easy desserts & recipes: cupcake pops

What could be cuter than these adorable cupcake pops? They are an easy treat to make and will bring a little whimsy to any event. Use the cupcake mold to create these treats without fuss. Cupcake Pops Ingredients 9-by-13-inch Midnight Chocolate Cake (See below) 2 cups Chocolate Frosting (see below) 1 package chocolate melts 1 package white chocolate melts 1 package pink candy melts Sprinkles and/or colored sugars Candy Red Hots or mini red M&M’s Lollypop sticks Directions 1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. Trim about 1/2 inch from edges of the cake. Working in batches, crumble cake into a large bowl. Make sure the cake is fine, with no substantial pieces. 2. Add frosting until well combined. 3. Place the mixture into the refrigerator for about 2 hours. 4. When mixture is chilled throughout begin to form the cupcakes by placing a small amount of... Read the Rest →

 

easy desserts & recipes: cupcake pops

What could be cuter than these adorable cupcake pops? They are an easy treat to make and will bring a little whimsy to any event. Use the cupcake mold to create these treats without fuss. Cupcake Pops Ingredients 9-by-13-inch Midnight Chocolate Cake (See below) 2 cups Chocolate Frosting (see below) 1 package chocolate melts 1 package white chocolate melts 1 package pink candy melts Sprinkles and/or colored sugars Candy Red Hots or mini red M&M’s Lollypop sticks Directions 1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. Trim about 1/2 inch from edges of the cake. Working in batches, crumble cake into a large bowl. Make sure the cake is fine, with no substantial pieces. 2. Add frosting until well combined. 3. Place the mixture into the refrigerator for about 2 hours. 4. When mixture is chilled throughout begin to form the cupcakes by placing a small amount of... Read the Rest →

 

a place setting in time: i love lucy (birthday) chocolate fudge with walnuts recipe

Lucille Ball made millions of people laugh. She was an outstanding comedienne who made her mark in television, but also was a film, stage and radio actress. She blazed the way for today’s comediennes. On April 26, 1989 the legendary Lucille Ball passed away at the age of 78, leaving behind a body of work that has brought joy to many generations. I Love Lucy, probably her most famous endeavor is one of our favorite TV show. However, Lucille Ball had an impressive career that did not start with that television series. She began modeling in 1929 and worked on Broadway during the same period. She was a radio actress and also had roles in many “B” movies; so many that she was called “Queen of the B’S”. Ever flexible, Ball transitioned to television and became a star. She continued to work in television and film, even becoming the first... Read the Rest →

 

tastily touring: visiting botswana with a seswaa recipe (porridge with beef stew)

Our next stop on our world tour is Botswana, a land-locked country situated on the southern tip of the African continent. It is surrounded by Angola, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Namibia. Botswana is mostly subtropical and is primarily desert and savanna. With a subtropical climate and terrain that is mostly desert or savanna; Botswana boasts some of the continents best wildlife areas with almost 40% of the country appropriated for national parks, reserves and wildlife management areas. Most people have heard of “Bushmen”. They have lived in Botswana for thousands of years. Bantu peoples lived in the area about two thousand years ago and then the Tswana arrived around three hundred years ago. In 1885 the area became a British protectorate called Bechuanaland. It was in 1966 when the country gained independence that “Botswana” was adopted as its name. Botswana has a thriving economy, one of the best on... Read the Rest →

 

a place setting in time: shakespeare “minced pies”

“Blagged? Speak English to me, Tony. I thought this country spawned the f-ing language, and so far nobody seems to speak it.” Avi (from the movie Snatch) Not the quote you would expect when you are reading about William Shakespeare. However, it is the quote that most of us might have thought of when we were first introduced to the works of Shakespeare. My first encounter with Shakespeare was an excerpt from Romeo and Juliet. I was in 7th grade. Honestly, I didn’t have a clue what I was reading. I muddled through it like the rest of my fellow classmates. In high school I was, once again, given Romeo and Juliet to read, but in its entirety. I had to read Romeo and Juliet in college, as well. With each reading of Romeo and Juliet I understood and appreciated the beauty of Shakespeare’s work more than the last reading.... Read the Rest →

 

a place setting in time: shakespeare "minced pies"

“Blagged? Speak English to me, Tony. I thought this country spawned the f-ing language, and so far nobody seems to speak it.” Avi (from the movie Snatch) Not the quote you would expect when you are reading about William Shakespeare. However, it is the quote that most of us might have thought of when we were first introduced to the works of Shakespeare. My first encounter with Shakespeare was an excerpt from Romeo and Juliet. I was in 7th grade. Honestly, I didn’t have a clue what I was reading. I muddled through it like the rest of my fellow classmates. In high school I was, once again, given Romeo and Juliet to read, but in its entirety. I had to read Romeo and Juliet in college, as well. With each reading of Romeo and Juliet I understood and appreciated the beauty of Shakespeare’s work more than the last reading.... Read the Rest →

 

holidays & recipes: mixed berry tartlet with crème anglaise pastry cream

Today is Earth Day. Hopefully, like New Years, everyone is making a resolution. Maybe you will resolve to recycle or use your car less or grow an organic vegetable garden. Hopefully, everyone will do a good job of sticking to that resolution. One year I made an Earth Day resolution that my family railed against. I decided that I was going to become a vegetarian and, therefore, everyone would become a vegetarian. As you can imagine, in a household of men who were accustomed to eating meat, this went over like a lead balloon. I had an epiphany during early spring of 2008. I was trimming chicken for dinner. It is well known throughout my family that I abhor touching raw meat. I don’t like the way it smells or feels. This is odd for someone that loves to cook and even odder for someone who enjoys a good burger,... Read the Rest →

 

holidays & recipes: mixed berry tartlet with crème anglaise pastry cream

Today is Earth Day. Hopefully, like New Years, everyone is making a resolution. Maybe you will resolve to recycle or use your car less or grow an organic vegetable garden. Hopefully, everyone will do a good job of sticking to that resolution. One year I made an Earth Day resolution that my family railed against. I decided that I was going to become a vegetarian and, therefore, everyone would become a vegetarian. As you can imagine, in a household of men who were accustomed to eating meat, this went over like a lead balloon. I had an epiphany during early spring of 2008. I was trimming chicken for dinner. It is well known throughout my family that I abhor touching raw meat. I don’t like the way it smells or feels. This is odd for someone that loves to cook and even odder for someone who enjoys a good burger,... Read the Rest →

 

fudo finds: homeward bound hot sauce & sweets by kim plus jeenovino

1. Homeward Bound Hot Sauce Meals Ready to Eat otherwise known as MREs are what our military members exist on when in the field. They are quite complete meals, if unappetizing. Some of the meals come with the teeny tiniest bottle of Tabasco Sauce. Many service members are happy to use this on their less them appealing meal. While Tabasco Sauce is a mainstay and there is nothing inherently wrong with it, military members might have like to enjoy some interesting hot sauce flavors in their MREs. We found some flavorful and fun hot sauces at Homeward Bound Hot Sauce. “Drunk Uncle” is…well…best described by the maker of the hot sauce: “A complex mix of smooth, slow-burnin’ peppers with a southern whiskey barbeque spankin’! Patiently-aged, this sauce embodies “southern sophistication.” Then, there is Patty Cake for those of us who have little tolerance for the heat. The little dogs who... Read the Rest →

 

fudo finds: homeward bound hot sauce & sweets by kim plus jeenovino

1. Homeward Bound Hot Sauce Meals Ready to Eat otherwise known as MREs are what our military members exist on when in the field. They are quite complete meals, if unappetizing. Some of the meals come with the teeny tiniest bottle of Tabasco Sauce. Many service members are happy to use this on their less them appealing meal. While Tabasco Sauce is a mainstay and there is nothing inherently wrong with it, military members might have like to enjoy some interesting hot sauce flavors in their MREs. We found some flavorful and fun hot sauces at Homeward Bound Hot Sauce. “Drunk Uncle” is…well…best described by the maker of the hot sauce: “A complex mix of smooth, slow-burnin’ peppers with a southern whiskey barbeque spankin’! Patiently-aged, this sauce embodies “southern sophistication.” Then, there is Patty Cake for those of us who have little tolerance for the heat. The little dogs who... Read the Rest →

 

holidays & recipes: celebrating earth day with beetroot jam

We’ve written about canning foods in another post, but we feel that canning possibilities are endless and canning is the perfect subject for another Earth Day post. Packaging is a huge problem. Not only do we pay more up front when products are enclosed in fancy or excessive packaging, but we also pay more in the long run. According to a fact sheet found on Green Networld.com “packaging accounts for 50 percent of all paper produced in North America, 90 percent of all glass, and eleven percent of aluminum.” That is a lot of resources devoted to something that is going to be thrown away. According to other sources, all that paper, glass and aluminum (packaging) accounts for 1/3 of the trash in landfills. Purchasing items without packaging can be challenging. We can do our best to find products that use minimal packaging and hopefully what is used has been... Read the Rest →

 

holidays & recipes: celebrating earth day with beetroot jam

We’ve written about canning foods in another post, but we feel that canning possibilities are endless and canning is the perfect subject for another Earth Day post. Packaging is a huge problem. Not only do we pay more up front when products are enclosed in fancy or excessive packaging, but we also pay more in the long run. According to a fact sheet found on Green Networld.com “packaging accounts for 50 percent of all paper produced in North America, 90 percent of all glass, and eleven percent of aluminum.” That is a lot of resources devoted to something that is going to be thrown away. According to other sources, all that paper, glass and aluminum (packaging) accounts for 1/3 of the trash in landfills. Purchasing items without packaging can be challenging. We can do our best to find products that use minimal packaging and hopefully what is used has been... Read the Rest →

 

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