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Thursday, December 23, 2010

deep thoughts

I have a sleeping baby, and am away from the laundry that needs to be done, the gifts that still need to be wrapped, the sausage balls that need to be cooked, and the cookies that need to be baked (and eaten)...so, I guess one might say that I'm "bored" GASP!  Random thoughts that have been in my mind today:

- I can't wait to put on my running shoes and run in temperatures greater than 55 degrees
- I miss speaking Spanish
- Miriam is no longer an infant, now that we're almost celebrating her half birthday!
- We'll have made our 25th doctor visit after today (that's a preemie for ya!)
- shocked that we're less than 2 months away from the 2nd anniversary of mom's death
- spending money on car maintenance is so overrated...and so is spending it on appliances
- hasn't hallmark learned that most people buy Christmas cards in bulk? that's why the shelves are still packed with them on Christmas eve, eve (I know, because I had a bagillion to choose from today, since I ran out of my bulk ones and needed one final one to send)
- can't wait to see if Santa brings me an orange and a grapefruit this year
- I would be giddy if indeed we got snow on Christmas
- I'm totally blessed to have a baby that sleeps 12 hours at night - and has been doing that for almost 3 months
- I am blessed with the privilege of celebrating such a glorious season with a family of believers
- I am actually looking forward to doing the taxes, so much so that I've already started compiling the papers and computing some of my deductions :)

It's amazing how many thoughts fill your mind when you've got a spare moment on your hands. What are some of your random thoughts of the day?

Friday, December 3, 2010

The best holiday treat yet!

A few weeks back, our friends The Whites discovered that Nestle TollHouse had a limited edition package of place and back cookies called "Oatmeal Scotchies."  Now, since I've had Miriam, I haven't been the cook/baker that I used to be, so place and bakes are my game!  The first time I tried these they were amazing and hit my sweet spot, especially since I can't eat much chocolate or other fruity things for dessert (thanks to the Miriam diet):).  Unfortunately, there are no more packages of place and bakes to be found anywhere around town, so I took my never fail Oatmeal Chocolate Chip cookie recipe that I perfected all during the time mom was at home with Hospice (they were my sister's favorite cookie, so it was always a great way to cheer her up)....and I changed the chocolate chips for butterscotch chips.  I grabbed my kitchen aid stand mixer that has been collecting dust for the past 5 months and went to town. The result - something WAY better than TollHouse place and bakes. Impress all of your friends this holiday with something NOT chocolate, NOT peanut butter, NOT peppermint, and just plain different - and healthy (that's what the oatmeal is for, right?)
At the request of a friend, here's my famous recipe for Oatmeal ________ (chocolate chip, scotchies, cranberry/almond or walnut, white chocolate....) Cookies
Preheat oven to 325 degrees
Cream well: 1/2 c white sugar, 1 c packed brown sugar, 2 sticks of softened butter.
Add and mix well: 2 eggs, one at a time, then 1-2 tsp of vanilla
In a separate bowl, Mix: 1.5 c flour, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp baking soda....add this dry mix to the creamed mix
Stir in: 1-3 c quick oats, and a bag of chips of your choice. Today, I used the FoodLion brand butterscotches. Most of the time, I use the off brand semi-sweet chips for the chocolate cookies.
Use a cookie scooper to make even sized balls, and place on ungreased baking sheet (or sheet with parchment paper) about an inch a part.
Bake for 12 minutes and eat a lot of them right out of the oven.  Then cool the rest on a rack. :)
(crazy that I just typed that recipe out by memory!)
Enjoy! Maybe you'll have a baking partner like mine...she was so fun to bake with today!