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Thursday, April 27, 2017

The Perfect Mother's Day Present



Here are a list of Mother's Day present ideas that won't break the bank! They are all Amazon Prime so they have beautiful 2-day free shipping.

First of all great books for the kids to give to Grandma and Mom. These books are super cute! They will be perfect to read over and over with grandma.

 Let's talk about Jewelry, that mom and grandma will actually wear! These bar necklaces are great for everyday.  They come from one baby bear up to six! They are Handmade by a small business too! They were selling out fast.


My Grandma used to sing this to me all the time... it reminded me of her.



I have a special spot for Ree Drummond.  I love her collections this one is new and AWESOME! Because I agree Butter does make everything Better...  If you like these check them out at Walmart they are usually cheaper there but they run of of stock so you can get them on Amazon too.
I would happily take home leftovers in these!


I have a few of these in my house and I love them! Amazon has wicked good deals on them too.  Willow Tree figurines are awesome.

Want more Ideas? Don't worry I'm going through all the great ideas I can find!  Come check back in a day or two...

Monday, April 24, 2017

This post is a little different for me.  I usually post about crafts, recipes, and sales but I wanted to
write about something that has been bothering me for a while so here we go.

Ladies, you are important and beautiful.

Today I was flipping through Facebook and I stopped on a makeup tutorial.  It was a young girl talking about all the imperfections on her face.  She was pointing out these microscopic little pink spots that were around her nose and how her eyebrows weren't full enough and the whole time I was thinking; this girl is already pretty, she could walk outside the way she started and be killin it.  Then I thought of my three daughters and I thought if they knew how amazingly pretty and perfect they are to me, they would never put themselves down.  But, alas, I know this world, I know all the images, conversations, and ridicule they will endure.  Therefore, I am writing this.

A few weeks ago I was driving with my daughters when my five year old said I wish I was.. and she named one of her friends.  I sat there for a moment and then asked her why she wanted to be that person.  She said it was because she had heard me talk to this child's mother about how great that child was. It hit me like a ton of bricks, that my five year old thought that I like this other child more than her because I was praising her friend.  She is already comparing and listening to what we are saying and it is effecting her.  I made it clear to her that she is wonderful, smart, beautiful, and talented.  Everyone has special talents and features that make them unique; we need those unique things to make our lives, and our world, more beautiful.

Here is something I would like to change in the world.  Why is it that because someone is physically beautiful it makes us less beautiful? Why is it that we feel like because someone has an amazing talent it devalues our talents? News flash, it doesn't! Just because Sarah has amazing blonde hair (just throwing names out there) doesn't mean my red/orange hair isn't great.  Just because Jessie can play the violin doesn't mean your paintings aren't enjoyed.

I was looking at the magazine covers in the checkout line and I saw that Julia Roberts was named "Most beautiful Woman 2017" on the cover of People Magazine.  I am not saying she isn't stunning and wonderful, I'm saying that her being stunning and wonderful in no way makes you, me, that old lady that sits in her rocking chair on her porch four doors down, any less beautiful and wonderful.

Next time you feel unattractive or feel like putting yourself down, don't go look in a mirror.  Grab a notebook, I'm talking the pen and pencil kind, and write down the last good thing you did.  That is what we need to focus on.  What good did I personally put into the world today?  If you can't think of something to write down, write down something you can go do, and do it.  That is what gives us a glow, that is what beauty should be, personal development and growth. 

I have my insecurities about myself and I have had major breakdowns as an adult about some of my physical attributes.  Those don't need to be the center of our lives.  We need to forget a little bit more about the outside of ourselves and focus more on what we can do to be kind, help others, remember that we are not the center of the world but a part of the world.  We have a great purpose here in this life, and that is to help others and make it back to our Father in Heaven and to help those around us make it back.

Go, be truly BEAUTIFUL. 


Need a notebook? This one has a great cover.

Thursday, April 20, 2017

Carrot Cake

I decided to scour Pinterest for Carrot Cake recipes.  I was kicking myself for not making a Carrot Cake for Easter and I think I kinda scored on my find.  This has a light fluffy cake, but is stuffed with carrots, pineapple, and nuts so it does have a good chew to it.  If you are looking for a light cupcake you might not find it with this one.  This is more on the dense, fill your belly side.  I started off with the recipe from blueribbonkitchen.blogspot.com.   Then I twisted up a little bit and added my own flare so here are the basics:


Take all the dry ingredients and throw them in your mixer.  I used the whisk attachment.  give them a plus or three to get them all nice and fluffy and stirred up.  Next get all of those wet ingredients in a separate bowl.  Excluding all the fruit, nuts, and carrots.


I used a hand whisk and mixed it all up nicely. 
It helps them come together really nicely if they are at room temperature
Next, I toasted up some coconut and pecans.  I put the sweetened coconut flakes down in my broiler and let them go for about 4 minutes until the tops gained a little brown.  The pecan I threw on a cookie sheet in the oven at 350 degrees till they started to sweat out a bit it took about 5 minutes and they had an aroma to them.   I then threw the pecans in my food processor for about 5 pulses. 

The carrots, I grated up my carrots.  Ok, people, the big carrots in the bag are so good for this so go big and get yourself the big carrots at the store, or be super fancy and grown them in your garden.  Then you can see your kids walk around like this too!


I used three big carrots for this recipe.  Luckily I had four left in the bag! So grate those up and put them in the food processor for a pulse so they are in nice little pieces.
Pineapple time.  I used a kitchen strainer over a cup and I put spoon fulls of pineapple in that and pressed the juice out of it.  That way I had super drained pineapple so my cakes weren't too wet.  That will be your enemy in the baking process with these over wet batter! Extra bonus drink that yummy pineapple juice left overs...
  We've got everything now. Slowly mix your wet stuff in the the dry in the mixer incorporate well and then add all of the goodness, carrots, coconut, pineapple, and pecans.

Spoon it into prepared cake pans or lined cupcake tins. bake that baby. my cupcakes took about 21 minutes for me but my oven is slow so check them at 18.  Make sure a toothpick comes out clean. 

Ingredients:



2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon of ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 large eggs-room temperature

2 cups granulated sugar

3/4 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup buttermilk-room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups of finely grated carrot (What I did here was I grated my carrots then threw them in the food processor and sent them spinning twice.)

3/4 cup of very well drained pineapple

1/2 cup flaked coconut toasted in the oven for a few minutes

1 cup chopped toasted pecans



Instructions


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix try ingredients, mix wet ingredients. Grate and pulse carrots and nuts.  Drain pineapple very very well, and toast coconut.  Thoroughly mix into batter.  Fill cupcake liners, or three well prepared 9" circle pans.  I recommend putting wax paper into the bottom of cake pans, and flouring the sides after nonstick spray or butter.



Pour batter into prepared cake pans.  

Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the cakes.

Let cakes rest on wire rack for 10 minutes.

Remove cakes from the very warm pans after 10 minutes, remove and discard the parchment paper.  Let cool.



Once cakes are at room temperature, spread the frosting between the cake layers, on the sides and top of cake.  This is not the final coat, this is only the crumb-coat.



Chill cake in the refrigerator for 30-60 minutes, then apply a final coating of the frosting, add nuts to the sides for garnish. 

Refrigerate cake overnight, up to 24 hours and then serve. 



For cupcakes, this recipe makes 36 cupcakes.  Use cupcake liners, fill cups 3/4 full, bake for 18
-21
 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.

I took the cupcakes and put them in the fridge once they cooled for half and hour then frosted them.  I would have put them back in the fridge in a sealed container after they were frosted but they didn't last that long!  Waaaayyy too good!!!  I think I'll be making this cake in cake form in the near future!!

 Some of these cupcakes didn't even make it to the frosting process... yeah they are that good!



Brown Sugar Cream Cheese frosting:  
8oz block of cream cheese softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup of butter softened
3 cups of powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
dash of heavy whipping cream

Whip cream cheese and butter in a mixer till light and fluffy.  Add in vanilla, then slowly add brown sugar, then powdered.  Whip it for a minute then add heavy whipping cream till you achieve your desired texture!  



I topped mine with a sprinkle of extra toasted coconut!   Enjoy!

I love the look of double liners on cupcakes! check out these super cute ones...



Saturday, April 1, 2017

Stuffed French Toast

I decided to make a hybrid of Stuffed French Toast and Ree Drummond's French Toast. You're welcome.

 First the french toast mixture!

4 egg yokes, no joke only the yokes!!! Save those yummy whites for my cake recipe!
Add in 1 tbsp. of cinnamon and whip them together.  If you mix the egg yokes and cinnamon together first you don't have the floating cinnamon on the top of the french toast, you know how the first 3 three pieces get cinnamon and then it is gone? Yeah, do this and it will stay mixed! All the french toast get cinnamon.
Next, vanilla, 1 tsp splash, or more if you really like it.

 Next throw in heavy cream, I put in about a cup.  Then I add a cup of whole milk.  Pioneer Woman uses half and half you could substitute that in for sure, I just don't usually have that on hand.   Mix up that goodness and move on to the filling.   Pioneer Woman also puts sugar in her french toast recipe I skipped it because of all the powdered sugar that is going into the recipe.


 Put in one brick of cream cheese (8oz) room temp.  and 3/4 cup of powdered sugar. Whip that together with 1/3 cup of sour cream.  Add in a splash of vanilla 1tsp or so. 

Next prep those strawberries, I like them cut nice and thin, that way I can spread a thin layer over the cream filling.

Cover one side of bread with the cream filling, I like a thick cut white bread or you can even use a crusty french bread. I like mine a little dried out for this. It just soaks every thing up so well when it is dried out.  If you use a loose light weight and it might fall apart so make sure you have a nice sturdy bread.

Then put a layer of strawberries and another piece of bread put a really really light layer of the cream filling so it works like a glue to hold the goodness together.


Get your griddle nice and warm.  I like mine at about 350.  Give it a good layer of butter and line up those puppies! 
Make sure you take your time. I like the outside of mine to be nice and crisp.  The filling will get warm and gooey and may leak out a little bit!

Sprinkle a little more powdered sugar and another layer of strawberries, syrup, and enjoy!
My Husband Michael is very proud of his bacon cooking skills.
He cuts them in half so they cook more evenly.

French Toast Mixture
4 Large Egg Yokes
1 tbsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Vanilla
1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
1 cup Whole Milk.

Mix the egg yokes and cinnamon together then add the other ingredients.  mix together throughly.

Cream Filling
8 oz cream cheese
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/3 cup sour cream

Whip it all together cream cheese needs to be room temp.

1 lb. strawberries sliced thin.

You need a sturdy bread that will hold together when wet.  French bread or a thick sandwich bread :)

Sandwich it up and grill on a buttered griddle.  take your time. make sure the outside is crispy. I like my griddle on 350 and I let them cook for at least 4 minutes on each side.  Each griddle is different if it is browning too fast turn it down. If it isn't cooking at all turn it up a bit.