Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars

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I have this guilty little secret. It's pretty bad. Sometimes....how can I say this.....I use......Cake mix. Okay?! Cake mix! Because seriously, when I'm baking, my kids couldn't care less if it was made from scratch or from a mix. They just need to know it's sweet and it's there in a hurry. But to my credit, I refuse to use canned icing. That stuff is naaaaaassssttttyyyy! Homemade buttercream might take a little longer, but it's so worth it. So what is this leading up to? Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars, my dears. The base is cake mix. And they are good. Very good. And easy. Very easy. And these have the added pleasure of pecans and coconuts. A little unorthodox, but a totally delicious combination.

I adapted this recipe from The Cake Mix Doctor cookbook. (You can click HERE to go to that site.) I like this cookbook. I really do. It has some great recipes. But you know what? Cake mix cakes, no matter what you add to them, still taste like cake mix. I've added several different things to cake mix, and I can't really tell a difference, it still tastes like a cake mix. Does that make me a cake snob? Probably. Oh well. I like what I like.

I do recommend this book if you like to bake, because it has some really great bar cookie recipes in it. But for cakes, I think I'll stick to scratch made.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars adapted from the Cake Mix Doctor by Anne Byrne

1 package plain yellow cake mix

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 stick butter, melted

2 large eggs

1 12 oz. package chocolate chips

1 14oz. can sweetened condensed milk

2 tbsp butter

1 cup coconut

1 cup chopped pecans

2 tsp vanilla



Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Set aside an ungreased 13x9 pan.



Place the cake mix, peanut butter, melted butter, and eggs in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for one minute. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl. The mixture will be thick. Reserve 1 1/4 cups for the topping. Using your fingers, press the crust evenly over the bottom of of the pan so that it reaches all sides. Set aside.



For the filling, place the chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk and 2 tbsp butter into a microwavable bowl. Microwave on high power in 1 minute intervals, stirring each time. This should take about 3 minutes. When melted, stir in coconut, pecans and vanilla. Pour chocolate mixture over crust and spread with a spatula so that it reaches the side of the pan. Sprinkle over reserved topping.



Bake until light brown, 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. Makes 24 bars.



These will keep on the counter for 3 days, or up to a week in the refrigerator.

Bakerella's Lemon Bars

Have you ever been to Bakerella's web site? If not, leave here, and go directly to there! You just don't know what your missing! She makes the most wonderful cake pops, and decorates them in the cutest ways you've ever seen. She also make gorgeous cupcakes. And the pictures! I just love it! I'm also a tad bit jealous of her, because she got to go visit The Pioneer Woman and stay at the Lodge. Yeah.

She also has lots of recipes on her site. She posted one for lemon bars quite a while ago, and I've been wanting to try them ever since. I must say up front that lemons aren't one of my favorite foods. I love, love, love lemonade. But lemon flavored things not so much. I do like the taste of lemon in savory dishes, just not lemon desserts.

With that being said, I really liked these Lemon Bars! They were pretty easy to make, and they tasted so darn good! It was like really good lemonade in bar form. The only thing I did differently was not sprinkle any powdered sugar on them. I tried it on the first one I did, and it was a bit too sweet. I know, me, thinking something is too sweet. Will wonders never cease? So if you like lemon, or even if you only like it just a little bit, try these out. You'll be glad you did. :)

Lemon Bars adapted from Bakerella



Crust:
1 cup butter
1 3/4 cup flour
2/3 cup confectioner's sugar
Topping:
1 1/2 cup plain sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
Zest from 2 lemons

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9 X 13 pan.

To make crust:
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and confectioner's sugar
Cut in butter until combined and crumbly.
Press mixture into bottom of pan.
Bake for 20 minutes or until golden.

To make topping:
While crust is baking, prepare topping.
In a larger bowl, add sugar, flour, and baking powder.
Then add slightly beaten eggs and lemon juice.
Mix well and pour on top of warm baked crust.
Bake for 20-25 minutes.
When cool, dust with confectioner's sugar and refrigerate.
Cut into bars and enjoy them cold!

(After I wrote this post, I realized I deleted the pictures I had taken of my bars. Sorry! You can go HERE and see Bakerella's. They're prettier than mine anyway. :) )

Back To School!!!

Admit it. If you're a mommy or a daddy this is how you feel when school starts.

6 Years Old...Where Does the Time Go?

My little girl is 6 today. I can't believe I'm even typing that. Was it really 6 years ago, that I stayed in the hospital for two days, only to have an emergency C-Section?

6 years ago today, after all the pain and tears, I brought this creature into the world?


Where does the time go?

How does this...........

get to this.............

so fast?

Happy Birthday, my sweet angel!

Fresh Corncakes

I love me some fresh corn. There's just nothing better than corn on the cob straight of the grill with some butter and salt. And don't even bet me started on that impostor in the freezer case at the grocery store. That stuff is just plain disgusting. Blech. So I want to say that I awoke on a beautiful sunny morning, and dressed in sweet little going-to-the-farmers-market-outfit, with my hair in braids and a straw hat on. But I didn't. I think I had on shorts with worn out flip flops. And as for my hair....Well, you've seen my profile pic. Yeah. And I went to Food Lion. Yeah.

I decided instead of corn on the cob, I would make some corncakes. Oh my. Are they ever good! And so easy. But......how do I put this......they are....ugly. Just plain ugly. I tried to take a decent picture of them. Really I did. But it just came out...pardon the expression.....butt ugly. And now I've went to download the butt ugly picture and I can't even find it on my computer. It must have like regurgitated it or something cause it was so ugly. Oh well.

If you've never had a corncake, it's kind of like a pancake with corn kernels in it. And dadgum, they're good! The hardest part is cutting the corn off the cob, then scraping off all the corn milk. This takes For-Eva. But the end result is so worth it! The recipe calls for beating the eggs with a mixer until thick and pale, but I did this with a whisk and they still turned out great, and you don't have to lug out the mixer.

I'm very sorry I don't have a pic to show y'all but maybe its better if you didn't see one. Cause it would probably deter you from making these. Cause they're butt ugly. Okay, last time I say that, I promise!

Fresh Corncakes adapted from Southern Living Homestyle Cooking

5 ears fresh corn 1 teaspoon baking powder
2 large eggs 1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons all purpose flour Melted butter, margarine, or oil for frying
2 tablespoons sugar (See Note)


Slice kernels of corn from cobs; scrape cobs with a vegetable peeler or knife to remove milk and pulp.

Beat eggs in a bowl with a whisk until thick and pale (May take a minute or two);add flour and the next 3 ingredients, beating until blended. Stir in corn.

Drop batter by heaping tablespoonfuls onto a hot butter griddle.(Note: I used butter for this, and it just got too hot on the griddle. Butter has a much lower smoke point that cooking oil, so next time I'll just use the oil.) Cook over medium heat until golden, then turn and cook other side.

Yield: About 2 dozen

Almost Mid Life Crisis?

I turned 32 years old last month. I realized I'm only *big sigh* 8 years away from 40. On one hand, it seems like 20 years away from 40 wasn't that long ago. On the other it was..well..a long time ago. I'm probably going to open a big can of worms with this, but I'm going to be completely honest. If you don't know, I'm a stay at home mom. And I feel like life is completely passing me by. I read blogs everyday about moms who just....bloom....by being able to stay at home. They schedule fun activities with their kids. They go on outings with them. They want to *gulp* homeschool. And they love it. Me? I cant wait until school starts in the fall. Then only 3 more years and my youngest will be in school. It makes me feel totally guilty. I've talked to moms who would give anything to be able to stay at home with their kids. They tell me how blessed I am to be able to be there all day everyday for my children. And I know I am, it's just that .......there's got to be more to life than just dirty laundry and dishes, right? At the age of 20, if someone had told me then where I'd be right now at 32, I would have fallen over laughing! I had big plans. And they didn't involve staying in my pajamas for most of the day. Is this just a season in my life, or is this it? Am I going to be an overweight, uneducated stay at home mom until the day I die? There's just got to be more to life than this.........

*I've read back over this post and realize how whiny I sound, but I don't have anyone else to whine to, so please indulge me this?:)*