Rhonda's Corner

Lemon Cookies

2011-09-15T20:29:00.002-05:00

In my world, all things lemon = all things good. I am as addicted to lemon treats as I am to chocolate. Since these lemon cookies are made with a cake mix, they are soft and moist.

There really isn't much to these, since they are made with a cake mix and ready-to-spread frosting. They are a quick, easy treat that we really enjoyed on our Friday night. The Clyde ate a plateful of them!

Lemon Cookies

1/2 cup Miracle Whip salad dressing
1 two-layer yellow cake mix
2 eggs
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
2/3 cup ready-to-spread vanilla frosting
4 teaspoons lemon juice

Blend salad dressing, cake mix, and eggs at low speed with electric mixer until moistened. Add peel. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes (Dough will be stiff).

Drop rounded teaspoonfuls of dough, 2 inches apart, onto greased cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 degrees for 9 to 11 minutes or until lightly browned. (Cookies will still appear soft.) Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheet. Cool completely on wire rack.

Stir together frosting and juice until well blended. Spread on cookies.

Makes about 4 dozen cookies.

Devil's Food Cake With Black Pepper Boiled Icing

2011-09-13T20:44:00.004-05:00

The September issue of Bon Appetit features a dessert section with a salt and pepper theme. All of the desserts feature salt or pepper (or both). It had this beautiful picture of a Devil's Food cake that I knew I wanted to try.

This cake is labor intensive. But, I thought it was very good. The pepper in the icing is a unique touch. I wasn't sure that I totally loved it, even though I loved the cake and the filling. But, Brian raved about the icing. He thought the pepper and the chocolate went really well together.

The cakes themselves are very fragile. I froze them before working with them to get some stability. I also used the filling the same day rather than letting it sit in the fridge overnight. It worked well the same day. I don't have one of those neat kitchen torches, so mine is not brulee'd. (Its on my list!)

Ingredients

Filling

3 1/2 ounces bittersweet chocolate (60%–64% cacao), chopped
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup heavy cream, divided
1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
2 tablespoons sugar, divided
3 large egg yolks
1/2 cup crème fraîche

Cake

Nonstick vegetable oil spray
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 large egg
1 large egg white
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon cake flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups (packed) dark brown sugar
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon vanilla paste or vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk
2 tablespoons cocoa nibs
1 tablespoon finely ground espresso beans

Black Pepper Icing

1 cup sugar, divided
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3 large egg whites, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

special equipment

Three 9"-diameter cake pans, a candy thermometer, and (if you'd like to brûlée the icing) a kitchen torch.

Preparation

Filling

Combine chocolate and salt in a large bowl; place a fine-mesh strainer over bowl and set aside. Pour 1 tablespoon cream into a small bowl. Sprinkle gelatin over and let stand until softened, about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, bring remaining cream and 1 tablespoon sugar to a simmer in a small saucepan, stirring to dissolve sugar. Whisk yolks and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar in a medium bowl. Gradually whisk in hot cream mixture; return to saucepan. Cook over medium heat until mixture thickens slightly and your finger leaves a path on the back of a spoon when drawn across, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat.
Add gelatin mixture to cream mixture; stir to dissolve. Pour through prepared strainer into chocolate. Let stand for 1 minute; whisk until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Whisk in crème fraîche. Using an electric mixer, beat filling until well blended, about 2 minutes. Press a sheet of plastic wrap onto surface of filling; chill overnight.

Cake

Preheat oven to 350°. Coat the bottom and sides of three 9" cake pans with nonstick spray. Line bottom of pans with parchment-paper rounds.
Sift cocoa powder into a medium bowl. Whisk in egg and egg white. Gradually whisk in 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons lukewarm water; whisk until smooth. In a separate medium bowl, whisk both flours and next 2 ingredients.
Using an electric mixer, beat brown sugar, butter, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl, occasionally scraping down sides of bowl, until smooth, about 2 minutes. Gradually beat cocoa mixture into butter mixture. Beat in flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with buttermilk in 2 additions, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Fold in cocoa nibs and ground espresso. Divide batter among pans; smooth tops.
Bake cakes until a tester comes out clean when inserted into center, about 17 minutes. Let cakes cool in pans set on wire racks for 5 minutes. Invert cakes onto racks; remove pans and let cakes cool completely. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap cakes individually in plastic wrap and store at room temperature.
Place 1 cake layer on a plate. Stir filling to loosen. Spread half of filling (about 1 cup) over cake in an even layer. Place second cake layer on top of filling. Spread remaining filling over in an even layer. Place remaining cake layer on top. Chill cake for 1 hour.

Black Pepper Icing

Mix 1 tablespoon sugar and salt in a small bowl; set aside. Attach a candy thermometer to side of a small saucepan; add remaining sugar and 1/2 cup water to pan. Stir over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat and boil without stirring, occasionally swirling pan and brushing down side with a wet pastry brush, until thermometer registers 240°, about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, place egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat at medium speed until frothy. With machine running, gradually add reserved sugar and salt from small bowl.
Gradually add hot syrup from saucepan to egg whites, beating at medium-high speed and allowing syrup to drizzle down sides of bowl. Continue beating whites until stiff and cool, about 20 minutes. Add pepper; beat until well blended.
Immediately spoon topping onto cake. Smooth over top and sides. Working quickly, swirl icing decoratively. DO AHEAD: Cake can be iced 1 day ahead. Cover with a cake dome; chill. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour before serving. To brûlée the icing, use a kitchen torch to toast icing in spots.

Random Update

2011-09-11T09:42:00.004-05:00

What an amazing run I had this morning! It was fifty-seven degrees when I got up, and it was just too good to pass up. I got in a quick four miles before it was time to come back and get ready for church. It was the first time I've been back on the left leg since the seventeen-miler, and it felt strong with no soreness whatsoever. What a relief - no damage done. Even better, I didn't see any skunks out and about this morning.

For the past few weeks, Brian and I have had several encounters with these little creatures. The first one was a while ago, when we were walking around our block late in the evening. We walked past our back yard onto the street. I noticed something dark moving in the grass, and I thought it was probably a neighborhood cat. As it came closer, I thought it was odd that the cat seemed to be walking towards us backwards. Brian grabbed my arm, and I saw the white stripe up the tail at the same time. Let me tell you, our neighbors have never seen someone running as fast up the street as I was that night. I was booking it, and Brian wasn't far behind me. Turns out, I can run 8-minute miles after all, if I have the proper motivation.

The following morning, we got up for a 1-hour run at 5:30. It was still dark, so we were using flashlights as we ran. We ran near a low-hanging tree, and I got tangled in a large spider web. I was jumping around, freaking out, because I.Hate.Spiders. And, obviously this was a big one, as the web went all of the way around my waist. I made Brian check several times that I didn't have some sort of large, ferocious monster spider on me.

We kept going down our running path, much slower, using the flashlights to watch for more webs. About a quarter mile ahead, our lights shone on yet another very large web stretched across the trail. In the middle of it was a huge spider. I started to step around it when we shone the light down onto the trail to see a skunk slowly crossing, seemingly unware that we were there. Even when we shone our lights on it, he didn't move from the path. Thank goodness we saw the spider web and stopped. Or we would have been smelling funky for a while. After that, we decided to bag the running path and we ran the city streets instead. Skunks and spiders at 5:30 in the morning are a little much for me.

In other news, my babies are back in school now. Yes, I call them my babies even though they are 7 and 9 now. Here they are on their first day:

*Sob*

I really hate it when school starts back up again. I love our days together in the summer, and I miss them a lot when they go back to school. But, I guess they have to learn to, like, read and stuff.

Bonnie gives me all of the updates, detail by detail, every evening. I know who said what to whom, and everything else that goes on in a 3rd grade classroom. But, Clyde? When I ask him about his day, he tells me what he had for lunch. Boys.

Have an amazing Sunday!

Sweet N Tangy Chicken

2011-09-09T21:43:00.004-05:00

This chicken surprised me. I wasn't sure about the sauce (pictured below), so I served it on the side instead of pouring it on top of the chicken. I thought it might be too sweet, but it was actually very good on the chicken. I also used BSCB instead of a whole chicken. It was a lot easier for the kids to eat.

Ingredients:
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 broiler/fryer chicken (3 pounds), cut up and skin removed
2/3 cup ketchup
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons cold water

1. In a 3-qt slow cooker, combine onion and garlic; top with chicken. In a small bowl, combine the ketchup, brown sugar, chili powder, lemon juice, basil, salt, pepper and hot pepper sauce; pour over chicken. Cover and cook on low for 4 1/2 to 5 hours or until chicken juices run clear.

2. Remove chicken and remove to a serving platter; keep warm. Transfer cooking juices to a saucepan. Skim fat from the cooking juices; transfer to a small saucepan. Bring liquid to a boil. Combine cornstarch and water until smooth. Gradually stir into the pan. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Serve with chicken.

The Seventeen Miler

2011-09-08T20:31:00.008-05:00

My legs hurt. I am whiny. And Brian is hogging The Stick. But, my legs are too sore for me to get up and wrestle it from him. For those of you who don't know what The Stick is, let me show you.

This baby is neat-o. It has rollers on it, so when you roll it on your calves and feet after you've run 17 miles, it is a mixture of pain and relief. It works out the soreness and Brian is currently running it all over his feet and making weird noises. I can't distinguish whether it feels good, or if he's in terrible pain. My guess is both.

So, today, he and I decided since the Excel spreadsheet said we have to do 17 miles last Saturday, and we missed it due to our weekend schedules. So, I took the day off, we saw the kids off to school, and began the placement of our ice chests around town for our makeshift water stops. And food snacks.

Here we are at the beginning of our journey:

The temperatures were lovely. We kept a good, slow, even pace, and all was right with the world. About 3 miles in, I said to Brian, "This is one of the true joys of life. Out for a slow run, enjoying nature, and having this perfect weather." He agreed. We were running Pollyanna's.

We made ourselves peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and bought some peanut M&M's, along with my usual honey Stingers and bananas. I ate quite a bit along the way, figuring I was fueling my body, and I kept feeling great.

That lasted up until about the 10th mile. The hills started getting harder. We got quieter. And, I had been drinking water like crazy, and had to go to the bathroom, but it meant I had to run faster to get there, so it was a conundrum.

We kept a pretty good pace until about the 13th mile. I finally got to the bathroom. And, when I sat down on the toilet, I wasn't sure I was going to get back up. The muscles were starting to get sore, and my IT band on the left leg was flaring up from running some of the more uneven trails.

I told Brian we were going to have to slow the pace for the last four miles. And, we did. We slowed down, and while painful, I was able to keep the slower pace up for two miles. It felt like every hill was injecting pain directly into my left leg, and I was a bit concerned that I might be injuring it by continuing on.

Around this time, a good round of nausea set in, and I was regretting all of those M&M's and the PBJ's that I ate during the first two hours. I couldn't even drink water without upsetting my stomach. So, the slower pace was necessary just to keep everything down at that point.

Mile 15 came, and another ice chest break came with it. I was so excited. Even though I couldn't eat or drink anything, we only had two more miles to go. Both of us were experiencing some major muscle soreness in our legs, and my left leg was still screaming. I tried stretching it as much as possible during the break, but couldn't get any relief. I really think if someone had offered to cut off my legs at that point for a small fee, I would have taken them up on it. I was hurting much worse than in the fifteen miler.

We set out on the last two miles, and I was only able to run for a few minutes at a time, and then having to walk it. I tried to concentrate on not puking while Brian prayed loudly next to me during each run. He was hurting as bad as I was, he just didn't have the nausea to go with it.

It felt like mile 16 would never come. We kept ourselves on a run/walk schedule to keep going, but every run felt like so much effort. As slow as we were, we kept going, and it wasn't long before the GPS watches showed mile 17, and the car was within sight.

YEAH. We did it!!

The car was such a lovely sight. He's our "after" pictures.

A wee bit grumpy, very sick to my stomach and in need of some Advil. Stat!

Brian was in better spirits, but the reason the door is open in the picture is because it took him about 15 minutes to move his leg in order to close it.

Tonight is all about recovery. The left leg is feeling better. We're in our pajamas, and have been for quite a while. We should have probably done an ice bath, but I couldn't get myself geared up for it. And, I know they say not to recover from these long runs lying down, but let me tell you, I haven't left the recliner this evening.

All we need is some Advil, The Stick, some take-out food, and all is right with the world again.

Two more weeks until the 20-miler!

Stone Fruit Lattice Pie

2011-09-06T20:48:00.008-05:00

I am still working my way through the August issue of Bon Appetit, which is focused on pies. It only seems right that I try as many as possible. I was looking forward to this one, the Stone Fruit Lattice pie. It looks so rustic, and I loved the idea of using different fruits in one pie.

And, it tastes as good as it looks. This one has been my favorite pie so far. (The hubby disagrees with me, as the peanut butter was his fave). The peaches, the nectarines, the plums - they are all so good together in this tasty crust. This one is a must-try.

Ingredients

Crust

1 Unbaked Pie Crust in a 9" glass or metal pie pan (see Master Pie Crust recipe)

Filling

2 pounds nectarines
1 pound peaches, peeled
1 pound plums
1/2 cup plus 1 Tbsp. sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon orange-flower water (optional)
1 large egg, beaten to blend

Ingredient Info

Orange-flower water is available in the cocktail-mixers or baking sections of better supermarkets and at Middle Eastern markets.

Preparation

Crust

Divide dough in half. Roll out one half according to Unbaked Pie Crust recipe. Roll out second dough disk on a lightly floured sruface to a 14" round. Transfer round to a baking sheet. Cover and chill both crusts for 1 hour. DO AHEAD Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and keep chilled.

Filling

Preheat oven to 400°. Halve, pit, and cut fruit into 1/2" thick slices. Place all fruit in a large bowl. Add 1/2 cup sugar and toss to coat. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour, tossing occasionally.

Strain fruit, reserving 1/4 cup of liquid; return fruit to same bowl. Whisk cornstarch and reserved fruit liquid in a small bowl. Add cornstarch mixture, netmeg, and orange-flower water, if using, to fruit; toss gently.

Pour fruit mixture into unbaked pie crust in dish.

Using a pizza wheel or a sharp knife, cut 14" dough round into 3/4"-wide strips. Weave strips over filling, forming a lattice.

Trim strips 1/2" shorter than dough overhang. Fold overhang over strips and crimp edges decoratively.

Brush beaten egg over crust edges and lattice. Sprink 1 Tbsp. sugar over. Set pie on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.

Bake pie for 40 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350°. Bake until crust is golden brown and juices bubble, about 40 minutes longer. Let cool on a wire rack.

Soft Molasses Spice Cookies

2011-09-04T21:36:00.003-05:00

I am definitely ready for fall. I am just in the mood for fall spices like nutmeg and cinnamon. I want some pumpkin pie. And, the cooler temperatures. Please give me those cooler temperatures!

These cookies were right up my alley for the fall mood I've been in. Similar to a soft ginger snap cookie, these molasses spice cookies represent all that is great about fall. The Clyde informed me that of all the cookies I have made, these have the best smell. He sat in his chair and sniffed his cookie for a while before he ate it.

I keep thinking maybe someday he'll be a world renowned chef. With his own show on Food Network. I mean, what 7-year old sniffs his cookies? I think he's got major talent.

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter, softened and divided
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup molasses
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla, divided
1/4 cup plus 2 to 3 tablespoons milk, divided
3/4 cup raisins (optional)
2 cups powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease cookie sheets. Mix flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt and cloves in medium bowl.

Beat 1/2 cup butter in large bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until smooth and creamy. Gradually beat in brown sugar until blended; increase speed to high and beat until light and fluffy. Beat in egg until fluffy. Beat in molasses and 1 teaspoon vanilla until smooth. Beat in flour mixture at low speed alternatively with 1/4 cup milk until blended. Stir in raisins, if desired.

Drop rounded tablespoonfuls of dough about 1 1/2 inches apart onto prepared cookie sheets. Bake 12 minutes or until set. Let cookies stand on cookie sheets 5 minutes; transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

For icing, melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in small saucepan over medium-low heat. Remove from heat; add powdered sugar and stir until blended. Add remaining 2 tablespoons milk and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla; stir until smooth. If icing is too thick add milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, until desired consistency.

Spread icing over tops of cookies. Let stand 15 minutes or until icing is set. Store in airtight contained.

Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Clyde vs The Environmentalists

2011-09-03T20:01:00.003-05:00

Today, in the car, The Clyde was discussing his usual topics with Bonnie and I. Really, the main things The Clyde discusses are cars and food. Anything else he can talk about for a little while, but the conversation needs to lead back to cars or food. Otherwise, you're going to lose him.

Unfortunately for The Clyde, his Dad works weekends, so many times he is stuck with us girls. That became evident today in the car.

"I think I want a monster truck when I grow up." he said from the back seat.

"Mmmmhmmm." I replied while driving.

"I think monster trucks can knock down trees. So, when I grow up, I want to get a monster truck so I can knock down trees."

"Clyde," I said, "I don't think its a good idea to knock down trees. Why would you want to do that?"

"Well," he answered me, "because its what monsters trucks do."

"But what about this," Bonnie piped up from the back seat, "what if these were apple trees? Would you knock down an apple tree?"

The Clyde was clearly in a conundrum, being forced to pick between wheels and food. Bonnie wore a slight smile on her face for stumping him.

"No food trees." he finally answered her. "I will only knock down leafy trees."

"But, what if animals live in those leafy trees? Like birds and squirrels?" I asked him.

The Clyde was quiet for a while. He knew there was no good answer to this one.

"Mom," he said, somewhat exasperated, "I think if Dad were here, he would help me talk about my monster truck."

I couldn't help but giggle. Poor Clyde. Sometimes us girls gang up on him. We just can't provide the same level of conversation over monster trucks that Dad can. I've already asked Brian to have a monster truck conversation with Clyde in the morning, so he can feel vindicated. And, when they have their discussion? They will probably envision how many trees they will destroy without regard to fruit or wildlife.

That's the good thing about Dads.

Our Bathroom Remodel Project

2011-09-01T18:26:00.008-05:00

Our master bath has been in desperate need of a makeover for a few years now. We go back and forth on it, trying to decide what we want, and how we are going to make it happen. We finally got ourselves a little plan together.

My goal is something like this:

And yes, I want the clawfoot tub. I am working on how to make that happen. I am trying to convince the hubby that we can get one up the stairs, but that's another story entirely.

So, last week, I was renewed with energy to tackle the bathroom, since we finally have a plan. I got myself a hammer and I was ready for Demo day.

And, if you don't watch Flip That House, Demo Day is lots of fun for everyone. You get to take out your aggressions on the wall as you hammer through tile and sheetrock.

Or at least that's how it looked to me on television.

So, Monday morning, I showed up in my bathroom with my sweat pants on, my hammer in tow, and a crowbar (just in case). Brian worked all night, so he wasn't as excited about demo day as I was. In fact, he was still in bed.

I decided I did not need to wait for him, so I began removing tile. Which did not just fall off the wall like it does on TV when I hammered it. Nope, I was having to pry the tile off of the wall, and after a while, I decided it wasn't all that it was cracked up to be.

So, I went and got a radio and started hammering on random items to see if anything came loose. Around this time, I noticed that Brian had moved into another bedroom to sleep. I guess he just wasn't into Demo Day.

As I hammered on random items around the bathroom, nothing really came loose, which was disappointing. So, I continued my slow tile-removing process. And, then I took a break and got myself a sandwich after I finished a couple of rows of tile.

A few hours later, Brian decided if you can't beat 'em, join 'em, so he got up and retrieved a (much larger) hammer. He started hammering on random things around the bathroom, and much to my dismay, things just fell apart when he hammered on them. Why didn't it work for me? I totally wanted that television moment. I got up early for it, and I even wore a tool belt.

But, I was so excited by the progress that I didn't care.

Within just a few minutes, we took out the lowered ceiling above the bathtub and found some lovely 1960's original wallpaper up there. Do you like it? It can be yours for a low, low price.

Here's a closer shot of that beautiful wallpaper.

And then, we hammered some more and found wet walls. And, a few points in the walls where the tile did just fall off, because there was wet sheetrock underneath. The walls smelled very musty and we decided there was no way we could save any of the sheetrock in this area. So, we tore it all out.

It was at this point that Brian said we need to remove the tub. As in, he and I need to remove the tub. And, I explained to him that on Flip This House, they usually threw heavy things like this out the window to a dumpster that was positioned below.

He reminded me that we did not have a dumpster or a window. Which meant we would be carrying it down the stairs.

Let me tell you, this was a total buzzkill. This was an old, porcelain tub that really didn't want to go anywhere. And, it was going to take sheer muscle to move it. Unfortunately for Brian, I have no upper body strength. I am all legs, and like a T-Rex, my arms are useless for most things except flipping pages of a magazine.

So, after pulling on the tub for a while and getting nowhere, we decided we needed to remove the carpet to get the tub out.

And, look what we found underneath the carpet:

Neat-o. Gold vinyl sticky tile thingies. These are authentic 1960's memorabilia, which can also be yours for a low, low price. I'll make a package deal with the wallpaper.

After pulling up the carpet and padding, we carried the both of them downstairs (and by "we", I mean Brian).

It was time to give the tub one last try.

I stretched my little arms and told Brian I was ready.

And, we heaved. Truth be told, he heaved more than me, but I still heaved.

Much to our amazement, it moved. And, thank goodness, Brian remembered the dolly in the garage. He strapped the tub to it with some bungee cords and the two of us were able to maneuver it down the stairs. Somehow. Someway. I am still not entirely sure how it happened.

But, here's what's left of the bathroom.

It looks practically the same as my example photo. Just a few small tweaks and I think we're there with it.

Stay tuned for the next episode, where Rhonda and Brian attempt to get a clawfoot tub up the stairs, while keeping their marriage intact.

Slow Cooker Peanutty Pork

2011-08-31T22:34:00.003-05:00

So, I think we've all been convinced of my love for peanut butter. But, it doesn't have to be in desserts. I love peanut butter soups. And, I love peanut butter sauce recipes. Enter this Slow Cooker Peanutty Pork recipe. I was drawn to it like a moth to a flame. Like Sonny to Cher. Like The Cookie Monster to, uh, cookies.

I think you get the point.

My family loved it, and it satisfied my PB craving for a while. Plus, its easy.

Ingredients:

2 lbs boneless pork loin chops
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup cold water
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
Hot cooked rice
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1/2 cup dry roasted peanuts
Lime juice, optional

1. Place pork chops in a 3 qt slow cooker. In a small bowl, combine the teriyaki saice, vinegar, pepper flakes and garlic; pour over meat. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or until meat is tender.

2. Remove pork and cut into bite-size pieces; keep warm. Skim fat from cooking juices; transfer to a small saucepan. Bring liquid to a boil. Combine cornstarch and water until smooth. Gradually stir into the pan. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in peanut butter; add meat.

3. Serve with rice. Sprinkle with onions and peanuts. Drizzle with lime juice if desired.

Lime and Blackberry Italian Meringue Pie

2011-08-30T20:08:00.006-05:00

Keeping with my tradition of Bon Appetit desserts, I continued my way through the Pie issue (August 2011 ) and decided to try the Lime and Blackberry Italian Meringue Pie.

I had a few issues with this one. Kind of a sloppy, gloppy mess, all piled into a pie shell. But, it tasted great, so I am telling myself that's all that counts.

Here's my pie:

Here's the pie in the Bon Appetit magazine:

There's a couple of notable differences:

#1. My pie appears to have been assembled by a first grader. And, while I have a first grader in the house that I could blame it on, I will have to take credit for this one.

#2. The pie in the Bon Appetit picture has a crust. Mine has parts of a crust appearing up over the sides, but most are buried. This is because my crust "shrunk down" on me while I was baking it. These blind baked pie crusts are harder than they look.

#3. The meringue on the Bon Appetit pie appears to be centered. Mine is sliding off of one side.

So, there were a few issues, and I'll make some notes in the recipe on things I would change. The lime curd was fantastic, but there is way too much meringue piled on top of the pie. To me, the curd is the star of the show, so no reason to drown it out with all of that meringue. I would cut the meringue in half.

Ingredients

Lime Curd

1 cup fresh lime juice
3 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
3/4 cup chilled heavy cream

Blackberry Compote

1 cup fruity red wine, such as Shiraz or Cabernet Sauvignon
1/2 cup sugar
3 cups blackberries
1 Blind-Baked Pie Crust in a 9" deep-dish glass or metal pie pan (see Master Pie Crust recipe)

Meringue

3 large egg whites, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons corn syrup
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup blackberries (about 1/2 pint)

Preparation

Lime Curd

Set a strainer over a medium bowl; set aside. Stir lime juice, eggs, egg yolks, and sugar together in another medium bowl. Set bowl over a large saucepan of gently simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch water). Whisk until mixture has thickened, the whisk leaves a path when lifted from curd, and an instant-read thermometer registers 175°, about 15 minutes. Add butter to curd, one Tbsp. at a time, whisking to blend between additions.

Strain curd into prepared bowl. Press plastic wrap directly onto surface of curd. Chill until cold, about 2 hours. DO AHEAD Can be made 2 days ahead. Refrigerate curd.
Sprinkle gelatin over 2 Tbsp. water in a small bowl; let stand until gelatin is soft, about 10 minutes. Using an electric mixer, beat cream until soft peaks form. Add gelatin mixture; continue beating cream until just before firm peaks form. Fold whipped cream into lime curd. Cover; chill.

Blackberry Compote

Bring red wine, sugar, and 1/2 cup water to a simmer in a medium saucepan over high heat; reduce heat to medium and simmer until reduced to 1/2 cup, 20-25 minutes. Let cool. Add 3 cups berries; fold gently to coat.

Here, I think 1/2 cup of liquid is way too much. Use a slotted spoon to remove the blackberries, or you will have liquid sitting at the bottom of your pie.

Spread compote in an even layer over baked crust. Spoon lime curd over berries, smooth top, and chill for 1 hour.

Meringue

If toasting meringue in oven, preheat oven to 450°. Place egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat whites in mixer until soft peaks form. Set aside. Stir sugar, corn syrup, and 1/4 cup water in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves. Attach a candy thermometer to side of pan. Increase heat to medium-high and boil without stirring, occasionally swirling pan and brushing down sides of pan with a wet pastry brush, until thermometer registers 238°, 6-8 minutes. Remove pan from heat.
Meanwhile, beat whites in mixer until soft peaks form. Beat in salt.
Slowly pour hot sugar syrup down side of bowl into whites and beat until meringue is firm and glossy. Continue beating until cool, about 4 minutes. Spoon meringue over lime curd, leaving a 1" plain border, and sculpt decoratively. Tuck 1 cup berries in and around meringue.
Bake pie until meringue is toasted in spots, 3-5 minutes (or use a kitchen torch to brown). Chill for 30 minutes before serving. Do Ahead: Pie can be made 3 hours ahead. Keep chilled.

Master Pie Crust
Makes 2 crusts

August 2011

Ingredients

* 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
* 1 cup (2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2" cubes
* 1/4 cup vegetable shortening
* 1 tablespoon plus 1 tsp. sugar
* 1 tablespoon kosher salt

*
Process flour, butter, vegetable shortening, sugar, and salt in a food processor until butter resembles tiny pebbles, about 25 seconds. Transfer to a large bowl. Gradually add 3/4 cup ice water, using a fork to stir until dough is a mixture of clumpy wet pieces and sandier pieces, adding more water by tablespoonfuls if dry. Press plastic wrap over surface of dough. Chill in the bowl at least 1 hour or over night.

For a blind-baked pie crust:

*
Preaheat oven to 375°. Prick chilled crust in pie dish (see instructions, above) all over with a fork. Line crust with foil or parchment paper. Fill with dried beans or pie weights.

Bake 25 minutes. Remove from oven; lift out foil and weights. Reduce temperature to 350°. Return to oven and bake, using fork to prick any bubbles that have formed and pressing down on them with back of fork, until crust is light golden brown, 20-25 minutes longer. Let crust cool completely.

Run For Relief 5K

2011-08-29T18:38:00.004-05:00

We decided to get up early Saturday morning and participate in the Run for Relief 5k that benefited our local Red Cross. They also had a one-mile fun run for the kiddos, so it was perfect for us. Not to mention, it was a race in our town, and you cannot ignore a race that's in your backyard.

So, we were up and going at 6:30 on Saturday morning, preparing for the race. Brian was going to do the fun run with the kids, and I was going to do the 5K.

The kids were feeling happy and excited to be running.

And, while I always tell myself to just run 5K's and have fun with them, I really wanted to get under a 30-minute time for my 5K. I am not a fast runner by any means, but a 30 minute 5K would be a PR (personal record) for me. So, while telling Brian that I had no time goal, I secretly had one in the back of my mind.

At 7:30, someone with a rifle stepped up to the starting line and fired the starting shot. Only in Oklahoma would they fire a starting shot with a rifle. Cracked me up.

And, the kids were off. And so was Brian. And, I was cheering very LOUDLY. And, then I noticed that no one else seemed to be screaming for their kids, so I kind of looked like a crazy person standing in the street yelling.

But, I didn't care.

And, twelve minutes later, here they came.

And, I was in the street screaming like a crazy person again.

They came in third place, and I was so proud of them.

Next up was my turn, with my secret goal that I had, although I wasn't going to tell anyone about it. Just in case.

Soon, the person with the rifle returned and it was time to run the 5K.

And, I found myself pacing fast enough to meet my time goal that didn't exist. I was pretty excited, and tried to keep the pace going for the next two miles.

There were a few hills into the second mile, and I started getting tired. That's when I realized that I hadn't eaten before the race. For me, this is very bad news, as I struggle with my sugar dropping during morning runs.

I told myself I would keep going until I got too tired. And, I powered through the second mile.

On the third mile, I knew it would be close. There were more uphill legs, and those definitely slowed me down. But, as I neared the finish line, I knew I had a shot at it. I sprinted for the finish line.

You can barely see me in this pic, but I am to the left of the girl crossing the finish line. And, do you see the time?

Yes.

Three. Seconds. Off.

I was excited about being close. But soooo incredibly frustrated over missing my goal by 3 seconds.

"I think you did it." Brian told me. "I think their clocks are a few seconds fast."

He's a good man, my hubby. He knew what I was doing even without asking. As he saw me sprinting, there was no doubt in his mind I was going for the thirty-minute mark. And while I appreciated him being supportive, I knew he would have been just as annoyed as I was.

Over the next 30 minutes, I pondered every detail of the race, trying to figure out where I could have picked up just 3 more seconds. If I'd just run up the hill a little faster. Or maybe I should have gone more to the inside on the curves.

I am trying to be content with it and not concentrate on those three seconds. But, let's face it...the next 5K? I secretly have a goal to beat 30:03. Which I am not telling anyone about. Just in case.

My Memories Giveaway

2011-08-28T17:47:00.009-05:00

A while back, the folks at My Memories e-mailed me and asked me if I was interested in doing a giveaway of their software on my blog. Of course, I am all about good deals and bargains, so I was immediately interested. Plus, I get to review their software on my site as well.

So, I've been working with it this weekend, and honestly, its pretty impressive.

Only one issue: I am not a scrapbooker. I've never had any interest in it, because I don't like extra papers everywhere. Papers drive me nuts. And, I could only imagine the mess I'd have if I was scrapbooking.

But, I guess the new thing is digital scrapbooking, which I'd never heard of, nor tried.

So, I downloaded the My Memories software and created a few quick pages to share with you. And, yes, they are Mac compatible.

And, then, I started thinking. Maybe I should become a scrapbooker.

I am, after all, a quilter. And, it seems like those crafty things go hand-in-hand.

But, I still can't deal with the paper. So, I think this virtual scrapbooking thing is the way to go.

And, how cool would these little scrapbooks be as gifts?

So, thanks to the folks at My Memories for my latest addiction. This software came with tons of paper templates, so I am trying to go through all of them to decide which ones I like most. Plus, there's more templates for free available at their site. You can also incorporate videos into these pages.

OK, now, to the fun part:

They are allowing me to give away one free copy of this program (a $40 value).

All you have to do is this:

Go to www.mymemories.com. Check out their digital packs (you can click on new kits or free kits), and leave me a comment telling me which one is your favorite.

The winner will be chosen by random.org on Sunday, Sept 4th. Good luck!

Counting My Blessings

2011-08-27T23:03:00.005-05:00

The past few days have been pretty active for our clan. From throwing parties to running races, we've been caught up in the fun activities that make the everyday work/school routine more bearable.

Tonight, the kids and I rented movies while Brian was working. While I was lying on the couch, watching movies with my kiddos, this wave of emotion swept over me. And, all of a sudden, I realized how fantastically lucky we have been.

I know there's families out there who are waiting on their adoption, and my heart goes out to them. And, I am sure that they've heard a million times, the real journey starts when the kids get home. Its true, in a way, but there's a lot of changes that took place in me during the process of waiting. So, I believe the real journey begins once the decision is made to adopt. Its just that it doesn't end when they come home.

And, now that the kids have been home for over five years now (can you believe that?), its funny how time can fade the memories of those raw emotions a bit. I have forgotten how we celebrated the kids birthdays at home while they were in the orphanage. Time has softened the sadness I felt when we were met with delay after delay.

After five years, I tend to forget what it took to make the four of us a family. And, for some reason tonight, as I was lying in the couch and the kids were eating popcorn in their recliners, I realized something: This was my dream six years ago.

And, if you'd asked me six years ago, I probably would have told you that I wasn't even sure it would really happen.

I may have even told you that it probably won't happen. Depending on the day, and whether the mailman had brought any good news or not.

The simplest thing, just chilling with my kids, didn't come without tremendous trials. And, while I dread homework Bonnie brings home, and I get frustrated with The Boy Who Can Ask A Million Questions, I have to remember the alternative is none of that. Its unthinkable.

I feel so blessed tonight. And, my prayer is that anyone who is waiting will see their dream fulfilled like ours was. A few years from now, may you be snoozing on the couch while your kids spill popcorn down the side of the recliners. At home. Together. And, you wouldn't have it any other way.

Persevere.

Crockpot Jambalaya

2011-08-24T22:06:00.002-05:00

A while back, I blogged about a bon appetit version of jambalaya. That recipe was amazing, but it is a lot of work. This recipe is also good, but I like being able to dump everything into a crockpot and forget about it. So, this one was a winner for me due to the lack of prepwork needed.

Jambalaya

1 pound smoked Polish sausage, cut into 1/2 inch slices
1/2 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) beef broth
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
2 celery ribs, chopped
1/2 cup tomato paste
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 pound cooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 cups cooked rice

1. In a 5 qt slow cooker, combine the first 12 ingredients. Cover and cook on low for 6 - 7 hours or until chicken is no longer pink.

2. Stir in shrimp and rice. Cover and cook 15 minutes longer or until heated through.

The Fifteen Miler

2011-08-22T19:32:00.008-05:00

Somewhere along the line, Brian and I had this bright idea that we should run a marathon. Well, I decided that I should run a marathon, and since Brian is married to me, I thought he should do it too. He does have to do whatever I say, after all. Its in our vows.

So, here we are, umpteen weeks later, and the 15-mile long run is staring us in the face. We've tried to be optimistic, but it was intimidating, since the most we've ever run was 13 miles. It was new, uncharted territory, and we weren't sure if our aching calves would get us through or not.

However, we decided to plow onward anyways. After all, I have an excel spreadsheet that says we have to run it today. So, that means we have no choice.

We carbed up, geared up, and got our ipods ready with the appropriate playlists.

We were in a pretty good mood before starting.

The photo above represents how we felt starting out. Fresh, smiling, and optimistic about our run.

Here's how we felt after we were finished:

No, he doesn't know this is on here. Because he is still asleep in this same position on the couch.

And yes, he is going to kill me.

Anyways, onto the details of the dreaded 15-miler:

As we started out, it started raining. We decided this was no big deal, because the rain kept everything cool. And, it was really only sprinkling. Half an hour later, when we were drenched, we were rethinking our strategy. But, still, our spirits were high, and we kept the faith.

As we rolled onto about the five-mile mark, Brian asked me if Bonnie had been helping with the laundry recently.

"Yes," I replied. "She's been folding laundry for me."

"Has she been helping with the washing machine?"

I thought it over. "Not really. Why?"

Brian pointed to his shorts and I immediately saw his dilemma. He had soap running down his legs. I guess with all of the rain soaking him, and the agitation of him running, it had created its own little wash cycle in his shorts.

Note to self: Use less soap in the laundry.

I tried not to laugh, because he was clearly uncomfortable. But, really, how is this not somewhat funny?

We kept going for another mile, and the foaming continued to get worse.

"I've never seen anything like this happen before," I said as I leaned over to examine the suds running down his legs.

"It itches," he responded. It appeared to me that he was losing his sense of humor about the all of this, but I was not losing mine at all.

"Its like the soap didn't wash out of them at all." I said.

"You think?" he asked me.

"Well," I said, "you should be squeaky clean by the end of this run."

And, we went on for another mile while he scratched at his legs.

Really, all went well (for me, as I was suds-free) until we reach what we call the HOD. HOD stands for Hill Of Death. And, when you are running up it, you are pretty sure you are going to die, hence the name we gave it. We decided we didn't have enough energy for the HOD, and we wussed out and walked up it instead.

Finally, a mile later, we made it to our first water drop. This is kind of how we do our long runs. We hide ice boxes with water and bananas and waffle stingers along our path. Then, we can refill and recharge a little bit. We felt much better after the water drop and we started the 6-mile leg back to our house.

We felt pretty good until about the 10th mile. That's when I started to get tired. My clothes were sticking to me, and I was losing my energy. By this time, the rain had stopped and the soap had dried to Brian's legs. He was a scratching fool.

We walked for a while to try to regain some strength, and picked up the pace again to make it back to the house. We still had almost 3 miles to go, but we decided to change into some dry pants (and less soapy) before the last leg.

The 13th and 14th miles were basically pain. My hips and my calves hurt, and our pace slowed down as a result.

But, then something odd happened the last half mile. Maybe it was knowing that we were about to get home, or maybe it was just the fact that we had dry pants on. But, somehow, we got a second wind and we both started feeling great. We ran the last half mile and a very quick pace and we both felt like we could have kept going if we needed to. It was an awesome way to finish!

And, we got home just in time to walk down to the bus stop to meet the kids. We were wet, sweaty, and dirty, so I am sure they were so proud of their parents waiting to greet them at the bus stop. But, we were there to greet them, regardless. We just figure its our job to embarrass them.

Tonight, we are in our pajamas, and we have been in them since 6:00. We ordered chinese food (delivered), because we did not feel like cooking and we certainly did not want to go out anywhere. Hopefully the soreness won't be too bad tomorrow.

17-miler is in two weeks. Marathon, here we come!

Peanut Butter Honeycomb Pie

2011-08-21T16:51:00.011-05:00

Here I am trying another bon appetit recipe. Big shocker, I know. I am so addicted to their desserts, and this one fantastic. If you are like me, and you love peanut butter, there is a potential that you may eat this entire pie in one sitting. I had one piece and immediately sent the rest out the door with my hubby to work. If it had stayed here with me, it wouldn't have made it until morning, I assure you.

I found the honeycomb a little bit challenging, so I am matching up a few pictures with the recipe on this one.

Peanut Butter Honeycomb Pie

Honeycomb
This addictively sweet, crunchy candy is part of our Peanut Butter Honeycomb Pie, but it's also great on its own.

8 servings

Ingredients

* 1 1/2 cups sugar
* 3 tablespoons corn syrup
* 1 tablespoon honey
* 1 tablespoon baking soda, sifted

Preparation

*
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil. Combine sugar, corn syrup, honey, and 1/4 cup water in a heavy deep saucepan. Stir over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves.

It should look about like this...make sure you use a large pan for this.

Increase heat to high; bring to a boil. Cook without stirring, occasionally swirling pan and brushing down sides with a wet pastry brush, until sugar turns pale amber.

I called this a pale amber, but I think it was a little too dark. On some of the website comments, it was noted that it should read about 300 degrees on a candy thermometer. This is probably a more scientific way to know when you should add the baking soda.

Working quickly, add baking soda (mixture will foam up dramatically).

I actually burned the bottom when I did this - it burned immediately when I added the baking soda. Next time, I would highly recommend removing from the heat when you add the baking soda, and probably adding the baking soda when its a little lighter amber color.

Whisk quickly just to combine. Immediately pour candy over prepared sheet (do not spread out). Let stand undisturbed until cool, about 20 minutes. Hit candy in several places with the handle of a knife to crack into pieces.

Peanut Butter Honeycomb Pie
Ingredients
Crust

* 9 graham crackers, coarsley crushed
* 1/4 cup (packed) light brown sugar
* 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
* 1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
* 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter, melted

Filling

* 8 large egg yolks
* 12 tablespoons sugar, divided
* 1 1/2 cups whole milk
* 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
* 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1 cup creamy peanut butter
* 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Topping

* 2 ounces bittersweet chocolate (do not exceed 61% cacao), chopped
* 2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
* Honeycomb (click for recipe)
* 1/4 cup roasted, salted peanuts

Preparation
Crust

*
Preheat oven to 325°. Finely grind graham crackers, sugar, salt, and nutmeg in a food processor.Transfer crumb mixture to a medium bowl. Add butter and stir to blend. Use bottom and sides of a measuring cup to pack crumbs onto bottom and up sides of 9" glass or metal pie pan.Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Let cool.

Filling

*
Mix yolks and 6 Tbsp. sugar in the bowl of a stand mixers fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat at high speed until ribbons form, stopping once to scrape down sides of bowl, about 2 minutes.
*
Combine milk and remaining 6 Tbsp. sugar in a large saucepan; scrape in seeds from vanilla bean and add bean. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Remove bean. With mixer running, gradually add hot milk mixture to yolk mixture. Scrape mixture back into pan. Clean bowl. Whisking constantly, bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove pan from heat; whisk vigorously for 1 minute. Return custard to mixing bowl, beat on high speed until cool, about 4 minutes. Mix in butter on Tbsp. at a time. Add peanut butter, powdered sugar, and salt; beat to blend. Scrape filling into cooled crust; smooth top. Chill until set, 2-3 hours.

Topping

*
Stir chocolate and butter in a medium bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water until melted and smooth.
*
Drizzle some of the chocolate glaze over the peanut butter filling, making a circle in the middle of the pie and leaving a 1"-2" plain border. Pile pieces of honeycomb and salted peanuts on top, then drizzle remaining chocolate glaze over.

Moist Pumpkin Cookies

2011-08-20T22:37:00.002-05:00

I am a fan of all things pumpkin. Pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, and pumpkin cookies. These are good pumpkin cookies, but you don't want to skip the glaze, because it really adds to the cookies.

Pumpkin, raisins, and walnuts - these ingredients make me ready for fall already!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Powdered sugar glaze:
Combine 1 cup powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons milk in small bowl until well blended.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat butter and sugars in large bowl until creamy. Beat in pumpkin, egg and vanilla until light and fluffy. Mix in flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg until blended. Stir in raisins and walnuts. Drop heaping tablespoonfuls of dough 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until set (mine took 15). Cool 2 minutes on cookie sheets. Remove to wire racks; cool completely. Drizzle powdered sugar glaze onto cookies. Let glaze set. Makes about 3 1/2 dozen cookies.

Back to OKC

2011-08-19T21:35:00.003-05:00

Its that time again. No, not time to make the doughnuts.

Time to take Miss Bonnie back to Dean McGee for her eye exam.

These visits are always wrought with anticipation for us. Did her vision change? By how much? Do we have a good idea of her diagnosis?

Today was no different.

Bonnie has been stressed for days over this appointment. She hates the eye drops, and she really gets worked up over the idea of having them. And, today was no different. She was tense and scared until they finally got the eye drops into her eyes.

It was a difficult process, and hard to keep her in the chair. I held her hand while the nurse opened her eyes. And, unfortunately, there was one eye that the drop didn't fall into. Much to my surprise, Bonnie told the nurse that she didn't feel any stinging in that eye, and she didn't think it had gone in.

So, we went back to our positions where I held her hand and the nurse opened her eye again, and Bonnie cried. But, we got her eyes dilated.

And, after it was over, she said, "It wasn't that bad." I reminded her that she needs to remember that for the next visit, because she has the whole process built up to be so much worse in her mind. I hate to watch her worry so much over these appointments.

After the eye drops, she was able to relax and answer all of the doctor's questions.

I just wish the doctor could answer all of my questions. And, don't get me wrong, our doctor is top-notch. Its just that we all suspect that Bonnie has RP, but we haven't been able to prove it yet. We're all concerned that Bonnie seems to be losing her peripheral vision. She trips over anything that isn't taller than her knees at this point, because she just doesn't ever see it. I think its worse than this time last year, but I can't tell for certain. However, if it is, this kind of a narrowing tunnel of vision is very classic for RP.

On one hand, I will be so heartbroken if it truly is RP, and on another hand, I'll be glad to finally have a firm answer to know what we're dealing with.

The doctor isn't sure yet.

So, we go back in a little while to have some additional tests done on her peripheral vision. This will give us a baseline, and then we'll return for the same tests to see if she is truly losing any of her peripheral sight.

If so, we'll have a bit more of a definite answer.

Until then, we're still keeping the faith.

Silver Dollar City

2011-08-17T06:44:00.003-05:00

On our last day at Branson, we decided to head out to Silver Dollar City. If you are crazy like us, and decide to go to a theme park in July, with 100 degree temperatures, I suggest going at night. Silver Dollar City offered half-price tickets after 5 p.m, and that's really when Bonnie can see the best anyway.

We walked into the park after 5:00 just in time to see the masses who were leaving. Most were sweating, annoyed with their kids, and just fed up. Of course, we were excited to see it, because it meant the line to the roller coasters was shorter.

So, off we went to ride a few coaster.

The first few were not too bad, and they were mostly the kids' speed. However, Clyde really wanted to ride a coaster that went upside down. I am not sure what he thought would happen to him by going upside down, but he really wanted to find out.

So, we found The Powder Keg.

And, he made the cutoff.

The powder keg begins by basically shooting you out of the loading area at 70 miles per hour, shocking its first-time riders who may not have been holding on (i.e. myself and Bonnie). It climbs high and drops down, with loops and all. Then, it does it again. And, again.

And, I looked over at Bonnie about halfway through, when I was taking a break from screaming and she was hanging her head down with her eyes closed.

"What are you doing?" I asked her.

"Pretending I am somewhere else." she answered me back.

Apparently The Powder Keg wasn't her cup of tea. And, as we got off of the ride, the kids were pretty quiet.

But, Clyde had a smile on his face. And, his hair told the story of which ride he'd been on.

But, even The Clyde didn't want to go on the large coaster again.

After a few hours, we were starting to get overheated and a little grumpy, so we checked out the Marble Cave tour. I highly recommend this if you go to SDC. It was so beautiful down there, and the best part was that it was 60 degrees.

So, we got line for the tour.

And, underground we went.

We learned about stalactites and stalagmites.

And, we learned about bats. Several of which flew very close to our heads as we made our way through tunnels.

And, at one point, they turned off all of the lights and lit a candle to let us imagine what it was like to discover the cave for the first time. Very fun!

As we came up out of the tunnel, we were refreshed and ready to ride roller coasters again. (But, not the Powder Keg). And, the best part was that the lines were gone. So, we rode roller coasters until the park shut down.

What a great way to end our vacation.

The kids were refusing to leave the cabin the next morning, and I couldn't blame them. We had so much fun, none of us wanted to go home.

Another great vacation in the books!

Vacation Continued...

2011-08-16T06:40:00.002-05:00

Part of the great part of our vacation was the fact that we just got to relax. We really enjoyed our cabin, and our motto this year was that we would not take a vacation from God and everything in our life, but instead, leave the stresses of life behind and take a vacation with God.

We had some great time for Bible study, games, card playing, and general relaxation as a family. I will certainly plan days like this in our vacations from now on. They are necessary!

Here is the little cabin we stayed in. We loved the rocking chairs out front and I told Brian that I could see us in these rocking chairs when we were 80 years old. That will be us, rocking outside of whatever house we have at the time, talking about some ridiculous topic.

These were a great spot to sit and watch the sun set.

Or read a book. Or in this case, a Kindle. Are these not the most amazing devices? I carry mine everywhere.

And, the kids got to play and play.

And Bonnie beat up on her Dad while playing cards...

This spot was great for sitting and watching deer. We actually had one that came into the back area a few times. I am guessing the cabin had been empty for a while, because she was pretty surprised to see us. She actually stomped her foot at us a few times, which I've never seen a deer do. It was kind of awkward, actually. As she was staring us down, Brian said, "She's not exactly the welcome wagon, is she?" No, she wasn't. Obviously, we were in her territory and she didn't like it.

But, even with the nutty deer, it had some great sunsets.

Ahhhh.

I love sunsets. There's nothing more beautiful.

The downtime was exactly what we needed.

Vacation Recap

2011-08-15T06:30:00.002-05:00

Does anyone else start school next week? I am wishing that I had just one more month with my kids at home. I miss them terribly when they start school, and I dread the crazy schedule that comes with the school year.

But, as much as I want to keep them at home, they are excited about starting school. It brings back memories to watch them speculate about which teacher they'll have, who will be in their class - as in, who they hope will be in their close, and who they hope won't be in their class. Don't you remember thinking about all of those things? The first day of school was always exciting for me, but really nerve racking at the same time.

This summer, we decided to take our summer vacation in Branson, Missouri. I was a bit concerned with this choice, as I am not necessarily a big country music fan, and I thought that I might hear one too many banjos as we strolled around Branson for my liking.

But, we rented a great cabin out there, and we spent the week relaxing. It was the first time I haven't over-scheduled us on our vacation. Usually, I have something planned out every day in my Excel spreadsheet of activities. However, this year, I had several days where we weren't scheduled to do anything. And, indeed, we used those days to simply lounge around the cabin, play games, put together puzzles, and take walks.

It was fantabulous.

The first day there, I think it got up to 113 degrees. We decided to go out on the boat. And while that was a great idea in theory, unless you were in the water, it was pretty miserable. And forget fishing. The fish were miserable, too. I think you could throw a lure right in front of them and they wouldn't move.

So, we swam. And we tubed.

We literally had the lake to ourselves. It was awesome.

So, when someone asked if she could drive, we thought, why not?

After a while, we had to take a dip to cool off.

Awwww.

And here I am tubing with the little man. And, by the way, he pushed me off of the tube, the little turkey.

More vacation pics to come...have a great Monday.

A Little Mess Here, A Little Mess There...

2011-07-04T09:50:00.008-05:00

How's your summer going? We've been doing a little of this:

Some of that:

And even a little of this...

But, as all of you know, just because its summer doesn't mean that parenting is always a breeze. I was in Canada last week for my final trip (insert applause here), and last weekend, I was frantically trying to get everything done before catching my flight on Sunday. One of the tasks that really needed to be done was grocery shopping.

I put the kids into the car and drug them to several stores in order to get my great coupon deals. After we congratulated each other on our great bargains, we decided to cap off our trip with some Sonic drinks.

Bonnie ordered a Coke and Clyde ordered a strawberry slush. When he requested the drink, I hesitated, while looking at the light tan interior of my car. Clyde is large for his age, and as a result, very uncoordinated. Well, plus he's six, so I think lack of coordination goes with that, too. But, he was so good in the store, so I decided to go with it. Strawberry slush it was.

As we were driving home, I reminded Clyde to hold the cup with both hands. "Mom," I heard a groan from the back seat, about 30 seconds after my reminder. I turned around (yes, while driving) and saw that Clyde had pushed the straw through the bottom of the cup. The entire strawberry slush was pouring out onto his lap.

Wanting to end the ice cold slush for pouring into his lap any further, Clyde shoved the drink directly at me (yes, I am still driving). I tried to grab it from him, but not before everything left in the cup went flying. I had strawberry slush all over my car. Strawberry slush on the windshield. And strawberry slush on myself and Bonnie, who was totally innocent.

"CLYDE", I screeched while veering back into my lane. I pulled the car over into an empty parking lot, got Clyde out of the car, and tried to get as much ice off of the Clydester's lap as I could. He was crying, I was annoyed, and Bonnie wisely kept quiet.

We drove home quietly while I looked through strawberry slush on the windshield.

We pulled into the garage and I apologized to Clyde for yelling at him. "My car isn't as important to me as you, and Mommy shouldn't have yelled," I told him. He asked if he could help me, but I told him it would be the biggest help if he would carry in groceries while I cleaned out the car.

As I was cleaning the car, I heard a groan from the house. "Moooom". I ignored it and pretended like I didn't hear it. Soon, Clyde appeared.

"Mom, I dropped some of the groceries. And, it made a little spill."

He showed me the torn sack. I checked the inside of the sack, and nothing was spilled.

"Honey," I told him, "you just tore the sack. Nothing spilled."

"Mom, something spilled in the other room. Just a little bit."

I walked into the house looking for a little puddle. As I walked into our dining room, I saw a shattered bottle of Strawberry V8 splash.

There was V8 splash all over the floor. All over the table. All over the curtains. Dripping down the wall. And even onto the carpet in the next room over, the playroom.

"CLYDE!" I screeched. I sat him in the chair. "Don't touch ANYTHING."

I looked at my watch and remembered my Mom was due to show up in about ten minutes. Which, unfortunately, meant I couldn't kill him because she would know right away. Not that I considered it or anything.

So, instead, I locked myself in the bathroom for a few minutes to remind myself that even though my light-tan-interior car was still covered in strawberry slush, and even though my dining room was covered in strawberry V8, I loved my son. He did not mean to destroy the car and the dining room, I told myself. And, even though I really needed to be packing for Canada, sometimes you just gotta to with the flow. Plus, I said to myself, if you hurt him, you could go to jail.

I came out of the bathroom and lifted Clyde out of the dining room chair in the middle of the mess. He was clearly upset, and once again, I told him I was sorry for yelling at him. Twice. Back to back. Within about 10 minutes.

"Mom," he asked me, "can I just go outside and play in the pool?"

"Yes, please", I answered him.

I found myself lots of cleaner and paper towels and went to work. I got most of it up, and surprisingly, the car is fine. However, the V8 Splash somehow stained our floor. I am just going to pretend it will fade with time. It really isn't terribly noticeable, as the flooring is marbled in that area.

And, lucky for me, my Mom was late, and I had time to get most of the mess cleaned up before she arrived. I told her that I nearly killed her grandson and explained the day's events. "Awww," she said, "he's having a bad day."

So, for the most part, all messes have been cleaned up and I made it to Canada. Although, my shoes still stick on the floor in the dining room as I walk through. I figure I'll get to that soon enough...

Happy Father's Day

2011-06-19T20:54:00.004-05:00

Yes, its Father's Day, which means lots of festivities around here. The kids shopped hard for their father's day gifts this year.

And, really, I am so grateful that they care so much about what to get their Dad on Father's Day. I read a blog a long time ago about an adopted child who would not shop or buy gifts for anyone in the family. His parents struggled to teach him how to give, and how important it is not just to receive. No doubt, it was a form of RAD, and it was something the family found very challenging.

So, when I was annoyed with waiting forever at K-Mart for the kids to pick their gifts, I thought of that story. And, sometimes these little reminders are what keep my priorities in line.

Anyways, Bonnie bought her Dad some nice slippers. "His old ones have paint on them" she told me, "that's why I want to get him new ones." I wasn't sure about that, but when I got home I checked. Sure enough, his old slippers had a few tiny spots of paint on them. She is so perceptive sometimes.

Clyde went a little more, um, nontraditional for his gift. He wanted to get his Dad some new pajama pants. So, we went shopping in the pajama section. Most of the items I saw Clyde looking through were plaid pajama pants, so I thought his choice would be pretty quick. I was totally wrong. The child went through each pair of pants on the rack, and you know something? Someway, somehow, he found a pair of pajama pants that had Elmo all over them. And, how lucky was it that they were in Brian's size?

Clyde was so pleased with his find that I couldn't send him back to the rack. Instead, I purchased an adult pair of Elmo pajama pants.

And, I couldn't help but take a photo op of Brian's expression when he opened them.

You want a pair, don't you? Well, good luck, because I have no idea how Clyde found these, nor did I find any others in the store. I think Brian lucked out with a one-of-a-kind pair.

Happy Father's Day from Brian, Rhonda, Bonnie, Clyde (and Elmo)!

Cookie of the Week

2011-06-14T21:49:00.000-05:00

Orange Drop Cookies

My favorite part of these cookies is the glaze. It has lemon juice, orange juice, and grated orange peel. It makes for a very citrus-y, light cookie. Perfect for summer!

These disappeared fast.

Cookies:
1 package Duncan Hines Golden Sugar Cookie Mix
1 egg
1 tablespoon orange juice
1/2 teaspoon grated orange peel
3/4 cup flaked coconut
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Glaze:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons orange juice
1 teaspoon grated orange peel

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. For cookies, combine cookie mix, buttery flavor packet from mix, egg, 1 tablespoon orange juice and 1/2 teaspoon orange peel in large bowl. Stir with spoon until well blended. Stir in coconut and pecans. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake at 375 degrees for 7 to 8 minutes or until set. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets. Remove to cooling racks. Cool completely.

3. For glaze, combine confectioners' sugar, lemon juice, 2 teaspoons orange juice and 1 teaspoon orange peel in small bowl. Stir until blended. Drizzle over top of cooled cookies. Allow glaze to set before storing between layers of waxed paper in airtight container.

Running Update

2011-06-13T21:37:00.000-05:00

Brian and I have completed the first four weeks of the marathon training program. Wow, its difficult to run in this heat. Our times are so slow. Its really comical, because we feel like we're running fast out there. But, we get home, plug in the Garmin, and it tells us that we are S-L-O-W. We are shocked every time. We think we're speed demons out there.

I have to tell you, I don't mind much. I was always so focused during training for the half marathon on my time. I wanted to make sure I always stayed in the 9 min/mi range, because I had a time goal. Which, totally didn't happen anyways. And, it was a good lesson to me about trying to train for a time goal. There's nothing wrong with it, but for a first race, the goal needs to be just to finish.

We use walk breaks, drop into the 11:00 range, whatever it takes to finish in the heat. The whole idea is for us to just to survive this thing. Its kind of freeing in a way, because we know we have to slow down and run at a survivable pace for 26 miles. The runs have become much more enjoyable without a time goal. Not to mention, there is a physical need to slow down in this heat. So, in a weird way, its put a whole new passion into running for me.

This weekend is a 7.5 mile run. Slow and steady, we'll get it done.

Time To Sew!

2011-06-12T21:26:00.004-05:00

Miss Bonnie is asking for a new dress to wear to church. So, after some flipping through Simplicity's new patterns, we found a dress. The pattern was 40% off, so that was even better.

Simplicity 2469, here we come.

We are making the dress in the lower right hand corner. Its kind of hard to see from the pic, but it has little roses across the front, which is why she really wanted the dress.

We chose a flowered fabric:

I think it will be a really cute dress. The last time I made her a dress, I bought a pattern from the children's line. Now she is into the "Girls" sizes. Sniff, sniff.

We spent several hours this afternoon starting the process. Bonnie is old enough to really start learning how to sew, so we started with the pattern cutting, pinning, and ironing. She stuck herself a few times with the pins - a painful experience for all of us learning to work with those things! But, she didn't give up and she got all of her pattern pieces pinned. She was really excited to be able to cut something with my super-special sewing scissors.

We got all of the pieces cut this afternoon, so we should be ready to start sewing this dress next weekend. I can't wait to see it on her!

White Chocolate Biggies

2011-06-05T19:13:00.003-05:00

So, I love anything that has to do with white chocolate. I would eat white chocolate over other chocolate any day. So, to me, these were a winner. Soft in the middle, chewy like a cookie should be. Mmmm.

I wasn't sure about the raisins in the recipe, but they turned out to be a great addition.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c Butter or margarine, softened
1 c Granulated sugar
3/4 c Packed light brown sugar
2 t Vanilla
2 Eggs
2 1/2 c All purpose flour
2/3 c Unsweetened cocoa
1 t Baking soda
1/2 t Salt
1 pk Large white chocolate chips
3/4 c Pecan halves, coarsely
chopped 1/2 c Golden raisins

Preheat oven to 350'F. Lightly grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper. Beat butter, sugars, vanilla and eggs in large bowl until light and fluffy. Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in medium bowl blend into creamed mixture until smooth. Stir in white chocolate chips, pecans and raisins. Scoop out about 1/3 cup dough for each cookie. Place on prepared cookie sheets, about 4 apart. Flatten each cookie slightly. Bake 12 14 minutes or until firm in center.

Cool 5 minutes on cookie sheets
remove to wire racks to cool completely. Makes about 2 dozen large cookies.

Parting shot:

Over the past week and a half, the kids are basically either in pajamas or swimsuits. If you ask me, that's just the way summer should be.

Running Update

2011-06-04T21:30:00.005-05:00

Did you know that Wednesday was National Running Day?

Did you run on National Running Day?

Or were you like me and really didn't know there was such a thing as National Running Day, and therefore did not celebrate it?

But, by sheer coincidence, I did run 3.5 miles on Wednesday, so I will count myself as a participant. Our local running store had a 5K race to celebrate, but I found out about it after the fact.

The Route 66 Marathon is in November, and I have decided I want to run the full marathon. Why, I do not fully understand, considering that I worked really hard to make it through the half marathon in May. However, I started reading Jeff Galloway's book called Marathon: You Can Do It. And you know what? I started thinking maybe Jeff is right, and maybe I really can do it. I love his run/walk method, and I used it during the Memorial marathon. His methods are all about training slow and easy so that you don't get injured along the way.

And I am already slow. So, Jeff's plan really jives with me. So far, it looks like I'll be using a 3 minute run, 1 minute walk or a 4 minute run, 1 minute walk through the training. We'll see how my endurance and speed goes once I get into the 15-mile range.

Once I had a great training plan, I convinced Brian to train with me. He complained for a while, but when I said, "OK, go ahead and train for the half, and I'll train for the full.", and his competitive nature got the best of him.

So, the training begins now. We have our training plan on the refrigerator and we check off each run with a red pen.

And, that's why I am so chipper about training for 26.2 miles. So far, I'm only three weeks into it. Life is great, and the long runs are about 6 miles.

Talk to me in two months.

I may tell you I am training for the half marathon.

But, for now, my goal is to get myself a nice medal that says "My First Marathon" along with that elusive finisher's t-shirt.

So far the training is going great. My only issue is that I've got blisters on my first and second toes on my right foot. I hate to have blisters this early in the training, as they can become major issues. I've got both toes wrapped, so hopefully they'll heal up just fine, and this will not be a big deal.

Six mile run tomorrow, here I come.

Rainbow Cake

2011-05-30T17:53:00.009-05:00

There are so many great things about making a Rainbow Cake:

#1 It creates happy kids.

#2 When you sort the M&M's by color, you obviously have to eat a few for quality assurance purposes.

#3. The cake-cutting is full of anticipation, because everyone knows there's a rainbow inside! (Did you notice what Clyde is eating in the background? This is what we feed our kids. McDonald's and cake.)

#4. And even though everyone knows there's a rainbow, they all get very excited when they see it anyways.

#5. And lastly. when the Clydester devours his cake, he will proclaim that is so full that he cannot eat another piece. And, everyone at the table will be silent in amazement, because the Clyde is never full of dessert after just one piece. Its just not natural.

But, I guess six layers will do that to a kid.

This cake is a blast to make with your kids. Try it out, its very easy!

Rainbow Cake

Ingredients

2 boxes white cake mix
Food coloring (red, yellow, blue, etc.)
1 pound unsalted butter, room temperature
1 pound vegetable shortening
8-10 cups powdered sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°. Mix both boxes of cake mix according to package directions.

Create six different bowls of batter and tint each bowl a color of the rainbow. Make sure your batter is nice and bright! Line the bottom of 9-inch cake pans with parchment paper, and then spray with cooking spray. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the pan comes out clean. Cool each layer for 5 minutes and remove from pan to a cooling rack.

Meanwhile, prepare icing. Beat unsalted butter and vegetable shortening on high until smooth and completely blended. 1 cup at a time, add powdered sugar and mix well between each addition. Continue to add powdered sugar until it reaches a good consistency. Set aside.

Starting with the red layer, begin stacking the layers (adding about 1/2 a cup of icing between each layer). Spread the icing evenly to the edge of the cake. Continue to stack the layers (orange, yellow, green, blue, purple). Spread the remaining icing over the top and sides of the cake, covering well.

Decorate as desired. We used pretzel M&M's, because we liked the larger M&M's. You could use skittles, or just leave it as a plain cake. Have fun with it!

Pabst Blue Ribbon Cake

2011-05-29T21:43:00.007-05:00

Just thought I'd share a cake that I made last week. One of the doctors that Brian works with ordered this cake from me, and I agreed to do it. And then, when I realized what he needed, I had a mild panic attack, since I've really never done a cake like this before.

He asked for the Pabst Blue Ribbon beer logo on a cake. But, after some research online and tracing of the logo, I think it came out pretty well.

His friend, who was having a birthday, was flying into Oklahoma on Friday and I guess this is his favorite beer. So, when they went to the bar and he ordered the beer, the bartender was supposed to bring out the cake.

Anyway, he was very happy with it, so that's all that counts!

Kindergarten Graduation

2011-05-28T21:56:00.003-05:00

So, did I mention that I graduated a Kindergartner this year? Like just a few days ago?

I sure did. And I can't get the dumb pics off of the camera to show you, so I will have to go with my blackberry pic for now. Here he is all dressed up for his graduation.

Can someone please explain to me how this happened? Because I still think he looks like this:

And, just look at the below picture, back when he wore diapers!! Tell me that isn't the cutest bottom ever.

Waaahhh.

I cannot deal with this.

*Sob*

I have to stop now. Because I could go on like this all night.

So, let me tell you about the ceremony. They have these songs that they sing where they thank their parents, and sing about how they're ready for 1st grade. And then they do some dancing, which by the way, Clyde was one of the top dancers onstage, if you ask me.

And THEN, they put little caps on them and hand them a kindergarten diploma.

I was really okay until they put the cap on him. I wasn't expecting that. It wasn't in any of his mountains of papers that he brings home every day. They need to warn you of such things, you know? Things like this require extra Kleenex.

And, as I watched him, the thought hit me that this was our last Kindergarten graduation. There won't be another one.

During all of this craziness, a friend of ours with a 4 or 5 month-old baby was sitting nearby. She handed the baby to Brian because the baby was wanting to go to him (babies love Brian for some reason, as do certain wild animals, but I guess that is off-topic).

So, there I was, watching the little man graduating on stage, and I look over at Brian and he is holding this little baby.

And, the tears just started welling up in my eyes.

"Don't say it," he laughed as he saw me eyeing him with that little baby.

And I didn't, but he knew what I was thinking.

And he was totally right. But at that moment, I felt so sad that this was our last graduation, I was ready for a third.

A few hours later, thank goodness, that craziness passed me by.

As the little man went to bed that night, I took a few moments to thank God that Clyde has the opportunity to go to Kindergarten, that he is able to graduate, and that he will have lots of opportunities to come.

I am very proud of him. I just wish I could stop him from growing up on me.

Fourteen Layer Cake

2011-05-27T20:20:00.005-05:00

Your first thought upon seeing this is probably that it looks like a stack of pancakes with chocolate syrup. Because, it really does.

But, it is, in fact, a fourteen layer cake.

The layers are just very small.

And once you fill the layers between the cake, you pour the chocolate all over the top and sides. Like so.

Which looks even more delicious. And yes, you actually have to bake 14 cakes for this recipe. But, its so worth it.

And, then, you coat it with some chocolate frosting on top of the chocolate you just poured all over it. Its chocolate heaven.

And no one will ever suspect that this cake has 14 layers, until you cut into it.

And everyone is amazed by your mad culinary skillz, while they eat their slices layer by layer.

Mmmmm.

So, I completely followed Bakerella on this one. Her cake looked so awesome, I knew I had to try it.

The recipe is for a 12 layer cake, but you can put it into 14 pans like I did to make a 14 layer cake.

Cake:

The Smith Family's 12 Layer Cake:

Servings: Makes 16–20 servings

Ingredients

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour , sifted
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter , at room temperature
2 1/2 cups sugar
6 large eggs , at room temperature
3 cups milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder , preferably Dutch process
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter , cut up
1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Pecan halves, for garnish

Directions

Position racks in the center and bottom third of the oven and preheat to 375°. Lightly butter four 8 1/2- to 9-inch cake pans (you will bake the cakes in three batches) and line the bottoms with rounds of parchment paper. Flour the pans and tap out the excess.

To make the layers, sift together the sifted flour, baking powder and salt. Sift the mixture one more time, and set aside.

Beat the butter and sugar in the bowl of a heavy-duty electric mixer fitted with the paddle blade on high speed until light in color and texture, about 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Scrape down the bowl and be sure the mixture is well-blended. On low speed, add the flour in 3 additions, alternating with 2 additions of the milk, beginning and ending with the flour, and beat until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl often with a rubber spatula. Beat in the vanilla. Using a scant cup for each layer, spread the batter evenly in the pans. It will make a thin layer.

Staggering the pans on the racks so they are at least 2 inches from each other and the sides of the oven and not directly over each other, bake the layers until they feel firm when pressed in the centers and are beginning to pull away from the sides of the pans, about 12 minutes. Cool in the pans for 5 minutes. Invert the layers onto cake racks, remove the parchment paper, and cool completely. Wash and prepare the pans. Repeat the procedure until all 12 layers have been baked and cooled.

To make the icing, bring the sugar, cocoa, butter and evaporated milk to a full boil in a large saucepan. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the icing has thickened slightly (it will resemble chocolate syrup but will thicken as it cools), about 3 minutes. Stir in the vanilla. Let the icing cool until thick enough to spread, but still pourable.

Place a layer of cake on a wire rack set over a jelly-roll pan. Spread with a few tablespoons of the icing, letting the excess run down the sides. Stack the remaining cakes, icing each layer. Pour the remaining icing over the top of the cake. If you wish, smooth the icing on the edges to cover the sides. Place pecan halves around the top perimeter of the cake. Let stand until the glaze sets. (The cake is best served the day it is made. To store, cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 1 day.)

Recommended technique: If you buy inexpensive aluminum foil cake pans at the grocery store (they can be saved for another time as well), you will be able to knock out layers in no time. And no washing between baking!

Frosting:

Dark Chocolate Cream Cheese Buttercream Frosting
1/2 cup butter, softened to room temperature
8 oz. cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder ( I used Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa)
1 box (1 lb) confectioner’s sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1-3 Tbsp milk

Cream the butter and cream cheese with a mixer.
Add the cocoa and vanilla.
Add the confectioner’s sugar in small batches and blend on low until combined. Scrape down sides with each addition.
Add 1 tablespoon of milk at a time until you get the consistency you desire.

This Post Isn't Really About Anything

2011-05-21T21:39:00.006-05:00

Well, its nice to be home for a while and not feel the need to keep everything in a suitcase, because I will just have to pack it all up again in a few days. Nope, I am actually here in Oklahoma for nearly a month, which is such a relief.

Tonight while I was out walking, my neighbor asked me if we bought a white van. Nope, I said, that's my Mom's van. She has been here taking care of the kids while I am in Canada. Perhaps I've traveled too much if the neighbors think her car is mine.

Another interesting thing happened tonight while I was out walking. I spotted an armadillo in our front yard. I've never seen a live armadillo before. I've only seen dead ones along the side of the highway. And, I have to say, they don't look any better alive. They're kind of like an overgrown mouse, and they really move strangely. I was totally grossed out.

I am pretty sure this armadillo never saw me. I kept my distance, because I've heard they have some serious claws, and I didn't want to find out for myself. I mentioned it to my other neighbor as I was out walking, and he said he'd heard there had been an armadillo in the neighborhood.

So, apparently this armadillo is making the rounds, and has become the subject of neighborhood talk.

I, for one, do not want him in my yard. I talked to another neighbor on my walk, and heard he's chewed through another neighbor's electrical wires, so he is not a welcome guest around here. I wonder how you get rid of armadillos. Obviously, this will be a Brian task, because its really not a girly thing to chase armadillos. I handle the dishes, he is supposed to take out the trash and kill all vermin. Its in our wedding vows.

Plus, he has to do it anyways, because I told all of the neighbors not to worry, that I would send my husband after this pesky neighborhood armadillo. So, now everyone is depending on him. I hope he doesn't let us down. (And, he does like to hunt, after all. This is practically the same thing.)

So, there you have it. We are on an armadillo hunt. And by we, I mean Brian...just as soon as I tell him.

Wish us luck. Because, this probably won't end well.

A Cookie In A Cookie

2011-05-21T18:23:00.007-05:00

Once I saw these cookies throughout the web, I knew I had to try them. They are, after all, a cookie inside of a cookie. A cookie squared, if you will. It seems SO wrong, but as I looked at the photos of these cookies, I realized that its not wrong at all. A cookie squared is nothing but RIGHT.

See, at first, these look like regular cookies (albiet, they are gigantic)

But, they have a little secret.

They are chocolate chip cookies with Oreos inside! GENIUS. I want to meet the person who thought of this. I think we could be best friends.

And, are they as good as they look? Let's go to our judges...

We have a winner. And, for the record, I share their opinion. These cookies are fantastic. I ended up making a second batch.

Oreo-Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
10 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
27 Double Stuffed Oreo cookies (about 1 package)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In the large work bowl of a mixer, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla, and mix until combined.

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, salt and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture 1 cup at a time, making sure flour is incorporated before adding more. Mix in chocolate chips.

Place 1 tablespoon of cooking dough on top of an Oreo cookie. Place a second tablespoon underneath. Gently press the dough down around the Oreo, sealing the cookie dough edges together so that no Oreo shows through. Transfer the cookie to a prepared baking sheet and repeat, leaving about 1 1/2 inches between each cookie. Bake for 10-13 minutes, or until cookies are a pale golden brown. Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.

Makes: about 22 cookies

Apricot Cream Cheese Drops

2011-05-16T20:03:00.004-05:00

I am back from Calgary once again! Its been another whirlwind of a trip, and I think I only have one more trip to make back to Canada. This is a good thing, because as much fun as it is to see a new country, after a while it can be exhausting.

I am completely backlogged on the Cookies of the week. So, I will probably post more then one this week to help get myself caught back up.

This week's Cookie Of The Week is Apricot Cream Cheese Drops.

If you love apricots, then this is the cookie for you. And, if you love cookies in general, like me, then there really isn't a cookie that's not for you. So, add these to the list of good cookies.

Ingredients:
1/2 Butter Flavor Crisco stick or 1/2 cut Butter Flavor Crisco all-vegetable shortening
1 package (3 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon milk
1/2 cup apricot preserves
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup coarsely copped pecans or flake coconut

Frosting:
1 tablespoon butter flavor Crisco stick or 1 tablespoon Butter flavor Crisco all-vegetable shortening
1 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup apricot preserves
Finely chopped pecans or flake coconut (optional)

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease baking sheet with shortening. Place sheets of foil on countertop for cooling cookies.

2. For cookies, combine 1/2 cup shortening, cream cheese and milk into large bowl. Beat at medium speed of electric mixer until well blended. Beat in 1/2 cup apricot preserves and brown sugar.

3. Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Mix into creamed mixture at low speed until just blended. Stir in nuts. Drop 2 level measuring tablespoonfuls of dough into a mound 3 inches apart onto ungreased baking sheet. Repeat for each cookie.

4. Bake at 350 degrees for 14 minutes, or until set. Do not overbake. Cool 2 minutes on baking sheet. Remove cookies to foil to cool completely.

5. For frosting, combine 1 tablespoon shortening, powdered sugar, and 1/4 cup apricot preserves in small bowl. Stir until well blended. Frost cooled cookies. Sprinkle finely chopped nuts over frosting, if desired.

Clyde-isms

2011-05-07T19:45:00.003-05:00

Today, as Clyde and I went for a walk, he was discussing his future (as usual)...Clyde likes to wax philosophical on our walks. And, then sometimes things just take a turn toward the weird.

"Mom, when I grow up, I want to live in a behind."

"A behind?"

"Yes. I think it would be fun to live inside."

I thought maybe I didn't understand him, over the lawn mower that was running nearby. We walked a few more seconds out of mower earshot, while I tried to fathom what he was saying.

"Clyde, did you say you want to live in a behind?"

"Yes, Mom. You know, the kind that bees go in and out of."

I chuckled.

"A beehive," I corrected him.

"That's what I said," he replied, "a behind".

OKC Half Marathon

2011-05-06T18:47:00.011-05:00

T

Last weekend was the Oklahoma City half marathon.

I was convinced that I wasn't ready. I hadn't kept up the training program like I wanted, due to all of the travel to and from Canada, and being sick on top of it. But, I decided I was going to show up and see what happened. My overall goal was to not be one of the people who were carted off in the golf cart.

On Sunday morning, Brian and I woke to thunder and lightning. We really hoped it wasn't raining.

No such luck.

We left the hotel at 5:45 a.m. and walked out into cold, windy, rainy weather. The run was scheduled to begin at 6:30 a.m. The 5K was at 6:40, and there were many members of my family who were participating in the 5K, including my Mom and Grandma.

As we arrived at the marathon, we heard announcements that the race was being delayed due to bad weather. 7 a.m. was the new start time. A groan was heard throughout the crowd, as any group of cold runners just wants to run to warm up.

Finally, 7 a.m. came around and we were in our appropriate corral. As the race started, I felt relief to finally get moving. Poor Brian was in a tank and running shorts. At least I had a jacket. It would continue to rain for the next two and a half hours.

As we ran in the rain, the first few miles went by fairly quickly. It was fun to see the crowds, and I was surprised at how many people stayed to cheer us on in the cold and rain. It was really moving, and reminded me that this was much more than a race. It was a memorial run, honoring those who lost their lives during that terrible day in 1995. Many of those cheering in the rain were family and friends of those who were lost.

As we ran by, we heard, "Keep going, you've got this! You are awesome for doing this in the rain!". And the entire time, I was thinking, They are awesome for doing this in the rain.

Things were going great until about halfway through mile 10. I started to get tired, and felt the familiar feeling of hitting the wall. It seems like the toughest part of getting through the wall is the mental aspect of it. So, I kept telling myself to just keep going.

By mile 12, my run was probably more like a glorified walk, and I felt like my legs were made of lead. And then, I looked up to see a hill. Seriously? Who mapped this race? And, they have issues for putting a hill at mile 12. It should be illegal.

I couldn't look up the hill, so I just watched my feet, trying to tell myself that I was running on flat land. My burning legs told me otherwise, but I kept going. Behind me, I heard a fellow runner chanting "I love hills, I love hills, I love hills". It was so comical, that I couldn't help but laugh in the middle of my misery. We were all doing whatever it took to get through it.

At about 12.5 miles, one of the racers yelled from behind me, "We are almost done with this *%#$!!" As the other runners cheered, I raised my arms in solidarity.

We came around the corner, and Brian said, "There's the finish line".

I looked up to see it, and I couldn't stop the tears from flowing. I ran for the finish line as fast as I could. My iPod was blasting with praise music, and I simply could not believe that I had run 13.1 miles. Me.

I made it.

We crossed the finish line, and as soon as we stopped moving, the cold really set in. I was shaking uncontrollably and Brian rushed us to the car. We were both completely soaked from head to toe, and we sat in the car with the heater on full-blast for half an hour. It was like a sauna in the car by the time we were through.

We decided we wanted pancakes, so we went to iHop and ordered the sampler menu, which included eggs, bacon, pancakes, and whatever else you want. They could barely fit all of our plates on the little table.

After connecting with our family and congratulating everyone on their races, we drove home. We relived every moment of the race on the way home. Our thoughts, our feelings, and our physical pain - all mile by mile. What an amazing experience.

At the end of the day, these were medals that were hard-earned.

Maple Mousse Eclairs

2011-04-27T18:19:00.003-05:00

The April 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Evelyne of the blog Cheap Ethnic Eatz. Evelyne chose to challenge everyone to make a maple mousse in an edible container. Prizes are being awarded to the most creative edible container and filling, so vote on your favorite from April 27th to May 27th at http://thedaringkitchen.com!

I struggled with an edible container, and I finally decided on eclairs. So, I used the recipe from Green Cilantro for eclairs. I didn't fill them, however, I simply cut them in half. But, next time, I will try filling them. I think they would be amazing filled.

This maple mousse recipe is excellent.

Maple Mousse:

Maple Mousse:

Ingredients:
• 1 cup (240 ml/ 8 fluid oz.) pure maple syrup (not maple-flavoured syrup)
• 4 large egg yolks
• 1 package (7g/1 tbsp.) unflavoured gelatine
• 1 1/2 cups (360 ml. g/12 fluid oz) whipping cream (35% fat content)

Directions:
1. Bring maple syrup to a boil then remove from heat.

2. In a large bowl, whisk egg yolks and pour a little bit of the maple syrup in while whisking (this is to temper your egg yolks so they don’t curdle).

3. Add warmed egg yolks to hot maple syrup until well mixed.

4. Measure 1/4 cup of whipping cream in a bowl and sprinkle it with the gelatine. Let it rest for 5 minutes. Place the bowl in a microwave for 45 seconds (microwave for 10 seconds at a time and check it in between) or place the bowl in a pan of barely simmering water, stir to ensure the gelatine has completely dissolved.

5. Whisk the gelatine/whipping cream mixture into the maple syrup mixture and set aside.

6. Whisk occasionally for approximately an hour or until the mixture has the consistency of an unbeaten raw egg white.

7. Whip the remaining cream. Stir 1/4 of the whipped cream into the maple syrup mixture. Fold in the remaining cream and refrigerate for at least an hour.

8. Remove from the fridge and divide equally among your edible containers.

I also melted chocolate chips with 1 Tbsp of shortening to create the chocolate drizzle for the topping.

After I was finished, I had a lot of maple mousse leftover. So, I created a simple pie with a graham cracker crumb crust, and whipped cream for the topping. It was really good also. I might have actually preferred it to the eclairs.

Peanut Butter Pound Cake With Peanut Butter Glaze

2011-04-26T18:49:00.004-05:00

So, this cake is going into my recipe box with all of my best recipes. That includes my Grandma's cinnamon rolls and my Mom's bierocks. This cake is awesome! I recommend serving the glaze on the side and drizzling it over your piece after you cut it.

And, apparently, it makes superheroes sing opera. Or at least that's what happened to mine. But, on the other hand, sometimes he sings opera when he's in the shower, too. So maybe that's not a good comparison.

I got this recipe off of the Peter Pan site. I replaced the peanut in the glaze with chocolate chips.

Pound Cake:

PAM® Original No-Stick Cooking Spray
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup Peter Pan® Creamy Peanut Butter
1/2 cup Parkay® Original table spread, softened
3 cups granulated sugar
6 large eggs
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Glaze:

1-1/2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup reduced fat (2%) milk
1/4 cup Peter Pan® Creamy Peanut Butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped honey roasted peanuts (I used chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 325° F. Spray 10-cup tube pan with cooking spray.
POUND CAKE: Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl. Set aside. Place 1 cup peanut butter and table spread in large bowl; beat with electric mixer at medium speed, about 2 minutes or until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating 5 to 7 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating just until yellow disappears. Gradually add flour mixture, beating well. Stir in 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla. Pour batter into prepared tube pan. Bake 1 hour and 20 minutes to 1 hour and 25 minutes or until long wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack 10 to 15 minutes; remove from pan, and cool completely on wire rack.
PEANUT BUTTER GLAZE: Place confectioners' sugar, milk, 1/4 cup peanut butter, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla in medium bowl; whisk together until creamy.
Drizzle cooled cake with glaze; sprinkle evenly with peanuts (or chocolate chips).

Easter Sunday

2011-04-24T21:21:00.002-05:00

We had a great Easter Sunday this week. I am grateful to be home with the kids and family for a weekend. We desperately need some downtime as a family, and even though Brian and I are still somewhat under the weather, this weekend was very therapeutic.

Church was excellent with a great message, and the kids really understood, for the first time, the meaning of Easter. It was a sweet moment to watch them fully grasp what today's celebration was all about - He is Risen!

I went a little bit overboard today with the desserts. We had a peanut butter cake, eclairs, and a pie.

The Little Man was in full celebration mode, and he tried all desserts after he'd eaten his pork chops. He even sang from the top of his lungs in an opera-like voice, "This is goooooood!" Truth be told, it startled all of us a bit. We were having a nice conversation at the table, and the Little Man abruptly broke into song after finishing his third dessert.

As we all stared at him while he was holding his opera high-note, he put down his fork quietly.

"That was my superhero voice," he explained.

Apparently superheroes love peanut butter cake. It makes them sing opera. I had no idea.

All of the singing wore the child out, and he fell asleep by 7:00 tonight.

And actually, it left a nice time this evening with just Bonnie and myself. Once she had me alone, she started asking a lot of questions about her adoption, and how all of that worked. Its something that she keeps going over in her mind. She asks a lot of questions, like what would her life be like she wasn't with our family, would she have ever found a family? And what about the kids who are still there?

But, one of the great things about Bonnie is her ability to look forward. And, as I explained to her that we'll never know the answers to those things, but what we do know is how happy we are that she is with us now, she seemed instantly relieved. As I told her, God is pretty good at taking care of children, and we are all very happy that he made us a family. I think wondering what might have been had been concerning her. We prayed tonight for the children in the orphanages in Russia - it was her idea.

This Easter, I am so grateful that God brought us together as a family. We have moments that we never expected (for example, Clyde came home on Friday proudly announcing that he kept his pants up in the lunchroom, and we all gave him high-fives..). We have conflicts, and struggles. And we have these sweet, perfect moments that make us want to stop time so they never pass. We are a regular family, and I have never been so proud, or so grateful, to be regular.

Happy Easter.

(Taken in Khabarovsk the day after our adoption)

Corn Flake Macaroons

2011-04-22T21:44:00.004-05:00

This week's Cookie Of The Week is Cornflake Macaroons.

I really like how light and airy these cookies are. And, the coconut works well in them. This is my first time making macaroons, and I was excited by how easy they really are!

Ingredients:
4 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/3 cups sugar
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup shredded coconut
3 cups Kellogg's Corn Flakes cereal

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large bow, beat egg whites until foamy. Stir in cream of tartar and vanilla. Gradually add sugar, beating until stiff and glossy.

Stir in pecans, coconut and Kellogg's Corn Flakes cereal. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto cookie sheets sprayed wtih vegetable cooking spray.

Bake about 15 minutes or until lightly browned.Remove immediately from cookie sheets. Cool on wire racks.

Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Variation: Fold in 1/2 cup crushed peppermint candy with pecans and coconut.

Parting shot:

Its starting to warm up around here, and someone is ready to fill the kiddie pool!

The Pants Incident

2011-04-21T19:25:00.005-05:00

This week has been tough. First, I've been trying to recover from this cold/flu. And now, poor Brian has it. I can't imagine who gave it to him. I told him tonight that I feel a little bit responsible. He said, "Is that because you ARE responsible?" I don't think it was.

Anyways, he is upstairs with his NyQuil and his vaporizer, trying to find some relief. I have so been-there-done-that in the past two weeks, let me tell you. I feel bad for him.

So, while he is suffering, I keep feeling better, slowly coming back to life, and taking on the whole parenting thing in full swing. And, the kids aren't going to cut me any breaks either.

Yesterday, while having a nice, peaceful lunch with Brian, the cellphone rang with a familiar number. The school.

They have all of our numbers. Work, cell, and home. And they use them all when trying to track us down. Even when we try to avoid them. They just keep on calling for some reason. We knew it wouldn't do any good to ignore them, so we answered the phone.

The school counselor on the other end of the line explained that she just wanted us to know that there was an incident with Clyde in the lunchroom. I always cringe when I hear the word "incident". Its a conditioned response. The pulled fire alarm was an "incident". The damaged car was an "incident". The peeing on the bushes outside of the church was an "incident".

I am not a fan of the word incident.

Turns out, this incident involved Clyde dropping his pants in the lunchroom. While everyone was in there eating lunch. Or at least they were eating lunch. Innocently. Until they were mooned by a 6-year old.

Why, you might ask, would he do this?

Well, because he's in Kindergarten. And, as he explained to the counselor, he thought it would be funny for his little buddy sitting next to him to see his bare bottom. Because, at 6, butts are funny.

It was less funny when he was sitting in the principal's office.

And even less funny when he came home, and his Dad asked him if he'd like to show us at dinner tonight what he did in the lunchroom today at school.

As The Clyde explained to his father that he thought his friend would laugh, crocodile tears flowed. I asked him if he was crying because he was embarrassed. He was. He said the worst thing was that everyone saw his bottom, and he doesn't want people to make fun of him. I don't think he'll do it again. He surely didn't expect to land himself in the principal's office.

So, the poor child is without his video games for a while as a reminder.

And his parents are wondering where the heck that came from. And why the heck we buy him expensive pants when he just drops them in the lunchroom anyways.

Oh I dread the teenage years.

White Chocolate Truffle and Chocolate Fudge Layer Cake

2011-04-20T18:31:00.005-05:00

So, I will confess that I did not actually try this cake. I made it for a doctor that Brian works with, to celebrate her transferring to another hospital. But, I did try the filling and I loved it.

Brian hasn't stopped raving this one since I made it. And his co-workers said it was my best cake to date, which I find incredible, because it wasn't as difficult as some of the others I've made.

I am glad they enjoyed it so much. I think its because I really soaked those cake layers with amaretto, but we'll keep that a secret.

It is another bon appetit recipe, and I think their cakes are excellent.

Chocolate stars

6 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 tablespoon solid vegetable shortening
Nonstick vegetable oil spray

Cake

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups whole milk

Filling and frosting

3 cups chilled whipping cream
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 pound good-quality white chocolate (such as Lindt or Baker's), finely chopped
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
4 tablespoons amaretto or other almond liqueur

For chocolate stars:
Line baking sheet with foil. Stir chocolate and shortening in top of double boiler set over simmering water until melted and smooth. Pour onto prepared baking sheet, tilting pan to spread chocolate mixture to irregular 14x9-inch rectangle. Refrigerate until just firm, about 12 minutes. Spray assorted star-shaped cookie cutters with nonstick spray. Cut out stars. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes. Using small offset spatula, carefully transfer stars 1 at a time to another foil-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate until ready to use. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and keep refrigerated.)

For cake:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter two 9-inch-diameter cake pans with 1 1/2-inch-high sides. Line bottoms with parchment paper; butter parchment. Stir unsweetened chocolate in heavy medium saucepan over low heat until melted and smooth. Cool slightly. Sift flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in large bowl until well blended. Beat in lukewarm melted unsweetened chocolate and vanilla. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, blending well after each addition. Mix in cocoa powder mixture in 3 additions, alternating with milk in 2 additions.

Divide batter between prepared pans. Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Cool cakes in pans on racks 10 minutes. Run knife around edge of each pan to loosen cakes. Turn cakes out onto racks and cool completely. Peel off parchment.

For filling and frosting:
Bring 1 cup cream and butter to simmer in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring until butter melts. Remove from heat. Add white chocolate and stir until smooth. Whisk in vanilla. Pour 1 1/2 cups white chocolate filling into small bowl; cover and freeze until cold, about 2 hours.

Let remaining white chocolate mixture in saucepan stand at room temperature until lukewarm, about 20 minutes.

Using electric mixer, beat remaining 2 cups cream and almond extract in large bowl until peaks form. Working in 3 batches, fold in lukewarm white chocolate mixture. Refrigerate whipped cream frosting just until medium peaks hold, folding occasionally, about 3 hours.

Brush 2 tablespoons amaretto over top of each cake layer. Place 1 layer on platter. Spread chilled 1 1/2 cups white chocolate filling over. Top with second cake layer. Spread whipped cream frosting over top and sides of cake. Chill until cold and set, about 1 hour. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and keep refrigerated.)

Arrange chocolate stars decoratively atop cake and serve.

Conversation With The Clyde

2011-04-18T09:55:00.004-05:00

While I was in Calgary last week, I made a call home to chat with the family. As Brian and I were chatting, he interrupted me and said that The Clyde wanted to talk with me. This is unusual, because Clyde doesn't usually talk much on the telephone.

After he got on the phone, our conversation went something like this..

"Mom?"

"Yes."

"Will I go to jail if I don't get married when I grow up?"

"Well, no, its not against the law to not get married."

"Mom, I think I am not going to get married."

I couldn't help but crack up. This is classic Clyde. He is always planning for the future. He has already decided what house he's going to live in (two doors down from us), and what car he's going to drive. I was not surprised that this was the emergency he had to discuss with me.

"Clyde, I don't think you have to make a decision about marriage at age 6."

"Mom, the reason I don't want to get married is because I just want to have a quiet house. I just want to be by myself and have everything be quiet."

"I see."

I couldn't wait to fill Brian in on this conversation, because Clyde is the loudest child around. He makes noise from the minute he wakes up until he goes to bed. He is either singing or talking. Really, the only time he is quiet is when he is eating.

"Clyde, are you sure about this?"

"Yes. I am not getting married."

"OK."

"Oh but Mom? If I don't get married, does that mean that I have to cook for myself?"

"Yes, son. Yes it does."

I answered that question pretty quickly because I didn't want him to have any visions of his mother coming to his house to cook dinner every night.

Clyde thought about it for a few minutes.

"I am still not getting married. I can learn how to cook."

And with that, he was off to play. He must have felt better having made that big decision about his life.

After Brian got back on the phone, he asked what the big deal was. I told him that Clyde has decided not to get married because he wants a quiet house when he is grown up.

"That is a big deal. I wish he wanted a quiet house now!" Brian said.

And the two of us laughed about our little analytical-minded Clyde.

Someday, when he brings home some beautiful girl, we will obviously have to remind him of this conversation. It is our duty as his parents, after all.

Guinness Cake

2011-04-17T20:31:00.005-05:00

Well, it has been a few weekends since I've been home. I am still trying to get over this flu and spend some time with the kids. So, today was mostly about me lying on the couch while the kids played around me. And if you ask me? That is a pretty good Sunday (except for the part where I am sick).

I did manage to venture outside to walk a mile today. The temperatures were gorgeous and the kids needed to do some running. We enjoyed a few minutes outside.

This weekend, I haven't made any cakes or cookies, and the kids are having some emotions about this. Particularly Clyde, who was totally confused by the fact that we did not go to church today, and I did not bake a cake. I think he was not only counting the days until I got home, but he was also counting on cake.

I am sure I will have rebounded by next weekend and all will be normal around here again.

In the meantime, I'll share a cake recipe that I made before I left for Canada. Its called a Guinness cake with a swiss meringue buttercream frosting. I made it for a co-worker's birthday and it was a hit.

The cake recipe came from Nigella.com. You'll have to convert the measurements, but its worth it. The Swiss Meringue Buttercream is from Cake Story. Check out this site for some great step-by-step instructions on how to make the frosting.

Cake recipe from Nigella

Ingredients

250ml Guinness
250g unsalted butter
75g cocoa
400g caster sugar
1 x 142ml pot sour cream
2 eggs
1 tablespoon real vanilla extract
275g plain flour
2 1/2teaspoons bicarbonate of soda

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, and butter and line a 9-inch springform tin.
Pour the Guinness into a large wide saucepan, add the butter - in spoons or slices - and heat until the butter's melted, at which time you should whisk in the cocoa and sugar. Beat the sour cream with the eggs and vanilla and then pour into the brown, buttery, beery pan and finally whisk in the flour and bicarb.
Pour the cake batter into the greased and lined tin and bake for 45 minutes to an hour. Leave to cool completely in the tin on a cooling rack, as it is quite a damp cake. (Note: I ended up putting mine in the freezer for a while with saran wrap. It takes quite a while to cool.)

Baileys Swiss Meringue Buttercream
From Cake Story

1 cup sugar
4 large egg whites
3 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature
1/3 cup Baileys Irish Cream
(Note, I also added 2 tablespoons of coffee)

Whisk the sugar and egg whites in the bowl of your stand mixer over simmering water until the mixture is smooth and the sugar is no longer grainy. Remove from heat and beat with the mixer until you have stiff (not dry) peaks. This should take about 10 minutes on medium-high speed. Once the bottom of the bowl is cool to touch, add the softened butter, two tablespoons at a time. If the butter is too cold or firm, the buttercream may curdle and separate. If this happens, continue to beat for several minutes to smoothen out the buttercream. Add the Baileys and mix. Once mixure is combined, continue to beat until smooth and fluffy.

Back From Calgary

2011-04-16T20:39:00.003-05:00

Let me just say that I was slightly anxious to get home from Calgary this time. I'd originally planned on being back on Wednesday. But, life got a little crazy up there, and a co-worker had to leave early due to her daughter's illness, so I ended up staying until Friday.

Which, nearly caused me to have a temper tantrum in the lobby of the Marriott while I was waiting for them to put out fresh cookies.

So, anyways, I stuck it out for the extra two days. Even though I had a sinus infection. And an ear infection. And an eye infection. And a broken arm. OK, not the broken arm. But you get the point. I had a raging cold/flu thing going on.

So, on Friday, I was feeling anxious while waiting on a cab to take me to the airport. I wanted to go home. By this time, I'd gotten to the point where I just carried a box of Kleenex with me everywhere, and I no longer cared what anyone thought. I was simply a snot factory, with no desire to communicate with everyone. I just wanted to die in peace.

Finally, the cab arrived and I got inside while some nice hotel employee hoisted my luggage into the trunk. As I blew my nose in the back seat, I noticed that my cab driver was a blonde female. Wearing black rhinestone sunglasses. Interesting, since she was the first female cab driver I've had in four months.

As we left the Marriott, she slightly clipped the curb on the left side. Since this is a family trait with the females in my family, I felt a certain kinship with her. I decided to reconsider my decision to not communicate with anyone, and I said, "You are the first female cab driver I've had. You must be rare."

In a strong accent (Russian, German? I have no idea), she replied, "It is a curse, is what it is. Because I have to drive perfectly, you know? Because if I make one teeny, little mistake, everyone will say, 'It was the female driver! She did it!'". She threw both hands in the air while driving, to accentuate her point.

I nodded in sympathy. The female drivers in my family are blamed for everything.

"They don't understand how difficult it can be." I said to her.

"Right. They have no idea." she nodded. "The people in this city - they drive crazy." She threw her hands in the air again.

She looked at me in the mirror. "I have more tissues up here if you need them."

"No thanks." I said, "I have an entire box."

"My name is Vicki, by the way. It is nice to talk to someone who understands the driving."

"Oh sister," I coughed, "I understand."

And as we made our way to the airport, I counted three different vehicles that she cut off. But, I had to admit, it was the fastest I've ever made it to the airport. I was impressed by Vicky's driving boldness.

As we pulled up to the airport, she handed me her card.

"When you come back, I vill be your personal cab driver. I'll take you everywhere, anywhere you want to go in the city. You call my phone number and I will pick you up from the airport next time. You want to go shopping, I vill take you."

I looked at Vicky's card and nodded.

And, as I thought about it, I decided I will call Vicky The Cab Driver next time. I have to support a woman trying to make it in a man's world.

As I got out of the cab and walked towards the airport, I heard Vicky calling my name. I turned around to see her holding my box of tissues. I'd left them in the back seat. I was very appreciative, as I knew I would have been in big trouble without them.

Until next time, Vicky the Cab Driver. And, if you hit a curb every now and then, just hold your head high. There's nothing wrong with it.

Weekly Recap

2011-04-02T18:19:00.009-05:00

This week was sure a busy one! I am off to Canada for a few more weeks, so the blog will probably be quiet for while. It is starting to feel like I live at the Marriott in Calgary. I know all of the staff there and I even know when they put fresh cookies in the lobby, so I make sure I am around during that timeframe (is that sad?).

Here's a recap of the meals/workouts this week.

Sunday:
Hubby's favorite crepes from Taste of Home. These were great! It was my first time making crepes, so I had to get the hang of it. I highly recommend this recipe. We all loved it.

Monday - Chicken with Italian Sweet-Sour Fennel from Cooking Light. Unfortunately, my local store was out of fennel, so I substituted in an onion. This was still very good!

Tuesday - Car amel Pork from Cooking Light. I was out of chicken broth, so I used beef broth instead. Delicious! I loved the peas and rice also.

Wednesday - Seared Scallops with Cauliflower Puree. This one was okay - not great. It might have been the way I cooked the scallops. I don't think I had the heat high enough to get a good sear. But, it definitely took me much longer to cook the scallops than what the instructions said. The kids loved the cauliflower puree, but I just thought this meal was kind of bland and tasteless.

Thursday - Chicken Fried Rice. I liked this recipe. There's nothing that's really outstanding about it from other chicken fried rice recipes that I've made, but it was still good. My only tweak would be adding some carrots. I omitted the chili paste because I didn't think the kids would eat it. Overall, this one is a good weeknight meal.

Friday - Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (they're good EVERY TIME).

Saturday - Totino's frozen pizzas. I happen to totally love these.

Workouts this week looked like this:

Sunday - 10-mile long run
Monday - 30 minutes elliptical
Tuesday - 3 mile run
Wednesday - Yoga
Thursday - Off
Friday - Off
Saturday - 11-mile long run

I am not sure the 11-mile long run is a great idea before I hop on a plane tomorrow morning. I am going to be sore anyway, and after a long flight, my legs are going to letting me know that they don't appreciate being confined when they are already sore. Should be interesting, that's for sure.

Peanut Butter Surprise Cookies

2011-04-02T18:11:00.002-05:00

OK, so if you like chocolate and peanut butter, you need to make these. They are really good. In fact, Brian feels these might be his favorite cookie of the week so far. That is a bold statement, considering there have been some really good creations as a result of Cookie Of The Week.

But really, can a cookie go wrong if it has Reese's in it? I don't think so.

Ingredients:
24 miniature peanut butter cups
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 Butter Flavor Crisco stick or 1/4 cup Butter Flavor Crisco all-vegetable shortening
1 egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups regular all-purpose baking mix

Instructions:
Remove wrappers from peanut butter cups. Cut candy into quarters.

Combine condensed milk, peanut butter, 1/4 cup shortening, egg and vanilla in large bowl. Beat at medium speed of electric mixer until smooth. Add baking mix. Beat until well blended. Stir in candy pieces with spoon. Cover. Refrigerate 1 hour.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place sheets of foil on countertop for cooling cookies.

Drop dough by slightly rounded teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart onto ungreased baking sheet. Shape into balls with spoon.

Bake at 350 for 7 to 9 minutes or until light brown around edges and center is just set. Do not overbake. Cool 2 minutes on baking sheet. Remove cookies to foil to cool completely.

Makes about 4 dozen cookies.

Good News and Bad News

2011-03-31T18:06:00.003-05:00

The good news is that I got a new cookbook that is about nothing but cakes! And, I got it on sale! For $4!

The bad news is that I haven't hardly gotten to look at it, because someone (who will remain anonymous) keeps hogging it...

Chocolate Sno-ball Cake

2011-03-29T18:46:00.004-05:00

Who doesn't love a pink sno-ball? I really enjoyed making this cake, and this recipe has turned out to be one of my favorite chocolate cake recipes, from Hershey's. I saw this on Scrambled Hen Fruit, and I knew I had to try it. Mine didn't turn out nearly as pretty, but it was still pretty tasty. And this chocolate cake recipe that she suggests is really a keeper.

Hershey's Black Magic Cake
Recipe from Hershey's
Ingredients
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1 cup strong coffee
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F
Grease and flour 2 nine-inch round cake pans.
In your mixer bowl, combine dry ingredients.
Stir in eggs, coffee, oil and vanilla.
Beat on medium speed for two minutes.
Divide batter evenly between the two pans.
Bake 30-35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Remove from oven and cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and finish cooling on racks.

Marshmallow Frosting
Ingredients:
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons unflavored gelatin
10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 cups marshmallow cream (about 9-10 oz)
Directions:
Combine water and gelatin in large bowl and let sit until gelatin softens, about 5 minutes. Microwave until mixture is bubbling around edges and gelatin dissolves, about 30 seconds. Stir in butter, vanilla and salt until combined. Let mixture cool until just warm to touch, about 5 minutes. Whisk in marshmallow creme until smooth. Refrigerate the mixture until it is thick and spreadable, about 30 minutes.

Prepare cake:

Prepare Marshmallow Frosting and put in refrigerator to set.
Combine coconut and food coloring.
Line your bowl with plastic wrap, leaving the ends overhanging the edges of the bowl.

Cut one of the cooled cake layers into 8 even wedges. Line the bowl with the cake wedges, packing gently so there are no spaces between wedges.

Fill cake lined bowl "cavity" with one cup of the marshmallow frosting.
Top with the remaining nine inch layer cake, trimming it to fit the inside of the bowl.
Pull the edges of the plastic wrap over the cake, and put it in the refrigerator about one hour.
Unwrap the cake and carefully invert it onto serving dish. Remove plastic.
Spread remaining marshmallow mixture evenly over the cake and sprinkle with coconut.

Miss Bonnie

2011-03-28T19:39:00.004-05:00

So, she's growing up on me.

Tonight, I was busy taking care of Brian after he'd run 11 miles this afternoon in a feeble attempt to beat my pace that I set yesterday during my 10-mile run. He missed by two seconds. Not that I make fun of him for that, because we're both two 30-something, very tired parents, out running in these races. Our pace isn't anything to be proud of. But, we still have a little bit of competitive nature between the two of us, and I couldn't help but be somewhat amused that he worked so hard today to beat me, only to come up two seconds too short.

Unfortunately, he really pulled some of his leg and hip muscles today. And, tonight, he was desperate enough to run himself an ice bath. So, while I was busy filling bowls of ice to pour on top of Brian's bath, Bonnie asked if she could help me by cleaning up the kitchen.

"Sure," I said, "Can you wash off the plates and put them in the dishwasher for me?"

And, I went upstairs to pour ice on my husband.

After dumping two bowls of ice upstairs, I came downstairs and you know what? Someone had cleaned the entire kitchen by herself. She had wiped down the counters, put up all of the dishes, and put everything away.

I was amazed. And, she acted like it was no big deal, as she started to do her homework.

"Bonnie," I said, "I really appreciate your help tonight."

"Well, Mom," she replied, "you work so hard, I like to help you out too."

And just like that, it felt like she was a little adult talking to me. She turns 9 years old this summer, and the time is passing away so quickly. I find that I miss her younger phases, but that nostalgia is replaced by the joy I feel as I watch what kind of young woman she's becoming.

I am so proud of her.

Running Update

2011-03-27T20:32:00.006-05:00

This weekend was the dreaded 10-mile long run. Something about the double digits was looming and intimidating, and I was very concerned about how I would do on this one. But, much to my delight, it went much smoother than I anticipated.

This morning, I set the alarm for 6:30, but I hit snooze a few times and I didn't actually get out the door until about 7:15. It was Sunday, it was cold outside, and I wasn't overly excited about running 10 miles. All of my senses were telling me to stay in bed, where it was warm.

But, I got myself dressed, put on all of my gadgets, and started to crank my iPod. That is a great way to get me in the mood for running. I also decided today to try Jeff Galloway's program for aiding with muscle fatigue, using the 3:1 method. For my time, it means running 3 minutes and walking for 1 minute throughout the run.

At first, I was skeptical and worried that it would take me all day to run 10 miles doing this method. But, using his method, I actually felt great after this run. It wasn't nearly the fatigue or pain that I had last week during my 9-mile run. And, the interesting part is that it only slowed my pace down by ten seconds. This is due to the fact that I ran so much faster during the 3 minutes after my rest time. So, I highly recommend this method and may very well use it during the half-marathon on May 1st. For me, it makes the the difference between me being miserable and enjoying the run.

My only mistake was that I did 30-day Shred yesterday, which included some torturous lunges, so my legs were sore going into the run today. By the 9th mile, they were starting to get pretty stiff during the 1-minute walks.

After I finished the run, I quickly showered and got ready for church. I was in such a hurry, I don't think I noticed how sore my legs were. As we got to church, and I was walking the kids to the children's church area, I had some noticeable difficulty getting down the stairs. So much so, that Brian was laughing at me while I tried to maneuver myself down the stairs with the least amount of pain possible. I am sure everyone was impressed.

Hopefully they'll loosen up a little bit by tomorrow. I refuse to try an ice bath, even though that's the common prescription for this, because I just can't do that to myself.

Next week - 11 miles! The half-marathon is almost here.

Yeasted Meringue Coffee Cake

2011-03-27T15:33:00.013-05:00

While searching around online for new baking ideas, I found the site for Daring Bakers. I was very intrigued by the idea of a "baking club", and I decided to join, because

a) it is free
and
b) I like to be included in clubs. It makes me feel special.

I also think my cousin Jamie should join, my Mom, my cousin Terrie, and my sister-in-law Eliana, and we could do the challenges together. But, I don't want to pressure them by posting it on my blog or anything.

So, this is my first baker's challenge with the Daring Bakers. It was also my first time making my own meringue. And, I realized that I have never had good meringue before. I've always had the light, flavorless stuff on top of Wal-Mart lemon pies. But, that, my friends, is not good meringue. This recipe has very good meringue.

The March 2011 Daring Baker’s Challenge was hosted by Ria of Ria’s Collection and Jamie of Life’s a Feast. Ria and Jamie challenged The Daring Bakers to bake a yeasted Meringue Coffee Cake.

We are allowed to make up our own filling, as long as we stick to the bread recipe and the meringue recipe. I made Jamie's recipe for filling (recipe below), and I made up a second recipe myself, using Nutella and chopped pecans (because my local store didn't have hazelnuts).

These cakes are excellent. The recipe makes two of them, so you'll need to half it if you only want one. I sent them to work with Brian and his co-workers actually preferred my recipe, believe it or not. But, they also might be afraid I'll stop sending cookies every week if they're not nice to me, so I cannot claim an unbiased opinion. Jamie's recipe here is also really good, you can't go wrong.

Here is the official link. There is another version in here by Ria that I'd like to try. I'd also like to do a savory version of this with ham and cheese.

Ingredients:

For the yeast coffee cake dough:
4 cups (600 g / 1.5 lbs.) flour
¼ cup (55 g / 2 oz.) sugar
¾ teaspoon (5 g / ¼ oz.) salt
1 package (2 ¼ teaspoons / 7 g / less than an ounce) active dried yeast
¾ cup (180 ml / 6 fl. oz.) whole milk
¼ cup (60 ml / 2 fl. oz. water (doesn’t matter what temperature)
½ cup (135 g / 4.75 oz.) unsalted butter at room temperature
2 large eggs at room temperature

For the meringue:
3 large egg whites at room temperature
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ cup (110 g / 4 oz.) sugar

For the filling:
Jamie’s version:
1 cup (110 g / 4 oz.) chopped pecans or walnuts
2 Tablespoons (30 g / 1 oz.) granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup (170 g / 6 oz.) semisweet chocolate chips or coarsely chopped chocolate

Rhonda's version (for two cakes, half if you want just one):
1 cup Nutella
1 cup chopped pecans (I would have used roasted hazelnuts if they were available).

Egg wash:
1 beaten egg

Cocoa powder (optional) and confectioner’s sugar (powdered/icing sugar) for dusting cakes

Directions:

Prepare the dough:

In a large mixing bowl, combine 1 ½ cups (230 g) of the flour, the sugar, salt and yeast.
In a saucepan, combine the milk, water and butter and heat over medium heat until warm and the butter is just melted.

With an electric mixer on low speed, gradually add the warm liquid to the flour/yeast mixture, beating until well blended. Increase mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes. Add the eggs and 1 cup (150 g) flour and beat for 2 more minutes.

Using a wooden spoon, stir in enough of the remaining flour to make a dough that holds together. Turn out onto a floured surface (use any of the 1 ½ cups of flour remaining) and knead the dough for 8 to 10 minutes until the dough is soft, smooth, sexy and elastic, keeping the work surface floured and adding extra flour as needed.

Place the dough in a lightly greased (I use vegetable oil) bowl, turning to coat all sides. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel and let rise until double in bulk, 45 – 60 minutes. The rising time will depend on the type of yeast you use.

Prepare your filling.

Jamie's Version: In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon and sugar for the filling if using. You can add the chopped nuts to this if you like, but I find it easier to sprinkle on both the nuts and the chocolate separately.

Once the dough has doubled, make the meringue:

In a clean mixing bowl – ideally a plastic or metal bowl so the egg whites adhere to the side (they slip on glass) and you don’t end up with liquid remaining in the bottom – beat the egg whites with the salt, first on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high and continue beating until foamy and opaque. Add the vanilla then start adding the ½ cup sugar, a tablespoon at a time as you beat, until very stiff, glossy peaks form.

For Rhonda's version of the filling, mix the meringue with the Nutella at this point.

Assemble the Coffee Cakes:

Line 2 baking/cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Punch down the dough and divide in half. On a lightly floured surface, working one piece of the dough at a time (keep the other half of the dough wrapped in plastic), roll out the dough into a 20 x 10-inch (about 51 x 25 ½ cm) rectangle. Spread half of the meringue evenly over the rectangle up to about 1/2-inch (3/4 cm) from the edges. Sprinkle half of your filling of choice evenly over the meringue (ex: half of the cinnamon-sugar followed by half the chopped nuts and half of the chocolate chips/chopped chocolate).

Jamie's version:

Rhonda's Version:

You can see that I didn't mix the Nutella with the meringue before-hand, and it caused me all kind of issues when spreading.

Now, roll up the dough jellyroll style, from the long side. Pinch the seam closed to seal. Very carefully transfer the filled log to one of the lined cookie sheets, seam side down. Bring the ends of the log around and seal the ends together, forming a ring, tucking one end into the other and pinching to seal.

Using kitchen scissors or a sharp knife (although scissors are easier), make cuts along the outside edge at 1-inch (2 ½ cm) intervals. Make them as shallow or as deep as desired but don’t be afraid to cut deep into the ring.

Repeat with the remaining dough, meringue and fillings. Cover the 2 coffee cakes with plastic wrap and allow them to rise again for 45 to 60 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).

Brush the tops of the coffee cakes with the egg wash. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes until risen and golden brown. The dough should sound hollow when tapped.

Rhonda's Version: I am not sure what happened below on the lower left-hand side. However, it didnt' seem to matter, because I decided since it wasn't pretty, that I should eat that part. And, trust me, it did not seem to affect the taste.

Jamie's version:

Ginger Snap Oats

2011-03-26T21:06:00.003-05:00

Continuing my quest to make all of the cookies in my cookie cookbook, my Cookie of the Week this week is Ginger Snap Oats.

If you like ginger snaps, you will really like these cookies. They are basically a cross between an oatmeal cookie and a ginger snap. They're soft and chewy, and I like the raisins in them. Lots of flavor!

Ingredients:
3/4 cup Butter Flavor Crisco
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup molasses
2 teaspoons vinegar
2 eggs
1 -1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons ginger
1 -1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 -3/4 cups quick oats (not instant or old fashioned)
1 -1/2 cups raisins

Instructions:
Heat oven to 350ºF. Grease baking sheet with Butter Flavor Crisco .

Combine Butter Flavor Crisco, brown sugar, granulated sugar, molasses, vinegar and eggs in large bowl. Beat until well blended.

Combine flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon and cloves. Mix into shortening mixture at low speed until blended. Stir in oats and raisins. Drop rounded teaspoonfuls of dough 2 inches apart onto baking sheet.

Bake at 350ºF for 11 to 14 minutes. Cool 2 minutes on baking sheet. Remove to cooling rack.

Makes about 5 Dozen Cookies

Friday Wrapup

2011-03-25T22:26:00.010-05:00

We are having our normal Friday Night Movie Night, baking cookies, and eating popcorn. Its our Friday night ritual, and pretty much nothing comes between us and our Friday Night Movie Nights.

In fact, Clyde said to me today, "Mom, I got sad today at school."

"Why, hon?"

"Because I wanted to be at home having Friday Night Movie Night."

See, its that awesome. It makes a Kindergartner sad at school.

This week we made Ginger Snap Oats (recipe will post this weekend), and Clyde ate so many cookies that he couldn't finish his popcorn, which is very unusual. Its also really unusual that he will eat any cookies that don't have chocolate in them.

Anyways, I am wrapping up the week with a lookback at our menus for the week, since I didn't post all of them.

Saturday - Macaroni and Cheese from the blue box. It never gets old.

Sunday - Meatball Subs. The kids really were excited about the idea of meatballs on a sandwich. And, these were very good.

Monday - Beef-Broccoli Stir-Fry. This one needs some tweaking, I didn't like it at all. There was too much ginger for me. If I made it again, I would cut the ginger in half and add a little more sugar. This would really improve the dish.

Tuesday - Barbecue Pulled Chicken Sliders. My only complaint on this one was there wasn't enough for leftovers. Yum!

Wednesday - Spicy Tortilla Soup with Shrimp and Avocado. My favorite dish of the week! Loved the flavors in this one.

Thursday - Fettuccine with Mushrooms and Hazelnuts. I don't have a pic of this one, but it was also really good. I love mushrooms, so this one was an easy choice for me. Instead of hazelnuts, I substituted in a mixed nut mixture that I had in the cupboard.

Friday - Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I will never stop loving them.

My workouts of the week looked like this:
Saturday - Off
Sunday - 9 mile run
Monday - 35 minutes elliptical
Tuesday - 3.1 mile run
Wednesday - off
Thursday - off
Friday - off

Hmmmm. I'd better do something tomorrow.

Spicy Tortilla Soup with Shrimp and Avocado

2011-03-23T18:37:00.005-05:00

So, for a while, we are going to be making recipes out of Cooking Light magazine during the week. Because, I am just going to say this, Canada makes you fat. Specifically, Calgary. With all of its wonderful restaurants and decadent desserts, it leaves a family with no chance of fitting into their pants.

Now that we're home, Cooking Light has become my friend.

Tonight, we tried out this soup, but I didn't want the heat for the kids. So, I eliminated the chile, but left of the recipe as-is. It is very good! My only suggestion is to remove the tails from the shrimp before putting it into the soup.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup prechopped onion
1/3 cup prechopped celery
1/3 cup chopped carrot
1 tablespoon minced chipotle chile, canned in adobo sauce
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 teaspoons minced garlic
4 cups fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth
1 (15-ounce) can white hominy, rinsed and drained
1 (15-ounce) can no-salt-added fire-roasted diced tomatoes, undrained
12 ounces peeled and deveined medium shrimp
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup lightly crushed baked tortilla chips (about 1 ounce)
1 cup diced avocado (about 1/2 pound)
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves (optional)

Preparation:

1. Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add onion and next 6 ingredients (through garlic); cook 6 minutes or until carrot is crisp-tender, stirring occasionally. Add broth, hominy, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Cover and cook 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add shrimp; cook 2 minutes or until shrimp are done.

2. Remove from heat; stir in juice and salt. Divide shrimp mixture evenly among 4 bowls; top evenly with chips and avocado. Garnish with cilantro, if desired.

Ear Piercings and Report Cards

2011-03-22T19:45:00.004-05:00

While I was in Calgary, Brian went to the third quarter parent-teacher conferences. Parent-teacher conferences can be tricky events for us. We're a bit scarred by parent-teacher conferences in the past, and we're always a little nervous about attending them. In past years, both of our kids have struggled so much behaviorally in school, and we have gone through every emotion trying to deal with it.

Bonnie's teacher had been in touch with us a few times up until Christmas, usually when Bonnie had particularly rough days where she can't seem to keep any self control. We've worked with rewards systems, punishments, and we've even tried ignoring it. But, it had to be Bonnie's decision to behave at school, as much as we wished we could make that decision for her. And, we can't follow her to school every day to ensure that she behaves well, as much as we'd like to help her.

The last report card showed Bonnie as unsatisfactory in nearly every behavioral category. Brian nervously awaited the results of this report card, hoping some of our work with Bonnie had paid off. As it turned out, Bonnie had turned every single category around to a satisfactory behavior. Her teacher said that its like she's a different kid this semester. That was pretty exciting for us to hear. We are encouraged to think that she might be maturing enough to have some self control. Considering she spent the first four years of her life in an orphanage and never learned any self control, we're pretty proud of the progress.

So, as a reward, I finally caved into one of her requests. I told her that, as a result of her great report card, she could get her ears pierced.

At the mall in Calgary, we came upon a store that did ear piercings, and it was time to deliver on my promise.

I think I was more nervous than she was.

I explained the process to her, and she took my hand, and said, "Mom, I can handle it."

I explained it to her again, just to make sure there would be no surprises.

She was still confident.

So, I held my breath while they loaded the little earring guns.

Brian announced that he was going to wait outside. I told him, "Okay". Then I turned around and he was standing behind me. I raised my eyebrow at him.

"I couldn't wait outside." he explained. I couldn't help but smile at him, I was glad I wasn't the only nervous one.

Two employees held the little needle guns up to Bonnie's ears and counted to three, while her parents nervously hovered over them.

One

Two

Three..

And snap, it was overwith.

Bonnie sat in the chair quietly, she seemed to be stunned. Then, she loudly said, "OWWWW. That really hurt."

She hopped off of the chair and asked if she could see her new earrings in the mirror.

No tears, no emotions. Just overjoyed to have her new earrings.

She totally deserved them.

Congratulations to Bonnie and her rockin' report card.

St. Patrick's Day Cake

2011-03-21T21:10:00.006-05:00

I've been wanting to try this Irish Cream Chocolate Mousse cake for a while now, ever since I saw it in Bon Appetit (that magazine is going to be the death of me). The recipe is interesting because the cake itself doesn't have any chocolate in it. The only flavoring is the coffee. But, the chocolate mousse. The mousse is what makes the cake. Bailey's and heavy cream - what's not to love? And to top it off, there's shaved chocolate and chocolate bands surrounding the entire cake.

I will tell you that I didn't use the directions below for the chocolate curls. I tried it with one chocolate block, and I had a gooey mess with some tiny curled chocolate. Instead, I used Pioneer Woman's method for creating chocolate curls. Its much easier, and it will save you the frustration of shaving chocolate from little 1 ounce blocks!

This cake is a winner, but a lot of work. I will reserve this recipe for special occasions.

ingredients:

MOUSSE

* 4 large eggs
* 1/3 cup sugar
* 12 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
* 1 1/2 cups chilled whipping cream
* 1/4 cup Irish cream liqueur

CAKE

* 6 large eggs
* 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
* 2 tablespoons instant espresso powder or coffee powder
* Pinch of salt
* 1 cup all purpose flour

SYRUP

* 2/3 cup sugar
* 5 tablespoons water
* 5 tablespoons Irish whiskey

CHOCOLATE BANDS

* 2 141/2x3-inch waxed paper strips
* 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
* 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon solid vegetable shortening

CHOCOLATE CURLS

* 12 1-ounce squares semisweet baking chocolate
* Powdered sugar

preparation:

MOUSSE

Whisk eggs and sugar in large metal bowl. Set bowl over saucepan of simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch water) and whisk constantly until candy thermometer registers 160°F, about 5 minutes. Remove bowl from over water. Using electric mixer, beat egg mixture until cool and very thick, about 10 minutes.

Place chocolate in top of double boiler over simmering water; stir until melted and smooth. Remove chocolate from over water. Cool to lukewarm.

Combine cream and Irish cream liqueur in medium bowl; beat to stiff peaks. Pour luke warm melted chocolate over egg mixture and fold together. Fold in cream mixture. Cover and chill until set, at least 4 hours or overnight.

CAKE

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 2 3/4-inch-high sides. Line bottom with parchment paper. Using electric mixer, beat eggs, sugar, espresso powder and salt in large bowl until mixture thickens and slowly dissolving ribbon forms when beaters are lifted, about 8 minutes. Sift 1/3 of flour over and gently fold into egg mixture. Repeat 2 more times (do not overmix or batter may deflate.)

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Cool cake completely in pan on rack.

Run small sharp knife around pan sides to loosen cake. Release pan sides. Turn out cake. Remove pan bottom. Peel off parchment. DO AHEAD Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Wrap cake in plastic and chill.

SYRUP

Combine sugar and water in small saucepan. Stir over low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat and bring to boil. Remove from heat. Mix in whiskey. Cool. DO AHEAD Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and let stand at room temperature.

ASSEMBLY

Using serrated knife, cut cake horizontally into 3 layers. Place bottom cake layer on platter. Brush with 3 tablespoons syrup. Spread 2 cups mousse over. Top with second cake layer. Brush with 3 tablespoons syrup. Spread 2 cups mousse over. Top with third cake layer, cut side down. Brush with 3 tablespoons syrup. Spread remaining mousse over top and sides of cake. Refrigerate cake while preparing chocolate bands.

CHOCOLATE BANDS

Line large baking sheet with foil and set aside. Place another large sheet of foil on work surface; top with waxed paper strips, spacing apart. Stir chopped semisweet chocolate and vegetable shortening in heavy small saucepan over low heat until melted and smooth. Pour half of melted chocolate down center of each waxed paper strip. Using metal icing spatula, spread chocolate to cover strips evenly and completely, allowing some chocolate to extend beyond edges of paper strips. Using fingertips, lift strips and place on clean foil-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate just until chocolate begins to set but is still very flexible, about 2 minutes.

Remove chocolate bands from refrigerator. Using fingertips, lift 1 band from foil. With chocolate side next to cake, place band around side of cake; press gently to adhere (band will be higher than cake). Repeat with second chocolate band, pressing onto uncovered side of cake so that ends of chocolate bands just meet (if ends overlap, use scissors to trim any excess paper and chocolate). Refrigerate until chocolate sets, about 5 minutes. Gently peel off paper. Refrigerate cake.

CHOCOLATE CURLS

Line baking sheet with foil. Unwrap 1 square of chocolate. Place chocolate on its paper wrapper in microwave. Cook on High just until chocolate begins to soften slightly, about 1 minute (time will vary depending on power of microwave). Turn chocolate square onto 1 side and hold in hand. Working over foil-lined sheet, pull vegetable peeler along sides of chocolate, allowing chocolate curls to fall gently onto foil. Form as many curls as possible. Repeat process with remaining chocolate squares. Place curls decoratively atop cake, mounding slightly. DO AHEAD Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Refrigerate cake.

Sift powdered sugar over chocolate curls before serving cake.

Running Update

2011-03-20T19:33:00.006-05:00

Since I am home again, it was time to take to the streets and get back into my running routine. While in Calgary, I managed keep up most of my scheduled training, including a 9.5 run on the treadmill one miserable Saturday morning. There's a reason they call it the Dreadmill, and 9.5 miles on it is less fun than you might think.

This weekend, my program called for me to do an 11-mile long run. However, I knew that doing 9 miles outside is totally different from doing 9 miles inside on a treadmill with the elevation set to 1.0 (no, I do not use the hill setting. I only run up hills when I have to, I do not choose them on the treadmill). So, in order to save myself from total exhaustion, I decided to cut my run back to 9 miles this weekend and see how it went.

Before I set out on my run, I was trying to find an appropriate carrying device for some water and my GU gummies. I finally settled on a little pink backpack from Wal-Mart, knowing it makes me look like a total geek, but hey, I will be a hydrated geek. Plus, it was only $7. I proudly showed my little pink backpack to Brian before he left for work on Saturday. For full effect, I put it on my back, and ran a few circles around the kitchen to let him experience my coolness.

On Sunday morning, the below item was sitting on the counter, ready for my run:

I have the sweetest hubby. He bought me one of these cool Nathan hydration packs, specifically designed for running. Now, I don't have to stop for a drink of water, as the tube comes over the shoulder and clips to the front of the pack. And, it has room for my GU gummies, cellphone and ipod. This beats the heck out of my $7 Walmart backpack.

So, yesterday morning I suited up with my Nathan pack, my GPS watch, and I hit the road. I just love all of the geeky techie running devices. I am the Inspector Gadget of the running world.

The first 3 miles, I really noticed the extra weight of the pack. But, I was also struggling from simply not running outside for basically three weeks. There's hills! And, uneven terrain! And, there's no fan that cools me!

So, by mile 5, I decided to walk for a few minutes to catch my breath and have a few GU gummies.

As I started up again and got to mile 6, my feet started cramping. I had some blisters from the time on the treadmill, and now my feet were rubbing in different areas of my shoes as I tried to avoid the blistered areas (note to self: get new shoes). So, I incorporated 1 - 2 minute walks for every mile and that seemed to help.

By 7 miles, I realized I had taken a wrong turn on the trail and had gone 1.5 miles out of the way. Once again, I cursed my lack of direction and turned around to pick up the right section of the trail. I took several 1 minute walk breaks to ease up on my blisters.

At the 8-mile mark, I started getting my second wind. The walk breaks were really helping, and I am going to incorporate those more into my running in the future. Surprisingly, my time wasn't much slower than my usual runs, and I think its because I ran faster after the walk breaks.

Finally, the 9-mile mark came around and I still had 1.5 miles to go to get home, but I didn't care. I met my goal, and I could walk the last mile if I had to. I ran 9 miles in 1 hr, 39 minutes. Considering the walk time due to the blisters, and the fact that this was my first time running this kind of distance outside, I am happy with it. With my first half-marathon, my goal is really to finish the darn thing, so I am not sweating time too much right now.

Next week is the ten-mile long run!

Double Lemon Delights

2011-03-19T21:34:00.003-05:00

I am a fan of anything lemon. Lemon meringue, lemon bars, and lemon cookies. So, I am probably biased about how good these cookies are. But, so far, they are my favorite Cookie of The Week.

The cookie is light and flaky, the frosting is tart and compliments the cookie perfect. These, my friends, are some good lemon cookies.

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons grated lemon peel, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup powdered sugar
4 to 5 teaspoons lemon juice

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Combine flour, baking powder and salt in small bowl; set aside. Beat butter and granulated sugar in large bowl of electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in egg, 1 tablespoon lemon peel and vanilla until well blended. Beat in flour mixture on blow speed until blended.

3. Drop dough by level 1/4 cupfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets, spacing 3 inches apart. Flatten dough until 3 inches in diameter with bottom of glass that has been dipped in additional sugar (note: I dipped the glass in water, then sugar).

4. Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until cookies are just set and edges are golden brown. Cool on cookie sheets 2 minutes; transfer to wire racks. Cool completely.

5. Combine powdered sugar, lemon juice and remaining 1 tablespoon lemon peel in small bowl; drizzle mixture over cookies. Let stand until icing is set.

Makes about 1 dozen (4 inch) cookies.

Calgary Tower

2011-03-18T21:40:00.004-05:00

While in Calgary, we paid a visit to the Calgary tower. An interesting fact - the Calgary tower was lit in 1988 for the Olympics, making it the world's largest torch. We couldn't miss seeing the world's largest torch. So, we paid our fees and got into the elevator for the 525 foot ride to the top.

One unique thing about the Calgary tower is that it has a glass floor, allowing you to see everything below you as well as what's on the horizon.

It took some convincing from Brian to get me to step onto the glass floor.

Others in the family, however, had no issues with it.

Not one ounce of nausea, not one consideration of what would happen if a bolt happened to give in the glass. Instead, he was busy counting taxis (which he pronounces "taskis".)

Bonnie, however, was hesitant like her Mom. She really doesn't even like walking over bridges, so this wasn't her cup of tea. But, eventually, Brian convinced us.

And it was weird. And I kept thinking about what it would feel like to fall all the way down to that little road below.

Or that little road below.

And, I had to step away.

But, I did go out for one last pic with the kids, making it appear that I didn't mind the glass underneath me whatsoever.

But, right after this pic was taken? Clyde returned to the floor and I stood by the safety of the elevators. There's nothing wrong with enjoying the view from a distance.

Lake Louise

2011-03-17T18:53:00.003-05:00

It was yet another trip to Canada for the past three weeks. It is so hard to make these trips. I am hoping I only have two more of these to make, which is a good thing, because it keeps getting harder and harder to pack up before each flight.

This time, Brian and the kids joined me for a week. It boosted my spirits tremendously, and we had a lot of fun exploring Calgary. Calgary is a fun city, with unique shops, restaurants, and the beautiful surrounding areas.

We visited Lake Louise last weekend. Even covered in snow, it was beautiful.

We picked a perfect day. It was nearly 35 degrees Fahrenheit, and the wind was nowhere to be found. The walk was cool, crisp, and still. Beautiful.

It reminded us of how much we miss Alaska sometimes...

Since the lake was frozen, there were some impressive ice sculptures on top of the lake...the Clyde wanted to know if he could climb this one.

We loved this dragon sculpture.

A quick family pic..

And, more walking. We walked for quite a while when we came upon a horse-drawn carriage giving tourists a ride around the lake. Bonnie was near elation to see the horses.

Another pretty view.

The Clyde.

Smiles after a fun day.

Italian Spiral Meatloaf

2011-03-04T17:46:00.000-06:00

When you get right down to it, we are a meat and potatoes family. No matter how many fancy entrees we try, we are still two Kansas kids who would prefer a meal that consisted of meat, potatoes, a vegetable, and some bread. Nothing makes us happier.

I have tried many meatloaf recipes, but this one is really tops. I found it in Taste of Home, and I decided to give it a shot since I had leftover mozzarella in the fridge. It might be my favorite meatloaf to-date. Brian was really surprised by it, too. We thought we had all of the bases covered with meatloaf, but the ham in this one really works. I didn't have any mushrooms on hand, so I left those out. Next time I will try it with the mushrooms.

The "spiral" part of my meatloaf didn't really hold up structurally (you'll see it in the last photo), but we didn't care. It was awesome!

Ingredients

* 2 eggs, beaten
* 1 cup pizza sauce, divided
* 1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
* 1 medium onion, chopped
* 1 medium green pepper, chopped
* 1 teaspoon dried oregano
* 1 garlic clove, minced
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon pepper
* 2 pounds lean ground beef (90% lean)
* 1 pound bulk Italian sausage
* 1/2 pound sliced deli ham
* 2 cups (8 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided
* 1 jar (6 ounces) sliced mushrooms, drained

Directions
In a large bowl, combine the eggs, 3/4 cup pizza sauce, bread crumbs,
onion, green pepper, oregano, garlic, salt and pepper. Crumble beef
and sausage over mixture and mix well.

On a piece of parchment paper, pat beef mixture into a 12-in. x
10-in. rectangle. Layer the ham, 1-1/2 cups cheese and mushrooms over beef mixture to within 1 in. of edges.

Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with a short side and peeling parchment paper away
as you roll. Seal seam and ends. Place seam side down in a greased
13-in. x 9-in. baking dish; brush with remaining pizza sauce.

Bake, uncovered, at 375° for 1 hour. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake
15-20 minutes longer or until no pink remains and a meat thermometer
reads 160°. Using two large spatulas, carefully transfer meat
loaf to a serving platter. Yield: 12 servings.

Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes

2011-03-03T17:02:00.000-06:00

Taste of Home has really hit some home runs in their latest issue. These Make-Ahead mashed potatoes were really good. I added more bacon than the recipe called for - because we really love bacon and I didn't want to have half of a package hanging out in the fridge.

My favorite part of this recipe was how quickly it came together. Once the bacon and potatoes are cooked, you are basically done!

Ingredients

* 3 pounds potatoes (about 9 medium), peeled and cubed
* 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
* 1/2 cup sour cream
* 1/2 cup butter, cubed
* 1/4 cup 2% milk
* 1-1/2 teaspoons onion powder
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/2 teaspoon pepper
* 6 bacon strips, chopped
* 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
* 3 green onions, chopped

Directions

* Place potatoes in a Dutch oven and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and cook for 10-15 minutes or until tender. Drain; mash potatoes with cream cheese, sour cream and butter. Stir in milk and seasonings.

* In a small skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove to paper towels with a slotted spoon; drain.

* Transfer potato mixture to a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish; sprinkle with cheese, onions and bacon. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

* Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 40-50 minutes or until heated through. Yield: 10 servings.

The Mystery of The Hat

2011-03-02T19:41:00.001-06:00

Sunday night, as our evening schedule started to wind down, I called The Clyde out of his room to take a bath. Of course, every time I tell him to take a bath, he will correct me and say he is taking a shower. And then, when I tell him to take a shower, he will tell me he is going to take a bath. He likes to mess with me like that, The Clyde.

After I told him it was bathtime, he responded from his room that he would be there in "just one minute". I got distracted and 15 minutes later, I realized he still wasn't in the bathtub. I called him again, and he finally came down the stairs holding a gray stocking cap.

"Mom," he explained, "I haven't taken a bath yet because I was getting this hat out of my room. Its Dad's hat and I don't want it in my room anymore."

I looked at the hat. I haven't seen this particular hat in at least a year, if not two years.

However, I am pretty sure that over a year ago, Brian and I had a conversation that went something like this,

"Have you seen my hat?"

"Nope,"

"Well, it was right here on the counter. Are you sure you haven't seen it?"

"I haven't seen a hat."

"But it was RIGHT HERE. I know it didn't just walk away."

"I HAVEN'T SEEN A HAT"

So, apparently this hat has been hanging out in Clyde's room and he just couldn't stand for it to be in there anymore. Not for one more minute. It was driving him crazy, those years of storing his father's hat.

"Clyde," I asked him. "How did this hat get into your room?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "I dunno."

"Clyde," I tried again. "Do you know how long this hat has been in your room?"

"I think", he said confidently, "at least three days."

"You think so? And, why did you bring it downstairs tonight?"

"Well because," he answered slowly, "it doesn't belong in my room."

And then, I gave up. Because I knew I was asking for a logical answer to a totally illogical situation. And, you cannot explain to a 6-year old that this hat has been in their room for over a year, their father has been looking for it, and this random evening that he chose to reveal its location makes no sense whatsoever.

I didn't think he would get it.

And, you see, its the stuff like this that drives parents insane. It isn't the big things, like our munchkins running into the street or falling down on the sidewalk. Sure, those things will give us a heart attack. But, its the little things, like hats disappearing that make us think we're losing our minds.

So, the hat is on the counter. And, when Brian asks me about it, I could tell him The Clyde has been storing it for a year, and he would like to recoup his storage fees.

Or,

I could tell him that its been there on the counter for months and that I am surprised he hasn't noticed it. That would be more fun.

I shouldn't be the only one who is driven crazy in this house.

Birthday Cake Fudge

2011-03-01T17:21:00.000-06:00

OK, so it really isn't anyone's birthday around here. But, is that any reason not to make Birthday cake fudge? I saw this recipe over at Confessions of a Cookbook Queen. If you aren't a follower of hers, you should check it out. There's tons of great recipes, like this one.

I loved this fudge. I am a huge fan of white chocolate (I almost prefer it to milk or dark chocolate), so this fudge is dangerous to me. Plus, it is blue and it has sprinkles. All delightful things with my name written all over it. I had no choice but to make this.

Turns out, it is even better than I thought. And, its EASY!

INGREDIENTS

3 cups sugar
1 1/2 sticks margarine
5 oz can (2/3 cup) evaporated milk
12 oz chopped white chocolate (I used white chocolate chips)
7oz jar marshmallow creme
3 Tablespoons yellow cake mix (just the powdered MIX, not batter)
1 teaspoon vanilla
Blue candy coloring
Rainbow sprinkles

Line a 9 inch square pan with foil, with the ends hanging over the edges of the pan. Spray foil thoroughly with nonstick spray.

Place the sugar, margarine, and evaporated milk in a heavy saucepan over medium heat.

Bring to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly, and let boil for exactly 4 minutes. Remove from heat.

Add chocolate chips, marshmallow creme, and cake mix, stirring until chocolate chips are melted. Add vanilla and mix well.

Working as quickly as possible, pour about 1/3 of the fudge in a bowl and add a few drops of blue candy coloring, mixing and adding until you achieve the desired shade. Pour white fudge into prepared pan, spreading evenly. Spoon blue fudge over the top, spacing it out.

Using a sharp knife, draw swirls through the blue and white to create a marbled effect.

Sprinkle the top generously with rainbow sprinkles before the top sets up.

Let store at room temperature until cool, then place in the refrigerator until firm.

Neopolitan Cake

2011-02-28T17:36:00.001-06:00

So, when I first saw the Neopolitan cake over at Eat Cake For Dinner, I knew I would have to put this cake on my list. I've never been a fan of Neopolitan ice cream, but the idea of having strawberry, chocolate, and vanilla layers all in one cake really intrigued me. And, Jenn's photos looked so enticing!

Let me just tell you - this cake is GOOD. You can make it for pretty much any special occasion - or like me, with no reason at all. I sent the leftovers with Brian to work today and they are all raving about it.

First, you need to make three different 9-inch cakes. The recipes are below, per Jenn's site:

Strawberry Cake
adapted from: here
1 c. sugar
1 1/2 oz. strawberry Jell-O
1/2 c. butter, softened
2 eggs
1 + 1/4 + 1/8 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 c. milk
1/2 Tbl. vanilla
1/4 c. strawberry puree (I used frozen, sweetened strawberries and pureed them in my blender until smooth)

Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy; add Jell-O. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Combine flour and baking powder and add alternately with milk and vanilla; beating until just combined. Blend in strawberry puree. Pour batter into one (9-inch) greased and floured cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes (mine took 33 minutes) or until done. Cool in pan 10 minutes, invert to rack and cool completely.

Vanilla Cake
from: Jenn - eatcakefordinner
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1/2 c. buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour one (9-inch) round cake pan. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. In another bowl, whisk together sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, buttermilk and vanilla until smooth. Pour into dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Pour batter into prepared cake pan and bake for 22-26 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes, then invert to rack and cool completely.

Chocolate Cake
adapted from: Martha Stewart
1/4 c. + 2 Tbl. cocoa
3/4 c. all-purpose flour
3/4 c. sugar
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 + 1/8 tsp. baking powder
1/4 + 1/8 tsp. salt
1 egg
1/4 c. + 2 Tbl. warm water
1/4 c. + 2 Tbl. buttermilk
1 1/2 Tbl. vegetable oil
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour one (9-inch) cake pan; set aside. In a large bowl, sift together cocoa, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add egg, warm water, buttermilk, vegetable oil and vanilla; mix until smooth, about 3 minutes. Pour batter into prepared cake pan. Bake until top springs back when lightly touched, about 24-25 minutes. Cool in pan 10 minutes, invert to rack and cool completely.

Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
from: Jenn - eatcakefordinner

2 cubes butter, softened
1/3 c. shortening, opt. (I add this to help my frosting
hold its shape better for piping)
1 stick cream cheese, softened
6 c. powdered sugar
3/4 c. strawberry puree (sweetened strawberries
pureed in the blender until smooth)
2 tsp. strawberry extract
a few drops red food coloring, opt.

Cream together butter, shortening and cream cheese until fluffy. Add 2 cups powdered sugar. Add 1/4 cup strawberry puree, strawberry extract and food coloring and beat until smooth. Add remaining powdered sugar and strawberry puree alternately and beat until reaches desired consistency.

To Assemble cake:
Slice the strawberry and the chocolate cake layers in half horizontally. Trim the vanilla cake if you want it to be the same size as the strawberry and chocolate, if not, just leave it whole. Place one chocolate layer down on your cake board and top with either strawberry jam or strawberry frosting. Top with a strawberry layer and top with more jam or frosting. Top with vanilla cake, then more jam or frosting.

Followed by the remaining chocolate layer, jam or frosting, then top with the remaining strawberry layer.

Frost entire cake with strawberry frosting (recipe above) and decorate as desired. Eat immediately or store in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Running Update

2011-02-26T19:57:00.000-06:00

This week has been tough, frustrating, and frightening. Last weekend, I started having heart palpitations that were strong enough to keep me from sleeping. Sunday was worse, and I was actually afraid to go to sleep. Brian was working, so I called him at work and told him it was getting worse. When he got home, he could hear it through his stethoscope and he could feel it in my pulse.

I had an appointment with my doctor for another issue on Monday morning, so I had her check it out for me. She heard it, too. She referred me to a cardiologist, and gave the strict instruction of no exercise until I'd seen the cardiologist

That was definitely not what I wanted to hear. It put me a week behind in my training program, and I was concerned I might lose some endurance. Luckily, I was able to get into a cardiologist on Friday, and while they are trying to figure out exactly what is going on, they are having me wear a Holter monitor until Sunday.

But, to my delight, the cardiologist said I could run. Albeit, I would have to do it with the monitor, but at least I could run.

So, this morning, I attempted five miles while being fully wired for sound. I've got five electrodes taped to my chest and a small monitoring device to carry with it. So, I put the device in my pocket and gave it a try.

For the most part, it was a pretty good run. I hit the wall at the 4-mile mark, just like I did last weekend. And, I noticed my right shoulder really hurting. I suspect it was from the weight of the monitor on that side.

But otherwise? The monitor wasn't too restrictive.

It was 35 degrees out, so there weren't many other runners on the trail. Actually, if you don't count the deer, there were none. Except for me and my electrodes, trying to get past the wall at the 4-mile mark.

I was bummed by hitting the wall at the 4-mile mark again. I was hoping I would be past that after my last long run. I actually had a point during my run where I hit a very low point, telling myself that I can't do this. I am not healthy. I am too slow. Its too hard to keep this up while traveling to Canada. If there was an excuse, I was thinking about it. Bleh. Like I said, it was a tough week.

Regardless, I did not quit and finished my mileage.

I had to have a quick talk with myself. The heart issue is in God's hands, and I will cross that bridge when I hear from my doctor. But, I am not doing this because it is easy. I am doing this because its my lifelong goal to be physically fit, and to be able to say I've run a half-marathon. It doesn't come without lots of training and work. And half of this is mental. I've got to stay positive.

So, with that in mind, I saw this inspirational quote and I thought I'd share it.

Here's to keeping the faith. I am not quitting.

Fudgy Peanut Butter Jiffy Cookies

2011-02-26T17:36:00.000-06:00

No-bake cookies are so cool. Are they really even cookies? Or more just a bunch of good things stirred together and dropped onto some wax paper? Either way, they are tasty. And these no-bake cookies have my two favorite ingredients: chocolate and peanut butter.

The one thing that I wasn't sure about in this recipe was the raisins. Chocolate, peanut butter, and raisins? If you don't like raisins, you can easily leave them out. But, I actually liked the raisins in this recipe. I thought it really added to the cookie.

ingredients:

2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 1/2 cups Quaker Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup raisins or chopped dates
2 teaspoons vanilla

directions:

In a large saucepan, combine sugar, milk, margarine and cocoa.

Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently. Continue boiling 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in oats, peanut butter, raisins and vanilla; mix well.

Quickly drop by tablespoonfuls onto waxed paper or greased cookie sheet. Let stand until set.

Store tightly covered at room temperature. Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Banana Bread

2011-02-25T17:52:00.000-06:00

Quickbreads are so irresistible. They are fast, easy, and delicious. Every time I see over-ripened bananas in my kitchen, I want to make banana bread. It seems like such a waste to get rid of them when I know I can have warm banana bread within an hour. So, last night, instead of throwing away the spotted bananas, we had a few loaves of banana bread.

My banana bread recipe is simple, which is what I really love about it. You usually have the ingredients on hand, and you can make this on a whim, which is what I usually do.
ingredients:
1 1/4 cups of sugar
1/2 cup margarine or butter, softened
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas (3 to 4 medium)
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped nuts, if desired

directions:

Place oven rack in lowest position. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottoms only of 2 loaf pans 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2 inches or 1 loaf pan, 9 x 5 x 3 inches. Mix sugar and margarine in large bowl. Stir in eggs until well blended. Add bananas, buttermilk and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Stir in remaining ingredients except nuts until moistened. Stir in nuts.

Pour into pans. Bake 8-inch loaves about 1 hour, 9-inch loaf about 1 1/4 hours or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes. Loosen sides of loaves from pans; remove from pants. Cool completely before slicing. Wrap rightly and store at room temperature up to 4 days, or refrigerate up to 10 days.

Of course, it is easier when you have someone to mash the bananas for you.

And then, there's the extra help taste testing, and more taste testing, and then they have to ensure the bowls are clean...

My family is very helpful.

On A Sunday Afternoon

2011-02-24T20:29:00.001-06:00

Oh how I love the weekends.

The kids and I decided to get our house cleaning finished right after lunch on Sunday, instead of procrastinating like we usually do until late Sunday evening.. I have always taught them to help me around the house, and Bonnie actually begs to help me clean (She is a sick kid, what can I say). This past weekend was no exception, and when we decided to spring into action, they began cleaning rooms and emptying trash like troopers.

After all of our hard work was finished, I asked them if they'd like to take a walk. We decided to walk down the street to the nearby convenience store and get ourselves a pop (or "soda" for those of you who aren't from around here).

As we walked to the store, Clyde turned to me and said, "Mom, I can't wait to walk and drink my pop on the way home."

I smiled at how sometimes its the little things that are so exciting when you're a kid.

Clyde had no idea, but he shook a memory loose for me. I must have been about his age when my Grandpa took me for a walk to get a pop. I remember walking down the road with him, he was so much taller than me. Of course, I guess everyone is when you're a kid. I can still recall the details of the walk - there was some gravel on the road that crunched under my feet as we made our way to the pop machine.

When we arrived, he reached into his pocket, pulled out some change, and bought me a soda out of a vending machine. It was one of those old machines where you put the money in, open the door, and pull out a glass bottle.

I thought it was the neatest thing I'd ever seen. First, he picked one for himself, and then it was my turn.

"You can pick any kind you want, Rhonda."

And pick, I did. I got a wonderful orange, fizzy drink out of that machine. It was the first time I'd had orange pop, and I remember thinking it was one of the best things I'd ever tasted. In fact, to this day, I still love orange soda.

As we slowly walked home, I attempted to drink out of the glass bottle. I'd never had one before, so I stuck the whole thing in my mouth and guzzled as much soda as I could handle.

My grandpa chuckled, and I had no idea why he was laughing, but I assumed I wasn't drinking it correctly. I looked up at him. The sun was shining brightly behind him, but nevertheless, I watched him take a drink from his pop bottle.

I mimicked him, and he nodded as we walked, affirming I'd gotten it right, and said, "its a good day for a pop, Rhonda."

As we walked home today, I watched both of my kids drink pop out of the cans on the way home. Clyde enjoyed it thoroughly, sauntering home as if he didn't have a care in the world. I remembered exactly how that felt. And, deep inside, I missed my Grandpa something fierce.

I love it when you get a glimpse of the circle of life.

I think more trips out for a pop are in our future.

Zucchini Pasta Casserole

2011-02-23T17:10:00.001-06:00

Inspired by Food Network Magazine's ode to pasta this month, I decided to try putting together my own pasta casserole. I used whatever pasta I had left in the pantry (in this case, it wasn't one type of pasta, but two. Penne and macaroni.)

I love putting lots of vegetables with pasta. I think I could live on a big pile of veggies and pasta.

This casserole turned out pretty well - next time I think it could use a little more sauce. But, overall, good!

ingredients:

1 lb of pasta (your choice what kind)
1 zucchini
1 package of fresh spinach
1 jar of spaghetti sauce (I used Ragu)
1 cup Ricotta cheese
3 cups of mozarrella cheese, divided
1/2 cup grated parmesan
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into pieces
2 Tbsp olive oil

directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook pasta according to package directions for al dente. Toss pasta with Ragu. Add the ricotta cheese and 2 cups of mozzarella. Stir until cheese is melted. Set aside.

Heat olive oil. Saute chicken in olive oil until sides of chicken are browned, set aside. Add zucchini and spinach and saute until zucchini is soft, a few minutes.

Add chicken and vegetables to pasta mixture and put into a glass casserole pan (9 x 13 will work).

Top with remaining mozzarella and parmesan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes, or until chicken is done and sauce is bubbly.

Sunday Crock - Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya

2011-02-22T18:43:00.002-06:00

I have to tell you that I am cheating on this one. I made this Bon Appetit recipe the day before, and I didn't really use the crockpot. Well, I did use it to warm the jambalaya up while were in church so we could home home to a hot lunch. So, technically, this probably isn't a Sunday Crock. But, I am leaving it in the category because you could easily make this in the crockpot. And next time, I probably will.

This recipe is really good. It has chicken, several types of sausage, ham, and bacon. So, what's not to love? The sauce works really well here, and all of the sausage flavor melds together. Mmmm.

I substituted in a less spicy sausage for the hot links (andouille sausage) because I know my kids won't eat anything that spicy. And, I don't love hot links anyways, so I just used a plain polish sausage instead. We still loved it.

ingredients:

12 ounces applewood-smoked bacon, diced
1 1/2 pounds smoked fully cooked sausage (such as linguiça), halved lengthwise, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick semi-circles
1 pound andouille sausages, quartered lengthwise, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 pound tasso or smoked ham (such as Black Forest), cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 1/2 pounds onions, chopped (4 to 5 cups)
2 large celery stalks, chopped
1 8- to 10-ounce red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
1 8- to 10-ounce green bell pepper, coarsely chopped
6 large skinless boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1- to 1 1/2-inch pieces
2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon (or more) cayenne pepper
3 10-ounce cans diced tomatoes and green chiles
2 1/2 cups beef broth
3 cups (19 to 20 ounces) long-grain white rice
8 green onions, chopped (about 2 cups)
Chopped fresh Italian parsley

Preparation

Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 350°F. Cook bacon in very large pot over medium-high heat until brown but not yet crisp, stirring often, 8 to 10 minutes. Add smoked sausage, andouille, and tasso. Sauté until meats start to brown in spots, about 10 minutes.

Add onions, celery, and bell peppers. Cook until vegetables begin to soften, stirring occasionally, 10 to 12 minutes.

Mix in chicken. Cook until outside of chicken turns white, stirring often, 5 to 6 minutes.

Mix in paprika, thyme, chili powder, and 1/4 teaspoon cayenne. Cook 1 minute. Add diced tomatoes with chiles and broth; stir to blend well. Add more cayenne, if desired. Mix in rice.

Bring jambalaya to boil. Cover pot. Place in oven and bake until rice is tender and liquids are absorbed, 45 to 48 minutes. Uncover pot.

Mix chopped green onions into jambalaya; sprinkle jambalaya with chopped parsley and serve.

Rhonda's Corner

Lemon Cookies

Devil's Food Cake With Black Pepper Boiled Icing

Ingredients

Filling

Cake

Black Pepper Icing

special equipment

Preparation

Filling

Cake

Black Pepper Icing

Random Update

Sweet N Tangy Chicken

The Seventeen Miler

Stone Fruit Lattice Pie

Crust

Filling

Ingredient Info

Preparation

Crust

Filling Preheat oven to 400°. Halve, pit, and cut fruit into 1/2" thick slices. Place all fruit in a large bowl. Add 1/2 cup sugar and toss to coat. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour, tossing occasionally.

Soft Molasses Spice Cookies

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Filling

Preheat oven to 400°. Halve, pit, and cut fruit into 1/2" thick slices. Place all fruit in a large bowl. Add 1/2 cup sugar and toss to coat. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour, tossing occasionally.