Toffee Bits Triangles

You can get the rest of the recipe here.  This is an quick and easy recipe that I made over the holidays. 

The ingredients...

 With this recipe I thought that I would use my dough beaters on my mixer.  I haven't used them alot, but don't recommend it with this recipe, use the regular ones.  Ok...so as I am doing this blog, I just realized that I used the wrong part of the egg... this is the egg white getting mixed in the bowl, I was supposed to use the yolk...opps!  FYI...They still turned out good!!!

This is it just as I put it in the oven...

 You must get the chocolate chips (and the skor bits that you should have already opened) ready to go before the bar comes out of the oven....

...So you can sprinkle them on the HOT bar after it is out of the oven...

....Then you wait about 5 mins and spread it around...

...Then sprinkle on the bits. 

Hint: do this by hand, (putting the bits in my hand rather than sprinkling from the bag), cause it makes for better distribution of the skor bits!!!

...Then let it cool...either on the counter, or in the fridge (if you want it to cool faster)!

See simple and....

DELICIOUS....!!!

CHEERS!

Beginner Scarf

This was by far the easiest scarf ever!  And the easiest crochet project to date. I have looked high and low for this pattern and been on all the crochet websites out there, but I can't seem to find this pattern..Sorry.  However, it is just rows and rows of sc (single crochet), with tassels at the ends. 

Here is a picture of me wearing it, (don't mind the rocking hair style and the bags under my eyes that have formed from being up multiple times a night and then being up at 5:30 most mornings!!!)

 Here is another picture from the side all wound up and ready for gifting.  I gave it to my sister for christmas and I hope she is getting some use of it and that it isn't too scratchy.  If I ever do a scarf again I will use a softer yarn.  This is one thing that I have learned in the short time that I have been crocheting, is to use the right crochet hook and the right yarn for the project. 

Cheers!!!

"Mess up and You Will Be Rewarded" Cookies

OMG   two post in two days... that is amazing, so far on the right path!!!

Away from my crafts and onto baking today...

This recipe I got from a cookbook magazine that I picked up in 2009.  It is called Taste of Home, Cookies and Bars.  It is by far one of my favorite cookbooks for baking that I have.  Although, some of the recipes call for things that I have never heard of, and I think that is because it is a US printed magazine and all the recipes are submitted by US residence.

Here is the recipe:

And the directions:

My 2 and a half year old love to help (and by help I mean lick the baking as we go... even the uncooked stuff).  Here he is showing what cookie cutters we will use...there is also a gingerbread boy cutter

So if there is one lesson I had learned a LONG time ago is to always make sure you have the right ingredients AND the correct amounts BEFORE you start baking....



OOOOPPPPSSSS!!!!,..... guess I messed up on this one...this measuring cup is supposed to be FULL with flour..Yikes... what to do?  Call my husband, he was out and about anyways!  Thanks for saving my butt yet again Sandy!

So this is what it looked like before I put it into the fridge.  Must warn you if you choose to make these, refridgerate them overnight or at least 8 hrs... only 30 mins just isn't enough!

Here are the cookies...ready to be baked, and baking...

I had an AMAZING discovery while I was decorating these cookies!!!  I had remembered that my husband had gone in a baking competition in Grade 11 and had a bunch of supplies in our storage room... look what I found!!!!

OMG...AMAZING RIGHT!?

So I started to experiment with the tips on these cookies and this is how they turned out:

Gingerbread men in background! Along with my son...helping! Hahaha!!!
So he wanted to decorate some cookies as well so I let him.  Here's how his turned out:

Not too shabby... for a two year old!!!

Hope you have as much fun and discover something new like I did if you decide to make these cookies!
Cheers!

Finding the Right Guage Can Be Tricky!

For Christmas this year, as many other years, we were a little tight for money.  So I wanted to make some of my christmas gifts, and what better avenue than my new hobbie, crocheting. 
I wanted to make a hat for my neice, Leorah, and I had just recently finished knitting a hat for Gavin, my son.  I first went to my local WalMart and found some yarn that is a mixture of pinks and purple... what better colors for an almost 7 year old girl.  At my next oppurtunity (while Gavin was napping) I set to work.  However, I found that either the yarn that I was using was too small, or the needles were too big.  Either way it wasn't looking "right".  So I went online in search of another hat to crochet.  I knew I wanted to do one with earflaps (cause they are just too darn cute).    Finally I came across this pattern... http://angelscrochet.com/patterns/mountainpat.php   and started to crochet..... 

I must say, as a side note, here that I absolutely love crocheting, I think even more than I love (dare I say it...) scrapbooking and cardmaking (another of my hobbies).  I think it must be that it gets done so fast and at the end you actually have something that you can use.  <3

Here is a picture of the hat when it was almost done:

Now I have to say it took me a while to get this pattern right.  I first started out by making it as the pattern calls to do, but found as I neared Round 11 that it was way too big... way too big for my head in fact.   So, I started thinking of how I can fix it.  This is what I decided.. to take it out and use a smaller crochet hook.  So instead of using a 5.5mm hook I switched to a 3.5mm hook.  To my surprise it actually worked!!

My next challenge with this pattern came when I went to do the tassels.  As the pattern said, loop the strings of yarn through the bottom 3 stiches on the earflaps.  So in my mind I thought to just loop it through a few inches enough to then tie in the loose ends.. Well let me tell you that isn't what that means.. you try hiding 12 loose ends into an earflap! LOL...  So then about a day later, after contimplating on what to do with all these loose ends, the light bulb went off!!!  I was supposed to loop them half way through so that the yarn was in half ....kinda hard to explain...  Finally the finished product was complete. Yes my son is modeling it!  Doesn't he look lovely!!!?

However, about a week before Christmas my mom did help and sewed some white fleece to the inside of the hat.  Sorry no picture of that, but it will make the hat a lot warmer.  I love this pattern and may in the future do it again, maybe this time for myself!!!

So, It's Been A While!!!.....

I know I haven't blogged in a while, but with the hussle and bussle of Christmas and everything else going on (more on that later), I haven't had much time to sit and blog anything!   So I guess you can say that this is my New Years Resolution... to blog something everyday... or at least every other day.. or when I do/make something new and exciting to blog about!!! Ha, ha, ha....I know that is vague, but I guess that is why I never like to make NYRs because I hate disappointing myself.

So on with the blogging...