CuteKittyPunk

Earlier this year I went to a birthday party - dessert potluck. Everyone was asked to share a favorite dessert. There was just one catch. It could not contain chocolate. That was easy for me. I just made mini cheesecakes. It was a very fun get together because I got to try some different kinds of desserts. One thing that I tried that I absolutely fell in love with was an English Trifle. I had never had one before - what a shame because they are the yummiest and easiest to make. I suppose it's called a trifle because it has three layers. Normally when I think of the word "trifle" it makes me think of people who worry over unimportant things. It's in the scriptures in a few different places. See this Link . Well, the dessert I had that night was a very simple thing to make. I got the recipe and tried it a few months later. Oh yummy. Here is a link to that recipe. I made it back in June. And since then, I have come across several other yummy trifles to try - they a...

Well, some of you may be wondering what is the future of Sweet Rolls that Rock - my other blog dedicated to making awesome sweet rolls? And, to be honest, I'm kind of wondering about that as well. I think, perhaps we could get some guest contributors? Anyone interested? I'm also thinking about tweaking some of my recipes to include more protein. For example, this morning I read that you can use protein powder in baked goods. You can replace up to half the flour content with a protein powder. Here is something interesting I read in Little Sugar Addicts . Do not use soy-based powders or soymilk with children. Does that set off an alarm bell for anyone? As a "mostly" vegetarian - we like to follow the Word of Wisdom in our house - we eat a lot of soy. But we do drink cow's milk. Anyways, I ask why not use soy for children? Then I read that the estrogenic properties of soy can have hormonal effects on growing bodies. Increased estrogen levels can cause ear...

I bought this book - Your Last Diet... and it's not really a diet at all. It's a way of healing from sugar addiction. It's very interesting so far. The thing I really like about the "program" is that you can take as much time as you need to work through every step. The recommended time is six to eighteen months - yes 18 - not 8. I like that. Because I don't want to quit sugar like - cold turkey. That would be not possible for me. This morning I was feeling a little bit "blah" - like not overly depressed or hopeless - just "blah" and then I grabbed a couple of Twix bars (white chocolate - limited edition) and whalaa! I was UP. I felt so good. I felt very sociable and nice to be around. I was dancing and playing with the kids. I was feeling like I'm such a cool person. And I'm such a cool Mom! And then I grabbed the book - Little Sugar Addicts (because I bought two books by the author Kathleen DesMaisons) And I read something and ...

So, I just had a baby not more than 3 months ago... and I really need to SLOW DOWN. Like Ferris Beuller says: Life moves pretty fast, if you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it. And I was wondering, how did I get distracted so easily? What matters most? My faith, my family, my friends. This baking thing - is really last of all. But for a moment there, it caught hold of me - I got caught up in "following" all these cooking and baking blogs - and in posting on foodie websites like foodieblogroll, ptitchef and foodbuzz - and for what? For my pride.... ewwww. I fell for it. And I know that it was Satan all along trying to lead me astray. He is so evil - and tricky - how he takes something virtuous and good and turns it into a vice. So, I was listening to a couple talks from this last General Conference. And I took notes and it really helped me reflect on what matters most. President Uchtdorf is so funny - he has a nice way of teaching - I lov...

Okay, this soup is really called Peanut soup with chicken and banana... but it’s garnished with Seroendeng which is a spice-blend made from coconut, peanuts and spices - and when you swirl it through the soup - it tastes just like a Chick-O-Stick. Some of you may not know what that is, so I’ll tell you. A Chick-O-Stick is one of my most favorite “old fashioned” candies from America. Recently one of my awesome family members sent me a care package full of all kinds of American candies. I specifically requested a Chick-O-Stick. She had to look pretty hard but she found me one. It was one of the first things I ate. Loved it. A Chick-O-Stick is kind of like a Butterfinger without the chocolate. It’s peanutty, crispy, sweet and it’s got coconut. In one word it’s yummy. So, I found this recipe for peanut soup and it contains bananas! Of course, I recently wrote another blogpost with recipes containing bananas... and in that post I said that a friend of mine who grew up in ...

I bought this small recipe magazine at the checkout by my local grocery store back in 2003. It’s by Gold Medal (flour). This is another thing I miss about living in the U.S. I miss those cute little recipe books that you can thumb through while waiting your turn to check out. This book has lots of festive ideas for the holidays. I’ve made this one a few times. I’ve been thinking, I could easily top any of my favorite cookies with this marshmallow and fudge frosting... maybe even cupcakes... and sweet rolls! I think it would go fantastic with PB Criss Cross cookies or pumpkin chocolate chip cookies or Snickerdoodles! Gold Medal uses cocoa cookies - I made mine with a pumpkin variation of this recipe - adapted... I think I just used 3/4 cup pumpkin puree in place of the butter and 2 extra tablespoons flour in place of the cocoa. I put some cinnamon in as well - about 1/2 teaspoon I think and that worked pretty good. This is also one of those recipes that the kids can help out with... my...

So, good news - my brother who had spent the last year or so in Afganistan away from his wife and little girls - and a few years before that in Iraq... made Sergeant and I am so happy for him - he deserves it and also because that means - he gets a bigger paycheck! With good news like that I felt like making some cookies - specifically his cookies. My brother was always baking these cookies growing up - almost every Sunday night and we couldn't stop eating them... which is why they always seemed to disappear. He actually calls them: Vanishing Oatmeal *Chocolate Chip* Cookies. One time I ate so many of them... well, maybe that isn't the right story to tell... the point is that these are addicting - because they are so SO so good. Here is Sergeant York's cookies - in his own words he says “This is the recipe I use for oatmeal cookies. It actually calls for raisins, but I use chocolate chips instead, cause I'm not a big fan of raisins, and chocolate is always good...