When in Doubt, Eat Chocolate

In case any of you were wondering, Why hasn't Meg updated her blog in a few days?... I have created a list of excuses reasons. In no particular order, they are:

• Two words: snow days. Oh my word, am I ever sick of these! Ten for this school year -- two this week --and it is still officially winter. In other words, I am not exhaling yet...
• The dog had surgery this week and she is trying to make me feel guilty. See Exhibit A:

{Fur baby guilt trip}

• I already have a heaping load of guilt on my plate, thankyouverymuch. Everybody else is talking about how they are signing their similar-aged kiddos up for kindergarten, and we are redshirting Logan. He truly is NOT ready, but still, it makes me feel like I have somehow failed.
• I was honestly avoiding my blog for a bit because I was thisclose to writing a snarky post about how much it stinks to be the classroom volunteer who counts and sorts the Box Tops. I do try to keep it positive around here, but I just have to show you this Exhibit B and I think you may understand why I am going slightly bonkers and will never again volunteer for this job. EVER! 

{Why would anybody tape these to a random piece of paper -- front and back -- why?!}

• I've been kinda busy coordinating meal deliveries for a couple of mamas in my MOPS group. Note, I am not complaining about this, just stating a fact. It is part of my job as hospitality coordinator, and it's one of the few things that has made me feel useful and good this week. So there's that.
• I will do just about anything for my children. This now includes scooping a rabbit carcass (and assorted innards) out of the road immediately in front of our house, tromping through the huge drifts of snow in the back yard, and burying it under a mound of snow behind a tree -- all so that when Mia gets off the school bus, neither child will see any evidence of the Easter Bunny's demise.
• The time change is kicking my butt. (And if I ever meet Benjamin Franklin, I will be sorely tempted to kick his butt! I think all the moms will understand.)
• I am doing 40 Bags in 40 Days as my Lenten sacrifice. Truthfully, I have not given up anything for Lent in years. I used to do this in the BC (Before Children) era of life, but since doing 5+ years of pregnancy and breastfeeding, I have a hard time wanting to give up anything. I am making pretty good progress -- only missed one day -- and I have completely sorted through both kids' wardrobes and already given a bunch of things away! So, this worked out well as a way to purge things I don't need without having to give up chocolate, and let's face it. If you just read all that junk I just unloaded up there, you can probably guess that I have been hitting the chocolate.

And that brings me to the happy point of all this. Chocolate. Mia was bummed last night because Brett told her that it was Pi Day, and I had not made a pie. (Obviously, I was tied up with all that other stuff, but how do you get a seven year old to understand that?) 

{Chocolate Strawberry Pie! Isn't it pretty?}

I went shopping and got a few things to pull together a pie today, but I wasn't really sure what type of pie I wanted. I had gotten both a graham cracker crust and a chocolate graham cracker crust plus strawberries. I was waffling between making strawberry pie or making chocolate pie. Then, this phrase popped into my head, When in doubt, eat chocolate! Yes, of course, chocolate was the way to go. 

After I made a batch of chocolate mousse, I realized that it would not be enough to fill the pie shell. Disappointed, I turned to Brett and asked now what? His suggestion was to add strawberries, (They are the bottom layer.) which made for a tasty and beautiful pie. (Prettiest I've ever made!) Perfect! I love when he comes up with the perfect solution to my kitchen quandaries. We're a pretty good team -- not unlike chocolate and strawberries.

{Somebody finished hers and then sidled up, hoping for more.}

Notes to self: This recipe for whipped cream came out better than previous attempts. Might be the stand mixer, or the use of powdered sugar over granulated sugar. Or maybe I just rocked it! Next time, try sandwiching strawberries between two thin layers of mousse.

Chocolate "Pupcakes" for a Puppy Paw-ty

Once again, I saw a picture of something and thought, I can do that. Too bad mine didn't turn out as nicely as hers but at least I got to try this out for a fairly small family gathering before I attempted to make them for the entire first grade class! (Note: I will not be doing that. I have a simpler game plan in mind for the actual birthday-at-school cupcakes.)

The main problem I faced was that the cake was so wonderfully moist and the frosting was a bit dry, so those two didn't pair as well as I had hoped. While they didn't look as lovely as I had hoped, they were quite delicious! Here's how I made my chocolate "pupcakes."

Dark Chocolate Cake (makes 28 cupcakes)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 3/4 cup flour
• 3/4 cup baking cocoa
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil (I used extra virgin olive instead.)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup boiling water (recipe calls for 2/3 - 1 cup)

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Prepare pans. (Recipe says two 9 inch rounds or one 9"x13". I was planning cupcakes, so I lined two muffin tins with brown paper liners that I had found on clearance at Walmart for $1.50.)
3. In a mixing bowl, stir together dry ingredients.
4. Add eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla. Beat for 2 minutes at medium speed.
5. Stir in boiling water by hand. Batter will be thin.
6. Bake for 18-20 minutes for cupcakes. (Mine were done after 18 minutes, and they were filled about 2/3 full.) For 9 inch rounds, the recipe says to bake for 30-35 minutes, and about 5 minutes longer for a rectangular pan.

No-Cook Fudge Frosting (recipe from my friend Jenifer)

Ingredients:

• 4 3/4 cups sifted powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/3 cup boiling water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

1. Mix dry ingredients.
2. Add butter, water, and vanilla. 
3. Beat at low speed until combined and then for an additional minute at medium speed.
4. Allow to cool for 20-30 minutes. (Huh? Okay, I skipped this, so maybe that was why it came out dry? Also, she told me I probably shouldn't have skimped on the sifting. I started this, but gave up part way through... And now I know that if nothing else works, add more liquid.)

Decorating Pupcakes:

For the eyes: I used either brown mini M&M's or brown Reese's Pieces.

For the noses: For the faces with mini M&M eyes, I used a brown Reese's Pieces. For the others, I used a mini Reese's peanut butter cup.

For the ears and mouths: I used large pretzel twists and broke them (easier said than done) to make pointy ears. With the remaining pieces, I did my best to shape them into cute mouths (again, easier said than done. And just now, I notice that the original picture shows different types of puppy faces...)

For the tongues: I used my kitchen scissors to trim strawberry Fruit Roll-Ups into the proper shape.

All around, I had a problem with having decorated these pupcakes the day before they were to be eaten. The Fruit Roll-ups turned kind of melty. The pretzels became stale, oddly enough. And since that frosting was a tad bit dry, the eyes and noses really didn't want to stay in place whatsoever. Not my best cake ever, but probably not my worst either. Oh well, like I said, I have another idea in mind for the next round.

We Don't Horse Around Here

I was pretty surprised when Mia came home from school one day with the news that she was doing an animal report. She's in kindergarten, after all. I had no idea that the projects started so soon, but we were told that it was a "family project," which made it sound less overwhelming. First of all, she was really thrilled because she had "won" the subject of horse. Apparently, there were at least two other girls in her class who wanted to do a report on horses, and Mia was chosen by pure luck of having her stick drawn first. To get started, we took a trip to the library to pick out some books and then she was very excited to immediately begin doing research and writing. (I need to make a note of this because I imagine some day this enthusiasm will have waned. Hopefully, I am wrong, but I am trying to be realistic here.) Of course, I helped her, and obviously, I am biased, but I think she did a fantastic job on her written report.

Mia's teacher encouraged the kids to do something extra as well, and after I made a few suggestions, Mia decided she liked the idea of doing a diorama. Again, she wanted to get started right away. Thankfully, I had waited a few days to start making suggestions. I didn't want her to get overwhelmed, so we had spaced out the report writing over a couple of days and then waited until the following weekend to start work on the diorama. We made this out of whatever we had on hand. We started with a white US Postal Service mailing box and she decided to cover the inside and outside with construction paper: red for the outside, just because; green for the grass, which she cut with a fringe; and blue for the sky. I helped her by showing her how to get it to fit, folding it, and cutting to size with my paper trimmer. Then, she did most of the gluing. She made a yellow paper sun and a drawing of a horse and rider going over a jump. She cut that out and glued it in the background. Then, we placed a toy horse in the right foreground. (I hot glued the hooves, but discovered this morning, that it had come loose on the way into school.) She told me she wanted a hay bale and an apple tree to show some things that horses eat so I helped her figure out how to make these. For the apple tree, we used a craft stick trunk. I cut off one end to make it flat, used the scissors to poke a slot in the bottom of the box, and made sure it fit. Then, she drew fluffy leaf shapes on green felt. I helped her cut them out and she glued them in layers onto the trunk. Then, she added red pom poms for the apples. When the tree was done, I added hot glue to help it stay in the slot cut into the box. The hay bale was a bit more work. I made a box by cutting six rectangles (four of one size and two, slightly smaller) out of a side panel from a cereal box. The paper trimmer was helpful. Then, I used masking tape to assemble the box, affixing it to the inside and outside seams. Lastly, Mia cut some pieces of raffia and glued them to the outside of the box. Then, it really looked more like a hay bale. I hot glued this to the bottom of the box, next to the apple tree, and the diorama was complete.

{She is proud of her horse diorama!}

While I was at Meijer yesterday, I happened to come across a horse shaped metal cookie cutter for 99 cents, and decided to buy it. Tomorrow is Mia's turn to be the Child of the Day at school, which means she is the line leader and that sort of thing. Also, she can bring a snack for the class. I felt that horse cookies would be fun. Logan helped me mix up a batch of chocolate cutout cookie dough, which had to chill for two hours before we could cut out the horse shapes. I did most of that since it can be tricky. There were a few casualties during the process, but luckily no horses were sent to the glue factory. I just rolled out the dough and started over, adding more cocoa powder as needed, in place of the suggested flour. Once the cookies were baked, they looked and smelled wonderful, but they didn't seem complete. I had the idea that chocolate frosting would make good manes and tails, so I found this recipe and made a half batch since I didn't have enough cocoa or confectioners sugar for a full batch, and I felt that a half batch would be plenty for what I wanted to do. To decorate the cookies, I just put my frosting in a zippered bag, snipped off one corner, and piped out squiggles. It wasn't fancy or technical, but it worked well. I was worried that Mia would complain that they didn't have eyes, but I didn't think I had anything that would work. Mini chocolate chips would have been huge and red jimmies would have looked kind of evil. Fortunately, she didn't notice or care. In fact, Mia was so happy with the cookies that she announced that she wants a horse/cowgirl themed birthday party for her next party. (This is perhaps the fourth theme she has suggested and we just had her birthday at the end of January, so we shall see how long this lasts...) I am just happy that I tried two new recipes and one kind of off-the-wall idea and it all came together beautifully. I love when that happens.

{I am happy with how the cookies turned out.}

The toughest part for Mia will be that she needs to give an oral presentation of her animal report. We have practiced this at home twice now, and she knows her teacher will help her if needed. I know what it's like to be extremely shy, so I know this is a big hurdle to overcome, but I told her once she does it, it will just get easier.

Grow a Lollipop Garden (Plus My First Ever Giveaway Results)

Awhile back my hairstylist told me about a client of hers who plants a "lollipop garden" with her grandkids every time they come to visit. I decided to try it out while our 5 year old nephew was staying with us. This woman has her grandchildren "plant" Smarties, but I couldn't find any at our local Walmart. Then, I thought that jelly beans would make more sense because they look more like seeds, however, I decided not to spend the money since they only had the gourmet kind in the candy aisle.

Two days ago, I had Mia and her cousin, Eric, plant and water three lima beans during Logan's nap time. I told them that they were "magic beans." It rained that night so the following morning I suggested that we should check on their garden and see if anything came up. They were completely amazed that there were three lollipops "growing" in their garden! They quickly remembered who had planted which one and picked their own lollipops, letting Logan know which one was his. (I had tried to make sure that they would each get a color they liked.)

This was seriously simple (and cheap) fun, and the kids loved it. My favorite quotes were from Eric who said, "You should have planted one so you could have one, too" and "We should have let them grow longer so they would get BIGGER!" I can't guarantee that older kids will enjoy this activity as much as mine did, but it turned out to be perfect for a 5 year old, a 4 year old, and a 1 year old. So, get out there and plant your own lollipop garden.


Results from My First Ever Giveaway!!
Congratulations to Kelly! (The odds were in her favor, indeed.) Send me an email at:  hotchocolatier@broadstripe.net to claim your DOVE CHOCOLATE DISCOVERIES™ goodies.

Will Work for Chocolate: My First Ever Giveaway!!

This summer has been zooming by, and we have been so busy lately, that I haven't been doing much blogging. However, I am super excited about my latest endeavor, so it deserves a post. In addition to my full-time mommy gig I have decided to add one more thing to my "resume" -- DOVE CHOCOLATE DISCOVERIES™ chocolatier! I had been contemplating starting a home business for a few months, and when I learned that there is such a thing as chocolate parties, I knew I had found the perfect business! As a self-professed chocolaholic who enjoys baking, this seems like a great way to have some fun and maybe even make a bit of money, (which will likely be invested in craft supplies and more chocolate!). Gotta feed those addictions, you know?

In order to celebrate my new business (and the fact that this is my 200th blog post, which in itself seems worthy of some hoopla), I have decided to hold my first ever giveaway! And something tells me that some people will be interested in what I have to offer. I mean who doesn't like free stuff? Especially when it's chocolate!

The Goodies (Or Things That Make You Go Mmmmm):

1.  1 ounce DOVE CHOCOLATE DISCOVERIES™ Mousse Mix packet*
2.  4 ounces of DOVE CHOCOLATE DISCOVERIES™ Chef-Series Dark Chocolate bars* (2 - 2 oz. bars)
3.  1.2 ounce DOVE CHOCOLATE DISCOVERIES™ Chocolate Chai Tea Mix packet

* The first two items are ingredients needed to make chocolate mousse. You will also need to add your own heavy cream to make the chocolate mousse.

Two Ways to Enter:

1. Become a public follower of this blog, and leave me a comment letting me know you are following.
2. Share this giveaway on your Facebook page, and leave me a comment letting me know that you did.

One winner will be randomly selected on Wednesday, August 3, 2011. Bon apetit!