Wednesday, July 29, 2009

In the kitchen...

(Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies

( Banana Crumb muffins)

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE recipes. From tv shows, to magazines, to websites...I love looking at them. I have a whole section in my favorites devoted to cooking/recipe blogs that I love.

The night before last, I learned a good lesson. Never wake a sleeping baby. I moved Mason while sleeping, and he woke up. And didn't go back to sleep for a looong time. I was so tired and not in the mood to clean. So I baked instead! :) Ethan let me know a few times that the cookie jar was empty, and we can't have that!! I wanted to share the recipes for what I made. Just in case anyone else wants to try them!

First things first...I had bananas that needed to be used. The kids and I love banana bread BUT I like mine with walnuts, they don't. I found this recipe for muffins and it is a good compromise...although no nuts! I found it at the site "There's No Place Like Home". I am not sure of the link but I will link it up later if you want. Here is the recipe:

******Banana Crumb Muffins********* (Ethan's favorite muffins!)
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 bananas, mashed
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 cup butter melted

Struesel topping:
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 TBSP flour
1/8th tsp cinnamon
1 TBSP butter

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, combine the first 4 ingredients. In a small bowl, combine the next 4. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture. Spoon batter into muffin tin. ( I tend to oversimplify directions. If you have a question just ask!)

In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Cut the butter into mixture with a fork. It should resemble a corn meal type texture. Sprinkle over muffins. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Way yummy!

The next one is a very easy shmeasy recipe from one of my favorites, Paula Deen!

Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies
1 (8oz) brick cream cheese, at room temp
1 stick butter, at room temp
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 box (18oz)moist chocolate cake mix (any kind)
Powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl cream the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in the egg, then vanilla. Beat in the cake mix. Cover bowl and refridgerate dough for 2 hours. Roll firm dough into balls and roll in sugar.
Bake for 12 minutes.

**My new oven doesn't cook things as fast as my others. I had to up the time to 15 minutes. So start with 12 and than go from there.

** I was trying to do more than one pan at a time. One batch I baked on my baking stone from Pampered Chef. The other batch was on a regular cooking sheet. The ones on the stone did not set up right. They tasted fine but were flat and very soft. It was hard to keep them together. The others were perfect. I don't know what happened but I transfered the ones from the stone to the other sheet and baked them a little longer and they turned out fine. Hmmm...

Enjoy!

road map

As I have been reading about getting my home clean and organized, there is one thing that I find repeated over and over again. That is that you need to have a routine. Something really basic. I have tried to have routines. I have. For example I will have a morning routine that looks like this...

Make bed
unload dishwasher
start load of laundry
make breakfast

And I know what you are thinking. That seems pretty easy. And it does. But...what happens? I will get up and Ben will be asleep. So I can't make the bed! So I will go unload the dishwasher. I will think yeah I am on a roll. I go in to start a load of laundry but wait, we haven't taken showers. I don't want to use the hot water on laundry. I will wait on that and go to make breakfast. But then one of the kids wakes up and I haven't made anything. So they eat cereal and then the milk gets spilled and we have to clean it up but they got it on their uniform shirt so now I have to send them back upstairs...you know what I mean? Or I sleep in. Or someone gets sick. Or I spend too much time checking my email or, or, or...you know what I mean? LIFE gets in the way of my routine.

BUT I see the importance of a routine. I was looking at a fun site called simplemom and in her back to basics she talks about designing your routine around your day.

This is much more fitting to me. Every day is different for me. And now that Mason is here, and to young for a schedule...well things are kind of a mess.

The only things I know for sure today (time wise) is that I need to leave our house around 4:15 to pick Harmony up from camp. I also know that Mason gets fussy every day around 5. Of course...dinner time.

So my road map for today? (and btw Mason is asleep)
**finish blogging :)
**start a load of laundry (showers are already done)
**do a load of dishes
**plan and make as much dinner as I can during the day

As time (or should I say kids?)allows:
**sweep floors
**clean out van
**put laundry away (mine, towels &blankets etc)
**vacum living room

Kids jobs for today:
**put their laundry away
**living room clean up
**whatever else I come up with...

What about everyone else? Do you follow a routine or just go with the flow and do what you want?

Saturday, July 25, 2009

Show and Tell Friday






Wow, it has been a loooong time since I updated this blog!!

I don't know if this really counts as a show and tell but...I am hoping I will be forgiven! :)

When I first got this blog up and running, I participated in a lot of meme's. I really enjoyed doing challenges, planning menu's etc. I got a lot done and enjoyed my time at home.

Last October, I found out that I was pregnant. I was very happy and excited but found morning sickness and exaughstion to be my constant companions! Taking care of 4 kids, my husband and all that they require...well blogging and home care took a back seat.

I am one of those women, and I know it sounds awful, but who doesn't enjoy being pregnant. But once the baby comes I have this newfound energy. It is amazing to me, how much better I feel when the baby is born.

Now, with 5 kids to take care of, I find myself craving cleanliness, organization, home cooked everything...so I am going to start participating in meme's again!! I am so looking forward to it. So for my show and tell, I am introducing the "newest thing" to come into my home...

Mason Charles born on July 10th. He is a sweetheart and I am enjoying all the fun that comes with having a newborn in the home!

Looking forward to sharing something just as fun next week!

Want to contact me?

Feel free to contact me at hecimommy@gmail.com