Apple Dip

1 pkg Cream Cheese

1/4c Brown Sugar

1/2c Powdered Sugar

1 tsp Vanilla

Crushed Scor Pieces

Mix together first four ingredients with a hand blender. Stir in Skor pieces.

I made this last night for Book Club and it was such a hit that I thought I would share it with you all.  Enjoy!

As sure as it is March Break, it also means Cake Raffle time at J’s school.  The last two years saw me slaving over intricate details and making beaches and bugs.  This year was the easiest cake possible.

I made a white cake from scratch.

Used some ready-made frosting.

Sprinkled some ground cookie crumbs for dirt and added the final touch of worms and frogs.

That was it!

Hopefully next year we will be back to funky and fun, but I was more than happy to take it easy this year.  It gained many tickets from J’s buddies in his class, but in the end I have no idea who went home with it.

Yesterday, I had the wonderful opportunity to have a fashion shoot with the sweetest teenager, I have yet to meet.  We had a lot of fun and took many wonderful photos.

I’ll leave you with one here, but for more head on over to my photo blog.

Oh my she is just so gorgeous.  And take a look at that cupcake.  I know, it looks divine.  Well, it not only looks divine, but tastes like a little bit of Heaven.  And you are thinking, but BeachMama you make cupcakes!  I know, but I just didn’t have the time or the will power to go through with a whole batch of cupcakes and icing.  Then I met Nicole from Let Them Eat Cake Bakery. And on her last day of work before her mat leave kicked in she whipped up a batch of these gorgeous cupcakes for me.

I wanted some for the shoot and well, we ate a few of them yesterday.  They are smooth and delicious and just the right amount of sweetness.  Nicole is about to have her first baby (congratulations Nicole!) so she will be off for a little bit, but I get the feeling she will be easing back into baking quite quickly so if you need some cupcakes, a cake or some cookies head on over to her site and order some up you will not be disappointed. Thank you Nicole!

Life is continuing at a fast pace here, but I thought I would share two great things for today.

I have a new sponsor here at the Beach.  Please welcome Tiny Prints.  I was so excited to be contacted by Jessica because I love Tiny Prints and the designs and layouts of their cards.  I have been asked several times be clients to provide cards for their birth announcements and as much as I love designing them, sometimes it is just better to leave that to someone else.  Thankfully, Tiny Prints offers a wide selection to choose from.  They ship both in the US and Internationally, so us Canadians can enjoy their product as well.  Feel free to drop by Tiny Prints to check out their cards for your next special occasion.

Now onto my recipe. I was busy today getting caught up on some of my baking.  I had to make my annual Rum Balls.  Now, these are not for the faint of heart, neither are they for children.  They contain Rum and lots of it.

Rum Balls

3c.  Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips

1     can of condensed milk (I use Eagle Brand)

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 c. Rum (I use Appleton Jamica Rum)

• Put condensed milk and chocolate chips in a large microwavable dish.
• Melt the mixture in the microwave (2-3 minutes at 50% power. This may vary depending on your microwave)
• Stir Mixture, if the chocolate is not completely melted, increase time in microwave.
• Once the chocolate is melted and it is smooth after stirring, add vanilla and then the rum.
• Stir until the vanilla and rum are completely absorbed in teh misture.
• Cover and chill 2-3 hours or until firm.
• Shape into 1 inch balls.
• Roll in desired coating (eg. chocolate powdered sugar)
• Store tightly covered in refrigerator.

Serve. And Enjoy!

I have been making this Banana Bread since I was a young girl.  I would pull my Mom’s red and white battered Better Home’s and Gardens New Cook Book off the shelf and whip up a loaf.  For a few years when I didn’t have a stocked kitchen in which to bake I didn’t get the chance and I missed it.  Once I was in a stocked kitchen once again the first request I had from my Mom was a red and white cookbook of my very own.

She obliged and Hubby has been kept in Banana Bread ever since.  Well, he also didn’t tell me that it wasn’t his favourite until well into our lives together.  He finally had the courage to tell me.  How was I going to get him to eat Banana Bread?  Omit the nuts and lemon and add some chocolate and occasionally coconut.  And we were back in business again.

A girlfriend of mine is coming to spend the night tonight so I thought I would whip up a batch (a double batch, one to eat one to freeze) so we could have a little treat.

If you have a few minutes, because it only takes a few, whip up a loaf.  It’s a great way to trick your Hubby and the kids into eating something healthy, just add chocolate.

BeachMama’s Banana Bread (adapted from Better Homes and Gardens recipe):

1 1/2 c. flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1 egg

3 medium bananas

3/4 c. sugar

1/4 c. cooking oil

1/2 c. chocolate chips (optional)

1/2 c. sweetened coconut (soaked in a bit of water for 10 min.  also optional)

1. Grease the bottom and sides of an 8×4x2 inch loaf pan; set aside.  Preheat oven to 350.

2. In a mixer or bowl with hand mixer add bananas, egg, sugar and oil mix until blended.  Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg.  Blend just until mixed (batter should be lumpy).

3. Fold in chocolate chips and coconut if using.

4. Pour into prepared pan. Bake in preheated oven (350F) for 50 - 55 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near center comes out clean.  Cool pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.  Remove loaf from pan; finish cooling before slicing (if you can wait that long).

5. Enjoy!

For supper last night, I was feeling a little uninspired.  We have been eating the same stuff for quite a while and it was chilly and Fall like.  Add to that the soup recipes that I was reading over, I really didn’t know what to make (Hubby, A and J all don’t eat soup).

I had a bunch of random ingredients and realized that I could pull together a pretty quick pot pie.

Here is what I had:

• two chicken breasts
• cheddar cheese
• cream of potato soup
• a box of stuffing
• a bag of frozen veggies

Here is what I did:

1. cubed and cooked the chicken
2. microwaved the frozen veggies for 5 min. to take out the chill.
3. grated the cheese.
4. mixed the chicke, veggies, cheese and can of soup together in a caserole dish.
5. sprinkled the stuffing (prepared as per package directions) over top.
6. Baked at 350F for 30 min.

And boy did it taste good.  I even had enough for leftovers at lunch today.

The time of year has arrived.

Gone are the skinny salads and cool dinners replaced by warm comforting soups and mega carbs.

I am trying to be ok with that as soup keeps me going in the cold winter months.

And thankfully Apple loves soup as much as I do.

I do have a few recipes that are waistline friendly, but if any of you have a favourite soup that is delicious and low in the calorie count please pass it along.  I promise to make it at least once to try out (unless it is Pumpkin Soup, I have tried that once and something about eating pie for lunch just didn’t work for me).

Thank you, my waistline will thank you more.

On the last night of our beach vacation we strolled through one of our favourite bookshops, Browseabout Books, Hubby went one way with Apple and I went the other with J. I was browsing the wonderful paper products and home decor section (all beachy) and Hubby went straight for the books. Not a few minutes into our visit, Hubby was at my side. “Honey, there is an Author over on the book side, signing books, they look like those number ones you love, come and see she is packing up to go.”

When Hubby makes a statement like that, I am off and running. I got to the table and thought I was looking at Ann Douglas and almost hugged the poor woman, only to take a double take and realize that I had never met her before. Nor, had I heard of her books before, but just looking at the covers I knew I was in for a treat.

Standing beside me was Mary Kay Andrews. Mary Kay was there for her new release, The Fixer Upper. Having never read her books before, I asked if I should be starting with a certain book or not. Mary Kay was so sweet, instead of saying of course not and put her new book in my hand, she asked me a few questions and let me handle a couple of the books and recommended, Little Bitty Lies.

ETA:  Just a note about how sweet Mary Kay was, J was left at my side to pick out a toy to buy with money his Great Aunt gave him and he was doing the “this one Mommy??” dance.  Mary Kay just went with the flow and started chatting with J, noticing his blue eyes and blonde hair and did he have fun at the beach.  All the good stuff, yes she is just that sweet.

Perfect. From the minute I started reading, I just didn’t want to put it down. For a whole week while I read each night before bedtime, Hubby was begging me to put down my book and turn off the light. Usually I read for a half an hour to an hour, but going on two hours and approaching 11pm, Hubby was seriously having his sleep disturbed. But, it was so worth it. Without giving anything away, I want to say that Little Bitty Lies was the perfect summer read. I was able to really get into the characters and I even found myself trying to figure out the plot twists before they happened. I just loved it and am looking forward to starting another book this week.

I also want to share with you a little recipe that kept my mouth watering all week long, until I finally caved and made it. My girlfriends and I polished off half of it at a picnic on Friday and Hubby and I polished off the other half for supper. Oh so delicious.

Let me know if you decide to make it, it is just that good.

Beyond the Grave Chicken Salad - found on Mary Kay Andrews site.

5 lbs. chicken breasts
2 quarts water
parsley sprigs
1 large onion, quartered
1 tsp. seasoned salt
2 chicken bouillion cubes

In large pot, bring water and seasoning to boil, add chicken, lower heat and simmer 40 min. Remove from heat, cool. Shred chicken and refrigerate.Dressing:

1/2 cup bottled Italian salad dressing
1 cup Duke’s mayonnaise
1 Tbsp. white vinegar
1-1/2 tsp. celery seed
2 Tbsp. sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
dash paprika

Blend well together.For salad:

Toss shredded chicken with one cup of dressing and let stand at least one hour to marinate.
Combine remaining dressing with:
1/2 cup sour cream
1 Tbsp. honey
Add to chicken and mix well. May add canned water chestnuts, blanched almonds or chopped pecans.

 Not to keep on tooting Pioneer Woman’s horn, but I must share with you another of her wonderful recipes.  Actually it isn’t her recipe, but from one of her contributors Pastor Ryan.

Now, this is all I had left after my company left but trust me it looked just like the photo on PW’s site when I took it out of the oven.  Just kidding, it looked a little like it, but smaller and not as gooey. I used a loaf pan instead of a bundt pan, if you want to fill a bundt pan double the whole recipe (dough included).  Mine also didn’t turn out as gooey because I made the mistake of dumping the extra sugar and cinnamon that was left over into the pan, soaking up the extra butter.

I will share with you what I did to make this Heavenly delight because I didn’t have all the ingredients I had to improvise.

Pastor Ryan calls for 3 cans of Biscuit dough, I didn’t and couldn’t find any.  So I made my own.

The recipe is from a 1950’s cookbook that my Mom has, she got it from my Grandmother who also made this biscuit dough.  But, normally we roll it out, stuff it with tuna and serve it with Bearnaise Sauce, but that is a recipe for another time.

Stir and Roll Biscuit Dough (so quick, it’s unbelievable)

Take 1 1/3 cups sifted flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 cup vegetable oil, 1/2 cup milk.   Sift dry ingredients togetehr into a bowl.  Pour oil and milk into a measuring cup, don’t stir.  Then, pour all at once into flour.  Stir with fork until mixture cleans sides of bowl.

BeachMama’s Version of Monkey Bread

Take your Stir and Roll Biscuit dough and form into a rectangle.  Using a sharp knife, cut into 1″cubes.  Set aside.

Into a large ziplock back pour 1/2 cup of white sugar and 2 tsp cinnamon.  Seal bag and shake until well mixed.

Add dough to back with cinnamon/sugar mix.  And shake until all of the dough is evenly coated.  Place coated pieces of dough in a loaf pan. Set aside.

In a saucepan, melt 1/2 cup of butter, add 1/4 cup of brown sugar.  Stir until sugar is melted into the butter and the colour changes to one colour (I didn’t take pictures, but the photos on Pioneer Woman’s site show each step).   Once this mixture turns to one colour pour over the sugared dough in the loaf pan.  Ensure all pieces of dough are below the butter mixture.

Place in a 350 degree preheated oven and cook for 30-40 minutes. (mine took 35 minutes).  Let cool for five minutes, run a knife around the edge of the pan and turn out on to a plate.  Enjoy.

I know this is not the usual way of writing a Thank You note, but be assured that there will be another one coming your way the old fashioned way.

I am not sure how to Thank You properly really, so bear with me while I stumble through.  I was first introduced to your website by Bakerella and her glorious cake pops.  I don’t make them right now because they go straight to my hips and if you see my Workout Wednesday posts, I am trying desperately to get rid of my extra baggage. When I first clicked over to your site from Bakerella I was immediately drawn in.  Your love of cooking, photography, decorating and renos is everything I love and more.  Oh yes, and you are a Mom and live on Ranch.  If Hubby had had his way years ago we would be living on a Farm and I would be sneezing my way through life.

I found it very interesting that you gave away prizes all the time.  At first I was very shy to enter, because I had just started stopping by and was getting to know you.  I didn’t feel that was fair to others who had been visiting your site for two and a half years.  But, when I realized that you had some 15,000 - 20, 000 people entering your contests, I started popping my name in here and there, but never in a millions years did I ever expect to see my name in the list of Winners.  Or Wieners as you like to call them sometimes.

Well, a few weeks ago, I entered your Kitchen-Aid Mixer contest because I wanted you to make Croques Monsieur for your guests who were meeting Smitten Kitchen.  Well you didn’t chose to make the Croques but, I did win a Mixer!  I know, how crazy is that? It took a little while to get here, but it arrived on Saturday morning by way of a very good looking delivery man.

You were expecting a photo of him weren’t you?  Didn’t think of that.

I chose Blue Willow, because my kitchen is blue and blue in my decor makes me happy.  I feel closer to the beach when I live in a blue world.

Fresh out of the box, look at that baby shine!

This is the Artisan Model, it is beautiful.  A large bowl (5 quart) with handle and spill guard with a pouring spout.  Just think of all I can make.

I planned and had the ingredients for Chocolate Chip Cookies.  A favourite in my house, I figured Saturday morning was a good day for cookies.

And in action…

And the end result after all that mixing, more because it was new.

A boat load of cookies.

That were gone by Sunday morning.

I did give some away, but the rest were consumed by the four of us here chez BeachMama.  And today, I went for a run.  A long hard run.

Thank you so much for inspiring so many people, sharing your stories and recipes and photo tips. And for constantly being so generous towards your readers.  I never thought in a million years that I would ever win something, but I am truly grateful and I love it!

Thank you with all my heart,

BeachMama