Cookies Anyone?

Chocolate crinkles and peanut butter blossoms are your choices tonight.

(Homemade by my niece, Grayce:)

Not interested?
How about a chocolate kiss instead?
You don't know what you are missing :)

Sunday Morning Muffins

Want something quick, easy and delicious to enjoy with your Sunday morning cup of joe?  

Try these.

I call them Sunday Morning Muffins.
You can call them whatever you want. 

The recipe calls for two ingredients:

One box cake mix (I used a yellow cake mix, however, I think spice would be the bomb!!!)
One small can of pumpkin puree

Mix together - do not add eggs, oil, etc. - just mix dry cake mix and pumpkin.
Place in greased muffin tins, bread pans (whatever your heart desires), sprinkle with sugar and bake at 350 degrees until done.

I hope you enjoy them.
Have a great day!!!

Fruit Cocktail Pudding Cake

I actually saw snow in the air yesterday morning and last night I had a fire going.  Today has been cold, but I refused to start another fire!!!  Instead, I opted for baking (it always warms up the house just enough).  I baked a cake that my Mom used to make for us when we were kids (over 40+ years ago) - fruit cocktail pudding cake.  She found the recipe on the back of a can, cut it out, baked the cake and we liked it so much that it became one of her standard, easy to make deserts.
And that tattered, cut out recipe?
It still remains in her recipe box to this day.

Fruit Cocktail Pudding Cake

As for me, I still like mine with a big dollop of Cool Whip on top :) 
The recipe is under my recipe tab if you are interested in making it.
Have a great night.

A Little Baking

We had our first real snowfall for the month of December yesterday.  I took a video of it.  However, I have to remember to make sure that when I am videoing that I have the camera held in a horizontal position as opposed to my preferred vertical position ;)  So, no video for you today.  Instead, you get pictures of cookies!!!
I baked over 100 Greek Christmas cookies yesterday.
I am not Greek, however, my entire family loves these cookies.

My Mom came over and she helped :)

That's my Mom and some of the cookies.  There are more on other counter!!!

She made sure the honey syrup did not burn...

The cast iron pan was given to me by my Dad's Mom.  It is my favorite pan.

Once the syrup had boiled for 10 minutes and reduced in volume, I turned off the stove, placed as many cookies into the the hot syrup as possible, and then submerged them using my spatula...

I then removed them and placed them in another dish.
Don't they look delicious?
They are!!!
You know what else they are?

They are the perfect gift :)
Because they are made with love.
Homemade really is the best.
Have a great day :)
Edited to note that the recipe has been added to my Recipe tab above!!!
Have a great Christmas!!! 

All on a Friday Evening

I whisked home from work and prepared a peanut butter pie that was to be taken approximately one hour away to...

this lady right here. 
She's my Mom and yesterday was her birthday.
As you can see, she enjoyed the pie very much :)

After enjoying the pie with her, we returned home and were greeted with the sweet smell of these little ladies...

Yes, the flowers on my 21-year old lilac tree are beginning to open and they smell wonderful.
Sort of made for an enchanted evening.
Happy Birthday Mom !!!

Baking Bread

It was cold and blustery here yesterday and I did not want to go anywhere. 

So I stayed home, cleaned, made beef stew and decided to tackle one of my New Year's resolutions - baking bread.  I have to say, it was not nearly as frightening as I had imagined it would be and the house smelled wonderful. 

In fact, I liked it so much that I think I will continue to bake and break bread on Sundays. 

The bread was wonderful with the stew I simmered on the stove all afternoon.

The simple pleasures of homemaking on a Sunday afternoon that give me sustenance.
Enjoy your day :)