My First Blogger Award!

(With a look of amazement and delight!)

Uh...oh my....I wasn't expecting this and I have no speech prepared. (Wiping away the tears.) Okay, I hope I can remember all of the people I want to thank.

First, I would like to thank the lovely and talented Susan of Baking With Susan for awarding me the (Bald Faced Liar) Creative Writer Award.

If you haven't visited Susan's blog, please take the time to do so. She's funny, generous and bakes the most beautiful cakes!

Second, I want to congratulate the other bloggers who received this award. You'll find them listed here.

Okay, okay, let's see who I am forgetting? Oh my gosh...my husband, Tim. He's my very patient and talented photographer, recipe tester and all around great husband.

I probably should thank some teacher from the dark ages when I was in grade school. So long ago, I can't remember her name. I am sure she encouraged me to enjoy writing.

Now on to the rules of this award.

1. Thank the person who gave you the award.
2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog.
3. Link to the person who nominated you.
4. Tell us up to six outrageous lies about yourself and at least one outrageous truth.
5. Allow your readers to guess which one or more is true.
6. Nominate seven "Creative Writers" who might have fun coming up with outrageous lies.
7. Post links to the seven blogs you nominate.
8. Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know you nominated them.

As you read my lies or truths, they may not sound as outrageous as some but trust me, some of these are really OUTRAGEOUS!!!

1. I am a natural blonde.
2. I have driven an 18 wheeler from New York to Los Angeles.
3. I competed in a triathalon in Hawaii in 2006.
4. I have fired 9mm and 40 caliber pistols.
5. I am a size 4.
6. I've written a self help book entitled Help Yourself, No One Else Will.

Now the difficult decision of naming the seven blogs I would like to nominate for this award....

1. Candace of Candy Girl
2. Natalia of gatti fili e farina.
3. Velva of Tomatoes on the Vine.
4. Nina of Nina's Cupcakes
5. Karen of Karen's Cookies, Cakes and More.
6. Sarah of Teapots and Cakestands
7. Maggie of The Other Side of 50. This one is a double nomination. Maggie was already nominated by Linda, who nominated Susan, who nominated me. Got that?

If you haven't stopped by these blogs, find the time to do so. I promise you won't be sorry you did!! They are all talented writers and creative cooks!

Smores Cupcakes - Martha Stewart Cupcake Club

Blogging certainly takes committment. In my case, it also takes a wonderful husband. Tim is my photographer, taste tester and never minds when we have to hold up dinner to take pictures of a dish. Thanks, Tim for all you do!!

Last Saturday, after a long day of shopping and errands, I remembered I needed the graham flour for this recipe. Tim thought we were headed home but instead we were headed to Whole Foods. Omaha only has one Whole Foods and it's always crowded. After two circles around the parking lot, we finally find a spot. First we head to the bulk foods section...no graham flour, then to the flour aisle...no graham flour. The trip isn't a total loss, we walk through the cheese section and taste some wine and cheese. We tasted a robusto cheese. It was so delicious.

Figuring I would use the whole wheat flour I had in the freezer, I went to the freezer to dig it out. Only to discover it was WHOLE WHEAT GRAHAM FLOUR!! Sorry, Tim!

We had too many sweets in the house, so I cut this recipe in half and in half again. It made 6 cupcakes.

I love Smores. They remind me of campfires and childhood. How do you like your marshmallow? As a kid, I always burned mine. Now I can take the time to just toast them until golden. Cake decorating is on my list of things to learn this year. Until then, I don't own a piping bag, so needless to say, my frosting doesn't look at all like the frosting in the book. I did make a couple of these in honor of my childhood smores, a little burned!




I loved these cupcakes. They taste just like a Smore. Once I learn how to pipe frosting, I will be making these again. Thanks to Mary Ann from Meet Me in the Kitchen for choosing a great recipe. You can find the links to all of other Martha Stewart Cupcake Club bakers here.

Easy Chocolate Mousse - Sweet Melissa Sunday's

Happy Valentine's Day!

Quick post and iPhone picture for me today. We are in Kansas City with our good friends Karen and Larry!

Easy Chocolate Mousse? I guess it depends on how you define an easy recipe? To me, easy doesn't require three bowls and two different rounds with the mixer. I've never made chocolate mousse so maybe compared to other recipes this is easy.

Mine didn't quite turn out as it should have. Instead of whisking the egg whites into the chocolate I folded them in. I read the recipe SEVERAL times but still messed up. I hate it when that happens. My mousse ended up with little chunks of chocolate in the mousse. Everyone really liked it and we renamed it Chocolate Chip Mousse.



Thanks to Spike of Spike Bakes for choosing a great Valentine's Day recipe. You can find the links to all of the other Sweet Melissa Sunday's members here. I'm sure you'll find lots of pictures of beautiful chocolate chip mousse (without the chips).

Pasta, Risotto Style

Do we have a relationship built on trust? I hope so because you will need to trust me on this one. This dish tasted so much better than it looks. I love pasta and risotto. When I ran across this recipe, I knew it was one I had to try. I am so glad I did. It makes a quick and easy weeknight supper.

This recipe has endless posibilities, shrimp instead of chicken, adding broccoli or another vegetable. Broccoli would sure help add color to the dish, something it really needs. Next time I would add the chicken a little earlier. By the time the chicken was done, the pasta was a little too done. Although this recipe says it serves 4. My husband and I ate most of it. Also, it doesn't reheat well, so plan your amounts so you don't have lefovers.




Pasta With Chicken and Mushrooms, Risotto Style
Recipe from the New York Times

2 tablespoons olive oil, more as needed
1 shallot or small onion, chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 cups crimini, shiitake or button mushrooms, cleaned, trimmed and sliced
1/2 pound cut pasta like gemelli or penne, or long pasta broken into bits
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup dry white wine or water
3 to 4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
2 boneless chicken thighs, diced
Chopped fresh parsley, optional
Freshly grated Parmesan, optional.

1. Put 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium heat. When hot, add shallot, garlic and mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms soften and begin to brown on edges, about 10 minutes. Add pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until it is glossy and coated with oil, 2 to 3 minutes. Add a little salt and pepper, then wine. Stir and let liquid bubble away.

2. Ladle stock into skillet 1/2 cup or so at a time, stirring after each addition and every minute or so. When liquid is just about evaporated, add more. Mixture should be neither soupy nor dry. Keep heat at medium and stir frequently.

3. Begin tasting pasta 10 minutes after you add it; you want it to be tender but with a tiny bit of crunch. When pasta is about 3 to 4 minutes away from being done, add chicken and stir to combine. Continue to cook until chicken is done — it will be white on inside when cut — and pasta is how you like it. Taste, adjust seasoning, garnish with parsley and Parmesan if using, and serve.

Yield: 4 servings.

Outdoor Wednesday - Winter Snow

We've had more than our share of snow this year. To say people in Omaha are tired of winter would be an understatement.

Last week we received yet another snow. This snow was different from the other snows this season. It was really pretty. Early last Saturday morning my husband and I went to a lake near our home to take some photos. Here's one of our favorites!

I am linking this to Southern Daydreamer's Outdoor Wednesday's.

Baking Gals

In December I read Susan of Baking With Susan's post about Operation Baking Gals. Operation Baking Gals was started in 2008 by Susan of She's Becoming DoughMessTic. She asked her fellow bloggers to join her in baking for a cousin who was stationed overseas. Susan (Baking With Susan) has baked in 13 of 16 rounds. Way to go Susan!

A couple of week's ago I read Susan's post that she was hosting this round and looking for people to join her team. I signed up and joined her team. We're baking for Dan. Dan is the boyfriend of the grandaughter of a customer of Susan's and a 1st Lieutenant in Iraq.




I baked 6 dozen chocolate chip and 4 dozen oatmeal raisin. I also included a few bags of hard candies for the guys to enjoy. It made me feel so good to be able to do a little something for someone who sacrifices so much for our country.

I plan to bake in every round I can. If you have an extra afternoon and want to show a soldier how much you appreciate all they do, stop by BakingGals, sign up and join a team!

Super Bowl Sunday

Super Bowl Sunday, is there any other event where the hype is what it is for the Super Bowl? I had the endless hours of pregame coverage on, if nothing else as background noise while I was baking and doing laundry.

What's up with The Who as the halftime entertainment? Can you imagine how many people are watching saying "Who are The Who anyway?". The lightshow was awesome, the vocals...well what can I say?

Of course, there's the commercials. Amazing how many people watch for the commercials. What were your favorite commercials? I thought there were a lot of funny ones, no one in particular stood out.

A few that I liked were the Dog Collar Doritos, Mom's Date Doritos, Casual Friday Careeer Builder, Plane Crash Bud Light and Sock Monkey Kia.

Our Super Bowl snack....



Hooter's Buffalo Chicken Wings
Recipe from Top Secret Restaurant Recipes

1/4 c butter
1/4 c Frank's Red Hot Cayenne Sauce
1/2 c flour
1/4 t paprika
1/4 t cayenne pepper
1/4 t salt
10 chicken wing pieces

On the side

Blue cheese dressing
Celery Stick

Combine flour, paprika, cayenne pepper and salt in a small bowl. Put the wings into a large bowl and sprinkle the flour mixture over them, coating wings evenly. Put the wings in the refrigerator for 60 - 90 minutes. This will help the breading to stick to the wings when fried.

Heat oil in a deep fryer to 375 degrees. Combine the butter, hot sauce and garlic powder in a small saucepan over low heat. Heat until the butter is melted and all ingredients are well blended. Put the wings in the hot oil and fry for 8 - 10 minutes. Remove the wings from the oil to a paper towel to drain. Quickly put the wings into a large bowl. Add the hot sauce and stir, coating all wings evenly.

Serve with blue cheese and celery sticks on the side.