Already Missing Summer...and My Niece

I know, it has been months. But let's move past that. School has officially taken over (once again!) but I vow to start blogging on a more regular basis.

And with school starting, I'm already beginning to miss summer. Badly. Very badly. You'd be in the same boat as me if this was your view for the entire month of July.


Feel my pain? Good. Slightly jealous? You and I. Above beach. Next summer.

And I'm missing my redheaded niece more than ever! Must get home. Must play with niece. Must make these cookies with her again.

Just the best cookie helpers out there!

Can't turn my back for two seconds...

Peanut Butter Blossoms
adapted from Jif

1/2 c. butter flavored shortening
1/2 c. creamy peanut butter (I add more, duh.)
1/2 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 c. sugar
1 large egg
2 tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 3/4 c. all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
Sugar (for rolling)
48 Hershey Kisses, unwrapped

Heat over to 375 degrees. Cream together shortening, peanut butter, brown sugar and sugar. Add egg, milk and vanilla. Beat well. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt. Add to creamed mixture. Beat on low speed until stiff dough forms. Roll into 1-inch balls. Roll in sugar. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Top each cookie, immediately, with unwrapped Kiss, pressing down firmly so that the cookie cracks around edge. Remove from cookie sheet. Eat immediately with tall glass of milk.

Hooray! for May

Many May things to Hooray! for...

Hooray for...

Hiking

Freshly gathered eggs

Winning

Zombies...in China

Awards...for things I cannot explain

Hammocks

Graduations and a darn, good-lookin' family, if I do say so, muhself ;)

Chocolate cake...in a cup...made in the microwave...in less than 5 minutes.

Yes. It does exist! And oh goodness, is it GOOD.

I am definitely in for it. Oy vey. Apologies to my teeth and my waist line. And your teeth and your waist line.







Now, people, this is where you add some nice, cold ice cream to this piping hot treasure of a treat.

I am not a real big fan of the cold stuff, so I reached for this...

Yep, I went there with the moo-moo juice.

Holy yum.

Moist, Rich, Fudgy, Chocolate Cake in a Cup
adapted from Instructables

4 tbsp. all-purpose flour
4 tbsp. sugar
2 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tbsp. milk
3 tbsp. oil
3 tbsp. chocolate chips (Or, whatev you find in your cupboard at the time! I used chocolate chips and peanut butter chips.)
splash of vanilla (totally forgot to add this, but it was still delish)
(The original recipe calls for eggs, BUT by omitting them, you get a fudgier cake.)

Combine all ingredients in a big coffee cup/mug. Place in microwave for 2 minutes and 30 seconds. Take out. DEVOUR.

April's Fool

It's April, folks. This excites and terrifies me at the same time. I get all excited thinking about summer, but then this feeling of dread creeps up when I start to think about all the stuff I need to get done in this month. And I start to hyperventilate, freak out and reach for the brown, paper bag. "And breath, 1,2,3..."

I can honestly say that April will own me, if not kill me. Ugh. Please, please, please, keep me (& my sanity) in your thoughts and prayers, as I tackle this monster of a month. Things will most likely be quiet around here for the next couple of weeks, but I'll try to post as much as I possibly can!

Here's a treat I made for a friend this past weekend. Let's talk Girl Scout cookies. My favorite is the peanut butter patty or "Tag-a-long" which I will forever call it. But the favorite of almost every person I know is the Thin Mint.


Mint and chocolate really ain't my thing. I really don't dig Peppermint Patties, those mints from the Olive Garden and I just don't get the hoopla over mint chocolate chip ice cream. Call me crazy, but whatev. However, when I saw a recipe for Thin Mint truffles, I knew I must experiment. Exactly like the Oreo truffles, but the Oreos are replaced with Thin Mints. And I knew I would have no trouble getting my friend to let me "borrow" a box of her coveted Thin Mints.

I totally used way too much cream cheese. Thankfully some elves came to my rescue.

Thin Mint Truffles
adapted by Confessions of a Cookbook Queen

1 pkg. Thin Mints (if you slacked off this year and did not support your local girl scouts, the Keebler Grasshopper cookies will do just fine, but shame on you! ;) )
1/2 block of cream cheese, softened (about 4 oz.)
White chocolate, milk chocolate or dark chocolate almond bark

Crush Thin Mints till very fine. You can do this by using a ziploc bag and rolling pin or food processor. (Or do what I did and put the cookies between two sheets of wax paper and just start rolling!) Once crushed, pour into large bowl and add cream cheese. Using your hands, incorporate the cream cheese into the cookie crumbs until the cream cheese is no longer visible.
Roll into balls, place on wax covered cookie sheets and chill for at least 30 minutes.
Melt chocolate as directed on package and then dip balls into chocolate, tap off extra and set aside on wax paper covered cookie sheet to dry. (You can decorate them with sprinkles before this step or extra chocolate after they have dried.)

Facebook, Facebook, Facebook

Story time...

I deactivated my Facebook account last week. Mainly because I needed a break from it and slightly because I watched "The Social Network" and it sucked and I was pissed. Sorry if you're a fan and don't let my opinion of it sway you, if you haven't seen it. It's just that it was about Facebook, FACEBOOK people. And though he's probably a swell guy in real life, Zuckerberg was not depicted in a positive light. I totally should have rented "Waiting for Superman" instead. Oh well, lesson learned.

Anyways, I have come to the realization that I cannot, for the life of me, remember life before having Facebook. I sit and ask myself, "What on earth did I do with my time? Did I really communicate with my friends in other ways? Such as text messages, phone calls, face to face convos?" (MIND-BLOWING)

What cracks me up about this whole Facebook deactivation is the numerous comments from friends...

"Are you not on Facebook anymore? What happened??"

"You're no longer my friend. What's the deal?"

"I miss you on Facebook." (As opposed to in real life???)

Friends, once again, let me reassure you, it's a temporary break. I will be back and in your Facebook lives shortly. I have to or no one else will read this thing!


Now here are some cookies which my cousin, word for word, described in a text as, "Allison, made some BOMB cookies." They are pretty bomb. Peanut butter, marshmallows, chocolate pudding. Oh yes.


Chocolate, Peanut Butter, Marshmallow Cookies
adapted from Picky Palate
makes about 3 dozen

2 sticks softened butter

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

4 oz box instant chocolate pudding mix

10 oz bag peanut butter chips

1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. In a stand or electric mixer, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla until well combined. Place flour, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl, mixing to combine. Slowly add to wet ingredients along with chocolate pudding mix, peanut butter chips and marshmallows. Mix until just combined. With a medium cookie scoop, place onto baking sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until cooked through. Let cool for 10 minutes on baking sheet before transferring.

And Now, Presenting the "Reason I Want to Drop Out of College..."

Apologies for my long absence. I have been ridiculously busy with so many things, I barely have time to eat. True story.

But have no fear, I have been baking and multiple posts will be headed your way. Let's begin with a celebration of celebrations I attended this weekend. One of my best friends turned the big 2-1 on Saturday. Can I get a, "Happy freakin' Birthday, Carissa!?!?" It was a fun-filled night, of good responsible, clean, innocent fun. ;)I'm so happy we can now all go out together and not have to worry about leaving the "little ones" home. I foresee many a good times to come. Last year on her birthday, I made her cake balls, very similar to Oreo balls. And while I was making them, I had a brilliant idea. Stick some of the cake balls on sticks->cake pops and put them in a vase of flowers. It turned out so awesome, I had to do it again.

The recipe comes from Bakerella. Woman knows her stuff!

"21" adorable, I know.

I have such a grand time making these and the little flower bouquets, I would gladly drop out of school and pursue this as a career. Anyone feel like investing in a "cake bouquet" business??? :)

Voila! My masterpiece.

I had some fun with the leftover cake balls.

Carissa, may or may not have picked up the box and shaken it, thinking it was an actual gift. It was hilarious.

And I made my own purple sugar sprinkles!

Happy Birthday again, friend! :)

Cake balls
adapted from Bakerella

1 box cake mix
1 can of frosting
1 pkg chocolate bark (chocolate or vanilla)

Bake cake as directed on box. After cake has baked and cooled, crumble into a large bowl. Mix thoroughly with can of frosting. (It's tons easier to do this step with your hands.) Roll cake mixture into quarter-sized balls. Chill for several hours. (Stick in the freezer to speed up process.) Melt chocolate in microwave as directed. Roll balls in chocolate and lay on wax paper until firm. (Use a spoon to dip and roll in chocolate and then tap off extra.) Feel free to decorate with sprinkles or more chocolate!