Strawberries and The Cow Train

Today was a good day.  Well, except for the OKC Thunder not winning.  But other than that, we had fun!

We got up this morning, got ready and headed to Sauvie Island, just outside of Portland, Oregon.  We went to a u-pick farm called The Pumpkin Patch where we picked a lot, a lot, a lot of strawberries.  The berries were small, but really sweet. 

Here's some of our picking crew hard at work.

I believe there were many consumed berries during this process.  I told the lady that she should charge us for an extra pint, but she said that tasting goes with the territory.  At least I did try to pay for 'em! 

We ended up with a beautiful box of strawberries.  Yep, we got some skills at strawberry selection!!

After we picked to our hearts' content, one last thing was on the docket for The Pumpkin Patch visit:  A ride on the Cow Train.  And since it is Father's Day, Bryan got to ride for free!  Lucky, lucky him!

I have to admit that just watching this Cow Train zipping around in the parking lot and then off through the pasture was FUNNY!  

After we left The Pumpkin Patch, we stopped off a a little lavender field.  It was very pretty even though the lavender wasn't ready to be cut yet.  Apparently you have to wait until the bees arrive, and that's how you know it's really ready. There were no bees yet.  It still smelled good.  Talon sneezed and I had an itchy nose by the time we left.  But it was worth the view and the fragrance.

At the end of the day, we came home and Bryan and Cappi turned into yard working monsters!  I was so impressed and so thankful for what they did.  Cappi is fearless with the weedeater, and she got down to business.  Bryan worked on an area of the yard where there were some railroad ties that needed to be pulled up and dealt with and an accidental compost pile that needed to be removed.  Then Wyler jumped in and helped remove some rose bushes that I was so glad to see go.  Really, I am very appreciative for their doing all of the work they did. 

Afterwards, I had a couple of friends come over for a cookout.  Burgers and dogs as well as baked beans, zucchini casserole, and potato salad.  The squash casserole was a recipe of Cappi's and it was absolutely delicious.  I do love squash!

For dessert, we had strawberries and ice cream.  It was SOOOOOOOOOO good.

Lyn brought some interesting ice creams and cones from Salt & Straw, a specialty ice cream place that has become very popular in Portland.  They have a variety of unusual flavors like Sea Salt Ice Cream with Caramel Ripple and Honey Balsamic Strawberry with Cracked Pepper.  Everyone tasted, but with the strawberries, we all ended up having vanilla.  Chaini really liked the Sea Salt & Caramel one, just for the record. 

After dessert, we all sat outside and enjoyed the cool evening air.  It was a breezy 63 degrees and everyone thought it was freezing.  I loved it.  We sat outside and talked about good movies (Lyn is making a "must watch" list) and other fun things. 

The girls played catch with the dogs to the point of exhaustion.  A tired dog is a happy dog, right? 

Speaking of tired, it's time for me to turn the lights out.  I'm t-i-r-e-d.  Tomorrow was supposed to be the zoo, but the weather forecast changed a bit, so if it rains we may have to make some adjustments to the plans. 

Good night.
Over and out.
Austa la pasta.

Colemans, Colemans Everywhere...

Well, as spoken so spot-on by the girl in the movie Poltergeist, I, too, can say, "They're heeeere!"

The Mob arrived this evening and I have laughed a lot already. When I say a lot, I mean a whole, whole lot. My brother is just pure comedy, and it is true that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree - his kiddos are just as comedic. And Cappi fits right in, which makes sense since she is part of the tree system.

So, Bender and I picked them up from the airport - luggage ad all fit nicely into our borrowed mode of transportation (thank you, Lyn! I hope you're geared up for that group hug!) without us having to strap anyone or anything to the top of the vehicle. I made in advance of their arrival a huge mess of tacos - ground beef and chicken, soft shell and crunchy. I am all about offering choices! And I was glad to hear that they were all feeling hungry!!  I love feeding people! 

As you can see, I got the thumb's up from Talon and a lovely food-check from Bryan.  Typical.

I also made a banana nut chocolate chip bundt cake for dessert. I did something with the cake that I know better than to do, which was to add extra banana to it. Uhg! It tasted good, but was just too moist. I know better, and yet I did it anyway.

So, after dinner, they decided they wanted to watch some ghost story show on tv. As things progressed, I look over to a big empty couch, and then turned to the tiny love seat and see this (excuse the bad picture quality, but you get the idea):

At which point Bryan said, "I think maybe it's time to turn the channel."

And, yes, I'm sure we'll see several amazingly great facial expressions by my dear brother over the course of this visit. 

Tomorrow we will be visiting a u-pick farm on Sauvie Island to gather some fresh strawberries. Then in the afternoon we will be back home to have a cookout, which seems an appropriate way to spend Father's Day.

And even though I already sent a very sentimental card to my Padre, I still want to wish him a very happy and relaxing Father's Day tomorrow. Anticipating that you just might end up out at the lake, Dad, I offer this toast to you:

Here's to cold beer, fried catfish and taters, retirement before another record-breaking summer, being a lake bum just because you can be, and being an awesome and amazing Tree to a couple of silly and appreciative Apples. 

Happy Father's Day!

With that, I am off to bed. I have a feeling tomorrow will be an early morning wake up since I'm dealing with a Mob that is still functioning on Oklahoma time.  I'm just hoping for a quiet night now that I've heard the stories of sleep walking and sleep talking and flowers getting planted in the cracks of butts.  It could get interesting around this place, needless to say!   

Over and out...

For the Love of Peanut Butter and Basketball

June 12, 2012:  National Peanut Butter Cookie Day

Yay for us!!!!  

And... Thunder Up!, too, while you're at it! Whoot whoot!

I don't know about you, but I think June 12, 2012 should be declared a National Holiday so that everyone can sit at home and make and eat peanut butter cookies all the day long and watch the OKC Thunder play some ball against the Miami Heat.  Oh, what a glorious day that would be.  Especially since Peanut Butter Cookie Day and the kick off of the OKC Thunder playing in the NBC Finals are on the same day.  Coincidence?  I think not.  Good omen?  Oh, yeah. 

Well, since an office closure to celebrate cookies and basketball aren't going to happen in my reality, I am making varieties of peanut butter cookies today for different reasons. Oh, before we get too far into things, here is what a busy baking kitchen looks like.  (Yes, those are increasingly ripening bananas!  I'm waiting for them to get just a little bit darker and then, Bam!, Banana Nut Bread!)  And, yes, my kitchen is as small as it looks, but I love, love, love it. 

I get sidetracked...

First, reason number one is that I was (happily!) assigned the peanut butter cookie baker for work to celebrate the special day.  Easy, peasy and makes me happy!

For the second reason, there's a story you'll have to sit through.  I'll make it brief.  Basically, it goes like this...  My father-in-law came up to visit overnight on his way through town a couple of days ago.  To help me out, Tommy decided to mow the front yard (yay!).  We all opted to go out for dinner that night.  While we were gone, Gert, my F-I-L's little chihuahua, made a grand escape and managed to run about in the neighborhood.  We got home and there was no Gert to be found.  Talk about horrible.  So, amidst searching and walking the neighborhood, we received a call from my sister-in-law who lives 2 hours south saying Gert's vet had called and a guy in my neighborhood had Gert safe at his home.  Needless to say, there was much celebration and a few strong libations to be had.  The nice guy that found her and called the numbers on her tags has several children, and we think that's why Gert was willing to go to them (some other folks had tried to catch her when they saw her, but she ran from them, we think because they were adults).  So, guess what the Gert-rescuers will have delivered to their house today?  If you guessed flowers, you're wrong.  But, yes, a basketful of peanut butter cookies is in order for these kind folks!!!

Here's a picture of Tommy and Gert from a recent family gathering.  It was taken pre-field trip, but you can see how tiny and cute she is.  And princess-like. 

And there are lessons to be learned here!!  Don't underestimate the value of having some sort of identification on your pet, whatever it may be.  And always make sure that gates, doors and small escape routes are securely closed for the safety of your small furry friends.  ~WHEW!!~

So, the third reason I'm baking delicious morsels of peanut buttery goodness are to do a test shipment to my soldier that is stationed in Afghanistan.  I have a food vacuum thingy, so I'm going to vacuum seal some cookies and then wrap them as best as I can to protect them and ship 'em off.  I hope they get there safely and I hope she likes them.  Oh... you wonder why I called her "my" soldier?  Let me explain! 

I recently visited this website:  366 Random Acts of Kindness

This site has some great ideas and suggestions on how to just be nice(r) to our fellow peeps.  For instance, I stop off at a little drive through coffee shop occasionally on my way to work in the mornings.  They have a card that they stamp, and when it's full, I get a free drink.  Now, if there is someone behind me and I have a full card for a freebie, I ask the barista to use it to pay for their drink.  It doesn't cost me anything extra to do it, and it's an unexpected pleasantry for the person behind me.  Many of you may have thought of this nice trick on your own, but my brain just never went there without a little nudge.  I love the site, and I'm going to visit it again and again over time. 

Ok, so back on track here...  On the kindness site, one of the suggestions that really caught my attention was to adopt a U.S. soldier.  It's something that anyone can afford to do.  It just takes a small amount of your time.  Really, all they ask is that you send a letter or a card to your assigned soldier weekly or so.  You can, if you want, send more than that, but the letters from home are what they really want.  If you are so inclined to send a care package, the U.S. Postal Service makes it super easy to do with their flat rate boxes.  Since you're shipping to the military, it's considered to be within the U.S. and the flat rates still apply. 

And, contrary to popular lore about not sending chocolate over because it will melt, according to the site, soldiers say, "Send chocolate of any kind - we don't care if it melts or not!"  I have to say, I understand and agree with that train of thought!

Anyway, you can visit that site by clicking here:  http://adoptaussoldier.org/

Now, back to the cookie situation...  (and may I start with saying I am SO glad that I have milk in the fridge!!!)

Today, I'm baking a couple of different kinds of peanut butter cookies.  First, I'm making Giant Peanut Butter Cup Cookies which kids love because they're big and they've got cut up peanut butter cups on top.  This time, I made them slightly smaller to get more cookies out of the batch since I'm dividing the batches up to go different directions.  Here they are, all in one glorious pile! 

The second type of cookie I'll be making is a new recipe, Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies from the website of http://www.mybakingaddiction.com (recipe can be seen by clicking the link to the site).  The batter turned out very light.  The cookies have a very nice taste and texture (thank you, oats!).  I'd caution to avoid overcooking.  The original recipes says to bake for 12-14 minutes, but I found 9 minutes to be near perfect.  Otherwise, they were a little bit too crisp for my preference.  They turn out to be pretty little cookies, though! 

Lastly, I'm going to make some Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies.  These aren't really peanut butter cookies, so sue me.  I'm gonna roll with it.  :)  They're one of my favorites, and it's what I want to make, and I'm willing to risk it that no one boycotts them.  I don't think I know any "Peanut Butter Cookie Day" purists... yet.  And, I'm thinking that the chocolate cookie might be a good non-melting (even though it doesn't matter) way to get chocolate to my soldier.  We're gonna give it a try!  These cookies don't look so pretty, but they taste so good that it'll knock yer lips right offa yer face! 

Here's a plate that shows the fruits of my labor today.

And what my kitchen looks like right this minute, closely resembling a small cookie factory.

It's a beautiful, sunny day here in the Pacific Northwest.  The animals are sunbathing in much the same fashion as turtles on a log.  Bender comes into the house periodically to see if I am making anything that he would be interested in before trotting back outside.  It's back to work tomorrow, but I got some much needed rest this weekend, so I think I am ready to face another Monday. 

Have a good week, y'all, and don't forget:  Gooooo Thunder!!! 

"With the right combination of passion, fearlessness and butter, anything is possible."- Julia Child

Dutch Dutch Baby

I gotta tell ya, this has been one of the busiest weekends ever!  Yesterday was a beautiful sunny day in the Pacific Northwest, lending itself to doing yard work and planting my little bitty garden.  I am becoming an ace at mowing the yard, but I remain afraid of the weed eater.  I just have an aversion to it and the possibilities of losing a small or large limb by way of a super speedy whirring string. 

So now there are two things on my "Things That Terrify Me" list:  Weed eaters and grasshoppers.

The weekend started out with me trying a brand new recipe for a Dutch Baby.  I've never made them before, but I had bought a cast iron skillet and wanted to christen it in a very dramatic manner.  I'm not really sure how dramatic a Dutch Baby is, but I gave it my best shot.  Here's how it ended up looking:

Now, I have to say right off, it didn't turn out perfect.  I should have baked it a little longer and let it get a bit more brown.  But the flavors were there for me and I don't think I'd make many changes to the recipe other than altering the baking time.  There are probably better recipes out there, but this one suited my taste buds just fine. 

A Dutch Baby, for those that may want an explanation, is a type of pancake that fluffs up, and then settles back down and flattens a bit as it cools.  The recipe below is a combination of a couple of different sites' recipes, but particularly from about.com and sacredpregnancy.com. 

The recipe:

3 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup flour
1 tsp vanilla
2 Tbsp butter

The blueberry topping:
1 cup of fresh or frozen blueberries
1/3 cup water
scant 1/4 cup sugar
1-2 tsp cornstarch

lemon zest and juice
powdered sugar


Preheat oven to 475.  Place 10" iron skillet in the oven and let the iron skillet heat.  Meanwhile, in a mixer, whip the eggs and milk until airy and bubbly; add vanilla and combine.  Slowly add flour and mix well.

Place the 2 Tbsp of butter into the hot skillet; return to the oven and allow butter to melt.  Once melted, remove the pan, decrease the oven temperature to 425.  Roll the pan to allow the butter to coat the bottom and then pour in the cake batter.  Place in the 425 oven and cook for about 15 - 20 minutes until golden brown. 

While the Dutch Baby is baking, if you want to make a blueberry sauce, you can.  You should know that it is traditional and very tasty to simply add a pat of butter, sprinkle with powdered sugar and lemon juice and eat it like that. 

If you want the blueberry sauce, place blueberries, water and sugar into a sauce pan over medium heat, stirring occasionally.  Once the berries break down just slightly and the juices are a deep purple, add in the cornstarch, stirring well to combine.  After about 4-5 minutes, the cornstarch will thicken the sauce.  Set aside until the Dutch Baby is done.

After enjoying this lovely breakfast, I proceeded to go buy starter plants and get my itty bitty garden going.  It was bothering me that I was missing out on so many sunshiny opportunities that are the essence of good plant growth!  This year I stuck with just five plants.  Two tomato plants, two zucchini plants and one straight-neck yellow squash plant.  Last year I squeezed nine plants into the space I have and it was just way too crowded! 

And I suppose, in a sad way, this picture is testament to my fear of the weed eater.  Uhg. 

Finally, after planting the itty bitty garden and mowing the yard, Bender had a pool party, much to his delight.  And then today, I spent some time making him some very special treats that he l-o-v-e-s.  First, I bought a small container of chicken livers.  I boiled them in water for about 10 minutes, then removed them from the water and chopped them into little bite-sized pieces.  I then lined a baking dish with foil, placed the liver bits on the foil and baked them at 325 for about 2 hours, stirring about every 45 minutes or so.  After the baking time is done, I turned the oven heat off and let the livers sit in the oven while it cooled.  Super easy. 

 You can, if you want, toss the boiled bits in a tiny amount of garlic powder before baking them, but I didn't have garlic powder, so I skipped that step.

And while I wouldn't say it was something that appealed a great deal to my own sense of smell, the dog and both cats were all three in the kitchen with me during the boiling process.  They were definitely interested!
You can store the livers in an air tight container for up to two weeks or in the freezer for up to six months. 

After the cooking process, they get quite dark and take on a more chewy texture. 

And just so you know, I got this recipe from a book I bought at the Doggie Dash (fundraiser for the Oregon Humane Society).  The book is called "Feed Your Best Friend Better" and it was written by Rick Woodford.  Rick had a booth there, and besides having some excellent recipes and tips in his book (such as some healthier kong-stuffer alternatives besides straight up peanut butter!), he was a very friendly and pleasant fella who seemed to have a true passion about dogs and their health.  I'm looking forward to trying some of his other recipes out as time allows me.  His website can be found here:  The Dog Food Dude.  I hope you'll check it out.  I feel like my little tid bit about the liver snacks didn't do him and his book justice, so really, go take a look, okay? 

And, speaking of the Doggie Dash, how can I end my weekend without sharing the most embarrassingly funny picture ever?  Seriously, just when you think you're pretty hot stuff, leave it up to your best buddy to bring you back down to earth with a little jolt of "keeping it real." 

Yeah.  I'll let you figure out which one is mine. 


Until next time, folks...

"With the right combination of passion, fearlessness and butter, anything is possible."- Julia Child

Banana Nut Bread and White Lilacs

For today's fun, I'm making Banana Nut Bread. Before you let yourself believe that it is boring (maybe even more boring than granola - see below for reference), I really must tell you that every time that I make this bread, someone comments and tells me it is the best banana nut bread they've every had. And if you happen to go to the link to get this fabulous recipe to try, you'll see by the comments under my recipe that for several people, it is now a favorite in their homes. 

And, yes, I ate that piece with the butter on it immediately after taking this picture. 

And my house smells divine. 

I used my brand new Stoneware mini-loaf pan.  I've never had or used Stoneware or any other Pampered Chef product, so I was skeptical and worried about making my trusty recipe with my beloved over-ripened bananas that I've been saving to use just for today.  The loaves turned out beautifully.  They are pretty and delicate, and they came right out with no sticking issues whatsoever.  I'm sold!!! 

Seriously, I'm totally sold.  The Stoneware is so... dry?, and it's hard to believe it's not going to hold onto the bread and never let it go.  But it does.  And not only does it do so, but it does so with zero fuss. 

And, no, I don't sell it.  I am just pleasantly surprised at how much I really like it!  SCORE!

I do believe that Spring is here!  I mowed the yard last weekend, and it already needs to be mowed again.  That's a sure sign, right?  This is the bloom that is on one of the trees in my back yard.  It's a really pretty white lilac. 

Mr. Bender continues to be on the mend.  He seems to be doing good and is mostly recovered.  His hind legs still aren't holding up to his previous activity as a result of his back still being weak, but otherwise, things are good.  Thank you to everyone who has asked about him.  He's pretty important to me, no doubt!

At his "school" called No Bonz About It, they often have pool parties once the weather improves.  Because of Bender's activity restrictions, one of his super kind teachers (Teri Lea, you know who you are!!!) gave Bender a private pool party so that he wouldn't feel left out and sent me a picture (see below).  He *loves* his pool parties. 

Last weekend, another new recipe I tried was making homemade granola.  One of my co-workers informed me that making your own granola is really quite boring.  I suspect that she's made many batches herself and there's just not much mystery left in it for her.  Regardless, I was very pleased with how it smelled and tasted after I tried my rookie hand at it!  I searched online and ended up combining several different recipes to get one that I thought sounded good.  Here we go...

Traci's Granola:

4 cups oats
2 cups finely chopped nuts (pecans, walnuts, almonds or a mix of all three)
3/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut
1/4 brown sugar
1/4 c maple syrup
1/4 cup honey
1/2 c veg oil
1 tsp vanilla
1 heaping tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 c raisins or other dried fruit

Preheat your oven 325. Line two baking pans with foil. 

Combine oats nuts and coconut.

In a pan, combine salt, sugar, syrup, honey, oil and cinnamon.  Bring to boil.  Turn off heat. Add vanilla. 

Pour over dry ingredients and stir to coat. Spread evenly over baking sheets.

Bake until crispy and toasted, about 1 hour, stirring every 15-20 minutes to ensure even baking.  Let cool completely.  Stir in dried fruit (I used golden raisin, cranberries and blueberries). 

Store in air tight container.

Easy, easy.  It's a little high-maintenance to make, just because you do need to stir it often in the oven so that it toasts evenly, but it makes a sizable batch (about 10-12 cups total). 

Alright!  On that note, I am out of here!  There is work to be done!

"With the right combination of passion, fearlessness and butter, anything is possible."- Julia Child

"Keep the Kitchen Cool" No-Bake Cookies and Refreshing Iced Tea

I feel like I have been out of pocket for a long time!  Needless to say (but I'll say it anyway), things have been quite busy.  A couple of weeks ago, Mr. Dog (aka Bender) (aka Mr. Naughty) injured his back.  I still don't know how he did it, but it turned me into an instant worrying wreck.  He hurt it pretty bad, and he is still recovering.  Tomorrow will be three weeks since the injury occurred.  Upon taking him to the vet, I was promptly told to put him on bed rest.  That, in and of itself, is a challenge with a high energy dog.  No jumping, running, fetching, stairs, etc, etc.  The night I returned from the vet (around 11:00 p.m.), my immediate concern once I gave Bender his medicines was sleep arrangements.  Bender sleeps where I sleep.  Suffice it to say that I could have dragged out the ol' kennel and shoved him into that, but I didn't know if he'd be able to get comfortable in the confined area.  And in retrospect, I'm glad I didn't do that because he tossed, turned, and was up and down a lot trying to situate himself in a comfortable position for much of the first night.  Anyway, I ended up dragging the mattress off of the spare bed into the middle of the living room (and, oh, how unruly a mattress can be for one person to move by themselves!!) for Bender, the two cats and me to sleep on.  Really, I did it for me to sleep on, but it is what it is.  I'm pretty sure the cats both think I did it solely for their comfort. 

I call it the slumber party mattress. 

I should say, though, that Bender is doing much better and seems to have mostly normal days mixed in with a little bit of stiffness and soreness.  We're still taking things easy on the activity level, despite his protests and frequent requests to play fetch.

 

This morning in the Portland, Oregon/Vancouver, Washington areas, it is beautiful weather.  It is currently 65 degrees and sunny with a high to reach around 81 degrees.  I swear to you that I can see the backyard grass growing by the hour.  I've left the back door open and the animals run in and out at will, alternating backyard exploration and sunbathing with naps on the slumber party mattress. 

After flipping through several mouth-watering pins late last night, I could not wait to get up this morning and try a new brew, Orange-Earl Grey Iced Tea.  It'll go perfect with the approaching summer-like weather! 

Now, there are some things you should know about me.  First, I *love* iced tea.  I can drink it all day every day and never wish for anything more.  I think I inherited that trait from a certain someone or two.  Secondly, I really enjoy different flavors of teas with citrus flavors being at the top of the list.  Orange Spice, Lemon Zinger... I happily take teas that seem to be geared more for drinking them hot and turn them into ice cold refreshments.  And, lastly, Earl Grey is one of my favorite teas ever.  I can literally remember the very first time I ever drank Earl Grey tea many, many years ago and my reaction to it.  So, what I am trying to say is that this Orange-Earl Grey Iced Tea seemed right up my alley. 

Slurp. 

So, here's how you make it.

You'll need:
4 cups water
8-12 bags Earl Grey tea
1/2 - 3/4 cup of orange juice
Peel from 1 orange
Sugar or sugar substitute
4 cups cold water

First, cut two oranges in half and juice all of the halves.  You should end up with about 1/2 cup of freshly squeezed orange juice.  Keep two of the halves and discard the other two. 

 In a medium pan, bring 4 cups of water to a boil.  Once the water is boiling, turn off the heat and add 8-12 bags of Earl Grey tea, depending on how strong you like your tea.  I used 8.  The original recipe called for 12.  Additionally, drop in two halves of the juiced orange shells/skins.  Cover and let steep for about 10-15 minutes.

After steeping, pour into a pitcher through a strainer and then pour in the orange juice through the strainer.  I do prefer my tea to be pulp-free.
 

Sweeten to your taste using sugar or sugar substitute.  Stir until dissolved.  Then add in 4 cups of cold water.  Stir and chill in the fridge for about 2 hours. 

Now, me, I didn't do the chill part.  I made it and drank it.  I can't really help it; it's just how I am.  And it's good.  The orange flavor is just right, not overbearing, just a hint of the citrus.  The original recipe (which by the way is from eatingwell.com) called for 3/4 cup of OJ, but I stuck with the 1/2 cup and am quite content with that. 

So, whilst I sip, onto the next project...

At work tomorrow, we are having a bake sale to continue to raise money for the March of Dimes.  The walk is coming up soon and we have several employees who are participating in it.  There are a handful of people that signed up to bring in goodies and have them packaged so that people can buy things for $1 each.  I've got plans for additional items, but I started off with a new recipe that I grabbed from foodnetwork.com (click here to see original recipe) for Chocolate-Peanut Butter No Bake Cookies.  I've never made no-bake cookies before.  What can I say?  I am, after all, a baker. 

This is what we end up with:

For this super easy recipe, you'll need:

• 2 cups of sugar
• 4 Tbsp of cocoa powder
• 1 stick of butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3 cups of quick cook oats
• waxed paper

First, in a large sauce pan, combine sugar, cocoa, butter and milk.  Heat to a slow boil, stirring constantly. 

Boil for 1 minute to make sure sugar is well dissolved, then turn off heat.  Add peanut butter and vanilla; stir until combined.  Stir in the oats. 

Drop by spoonfuls onto waxed paper and let cool completely until cookies are set and hardened.

Presto, you're done and off to sip more tea while the cookies set up! 

Well, I think that's enough for this entry.  I hope that you give the tea a try if you're in the mood for something a little different! 

Enjoy!!

"With the right combination of passion, fearlessness and butter, anything is possible."- Julia Child

April Showers... do we have to?

The last day of March is here and on its way to being over, and the old saying "April showers bring May flowers" comes to mind.  Now, if I'm understanding correctly, we're breaking some records for rainfall this year.  I know that The Oregonian reported today that the 1957 record for rainfall in the month of March has officially been broken.  We've had 7.73 inches of rain this month.  I don't know where we sit in terms of rainfall for the year, but it sure feels like we are well "ahead of schedule" if there is such a thing.  So, yep, the thought of more showers in April is just kind of bleak feeling.  Especially when I talk to a friend down in Texas who is sitting poolside in sunny 84 degree weather and we are 44 degrees and rainy.  I'll just remind myself of this feeling on injustice when it's mid-summer and they're dealing with triple digit heat and I'm sitting in my backyard enjoying the sunny 88 degree weather.  Right?  Right.

Yesterday, I went and saw the oh-so-popular movie, The Hunger Games.  I've read all three books, and I really enjoyed the movie and thought it was pretty true to the book version.  I like it when they stick to the written story to the extent that they can.  I also finished reading The Diary of a Young Girl (The Diary of Anne Frank) this weekend.  It was interesting timing, as some of the beginning shots of The Hunger Games felt reminiscent of old footage you could see on The History Channel of WWII.  In my opinion, there's an obvious story to The Hunger Games and there's a more thoughtful, though-provoking story to it as well. 

I did take advantage of my open day to do a bit of baking, which helps me clear my mind and is very relaxing for me.  I started with another Dump Cake (see previous post).  This time I used diced strawberries in the bottom layer and blueberry pie filling as the middle layer.  I have not tasted it because I'm thinking to donate it, but I'm dying to know how the flavors work!  And, I've also been told by my Mom that she and my Aunt and my Grandma have all been making Dump Cakes for-ev-er.  (Please be sure to place a big emphasis on "for-ev-er" to get the right feel for this.)  She couldn't believe I didn't remember.  I couldn't believe they've been holding out on sharing such an amazing recipe!  What else am I missing out on?  And, for what it's worth, my Dad doesn't remember Mom making these cakes, either!  Right, Dad?

Besides the Dump Cake, I also made my Lemonysnickety Blueberry Bundt Cake today.  It's going into the office with me tomorrow to celebrate April birthdays. 

These pictures are from last time I made it, because tonight I just dusted it with powdered sugar.  I feel a little bit like a cheat because this cake is super easy since it uses a cake mix and instant pudding mix.  I tend to like to make most of my stuff from scratch, but the shortcut of the mix definitely does not take away from the quality and the taste of this pretty cake. 

I hope you've had a wonderful March and I hope an even better April is in store for each of you. I'm signing off so I can get ready to start a new week and a new month bright and early in the morning!

Enjoy!!

"With the right combination of passion, fearlessness and butter, anything is possible."- Julia Child