Friday, October 31, 2008

Halloween 2008

At work, my department always dresses up in some type of theme. This year, we had a 70s theme. Here we are all decked out:

The kids were Wolverine and Yellow Power Ranger. Unfortunately, this is the best picture I got of the two of them.
When we got home from trick-or-treating at my office and attending the Halloween Party there, PM went to football practice and DQ dressed in my in some of my costume.

Monday, October 27, 2008

Weekend baking

I had a full weekend of baking. Saturday morning, the kids begged for Cinnamon Sugar Donut Muffins.
Recipe from Baked Perfection

Cinnamon Sugar Donut Muffins

2 cups flour (I used 1 cup all-purpose flour and 1 cup whole wheat flour)
1 Tbsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
2 large eggs
1 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
4 tbsp oil
1 tsp vanilla

Topping:
1/2 stick butter, melted
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400-degrees F. Line a standard muffin pan with paper cups.

Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, yogurt, sugar, oil, and vanilla. Add flour mixture and mix with light strokes until the dry ingredients are just moistened. Do not overmix; batter will not be smooth.

Divide batter among the muffin cups and bake until a toothpick inserted in one or two of the muffins come out clean, 12-15 minutes.

While the muffins are baking, melt 1/2 stick butter and place in a bowl just large enough to hold a muffin. Combine ½ cup of sugar and 1 tsp. cinnamon in a small, shallow bowl. As soon as the muffing are done, dip them one at a time in the melted butter and then roll in the sugar mixture. Set on a rack to cool.

Yields 12 standard muffins.

Then, I made the dough and chilled it for the Candy Corn Cookies. Later, I cut them out. Here they are before going into the oven.
Just out of the oven cookies.
Then, I made Spiderweb cookies. Sorry, no pictures...

Sunday, I was in a baking mood again. So, yet another batch of Spiderweb cookies and Candy Corn Cookies were made.
Then, I decided to make Halloween Mud Bars too...
Recipe from Nestle

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) Nestle Toll-House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels, divided
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
  • Halloween candy corn
Directions:

PREHEAT oven to 375° F. Grease 9-inch-square baking pan.

COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat sugar, butter and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Beat in egg; gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in 1 1/4 cups morsels and nuts. Spread into prepared baking pan.

BAKE for 20 to 23 minutes. Remove pan to wire rack. Sprinkle with remaining morsels. Let stand for 5 minutes or until morsels are shiny; spread evenly. Top with candy corn. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Refrigerate for 5 to 10 minutes or until chocolate is set. Cut into bars.


Yummy!

Friday, October 24, 2008

Halloween Cookies?

Last year, I made these Spiderweb Cookies. This year, I want something different I think. These Candy Corn Cookies are completely adorable and I think I am going to give them a try tonight! I'll update whenever I get a chance.

We'll be busy this weekend. Saturday alone, BD has inventory, so I'll be on my own with the kiddos. We have a Halloween party at noon, have to be at the football field at 2, game at 3:30, Halloween Bash downtown at 5 and a Halloween Dance at 7. Phew! Somewhere between Saturday and Sunday, we need to get a pumpkin or two and carve them...

Thursday, October 23, 2008

DQ's first rose


For the cheer competition, the parents had the option of purchasing a flower for their girl. I gave DQ a rose. She loves it.



Friday, October 17, 2008

Lazy Friday

Here's a little something to tide you over until the next cute set of pictures...

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Girly Girl

DQ has altered between tomboy and girly girl. For a while now though, she has leaned more towards tomboy. She flat out refuses to wear tights. The only way I can get her to wear a dress is to force her to on Sundays.

This past weekend, she went to a birthday party that is a big tea party. The girls had manners lessons, lunch and dressed up. Here's my tomboy:

Oh, and guess where she wants her birthday party now... Yep, girly girl tea party!

Thursday, October 09, 2008

Beef Stroganoff

It has started to tease us with cooler weather here in the southeast. We will get a day here and there that actually feels like fall. I decided it was time to bust out the slow cooker and welcome fall. One of my families favorites in the crock-pot is Beef Stroganoff. Unfortunately, it is typically pretty high in calories, fat, well, everything! So, below is a recipe from Fix-It and Forget-It Lightly that I have used in the past.

Beef Stroganoff
Fix-It and Forget-It Lightly
1.5 lbs lean beef stewing meat, trimmed of fat
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 lb fresh mushrooms
10 3/4 oz can 98% fat-free cream of mushroom soup
1 cup water
1 cup fat-free sour cream
Egg Noodles

  1. Combine chopped onion, garlic, salt, black pepper and soup in slow cooker
  2. Add water, and then stir together, looks like a science project now.
  3. Add mushrooms and meat
  4. Stir together
  5. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Mine cooked for 8, then my slow cooker switched to "Warm" for me.
  6. Then, add sour cream and stir. About 2.5 hours after it switched to "Warm", and I added the sour cream, this is what it looked like.
  7. Bring water to a boil and cook egg noodles (here I am using the No-Yolks kind, but I prefer the wheat, BD bought the wrong ones) according to package directions.
  8. When finished, add noodles to slow cooker and stir all together.
    Yummy, doesn't this look great on a fall day!
    Ok, last one...
  9. Serve with a vegetable and, if you like, some type of bread. All I had was a can of corn, no fresh beans or anything! So, that's what the family got.
Oh, and you may be wondering about this perfect looking biscuit?
Let me say that looks are deceiving. I followed a recipe in a very old cookbook I had. These were awful. DQ ate hers, but it's carbs and bread, so unless I filled it with spinach, she would eat it. PM took a bite and said (and I quote), "Ewww, disgusting!" Nice, just what every mother wants to hear. So, no, you won't be getting the recipe for those! I'll have to find a nice, yummy, quick biscuit or dinner roll recipe, otherwise, it will be Pillsbury Grands from now on!

Nutritional Info
Per Serving (6 servings, doesn't include noodle info)
240 calories (70 calories from fat)
7g total fat (2.5g saturated, 0.5g trans)
75mg cholesterol
800mg sodium
15g total carbohydrate (1g fiber, 6g sugar)
27g protein

Wednesday, October 01, 2008

Sizes

So, as you already know, I have lost weight over the last years. I went from a perfect size 8 to a 2. Last winter, I bought about 5 pair of size 2 dress slacks for work. At the end of the winter, I had them dry cleaned and put them away for this year. While I thought I have stayed the same size from last winter to this winter, I just pulled them out to wear and am highly disappointed.

They are too big! ARGH!!! How can that be? I am not a size 0. I am not! Now, before you bash me for whining about being tiny, forget the actual number. Instead, just focus on the fact that my pants are too big again. I had to pin the side today. This just sucks. I really don't want to buy new pants again. But, I may just have too...