Trailer Trash Bars and Some Brownies

Warning: If you are on a diet stop reading and go for a walk. Now.

 I am sharing two insanely rich recipes today.

I found some bar recipes on Pinterest for this past weekend.   I baked them and renamed the first one, they had a similar name that wasn't real nice.  I didn't want their name to scare anyone off from baking these babies cuz they are good.  Real good. 

They are easy and I will probably bake them while camping so they are now named  trailer trash bars.

 Trailer Trash Bars

Ingredients:

2 sleeves Ritz crackers, 60 crackers total

1½ cups toffee bits/ one package

1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

1½ cups frosting

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°

Spray a 8x8 pan with cooking spray

Crush the Ritz crackers in a large zip-top bag.  Isn't it great to crush crackers in a bag?  Before bags that zip it was usually a crummy mess.

I put the crushed Ritz into a bowl with the Heath bits and then mixed it with the sweetened condensed milk.  But if you prefer you can follow the original recipe's next three steps.

Pour toffee bits into zip-top bag and combine with cracker crumbs.

Pour cracker/toffee mix into prepared pan.

Pour entire can of sweetened condensed bars into cracker mixture.

Stir until evenly incorporated, press gently into pan.

Bake for 15-20 minutes until edges start to become golden.

Remove and allow to completely cool.

When cooled, frost with homemade butter cream or canned frosting.  I had the canned frosting ready to use but I did end up making homemade frosting.

Cut into bars.  I cut them pretty small as they are rich.  

I baked another Pinterest bar recipe this weekend.  They also have a not very nice name.  Slutty Brownies, because they are easy.  Maybe call them Deluxe Brownies in front of the kiddos. 

Slutty Brownies

 Anywhoo, pat chocolate chip cookie dough in a 9 x 13 pan.  I had the cookie dough in my freezer.  You could use a mix or some ready made dough from the grocery store. Top with a single layer of Oreos.  Whip up a brownie mix and pour over the Oreos.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30+ minutes.  I frosted them, though the recipe didn't call for it.  Sometimes I just don't know when to stop.

ENJOY!

 The baking was for our Pumpkin Carving Party, post to follow...

Flotsam and Jetsam

Last week was the museum's annual open house.  I had great help, in fact, close to 50 helpers. This includes actors, spinners, weavers, historians, bakers, wood turners and carvers, musicians, and kitchen help.  It takes a village.  The community came by the hundreds.  Open House 2015 was a success and is now in the books for another year .   Thank you to all of my participants!  Every year I think that after the open house I'll catch my breath and every year the Christmas season begins the week after open house.  On Tuesday, after putting things back in the closet from open house, a large shipment of playmobil arrived.  On Wednesday, I almost had the playmobil on the shelves when another large shipment of toys arrived.  Christmas comes early in retail.  Ready or not!

Yesterday Christmas came early for me.  Michelle stopped by the museum with a sweet gift for me.  Michelle and her Mom, Carla, spotted this gem and decided I needed it.  Oooh, I love presents for no good reason, I love the tray and I love those ladies for thinking of moi.

In other trailer news, yesterday I got my Sisters on the Fly official number.  Huaka'i Annie and I are now registered and all official like, pretty much a big deal.  Close friends know that I'm not a clubjoiningkindofgirl.  Most clubs have rules and I am not a fan of rules.  Well,  unless I'm the one making the rules.  ;)  However... I had such a nice invitation from Rene and Jean that I couldn't resist joining SOTF.  There are a few rules such as no husbands, no kids, no pets and be nice.  And to have more fun than anyone!  Rene and Jean are a lot of fun so I'm thinking that last rule is very doable for me.  The no Hubby rule is the hard rule for me.  I'm going to need driving lessons.  I haven't had experience towing a trailer.  Good thing Hubby has patience.  My biggest fear is that I'll forget it's back there.  I'm already signed up for an outing in June at the Fly J Ranch.  

Giddy Up!

This weekend looks to be fun and busy, in a good way. It's our Annual Pumpkin Carving Party.  It gets caps cuz it is an official event and a long standing tradition.  I have two new recipes and some of the old favorites to whip up.  If the new recipes are good I'll share them next week on the blog.

  

On Friday morning I am reuniting with my junkin' gals to attend a barn sale.  We are taking the truck so there are no limits on junk.  Woot!  I am pretty sure there are pieces for our next project in that barn.

On Saturday morning Hubby and I are going to an estate sale.  I've seen the preview and there is one really tacky vintage Christmas piece that I need.  Badly.  Cuz enough is never enough.  And that my friends, is the best junkin' rule ever.

The other thing I need is a win from the Seahawks tonight.  Don't we all?  Hubby asked what I was wearing today. Uhmmm, that's a weird question.  It was his way of reminding me that it's Blue Thursday.  I consistently forget to wear Seahawks gear on Thursday game days.  I'm so happy Hubby reminded me cuz I am just sure we'll get a win if I wear blue today.  

Every night this week I have made dinner. like a real planned meal.  We are only three nights into the week but still that's pretty good.  Not just a quick omelet or grilled cheese but homemade soup, pork roast with all of the fixin's (thank you V & S for the delicious applesauce), dips with homemade au jus.  Pretty impressive.  Since the guys grew up and left town I have slacked off on the cooking.  I still make dinner it's just usually a last minute deal.  This is some serious meal planning like the good old days.   Hubby has been pleasantly surprised.  He is also very suspicious as to why I've been cooking.  No reason, honey. I'm just uppin' my game. No ulterior motive here.  Really. ;)

That is probably enough random.  Have a good weekend my friends.
Go Hawks!
Edited to Add:  TBT
TBT to the 2007 Pumpkin Carving Party. We asked Mark to take a Christmas card photo of our family and when he told us to smile we had ugly teeth in our mouths.

Fall Camping

We spent the weekend at Silver Lake camping.  It's a short trip and a world away.  No cell service, not many other campers, and some beautiful Fall color, pretty much perfect.

 I had everything packed when Hubby got home from work on Friday night.  We drove up the hill and then set up camp.  We chose a spot with electrical hook ups close to the lake.

 On Saturday morning we took a long walk.

 After lunch we rented a canoe and paddled around the lake.  I thought we were leisurely making our way but for Hubby it was a race.  We have kayaked before but I hadn't been in a canoe before this trip.  Tippy little things!  But we made it and even got back on the dock without incident.

 We have camped in October before, when it's cooler.  We were in a tent in the Winthrop area and it was cold.  Cold as in see your breath when you wake up in the morning!  It was so great to come back to our lil Huaka'i Annie where it was warm and dry.  We took the chill off with a tiny space heater as needed.  I had fun cooking and Hubby did some grilling.  Our friend Chris sent some delicious homemade cinnamon rolls with us.  We played a lot of cribbage and gin rummy.

Before we left on Sunday we made a list of what needs to get finished in Annie before next summer.  It was just starting to rain as we left the park.  Within an hour we were home, had unloaded everything and we were ready to watch the Seahawks.  It was a fun, quick little camping trip and a good get away for us.  Now we are winterizing Annie and making plans and reservations for next camping season.

Dutch Speculaasje Cookie Recipe and some Random

I baked a new cookie recipe this week.  It's my turn for cookies at our church.  I found the recipe in the museum cookbook.  The spices sounded good for Fall.

Dutch Speculaasje

1 1/2 cup shortening

2 eggs

1 1/4 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

3 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. soda

2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1 tsp. cloves

1 tsp. allspice = 1/2 t. cinnamon, 1/4 t. nutmeg, 1/4 t. cloves*

nuts (if desired)

Mix shortening eggs and sugars together; add remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly all of the ingredients.  Refrigerate overnight.  I made two logs of dough wrapped in parchment paper and pressed into a rectangle shape.  I then sliced and baked on a cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 14 minutes.  The original recipe was for 15-20 minutes, that makes then really crispy.

* I didn't have allspice.  I didn't know what allspice was so I googled it.  Online there was a formula using spices that I had so I made my own and you can too.  Why have allspice if you have all of the other spices?  One of life's great mysteries.

In other news... We entertained friends for dinner this past weekend.  I used my Mom's china and linens for a soft pink table.  The pop of color was the last of the geraniums from our window boxes and a fruit salad in small compote stemware.

 I tried two new recipes, a roasted cauliflower and a mushroom casserole.  I followed the new mushroom casserole recipe this time but next time I will tweak it a bit.  The mushrooms and onions with white wine and thyme were divided in half and then half was pureed.  It was then mixed with the trifecta of goop... cream cheese, mayo and sour cream.  Next time, less goop, more zooms.  There is cheese involved too.  Pretty yummy with grilled flank steak.  The cauliflower was good too and I'd make it again.

Have a good weekend!  A fun way to kick off your weekend tonight is at the Lynden Pioneer Museum Open House.  It is my favorite night at the museum with many actors, demonstrations, live music, Starbucks coffee and homemade cookies.  It is 6-9 p.m. this evening and it's free.  Refreshments are by donation.  This weekend is the Lynden Craft and Antique Show and the Music Festival, so downtown Lynden will be hoppin'.  It's Stoney Ridge's last pumpkin patch season too so get out there.  The pumpkin donuts...

It's Fall Y'all!

It's Still Good

I've been a little quiet on the blog this past month.  The Lady in the Stone House is commemorating her eighth anniversary this month.  There are seasons of plentiful posts and there are some dry spells too in eight years.  There are times with a lot to share and there are times when it is best to keep it to myself.  I do try to keep it real but want to respect my privacy and that of my tribe.

It is one of those times in life where it's hard to know what and how to share. My Dad has had Parkinson's disease for over ten years.  He has done very well in spite of  the disease and has not let it define him, though it has taken away his ability to do many things that he is best at doing, fixing cars, fixing things around the house, taking off for vacation(he called vacations glorious days), and driving.  My Dad never complains so I don't think any of us realize how hard it was for him to lose so much that he'd always enjoyed.

Now his heart is giving out, three severe blockages, congestive heart failure and a recent heart attack have left him very weak.  He is at home with Mom, a hospital bed, Hospice care and nurses and caregivers coming and going.  I have two sisters and one brother that live close and we have been staying with them.

  

My Mom has some dementia and cannot be his primary caregiver.  This is hard to share because I want to be respectful of her privacy.  Please do not tell me or her that everyone forgets things and she is fine.  She is pretty unhappy about the dementia, denies it and does not understand.  They have always looked after each other.  This is where it gets tricky sharing because I want to respect their privacy but unless someone understands just how foggy things are for Mom then it's hard to understand why this is complicated.  She gets frustrated and angry.  

Please do not share this post with her.

They want to be alone, they want quality of life, they love each other and it's their time.  I understand that.  Their kids don't want anyone hurt by falling (Dad is a big guy, not overweight just a big guy and my Mom is a little lady), or hurt by taking the wrong meds.  If my Dad has a heart attack I want to be there to administer the morphine to control the pain.  We tell Mom that Dad cannot get up unless a caregiver is there and she forgets that rule making this difficult.

I am very thankful for my Dad never complaining, for my Mom wanting to be the caretaker, for Hospice, for my siblings and their families, for Kelli (she is the best caretaker ever), for all the caretakers, for the meals.  There is a lot to be grateful for including this time I get with my parents.  Though my Mom keeps asking, "why are you still here?"  

I'm so thankful for the peace they have in Jesus and their faithfulness to God.

It's not an easy season of life for them.  It's hard to watch.  I'm afraid for them.  This is just a short time in our lives that isn't going to be easy.  It is a detour, it is not just the daily grind, it's the winter of their lives.  I want grace, dignity and some good days for them.

That is why it's been quiet on the blog.  I've been busy and preoccupied.  But at the end of day, I still say, "it's all good."  Because in all of this there is a lot of good and God is good.

Living the Dream

Last weekend Hubby and I attended the long awaited tasting event for Pines Brewing Company.  Sam's friends Collin, Jonny and Jesse have been brewing beer for some time now.  They meet early on Saturday mornings to brew and perfect their recipes.  They had seven beers for us to try.

 The guys have been brewing and setting up a fun space for working, brewing and tasting.  They invited friends, parents and grandparents.  Jesse and Sam's Great Grandpas were brothers so I had fun visiting with family that I hadn't seen for awhile. 

 We had tours and explanations of their process.

 It was a gorgeous Fall evening.  Their outdoor tap shed is very pretty too.

And their brew is great.  Great work guys!  We are so excited to see their dreams coming true.

WARNING, this next paragraph is a tad sappy.

 Sam's friends have a special bond.  When these guys get together you can feel the love.  After Sam and Angela's wedding guests commented on Sam's great friends.  I am not sure how to write about it without sounding sappy.  Just to be around them feeling the love is heartwarming.  It's cool, it's special and it's fun...Eek, there's some sappy for you.  Guys, thanks for inviting us!