So long, farewell….

Sorry folks, but due to some incredibly life altering life experiences, this blog is no longer active. Visit me at my new blog http://nutsvilleinnorway.wordpress.com
to see what all is new with me.

Thanks!

The weekend menu.

Mmmmm chicken noodle soup! Nothing is better to warm you on a cold day than a big, hot bowl of chicken noodle soup paired with a thick slice of homemade bread, toasted- or maybe made into a grilled cheese sandwhich. I had a good friend over this weekend, and as the weather was a bit nippy, we decided to make a nice big pot of chicken noodle soup and homemade bread. So, here’s my recipe for both!

Heart Warming Chicken Noodle Soup

• Whole chicken, cut into pieces (I buy a whole chicken and cut it up myself because its less expensive, but you could buy a whole cut up chicken or just by a whole chicken and cook the whole thing if your pot is big enough)
  
• About 6 carrots
• About 6 celery stalks
• About 6 cloves of garlic
• Two small onions
• About 3 tablespoons of fresh chopped flat parsley (not the curly kind)
• Around about 16 oz of wide egg noodles
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 cups of homemade or store bought (make it low sodium) chicken stock

First, if you have a whole chicken, wash it, and cut it into pieces. Place the chicken pieces into your soup pot, and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Then, cut up 3 carrots into thirds and throw into pot with 3 celery stalks also cut into thirds, your onion, peeled and cut in half or in fourths, and 3 garlic cloves, peeled and left whole. You can also add a couple stalks of thyme or rosemary if you have them handy- basically, keep all the vegetables and herbs at this point cut into bigger pieces or whole. Add some more salt and pepper to the vegetables you’ve thrown in, then fill the pot so it just covers the chicken and vegetables. Put a lid on it, bring it to a boil, reduce to a simmer and let it cook for about an hour or until the chicken is cooked.

Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside to cool. With a slotted spoon, fish out all the cooked vegetables, herbs etc you put in the pot. Simmer the broth on low for about a half an hour to concentrate the broth some- if you need more broth, you can add the 2 cups of homemade or store bought stock you’ve got. Dice the remaining carrots, celery and onions into smaller, but uniform cubes and add to the pot along with a couple cloves of garlic, minced fine. Throw those back into the pot and put the lid back on.

When your chicken has cooled, pull the chicken from the bones, discarding the skin, fat and bones and shredding the chicken. (I like to leave mine in bigger chunks, but you can shred it as small as you want, or cut it up into pieces.)

When the vegetables have almost cooked, throw in the noodles (once again, use as few or as many as you want) and the chicken, and let boil slowly until the noodles are tender. Before serving, throw in the parsley.

Cooking the chicken with some vegetables gives the chicken broth a deeper, richer flavor- which is what you want out of a good chicken broth! This recipe is fairly versitile- I use it for chicken noodle soup, matzo ball soup, and for chicken and dumplings.

Now, onto the bread recipe- I’m sorry if most of my recipes are just approximations, but I cook by taste as opposed to following a set “standard” for a recipe. I believe that most foods you cook can be altered to your own taste, and should be relatively versitile to include or exclude things if you so choose.

Unfortunately my bread recipe is similar to that- my mom taught me how to bake bread, and I’ve developed my own basic recipe from learning how to make hers and then also from trying recipes from cookbooks. This one is pretty much no-fail, and you can make it with white flour, whole wheat flour, or like me, I often use a mix of the two. I don’t know if I’d suggest making this if you’ve never made bread before, since I think a lot of making bread well comes from experience in doing so. Just keep in mind the flour is just an approximation, you might need more, you might need less- I suppose it also has a bit to do with the time of year, how much moisture is in the air, etc etc- so just add the flour bit by bit and when it feels right, stop.

Jessica’s Basic Bread:

• 1 cup hot water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 packages dry yeast
• 2 cups warm milk (or water)
  
• 1/2 stick of butter, melted
  
• 1 tablespoon salt
• anywhere between 6-8 cups of flour (use any flour you like… either all purpose or whole wheat, or do a mixture of half and half.)

Dissolve the sugar and yeast in the hot water in a mixing bowl. At this point, I sit my yeast and sugar mixture on the stove where its warm for a few minutes to make sure it “blooms,” or gets kinda foamy looking on top- that is the indication your yeast is working. Add the warm milk and melted butter. Then, mix a couple cups of flour into the liquid, stirring, and adding more flour until it forms a thick batter. At this point, add the tablespoon of salt WITH another couple cups of flour, and continue mixing. From here out I add only a little bit of flour at a time, making sure you’re also stirring from the bottom so as to incorporate all the liquid and flour.

When your bread dough has reached the point where you can handle it, turn it out on a lightly floured surface and knead it for about 10 minutes. If you absolutely feel you need to add more flour at this point, dont add more than a sprinkle or two- you don’t want to add too much. Now, form the dough into a ball, and place it in a well oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth or saran wrap and put it in a warm place to rise until it has doubled in size, which should take anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half, depending on how warm the spot is you’ve got it.

When the dough has doubled, uncover it and punch it down, kneading for another 10-15 minutes, but do not add any more flour. Now here you can either put it back in the bowl and let it rise a second time, or, if like me, you’re a bit impatient sometimes, you can simply divide it in half and form each dough ball into a loaf shape and place it in a well oiled loaf pan, and leave to rise again. I usually let it almost double- I let it get just barely above the top of the loaf pan.

When it has risen, put it into a 425 degree oven for 15 minutes, then lower the temperature to 375 and let bake for about 45 minutes or so- if you tap on the bread and it sounds hollow inside, it should be done.

Then, turn the loaves out on a cooling rack and enjoy!

I use this recipe also to make a cinnamon-raisin swirl bread… basically to do that, after the dough has risen the first time, and after you’ve kneaded and divided the dough, roll dough out with a rolling pin until its about a half inch thick, then make a mixture of about a half a cup of brown sugar, 1/4 cup white sugar, and a tablespoon of ground cinnamon, teaspoon of allspice, nutmeg, and clove and a handful of raisins. Brush the rolled out dough with a little milk or water, then sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture on the dough, leaving about a 1/2 inch space from the edge. Then, very carefully, roll the dough into a long roll, pinch the seams and the ends well, tuck the ends under and place in the loaf pan to rise. The brown sugar makes it a bit sticky and gooey and ooooh so yummy!

So thats that! Hope you all try these and let me know what you think! Till then, adios!

-Jess

Knit two, Purl one: Some favorite knitting books, and a word on Etsy.

As I’ve said before, cooler weather gets me in the mood for comfort foods. One of my favorite comfort foods is a nice, hot bowl of beef stew paired with a big chunk of freshly baked bread. Mmmmmmm! In addition to that, cooler weather brings for me the mood to knit. I think it must have something to do with the desire to keep warm- you’re sitting there in your house, watching Vanity Fair or Pride and Prejudice (for the hundredth time) knitting along on a pair of socks, and visualizing how warm and toasty those nice wool socks are going to keep your toes on a snowy day! If you’re a knitter like me, and if you LOVE knitting socks like I do- here’s a good book you’ll enjoy:

Folk Socks by Nancy Bush is one of my favorite knitting books. It features pages of interesting information on the history of knitted socks, socks from around the world, and has about 18 sock patterns inspired by international socks. She also includes a number of heel and toe variations that you can try. It’s a great book, and the patterns range from simple and easy for the beginner to much more complex patterns for the advanced knitter.

In the same tradition as Folk Socks, there is also Cheryl Oberle’s Folk Shawls. This one contains absolutely gorgeous patterns for lovely knitted shawls and wraps. Like Folk Socks, it also contains numerous anecdotes and photographs of original knitted shawls from around the world. I have both of these books and absolutely adore them- the patterns they offer are beautiful, and contain projects for the beginner to the advanced knitter. If you’re a knitter, and you don’t already have these books, you gotta get them! You’ll be inspired to knit lovely things for your friends and family this Christmas.

Speaking of making things for Christmas- I’d like to introduce you to (if you havent already discovered) one of my favorite websites, Etsy. Etsy is, as they put it, “your place to buy and sell all things homemade.” Pretty self explainatory, isnt it? Etsy has TONS of beautiful things to buy that people like you and me have lovingly created. You can find everything from hand knitted sweaters to handmade jewelery to handmade pottery and even non handmade items like vintage fabrics, magazines, etc etc. Basically, Etsy is everything anti-corporate and anti-cookiecutter. Last year at Christmas I made the pledge to buy handmade, and I’m going to do the same this year.

While I wasn’t able to make everything at Christmas last year handmade, I made sure a portion of my gifts were. This year, I fully intend on making sure there are even more handmade gifts given from me at Christmas. Basically folks, this is what it boils down to… here in America we’ve become rabid consumerists. We always want the biggest and the best and the shiniest and the newest. Christmas time has become this forced holiday with little meaning anymore. It isnt even Thanksgiving and the stores are out with Christmas products, commercials on the television are already speaking about Christmas gifts and we’re already being bombarded with pressure to buy.

This year, instead of purchasing a meaningless gift from some random big box store- why not go to Etsy and purchase a handmade item that you know a loved one would truely enjoy? Instead of supporting greedy coorporate America, why not support the stay at home mom who knits sweaters in her spare time? Or the art student who is talented at making jewelry? Etsy even has a function where you can find Etsy sellers in your area- so not only can you support these incredible folks here who make beautiful objects- but you can support those who are local to you. You’ll be giving a gift that was crafted by someone who cares, not pressed out by some machine- or worse yet, made by little kids in some third world country.

Last Christmas I didn’t have a lot of money, so I made my sister and one of my friends handmade tote bags. I used lovely fabric I had purchased before, and I embellished them with ribbon and vintage buttons. Both my sister and my friend were thrilled with them, and were astonished that I took the time to make them something personal, as opposed to going and buying them something random off the rack. In years past I’ve made friends knitted scarves and socks, and a variety of other things. There is just something more special about presenting a gift that you had to think about and create yourself than just going and buying something from any old big box store. So please, this year if you can- make some handmade gifts to give to your loved ones… and if you don’t feel you’re talented enough to do so- join Etsy and purchase a handmade gift from there. Support the Christmas spirit, which should be more about closeness and sharing with those we love than about the gross consumerism which has almost destroyed the Christmas magic.

Anyway, thats all I think for today! Enjoy!

For Rosie.

Dedicated to the memory of one who possessed Beauty without Vanity, Strength without Insolence, Courage without Ferocity, and all the Virtues of Man, without his Vices.

The death of a dog is always so hard. For many of us, a dog is like a member of the family- an extra sister or brother, but one that wont pick fights with you or tattle if you do something you shouldn’t. They’re best friends and companions, but ones who never judge or criticize- they always know when you’re feeling blue and give 100% of themselves to you 100% of the time.

Rosie was one of the best dogs we ever had. Back 10 or so years ago when dad had his old place on the other side of town, we came into work one day to find this frightened, scared, cowering young pup who’d barely let you get within 10 feet of her.  She was a pretty ugly dog- skinny, with a head that seemed small and a nose that seemed too long. She was obviously a mutt, and a kinda ugly one at that. Though we couldn’t get close enough to her to touch her for a while, we brought her food so she wouldn’t go hungry, which she gobbled up with relish. A number of weeks went by, but this scrawny ugly dog stuck around (probably because of the food) and eventually she inched closer and closer to the two legged beings who brought her things to eat. We were finally able to touch her (though for months, almost a year after that she’d cower and cry when you did) and we discovered on her dirty collar someone had attached a piece of duct tape, upon which was written “please take care of me.” I certainly hope we fulfilled that request.

Not long after the dog started allowing us to come to her and scratch her ears, we decided to give her a name and bring her home. She had short fur that was of a reddish hue, so we all decided that Rosie would be a fitting name for this strange, stray dog. Rosie integrated herself quite easily at home, enjoying all the wide open spaces our place gave and the companionship of the other dogs there.  She would frolic about and run, barking at birds and chasing squirrels.  It was obvious that she was content and happy- some say that dogs laugh by wagging their tails… if that’s the case, then Rosie was laughing all the time. And you know, Rosie was one of those dogs that you swear you’d catch smiling. She’d wag her tail, look up at you, and you honestly could see the corners of her mouth curve up into a smile. Right then you’d know she was a happy dog, and we’d done good by her.

The rest of her life wasn’t particularly exciting by any means- her days were spent still barking at squirrels, sleeping lazily in sunny spots, taking car rides, and being given lots of love and treats.

However, several weeks weeks ago our Rosie became sick. We took her to the vet and it turned out she had lyme’s disease. The vet gave her some meds and she seemed to be responding well. Then this past Friday she wouldnt eat or get up from where she was laying, so we took her to the vet again. The vet found an unrelated problem involving her liver- Rosie was jaundiced and her liver was terribly infected. Over the weekend, the vet ran tests and tried a couple treatments, none of which Rosie responded to. So by Tuesday, when it was clear Rosie wasnt going to pull through this, we had to make the incredibly difficult decision to put her down.

After work on Tuesday Mom, Dad and I rode over to the vets office where they brought Rosie in to us. Still wagging her tail and smiling, it was like she knew it was her time to go and she was trying to give us as much comfort as she could. We all scratched her ears and rubbed her belly and gave her hugs and as much love as we could cram into those last few minutes we had with her. The vet came in,  Rosie laid down, she was given a shot- she closed her eyes and drew her last breath with the three of us touching her, and talking to her softly. She left this world being loved and cared for, a way I hope we all get to go.

Goodbye, Rosie. Wherever you are, I hope there are many squirrels to chase, birds to bark at, and sunny spots to lie.  You were the sweetest, gentlest, best dog ever. You’ll certainly be sorely missed.

“He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion”

Food, friends, love.

“Tell me what company thou keepst, and I’ll tell thee what thou art.”
– Miguel de Cervantes (1547 – 1616) Spanish novelist.

Well, my cake from this weekend turned into a great success, turned out to be the best one I’ve made so far, I think! The weekend itself was also a great success, was spent with fabulous friends having a great time. After I spend a weekend in the company of friends, I am only reminded even more of how much I miss them on a daily basis. We sit around laughing about times gone by, exchanging stories and sipping tea. Having such a close group of girlfriends makes me feel stronger- I have these women with whom to share the ups and downs of life- woman who I’ve laughed with, cried with, been angry with and joyful with.  There is something so comforting knowing that I have this “band of sisters” who I can constantly turn to, never wavering and always there to share my life with! I love them all, and wouldn’t dream of changing a single one.

There is Alexis, my oldest friend- 13 years we’ve shared! (longer than many people stay married!) She has been through so much that would break others with lesser resolve, I admire her inner strength and stubborness- she challenges me often to think of things differently, and keeps me honest. I can count on her to snap me back to reality when I’ve floated a bit too high in the clouds. Kate, college roommate and adopted sister- she has a kind heart and a genuine soul. I admire her for her sensitivity and compassion, her excitement for life and ability to calm me down when I’m having a freak-out. Stacy, the lion-hearted friend- my sounding board, the one who doesn’t take crap from anyone. I can count on her to stand up for what is right, and not be afraid to tell people like it is. I admire her strength and grit, her sense of humor and honesty.  There are others as well, all of whom I adore and admire- I feel like each and every one has some inner aspect that compliments and completes me in some way.  And that, I think, is what having a close group of friends is about.

Anyway, that’s quite enough of me being sentimental and sappy for the morning! Let’s move on now to something we all seem to gravitate towards when we’re together: food. At the request of Kate (and Drew) here is my recipe for my cheesy enchilada bake.

Jessica’s Cheesy Enchilada Bake:

Ok, first- a disclaimer- I don’t actually have a recipe per se for this one- so, all amounts are pretty much just an approximation… just add as much as or as little as you want- all you need are these ingredients!

• 2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 medium onion, halved and sliced thin
• 1red or yellow pepper, diced
• 3-4 cloves of garlic (or less, depending on how much you like garlic)
• 1 packet of taco seasoning
• ground cumin
• ground red pepper
• salt and pepper
• 2 large cans of store-bought enchilada sauce
• 1 package of corn tortillas (though you could probably use flour, I just happen to prefer corn)
• 2 bags or 2 blocks of Queso Fresco or Queso Asadero- You should be able to find it in the cheese section at your grocer- its sometimes called Mexican special melting cheese or something like that. If you cant find it, you can probably substitute Monteray Jack.

Cook the chicken breasts, onions, garlic and bell pepper in a pan with about half a taco seasoning pack, a dash or two each (or more!) of cumin and ground red pepper, salt and pepper to taste. As the chicken cooks, I add a splash of water or two to the pan to deglaze it, and to create kind of sauce out of the spices and stuff that are cooking. Keep adding a little water as the chicken cooks and the water evaporates. When the chicken is cooked, shred it with a fork and coat it well with the sauce in the pan. Then, I take a casserole dish, and line the bottom with corn tortillas- dont worry about them being perfect, just line the bottom with a layer or two. then, spoon some of the chicken mixture onto the tortillas, pour some of the enchilada sauce over the chicken, then add LOTS of cheese. Then, add another layer of tortillas, chicken, sauce, and cheese- keep doing that until you’re out of chicken. Then, top the whole thing off with tortillas, sauce, and cheese- Make sure the top layer is a thick layer of cheese.  Stick it in the oven on something like 350 and bake till the cheese melts. Depending on the size of your casserole dish, it might be two layers or three- You might use more cheese or less- its really one of those things where you can tweak and adjust it to your own tastes!

Hope you all enjoy!

-Jess

Falling into Autumn

Autumn is a second spring, where every leaf is a flower. -Albert Camus (French Novelist, Essayist, and Playwright, 1957 Nobel Peace Prize for Literature)

I LOVE Autumn. It is my absolute favorite season of the whole year. I feel so much more creative and productive- ideas just flow so easily for me this time of year.  Also, its the time of year that just makes me want to cook and bake even more. There is something about the mixture of cool fall air and the smell of bread baking in the oven, or the warm aroma of of pumpkin pie. Mmmmm! So, today, I share with you one of my favorite (and easiest) Autumnal recipes, A Spiced Pumpkin Bundt Cake with Citrus Glaze- credit goes to Sandra Lee of the Food Network, from whom I got this recipe last year. I’ve made it 3 or 4 times now with great success- but I make a couple minor changes.  For the citrus glaze, Sandra uses 1/3 cup of storebought orange juice, and 3 teaspoons of orange liqueur- I squeeze my own orange and add to that some orange zest- I find that it makes for a brighter citrus flavor, and its less expensive, too! She also adds food coloring to the glaze to make it bright orange- I just think thats silly and unneccesary… besides, I don’t want to eat all that food dye. For your culinary enjoyment, the recipe is as follows:

Spiced Pumpkin Bundt Cake with Citrus Glaze:

Cake:

• 6 Eggs
• 2/3 cup oil
• 1 cup canned pumpkin pie mix
• 2/3 cup water
• 2 tablespoons pupkin pie spice
• 1 box moist spice cake mix
• 1 box moist yellow cake mix

Glaze

• 1/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• 3 teaspoons orange liquer
• zest of 1/2- 1 whole orange, depending on how much you want and how big the orange is
• 1 pound powdered sugar

Cake: Preheat Oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a 12-cup bundt cake pan. In a large mixing bowl, combine the eggs, oil, pumpkin pie mix, water, and pumpkin pie spice. Beat until well blended. Add the cake mixes and stir to combine. Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and bake for 50 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Invert the cake onto a cooling rack.

Glaze: Whisk together the powdered sugar, orange juice, liquer and zest in a saucepan on low heat for 5 minutes, or until the sugar melts. If the glaze seems too dry, add more orange juice or water to reach the right consistency. Drizzle the glaze over the cake.

Voila! Its a very quick, easy, but very tasty cake. I’m usually not a big fan of Sandra Lee’s “Semi-Homemade” disasters, but I think this is one of the few that actually turn out nice. Using the boxed cake mix speeds things up quite a bit, but still leaves you with a nice end result. I’ll be making one of these on Thursday for an upcoming Soiree with friends- I’ll take a picture and post it so you can see the end result.  Till then, adios, and Usta and Oscar Kitty both say hi.

PS: Stacy is right, I got Oscar in June, not May

So, I suck at blogging.

Hey yall,

So it occurs to me that its been entirely too long since I’ve posted anything here on my blog. My humblest apologies to any of you who actually read this thing.

Anyway- here’s a bit of an update on things in the world-o-Jessica:

This summer was decidedly unproductive and relatively uneventful. Earlier on in the summer I went through a bit of a “funk” as I call it, which lasted most of the summer- I dunno, I go through those every once in a while, where I don’t really feel like doing much of anything at all and I’m pretty crappy at keeping up communication with anyone. Hence, the lack of blogs. I’ve pretty much recovered from whatever it was that was making me blue, and I’m back to my normal, cheerful, vivacious goofy self again.

Way earlier in the summer- some time in May, I think- I became the proud mommy of a brand new kitten named Oscar, who is the most spoiled rotten little thing in the whole world. He’s a little orange fuzzball of insanity whose favorite hobbies include fishing important papers and receipts out of my purse, shredding the mail, and eating paper towels. He also enjoys using my leg as a scratching post, climbing up the screen door in the kitchen, and making any other general mischief he can find. I love him to death, but I feel like I spend so much time chasing him around and keeping him from destroying things, its like having a two year old with four legs.

Also early this summer, my best friend Alexis got engaged to her fantastic boyfriend of about a year and a half. Alexis and I have been friends for about 13 years,  and I’m incredibly happy for her and thrilled she has met someone to share her life with. I’m also honored that she asked me to be the maid of honor at her wedding, and I hope I’m able to fulfill those duties properly.  Despite my happiness for her, and all the jumping up and down and squealing and screaming which could only come forth from female vocal chords when she called me to tell me the news- I can’t help but find all this wedding planning crap to be just slightly annoying and way out in left field. Not that her specific plans are out in left field- just the whole business of wedding planning in general.  All the insane decisions that have to be made like colors and decorations and  who sits where and what cute little finger food will be served, and will the colors on the cake match the bridesmaid dresses and all that mumbo jumbo.  Its all nuts, and makes me think that if I ever happen to find someone willing to put up with me I think we’re gonna run off to Vegas and pay a little visit to the drive-thru wedding chapel. I’m not sure I could deal with all the pastel colors, the yards of white lace and the potential Bridezilla-ness that comes from planning a wedding.  Ugh, it makes me want to drink just thinking about it. So, thats enough about weddings.

Who remembers my tomato plants I so lovingly tended earlier in the summer? Yes THOSE- the ones I was so excited to enjoy and taste and possibly can or give away… Yeah, um… about those… So I went away on a cruise with my mom and sister in July and left my cats and plants in the care of dear old Dad while we were gone- and he didn’t bother watering any of my green things during one of the hottest and driest spells we had all season. So, I came home to wilted and sick hanging plants, and tomatoes that didn’t look much better. As a result, I really haven’t had much in the way of tomatoes this year, which is slightly disappointing, but I have high hopes for next year, when I should actually have some proper flower beds and things made up. I did have a boatload of San Marzano tomatoes which made a FANTASTIC marinara sauce. I had never made tomato sauce from fresh tomatoes before- so, I just experimented with it and it turned out quite nicely. I used lots of garlic, and plenty of basil and oregeno fresh from my garden as well.

Lets see- so I mentioned my now over funk, the new kitten, best friends impending nuptials, lack of tomatoes… I think that just about covers my summer.

This fall should be infinitely more productive than this summer, I’m expecting. I have big plans for my house, and there are a number of autumnal festivals I plan on attending with friends. Also, now that I’ve gotten my butt back here to blog, I should be much better about keeping this up. Never fear, dear readers, I shant forget you again!

If you give a girl a cookie…

… she’ll eat them all in one sitting while watching Thelma and Louise.

Which is why I SHARE.

Every now and then I just want to bake stuff. I dunno why, maybe its some weird in-born genetic womanly type thing, but I go through these phases where I go on a baking spree and I end up with like a dozen different varieties of cookies and cakes and bread and who knows what else.

I had a craving for cookies tonight, so I decided to try my hand at making up my own chocolate chip variety. I’m calling it “Jessica’s Butterscotch Chocolate Chip Macadamia Nut Delight.”

Here’s the recipe:

Jessica’s Butterscotch Chocolate Chip Macadamia Nut Delight Cookies:

• 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 c. brown sugar, packed
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 package semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 package butterscotch morsels
• 2 2.5 oz. packages of chopped macadamia nuts

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
2. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl and set aside
3. Cream brown sugar, sugar, butter, and vanilla
4. Add eggs and beat
5. Add dry ingredients and mix well
6. Stir in chocolate chips, butterscotch morsels and nuts
7. Either drop by rounded spoonfulls OR, I like to roll a spoonful into a ball and press down slightly for a more uniform cookie shape.
8. Bake for 8-10 minutes
9. DEVOUR!!!!!! or, share with friends.

Let them eat cake…

…. to the tune of dueling banjo’s.

Ok, let me preface this with- THIS WAS NOT MY IDEA.

My sweet, beautiful, wonderful cousin is getting married this Saturday and because she was planning her wedding on a pretty tight budget, I offered to make a grooms cake for her. Now, the original cake was to be a chocolate cake with an incredibly decadent chocolate ganache icing and chocolate covered strawberries on top- to tie together and compliment a chocolate fountain she was also having to dip strawberries in.

However, my darling mother said “I think you should suggest to her to do a cake that has something to do with a particular interest of the grooms.” Upon suggesting this to my cousin, she thought it was a wonderful idea and we settled on the West Virginia University Logo because he’s a big fan. So- my once imagined sinfully delightful chocolate chocolate on more chocolate cake has now become a chocolate on chocolate cake that could be the centerpiece at a college football tailgating party. I’m not sure how I feel about it yet. See:

So, there you have it. A cake celebrating that University in West-by-God-Virginia.

Despite the blazing logo, I suppose it doesn’t look half bad. However, if I have to continue to endure the smell of chocolate that is permeating my kitchen, and more than likely my very pores- I am going to be sick. So, on that note, I bid you au revoir et salut- I am off to dreamland.

Oh, and by the way- Usta Kitty says hello.

some of my pitiful attempts at “artistic” photography.

I love taking pictures. I try to give mine an artistic flair, but mostly I think they only turn out so-so. I was looking through some old pictures I took, and I found this one- I completely forgot I had taken it. I was walking along the beach one evening during a trip to Scotland and found a heart shaped rock. I decided to embellish it a bit and this is what happened.

Let me not to the marriage of true minds

Admit impediments. Love is not love

Which alters when it alteration finds,

Or bends with the remover to remove:

O no! it is an ever-fixed mark

That looks on tempests and is never shaken;

It is the star to every wandering bark,

Whose worth’s unknown, although his height be taken.

Love’s not Time’s fool, though rosy lips and cheeks

Within his bending sickle’s compass come:

Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,

But bears it out even to the edge of doom.

If this be error and upon me proved,

I never writ, nor no man ever loved.  ~William Shakespeare, Sonnet 116