BIRTHDAY YUMMINESS...

My little Porkchop turned 4 back in May.  For his Birthday this year, he got to enjoy two different yummy things.  

First, were these Adorable Lego Brownies.  Inspiration found here.  I made these for him to take to school for his classmates.

Then for our little family celebration, I made a Frozen Ice Cream Cake.  You want to know the really sad thing... it's now the end of November - I made this back in the middle of May, and I have no recollection of how I did it.  So, base on the next picture, I'm going to wing the instructions...  Honestly, I don't really think it can be messed up.  To start, here are the ingredients - simple enough.

In the bottom of a casserole dish, add a layer of ice cream sandwiches - then cover with Magic Shell.  Then add a layer of Cool Whip and a layer of crushed Oreos.  Then repeat - ice cream sandwiches, Magic Shell - but then switch and do the Oreo layer with the last layer being the Cool Whip.  

Then Freeze and Enjoy!!

My little guy did...

RECENT FOOD FUN

Back in March, here in Central Virginia, we were hit by a Major Winter Storm.  So major, that it caused us to be without power for EIGHT days!!  Anyway, on day One (not knowing I still have seven days to go), I was ambitious about trying to entertain my boys.  

I had recently Pinned this idea, and I knew I had all the ingredients...

The boys loved making these, and we now make them all the time.  My oldest son had just lost his First tooth the day before, so he made one of his to reflect his missing tooth.

Just two days ago, my husband and I celebrated our Birthdays.  Yes, we share the same Birthday!!  I had ordered him a gift online, but it still hasn't arrived, so he had nothing to open that day.  So after seeing these a couple of days before, I decided I would at least make him a special little Birthday Treat.  

My husband is from New Orleans and loves to eat Crawfish.  We actually have a Crawfish Boil every year around this time.  So when I saw Amy's Crawfish Cakes, I knew they would be perfect for him!

*note:  I did not use edible eyes, because grocery stores in the little town I live in, do not carry anything like that, and I didn't have time to run to Hobby Lobby 45 minutes away.

But still, I think they turned out really cute!!  The Birthday Boy enjoyed them and so did our little guys!! 

MY NEW FAVORITE...

What are these you ask?

They are called Crunchy Nutella Cookie Sandwiches.  While having insomnia this past weekend, due to a sinus infection, I was watching a late night cooking show on the Oprah network, called Ambush Cook.  They made these delicious looking cookies, and I just knew I had to make them too.

First you start with these amazing wafer thin crunchy sugary/oatmealy cookies

Then you spread yummy Nutella between two of the cookies.

And you get this...

Pure Heaven!!  And the amazing thing, I had never had Nutella before this.  Me being such a chocolate lover, had never tried it before now, but Now, it will be a staple in our pantry for sure.

TEDDY BEAR RACE CARS

The Thursday before Easter was the last day of school before Spring Break, so I thought I would send Luke to school with a little treat for his classmates. I saw these on Pinterest, and knew they would be perfect.... Teddy Bear Race Cars

So simple... fun size Milky Ways, Teddy Grahams and M&Ms

I melted a few chocolate chips to use as glue for attaching the M&M wheels to the Milky Way car. I made sure each car had all the same color wheels, and I made sure all the Teddy Grahams were the same shape. To put the Teddy Grahams into the Milky Way, I first cut a little slit before pushing them in. Reason being, the first one that I did (without the slit) caused the candy bar to get slightly crushed from the pushing.

I was able to save money by getting my candy at the Dollar General. They have little $1 packs that each have either (6) fun size Milky Way or (6) fun size M&M packs. I bought (2) Milky Way ones and (2) M&M ones (I was worried that I wouldn't be able to get all 10 cars with matching wheels if I only bought (1) of the M&M's - but I ended up only needing one). So for $4, I got all the candy I needed for the price of one big bag of Milky Way.

According to Luke's teacher, they were a HUGE hit!! And, since they are so simple, and I know I can get the candy pretty inexpensively, and I usually have chocolate chips and Teddy Grahams on hand, I can make these cute little treats for my boys whenever I want. AND... it's probably something, they can even make themselves.

SINFULLY DELICIOUS

If you want to be TOTALLY BAD and Indulge in a completely Decadent Treat, then you have to bake up some of these...

Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

OH. MY. GOODNESS!!!!

Go visit Becky Bakes for the recipe. It is VERY easy, and to be honest, even if it was Hard, they would be Totally worth it!!!

A NEW APRON AND PEANUT BUTTER CUP COOKIES

Thanksgiving is in two days (Wow, where has the year gone?) This year, we are spending the holiday with good friends of ours, the Myers. I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am about that. Last year, it was just the four of us, which was wonderful, but it's SO nice to be able to share the day with such great friends. Tomorrow night, another couple of our friends are hosting Happy Hour for those of us who are staying in the hood. They're smoking a briskette (sp?), so I thought I'd bring something sweet. (I'm also responsible for all desserts for Turkey Day - I'll be baking ALL afternoon tomorrow). So since tomorrow will be consumed with Turkey Day treats, I baked Happy Hour treats today.

First, I donned my new Apron. I want to thank Larissa at Just Another Day in Paradise for the inspiration. She blogged about her new apron that she made out of a placemat from Walmart. I had seen those same placemats and thought they were really pretty. After seeing her post, I went back to get one. To my delight, they were on clearance, and I got mine for $1.50. I came home, added some ribbon for the tie, and Voila... A new Apron.

Before I started baking, I solicited some help.

I outfitted my 3 year old, Luke, with his own apron and put him to work.

His help lasted until I started using the mixer. He's not a fan of loud noises. I know, a mixer's not loud, but I guess to him it was.

We made Peanut Butter Cup Cookies. I want to thank Amy at The Idea Room for the recipe.

They were super easy, with the most time consuming part being cutting up the PB cups.

I thought I would share the recipe with you. You could easily whip some up for this holiday weekend.

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup dark brown sugar ( I don't think mine was "dark")

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 12-once package of small peanut butter cups - chopped into quarters

Directions:

Heat oven to 375

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper (I didn't do this)

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt

Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugars until creamy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat to combine. Gradually add the flour mixture, mixing until just incorporated.

Fold in the peanut butter cups.

Drop tablespoon-size mounds of dough 2" apart onto the baking sheets

Bake for 9 minutes (the original recipe said to bake for 12-15 minutes - mine at 9 minutes were perfect. I think 12-15 to burn them)

Yields about 3 dozen

Hope you try them. They're Yummy!!

SALTED CARAMEL CUPCAKES

YUMMMMMMMM............

Sea Salt, Caramel, German Chocolate, Toffee Bits & Buttercream Frosting... Do I need to say more? This combination is Absolute Perfection!!!

I saw the recipe for these delectable treats a few months ago, via one of the many Linky Parties I visit on a regular basis. Yesterday, I was having a SERIOUS craving for something sweet, so I thought it was about time to whip up a batch.

Thank you to a fellow Virginian at Me and My Pink Mixer for introducing me to this scrumptious little dessert.

If you would like to try to make these for your selves (and maybe share with others), go here for the Cupcake recipe and here for the Buttercream Frosting recipe. They are VERY easy to make and I guarantee they will make you Happy.

A YUMMY "THANK YOU"

On Monday of this week, two of our friends helped me in a BIG way!! The new Gorilla "Playset" ("Jungle Gym" to us older folk) that we ordered for our boys, was delivered. Since it was delivered (in the rain BTW) while my husband was at work, two of our friends, Jim Usas and Keith Myers, were kind enough to come and help me out. Once the work was done, I gave them both a big hug and told them I would be baking them cupcakes as a thank you.

Then, I had a better idea...

Just a little back-story... earlier this year, I was seriously craving a Sugar Cream Pie. It's a dessert that I enjoyed while growing up, and I hadn't had one in a LONG time. Then much to my delight, I opened my new issue of Country Living (sorry, I can't remember what month) and there it was - a recipe for "Hoosier Sugar Cream Pie". It was definitely a sign, since I am a Hoosier born and bred. I made one back then for my Bunco friends, and they all really enjoyed it, so I thought it would be perfect for this occasion.

So instead of cupcakes for Jim and Keith, I decided to bake two Hoosier Sugar Cream Pies.

I gathered all the needed ingredients.

I then combined ALL the ingredients.

Then mixed them.

Then poured them into the pie-crusts, and...

sprinkled them with sugar and cinnamon.

After about an hour (can you imagine how absolutely yummy my house smelled?), I took them out of the oven and...

let them cool on wire racks. Good thing I put them on a cookie sheet, since one of them spilled over a little bit.

Now, you know me, I couldn't just show up with a plain pie. While the pies were cooling, I did a little paper crafting on my Cricut.

All ready for delivery.

I delivered them last night right after dinner so Jim and Keith and their families would have a yummy dessert.

Now here's the recipe if you want to make this pure Yumminess...

2 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus 3 tbs for sprinkling

1/2 cup whole milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 (9") store-bought piecrust

(**note - I didn't pay close attention to this particular ingredient and bought a 9" pre-made graham cracker pie crust. If I were to do it again, I would probably still buy the graham cracker pie crust, but 10" rather than 9".)

1 tbs unsalted butter

(**note - since I bought the wrong pie crust, I didn't need butter)

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. For filling: In a medium bowl, combine heavy cream, flour, brown sugar, 1/2 cup of sugar, milk and vanilla.

2. Fit crust into a 9" pie pan and dot bottom with butter. Pour filling into crust. Combine cinnamon and remaining 3 tbs of sugar to sprinkle on top. Bake pie until set and center is firm to touch, about 1 hour. Cool on a wire rack.

Hope you try it. It's so very easy, and so very delicious.

I'm linking up here... go check it out to see all the other great ideas.

Update: 10.7.10... This post was featured by Jen at Tatertots & Jello...

Yeah Me!!!