4th of July Candy Bark

I think I've mentioned - many times - that 4th of July is one of my absolute favorite holidays.  It speaks to my sense of pride in our nation and it also has always been a time that our family and friends get together to celebrate.  This year isn't going to be as big of a celebration for us as what we usually have, but that really won't slow us down.

My Pinterest feed has been filled with so many fun treats to choose from, but since we are still working on the kitchen remodel I don't have a stove/oven/sink in the kitchen and was afraid my hands were tied.  Then I started noticing all the candy bark, trail mix and popcorn and it was a light bulb moment.  I kind of pulled from all of them to come up with mine.

Easiest thing ever to make and the only appliance needed was a microwave!

I will warn you it's one of the sweetest things I have ever eaten.

And doesn't it look all festive in the Longaberger Basket??

Here's the general directions to what I did and feel free to adjust to what you want.

4th of July Candy Bark

6 Oreo Cookies

a handful of pretzels

Wilton vanilla candy melts

red and blue mini m&m's (I bought a bag and meticulously pulled out the colors I needed!)

red and blue sprinkles

optional - mini marshmallows, chex cereal, Cheerios

Line a cookie sheet with wax or parchment paper.  Crush the oreos and pretzels and spread loosely over the paper (I just crushed them in my hand).  

Place about half a bag of candy melts in a microwave safe bowl and melt about 1 minute at 70% power.  Stir, then repeat until it is all melted, but do not overmelt - it gets yucky.  Drop in generous blobs over the top of the oreos and pretzels, then lightly use the back of your spoon to smooth it out.  While the candy melts are still wet, sprinkle the top with m&m's and sprinkles.

I placed the cookie sheet in my refrigerator to help it set, probably about 15 minutes.

A tip:  the blobs need to be pretty generous.  The first half of my candy melts I tried to just use the spoon and ended up with a dirty looking batch as the candy picked up the cookie crumbs.  Tastes the same, but not nearly as pretty.

Shared on:  A Diamond In The Stuff, Take a Look Tuesday, One Project At A Time, Terrific Tuesday, You're Gonna Love It, The Scoop, Brag About It, Anti-Procrastination Tuesday

Jar of Salad

I stumbled across something on a blog that, I kid you not, has become life-changing for us.  We are huge fans of salad, but so many times when I buy all the veggies that we like some of them, especially the lettuce, seems to go bad before we eat it all.  And with all the negative press that prepackaged bags of salad get I’m just  not as excited about buying them as I used to.

This is it – Jar O’ Salad!  I’m not going to put all the steps here as it’s not my idea, but hop over to the Salad In A Jar blog and see how she does it.

 

Basically I buy the lettuce we like, wash it, spin and put it in jars sealed with the Food Saver about once a week now and we are good to go.  I used wide-mouth quart size jars for “salad for two” and the wide-mouth pint size jars for salad jars that I can grab and eat for lunch.

Because I’m only messing with the cleaning and prep work once a week we don’t have lettuce going bad.  And the healthy benefit is that it is so easy to reach in the fridge and grab of jar for dinner.

By the way, the photo of the single jar up above?  That lettuce is 8 days old in that jar.  We ate it for dinner that night and it’s just as good as the day I sealed it.

 

* Linking to Works For Me Wednesday

Mission Crafts Ministry and Blueberry Pound Cake

Last night was such a special night in our ministry at church because the lady that led the mission trip to Peru came to talk with us.  You might recall that we knit 73 scarves that went on the trip as gifts for the kids, interpreters and teachers.  It was wonderful to have her come back and tell us how much those gifts were enjoyed and to tell us a little bit more about what is happening there.  We have a trip twice a year and are firming up plans for what to take for Christmas gifts now.

And I gave a little teaser about the Blueberry Pound Cake and it took until yesterday when I made it again to take to church to finally remember to get it up on the blog!  It really is quite tasty and easy to do, so be sure to take advantage of the fresh blueberries before they all disappear from the store shelves.

 

Paula Deen’s Blueberry Pound Cake

1 stick butter
1/4 c vegetable shortening
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 t salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 heaping cup fresh blueberries, tossed in flour so they don't sink (though you can see that mine still did!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Stir dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside.  Cream butter and shortening, add sugar a little at a time until well mixed.  Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each egg.  Add dry ingredients to mixer alternately with milk, starting and ending with the dry ingredients.  Mix in vanilla, then gently fold in blueberries.  Pour in to a greased and floured 9x5 loaf pan and bake for 60-70 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

 

** Linking to Tasty Tuesday

PW’s Perfect Pot Roast

Seriously – I have never made a pot roast I was more proud of.  The recipe is in The Pioneer Woman Cooks and nothing could be easier.  It took 20 minutes from the time I walked into the kitchen to putting the pot in the oven, then just ignore it for hours.  This meal could not be easier

She recommends serving it with her Creamy Mashed Potatoes and since I am definitely a rule follower I did as she said.  You might notice this picture is slightly out of focus – I think that’s because I had already taste tested the potatoes and was swooning from their creamy goodness.

And now I believe I’ll head to the kitchen for a bowl of Cheerios, because this has made me hungry. 

Tomato Herb Pasta

For dinner last night I made roast chicken and tomato herb pasta as the side. This was the single most fantastic side dish I’ve ever done! Keith loved it, the house smelled fantastic and it tasted like something we would order at a restaurant.

I do want to point out that there is a LOT of butter in this and that I will try half the amount next time as we had a pool of butter on our plates.  Perhaps that’s why it was so good???  ;)

TOMATO HERB PASTA
adapted from Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker

1 T dried onion
1/2 t oregano
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t basil
1/2 t salt
1 stick butter (I’ll try 1/2 a stick next time)
4 T water
1 15oz can diced tomatoes
2 cups uncooked egg noodles

Boil noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile, melt butter over low heat. Add herbs, salt, water and tomatoes. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes. Mix in drained pasta and serve.

 

I’ll be linking to:

 Tasty Tuesday at the Balancing Beauty and Bedlam blog
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday at Blessed With Grace
Tuesdays at the Table at All the Small Stuff

Sweet and Spicy Kielbasa

We are trying so hard to eat at home now instead of going out.  For the most part it's not a problem because all of us prefer eating at home - it's cheaper, faster and so much better for you.  Best of all is time spent together at the table towards the end of the meal and afterwards.  We have some of our best share times during those moments.

The one thing that I do miss is chinese food - I love it!  The problem I run into though is that Keith has never been a big fan of it.  So I was quite pleased to run across a Sweet and Spicy Kielbasa recipe during my internet travels.

I will confess that I used frozen egg rolls as I have not at all mastered making those myself.  That did just remind me though that when my kids were quite young I worked with a lady that did make her own and one Saturday a bunch of us met at her house to make egg rolls together.  Very delicious, but at least in my memory it was a lot of work!

The best thing about Sweet and Spicy Kielbasa is that it's made in the crockpot, which make meal prep a breeze.  We all agreed it's a bit too sweet for our taste, so the next time I make it I'll use less brown sugar, add sliced green peppers and probably at least a splash of soy sauce.  I think with a little fiddling around this will soon be one of our absolute favorite recipes - and straight from the recipe as is we did enjoy it.

Sweet and Spicy Kielbasa

2 lbs kielbasa sausage, sliced

1 cup packed brown sugar (I'll probably use only 1/2 cup next time)

1/3 cup spicy mustard

1/3 cup finely chopped onion

Combine brown sugar, mustard and onion in crockpot, stirring well to combine. Add the sliced kielbasa and stir well.  Cover and cook on low for 3 hours, stirring occasionally (I did not stir mine until the end).

Serve over rice.

Check out more Crockpot recipes (and who couldn't use those?) at Crockpot Wednesday and other recipes at What's Cooking Wednesday.

Mummy Dogs

The theme for our potluck at last Friday night's scrapbook night was Halloween.  I had no idea what to bring, so figured I on bringing my Easy Apple Pie.  But then Friday morning while I did a little blog hopping I stumbled on the cutest thing - Mummy Dogs!

I could obviously use a little practice on my mummy wrapping, but I thought they turned out really cute.  They were a hit at the potluck, even though I forgot to put their little mustard eyes on when I got there.  If you do decide to make these for your crew I will warn you that it takes longer to wrap crescent roll bandages than what I counted on, so I got a little rushed towards the end.

Here's the layout that I finished that night.  You might recall our little mud "misadventure" here.  I guess my theory is that if you can't laugh at yourself, well you should!

And every single time I read the title on this layout there is a certain song that starts going through my mind.  I'm not so sure I think it's as cute as I first thought!   :)

Babyback Ribs

One of our favorite things to order when we go out to eat is Babyback Ribs.  And for some reason I never even tried to make them.  I think that somewhere in the back of my mind I assumed they were too hard to make and nothing could be farther from the truth.  They are so easy and a great thing to make when you have a lot of people to feed.

BABYBACK RIBS
adapted from Sandra Lee's Semi-Homemade Cooking 2

2 full racks babyback ribs, quartered
4 cups beef broth
2 cups barbecue sauce (we use KC Masterpiece)
1 cup honey

Place ribs and broth in a heavy pot or dutch oven and add enough water to cover ribs.  Bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer about 1 hour or until tender.  Remove ribs from pot; set aside.

Preheat grill to medium heat.  In a medium bowl combine barbecue sauce and honey.  Baste ribs generously with sauce.  Grill ribs, uncovered, for about 4 minutes per side or until desired doneness.
 
See more great recipes at the Tasty Tuesday Food Parade and Tempt My Tummy Tuesday!

Watermelon Cupcakes

When I heard that yesterday was the first day of fall I had to rush and get this post up. Watermelon tugs at the summer memories and now that we're looking October in the eyes I need to get one last summer treat posted before I turn to pumpkin and apples (of which I cannot wait!)

There is nothing watermelon about these cupcakes other than how they look. The cupcake itself is just a strawberry cake mix. Before mixing the batter I reserved about an eighth of a cup of dry mix that I tossed about an eighth of a cup of chocolate chips in. Ordinarily mixing chocolate chips in flour will keep them from sinking in the batter, but you can see the chocolate chips above happily nestled at the bottom, so it didn't work for me this time. I guess this means my watermelon seeds were easy to eat around. :)

I also used canned frosting with a few drops of green food coloring. There's a few green sprinkles on top to add to the illusion of the watermelon rind.



Most important of all though is to remember your 'style' while eating a cupcake. A girl simply must sit on her mommy's lap with her foot on the table while having a cupcake. And a Clifford apple juice should be nearby in case one gets thirsty.

I just love being a Grandma - or should I say MawMaw? :)

Ranch Crackers

I first had these crackers during a potluck at work. And let's face it, when you see a tupperware container filled with saltines next to all the homemade potluck goodness you don't even give them a second glance.

Apparently that's the case with everybody as there were a lot of these leftover. So when the person that made them stopped by my desk for me to taste them what could I do? I am so glad I did!!! He was even kind enough to let me bring some home for Keith to try and we were hooked at that point. I then made some to take to our family reunion weekend and we all sat out by the pool nibbling. The one comment that is made over and over is that these Ranch Crackers remind you of the Chicken in a Biscuit crackers.

So good, so cheap and so easy!


Ranch Crackers

1 - box saltine crackers (4 sleeves)
1 - cup Canola oil
1 - package Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix
1/2 - tsp red pepper flakes

Take all the crackers out of the sleeves and line them up on their sides in a very large bowl or plastic container. Mix the oil, dressing mix and pepper flakes together and drizzle over the crackers. After drizzling about half the mixture stop and re-stir, then complete the drizzling. If using a plastic container place the lid on top and gently tumble the container back and forth so that the liquid can get over all the crackers. I put it on the counter and every time I walked by I would flip the container again.

I put the crackers in a clean container before taking to the potluck so that they would look nicer. :)

And that's all there is to it!


See more great recipes at the Tasty Tuesday Food Parade and Tempt My Tummy Tuesday!

Snickerdoodle Bundt Cake

We had such a fun family weekend! James and Loni went to the lake with some friends of theirs, so we got to keep Miss Brooklyn for the weekend. Her fun started with a pillow fight of sorts with her Aunt Lynne'



Every chance she got she would go outside with whoever happened to be headed that way. This little girl loves outside. Right now she had a grand time saying airplane and pointing everytime one went by...and when conditions are just right here in DFW we see a LOT of airplanes! Then she would kind of shrug and say "where'd it go?" I finally got her to saying airport after this happened several times.

Sunday we all headed to my aunt and uncle's house for a sort of mini-reunion. My mom, brother and sister-in-law all came to town for the weekend and off we all went. My cousin from Oregon and his wife and 7 month old baby Rita had come to town and everybody wanted to see them. Rita was a doll and had her first swim in a pool. Unfortunately I don't have a lot of pictures as I left the memory card from my camera at home on my desk - DOH!

Brooklyn had a BLAST in the pool! The photo above shows her Aunt Lynne' lifting her up while she's sitting in the floatey. "I'm jumping maw-maw" she'd call across the pool. So sweet! We even got her to jump off the side of the pool into my arms - of course while wearing a life jacket. She really is a bit of a daredevil.

For lunch we had wonderful brisket and pasta salad and so much more. I had been seeing recipes for snickerdoodle cakes around the internet, so printed off one of them. Sunday morning was busy running around, so my sister-in-law Michele made the cake for us to bring. I am here to tell you this cake was a huge hit! Of course when we showed up it was still warm from being pulled out of the oven, but the next morning I had a slice with my coffee and it was still delicious.

Snickerdoodle Bundt Cake
(adapted from Dozen Flours)


2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 cup sugar

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
3 eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream, at room temperature

Preheat oven to 325F. Spray Bundt pan with Pam, then dust with sugar and cinnamon mixture. Save the remaining sugar and cinnamon mixture.

Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, beat butter on medium speed for one full minute. Add sugar and mix until light and fluffy. Scrape the bowl and add the brown sugar, mixing until it looks light brown and uniform in color. Add the eggs one at a time, beating each for 1 full minute. Stir in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture alternately with the sour cream; beat well.

Spread half of the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle with 1/4 to 1/3 of a cup of the cinnamon sugar mixture. Spread the rest of the batter into the pan and sprinkle any remaining sugar mixture over the top (mix up more sugar and cinnamon mixture if necessary).

Bake in preheated oven for 55-65 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely (Note: We let it cool for about 10 minutes, then inverted onto a serving platter and covered loosely with foil to transport to the lunch.

See more great recipes at the Tasty Tuesday Food Parade and Tempt My Tummy Tuesday!

Cream of Coconut Cake

This is the cake that mom brought for 4th of July this year. I really think this will be one of my 'go to' cakes now - it's that good. Only real problem is that so many people don't care for coconut. Ah well, just leaves more for the rest of us. ;)


Cream of Coconut Cake
recipe from my mom :)

1 package white cake mix
3 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup cream of coconut
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
8 ounces cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons milk
4 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons flaked coconut


Preheat oven to 350 - grease and flour 9x13 pan.

Combine the cake mix, eggs, vegetable oil, cream of coconut and sour cream. Mix well for 4 minutes, then pour batter into pan.

Bake for 35-40 minutes. Let cake cool, then frost with cream cheese frosting and sprinkle flaked coconut on top.

Frosting: Combine softened cream cheese, vanilla, milk and powdered sugar. Mix until smooth and


Do you want more recipes? Check out the Tasty Tuesday Parade of Food.

Upside-Down Sausage Pizza

Sometimes when you see a recipe on tv it might take you quite some time before getting around to making it. This recipe is a perfect example of that.

Back in September of last year Mom had surgery on her neck. While she was in surgery they told all of us to just wait in her room. Naturally with my sister-in-law and I in the room we turned the tv to the Food Network. I don't remember which show this recipe was featured on, but for some reason it actually stuck in my brain to make it. And that's kind of saying something as my 'rememberer' isn't always so hot anymore. :)

This is called an Upside-Down Sausage Pizza and I apologize for the poor photo (can't find the chord to the other camera right now - yikes!).

It's the sort of recipe that makes for a good jumping off point. The actual recipe is called sausage and mushroom, but I know that Keith is not a fan of mushrooms so I didn't add them. And as we were eating dinner Lynne' mentioned that maybe some diced green pepper would be really good in it. Then we went on and decided that next time we'll also add pepperoni.

It makes a full 13x9 pan, so plan on either a lot of leftovers or feeding a crowd. I served it with a wonderful salad (love all the fresh veggies this time of year) and it was a good meal.

The recipe is below, with my changes in parenthesis.

Upside-Down Sausage Pizza
(adapted from Food Network to fit my family's tastebuds)

2 t olive oil
1 pound sweet sausage (I used breakfast sausage)
1 cup onion, chopped
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced (I didn't use this)
1 cup pasta sauce
1 cup pizza sauce
1/2 cup black olives, sliced (I used a small can)
16 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded (I'll confess that I didn't use this much. Usually I say that more cheese is better, but we're trying to eat a tad more healthy)
2 eggs
1 cup milk (I used 1%)
1 T olive oil
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 t salt
1/4 cup Parmesan, grated (I used Kraft)

Preheat ove to 400 degrees F.

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add sausage and onions and cook until brown and cooked through, breaking up the meat with a spoon. Add pasta sauce, pizza sauce and olives and bring to a simmer, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer sauce to the bottom of a 13x9 cake pan sprayed with cooking spray. Top with cheese.

In a medium bowl whish together eggs, milk and oil until blended. Whisk in flour and salt, then pour mixture over ingredients in pan. Sprinkle with Parmesan and bake 25 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand for 5 minutes before slicing. To serve, use a spatula and flip the serving upside down on the plate so that the meat sauce is on top.

Rotini with Spinach and Asiago Cheese

Last Friday night was Bunco and I haven't laughed that hard in a long time! There is something about getting together with girlfriends that just makes for a great evening. And I just happened to be at the head table and won the final round - the one that counted!

Our potluck theme this month was italian food and with it being summer I didn't want to pull out the usual lasagna recipes and such. I turned to Food Network because I figured Giada wouldn't let me down - and she didn't.

I made a large bowl of Rotini with Spinach and Asiago Cheese, though you might notice that the actual recipe says Fusilli instead of Rotini. But...I wasn't positive how to pronounce fusilli, so I bought rotini instead - LOL! It came out perfect for a hot summer night and I breathed a sigh of relief to see the other ladies eating it (why do we worry about that stuff so much? But who wants to come home with a full dish???).

Keith and I tasted it before it left the house - naturally - and we both really liked it. I still have enough of the cheeses to do another batch, so we'll be having it for dinner on Thursday. The only thing I will do differently is that we bought some italian sausage at the meat market and I'll grill that, slice it and stir in the pasta. Makes it more of a manly main dish that way. ;)

ROTINI WITH SPINACH AND ASIAGO CHEESE

Ingredients
1 pound pasta
1/4 cup olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 (9 ounce) bag of fresh spinach, roughly chopped
8 ounces cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup (about 3.5 ounces) asiago cheese, grated
1/2 cup fresh parmesan cheese, grated
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Directions
Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling, salted water until tender, but still firm. Cook about 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid.

Meanwhile, warm olive oil in a large, heavy skillet (really large!) over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the spinach and tomatoes and cook until the spinach starts to wilt, about 2 more minuates. Add the cooked pasta and tossed. Stir in the cheeses, salt, pepper and cooking liquid (I didn't need to add the cooking liquid to mine) and stir to combine.

Crockpot Philly Cheesesteak Sandwiches

We had the most wonderful day today and when I was trying to describe it to my daughter I realized that it probably would sound boring to anybody else. Really it was just a day filled with running errands, but we started the day eating out for breakfast. Hands down this is our favorite meal to eat out and Keith hit the nail on the head this morning when he said the best part of it is how relaxed the meal is. We're not tired from working all day, we've had a good night's sleep and we're ready to enjoy one another.

After that it was Walmart and the meat market, which turned out to be fun and educational. We haven't been to a meat market since we've lived here and I found one really pretty close. Keith's birthday is Monday and we plan to grill steaks together, but we really don't know how to do it right. They told us about some pre-marinated steaks they carry and then the owner even came and told us the right way to grill a steak and showed us how to tell if they are done or not. Hopefully the meal will be delicious and I'm here to tell you that grilling steaks at home will be tons cheaper than going out and ordering one.

Today is just another perfect example of it doesn't matter what you're doing, just so long as you are doing it together.


I tried a new recipe the other night and this one will definitely go in the rotation. Philly Cheesesteak sandwiches made in the crockpot! This sandwich is one of Keith's favorites and I was glad to find a recipe we can make at home. I served it with cole slaw, but can hardly call it homemade. I bought a bag of cole slaw mix and used some Kraft cole slaw dressing on it. Very good, but someday I'm going to have to find a recipe for dressing.

Crockpot Philly Cheesesteak

1 pound beef (like round steak - I used stew meat because it was on sale sooo cheap, but will use something with bigger pieces in the future!)
1 onion, sliced
1 green pepper, sliced
1 cup beef broth
1/8 cup soy sauce (I use low sodium)
garlic salt
pepper

Place beef in the bottom of the crockpot and pour broth and soy sauce over the top. Layer onion and pepper over the beef and sprinkle with seasoning to taste. Cook on low 8-9 hours or high 4-6 hours.

When done, stir with a slotted spoon and put on rolls cut in half. Place on foil covered cookie sheet and top with cheese (I used pepper jack).

Place under broiler until the cheese melts.

Recipe adapted from Finding Joy in My Kitchen

Grating the Cheese

The other night for dinner we made a Tamale Pie for the first time. It was such an enjoyable thing to do as we both worked in the kitchen together preparing our meal.

As I stood at the counter grating the cheese a deep feeling of nostalgia washed over me. I remember being young and standing in the kitchen with my mom and grating the cheese just as I did now. I'll admit though that I probably didn't fully appreciate the experience at that age. :)

Now I usually buy the bags of grated cheese at the store since it is so much faster. But this time we went to Sprouts (a great grocery chain here) and they don't carry that product, so I bought a block of cheese to do myself.

I grated what I thought I might need, then busied myself getting the rest of the meal ready. And each time I passed that plate I sneaked a few pieces "just to try." Keith caught me once and laughed - and I laughed along with him.

I think it was the cheese sneaking that brought back the memories. And I learned that grating it yourself really does taste so much better. Modern conveniences are so wonderful. But sometimes doing it the "old-fashioned" way is so much more satisfying.

TWD: Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins

After seeing posts from this group all over the blog-world, finally the TWD (Tuesdays With Dorie) group was open to new members to celebrate their one year anniversary.  I'm in!  :)  This group takes a recipe from the book Baking From My Home To Yours by Dorie Greenspan and posts about it each Tuesday.

My theory is that by doing this I will be spreading my wings and learn more about baking.  You really can teach an old dog new tricks!

--<>--

This week's recipe is Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins.  Keith and I both like hot (read that as spicey) foods and since these muffins have a southwestern flair I knew we'd enjoy them.  The batter contains a bit of chili powder, some chopped jalapeno, chopped red pepper, chopped fresh cilantro and corn.  After mixing the batter I had to take the bowl into the living room and have Keith smell it - it was that good.

These muffins were wonderful with just the right amount of kick to them.  In fact, we both were enamored enough that they will go into our normal rotation now.  And I will admit that I was a little worried serving these to Keith since he's not a fan of any kind of cornbread.  The fact that he liked these tells a lot about how good they are.

And now I have a confession to make - this morning I found the frozen corn package still in the microwave.  I HAD FORGOTTEN TO ADD THE CORN!!!  So...I'm here to tell you that these are fabulous even when you don't follow the recipe exactly!

And these muffins go absolutely perfect sitting alongside a bowl of taco soup.  Dinner was a huge success last night!

Good times....

Handmade Gifts and Games With the Families

Wanted to share the tin of Christmas treats I took the neighbors this year. Each house got a tin and a handmade Christmas card. Our neighborhood is going through some changes right now and we're getting more families with young children and babies on the way. One neighbor has a son the same age as Brooklyn. They are all very delightful, but I do admit it makes me feel old...

This pillowcase is one of the gifts we gave to Keith's mom. We saw the KIT at a local quilt shop and thought the fabric looked just like her. She's a very happy person, always laughing and she adores all sorts of bug fabric, including butterflies.

I worked on this and of course made an error, which meant I got to use my trusty friend Mr. Seam Ripper. Finished and so happy with the results. The funny part was when she opened it she thought we'd gotten her some butterfly fabric. Keith pointed out it was a pillowcase and she smiled and set it aside. The lightbulb came on later and she asked if I made it, then she got it back out to look over more carefully. She was stunned and amused to hear that I had used a pattern for a pillowcase and this started quite a discussion between my mother-in-law (a quilter extraordinaire), sister-in-law (who made exquisite tote bags for each of us - note to self: need to post a picture) and I about whether or not patterns are necessary when quilting or if it's better to wing it. We all were laughing quite a bit at the different way we each approached this.


This year we finally got back to playing games again. The picture above shows mother-in-law, Loni, Lynne' and sister-in-law Rhonda while we were playing Cranium. LOADS of fun and it was interesting to see what each person's "gift" was as far as charades, drawing, singing or spelling. Keith and I were talking about the games after we got home and we remember when the kids were little and we'd visit his family we'd always play games until the wee hours of the morning after the kids went to bed. Not sure when we got away from it, but after playing at Christmas I realized just how much I miss it.

We also played Cranium and Uno Attack when we were at my mom's house and again, I don't know whey we don't do it more often. It's fun to just laugh and have a good time together.




While playing Uno Attack back at Keith's folks house James took Miss B over to great grandma's organ and let her play. I swear this child will end up doing something musical or dance because she LOVES music. The minute she hears it she starts moving her shoulders to the beat and it just makes me laugh every time.

Good times.....

Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; His greatness no one can fathom.
One generation will commend your works to another; they will tell of your mighty acts. - Psalm 145:3-4

Operation Baking Gals - Round 5

I decided for this month's Operation Baking Gals that I really wanted a more festive looking cookie in honor of Christmas.  Luckily M&M's always have Christmas bags out this time of year and that sounded perfect.

Unfortunately I could not find my recipe anywhere.  A simple Google search brought up close to a bazillion choices, so I printed the recipe from the M&M site (surely they would know best, right?) and was ready to shop for ingredients.

And then the day of baking arrived and I couldn't find the recipe I'd printed, so a Google search again.  This time a new recipe was near the top and it was on a blog, which is always the best way to find a recipe.  I printed the recipe and then also printed the M&M site recipe to compare.  There were some subtle differences and I of course agonized over which to make.  Then it hit me that since I had no plans for the day really except for baking these cookies and I since I needed a BUNCH of cookies - I'd make a batch from each so we could compare!

Oh the house smelled delightful!  And what a happy man Keith was when I asked him if he'd mind doing a taste test to help me choose the recipe that would become "our" M&M cookie recipe.  I brought two cookies from each recipe and two glasses of milk in the living room (football, it's a way of life doncha know) and we each chewed and pondered.

In the end it was a draw as we each chose a different cookie.  And what it really came down to was what kind of cookie we each preferred.  Keith prefers a cookie with a little bit of a crunch to it and I like chewy, almost not quite done cookies.  The recipe from the M&M site had double the butter, so they spread out a little more and had more crisp.  The blog site recipe had a tad more of a cake-like consistency so I loved it.

I think I'm going to keep both of these cookies.  You really can't go wrong with either of them.

Good times...........

"An honest answer is like a kiss on the lips." - Proverbs 24:26

Kit Kat Bars

Last night I made the first holiday treat of this season - Kit Kat Bars.  They turned out amazing and took almost no time at all to prepare.

I first saw the recipe on Bev's blog and immediately knew this was one I needed to try.  Be warned though - they are very, very sweet and very, very rich.  Keith isn't as much of a chocolate fanatic as I am, so he just had a small bite.  This leaves me with an entire 13x9 pan to enjoy.  ;)    just kidding...

I think this might be my new "go to" recipe to take for holiday functions.  And since it's kind of a cross between a cookie and candy it will go in with cookie boxes quite nicely.

"Man cannot live by chocolate alone, but woman sure can!"  - Unknown