Oh, Just pump the stuff directly into my veins....

I AM ADDICTED.
Ever since I made those dreadfully yummy Smore cookie bars, I have been craving, on a daily basis might I add, for this stuff! It's a gift straight from God I tell ya. Yesterday, I wanted, well actually I HAD TO HAVE, this stuff so badly that I went to Kroger and took a 2 year old and a 4 year old into the store just for 1 thing! What am I crazy?!?
Anyway, when we got back into the car after a wonderfully calm and successful store run, I popped the lid off my creme, and scooped out a big glob just for me. Why? Because I can. I paid for it. I'm the mommy, that's why.
It was so good. And by the time the night was over, I had about 1/2 cup of this white wonderful confection under my belt.

Well, off to the gym to work off my shame.....

And, I shutter just to think that candy corn season is right around the corner! I'm going to try and hold out until at least October to indulge.

Need Basil?!

Can you believe this plant?! My basil plant has grown to an astonishing 3 feet tall! You can see I put a ruler down just to gauge it's height, and was surprised at how much the plant dwarfs the ruler! I have been trying to use it as much as possible, but unless I start putting basil in my cereal, ice cream, enchilladas, shampoo, and toothpaste, I will NEVER use it all up! Heck, I could use it as TP and still have extra!



You can see at the top of the plant that there are even more sprouts coming up! Each one of those sprouts has 20 or so leaves! I am going to check out on the web instructions on how to dry it, but until then, I need to get really creative in my uses for it!
Basil pancakes, anyone?

In a word.....YUM!

Hey! Are you just craving to get out your most comfortable sweatshirt? Are you just begging for summer to be over with so you can enjoy the fruits of fall? Want warm apple cider, pumpkin bread, or smores? Some people LOVE the fall, and are always excited when they feel that first nip in the air. So, in honor of those folks, I have a recipe for you! These bars are a-w-e-s-o-m-e!!!! I highly recommend you try them and imagine you at a campfire surrounded by hay and fleece, looking at the beautiful autumn moon.



S'more Cookie Bars

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 super-sized (4.4 oz.) dark chocolate bars (e.g. Hershey’s)
1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme/fluff (not melted marshmallows); About 16 ounces

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light. Beat in egg and vanilla.
In a small bowl, whisk together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture and mix at a low speed until combined. Divide dough in half and press half of dough into an even layer on the bottom of the prepared pan. Place chocolate bars over dough. Two 4.4 oz. Hershey’s bars should fit perfectly side by side, but break the chocolate (if necessary) to get it to fit in a single layer no more than 1/4 inch thick. Spread marshmallow fluff evenly over the chocolate layer.


Place remaining dough in a single layer on top of the fluff. This is most easily done by putting the second half of the dough in a gallon size freezer bag. Use your palms to flatten it out, and then use scissors to cut down both long sides of the bag, so it will open up book-style. Open it up carefully, and the dough will stick on one side of the bag. Then place the bag, dough side down, on the other three layers. From there peel the bag up ad spread the dough where it is uneven.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool completely before cutting into bars

Makes 16 cookie bars.

Chi-Town, here I come!!

On Tuesday, I am off on a culinary tour and shopping extravaganza in lovey Chicago!!
My blessed mother has gifted me with the trip for my 30th (eek!!) birthday and I am going to make the most of my 2 days there. I have plotted our course, and we will hit the ground running starting with a stop at the local Starbucks for my Tall, non-fat, decaf extra pump vanilla latte and then we're off to brunch at Orange on Harrison. I am very eager to try their Fruishi!! www.orangebrunch.com
Then, after checking into our ultra hip Hotel Avenue, www.avenuehotelchicago.com, we will hit the Miracle Mile!!
Then off to Garretts Popcorn for a tasty treat, that I have only heard rave reviews about! www.garrettpopcorn.com
Then it's off to the theater where we will get a behind the scenes tour of the Broadway show Wicked! Hello?! Can you tell I'm pumped?!?!
After a short break to have a cocktail (or 7) I will FINALLY get to see the show. My friends Amanda and Katie have gushed over how great Wicked is!
www.wickedthemusical.com
On Wednesday morning, we will have a leisurely breakfast at the hotel and carb up for more serious shopping!
I found a neat little BBQ joint that I thought we could try for dinner named Smoque. www.smoquebbq.com
I will FOR SURE come back 90 pounds heavier from all of the yummy treats I plan on indulging in, but I have a feeling that every calorie will be worth it!
Wooo-Hooo!!!

I am grumpy when I should have patience, I yell when I should forgive, I run when I should have courage…I am not who I need to be, but thank God I am not where I used to be.

Painted Fingers

Bad blogger, Bad! Bad!

I
Am
So
Sorry!
I left ya'll hangin'. And how ironic is that?? I was complaining about that very subject, and here I go doing it to you! Thank you to the loyal few who even asked about an update! So, here it is.
After only a few hours of deliberation, we came up with a fair verdict. It was a very rewarding experince and I was so glad to have been able to be a part of it! All of the other jurors were very nice and we had a great time. It was an easy case to listen to because it all came down to contractual wording. It was not a violent crime, a rape case, or anything else disturbing. It was, no lie, 4 and 1/2 days filled with tree arguments and contract wording. Whew!

So, on to the next new adventure in my (yawn) life! I decided to enter 2 dishes into the Indiana State Fair competition! I entered a pumpkin loaf and some biscotti. I was up until 1:00 am on Saturday night finishing up since I had to turn it in on Sunday.
It was a good thing that I decided to look at the rules, because on Tuesday(!!!) I saw that I had to turn in my items this weekend! Oh geez! And don't even ask about my Amaretto wild goose chase and my near miss at being the lead story on Nancy Grace.

I can find out as early as Sunday night if I'm a winner, but I'm not holding my breath! When I dropped of my items on Sunday, there were tables, rows and rows, of loaves. They might not all have been pumpkin loaves, but who knows. One things is, they all looked pretty good!

Now, where do I go to sign up to be a judge?