Patti's Brownies

We had one of 'those days' in our house a few weeks ago.  I knew what I needed to do to remedy the day: make brownies.  Problem was, we didn't have a mix in our house and, if you read my blogs, you know that I pretty much suck at making brownies from scratch.  I sifted through my recipe book and found the recipe for my mother-in-law's brownies.  I took a deep breath and dove in.  And...they actually turned out super great!  My husband walked in and said, 'that smell just seriously put a smile on my face!'  Mission accomplished.

Patti's Brownies

• 2/3 c shortening
• 9 T cocoa
• 1 1/4 c flour
• 1 t salt
• 1 t baking powder
• 2 c sugar
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 1 t vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Melt together shortening and cocoa.  Let cool slightly.  In a separate bowl, mix together flour, salt and baking powder.  Mix sugar and eggs into chocolate mixture.  Add vanilla.  Mix in dry ingredients until well blended.  Bake in a 9 by 13 greased pan for 25 minutes (mine were actually still gooey at 25 minutes so I baked them for 10 extra and they came out perfectly.)

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

I feel like I am one of only a few people in this world that truly, truly love oatmeal raisin cookies.  The other two people would be my mom and dad.  I don't get it, though.  These cookies are as close to 'healthy' as it gets.  And it turns out my kids like these cookies too so it's an easy way to get a little extra fiber in their diet.  Just ignore the cup and a half of sugar.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (adapted from iheartnaptime.com)

1/2 c apple sauce

1/2 c butter

1 c brown sugar

1/2 c granulated sugar

2 eggs (I used egg substitute)

1 t vanilla

1 t baking soda

1/2 t salt

1/2 t cinnamon

3 c quick oats

1 1/2 c flour

1 c raisins (I soak mine in hot water for a few minutes to plump them up.  Makes a big difference!) 

Preheat oven to 350.  Blend butter and sugars together until smooth.  Beat in eggs one at a time and add in vanilla and applesauce.  Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl.  Add to sugar mixture a little at a time; mix until smooth.  Fold in raisins.  I used a 1 1/4 inch cookie scoop and dropped the scoopfuls onto parchment/Silpat lined cookie sheets.  Bake for 10 min.

German Chocolate Brownies

I have no picture which is too bad.  These were one of those recipes I made that was gone before I had a chance to take a picture!  Also they were kind of messy, and messy isn't pretty.  Anyway, just imagine german chocolate cake except a brownie instead of cake.  Delicious!

German Chocolate Brownies (adapted from iheartnaptime.net)

Brownies

• 2 boxes of brownie mix
• 1 cup of chocolate chips
• 1 cup of butterscotch chips

Coconut Pecan Frosting

• 3 egg yolks
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup evaporated milk
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 t. vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups flaked coconut
• 1 cup pecans, chopped

1. Bake brownies according to package directions.  Allow to cool
2. Melt chocolate chips in microwave for 1 minute and drizzle with a spoon over brownies.
3. Melt butterscotch chips in microwave for 1 minute and drizzle over chocolate.
4. Combine egg yolks, sugar, milk, butter and vanilla in a large saucepan.  Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened, about 12 minutes, stirring consistently for at least 10 of those minutes.  Add coconut and pecans.  Beat until thick enough to spread.  Pour over top of brownies.  Place in refrigerator to harden.

Black and White Potato Chip Cookies

I have finished my goal of making baked goodies for each coworker on their birthday!  Unfortunately, the person these cookies were for wasn't there the day I brought them in and they had disappeared by the next day.

What I liked:
Another coworker actually pointed this out but these cookies are like Ben & Jerry's Late Night Snack.  Sweet and Salty is super Yum!

What I would do differently:
I would like to try these cookies undipped.

from The Chew

1 cup butter softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
11/4 cups crushed potato chips
1teaspion vanilla
2c all purpose flour
Confectioner sugar
1c chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy.  Reduce speed to low and add 3/4 c of potato chips and mix until incorporated.  Add vanilla and mix until thoroughly combined.  Add the flour and mix just until combined--don't overmix.
3. Scoop 1-inch balls of dough into a lightly greased sheet pan, spacing them at least 2 inches apart.  Dust each cookie w/ confectioner sugar and press flat.
4. Bake 10-15 minutes until golden brown and cool. Dip cookies in melted chocolate then into crushed potato chips.

Oobleck

Earlier this year I did another fun 'science experiment' with my daughter for preschool.  This time we made Oobleck.  As in Oobleck from Dr. Suess.  It's a simple 2 ingredient mixture that turns to solid in a bowl but back into liquid in your hands.  Even I, the supposed adult in the situation, had a lot of fun playing with the stuff!

from Spoonful

Ingredients:
1 1/2 to 2 cups cornstarch
1 cup water

Instructions:

1. Take 1 1/2 cups of cornstarch and add 1 cup of water.  Mix.  If the 'goo' isn't gooey enough, add a little more water.  Keep adding water until you have a consistency that is relatively easy to stir, but not runny.
2. This may look like a messy project but it cleans up very quickly with extra water

Airplane Birth Announcement

My great-nephew was born, oh, 2 years ago so I'm finishing this up right on time!  Incidentally I just bought the kit for my one-year old son's announcement so I should be finishing it by his second birthday as well :)

This nephew is the grandson of my brother who is really into aviation so it somehow seemed appropriate.  It was really quick to put together, actually.  The longest part was getting it over to the framer.  And mailing it. 

I took it to The Framing Establishment again.  The frame is actually the same kind that they used on my daughter's except in red.  It's a really cute, whimsical frame that looks cute in kids' rooms. I apologize for the quality of the picture: I realized halfway through wrapping it that I hadn't taken a picture yet!  Plus the whole anonymity censor ugly white square thing...

Dipped Oreo Cookies

My daughter recently turned 4 and we did a big barbecue for her birthday.  It was great.  Much more low-key than my son's party.  There was a birthday cake, of course, and instead of ice cream: otter pops.  My favorite dessert item, though, were these yummy Dipped Oreo Cookies.

These are ridiculously easy to make.  Oh, and by the way, I got the idea off of Pinterest.  Obviously.

I just took a pack of Oreos, melted down some white, vanilla candy wafers, dipped half of the Oreo cookie in and sprinkled it with colorful nonpareils.  I set up my cookie rack with a sheet of waxed paper underneath it for the cookies to dry on.  Cute and Yummy!