Bryan's Buckeyes - A Plantation Farm Camp recipe

Oh my goodness! My two big kids came home from Plantation Farm Camp yesterday and they seem so much more mature and helpful. I guess doing 2 hours of farm chores everyday will do that to you! [Clearly, they are not getting enough work to do at home regularly.]

Sweetpea came home all excited to share this camp recipe made by one of the counselors. So in honor of all the great Plantation Farm camp counselors that helped to give my children such a great first sleep away camp experience, Sweetpea preserves this recipe from Bryan:

Bryan's Buckeyes

Ingredients:

1 cup peanut butter
2 sticks of butter
5 1/3 cups of powdered sugar
1 12 oz. bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 12 oz. bag of milk chocolate chips

Method:

Mix butter, peanut butter, and powdered sugar in large mixing bowl. Roll into small balls and place on cookie sheet. Freeze until hard. (at least 1-2 hours ) Melt both bags of chocolate chips in double boiler while stirring. Dip peanut butter balls with toothpicks into chocolate and place back on pan. Place them back in the freezer, serve them straight from the
freezer or take out for softer version.

Enjoy!

How to Make a Cherry S'more - Olivia's Dark Chocolate with Fresh Cherries recipe

After making our blue cheese burgers and orzo salad dinner, Sweetpea decided we needed to make our S'mores extra-special this weekend. She has a very particular way of making them (of course she would).

First, you have to brown the marshmallows without catching them on fire. 

Then she melts the chocolate squares slightly by holding them close to the hot fire. 

Finally, let little brother eat the first one since he had burned his foot on a hot coal that had fallen on the floor and was unable to make his own.

After an exhaustive google search for cherry s'mores, I think she may have actually invented a new recipe! I found recipes for s'mores made with marshmallow creme, dried cherries, maraschino cherries, baked into cookies, melted in the microwave - but none with fresh cherries added on to traditional s'mores roasted over an outdoor fire. 

The sweetness of the cherries combined with the strength of the dark chocolate made for a delicious combination.

Argentine Alfajores in honor of Pope Francis

I'm sure these were Pope Francis's favorite cookies as a boy. Try them and I'm sure you'll love them too!

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups cornstarch

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter

1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 tsp lemon juice

Dulce de leche

grated and sweetened coconut

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2.  Place the cornstarch, flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl and mix briefly.

3. Cut the butter into small pieces and add to the flour mixture, blending with your fingers until the mixture is smooth.

4. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and mix with your hands until the dough is homogeneous and smooth (add a tablespoon or two if too crumbly to form a ball). Let the dough rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

5. Roll out dough to 3/8" thickness, and cut into 2 inch circles.

6. Place cookies on baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

7. Bake cookies for 10-15 minutes, until they are barely golden brown.

8. To fill the cookies, spread one cookie with dulce de leche and top with second cookie. Roll the edges   

in the coconut.

Let cool completely and enjoy!

Beautiful Sunday & Plans for the Week

We had a beautiful Sunday today, boys busy with a Rugby match, Sweetpea and I at a Phi Mu Founders' Day Tea. We were there for over 5 hours, chatting and enjoying tea sandwiches and sweets. 

I had quite a bad relapse of my cough/fever/cold yesterday and wasn't able to bake anything for the party. But Sweetpea saved the day by baking a batch of brownies this morning for us to take to Bebe's house.

They were the best brownies I have ever had.

{Please stop reading if you gave up sweets for Lent}

For the rest of you, I offer this as a free Public Service Announcement because these are the best and easiest from-a-box brownies I have ever had and they can be made by a 9 year old girl. You should buy a box today. Go right now. Reading your other friends' Facebook status updates can wait. Seriously, go. 

She used Ghiradelli Dark Chocolate Brownie mix. She modified the recipe as follows (because she's independent that way)

• used a 9 x 13 glass pan instead of 8x8 or 9x9 square so the brownies were a little thinner and more chewy - leaning towards crunchy. The corner and end pieces were orgasmic I forgot for a second this is a family-friendly blog
• buttered the glass pan instead of using baking spray
• used olive oil instead of vegetable oil
• added 1/2 cup chopped walnuts to the batter because she said chocolate tastes better with walnuts, and saved 16 walnut halves to decorate the top

Other than that, she baked them at the recommended temperature, took them out at the minimum baking time, and allowed them to cool completely before cutting into squares. 

Next time I go to the store I am going to buy several boxes to keep on hand in the pantry because this is going to be my go-to brownie mix from now on. No brownie I have ever made has tasted this good. 

{You can start reading again}

It is incredible to me that I have a daughter old enough to enjoy these sorts of "girlie" things with now. Our relationship has improved so much since we started homeschooling her in kindergarden. I actually enjoy spending time with her now, instead of feeling like I am walking around on eggshells waiting for her to explode. She is calmer and nicer to be around, plain and simple.

How I'm Doing, Really
-I am already feeling inflammation and pain in my knees - could it be that my Remicade is wearing off?
-I need to talk to my doctor about switching antibiotics because after 10 days I do not feel better at all, maybe even more feverish than when I started with this sinus infection
-I should probably get a flu shot so I don't risk getting sick again, my immune system just can't handle another upper respiratory infection this season
-Bill is not traveling this week so I'll have his help in the evenings with bedtime routines
-I will have a nanny/housekeeper here each day to help me
(yes, I'm lucky we can afford help - though with my health status it is more of a necessity than a luxury.) Financially, it's a wash, since we aren't paying tuition for three kids in private Catholic school. 
Sadly, it's actually cheaper and I never feel guilty about needing a full-time nanny and not working outside the home.

Plans for the week
Monday
Meeting with architect and contractor to revise Cabana plans to deal with city bureacracy
Need to find and press Cantabile Choir uniform for concert
Sweetpea has first Girls on the Run meeting, monthly Little Flowers meeting, and softball practice all at the same time She decided that it was most important to make the first GOTR meeting so we said no to the other opportunities
Tuesday
Toto has Vision Therapy 
Math and Chess tutor here for all three children for 2 hours
Sweetpea - 90 minute softball practice late afternoon
Toto - first Little League scrimmage game of the season, at same time, I will do half & half 
Wednesday
Homeschool Playgroup at OLOP, no activity planned
Thursday
Science tutor to be rescheduled because we are going on a Field Trip to see the San Francisco Ballet. So excited! Baby M will stay home with our nanny while we meet up with homeschooling friends in the city
Sweetpea Cantabile Choir practice from 5 to 7 pm
Toto Choir practice from 5 to 6 pm
Me to chiropractor while they're at practice
Friday
Toto Vision Therapy
Grocery shopping - It's $ 5 Friday at our local Safeway
Saturday
Sweetpea has Cantabile Choir practice from early morning on with a performance in the afternoon at Palo Alto JCC
She will miss the last Basketball game of the season
Toto will go to the last Basketball game at Campbell Rec Dept

I have a list of things to do a mile long, and I have a few lockets to put together and mail, but I should be okay since my Crohn's isn't flaring right now and JIMINY CRICKETS 

Daylight Savings Time returns next weekend. 

Oh happy day!

I will feel a little bit better no matter what just because of the extra sunshine in the evenings. I can't stand eating dinner in the dark. 

I wish we could start Daylight Savings Time in February, it would probably eliminate the dreaded February drudge of every homeschooler. 

You can tell I'm giddy happy about this. I'll leave it at that. 

If it's snowing where you are, I am sorry. Sort of. 

I pay ridiculously high prices for real estate, gas, property tax, food, dry cleaning, child care and every other g.d. thing to live in California and I've decided the extra costs are just a Sunshine Surcharge and I'm willing to keep on paying it.

Have a wonderful week!

Chilean Dobladitas

Ingredients

4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 cup milk

1 cup butter, melted (for dough)

3 tablespoons butter, melted (for brushing)

Apricot jam

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

2. Stir together the flour, salt, baking powder, milk, and 1 cup of melted butter. When the dough begins  

    to form, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth about 5 to 8 minutes.

3. Roll to 1/8" thick. Cut into 8" circles. Brush the circles with the remaining butter. Fold each    

    circle in half and then in half again, into triangles. Press firmly to seal. Place the rolls on baking sheet.   

4. Brush with butter and bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes.

5. Spread apricot jam on rolls.

Argentine Alfajores in Honor of Pope Francis

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups cornstarch

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter

1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 tsp lemon juice

Dulce de leche

grated and sweetened coconut

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2.  Place the cornstarch, flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl and mix briefly.

3. Cut the butter into small pieces and add to the flour mixture, blending with your fingers until the    

    mixture is smooth.

4. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and mix with your hands until the dough is homogeneous and 

    smooth (add a tablespoon or two if too crumbly to form a ball). Let the dough rest in the 

    refrigerator for 30 minutes.

5. Roll out dough to 3/8" thickness, and cut into 2 inch circles.

6. Place cookies on baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

7. Bake cookies for 10-15 minutes, until they are barely golden  brown.

8. To fill the cookies, spread one cookie with dulce de leche and top with second cookie. Roll the edges   

in the coconut.