Family Update: March Edition

March has been a busy month for us - but then, I can't really think of a non-busy month. 

Corban won 2nd place in the Pinewood Derby at our church.  He was super excited, as this is his 4th year participating and the first time he won a trophy for speed.  (last year he won first place for workmanship). 

Corban with the 3rd-5th grade boys he raced against. 

This was the birthday card Corban made for grandma - I thought it was so cute, I had to take a picture of it so we could remember it.

 Ellia has some of the cutest expressions - even when she has pie on her face.  She was "helping" me with taking photos of our Mixed Berry Pie that we had for Pi Day. 

I finally got Miranda in for her (4 month) check up last week (she's 5-1/2 months old) and

she was 27-1/2 inches long (off the charts) and 17.1 lbs. (90th percentile).

She's a big girl!  She has the most delightful little chubs!  She's very strong and can even sit unsupported for awhile, but you do have to watch her because she can topple over in the blink of an eye.

 LOVE this baby!!

With the nice weather and opportunities for playing outside, Annika has mastered riding her bike with no training wheels!  She is still working on turning corners without putting her feet down, but she's made huge progress and is so proud of herself. 



Marissa lost her second tooth, just in the nick of time because that permanent one has been coming in really fast.

She and Annika had their last ballet class, which they loved.  Marissa can't wait for us to sign her up for classes again, but we're taking off for the rest of the spring because the three older kids have just started soccer. 

We got to visit the zoo with our best friends and had such a great time.  I am super thankful for our double jogging stroller, which makes toting around a toddler and an infant a breeze.

It sure is a pain to fold up and get into the van, though.  You should have seen me fighting with it in the parking lot as we were trying to leave - somehow I forgot how to get it to fit and ....yeah.....it wasn't pretty for a few minutes there.

All of the kiddos (minus Miranda) of our two families - combined we have 11 children! 

Marissa, Ellia, and Annika

Annika and Marissa with Essie - Friends Forever! 

Lemon Poppyseed Muffins

I adore lemon flavored treats.

Lemon pie, lemon bars, lemon cake, lemonade - I mean, what's not to like?
(according to Grant, there's no chocolate, that's what's not to like.)


So recently I stocked up on a few lemons and made lemon muffins.  As much as I desperately wanted to like the recipe the first go-around, they were too dry and dense for me.  I altered the recipe a bit, adding more oil, (coconut oil is so good for you, I refuse to feel guilty about it!) less sugar, a lower baking temperature, and of course, using mostly freshly ground whole wheat flour.

The result the second time?  A delightfully wonderful, tender muffin bursting with flavor, nearly like a cupcake really.
Even Grant thought they were delicious.
And that's saying something from Mr. Chocolate.

Recipe: (adapted from This Chick Cooks)
Yield: 18 muffins

1/2 cup oil (I used melted coconut oil) or softened butter
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 T. poppyseeds
1-1/3 cup plain yogurt
4 T. lemon juice (or grated rind and juice of 1 large lemon)
2 cups white whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 t. baking soda
1T. baking powder
1/2 t. salt


Glaze:
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 t. lemon juice
2-3 t. milk


Preheat oven to 350°.
In a mixing bowl, cream oil and sugar together well.  Add eggs one a time, blending well after each addition.  Add the poppyseeds, yogurt, and lemon juice with grated rind.  Stir well.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flours, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Add slowly to the creamed mixture, stirring just until combined. Do not overmix!
Fill greased or paper-lined muffin tins about 2/3 full.  Bake at 350° for 14-17 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of muffins comes out clean.
Allow to cool for a couple of minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool more.

Combine the glaze ingredients in a small bowl.  Add the lemon juice to the powdered sugar first, then add milk gradually until you get the consistency you want.  If it's too thin, you can thicken the glaze with more powdered sugar- if it's too thick, just add a few drops of milk at a time. Drizzle over cooled muffins. If the muffins are still warm, it's okay, but the glaze will likely run off easier and be a bit messy to eat.  We ate them so fast, it didn't really matter.


Linked to Trick or Treat Tuesday

Celebrating my 4th Blogiversary with Caramel Cake

I wrote my first blog post four years ago today.

I had no idea really what would happen with it or if anyone other than my parents and in-laws would read it.

To be honest, I was a little afraid of anyone other than family reading it.

Yes, and I was even more afraid that nobody would read or care. 

Ha. 

Back then, I had only three kids.  Ages 4, 2, and 6 months.  

Life has changed a bit since then. 

I've had some really dry months of posting nearly nothing - because of severe morning sickness or adjusting to new babies.  I've taken some really terrible photos and they're still on here, because I'm forgetful about updating stuff.  And it is kind of funny to see how far I've come in my food photography, even though there is still SO much further to go.

I've discovered that I really enjoy blogging  - trying new recipes, sharing them with others, "meeting" new people who share similar interests and live in places I've never been and probably never will go.

Blogging is an important part of my life, so to celebrate 4 years of it, I made a cake.

I had a hard time deciding what kind of cake to bake for the occasion.  We're always huge chocolate fans, and as much as recipes like this and this were calling my name, I just kept wanting to make something with caramel. 

A homemade caramel cake.  Yes. That would do.

After all, my own birthday is coming up in a couple of weeks and I can always make something decadently chocolate then. 

This Caramel Cake features a really nice yellow cake, which is moist and flavorful and not too crumbly, yet solid enough to hold up to a rather thick frosting.  The caramel frosting is very rich and sweet - almost too much so, but since I have a ridiculously strong sweet tooth, that didn't bother me.  I love the homemade caramel flavor so much, I can eat it by the spoonful. 

Note 1: If you don't have dark brown sugar on hand (like I never do), you can make light brown sugar into dark just by adding molasses!  Add 1 Tablespoon molasses for each cup of brown sugar.  Just mash it around with a fork until well combined and not lumpy. 

Note 2: If you don't keep cake flour on hand (like I never do), you can measure out your all-purpose flour as directed, then remove 2 Tablespoons of flour for each cup of flour, and replace it with 2 Tablespoons of cornstarch, then sift it all together three or four times.  More if you have the time.  It makes a lighter textured cake than all-purpose flour. 

Recipe: (from A Well-Seasoned Life)

1 (8 oz) container sour cream

1/4 cup milk

1 cup butter, softened

2 cups sugar

4 large eggs

2-3/4 cups all-purpose flour or cake flour (I recommend cake flour)

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. vanilla extract

Frosting:

1 cup unsalted butter

2 cups firmly packed brown sugar

1/4  cup plus 2 T. whipping cream

2 tsp. vanilla extract

3-3/4 cups powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350°.  Combine sour cream and milk.  Set aside.

Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy.  Gradually add sugar, beating well.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating until blended after each addition. 

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; add to butter mixture alternately with sour cream mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.  Beat at medium-low speed until blended after each addition.  Stir in vanilla.  Pour batter into two greased and floured 9-inch round cake pans.

Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes.  Remove from pans to wire racks and let cool completely.

Prepare frosting:

Melt butter in a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat.  Add brown sugar; bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  Keep at a full rolling boil for 1 minute.  Stir in cream and vanilla and bring back to a boil.  Boil for another minute.  Remove from heat and add vanilla.  Cool for one hour.  Transfer to a mixing bowl. 

Sift powdered sugar into frosting.  Beat at high speed with an electric mixer until creamy and spreading consistency.

Spread frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake.  If you want, reserve a little frosting to pipe on decorative swirls.

Garnish as desired. 

Linked to Trick or Treat Tuesday.

Homemade Oreos

Yum.
Yum.
Yum!

This cookies were a big hit with my family and with Marissa's Wed. night class at church.  The cookies aren't exactly as crisp as real Oreos, but they're very chocolatey and slightly crunchy.  The creamy frosting is a perfect sweet accent to the cookies. 

I debated whether or not to make some chocolate or even some peanut butter frosting also, both of which I'm sure would be fabulous - but ended up with just vanilla frosting this time. 

That's okay.
There's always next time!


Recipe: from My Kitchen Addiction
(makes approximately 3 dozen sandwich cookies)

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened (I used salted and decreased the salt called for later)
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup Hershey's Special Dark cocoa powder (or dutch process cocoa powder)
1-1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt

Filling:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
2 T. cream or milk
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
3 cups powdered sugar, sifted to remove lumps

Begin by preparing the cookies.  Combine the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl, and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy.  Add the egg and vanilla, and beat until well incorporated.

Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt.  Gradually add the dry mixture to the creamed mixture, beating on the lowest speed.  Continue to mix on the lowest setting until the dry ingredients are just incorporated.

Divide the dough in half, and shape into two discs.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.

When the dough is chilled, preheat the oven to 350°.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a baking mat.  Set aside.
Taking only one portion of dough out of the fridge at a time, turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface.  Roll the dough to a 1/8 - 1/4-inch thickness.  Use a cookie cutter to cut out cookies and transfer them to the prepared baking sheet.
Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes, or until set.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Once the cookies are cooled, prepare the filling.  Combine the softened butter, cream, vanilla, and salt and beat until combined.  The mixture may be a bit lumpy, but will come together.  Add the powdered sugar gradually, approximately 1/2 cup at a time, until the filling comes together.  It will be slightly stiffer than a cupcake frosting.

Transfer the filling to a piping bag fitted with a large round tip.  Pipe the filling onto half of the cookies and top with the remaining cookies to form cookie sandwiches.

Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

Another dessert that I made for a festivity on St. Patrick's Day - which ended up getting cancelled. (a disappointment, but hey, when it's rescheduled I'll get another chance to try out a new recipe!!)

I made them as miniature cupcakes  because there were lots of kids expected at the party and little kids just like to lick off the frosting and toss the cake...or just take one bite, then toss the cake....or stick their fingers all over it, then toss the cake......if you've ever been to a child's birthday party, you know what I'm talking about.  

I figured with mini-cupcakes, I could minimize the loss of  delicious cake
I know there are some folks out there who don't like the chocolate/mint combo, but none of them live in this house. I guess if you add too much mint, you could end up with cupcakes that ended up tasting like toothpaste, and that would be less than appetizing, but with just a touch of flavor in there, it takes tasty but ordinary chocolate cupcakes and makes them into something memorable.

If you even saw how easily we put away a batch of these cupcakes.  It's almost embarrassing.
At least we were able to share some of them and give some away.

See, the problem with miniature cupcakes like these is that you can take just one, intending to have portion control and all that, but it's gone in about two seconds and you want to have at least eight more.  And since there's so many of them, no-one will notice if you just happen to take another one.

Recipe: cupcakes adapted from Martha Stewart, idea from Tracy's Culinary Adventures
Yield: according to Martha, 18-24 standard cupcakes.  I made one and a half times this recipe and got 104 miniature cupcakes.

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I used mostly Hershey's Dark Cocoa
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 cups sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup warm water
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons coconut oil, melted (or other preferred oil)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon mint extract (omit if you want just chocolate cupcakes)
Andes Baking Chips, optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard or miniature muffin tins with paper liners; set aside. Sift together cocoa powder, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Add eggs, warm water, buttermilk, oil, vanilla, and mint extract, and mix until smooth, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl to assure batter is well mixed.

Divide batter evenly among muffin cups, filling each 2/3 full. Sprinkle the tops of cupcakes with Andes Baking Chips if desired.  Bake standard cupcakes until tops spring back when touched, about 20 minutes, rotating pan once if needed. Bake miniature cupcakes 13-15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.

Frosting:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
2-3 T. cream or milk
1/2 of a (7 oz) container marshmallow fluff (optional)
1/4 tsp. mint extract (more if you like a lot of mint)
2 tsp. vanilla extract
Green food coloring (optional)
Semi-sweet chocolate chips or additional Andes Baking Chips, for garnish

In an electric mixer, beat butter until creamy.  Add powdered sugar gradually, alternating each cup with about a Tablespoon of milk or cream.  Add in marshmallow fluff if desired.  It's totally not essential, I just happened to have it on hand and added it.  It was delicious - but would be fine without it too.  
Add in extracts and green food coloring and beat until all is combined and frosting is desired consistency.
If you used unsalted butter, add a pinch of salt to enhance the flavor.  I used salted butter, so it wasn't necessary.  
Taste frosting and add more mint extract if you like.
Pipe onto cupcakes and garnish with chocolate chips or Andes Baking Chips.

Linked to Trick or Treat Tuesday

We met Ree!

About a month ago, I saw that Ree Drummond, aka the Pioneer Woman, was going on a book tour to promote her new cookbook.  I have been a fan of hers for at least three years now, not sure exactly.

I've featured several of her recipes on this blog, like Apple Fritters, Cheesy Green Bean Casserole, Chicken Spaghetti, Spicy Pulled Pork, and Iny's Prune Cake.

I have her first cookbook and love it, I've watched her on the Food Network, and I faithfully read her blog. 
I even won one of her giveaways a couple of years ago, much to my surprise.  I mean, when there are over 14,000 entries, you don't expect to win. 

But win I did, a $300 gift certificate to BlueQ.  Kind of a weird prize, I'd have much rather won a camera or mixer or Ipad  - she does those sort of giveaways too - but hey, you can't complain about winning!  I got some great re-usable shopping bags, shoulder bags, a beach bag, some lotions, water bottles, and similar gifts for my sisters, mom, mother-in-law, and sister-in-law for Christmas.  That was pretty awesome.
But the funnest part was seeing my name as a winner on her blog - I was so excited, all I could do was laugh. 

Anyways. Back to the book tour.  I saw that Ree was going to be in Virginia Beach on March 17.  That's definitely in my neck of the woods, at least a whole lot closer than D.C., where she stopped on her last book tour. 

Oh, I forgot to mention that Annika also has Ree's children's book, Charlie the Ranch Dog, which I got her for her birthday last year and she really enjoys.  So yesterday I packed up my two older girls and Miranda and off we went. 

We drove about 34 miles to the Books A Million and arrived about an hour before Ree was due to arrive.
Since most of my friends have no idea who the Pioneer Woman is when I mention her, I really had no idea how popular she is in this area and didn't know what to expect as far as crowds go. 

Well.

Apparently the Books A Million had been advertising her book-signing for awhile and had given out tickets the previous night for people to be first in line.  300 tickets, apparently they had given them all out within an hour.  Obviously I did not have a ticket. 

The folks with tickets were in line on the right side of the store, winding through the aisles.  The unfortunates like myself were being lined up on the left side of the store.  There were probably 75 people in front of me without tickets.

This wasn't looking so good.  In fact, it was downright grim. 
We still had an hour to wait before she even arrived......and then all those people in front of us. 

I sat down on the floor at the end of the aisle to nurse the baby.  It's not like the line would be moving for a few hours anyways.  She finished soon and I was talking with the girls when a middle-aged man walked past. (There were very few men in line, as a side note.  Those there were with their wives.)

He stopped and smiled at me and asked, "Would you like a ticket?" 
I was confused.  "What???"
"I have an extra ticket," he explained.  "I'm leaving and would like to give it to you."
"You are an angel!" I gasped.  "Thank you so so so much!!!"
He just smiled bigger and left.

So the girls and I moseyed right over to the right side of the store and got in line. There were very few ticketed people behind us, so I knew we had close to 300 people in front of us.  Still a long wait.

Little did I know.

4 hours total before we got to meet Ree.  That's right...FOUR hours standing in line holding a baby who refused to be put down in her stroller and trying to entertain a six year old and a four year old who were getting tired and bored and hungry. 

We had some nice conversations with the ladies in line around us and tried to make the best of the situation. Around 4:30, the girls started begging me to go home.  No WAY!   I mean, once you've driven for 45 minutes and stood in line for a few hours, you just can't leave when there's only 30 minutes left till you get what you came for.

Ree was lovely.  She oohed over Miranda's little bare toes and hugged the girls and when she signed Annika's book, she wrote," Love to Annika  from Ree and Charlie" and drew a little paw print.  It's super cute. 
I wish we could have had more time to chat.....but I'm sure the rest of the waiting crowd wanted us to keep moving.

So we did it.  I'm glad we did, and I'm glad it's over.

Triple Layer Fudgy Mint Cookie Brownies

Grant had a potluck at work today and I used that as an opportunity to try another new recipe - one that I could sample a bit of but not have the whole pan around tempting me.  Good thing. 

These things are ridiculous. 

Almost gooey, chocolatey brownies with a minty marshmallow swirl and the crunch of chocolate mint cookies, topped with a fabulous jazzed up buttercream with white chocolate, topped with more cookies. 

How could you go wrong with that?

The original recipe called for Mint Oreos, which I'm sure are just fabulous, but I didn't find any on my grocery trip, so I settled for Grasshopper Mint Cookies.  Regular oreos could also be used, with or without the mint, if you so desire. I definitely liked the Grasshopper Cookies, though.  They add a nice, subtle mint flavor without being overwhelming.  And the extra chocolate doesn't hurt, either.

I'm told these were quite popular at the potluck and there were several requests for the recipe, so that's always a good thing. 

I don't know if mint is a traditional Irish flavor or not, but the green makes these a festive option for St. Patrick's Day for sure.  But honestly, who needs a holiday to make a crowd-pleasing dessert? 

Heaven knows I don't!

Recipe: adapted slightly from Love Veggies and Yoga

4 ounces baking chocolate (4 squares Baker's Semisweet Chocolate)
3/4 cup butter
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 package Grasshopper (chocolate mint) cookies OR 12 Cool Mint Oreos, crumbled
1 7-oz jar marshmallow fluff
1/8 tsp. mint extract
Green food coloring, if desired

Frosting:
1 cup white chocolate chips
1/2 cup butter, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2-3 T. milk or cream
1/2 package Grasshopper Cookies

Preheat oven to 350°.
Line a 13 x 9" pan with foil and butter well. Set aside.
In a microwave safe bowl, heat chocolate and butter for about 90 seconds, or until butter is melted.  Stir and heat a few seconds more to finish melting chocolate if necesssary.  Add sugar and stir.  Mixture will be grainy - that's okay.  Add eggs and vanilla and whisk well.  Add in flour, and mix until incorporated. Add in crumbled cookies. Pour into prepared pan.
In a separate bowl, mix marshmallow fluff, mint extract, and a few drops of green food coloring.  Drop 1/2 cup of this mixture by spoonfuls over brownies. (the rest of the marshmallow fluff is saved for the frosting.)  Swirl with a knife to get a marbled effect. 
Bake for 23-25 minutes, or until brownies are set. 
Cool completely.

To prepare frosting, begin by melting the white chocolate chips in the microwave.  Do it in 30 second increments, as white chocolate can scorch easily.  Be sure to stir every time, as chips can appear still solid but actually can be stirred smooth.
With an electric mixer, beat butter until creamy.  Add in powdered sugar gradually, mixing until combined. Add in vanilla and milk, beating to a smooth and very creamy frosting.  Add the melted white chocolate chips and the remaining marshmallow fluff mixture.
Tint with more green food coloring, if desired.
Spread over cooled brownies. 
Crumble remaining Grasshopper Cookies (I did all but about 5) over the brownies and press in gently.
Refrigerate until slightly firm. 

Bars store best in the refrigerator and are delicious cold or room temperature. 

Linked to Finding Joy in my Kitchen