sept six

50mm     ISO800     f/2.8     1/160     8:38PM     9/6/17

Why the picture of the dirty kitchen?  Because I totally forgot about the challenge and was feeling the need for something sweet.  I've been dizzy and sick all day and some shortbread and cinnamon whipped cream was just what the "doctor" ordered.  But honestly, the more I look at this picture the more I like it.  The is my apartment, aka, "The 6."  This is real life.  This is a part of MY life I don't want to forget.  Late nights, random baking adventures, piles of dishes sometimes, and so much heat put off by this old gas stove that the flat mate and I have decided we won't need any heat this winter. :)

#shootforyou

Mississippi Mud Pie

We went over to a friend's house on Friday.  That happens about once a year.  Just saying.  Big families don't usually get asked over.  It's a lot of food and dishes.  So this was pretty cool.  We offered to bring a dessert, and I volunteered to make it.  So this happened.  It was pretty awesome.

We had made chocolate pudding the night before with a nifty homemade mix and had lot's extra so I decided to make something with that.  Originally I was thinking a French silk pie so I google recipes and this version of the traditional Mississippi Mud Pie resulted.

Dark chocolate shavings

Real whip cream

Chocolate pudding

Brownies

Oreos

Uh huh.  Yeah, if you ate a piece the size you see in the pictures I'm pretty sure you'd die. It is incredibly rich and oh so yummy!

1. Put a package of oreos in your food processor and grind them up.  Press into the bottom of a greased 10 inch spring-form pan.

2. Make up a fudge brownie mix and pour over the oreos.  Bake per box instructions.  It will take a deal longer that it says though.  Test with a toothpick and take out when baked batter is sticking to it (not dripping batter)

3. Let is cool!

4. Spread your chocolate pudding over it.

5. Whip just over a cup of heavy cream till it forms soft peaks.  Add 2 Tb of white sugar and beat into stiff peaks.

6. Spread whip cream carefully over the pudding.

7. Shave chocolate evenly over the top and refrigerate for at least an hour.

8. Eat. But not too much. :-)

Breadsticks

A couple months ago I made dinner. Yes, that is how behind I am in blogging. :-)  Anyway, I needed to something other than school, so I made dinner.  Fettucini Alfredo with grilled chicken, a salad, and breadsticks, in case you were wondering.

At our house we use leftover pizza dough to make breadsticks.  Our favorite recipe in Wolfgang Puck's.  You can find it on Martha Stewart here.  It makes fabulous pizzas too, by the way.

Dough on the paddle

Roll out your chilled dough and spread butter or olive oil lightly with a pastry brush.  Sprinkle with garlic salt and parmesan cheese and any of your other favorite Italian spices.

 Finished

 Use a ravioli roller knife or a pizza cutter to cut the dough into strips.  Just like pizza, I cook the breadsticks on a stone at 400º F for around 8 minutes.  It isn't a science, and it tastes so good.  Go ahead and try it!

Eat them by themselves or with marinara straight out of the oven.  Mmmmm.

For culinary artists...

     For those of you who are chefs/bakers/cooks in the making, here is an idea for you.  While in Atlanta we went to an italian restaurant.  We had cannolis for dessert, and look how they served them!  There was a sort of chocolate spider web sprinkled with powdered sugar, then they stacked the cannolis.  Lets just be honest here.  Even if it is the most delicious meal in the whole world, it won't be very appealing unless it looks good.  Sight is a big part of our lives.  You may have to cleanest room ever, but if its disorganized, it still looks awful.   

Sorry about the terrible lighting.

Austrian Cream Cookies

   Mrs. Anna at Pleasant View Schoolhouse had a recipe for these lovely cookies on her blog, and I decided to make them.  For 5 minutes after my family tried them all I heard was "mmmmm,  wow.   mmmmm, wow."  They liked them enormously. :)  Try it out and tell me how your family likes them!

Beat 2 eggs until light.

Blend in 1 c. sugar

and 1 c. cream.

Mix in 3 3/4 c. flour

1 T. baking powder

and 1 t. salt.

Chill for an hour.

Roll out to 3/8 inch thick on floured board, then cut into 2" squares. Use the back of a knife blade to press a tic-tac-toe design onto the top of each cookie. 

Grease the baking sheet and bake at 375 for 10-13 minutes.

Frost with a dab of buttercream and garnish with strawberry slices, or a tiny lemon twist and a mint leaf, or a single perfect raspberry . . . .

(from the Betty Crocker Cooky Book 1963)

Atlanta Trip part 3

Day 3.5:

     After Dialog in the dark, everyone feels like some ice cream, so we cross the street.  There was at total of 24 flavors, plus every kind of goodie and fudge you can imagine.  Has you ever had coconut ice cream?  Its really good!  But then, I like just about everything coconut.   Peanut butter ice cream is really good too.

Here is somebody's ice cream

And a lovely picture of me. (sarcasm)

Most of the rest of our family.

And the Duffs.

They have some really cool light fixtures, don't they?

     As we were heading out the door we stopped to watch this guy make waffle cones and waffle bowls.  It really is very simple, but you need a special waffle iron.  Turns out, he is a christian named John.  He has been trying to set up outdoor prayer meetings in the area for some time.  Well, we didn't actually leave till about 20 minutes, and 4 waffles, later.

Anslee with her waffle

John with the waffles

Recipe of the Week

Our Recipe for this week is 

Grandma Judy’s Blueberry Buffalo

Ingredients

Batter

• ¾ cup sugar

• ¼ cup soft shortening (crisco)

• 1 egg

• ½ cup milk

• 2 cup flour

• 2 teaspoon baking powder

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 1 teaspoon vanilla

• 2 cups fresh blueberries

Topping

• ⅔ cups sugar

• ⅓ cup flour

• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

• ¼ cup butter or oleo

Directions

1. Thoroughly mix sugar, shortening, and egg together.

2. Then stir in the milk.

3. In separate bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, and salt.

4. Then add both together.

5. Add vanilla and blend in the blueberries.

6. In separate bowl, mix all of the topping ingredients.

7. Spread the batter in greased and floured 9x13 pan.  Sprinkle with the topping, and bake at 375° for 35 minutes.  Take out when toothpick comes out clean.

Pictures from Lake Miltona

Hot dog cookout,

Burgers,

And Smores! Yum!

My very own Cookbook!

   I am going to start my very own noteworthy cookbook.  I found this neat site that will bind your cookbook for you and make it look very professional, here is the site.  Every week I will post a sensational new recipe.  For this week I will post "5 Minute Artisan Bread".  This flavorful recipe is courtesy of my Grandma Marilyn.

5 Minute Artisan Bread

Ingredients

Makes 4 Round loaves

• 1 ½ Tablespoon yeast

• 1 ½ Tablespoon Kosher salt

• 3 cups luke warm water

• 6 ½  cups unbleached flour

Directions

1. In a bowl, mix all ingredients, DO NOT KNEAD.  Dough will be loose.

2. Let rise.

3. Put in a plastic bag and chill in refrigerator for 1 day to 2 weeks.

4. When needed, take out a ¼ of the dough.  Knead, and maneuver  in to a round loaf, with rounded top.  Let rise.

5. Preheat oven to 450°.  Put 1 cup of water in a broiler pan on the bottom rack.  Put pizza stone on top rack.

6. Sprinkle pizza stone with cornmeal, and top of loaf with flour.

7. Bake bread for 30 minutes.

8. Let cool.  Slice and serve with butter or an oil, salt, and pepper mixture.

*Bread may be made the same day, but it must be chilled for at least a little bit.  The longer it chills, the better it turns out.

Bon Appetite!

Vacation 2

In Philadelphia we were very privileged to have our own tour guide, Mr. K. He has a history major and made Philadelphia very interesting. He also accompanied us to Valley Forge. Valley Forge is where George Washington and his men camped during the winter for 1777. Valley Forge is huge, it was picked because of the ease with which they (the colonists) could watch the the british (who were down in Philadelphia). This winter was not the coldest winter, but because of the lack of supplies and disease, Washington lost over half of his 12,000 men. Later, in the spring, Baron Frierich von Steuben came from Europe and drilled the lagging group of men into a well working army. There is a statute of his likeness now erected in Valley Forge to remember him. In Philadelphia we went to one of the first cheese-steak stands, it is called "Pats Steaks". People say it is the best. They were pretty good. Part of a movie was filmed at Pats, it was "Rocky". There was a plaque on the floor showing where he stood. After that we went to see the Liberty Bell. The Liberty bell was really cool. But I never realized how small it actually is. Well, it isn't that small, but I always that that it was gigantic!

Here are some more pictures!

An original "Philly Cheese-Steak"

Order line

Emmy

Lunchtime!

(the Organizingmommy:

http://organizedeveryday.blogspot.com/ )

Have you tried parking in Philadelphia?

The Liberty Bell

Centennial bell in Independence Hall.

Independence Hall

Statute on Philly.

The valley of Valley Forge

Welcome center

Hudsonhornet and statute of George Washington.

Helping with the building.

A remake of one of the cabins George Washington's men would have built.

Family in one of the cabins.

Emmy