although I want to make my blog look more professional, I am still a little young to be doing so much on it right now. I need to get my head around the non-virtual side of my life too 😉

So now, after lots of bookmarking-for-future websites and researching in spare time, I have decided, with my mummy-daddy help (dynamic duo when it comes to the mind!) that when I start university, maybe something can expand then.

berry pancake14
Do you like the idea? I like the idea. I especially like the idea that uni is only a year and a half away and I am bouncing up and down like a ball at the very thought!!!

I also have the option of not expanding entirely to my own site but just setting up under my own domain (still with wordpress) which gives me a little more freedom in customisation. Hmmm…

So will you vote my friend and help me choose an option? I promise you a breakfast recipe (well my dinner but anyways…) 😀

Oh and just before I reward you, I finally took down my background as it seemed it just was not working for anyone – won’t have to worry about it for too long I hope 🙂

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Ok so, I think the pictures may have been bothering you a little bit but that is fine, no harm done, because I give you the single best pancakes ever. Why? Because they taste like banana bread. Say what? Yes. They do not taste like banana pancakes but banana bread. Banana bread….

Tempting you? Yes, no, maybe? A few alterations here and there in my favourite pancake recipe in the world and we got SUPER thick, SUPER fluffy, SUPER PERFECT pancakes… which I ate for dinner after a long, hard day of working 🙂

berry pancake9
Try it yourself if you do not believe me and the pictures do not convince you 😉

Berry Banana Bread Pancakes
Adapted from this recipe

Makes: 10 pancakes

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 cups full cream milk
  • 3 small ripe bananas, mashed
    berry pancake 1
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups Self Raising Flour (SRF)
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp allspice
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 tsp vanilla essence
  • 1 large egg, lightly beaten
  • 35g melted butter
  • 1 cup walnuts (optional)
  • 1 1/2 cups mixed berries (if frozen, do not thaw)
  • Extra softened butter for heating pan

Method

  1. Mix together milk, mashed bananas and sugar in a bowl until well combined. Let sit for 5 minutes
  2. Meanwhile, sift together SRF, spices and baking soda in a large bowl
    berry pancake2
  3. Add melted butter to milk mixture and mix (the butter may stay on top of the mixture which is fine)
  4. Combine the egg and essence into the wet mixture
  5. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and gently stir together until just combined (some lumps are fine, just do NOT overmix!)

    As you can see, I omitted the walnuts!

    As you can see, I omitted the walnuts!

  6. Gently stir through walnuts if using and let batter sit for at least 2 minutes
  7. Heat a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat. Once hot, lightly grease with butter
  8. Briefly stir batter in case it has settled and scoop 1/4 onto the pan, smoothing with a spoon into a circle. Gently top with berries.
    berry pancake6
    berry pancake 5
  9. Flip pancakes when first bubbles start to appear on the surface (1-2 minutes) before carefully flipping until lightly browned
    berry pancake4
  10. Place on a wire rack and place a tea towel over to keep moist and warm
  11. Grease inbetween each pancake and continue process (You may need to reduce the temperature a litte after the first 2-3 pancakes)
    berry pancake 7
  12. Serve warm with ice cream and maple syrup 😀

berry pancake15
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On other matters concerning the technology of cut, paste and linking, something I do understand (:D) I would like to thank some amazing bloggers who have been kind enough to award me! I would have linked to them in my last post but I think it was definitely long enough as it was 😉

lovelyblog
Firstly, I have been lucky enough to receive a TRIO of Lovely Blog Awards! I feel so… well… LOVELY 😀 😀
A huge thanks goes to the wonderful chef, Tisa @ Blessings From Our Kitchen (her post comes with doughnuts!); the incredibly healthy Year Of Healthier Living & fabulous vegan, Emily @ Emily Cooks Vegan!

So, instructions for this award:

  • Link back to the blogger who nominated you.
  • Paste the award image on your blog, anywhere.
  • Tell them 7 facts about yourself.
  • Nominate 15 other blogs you like for this award.
  • Post a comment on each of your nominees’ blogs telling them about the nomination.

lovely
7 facts? Ok, consider it done 🙂

  1. I have a huge weakness for stationary (ery? :P) shopping
  2. I lost a spelling bee because I forgot the ‘p’ in raspberry (obviously at this point in my life I was not obsessed with food!)
  3. I am really lazy to get facebook 😛
  4. My favourite chupa chup flavour is strawberries & cream
  5. My latest fangirling obsession is Andrew Garfield (I have been looking for an opportunity to put his beautiful self on blog!)
    andrew_garfield_spider_man_suit1
  6. I firmly believe that Rose hogged all the space on the wood plank – Jack could have lived!!!!!!!!!!! (Referencing Titanic)
  7. If I could have any superpower, I would want to be a shapeshifter (but not X-Men style because blue, leathery skin is not my thing ;))

Secondly, a very awesome blogger, Pamela @ Spoon Feast has awarded me a most exotic sounding award, the Premio Cake Blog di Qualità. I do believe it is Italian! 😀 Thank you my friend so much for this award, it means a lot. If you, my readers. have yet to visit this blog, I say do it soon because she is just a fabulous all rounded professional chef!

Rules to this award are:

  • Tell 7 things where sweet has influenced your life
  • Pass it along to 3 other fellow bloggers

Simple no?

premier

My 7 sweet influences:

  1. Chocolate – Kind of self explanatory, (if you know me then you know my obsession) there are so many varieties to choose and mix around and of course there is the taste… and what a taste!
  2. Ice Cream – Just thinking of it makes my mouth water – if that is not love I do not know what is 😉
    berry pancake8
  3. Cadbury – Yes I know, I already mentioned chocolate but this particular brand has so many varieties that it inspires me to get more out of the box with my own baking!
  4. Jelly Beans – Fun, colourful and full of zest – isn’t that what sweets are all about?
  5. Caramel – Ever since learning how to make it at home, it has given me a new ingredient to add into anything I make! Just because I can 😀
  6. Cream Cheese Frosting – I will happily whip up a batch and eat it whole – who needs a cake?
  7. Puff Pastry – In both savoury and sweet, I devour this as the best bit and leave the middle (if it is unwanted) because it is crispy, flakey and so beautifully golden!

sweet
Finally, sweet Grace @ Everything With Grace, who has ballet, photography and cooking talent at only the age of 12!!, awarded me the Sweet Blog Award which I am really happy to receive! Thank you very much 😀

For all these blog awards, I will nominate 10 people – congrats to these fantastic bloggers 🙂

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Just before I leave you all and bid a good night, I must tell you a very good night, you may have noticed that I did not reply to all comments in my last post. I am just as thankful as ever to everyone who comments and do read everyone but however time restrictions can only allow me to reply to everyone or visit their blogs and the latter takes priority. I will always visit blogs, continue to comment and all but replies will now only happen to general inquiries or opinionated feedback my friends. I hope you understand 🙂

berry pancake 13Have a wonderful wonderful week to all!

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148 Comments

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  5. Sandra - The Foodie Affair says:

    Making these pancakes this weekend and I can’t wait because they look absolutely delicious!! Your blog looks fantastic as you have it. I got my own domain because I wanted to have complete control of what was on my page. I see advertisements on some blogs that I wouldn’t want on my own. I wish I was a computer nerd. It’s a challenge for me, but I keep learning new things!

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  6. Kimby says:

    Congratulations on your bevy of Awards, Choc Chip Uru! Fun to learn more about you, as always! (And I agree, Jack COULD have lived…) Your sense of humor is top notch, as is your blog!

    I’m soooo not a technical person, but I did get my own domain name when I started blogging last year, thinking I MIGHT make the switch to self-hosted eventually. So far, not. 🙂 I completely understand your decision to refrain from replying to every comment though. A writing group that I belong to had an interesting discussion re: “comments” and brought up the question: “How many times do people — do you — go back and check for a reply?!” Turns out very few, if any, did. The idea is that people are “commenting” on what you wrote about in the first place! Bravo for drawing a line and sticking to it. Questions or specific things, yes. General “so glad you stopped by”… nice, but not necessary — unless you’re seeking to generate a dialogue. Hope that helps you! (And truthfully, I won’t be checking back to see if you replied to this, ha! so don’t feel like you need to!) Love ya, kiddo!

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  7. Kim Bee says:

    I now want pancakes something awful. They look so good. Thanks for naming me, I was so thrilled. If you ever need any advice on wordpress or design let me know. I may be able to offer some advice. One important bit would be never delete albums from google+. Ugh!

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  10. Louise says:

    When in doubt, do nothing I always say:) Congrats on the awards, Uru. It was such fun discovering a bit more about you and your likes (and dislikes:)

    The pancakes look fabulous! And yes, I too have time restraints visiting and commenting but believe me, my blogging friends are always on my mind.

    Thanks for sharing…

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  12. Sawsan@ Chef in disguise says:

    I too am seriously considering the jump myself but the more I read about it the more I get intimidated.
    there is just so much jargon to deal with and I just don’t have the time :s
    I have my own domain name but that is it for now..best of luck whatever you decide

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  15. Carolyn says:

    The pancakes look awesome. quite honestly, I am not sure what to say about the self-hosting. I switched to WordPress and I am staying there…at least for now!

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  16. A_Boleyn says:

    I like pancakes but can only eat them for brunch on the weekend since I don’t have time for breakfast when I’m working.

    So, once a week (on Sundays) when I wake up at 11am and indulge myself in a big meal, I usually do bacon and eggs. I’m re-thinking things though since your pancakes look so tasty and I have some frozen berries calling my name. 🙂

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  17. Kathleen Richardson says:

    I swear, CCU, I’ve been reading your blog too long! At first glance at your photo where you’re squashing the bananas, I thought that was chocolate syrup–the dark areas on the banana–but, of course, it turned out to the squasher!

    Good choice on the commenting. You’re getting to be so-o popular, and rightly so. I love having you visit my blog. You always inspire me! Whatever your decision about changes to your blog hosting, I’ll be there as always.

    BTW, I told another favorite of mine — The Procrastobaker (http://theprocrastobaker.blogspot.com/) — about you. Now I’m introducing you to her. She’s now 20 and started her blog in her teens, just getting back from a year-break at university.

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    • Choc Chip Uru says:

      Haha looks like you know my style 😛
      Totally into chocolate just not in this post!

      You are so kind and inspiring yourself my friend – it means a lot that you think like this for me 🙂
      Thank you!

      Awesome, i am so glad you tipped me about her blog – off to check it out now 😀

      Cheers
      Choc Chip Uru

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  18. Norma Chang says:

    Fantastic pancake.
    You are young and have lots of years ahead of you, if I were you I would take my time and think the whole process through, you currently have a great site.

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  19. TastefullyJulie says:

    I’m self-hosted and I do love it for the freedom to basically do whatever you want to your site. I use the thesis theme which is so easy my 9 year-old could do it. I can’t help you on how to migrate everything into a new site because my techy husband did all that.

    As for these pancakes. OMG. I made blueberry pancakes this morning and I really wish I would have seen this recipe first!

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  20. Maureen (@OrgasmicChef) says:

    I recommend getting your own domain and hosting with wordpress. It’s much more important for you to control your domain than to self-host. As long as you back your site up, it’s almost the same as self-hosting.

    We have quite a few dedicated servers for all we do on the net and one is mine so I know self-hosting is easy. It costs more money though.

    Happy to help anytime you need it.

    Love these banana bread pancakes!

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  22. Ruth says:

    Congrats on the awards, the pancakes look superb (especially with the ice cream, yummy!) ! Now, regarding the blog issue, I would probably use wordpress instead of moving to a different host, you have the privilege of using your own name.com and you would just pay a minimal fee… Good Luck!

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  23. Susan says:

    I too have been trembling on the precipice of making the switch to a self-hosted blog. It does all seem so scary though! Those pancakes look divine — love the last-minute addition of blueberries!

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  25. Sandra (@SECooking) says:

    Getting your own domain is a always a plus as you have more freedom. i hope you will get your decision done without too much stress. Now those pancakes look something like i would absolutely love for my breakfast!

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  27. Asmita (@FoodieAsmita) says:

    Hi Uru,
    It is 3 in the morning here, I am jet lagging and these pancakes are making me hungry. They look awesome! I think I will try making these here.
    As for your blog, I love the look of it as is but do what makes you happy.

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  30. Susan says:

    I think a blog is a matter of personal preference. You need to like the way it looks yourself. I certainly like the way those pancakes look 🙂

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  34. Parsley Sage says:

    I want my own domain too but I like you have like 50 zillion other things going on so its not really a top priority. In fact, I had to pull WAY back on the blogging this year because of the other stuff. BUT, I think it’s a great idea to have your own domain, makes it look so much more professional 🙂

    Oh, and my superpower would totally be teleportation!

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  36. Joanne says:

    I’ve definitely given some thought to self-hosting but it’s a little more time and stress than I’m willing to commit to right now, 😛 So I support your decision.

    These pancakes sound amazing!

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  38. Sandra L. Garth (@sandraleegarth) says:

    Loving those pancakes, which look more like dessert which makes them even better. Your blog is wonderful, and you’re very smart and focused. Take your time with whatever you do. Change your blog when it feels right, answer comments and visit blogs when you can. There is no rush for anything.

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  39. Kim @Treats & Trinkets says:

    Ohmigoodness, look at all those awards! You totally deserve it.

    My cousin’s been bugging me to get my own website forever, but I’m terrified at the prospect. It sounds like too much work. ‘Course, I could always make her do it for me since she’s a graphic designer, but I’m too much of a control freak.

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  41. Jenny @ Ichigo Shortcake says:

    Thanks so much for the award! 😀 I really do wonder where you find all the time to do what you do, I’m not even working at the moment and I can’t seem to fit in all the things I want to do for the blog!

    In regards to the technical stuff, I moved from Blogger to self hosted WordPress not too long ago (maybe half a year?) and I guess I’m pretty lucky that my boyfriend is tech savvy so he helped me a lot, but I did do a lot of the moving and coding myself (I’m not tech savvy at all). It’s all about reading up on it and following easy guidelines. I’m using this custom theme called Thesis for WordPress and it’s a once off payment and they give you good support.

    Whether or not you want to move it really depends on whether you see yourself making any money from it because obviously there are costs involved. Instead of moving to self-hosted WordPress, you might want to try out having your own domain? That only costs $10-15 a year and you’ll have your own http://www.gobakeyourself.com url. 🙂 Hope all goes well!

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  42. anna says:

    1) banana bread pancakes whaaaaaat! that sounds amazing. i had no idea there was such a thing. i want it. i want it now.
    2) thank you for the blog nominations! ha! so lovely! also i totally lost a spelling bee by adding an extra ‘n’ out of ‘chronically’. real drag!
    3) good luck with your blog renovations! wish i could offer any advice, but mine was done by a much savvier friend of mine as a birthday present 🙂 but i’m sure you will figure it out, and besides it looks good already!

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  45. Hotly Spiced says:

    Hi Uru, those are incredible looking pancakes. I agree that Rose could have shared that plank AND kept the blue diamond and either passed it on to her granddaughter or donated it to the Titanic Museum so we could all oogle it. When it comes to knowing what to do with blogs…hmmm…mine is self-hosted but it is looked after by someone else, not a WP person. There are many things I would like to do with the look of my blog too, but it’s the time! I think you could just make some simple changes (like you just have) and then do more during all those long uni breaks xx

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  46. eliotthecat says:

    I have the distinct pleasure of being married to an IT guy so most of my questions can be run through him. (Thank goodness for that.) I too would like to dump the wordpress stuff but I am too busy at the moment to think about how I want my blog to look. Maybe I will take the dive after you do! 🙂

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  47. Nicole @ Bake Me Blush says:

    Banana bread pancakes?! Oh that sounds amazing. I love pancakes, and I love banana bread even more. Looks even better with that big plop of ice cream on top (that’s definitely how I’d eat it!).

    PS: Andrew Garfield! I was pleasantly surprised to see a picture of him on your blog 🙂

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  48. mybeautfulthings says:

    Congratulation on your beautiful and well deserved awards, my friend. I understand why you cannot comment on everything and have often wondered how you have the time to do what you do! I know you get up very early but even so, I think you are something of a marvel!
    All the best to you – I just love your pancakes! X x

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  49. Inger Wilkerson says:

    Bananas and berries in one pancake–mmmm! On your question, I’d vote to self hosting when you go to university. But you could still make some changes in the interim as you got ideas. I’ve changed themes on mine a couple times.

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  55. Nami | Just One Cookbook says:

    Haha yes, you did a great job convincing me how delicious these pancakes are! I’ve been wanting to change my design after having the same look for about a year. But to be honest with you, it is SO time consuming and every little change I make something doesn’t work and I have to fix…just endless work if I get picky… I have so many lists of things I want to implement but I just don’t know. The professional help would be nice but expensive too. Good luck with your decision!

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  58. Ramona says:

    I wish I could be helpful to you about your blog design… I don’t understand any of it myself. If it wasn’t for blogger doing all the work for me…. I would not have a blog. 🙂 I need to hire someone if I ever decide to expand my blog to my own domain. I am embarrassed to say I bought my domain name and within a matter of hours screwed it ups so bad my sister had to get some tech guy at her office to just do a mirroring of my blogspot. I felt like a real twit! I love your pancakes!! Ice cream on your pancakes… you go girl! 🙂

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  59. Tandy says:

    Hi, I have some interesting posts on my blog about this for you to read. I would stay on wordless.com for now but get your own domain. Theme changes are easy enough to do and my personal best is still twentyeleven even though I’ve changed. Play around and have fun!

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  60. cookingactress says:

    There was PLENTY of room for Jack on that piece of wood! arghhhh! Also–um, come to NYC and make me pancakes, please, ok? 😛

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  64. navane64 says:

    I am using blogger so not much of help I can give on the technical support. I sometimes ask my friends to help me out when I need the working around on my blog. I did obtain my own domain which was when I started my blog because I feel more comfortable having a blog with my own name. I find that blogger is user friendly though the design does not allow much changes compared to wordpress according to my friends. I have been advised by some to switch to wordpress but feel that moving everything from blogger is going to troublesome, all the more I am used to blogger now.

    Bananas are my fav and I have a high liking for this fruit when added into pancakes. Love the pairing of the pancakes with the big scoop of ice-cream.

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  65. Lisa at fLVE says:

    Hi Choc Chip Uru. Taking down the background is a good idea. Your site loads much faster now. As for self hosting, it’s a great idea and I am thinking about it for the future too. I don’t know much about it yet, so can’t offer you any advice. Just made the transition to my own domain name this year. I am sure that whatever you decide to do is the right decision. I kept forgetting you are so young. 🙂 Probably because you are so talented. Good luck and have a great time. And thanks for the banana bread recipe. 🙂

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  66. Marina@Picnic at Marina says:

    I love better what I see now, although I don’t see the title picture or graphic. If I were you, I wouldn’t rush with a self hosted blog (unless your see it as your full time job, which is not, as you are thinking about the university). I would wait until I go to university and see how much time I have to dedicate to blogging and then decide. You’ve asked…:) Good luck, my friend, with whatever you wish to do! 🙂

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  67. Courtney says:

    I’ve researched self-hosting, too, and decided to just change the domain name for now. It seems like a lot of work, from what I could figure out, too. 🙂 No matter what, I’m sure you will make your decision work. (And love the banana berry pancakes – yummmy!)

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  71. Yudith @ Blissfully Delicious says:

    SERIOUSLY… this may be my fave recipe of all times… we have these every other weekend! And I freeze some for my daughter to eat throughout the week! I decided to switch to the self-hosted domain as well last year; and it was a bit of a hassle since I had to have my hubby do it himself. Otherwise, I would have had to pay a lot of money for someone to do it for me (and I don’t even make that much off my blog, so I couldn’t justify the cost!). Good luck Uru!

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  74. bitsandbreadcrumbs says:

    I was salivating by the time I got to your pancake recipe, which looks wonderful. I also enjoyed discovering some new blogs by checking out your favorite “looks”. I wouldn’t sweat changing to self-hosting, but do get your URL and change it to protect it and prepare for the big day to come. Cheers~ Betsy

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  75. Tara says:

    I may have to try these! Will probably use whole wheat flour and flax to healthy it up a bit for my kiddos but I’m a total sucker for anything with bananas. One of these days I will get around to posting my Banana Toffee Macadamia Crunch ice cream. Heavenly:) I have a “fruit soup” recipe I’m going to post this weekend that would be fantastic on your pancakes! …with a nice spoonful of whipped cream.

    And…your blog is great. Mine is SO new and it’s still very much on my to do list to get it looking nicer. With (what I’m guessing) are fairly few followers right now (have yet to really promote my blog so I’m in major envy of you!) it’s not super high on my list. Especially with young kiddos running around the house:) I did get my own domain name though, and purchased the Genesis framework from StudioPress so one day I’ll get it looking all fancy pants…

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    • Choc Chip Uru says:

      I love how you are turning a simple recipe into a healthy fruit soup gourmet creaion 😀
      Can’t wait to read about it!
      And thanks for your kind words and advice my friend – I will be sure to keep it in mind and the way your blog is going, it can only get even more popular 😀

      Cheers
      Choc Chip Uru

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  77. Paula Kelly-Bourque (@VanillaBeanBake) says:

    Thank you for mentioning my site. I appreciate your kind words. I also love the look of those pancakes!!!
    Best wishes with making your decision regarding your site. Personally, I am very happy that I went the self-hosting route. I’m technically challenged too but I’m not having any issues with my new site.
    Feel free to email me should you have any questions about self-hosting prior to making your decision.

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  78. Veronica says:

    I wouldn’t sweat it right now, girl! I get the dummy face too and don’t think I will ever self-host as it terrifies me. LOL! You’ve got more important things to worry about anyway. as for the pancakes, YUM! I do love thick, fluffy pancakes like this and the banana bread aspect is a nice bonus.

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  80. All That I'm Eating says:

    This looks so good. I don’t know if you’ve seen my site/blog but I don’t have the energy to make my blog a full site (if you know what I mean) so I have my website http://www.allthatimeating.com which is really simple (easy to make and maintain) and my blog http://www.allthatimeatin.blogspot.com which offers some things which would be way beyond me to do on my site!
    I like having both because the website can grow if/when it needs to but I didn’t really have to change anything I was already doing. Best of luck making your decision!

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    • Choc Chip Uru says:

      I like the way yours is set out, it is really cool – but I wonder if I would have the time to handle two different sites as one 😉
      Truly we need 36 hours in a day 😀

      Cheers
      Choc Chip Uru

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  83. thekalechronicles says:

    What a post, CCU! So much going on here. I am the worst person to ask about technical decisions: I set my blog up last August, chose a theme and never looked back. I did pay to eliminate wordpress.com from my blog name, which makes it easier for people to find and remember and gives me a shorter URL. I like to keep things simple — no moving photos. etc. I’m sure you will do what is right for you. Congratulations on your latest awards!

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  84. Zen and Genki says:

    Pancakes, yum, banana bread, yum. 🙂
    As for leaping into the whole web hosting for your blog etc., I’m in the exact same position at the moment and unsure of what to do. I’m most nervous that I will actually lose a lot of the technical support and automatic features that WordPress offers (and I have a feelings, there’s a lot happening, automatically, with my blog right now, that I wouldn’t know how to fix if ever WordPress wasn’t there to help…ie: backups etc.) So, I didn’t vote in the poll, only because I think they are all good options and can’t even figure out what I’m doing with my own in this regard ;P I’d love to know what you do decide and how it goes/what route(s) you take with a host etc. when you finally take the leap! Whatever you decide, good luck! I’m sure you (and your site) will do wonderfully 🙂
    anne

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  85. Tisa says:

    This is some post girlie, wow..you will be doing a self hosted site soon, I’m sure. It already looks quite nice- you are one young, talented and very bright cookie. I saw the earlier post and wanted to comment on that- didn’t get to come back. Quite a detailed review you had written-loved it. You spend so much time and effort here – the reason for the trio of awards. congratulations Uru- you deserve all of them. And thanks for the wonderful pancake recipe.♥

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  86. Alice says:

    Thanks so much for the nomination!! And omg those pancakes look incredible. If I can catch my next batch of bananas before they completely rot, I’m going to make this! haha.

    As for the self-hosted thing, I would start with buying your own domain first. You could even do it through WordPress.com (I think $10-20/year) and tack on domain mapping for about $12/year. When you do decide to migrate to your own website, I’d recommend WordPress.org mostly because you can pay them to do the transfer and mapping for you! If you choose to host your domain and site elsewhere (GoDaddy, etc.) much more of the work is on you.

    Hope that helps! And thanks again!

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  87. Gabby @ the veggie nook says:

    I have nooo brain for techinical web stuff either- I feel so confused when I’m trying to make changed to my blog! If only it was as simple as tping and hit publish!

    These pancakes- I want them! I have been craving banana pancakes for so long but banana BREAD pancakes sound 1000 X better 🙂

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  88. Eva Taylor says:

    Decadent is an understatement; but it’s not unexpected from you CCU. What an incredible dessert, I mean breakfast! Congratulations on all the awards you have won, very impressive.
    I do enjoy reading your blog, but if there is one thing I would like to comment regarding your blog is that I sometimes feel you can take one blog post and make several shorter versions out of them. Good luck if you decide to update your blog.

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  89. kitchenriffs says:

    Mmmm, pancakes! I love pancakes, and yours look great. Re domain name and all of that, I’d definitely purchase your own domain name. You can redirect to this blog right now. Whether to self host or not is a more difficult question. I’ve thought of it and there are advantages – but lots of disadvantages, too. But it’s not all that expensive, and if you have the money and think you’ll be doing this longterm, I’d go for it. Re your blog design, I like it as-is (although thanks for taking down the background picture!). I like clean, simple designs, and yours is. Anyway, good luck with whatever you decide.

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  90. Cakewhiz says:

    Congrats on your awards!
    Your pancakes would make a yummy breakfast 🙂

    My husband recently updated my site but even with him being a programmer, it took him over 6 hours :S
    So, maybe make changes to your blog when you have alot of free time…i am guessing with school and university around the corner, it’s going to be hard now :S
    That being said, i like the simplicity if your current blog…i am able find everything easily 🙂

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  91. sprint2thetable says:

    I did some research before starting my blog that said I should just start out self-hosted. Apparently that was good advice because I hear it’s a pain to switch. I can say that I love the self-hosted format though!

    Now, please pass the pancakes. Banana is my favorite!!!

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  93. balvinder ( Neetu) says:

    I wanted to upgrade my blog when I am not at all technically skilled to make this happen. But I would definitely recommend you to make your beautiful blog more impressive and do it as soon as possible.
    I remember seeing Andrew Garfield in a small role in ‘The other Boleyn Girl’ but can not say much about him.
    I have never made anything with bananas until this month and the taste was banananicious!!! I am definite that these pancakes tasted just like banana cake.

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  94. Micha says:

    Hi girl! Just wanted to put my two cents in here…

    Being that you are the busy baker/student/daughter/friend/etc that you are, I’d suggest just purchasing a domain and directing this free blog to it for now. This way you have the domain for when you are ready to tackle this technical project. That is what I’ve done for now (but then again I don’t have half as many followers as you do! haha) I agree with the blogger above who said you can pick your techie friends’ brains about hosting your own site when you get to college.

    As far as losing followers if you do switch, that would definitely be a bummer. But if they really like your posts, I’m sure they will make the switch, too. But I really think it would be a good idea to get a page on facebook and an account on Pinterest if you have not done so already. That way your followers won’t lose you when you decide to take the plunge!

    Have a wonderful week!

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  95. Kristina says:

    Okkk I want those pancakes RIGHT NOW. You just totally ruined my morning bowl of yogurt bc those babies look sooooo much better 🙂

    And so exciting that you’re thinking about expanding! My only advice would be to look into whether or not you can smoothly transition from wordpress.com to wordpress.org. with your current theme. I tried doing that a while back (I’m self-hosted now) and they wouldn’t let me transfer my ‘theme’ from my wordpress.com to my wordpress.org – meaning I would have to literally code the entire website once it moved over to wordpress.org. But thats only because I paid for my theme on worpdress.com.

    Ok sorry if thats getting confusing!! If you want any advice shoot me an e-mail and I’d love to help you out! krisitna.whippedbaking@gmail.com

    🙂 Kristina

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    • Choc Chip Uru says:

      oops my bad 😉
      Thanks so much for your generous offer and awesome advice – I will definitely contact you when I will look into it, probably in uni 😀

      Cheers
      Choc Chip Uru

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  97. Tessa says:

    Gorgeous pancakes!

    Here’s my two cents on changing from a free wordpress.com site to your own site…
    Do it… It’s slightly painful at first but completely worth it. New learning curve to deal with and you may lose followers who can’t figure out that you’ve moved… But the up side is that search engines will find you easier and the website name will be completely your own. Good luck on your decision :).

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  98. Monet says:

    Lots of good thinking and cooking! So glad I found your LOVELY blog. What a nice way to start my morning. Only wish I could be eating this now instead of going to work. Thank you for sharing with me! Have a blessed day!

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  100. Suzi says:

    These are some incredible looking pancakes and taste like banana bread, yes. Congrats on your awards. I also recommend self hosting. I use Blue Host and they are available 24 hours and very helpful and knowlegable when you call them. Good luck, my friend.

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  101. girlinafoodfrenzy says:

    Sounds like you’ve been doing a lot of thinking & cooking! As for your blog, I think get into it at Uni where you can pick the brains, thoughts and skills of your fellow students and teachers!

    Enjoy your blog as it is for now and when the time is right (for changes,) then just go for it!!!

    Btw: yum to the pancakes too!

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  102. Food Stories says:

    Love the banana bread pancakes and all the awards … You go, girl. By the way, without your background the page loaded really fast for me.

    If you decide to go self-hosted with wordpress, I would definitely wait until you had more time. I started my “free” blog and within two weeks saw that I needed to go self-hosted. Justing moving two weeks was a pain so it will take you some time 🙂

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  104. Hannah (BitterSweet) says:

    I’ve wanted to upgrade my blog for years now (literally) but am too unskilled to make it happen. I’ve even purchased my own domain, but it’s just a redirect to my freebie WordPress-hosted template. Such a waste, right? But hey, if it works, don’t fix it… If you do make the leap, I want to hear all about it so that maybe I can follow!

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  105. viveka says:

    Congratulation to the rain of awards … first of all – and this I just have to try later on – when I have worked through everything of leftovers here and there. So on file this goes NOW! Your photos are stunning …

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  109. Ames says:

    Whoa, you weren’t kidding when you said ‘some’ awards 😀 Congratulations and thanks so much for nominating me!

    Re going self-hosted, I’d probably just try out the .com with wordpress first for a bit before you go out on your own… I took the plunge recently and to be honest, it was a lot more work than I expected! Definitely means you have more control over the format of your site but it means a lot of basic features disappear and you have to install manually and configure it etc. I think you and your parents were very wise :). Plenty of time after Year 12 :D. Love how fluffy those pancakes look btw! Thanks again for those awards :).

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  110. apuginthekitchen says:

    You are killing me, I could barely read through your post because my eyes were fixated on those gorgeous pancakes! Seriously though, your blog is beautiful. I was very impressed and thought one day I would like my little blog to be as nice as yours. Self -hosting is a lot of work and it seems you have a lot on your plate right now, I think you should explore self-hosting later. Your blog is just fine, I did the wordpress upgrade so I own my domain and there is a little more freedom which for you now might be the route to take. Now I want to make those pancakes!!

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  111. Barbara says:

    Oh….and thanks for the award! I’ve received one similar where you tell everyone things about yourself so I know you’ll forgive me if I don’t repeat myself! 🙂

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  112. Baker Street (@bakerstreet29) says:

    Your pancakes look incredibly delicious! I would recommend self hosting, not because you can change the look but surely has many more advantages. And if you’ve decided you want to do it at some point, then I recommend you do it as soon as possible. because loosing your followers is not something you want.

    The process may seem overwhelming but its surely worth it. 🙂

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  113. Barbara says:

    Nice awards! Congrats!
    If you go for hosting your own blog, I hope the transition goes fairly smoothly. I’m happy in my little niche and probably won’t change, although I do have a dot com website I could use. (if my computer teacher hadn’t moved away, I might have tried it!)
    Love your spiced banana pancakes! Great photos.

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  114. Tina@flourtrader says:

    Your pancakes do look like they would hit the spot, love the banana berry combo-yum!
    Regarding your consideration to go self hosted, there is not much I can say about that because I am not self hosted. The main reason I am not is because of the loss of followers and the lost of the search ranking. It is like you are starting all over again.

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  115. Jennifer Duncan (@LuvFoodCookFood) says:

    Those pancakes look too delicious for words. 🙂 I am sorry that I am not posting so much or checking out your recipes as often as I would like to. I am up to my ears in the post production of two, one hour, programmes for the Horse and Country channel here in the UK. I will not be about for about a month at least. 😦 I have a couple of posts in hand that Mark, my husband, will post for me when he can get around to it. He’s over in Glasgow at the moment working on the BBC’s antiques road trip prog. Oh woe is me! I cannot use him as my editor!!! Not to worry I have two very good replacements (not quite as good as him though 😦 ) Keep up the good work and I will be back soon. I will also do the awards then as well. 🙂

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    • Choc Chip Uru says:

      My friend, you have noithing to apologise about – sometimes life gets in the way and I can see you are up to your ears! Take your time, and relax into it 😀
      I was honestly beginning to wonder though where you were so glad to know 🙂
      Thank you 😀

      Cheers
      Choc Chip Uru

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  116. Daisy@Nevertoosweet says:

    Hello Uru,

    I think it’s a wonderful idea to go self-hosted! I ve been thinking of it for some time now but haven’t had the resources or the time but I hope to get that done soon!

    Omg great recipe cant wait to try thanks for sharing!!!

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  120. David Crichton says:

    I’m just in the process of doing said thing! Fdathome.co.uk is the new hosted site. I have to admit though I’m really lucky as a colleague at work does this for a living so he’s charging me mates rates. The big advantage is being able to add plugins. If you click on my miso pork dish, you can see that I’ve added a print facility for people who want to do the recipe. I’ll also be getting this so txt and email.

    Also any problems with the site and they sort when you may spend hours trying to fix and tweak your site.

    The Disadvantage though, is that all my followers have been dumped! So I’m having to email everyone individually to reconfirm their subscription. I think you should have an email from me too.

    It is definitely the way to go though. For someone like yourself with a lot of content and followers it’ll be worth doing.

    If you want to know a bit more drop me a line at dave@fdathome.co.uk

    Cheers

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    • Choc Chip Uru says:

      Thanks so much for all this advice – it was really nice of you 🙂
      I really think I will get self-hosted but probably in uni when I have the time to deal with the massive changeover
      Best of luck with your changeover, I am sure it will be fantastic 😀

      Cheers
      Choc Chip Uru

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