Year: 2014

Daily Thoughts

Saturday Mornings

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

I know I’m not alone in loving Saturday mornings. They are the mornings that make it feel like a holiday. It is the one morning that you can sleep in without guilt, although, it is the one morning that I seem to wake up earlier than the other days. Going to bed Friday evenings, as I am crawling into bed, I get that little “spring”  in my step, just knowing that I can sleep past 7 if I want, but invariably, my eyes open between 6:15-6:30. One of my favorite things is to come into the living room and while covered up with my soft blanket, watch the sunrise coming over the beautiful houses across the street. Since we have windows from ceiling to floor, the view from our condo, which is on the second story, affords us a most spectacular site. The streaks of orange, yellow, pink and blue of the sunrise are great reminders of God’s gorgeous creation that He has given to us to enjoy. We only have 16 more mornings here in California before moving back to Texas and I plan to treasure each and every sunrise from the best seat in town…my window. It also reminds me that we are to look ahead and not behind, as I sometimes do. I need to focus on what lies ahead and know that God has something for us in this new season we are entering.

So whether it is Saturday morning, or Monday or Thursday mornings, may I trust in His unchanging grace and know that as Randy and I leave this most beautiful place, we will go with a “spring” in our step, as we ride off into the sunrise of a new beginning.

Uncategorized

Decadent Chocolate Pecan Pie

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

This recipe caught my attention because it was different from the other chocolate pecan pie recipes I have made in the past. Taken from Paula Deen magazine, it has a layer of dark chocolate as the bottom layer. I couldn’t even wait until it cooled off before tasting it. It is scrumptious. Took a couple of pieces to a friend who is packing to move to Denver and she loved it.

1 unbaked 9″ pie shell

Preheat oven to 350.

2 (4 oz) bars bittersweet chocolate, chopped *(I didn’t have any on hand, but had a 10 oz package of 60% cocoa bittersweet chips so used 3/4 of that package instead. Worked perfectly)

1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

3/4 cup light corn syrup

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

4 large eggs

2 tables melted butter

1 teas vanilla

2 cups chopped pecans

1/8 teas salt

Melt the chocolate with the whipping cream in the microwave in 30 second intervals until chocolate is melted. Stir until mixed well. Pour chocolate mixture in to the unbaked pie shell and chill for 30 minutes,  Mix the eggs, sugars, syrup, butter, vanilla, salt together and then fold in the chopped pecans. Pour over chilled chocolate layer and bake in preheated 350 oven for 1 hour. (Mine only took 45 minutes). Cool completely before serving.

Daily Thoughts

Garage Guru

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

We are in our second full month of retirement season. We consider ourselves very lucky in that we are still speaking, no holes have been put in the walls nor has 48 Hours had to be called out to cover a story of Southern Fried Homicide. We have actually formed a little routine of personal space and since we are packing to leave California, heading back to Texas, the energy we use packing takes up lots of vent up anger. Every day Randy heads out the door telling me that he is packing up the garage. What a guy. He spends hours out there. I never realized we had so much in the single car garage behind our condo. But he kept assuring me that it just takes time to organize the things that we had stored out there and he was trying to do the best job at packing the seasonal wreaths and left over car wax. Yesterday I began to feel badly that I was up here in air conditioning while my precious little retired husband was outside in the hot garage working his little fingers to the bone. Being the wonderful wife that I am, I thought I would surprise him with a giant glass of iced tea along with a plate of cookies to show him my appreciation. When I rounded the corner to the garage, what did I behold? There he was, sitting in a recliner that he had ordered from Ebay, watching football on a small tv that we had stored in the garage cabinet. There along the back wall was a small fridge, loaded with candy and cokes. A ceiling fan had been installed. No wonder he didn’t “mind” packing up the garage. He assured me that I just happened to catch him on a break, that he really had been packing. But as I glanced around the garage, I was still seeing wreaths nailed to the walls and the car wax was still on the shelf. I fell for the story he told me that he had begun to park my little car outside because he needed the garage space to keep the boxes for our packing,
I guess we both need a little time to ourselves, no matter where we have to go to get it. When we get settled in our new place in Dallas, I will volunteer to unpack the garage. I’m going to use the recliner to sit and read the “job posting” section of the Dallas newspaper. He would make one fine WalMart greeter!

Uncategorized

High Maintence Momma

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

Truly, I do not understand why these things happen to me. I am trying to figure out if the clumsy fairy just follows me around, or am  I just that uncoordinated? The day began just like an ordinary day. We drove down to San Diego to go visit a church where we love the pastor. Since we are headed back to Texas, we have made a bucket list of things that we want to do before leaving this great state of California. Going to hear David Jeremiah was on that list. We left at 8 a.m. and drove down without incident. In fact, it was a lovely day, sunshine, cool temps and a day planned that was exciting to both of us. We knew that before we headed back to LA we would be looking for a great place to have a nice lunch. Then we would treat ourselves to Moo Creamery, our very favorite ice cream in all the world. The best toasted coconut-chocolate flaked ice cream, EVER! We leave church determined to find the best new seafood place since this would be our last time to be in San Diego for quite some time. Jason, our son calls and tells us where  should go. He tells us that they had eaten at The Fishery with his in-laws last summer and that we would like it. So off we go, after already going to a different place that we didn’t like the menu. We arrive at The Fishery and like the looks of it immediately. We enter and they quickly seat us. So far, so good.

The waitress brings us a lunch menu. I look over it and do not really see anything that catches my eye. I was in the mood for grilled seafood with baked potato and a good salad. All I was seeing were fish tacos and fish baskets with fries. Randy looked at me and knew that I was disappointed. I ask him if he thought we should ask for the dinner menu, maybe it would be different. He agreed. When the waitress came to take our order, I ask her if there was a dinner menu we could look at because we weren’t in the mood for fish and fries or fish tacos. After rolling her eyes, she went over and retrieved dinner menus for us. We looked them over and it was evident that we would be spending $30-$40 per entrée if we ordered off the dinner menu. Knowing that if I spent that much money on lunch might mean that I would go home without ice cream or possibly not being able to buy makeup for a year, I decided that I could just order off the appetizers from the lunch menu. So, our sweet little waitress, who is already getting a little huffy, comes back to take our order.  I apologized for making her bring the dinner menus, but I had found something from the lunch menu after all. I ordered a Caesar Salad and crab cakes. Randy ordered the fish tacos.

My salad comes and she places it in front of me. My eyes focus on two giant (they looked at least 3 ft long) anchovies laying over the top of my salad. Before the waitress can release the bowl, I tell her that she has got to take it away and get rid of those huge, what appears to be jumbo anchovies off my salad. Once again, the rolling of the eyes and grabs the salad back. Randy looks at me and informs me that the anchovies were not 3 ft long, but only 2″.  I inform him that he needs glasses.

My salad, without he huge fish laying on the top, is set in front of me. It now looks great. I am so hungry that I immediately pick up my knife and fork and begin to cut the lettuce. As soon as I attempt this simple feat, my hand slips and as I am trying to cut the lettuce, the knife slips out of my hand and lettuce goes flying through the air. We both just die laughing. I ask him if he thought anyone noticed. He tells me that it would be hard not to notice lettuce flying through the air and he quickly uses his foot to try to  push some of the lettuce under our table. When the waitress brings my crab cakes and his tacos, there was no way they could serve our food without stepping on lettuce. But, because I think by this time they were just trying to hurry an feed us so we would leave, they ignored the acrobatic lettuce and left it laying on the floor. We ate as fast as we could. As soon as we waked out the door, Randy told me that we had eaten there twice, the first and the last. I told him to just add it to the list of the many places that I can no longer show my face. It made me glad I am moving back to Texas where they have restaurants with peanut shells on the floor in  some of the steak places. I think we will give up fish and just eat at the steak restaurants. Hopefully my lettuce will get lost among the peanut shells.  

Uncategorized

Hills & Valley’s

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

Hills & Valley's

Finding this while packing today reminded me of what I should be doing. Not worrying about what God has planned for us in the future, but trusting Him day by day. In this study, Living God’s Will, led by Debbie Stuart back in 2009, she had placed pictures in the middle of each table of ladies. We were told to pick one picture and write what we felt it signified. Now, 4 years later, this picture is speaking to me in ways that it didn’t then. Never knowing back then that I would be needing to be reminded of what this picture spoke to me then, this is what I had written back in 2009.
“Just what I am trying to learn! In looking ahead, not behind there is always going to be both mountaintops and valleys when traveling life journeys, trying to reach a destination.
We cannot go forward while looking back. The shadow is behind me; what kind of shadow am I leaving behind as I walk to the light ahead.
Unless I let go of the past, I cannot see or arrive at my destination. You cannot see what is over the next hill until you get to the top. That the “rocks” or stones that I must step over build up the soles of my feet. There will be green pastures of rest before getting to the next “rugged” place. Once I reach my next goal, there is still unchartered territory. That the goal in the distance ahead looks blurry from where I am; but will come into focus the closer I get. There is a road to get there. Which road will I take to get where I am being lead? Will it be the road that leads me directly there, reading the road signs that will make the trip easier? Or will I venture out on my own, ignoring the signs that are given me?”
That is always my decision. But we pray that we will choose His way, not ours. I hope that both Randy and I are learning that God always gives us “signs”, sometimes very small and sometimes very distinct. We are trying to learn to listen to the still small voice of God and learn to be obedient to where He guides. The road where He takes us will still have the valleys and hills, but He will always be there to lead, guide and provide what we need for the journey.

Uncategorized

Packing Leads to Weight Gains

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

I have heard all my life that exercise is so good for us and will take pounds off. When we decided to begin packing, I got so excited about getting a little more exercise, other than what I get from jumping up and down when I pass a new level on Candy Crush. I just knew that all the bending over, packing our stuff, hauling the boxes up and down the stairs and cleaning out all the cabinets to pack would result in a great weight loss. I was wrong.
Because you pay for poundage with the movers, Randy has insisted that we use everything up that we can to empty out the pantry. Everyday, I am baking. We didn’t realize how many 10 lb bags of chocolate chips we had bought over the holidays at Costco were still here. The 20 lb sack of sugar is staring at me every time I open the pantry. By night, we are so tired from lifting, carrying, packing that all we want to do is sit and eat desserts, after cooking up the steaks and roast that we are also trying to use before Feb 15th. As of today, I have gained 5 lbs. It just isn’t suppose to be this way. I thought for sure the scales would show that all the new movement would have given me room to eat a little more sugar than normal, but it just goes to show you that sometimes, life just isn’t fair.
So after we use up all the sugar, cocoa, cream cheese and butter, we are determined to just fill our snack bag for the car with healthy nuts, fruit and some cheese. We will be a little more disciplined, as soon as we make that last stop by Dot’s Cupcakes on the way out of town. To celebrate our great discipline of eating healthy on the road, we might just treat ourselves to a celebratory meal of blue corn enchiladas at The Shed in Sante Fe. But really, after that, Ijust know we will be good. Wait a minute, I forgot about the celebratory meal of Tex Mex food at El Fenix in Texas and going to Paula Deen’s in Savannah. BUT…I’m sure once we get settled in our new home, we will be more determined to eat healthier…after we have our traditional meal of chicken fried steak the first meal we cook, as our first meal in our new home.

Cakes · Chocolate · Desserts

The Joy of Chocolate

Chocolate Castles1 Comment

This cook book…The Joy of Chocolate is the same one I talked about re: the chocolate buttermilk cake the other day.  Yesterday, I made this new chocolate-coffee pound cake. It is half gone already. I took some to 3 different friends and all of them have texted me saying that it is absolutely amazing. It is. so moist, a little dense, but the smooth flavor of coffee comes through beautifully. We will be making it again, soon.

1 cup cocoa powder

2 cups sifted all purpose flour

1/2 teas baking soda

1 teas salt

2 table instant coffee

3 sticks unsalted butter

3 cups sugar

2 teas vanilla

5 eggs, room temperature

1 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup water

Preheat oven to 325. Butter and flour a 10″ tube or bundt pan.

Sift together the flour, cocoa, coffee powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

Cream the butter in a separate mixing bowl until it is light and fluffy. Continue beating while adding the sugar gradually. Beat at high speed about 5 mn. Add the vanilla and the eggs, 1 at a time, beating briefly after each addition.

Mix in dry ingredients alternating with the liquid, starting and ending with the dry ingredients. Scrape down the batter as needed in bowl.

Pour into the prepared pan and bake in the upper 3rd of the oven for 1 hr and 15-20 minutes, testing for doneness after an hour and 15 min. Let cake rest in the pan for 20 min before tuning out onto a platter. The cake will stay moist for days, but trust me, it won’t last more than 2….

Cakes · Chocolate · Desserts

Chocolate Buttermilk Cake with Sour Cream Frosting

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

While packing up my cookbooks (Randy had forgot just how many I had and told me that I have more than Barnes & Noble), I sat down to look through a book that a friend had given me back in 85 with all chocolate recipes. This recipe caught my eye and tomorrow, it will be baking in our oven.

Serves 10-12

2 sticks butter, softened

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1/2 cup cocoa

1 teas baking powder

1 teas baking soda

1 teas cinnamon

2 cups flour

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

1 teas vanilla

1 tables instant coffee powder, dissolved in 1 table hot water

 

Sour Cream Frosting

1 cup sour cream

1 cup powdered sugar

1 cup heavy whipping cream

Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 10″ spring form pan. Line the bottom with a round of wax or parchment paper and lightly butter the paper.

In the bowl of mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and continue beating until thick and light. Add vanilla.

Sieve together the cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and flour. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients in 4 portions, alternating with the buttermilk and coffee. beat until perfectly blended.

Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 60 min, or until cake tests done.

Run a knife around the edge of cake. Let the cake cool completely in the pan. Make the frosting shortly before needed.

Mix together the sour cream and the sugar. Whip the heavy cream until Is firm. Mix the cream into the sour cream/sugar mixture.

Release the cake and turn it out upside down on a platter. Use a long serrated knife to cut the cake into 2 layers. Spread the frosting generously over the bottom layer, then top with other layer. Swirl the filling over the entire top and sides of cake. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Daily Thoughts

Senior Suppers

Chocolate Castles1 Comment

It happened. We ate dinner before 6:00 pm. It was an accident, I promise. It was not intentional. Randy has a rule that we are never to eat dinner before 6-6:30 as only “old people” do that. So even if he is starving, he will not sit down to eat before 6. He will snack on cheese ad crackers, but since that is not defined as a meal, he thinks he can get away with that without calling that “eating before 6”. But last night we committed the “cool & hip folks” sin. We ate at 5. It all started with needing to go to Costco. Since it was Friday we knew that the traffic would get really bad around 5:30 on so he said, “if we are going to Costco, we had better go before the traffic hits. So out the door we ran. We arrived at Costco around 4 and walked as slowly as we could around the store trying to kill time. After 30 minutes, I couldn’t stand it anymore. I told him that if we were really going to get a hot dog for our dinner, then let’s get it and finish here and head home so I could finish off our coconut cream pie. He was not happy with me. He informed me that it was only 5 and he couldn’t eat that early. What if someone we knew saw us? What would they think?
I really didn’t care at this point. I told him that we were going to be arrested for loitering, just standing around waiting for it to turn 6. So he gave in. We finished our hot dogs and ran to the car before we ran into anyone we knew. Thank goodness it gets dark early. On the way home, at 5:30, he reminded me that I was to tell no one how early we ate. That if I did, he would not be taking me to Costco anymore on a Friday evening for a hotdog. Well, that got my attention. After all, how can a girl live without going to Costco Friday night for a $1.50 hotdog?
Tonight we had some friends text us to see if we wanted to meet them for dinner….at 4!
We declined since we had just finished lunch 2 hours before. We have decided that we need to get younger friends. Either that or skip lunch so that we can tell ourselves we are just having a very late lunch at 5.

Beef · Meats · Soups

Company Chile

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

We are really trying to use up what is here and since Randy wanted chile and we had everything for it, that was our soup last night. I am not a huge chile person, but I actually liked it and had 2 helpings. It was very easy and Randy was a happy camper.

1 lb of hamburger meat (or turkey)
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 can of pinto beans
2 cans (small) tomato sauce
2 cups water
1 teas garlic powder
1 package Lawry’s Original Chile Seasoning
Brown meat an onion together until meat is done and onion is clear. Drain off fat. Add the beans,juice and all, and the rest of the ingredients. I baked mine for 2 1/2 hours at 325 and it came out thick and we poured it over the cornbread. Easy, quick and really was good. Will make this again before warm weather sets in.