Snow Day in Colorado

I got the day off from work today. Thank you Jesus for snow!!! Andrew got to work from home and it was so much fun to have breakfast and lunch together. While he was working in the office, I started having some fun.

First, I baked my birthday cake. Andrew offered to bake the German chocolate cake, but I told him I would love to make it! Andrew is taking me to the Candlelight Dinner Theater to see Anything Goes. Afterwards, we will eat some cake!

 

I found this beautiful serving plate at Target. It was on clearance for $8.50 (Originally $16). I love it!

 

One of the best tips I have learned for baking was from Mastering the Art of French Cooking. The trick to making sure your baked goods do not stick to the pan is to first butter the pan and then lightly dust the butter with flour. Dump out all the excess and then pour in your batter. It works perfectly (as seen below)!

 

Make sure to put the flat side up and a thin layer of icing.

 

Put both flat parts (bottoms) to each other.

 

Add icing and then wipe the plate clean with a wet paper towel. 

 

FYI, I used Betty Crocker boxed German chocolate cake mix and icing (I cheated, I know... It is my birthday).

 

Cover with tin foil and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Next, I started some peanut butter cookies as a tasty treat for today. This recipe was found online at allrecipes.com and each cookie only has 62 calories! That's not bad as far as cookies are concerned.

Here is the recipe:

"Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons reduced fat peanut butter
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg white
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter, peanut butter and sugars. Add egg white; beat until blended. Beat in vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda and salt; gradually add to the creamed mixture. Shape into an 8-in. roll; wrap in plastic wrap. Freeze for 2 hours or until firm.
2. Unwrap and cut into slices, about 1/4 in. thick. Place 2 in. apart on baking sheets coated with nonstick cooking spray. flatten with a fork. Bake at 350 degrees F for 6-8 minutes for chewy cookies or 8-10 minutes for crisp cookies. Cool for 1-2 minutes before removing to wire racks; cool completely.

Footnotes

Nutritional Analysis: One cookie equals 62 calories, 2 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 4 mg cholesterol, 64 mg sodium, 11 g carbohydrate, trace fiber, 1 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 1/2 starch, 1/2 fat"

Found at http://allrecipes.com/recipe/peanut-butter-cookies/detail.aspx

After that, it was time for some crafts.

 

A shirt I bought from Forever 21 a couple years ago.

 

I got bleach on the shirt while cleaning one day and there are these little flecks of bleached fabric on it. :(

 

My solution: hide the bleach spots with buttons!!!

 

Very easy to do. Just buy a package of buttons from Joann Fabrics or your preferred craft store and sew them on! After that, make leaves with a simple in and out stitch. This took me about an hour and a half. Lots of fun!

Andrew is now done with work. Maybe I will join him in relaxing on the couch and try to finish my book, Founding Mothers...