Epic Fail

"Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate, first one says "Oh my, it's getting late"  

The BK and I don't have any children, at home, but that doesn't mean we don't like to carve a mean pumpkin...So we drive all over the county to find the best pumpkins we can. The BK decides, maybe, we should roast some pumpkin seeds. I'm not a huge fan, but I find a couple recipes on Pinterest. Mmmmmmm...Cinnamon Glazed Pumpkin Seeds sound uh~maz~zuh~ing! 

On a cold, rainy, fall Tuesday, we begin the carving process. And I begin the roasting process:

Step 1:

After digging the guts out of old Jack, place the seeds in a bowl of hot water. This makes it easier to get all the stringy guck off your seeds...

Step 2: 

Spread your seeds on a baking sheet and allow to dry overnight.

Step 3: 

Transfer your seeds to a mixing bowl...coat with 1 tbs of olive oil and add 3 tsp cinnamon and 1/4 cup of sweetener, combine well. *Note: the original poster used Truvia Baking Blend, but I chose to use Sugar in the Raw. 

Step 4:

Spread seeds, evenly, on baking sheet and bake in a 310 degree oven for 30 minutes. Spread seeds around, and bake for an additional 15 minutes.

(I will admit a gigantic screw up...I read 3 tbsp on cinnamon instead of tsp! So I added a bit more olive oil and sugar. )

This was an epic fail. Epic. Fail. Oh, the cinnamon and sugar glaze tasted delicious...the seeds, however, had the texture of cardboard. I did a little digging around...it seems like the oven should've been set at 300 degrees and the seeds stirred more often. 

If you want to try this recipe, for yourself, you can find the original recipe here...
Maybe your attempt will be a success!!

                                 

not so MANIC MONDAY

"if you seek perfection in sugar confection..."

FLASHBACK february 15
dinner, drinks, and board games with friends is on the agenda. i want to take something. i can't show up empty handed. hmmmmmmm...time to check out my "toot sweet" board on pinterest. i find the perfect valentine recipe. blonde brownies with M&M's!! a treat to take AND an opportunity to give a pinterest recipe a try!!

FLASH FORWARD today
it's a boring monday. why not bring a little happiness to the people in your life? this recipe is quick, easy, and delicious! another pinterest success!!

VALENTINE BLONDIES

ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup to 1 1/3 cup M&M's (i used valentine colors, but you can use plain if you want)

preheat oven to 350〫. 
mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. set aside. melt butter. combine brown sugar and butter until well blended. let cool slightly. add egg and vanilla. mix well. add flour mixture, a little at a time, until completely blended. spread, evenly, in 9X9 pan. sprinkle M&M's over the top. bake 20-25 minutes.
enjoy!!

and click here to follow me on pinterest!

WAY BACK WEDNESDAY

"you make me smile with my heart"

FLASHBACK (probably) mid~february 270 AD
version one: emperor claudius II decides that single men make better soldiers than men with wives and families. he outlaws marriage for young men. a priest, named valentine, defies the emperor and performs secret marriages. when he is discovered, claudius orders that valentine be put to death.
version two: valentine is imprisoned for helping christians escape roman prisons, where they are beaten and tortured.
either way, legend says, valentine falls in love with a young girl, while in prison, and sends her the first "valentine" greeting. before his death, he writes the girl a letter and signs it "from your valentine".

FLASH FORWARD: 5th century
pope gelasius outlaws the pagan celebration of lupercalia. lupercalia is a fertility festival dedicated to the roman god of agriculture, faunus, that occurs in the middle of february. the pope declares february 14th st. valentine's day, in an effort to take the focus off lupercalia.

FLASH FORWARD: the middle ages
valentine's reputation as a sympathetic, heroic, and romantic man makes him one of the most popular saints in france and england. valentine's greetings become popular (the oldest greeting, still in existence, is written in 1415, by charles, duke of orleans).

FLASH FORWARD today:
today, americans send, approximately, 1 billion valentine's cards making it the second biggest card sending holiday of the year. 

the more you know ;)

BECAUSE IT'S THURSDAY?

"if you're happiest when you're complaining...then you're a grouch like me"

FLASHBACK january 29, 2014 (yeah, i know...huge flashback)
i'm having lunch with a friend and she mentions it's national curmudgeon day. man!! i missed it! but it gets me thinking. i know a lot of curmudgeons. i mean A LOT of curmudgeons. and i think, if you take a sec to look around you, so do you.

curmudgeon /kərˈməjən/ :  a person who is easily annoyed or angered and who often complains

we all have our moments when it seems we fit the definition but, to be an ACTUAL curmudgeon, it has to be a way of life. it has to almost make you joyous to complain. and, every morning...i mean every. single. morning...all the curmudgeons i know are spouting their annoyances and complaints on my facebook time line. how do i know they're curmudgeons and not just having a bad day? because it's always complaints. they are never, ever, happy. it's day, after day, after day of: the dog ate my homework...it's too cold/wet/cloudy outside...the sun is too bright...this fire is too warm...my bed was too comfortable...my football/baseball team didn't win...my husband/wife is breathing too loud...argh argh argh...

don't get me wrong? i love having curmudgeons in my life. although i always wonder what these people would do if they had real problems, i am completely entertained by their posts. they make me laugh. so, if you are one of my curmudgeons: keep it up, sunshine!! 

today
like i said, national curmudgeon day was yesterday. it's too late to celebrate your favorite curmudgeon...or your curmudgeonliness (i may, or may not, have just made that up)...but it's not too early to prepare for next year. so...in honor of the day, here are a few of my favorite curmudgeons. maybe they remind you of someone you know?

walt (clint eastwood)~gran torino

mickey (burgess meredith)~rocky

archie bunker (carrol o'connor)~all in the family

scrooge (reginald owen)~a christmas carol

carl (ed asner)~up

professor snape (alan rickman)~harry potter

and my all time favorite. also, proof that women can be curmudgeons:

ouiser boudreaux (shirley mcclain)~steel magnolias

HAPPY BELATED NATIONAL CURMUDGEON DAY!!

BECAUSE IT'S THURSDAY?

"puff the magic dragon lived by the sea...."

dragon: a mythical monster like a giant reptile. in european tradition the dragon is typically fire-breathing and tends to symbolize chaos or evil, whereas in east asia it is usually a beneficent symbol of fertility, associated with water and the heavens.










just a quick list of my favorite dragons in honor of "appreciate a dragon" day:

1. puff the magic dragon

2. falkor (the never ending story)

3. elliot (pete's dragon)

4. smaug (j.r.r. tolkien's the hobbit)

5. the hungarian horntail (j.k. rowling's harry potter)

6. maleficent (sleeping beauty)

7. (and my all time favorite) h.r. pufnstuf

have you appreciated a dragon today? 

                                        

SWEETEST SATURDAY

"blue-eyed boy meets a brown-eyed girl oh oh oh, the sweetest thing"
FLASHBACK 1986
i get a package from my mom. inside is a card and some candy. why? well duh doy! it's sweetest day! my future ex~husband is all "what? i don't even know what that is?". what?!!! it's that other day of the year that you shower me with candy and flowers and other crap i don't need so that i can be reminded that you love me. he never ever got me a sweetest day present. that's the reason we got divorced. not really. but it is. but not really. bahahahahahaha!!
FLASH FORWARD today
here's the thing. sweetest day was started in 1922, by cleveland philanthropist and candy maker herbert birch kingston. his idea was to do something nice for those less fortunate. with the help of actresses theda bara and anne pennington, he passed out 45000 (give or take a few thousand...) boxes of candy all over the city, to the orphans and less fortunate residents. since then, people have kind of forgotten about the orphans and less fortunate and turned it into a "hallmark holiday"...oh, you know? a holiday designed to sell cards, candy, and flowers. i love the bk. and i am 45000% sure he loves me back. we have never gotten each other a card. or a box of candy. or roses. we just remind each other that everyday is sweetest day. 
no matter how you celebrate with your sweetest, try to remember the true reason for the holiday and do something nice for those less fortunate. donate some items or cash to charity. buy a cup o'joe for a homeless person. buy a sad old lady a bouquet of flowers. just put a smile on someone's face.
HAPPY SWEETEST DAY MY LOVELIES!!

not so MANIC MONDAY

repeat :)
"a little less conversation a little more action baby..."
FLASHBACK july 2009
one of the first things i notice about jamie, he has an amazing tattoo of elvis on his right ankle. yep. he's an elvis fan. i am a closet elvis fan. i watch his movies when no one is looking. i have a cd with all of his greats. i only listen to it when no one is in the car with me.
FLASH FORWARD today
i am no longer a closet fan. i love elvis. i sing along with jamie every time he comes on the radio (which can happen a lot with sirius xm). not too long ago we watched "clambake"...an elvis great as long as he wasn't singing about "goop". okay. i admit it. sometimes his movies made him look like a dork. but we all know he was the coolest person in the history of ever. even my beloved beatles thought so.
saturday marked the beginning of elvis week. so from today thru the 17th, take some time to unleash your inner hound dog. HAIL TO THE KING BABY!!

                   

SCRUMPTIOUS SATURDAY

"c is for cookie...that's good enough for me..."
we're going to a cook out and need to take a side dish. what to take? what to take? i could make a pasta salad...that's delicious and who doesn't like pasta? but...there will be kids...lots and lots and LOTS of kids. i want to take something even the pickiest of kids will like, too. cupcakes? yummy...but a lot of work. brownies? yummy...but i have none of the ingredients. and then it hits me! who doesn't like chocolate chip cookies?!!!! right? riigghhtt?! i know i'm right...

GRANDMA MARGE'S CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

ingredients:

1 cup butter (softened, not melted)
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar (packed)
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons hot water
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups all~purpose flour
2 cups semi~sweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

preheat oven to 350°. cream together butter, white sugar, and brown sugar. beat in the eggs, one at a time. add vanilla. dissolve baking soda in hot water and add to batter with salt. stir in flour, chocolate chips, and nuts. drop by spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet (i always use parchment paper for easy clean up). bake for about 10 minutes, or until edges are a pretty brown. makes about 4 dozen cookies, depending on how big your spoonfuls are.

oh! AND, by the way, tomorrow (august 4th) is national chocolate chip day! celebrate by making these delicious cookies! or with a big old bowl of mint chocolate chip ice cream!!

^mine is not from nestle' toulouse'^

A WEEK IN THE LIFE: INSTAGRAM EDITION

6. flashback: second first date

"i got a nikon camera...i love to take a photograph...mama don't take my kodachrome away..."

summer...time for chocolate, anniversaries, tequila shots, and fresh veggies. and taking pictures of it all on instagram...because what good is all of this if you can't share it...
happy instagramming :)

1. chocolate frog from honeydukes...................

2. again. so sad bk won't let me eat it..............

3. celebrating national ice cream day...yummo

4. it was national tequila day....no worm required

5. corn and maters....best lunch ever................

WHAT UP WEDNESDAY

"she makes me feel real woozy...sometimes sick to my stomach (ohhh)...but i love this girl tequila..."

FLASHBACK 1521 
the spanish conquistadors begin distilling the agave plant, producing one of north america's first distilled spirits. it's called tequila because it is made near a city by the same name. *note: the aztecs had fermented a drink from the agave, long before, called "octli".
FLASH FORWARD today
there are over 100 distilleries producing over 900 brands of tequila, in mexico. and there are different flavors available, too. there are many ways to enjoy a shot of tequila. you can do just a straight up shot....enjoy it with salt and lime...maybe, some sugar and lemon?...perhaps a margarita?...or my way: a baby guiness!

to make a perfect baby guiness you need:

patron xo
bailey's irish cream
shot glass

fill the shot glass 3/4 up with the patron xo...top off, slowly, with bailey's irish cream...boom!!!
*some recipes call for kahlua instead of tequila...mistake. the bailey's doesn't float as well and it doesn't taste as good.* it should look like this:

my first attempt looked like this:

uh oh!! but it still tasted uh~mazing!!

 


however you enjoy it, remember to enjoy it today: NATIONAL TEQUILA DAY!!!