Unplanned Perfection in a Chocolate Nightmare Cookie

I always bang my head on my desk, or wall or steering wheel whenever I hear someone say they can’t wait until they “get perfect” at photography.  Or painting, sketching, whatever.  What is that supposed to mean really??  Is there such a thing as perfection in art?  The last time I heard this, the artist was referring to creating a flawless sketch of an object without considering perception or any other artistic allowances. [facepalm]

When I was little, I was green with envy at my friend Shannon’s ability to paint a flawless portrait of anyone or anything she chose.  She daintily would paint for hours making her piece nearly sing out loud with beauty and I was blown away.  We were about 14 and I looked at my sad sketch book and always hid it underneath my other books so she would never see how pathetic I was.

I found out awhile later that she only painted because her sister was a phenomenal artist and she wanted to be just like her.  Her sister painted a wolf, so did she.  A different one of course in a different pose but it was very similar and apparent that she idolized her big sister.  That’s admirable.  Talking with her, she didn’t seem very passionate or inspired by it she just did it and she had a natural talent.  As for me, I had an image in my head inspired by something I saw and it was all I could think about until I sketched it on paper.

Was she really good?  Was my adoration of her justified even though her heart was not in it?  I really can’t say.  That’s the thing about art, there is no perfect.  No right or wrong.

The whole purpose behind art is to get inspiration going and to get people talking and thinking, not to start copying each other.

My stance on this was tested when I tried to recreate a cookie that I love so much.  (Almost more than I love my current jean size…)

I made the cookie tossing ingredients in, mixing, whirling, tasting, spitting out…and the stupid things didn’t turn out like I thought they should.

Usually they flatten out to a nice crisp outside and a chewy gooey center that makes me want to give up raw vegetables altogether and ONLY eat this cookie in their place.  I could eat these things like chips.

These cookies I made taste great, they’re so gooey and chewy but they are not exactly what I meant for them to be.  I guess this is my lesson.  [sigh]  I thought about scrapping this and not sharing it with you today but I thought this would be a good lesson for me and perhaps it speaks to you too?

Look into her eyes and you will see her inner wolf.

I’ve been taking more photographs (of NON food items, can you believe it?!), painting and even sketching again!  I can think of three people in the room with me right now that have caught this contagious creative bug.  There has been more drawing, painting and photography surrounding me than ever before.  I get texts, calls and emails from people who are actually inspired to cook and bake because of something I passed on.

It doesn’t start with me, I just keep sharing it and a continuous artistic inspiration lives on.  We learn so much about ourselves and the people we interact with when we share our creations.

NEVER EVER NOT EVEN ONCE should you ever scrap an idea because of a reaction you get or because it didn’t turn out “perfect”.  What are you measuring yourself to?  Don’t answer that, it’s up to you.  But don’t you dare hesitate to email me, Facebook me or tweet me if you need a little boost.  Send me pics or descriptions and I’ll totally root for you.  Remember that.

And in turn, when you see a piece that someone has taken the risk to share with you don’t say,”I wonder why they did that!”  Instead maybe you should say,”I wonder why they did that?”  Think.  Talk.  Get up and do something about it.

Any thoughts?  Do you have any art you would like to share with me?  Email me at yourstrulyewalani at gmail dot com.

By the way, here is the recipe for these cookies.

Chocolate Nightmare Cookies

Adapted from Yannick’s cookie which he calls “Collapsadies”

1/2 stick of butter

1/4 cup white sugar

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 room temp egg

1 tsp vanilla

pinch of salt, preferably alaea Hawaiian sea salt

1 tbsp instant coffee powder

1/8 cup Nutella

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1 1/4 cup flour

1.75 ounces chopped dark chocolate

1/2 dark chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 and get out 2 cookie sheets.  Cream together butter and sugars until so light and fluffy.  Add egg, vanilla, salt, instant coffee and mix until completely combined.  Add Nutella and continue to mix until smooth and creamy like a frosting.  Add in baking powder, baking soda and flour.  Mix until just combined.  Add chocolate chunks and chips (if extra fall in it’s going to be ok) and fold in.  Scoop about 2 heaping tablespoons into cookie sheet with 6 cookies per sheet.  Bake for about 8 minutes when cookies are barely cooked on the outside and the center is still very soft and gooey.  Let them cool on the cookie sheet for at least 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.  Then repeat.  Amount of cookies will vary according to the size you make, but my batch made 18 cookies.

Cast Iron Week Inspirations

Cast Iron Week: The first week of January and only observed by yours truly.  This post was started during that time and completed a short while later.

I was excited [almost] beyond words  when I received my very first cast iron pan for my birthday this last December.  I hear a lot of hype about cast iron but really, can it make a noticeable difference??  I decided to do a 1 week test to see for myself and get the opinion of my daughter with her highly sensitive palette.

For once I planned out meals ahead of time but it didn’t last because let’s face it, I’m just not that kind of person.

And no,  I have not and will not take down all of my decorations yet.   (Keep in mind this was the first week of January.  I hope you are cutting me some slack right now.)

I want to share a few cast iron inspirations with you that I really enjoyed this week and maybe give you ideas that you can use in your own kitchen.

For featured inspiration number one:

Cranberry Apple Oatmeal

This cranberry apple oatmeal is so warm and comforting even if you are feeling under the weather.  Just chop some apples and toss in a pan with a handful of cranberries and a cup of water.  Stir for a minute or two and add cinnamon, ginger, salt and agave nectar to taste before adding more water and oatmeal.

I baked these cookies in this pan and it worked great!  What an excellent way to bake cookies and it’s more fun than a boring baking sheet.

I created this recipe to have a vegan and gluten free option to serve if I ever receive that request.  This is my first ever gluten free recipe and was inspired by a photo I saw but never found again.   So I made up a recipe.

Easy Breakfast Cookies – Vegan & Gluten Free

Recipe created by Dionne Baldwin

Ingredients

1/2 cup oatmeal

1/2 cup raw chopped almonds

2 tbsp. raw sunflower seeds

1 tbsp. flax seed meal

2 tbsp. agave nectar

1 banana

1 tsp. vanilla

1/8 cup raw unsweetened coconut

1/2 tsp. baking soda

a pinch of salt

For your convenience you may substitute the raw ingredients for roasted, toasted, etc. but for maximum health benefit I recommend using raw.  Combine ingredients with a potato masher until well mixed. 

Form into balls and flatten into cookie shape with your hands.  You may eat these raw or bake for about 10-12 minutes in a preheated 350 degree oven.

I love biscuits and gravy but here is a random fact about me:  I’m more wild about the gravy.  I’ll put it on nearly anything!

Skillet Biscuits & Sausage Gravy

I baked the biscuits in one cast iron pan and made the gravy with another.

• The biscuit recipe I used can be found here.
• The sausage recipe I used can be found here although I used Italian sausage not maple.

For our grand finale, we had the one meal I think of every time I see a cast iron pan.

Steak & Eggs

Put your steak in your pan, cook it up and when you cook your eggs right beside it the steak juices hold hands with the egg and create this delicious harmony that is so simple you would never think it would be so enticing.

Thank you for checking up on me to see how this week went.   I hope you are having a good day and I am sending you hugs with this!

So what stance do you take?  Are you pro cast iron, not a fan or somewhere in the middle?

My First Week of the Year 2012

I hope your week was good!  If not, feel free to get in touch with me and tell me all about it. 

 

Post Holiday Blues & Looking on the Bright Side

I may not be the first to wish you a Happy New Year but maybe I’ll be the first to give you a virtual New Year’s hug! [H U G!]

Christmas day was like a lightening bolt. It went faster than I ever wanted it to. Full of food, inside jokes and presents we had such a good time.

Ah the lengths we will go to for presents…

Daddy’s like Nerf guns too!

X O X O

The stockings turned out great and held all the loot that everyone brought! Sweaterfest 2011 is officially over.

The trophies for the gift exchange were so cute all lined up…

Third place was an edible trophy! I was happy for Taylor when she won it.

We made Nanaimo Bars out of a baking book that a very dear friend sent us. <3

Winners of 1st and 2nd place!

No wonder Daniel won…this was super creative!

The drive home was dark and sad in a way, but I just had to remind myself that the only difference between any other visit with my family is that Christmas just meant we gave wrapped up presents. That’s all. Still another year has gone by and I can honestly say I did the best I could.  So I am happy.

Now that winter break is over, my little girl has a fever and a cough. Don’t judge me for saying this, but I am grateful for the time to spend with her. The past two weeks were so busy I didn’t even get my daily five minutes! So now we catch up.

And now I am off to hold her…she’s so docile when she’s sick that it worries me haha!

I hope you had an incredible holiday!  If you didn’t and you need to talk about it, you can find me on almost every social network.  I’d love to hear from you!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas, my friends! As you can see I have not been an active blogger lately, but it’s not for lack of caring.

A couple projects for work came up and it was either turn them down, neglect my family or my blog. I know you understand.

What sort of things did you do for Christmas? Any funny stories? Hopefully no sad ones…

We are off to celebrate Christmas as my mom and dads house. This year there will be trophies awarded for the gift exchange. Second place and third place trophies were on my task list and I recruited together kids to give their input.

Equipped with enough appetizers to feed a small country, my other half along with Taylor and I packed up the car and we are looking forward to spending the rest of the day with my parents and my siblings.

From us to you, we wish you a very Merry Christmas.

Maple French Toast & Bacon Cupcakes from Kita of Pass the Sushi

Kita of Pass the Sushi is long overdue for a post in her honor.  A feature on Try Anything Once is not really something that most people would scream and clap over but it’s how I show my appreciation for my friends that inspire me to leave the computer and get in the kitchen!

Kita has done this so many times.  In fact, just yesterday she responded to my plea for a dinner idea and I whipped up Cuban Pork Chops, which were a big hit by the way.  Most of the time when I read her blog and end up making what I find, I have zero time to whip out the camera and figure out how to make it look as good as it tastes.

I did make the Brioche recipe she shared but I didn’t know back then how much I would grow to love this woman.

I admit I am jealous of her photography skills and eye for styling (but not in a way comparable to an ex wife that is everyone’s worst nightmare…) It’s more like a dreamy sigh daydream jealousy.

Kita is funny, supportive and such a sweetheart.  She seems very passionate about her interests and is creatively artistic.  She food blogs, loves comic books and makes aprons that would make anyone feel inspired in the kitchen!  (Guys, give it a try!)  I just found her Facebook page…want to like it?  For me?

Last weekend was a birthday celebration for my dad, my step son and myself.  Due to family emergencies and selfish mothers (not mine) we were unable to celebrate my dads and my stepsons birthday anywhere close to the real thing, but like we say at home…betta late den neva!

They neva stay still. That's why blurry.

We loved spending the day together and my mom and dad cooked absolutely everything and had it all ready by 1:30 in the afternoon!  I bet they were exhausted!

So many presents and so much thoughtfulness, one of them was moved to tears.  I won’t say who.

My dad had his Arabee spice cake that his mother used to make him every year for his birthday, so I thought Ethan should have something special too!  I went outside the [chocolate] box this year and made him something with his second favorite thing on desserts…bacon!

I’m glad I saw this post when I did because it was the perfect addition to our emotional family day!

The bacon inside the cupcakes adds the perfect texture and flavor to the cupcakes.  The rich cream cheese frosting adds an ideal contrast to the crispy bacon!  I added at least 3 pieces atop every cupcake to give every bite three bites the perfect balance of fluffy cupcake, creamy frosting and crispy bacon.

Thank you Kita for being a part of this special day.  Everyone loved the cupcakes and anyone that wants to make these can go here for the post and the recipe.

I hope this blog post finds you in good health and happiness as you prepare for the upcoming holiday.  If this time of year makes you sad because of things that have happened in the past, enclosed you will find hugs from me, Yannick, Ethan and Taylor.  If we cannot be together this Christmas know that we are thinking of you and we are grateful that you came to visit!

Outside the Box Peanut Butter Bread Pudding Served Cold

I love it when people think outside of the box and I really love it when the idea works.  Does cold bread pudding work though?

I’m not ready to let go of peanut butter month yet, so here is one final post that I just had to share with you.

Another Food Network show I love to watch is Sugar High.  I am known for my sweet tooth, in fact people say, “Oh I bet Dionne would love this!  She has such a sweet tooth!”  Cookies especially.  Cinnamon rolls mostly.  Cake with frosting of course.  Lindsay’s blondies (any of them) and Kita’s Maple French Toast and Bacon Cupcakes, which are on my to do list.

Anyway, I like to watch Sugar High.  One place that caught my attention is Shulzies Bread Pudding.  Sarah created these bread puddings that are served cold instead of the traditional warm and dripping with gooey frosting.

I had some leftover cookies from Thanksgiving and I had to hide a few so I could put together my attempt at a replica of one of Sarah’s creations.

I baked a fresh loaf of bread, chopped up some cookies and started to think about how I was going to pull this off.  Fortunately, Sarah allowed the Food Network to share a recipe for me to go off of!

A few things Sarah mentioned she uses in her bread pudding is fresh bread (instead of not-so-fresh) and if I remember correctly she doesn’t soak it ahead of time and she doesn’t serve it warm.  If my memory serves me correct, after baking she puts the bread pudding in the fridge overnight.  Hmmm.  Curious.

I would never imply that I could come close to something she has taken much time to perfect but I merely wanted to taste for myself what cold bread pudding made Sarah’s way tastes like.

After letting the bread pudding sit in the fridge overnight, she breaks it up into pieces and scoops it into serving dishes.  That’s pretty much what I did.

For my recipe I used fresh bread, chopped cookies and peanut butter as the stars of this dessert.  After baking and cooling I tasted my bread pudding cold.  It was…different.

Letting it sit overnight was fine, I crumpled the bread pudding and I could see pieces of the now soft cookies looking up at me.  So I bit one.  I’m not a huge fan of the texture, but I don’t think I got it right.  Sarah’s bread pudding wasn’t solid when she took it out of the oven (again, if I remember right) and mine was so I think mine is more firm.  Not gooey.  Boo. 

When I tasted mine I was soooooo disappointed that I don’t live anywhere close to Schulzies.  [sigh] I will never get an accurate opinion this way! And I didn’t like my bread pudding.

But I never give up.  Never.

I sprinkled chocolate chips into the bread pudding mess, scooped it up the best way I could into little serving dishes and I tasted it.

My less-than-par bread pudding was quite different with the hard semi-sweet chocolate chips!  I loved the soft texture of the bread and the firmness of the chocolate.  Win!

Since it’s a known fact that most bread puddings need a frosting to make them complete I crossed my fingers hoping I could take this over the top.

I mixed 1 tbsp. Nutella, 1 tbsp. softened cream cheese, 1/2 tsp. vanilla and 3/4 cup powdered sugar with a wisk until smooth and I drizzled it over my poor bread pudding.  I crossed the fingers on one hand and I spooned a bite with the other…

Gourmet.

Somehow the Nutella really brought out the peanut butter flavor of the bread pudding, the chocolate gave it the much needed textural contrast and the sauce brought this b. p. together in perfect harmony.

I can’t make a good cold bread pudding like Schulzies, but I can make an impressive substitute good enough to satisfy curiosity.  Still, it’s not the real thing….

But it will have to do.

Here are my modifications for cold bread pudding:

• The bread recipe I baked for this bread pudding is here.
• I used two bread loaf pans to make this bread pudding and split the ingredients.
• I used a total of 1 1/2 cups of brown sugar and 6 eggs for the liquid mixture in addition to the other ingredients.
• For the peanut butter rendition mix 1/2 cup peanut butter into the wet ingredients and wisk it together until there are little peanut butter clumps in the mix.
• I added 1 cup of chopped cookies per loaf pan.
• Don’t forget to add the chocolate chips right before serving.

You can find the recipe for Celestial Chocolate Chunk Bread Pudding here.

If you are even close to Venice California stop by Schulzies and try some of Sarah’s bread pudding and tell her there is a lady in Washington she doesn’t even know that is a big fan of hers!   I want to try the Cookies N Cream Dream, the Eggnog Experience and the Gracious Grasshoper Cookie!  I’m really curious about the Biggie’s Figgie Pudding too.

I am not being compensated to endorse Schulzies or any other entity.  I am just giving credit where it is due and sharing with you something that I cannot yet try.  My knockoff doesn’t cut it.

Is there something you’ve seen lately that you wish you could recreate just to see what it might taste like?

Raisin Bread for Raisin Bread Month

(Don’t run away if you hate raisins there are alternative options in this post…)

I have a treat in store for you if you like bread!  I know I’ve been on a peanut butter kick lately since November is Peanut Butter Lovers Month, but it’s also National Raisin Bread Month.

I dislike raisins and we usually have an understanding.  If they don’t hurt me I won’t hurt them.  We live in harmony with one pretending the other does not exist.

Raisins belong underfoot and should be squished as they are easily mistaken for something that should be stepped on.

One way to get me to consume raisins is to soak them in Grand Marnier.   Aaaaaand down the ‘ole hatch they go!

My friend Lucy and I both love to cook.  And bake.  And cook some more while we bake.  We’ve made pasta, cookies and we’ve even made bread together.  Yes, bread.

She had some acorn squash lieing around and since I had my flour supply (I travel with basic baking ingredients just in case) so we went ahead and came up with our own bread recipe.

This acorn squash bread is moist and delicious with a slight resemblance to a brioche and you can’t even taste the squash but it does make a difference.

The alteration that I made to the Acorn Squash Bread is simple and although Lucy was not with me when I did it, she totally inspired it.  In honor of National Raisin Bread Month [eek] I soaked 1 cup of golden raisins in Grand Marnier.  After bringing the Grand Marnier to a boil on the stove top I let the raisins marinate and reconstitute a bit before adding it to the spices and bread dough.

I hope you enjoy our recipe for Acorn Squash Bread and Raisin Bread!  Acorn squash is now my most recent obsession as I roasted eight of them last week and I have 6 in queue for this week.  I even substituted pumpkin when I made Kita’s Gingersnap Spiced Mini-Pumpkin Pies for Thanksgiving and it tasted incredible! (I didn’t get photos but this recipe is absolutely delicious and you MUST at least go take a peek!)

Tip on Kneading Bread:

Knead your dough in a large bowl instead of on your counter.   No scrubbing the counter and your dough is portable so you can move it to different surfaces to get the best leverage for your height so you don’t tire as easily.

Before I share our recipe I want to thank Lucy for being such an inspiration in the kitchen as well as in other parts of my life.  This would not have been successful without you.

Acorn Squash Bread

Created by Lucy & Dionne

Pre-bread sponge

1/2 tsp. yeast

1/2 cup flour

1/4 cup + water

Combine to make a thick batter and set aside for at least 30 minutes.  You will need half of this pre-bread sponge per loaf that you make.  For easier kneading, the following directions are for one loaf of bread.

Ingredients

1/2 pre-bread sponge

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup room temp water

1/2 stick butter cold, cut into pieces

1 tsp. active dry yeast

1 tsp. salt, recommend Alaea Hawaiian sea salt

3 tbsp. honey

4 cups flour

1/2 cup roasted, pureed acorn squash

In large mixing bowl add the 1/2 pre-bread starter, beaten eggs, water, yeast, salt and honey.  Mix together and let it sit for at least 20 minutes until the yeast looks dissolved and a little foamy.  Add butter and squash.  Mix together to combine ingredients, but it doesn’t have to be completely mixed.  Just give it a few good stirs.  Now add flour.  Combine all ingredients with a spoon until it appears as combined as it will get on its own.

Now it’s time to get dirty.  With washed, thoroughly rinsed and dry hands dig in and reach under the dough turning to be sure there are no puddles of wet or clumps of dry ingredients hiding.

Begin to knead the dough inside the bowl by taking dough from one side and folding it onto itself.  It will break apart, it’s ok.  Fold dough into itself and press with the heel of your hand.  If you need to adjust the height of your bowl, place it on a sturdy surface that is the correct height for your bowl.  Perhaps try sitting and putting it in your lap.

When dough is together in a ball, knead for about 10 minutes.  Dough should be fairly wet and feel sticky, but not leave any dough on the bowl or your hands.  Add small amounts of flour if pieces are sticking to your hands or the bowl and continue to knead.

If you had way to much fun kneading to stop now, finish this loaf and begin another with the other half of pre-bread starter.

Once you have finished kneading the dough, place in a lightly oiled bowl and cover.  Let it rise in a warm place for 2-3 hours.  Then gently de- gas the dough and form into a ball pulling the sides of the dough underneath.  Let it rest for 15 minutes.  Now shape dough into a rectangle with your hands or using a rolling pin.  Roll dough up like a long cinnamon roll, pinching the ends and tucking them under the loaf.  Don’t stress perfection, just get it done.  Place in a lightly buttered or greased loaf pan and allow it to rise until nearly doubled.

Bake at 400 degrees for about 45 minutes until top is a nice rich brown color and when you tap on the bread it makes a hollow sound.  Brush with cold milk while still hot.

Bread Tip:  Brushing cold milk on a hot loaf will soften the outer crust.

Raisin Bread

Make dough for Acorn Squash Bread dough.  After dough has just formed add 1 tsp. ground ginger, 1 tsp. ground cinnamon, 1 cup of golden raisins reconstituted in Grand Marnier or water, draining excess liquid before adding to dough.

Add flour in small amounts such as 1/2-1 tbsp. at a time if dough is too wet.  Knead to combine until dough is wet but does not pull off and stick to the bowl.

Follow directions for baking Acorn Squash Bread.

Ever since I tried kneading my dough in the mixing bowl, I found out I love it even more than using my electric mixer!  I can get dirty and not get in trouble and I can really feel the dough.

I have made bread at least once a day every day since I started that new method for kneading.

Give it a try and see if it motivates you to make bread by hand!  Remember you can always email me at yourstrulyewalani at gmail dot com if you need a pep talk.

P. S. – Please don’t send me spam or I’ll be very disappointed.  After all, not all Hawaiians like spam!

Are there any cooking or baking tips that have made it more pleasurable for you to execute your favorite recipes?

Turkey Cake – I’ll tell mine if you tell yours?

So how WAS your Thanksgiving??  Do you have dishes that you serve year after year, or do you just wing it?  I hope you had a good time with whomever you celebrated with.

I have a retail/ food industry family for the most part so we never have a complete family Thanksgiving on the actual holiday, but I am so happy that those who could make it came to MY house! 

I got the kiddos involved and they needed a little prodding to make a choice, but they each decided what they wanted to make for Thanksgiving.

Ethan made chocolate mousse.  I’m sure it had nothing to do with the love he has for chocolate.  (He’s just like his daddy! )

He has so much to learn, but he LOVES to cook.  He shows a great interest in food and learning about all the different ways to prepare it.

Taylor decided to make her own cranberry sauce.  Last year we made Kim’s Grand Marnier Cranberry Sauce, which I highly recommend, but Taylor was set on making her own.  She did an excellent job!  Laced with orange, rosemary and thyme it was a perfect addition to our plates!

I made homemade gingersnaps for Kita’s Spiced Mini Pumpkin Pies (not pictured) and oh boy was it good!  I highly recommend that recipe as well!  I did substitute the pumpkin for squash since that’s what I had on hand and it was delicious!

The bread was perfect.  Homemade artisan bread, country bread and custom homemade bread with herbs for the stuffing…

By now I might have you thinking that our dinner was perfect, timely and we burst into random song and choreographed dance.  If I let you think that, so many people would feel as if their family is “weird” for all the things that happen to “normal” families on holidays.

The turkey finished three hours ahead of schedule, the potatoes were cold, the green bean casserole was WATERY and very un-flavorful, the stove caught fire and two smoke alarms went off.

In the midst of grabbing handfuls of my precious flour, which I am almost out of at this point, and trying to help my other half put out the fire I walked down the hall to check on the smoke alarms and I see Ethan fanning the smoke detector in the closest bedroom and Andy fanning the smoke alarm in the hallway.  Behind Andy is Taylor yelling to the guys that they aren’t doing it right or the noise would stop…

Mom is sitting down with a cup of tea asking if everything is ok, my dad is sitting in my desk chair asking me if I have a minute because he wants to show me the pictures on his memory card.

Dinner was nearly three hours late and the gravy was watery…but flavorful!

[SIGH!]

Although my friends and family come to me for recipes, cooking tips, baking advice, yadda,yadda…we have Thanksgivings like this.  And do you know what?  I’d do it again.

The part that mattered is that we were together to share in the mayhem.  It isn’t about food so beautiful it should be in a magazine, and that’s such a relief because there was none of that going on!  No fine china, in fact I didn’t even have a chance to put down the tablecloth hahaha.

My kitchen still has a sinkful of dishes from the other night too.  We must have a lot of dishes because I keep going to the cupboards and there is plenny in there!

With what leftovers you can salvage, you might want to try and make something unordinary with them.  You know, to match Thanksgiving!

This Turkey Cake is going to be a yearly tradition, I think.  Last year I made it and I even blogged about it but I wanted to re-share it because I did make it again.  It’s part of tradition now!

By now my family is used to me and my love for things that are…different.

Layers of turkey and stuffing make the “cake” layers, while the mashed potatoes act as the frosting.  Spread the cranberry sauce atop this beaut and you have yourself a turkey cake!  I adapted the recipe to fit our food preferences.

In the photos above is my rendition of this recipe for turkey cake.  Have you ever made this before?

By the way, our gravy thickened up in the fridge overnight and reheated it was the perfect taste and consistency.  I couldn’t help but laugh as I poured some on my cake!  How ironic, it’s never thick enough the first time.  Even though all through the year every other gravy is perfection there is something about a holiday dinner that inspires those little imperfections.

I am thankful that I have the spirit to focus on my love for my family and not making everything look and taste perfect.  My family is what matters.  Screw perfection.  I flaunt imperfection.  I just wish I were able to show you pics of all the mayhem.

What one thing stood out in your mind this Thanksgiving?

Do you have a dedicated video recorder person who has the responsibility of making sure they capture holiday events?

 

 

 

Peanut Butter Cup Blondies for Peanut Butter Lovers!

I bet you thought I was kidding when I told you how much I love that sticky, gooey beautiful thing we call peanut butter!  I have had the best time trying new peanut butter recipes and celebrating the old familiar ones.  Peanut butter and jelly sandwich is my favorite sandwich, by the way.

I found these Peanut Butter Cup Blondies on a blog called Gingerbread Bagels.  Lindsey is sweet, funny and quite an impressive baker!  She loves sharing her recipes with her readers  (myself included) and I have had this one tucked away for awhile.

Every blog post that Taylor sees ends with, “Mom, do we have the ingredients to make that?”  I think it’s obvious by now that we are not a pioneers at making new recipes and showering our talents with the world.  We are recipe testers!  And I love every tasty-morsel-mouthwatering minute of it!

We didn’t trick-or-treat on our own neighborhood so I didn’t stock up on candy as much as most people did.  I happened to buy one bag of peanut butter cups.  What a shame- I had to find something to do with them!  We didn’t have one single trick-or-treater.   So I had to be a martyr and find a delicious use for my favorite candy.  The fact that it’s Peanut Butter Lover’s Month is merely a bonus.

I did actually go straight to Lindsey’s blog and see what she had.  I knew I wouldn’t be disappointed.

These blondies are so meltable, moist sweet and perfect.  Soft and chewy, these blondies are sweet and the peanut butter cups give it just the right peanut butter flavor.  They are so good I ended up taking more pics than I originally intended!

Now marvel at my self control when I tell you that I only ate one blondie.  Just one.  I didn’t lick the spatula, I didn’t bite one of the peanut butter cups and I didn’t even bite them as they came out of the oven.  I’m even impressed at my own willpower!  What’s happening to me?!?

Please stop lusting after my blondies for a moment while we continue our discussion about getting yourself “out there” with your blog or business.

If you remember my previous post, I shared a video (although I’m not in it) it was inspiring and an eye-opener for sure!  I have been writing, taking notes and thinking about the message that I am sending.  I want to send the right message and convey it effectively.  Do I expect to be the next big thing to take over the blogging world?  No!  In fact, I really hope not!  I’m not the kind of person that enjoys being the center of attention…another fact about me.

Am I trying to be the next hot featured entrepreneur that is known for her real estate investing skills?  Or even a household name that represents hunger solving super powers?  No.  Believe me I don’t want that kind of attention.

I do want to be known for my hospitality associated with cooking and baking, which also transfers into my business efforts.  I want my hospitality and caring attitude to be very obvious the second someone shakes my hand and makes eye contact with me.

I am a person to be trusted to solve problems even if I am not the one wearing the cape and being the hero.

All of these things can be shown using those simple concepts.  If you didn’t have the pleasure of reading my last post yet, here is the video for your viewing pleasure:

Next week let’s swap ideas and see what you’ve come up with since my last post.

Meanwhile, I want to wish you a very Happy Thanksgiving!  I hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving with people you truly want to spend time with.  I’m going to get sappy for a second and tell you that I am so thankful that you took time out of your day to read my blog.  I appreciate you and all the friends I have made since I started blogging.

I am endlessly thankful that both of my parents are healthy and with us to celebrate Thanksgiving.  Although we won’t all be together on the actual day, I love my family more than I love cinnamon rolls.  Way more.

Please don’t forget to stop by and say hello to Lindsey over at Gingerbread Bagels!  You can find her recipe for Peanut Butter Cup Blondies here.

What is your favorite peanut butter recipe?