Chocolate Chip Shortbreads

There has been a serious lack of chocolate around here lately!!  I don't have any new chocolate recipes for you, but thought I could re-post a yummy one for you to try this weekend.  The "old" chocolate recipes do start to feel neglected after a while, you know.  :)

 

Chocolate Chip Shortbreads

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 stick (1/2 cup) cold unsalted butter
1/3 cup semisweet mini chocolate chips

1. Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Have a baking sheet ready.

2. Mix flour and 1/4 cup granulated sugar in a medium bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender (or rub in with fingertips) until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in mini chips.

3. Gently press crumbs together to form a dough (heat from your hand will help this happen). Place on baking sheet; pat into an 8-in. disk. With a sharp knife, score into 16 wedges, cutting about halfway through dough. Prick wedges twice with a fork.

4. Bake 25 minutes, or until shortbread looks dry and golden at edges. Immediately cut through score lines. Cool 5 minutes on baking sheet before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Can be stored airtight at room temperature up to 3 days.

Be very careful with these from beginning to end as they're very delicate and crumbly!  They have a nice mild flavor since the butter is unsalted - you could certainly add a dash of salt if you wanted.  And um, I'm making my own self drool looking at this pic - LOL!

Have you tried these before?  Are you going to make some this weekend?  More importantly - are you going to share??!!

This post is linked to:
~ Chic & Crafty at The Frugal Girls
~ I'm Lovin' It at TidyMom
~ Fusion Fridays at Jane Deere

Have a wonderful chocolatey weekend friends! 

Encouraging Bloggers: Small or Hobby or Nicheless or New, This Blog Series Is Written For You {Intro}

See that?  I already broke some blogging "rules" with that title!  It's too long, but I like to live on the edge sometimes.  :)

I have been feeling the need to write this as a blog series, which took me by surprise as I've never written a blog series.  The urge became stronger and stronger and the last little push came from reading my friend Brooke's book Notes to Aspiring Writers: Your Dream, God's Plan.  Why should I be the one to write this series to encourage bloggers?  Why not?  I've been blogging for a while now.  This message is important to me and I trust that God will bring the bloggers that need to hear this encouragement to my little corner of the blogosphere.

I started blogging over 3 years ago and in a way that makes me an old-timer (though there are plenty of older-timers around!).  Hard to believe, but blogging, especially by moms - whether or not they consider themselves mommy-bloggers -  has changed dramatically in that time.  And while so much of it is good and has given greater opportunities to female bloggers to have their voices heard and to help earn an income for their families, I feel that the focus on making an income and doing everything the "right" way to be successful might be intimidating some bloggers right out of the blogging scene.  And that makes me sad.

Bloggers certainly come and go on a regular basis.  But I have been more and more surprised lately by the number of bloggers who have quit or taken an extended break, or made their blogs private.  Some of these women are making wise decisions, choosing not to let blogging take over and cause them to neglect family (that happens quite often).  That is a good thing!  But some may be saying - I don't fit into a category; I don't have money to spend on blogging; I can't keep up with all the things I'm supposed to be doing online, I don't think anybody's going to want to hear what I have to say.  They feel discouraged, inferior, invisible.  These are the bloggers I'm talking to - and often fit into the categories of small bloggers, hobby bloggers, nicheless bloggers, and new bloggers.

What is a small blog?  That definition is really up to you.  Maybe you define it as less than 100 subscribed readers.  Maybe you define it as a small percentage of comments compared to readers.  Maybe you just get the feeling that nobody has heard of your blog.  Being small is not a bad thing.  I consider myself a small blogger.  But to a newer blogger, my "numbers" may look big.  Part of the reason I define myself as "small" is because I have not experienced near the growth of many bloggers who started around the same time I did. 

What is a hobby blog?  I don't mean somebody who blogs about hobbies (though you could).  I think of a hobby blog as one who is not a money-making blog or a blog to promote products or a blog for a published author.  I would say the hobby blogger blogs simply for the enjoyment or creative outlet.  I consider myself a hobby blogger.  Though I am certainly not opposed to making an income from my blog, that isn't why I do it.  And I really don't have anything to promote or a specific message to get out.  I blog because I like it and I like what I've created here - it's a scrapbook of me and how I think and a record of my favorite recipes.

What is a nicheless blog?  Well, it's when you just don't fit into one specific category.  You don't just blog about kids or food or devotions or photos.  You blog about some combination of those things.  It doesn't necessarily mean that you don't have a vision for your blog; it just means you can't neatly put yourself in one column or the other.  And I do consider myself a nicheless blogger!  Though I'm sometimes mistaken for a food blogger, I'm most certainly not.  I blog about everything and anything in life, but I throw in some recipes too.

What is a new blog?  A new blog might be a blog that isn't even in existence yet, but just a thought in someone's mind.  It might be the blog that's less than a year old or maybe less than 6 months old.  Or it could be a blog that's been around for a while, but hasn't been very active in the blogosphere. I don't consider myself new!  I feel like I've been around the block a bit in blog years (over 3 doesn't sound like a lot in real life, but in blog years I think it means I'm middle-aged).  :)

There are already many great blog posts on the best ways to start a blog, how to have a successful blog, mistakes to avoid, and helpful tutorials so you can do things yourself for your blog.  That's not what this series is about!  When I can, I'll refer you to some of those helpful resources.  Really I'm just here to say - you can DO this and it's OK to do it your own way!!!  You can have a successful blog - it comes down to what your definition of success is (and what God's purpose is for your blog)! :)  And I would love for some of us to join together and encourage a few bloggers who are struggling out there, so later on I'll be asking people to share blog links.

Do you fit into the above blogging categories?  Do you need encouragement?  Do you want to help encourage other bloggers?  Do you know bloggers that might need to see this series of posts?

Then please join me for this series as I do my best to encourage bloggers!  I'm hoping for this series to run every Thursday for a few weeks, but my schedule could change a bit - I'll keep you posted!  Feel free to post the button at the top on your blog!  And if you'd like to help encourage bloggers on Twitter, please use the hashtag #encouragingbloggers (I'm @stop4chocolate on Twitter)!

Take heart blogging friends and soon-to-be-blogging friends!  There's a place in the blogosphere for all of us!

**I'll start posting the links here as the series continues:
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 1: A Blog is a Blog no Matter How Small
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 2: One *Why* Or Another 
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 3: Money Can't Buy You Love
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 4: Variety Is The Spice Of Life
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 5: Go Forth And Comment
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 6: Out of Clutter Find Simplicity 
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 7: Thrive on the Encouragement of Others
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 8: The Art of Getting Noticed Naturally
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 9: The Blessings of Blogging
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 10: Send Some Blogger Love Letters
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 11: Be YOU, But Better
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 12: Your Turn
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 13: Sharing is Caring
~ Encouraging Bloggers - Part 14: Link Up

Have a blessed day friends!

No Shampoo - A Baking Soda & ACV Hair Update {Part 3}

Finally!  The last part of the "no poo" series!  After checking out Part 1 and Part 2, this is the last bit of info that you'll want before you decide to make the change!

The main question I get about this comes from the biggest concern of all!  "What will I do on the bad hair days during the transition time???" If this is our biggest problem in life - then we've got it pretty good - LOL!  :)

I will give you some ideas for this, but really, have you looked around when you're out??  Do you think your "bad" hair will stand out in the crowd of all kinds of hair parading around out there?  I'm not saying we should regularly head out with bad hair or anything (hey - it's a big deal to ME too), but I don't think it makes that big of a difference in the grand scheme of things.  Now, if you have a full-time job in a law office or something, you may want to hold off until your vacation!

While you do have some bad hair days during the transition time, it's certainly not every day and not always that bad!  You can go out in public every day - I did!  But I'll share a few ideas in case you hadn't thought of them.

Bad Hair Day Ideas:

~ Slick hair back into a brushed pony tail.
~ Give hair a "messy" look and wear a low side pony tail with hair over your shoulder.
~ Wear hair in a loose braid.
~ Try a French braid.
~ Wear hair up in a bun.
~ Wear hair up in a clip.
~ Wear a cute baseball cap - works for long or short hair.
~ Wear a sun hat and movie star sunglasses.
~ Wear a cute scarf tied around loose hair or a pony tail - looks cute on short hair too.
~ Try a cute headband - again cute on short hair too.

What did I miss?  Any more bad hair day ideas?

Now if you'd like to get an idea of how the whole no shampoo experience is going for others (it can be a little different for each person), I've got some great links for you to check out!

Update on using no shampoo from Simple Mom

How to wash hair without shampoo at Kitchen Stewardship

Video on how to make no poo mixtures at Keeper of the Home

Natural hair care (no shampoo) at The Cozy Nook 

Homemade natural hair care shampoo recipe (alternative to no poo) from Passionate Homemaking

I think the results of no poo would be improved with the use of this shower filter (I would love to try it) reviewed by Kingdom First Mom

That should be enough to give you a good idea of whether you want try "no poo" or some other natural hair care method.  Have you tried it?  Are you going to give it a try if you haven't?

If you have a post on the no shampoo method, share the link in the comments or share a link to a helpful no shampoo post I've missed!  The more info, the better!

That's it - I'm done - no more parts - LOL!!  I hope this info has been helpful to you!

Have a great day friends!

Read, Relax, and Drool ~ Over at Pennies & Blessings

I'm over at Pennies and Blessings today!  You should come over and be a part of Read & Relax month - just kick back and read some great links shared by the wonderful contributors.

I decided to share links for some yummy food blogs I recently found.  That's where the Drool part comes in!

Stop over and find out where to get the recipe for this yummy pic, plus delicious things like Spasagna, Key Lime Cake Pops, and Alabama Peach and Blackberry Cobbler with Almond Crust.  See you there - you and your drool - LOL!

Have a wonderful day friends!

Lemon Blueberry Muffins

Finally - here are the yummy muffins I mentioned last week!  I saw a recipe for lemon muffins in a cookbook, made a couple changes and thought the recipe would be even better with blueberries!

Lemon Blueberry Muffins

1 lemon
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar, divided
2 cups all-purpose flour (I used unbleached)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 dash salt
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup melted butter
1/2 to 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Zest lemon; set zest aside.  Slice lemon in half and squeeze out juice, removing seeds.  Mix lemon juice with 1 tablespoon of the sugar and set aside.

In bowl, combine remaining 1 cup sugar, flour, baking powder, salt and the lemon zest.  In separate bowl, mix eggs and buttermilk.  Stir in melted butter.  Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir just until mixed.  Batter will be lumpy.  Fold in blueberries.

Spray 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray.  Fill muffin cups until batter is used up.  Bake 25 minutes, or until lightly browned on top.  Let cool in muffin tin 10 minutes.  Brush tops of muffins with lemon juice mixture.  Remove muffins from tin.  Serve warm or at room temp.  Makes 12 muffins.

Yummy!!  I love lemon and blueberry together!  And I love that the tops are brushed with a lemon juice/sugar glaze to enhance the moist lemony flavor.

What's your favorite muffin recipe?

This post is linked to:
~ Tempt My Tummy Tuesday at Blessed With Grace
~ Tasty Tuesday at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam

Have a delicious day friends!

No Shampoo - A Baking Soda & ACV Hair Update {Part 2}

Took me longer to get to Part 2 than I anticipated - sorry about that!  And don't hurt me - I've just realized that I will need a Part 3 because I am just.too.wordy!!  Part 3 will have links to other "no poo" blogger updates and reference info.

So by now you've seen Part 1 and you see that after the hair adjusts to no shampoo it looks normal!  But what about the process to get there and how much baking soda to use, etc.?

Let's talk about the adjustment period first:

It will take your hair 3-4 weeks to adjust.  Sounds weird, but it takes your body that long to figure out the correct amount of oil to produce for your hair.  Normal shampoo strips the hair so your scalp produces extra oil to make up for it (which is why you end up with greasy hair the next day or 2 later).  Once you stop the "poo" your scalp may produce too much or too little during the adjustment period.  Now - not every day is a bad hair day during this time.  But one day you might have flat greasy hair and 3-4 days later you might have really dry hair with static.

The first time I went through the adjustment period, I had fabulous hair the first couple of days because the baking soda removed styling product and shampoo buildup.  After 1 week, I thought my hair was decent as you can see in this pic here from last year:

But I was in for a surprise after that! The 2nd week my hair was fairly dry.  The 3rd week my hair was greasy/icky and I almost quit the whole thing!  By the 4th week, I had some good hair!  Although I have to say I had a couple of super-fabulous hair days and haven't had them as good as that since - not sure if the planets had aligned just right or what, but if I could get that back I'd be a happy camper!  :)

The second time I went through a transition it didn't take as long and I didn't have as many crazy shifts in hair condition.  Or maybe I knew what to expect and adjusted along the way as necessary which made it easier.  I do get my hair cut and highlighted every 6-7 weeks (yes I know, I go natural on the shampoo but still color my hair - baby steps, baby steps) and my stylist uses shampoo/conditioner on my hair.  I notice a slight transition over the few days following, but no big deal really.

Now for how much baking soda and ACV to use:

When I first tried this last year, I started with these amounts:
~ 1 tablespoon baking soda to 1 cup water
~ 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar (ACV) to 1 cup water

During the first transition, I hardly used the ACV as it seemed to make my hair too greasy.  I also tried white vinegar which works, but it's less acidic.  I later gave up on that and realized that I actually did need the ACV and even a larger proportion.  I decided that for my hair this amount of baking soda was too much and was causing a bit of dryness in my hair.

Now I use:
~ 2 teaspoons baking soda to 1 cup water
~ 1/3 cup ACV to 2/3 cup water

This amount of baking soda seems to get my hair clean but not overdry my scalp.  And I've even used up a 1/2 mixture of ACV and water - just depends on the season and how my hair is.  Think of the ACV as your conditioner.

In between the baking soda/ACV uses, I "wash" my hair with water.  I just rinse it out really well and use my fingertips to give my scalp a bit of a massage.  Once your hair adjusts, you'll be surprised how often it can get clean with just water!

How to use it:

I mix my baking soda solution in a squeeze bottle.  In the shower I give it a shake and then squeeze the solution onto several different areas of my scalp.  I then use my fingers to massage it into my scalp all over.  No need to work it into hair - only the scalp!  I rinse it well using fingertips to make sure it's all rinsed off my scalp.

I mix my ACV solution in a spray bottle.  After rinsing the baking soda out, I spray my hair with this - focusing on the hair, not the scalp.  Sometimes I work it into the longer hair a little, then I rinse it all out.  That's it!  The ACV works as a conditioner and detangler.

Tips:
 
~ Don't give up!  Get through the adjustment phase before you decide if you're happy with it or not!  That break from shampoo will be good for your hair anyway.

~ Adjust amounts as necessary.  If your hair seems especially dry or your scalp is itchy, decrease the amount of baking soda.  If your hair feels greasy all the time, use less ACV or only use it every other washing.

~ Don't wash your hair every day.  If you are absolutely an everyday hair washer, your transition may take longer.  I highly recommend using water in between and just dealing with the icky hair for a while - might as well let all the adjusting happen at once!

~ Use whatever mixing method you like.  Some people make a little baking soda paste to put on the scalp in the shower.  Some pour the ACV rinse over the hair.  I like my squeeze bottle and spray bottle, but use what's convenient for you.

~ You hair will NOT smell like vinegar!  The smell evaporates quickly and does not stay in the hair.

~ Your hair color should not be affected.  Shampoo and even water gradually strip out hair color, so this will be the same.  Of course I don't have dark hair, so I can't say for certain but as far as I know nobody has experienced changes.  And on blonde - I don't notice any permanent changes.  If anything, my color lasts longer because it's not being stripped as much since I don't wash it as much.

~ After your hair adjusts to the "no poo" method, try spacing out the days you wash it.  For example, if you normally wash every other day, try every 3rd day.

Does that all make sense to you?  Are you going to give it a try?

OK - what did I leave out?  And what questions do you have?  I'll try to address any other questions in Part 3 (again - please don't hate me for adding a Part 3!) along with giving you links so you can read about how other ladies in the blogosphere are doing with the "no poo" process!

Have a great day friends!

No Shampoo - A Baking Soda & ACV Hair Update {Part 1}

I really didn't want to do this in 2 parts, but with the pics and my lengthy explanations - 1 post would just be too long!  First I'll tell you the basics and show pics, and then on Part 2 I'll give you exact amounts that I use and what changes I've tried.

Last year I had my first exposure to "washing" my hair with a baking soda solution and rinsing with diluted apple cider vinegar (ACV) instead of using shampoo.  It was for a challenge, but I ended up liking it for many reasons.  I posted an update about it after trying it for a week.  I did it for several months, but felt like I wasn't quite getting the great hair results I had expected.  I went back to shampoo...and hated it!  Right back to greasy hair by the 2nd day - yuck! I tried various natural shampoos for 2-3 months and then went back to the "no poo" (yes, that's really what it's called!) way about 6 months ago.  I adjusted my amounts of baking soda and ACV and have had better results.

Why do this?  It's a more natural way to keep your hair clean and avoids any possibly harmful chemicals (there seem to be many in shampoo these days).  It's better for the environment and it's also super frugal!  When your hair fully adjusts, you shouldn't need to "wash" it as often.

I'll show you some hair pics so you know I'm not just hiding out with bad hair or throwing it up into a ponytail every day so it doesn't matter what it really looks like - my hair is clean and looks fine (no it doesn't look like supermodel hair, but it didn't with regular shampoos either).  Then in Part 2 I'll give you my current amount and method for "no poo."

For this series of pics, I wanted to see if I could go a whole week before "washing" again with baking soda and ACV.  I "washed" it in between with water - just water.  Also, I no longer use any hair styling products other than some hair spray at the end.  Oh, and you should know that I'm not thrilled with these pics - it's not that easy to take pics of your own hair every day.  But I was too lazy to do another entire week of pics trying to get prettier ones!!  :)

Day 1 - baking soda, ACV, blowdry, curling iron

Started this series of pics a few days after getting my hair cut and highlighted.

Day 2 - brushed, curling iron

Terrible pic, but wanted to give you a side view.

Day 3 - water, blowdry, curling iron

A good hair day. And yes, my hair is super thin and super fine.

Day 3 - a view of opposite side

In case you were tired of the same view.  :)

Day 4 - brushed, curling iron

Leaned forward so you can see it's not plastered to my head!

Day 5 - brushed, curling iron

This day was pushing it though the pic looks ok.

Day 6 - water, blowdry, curling iron

Another forward shot to show movement.

Day 7 - baking soda, ACV, blowdry, curling iron

This pic is after I had been out late at a function, so by this time my hair was pretty flat.

Day 7 - another view

And we start all over again!

See?  No greasy, matted hair.  What do you think so far?  Are you surprised that hair can be clean with just water or with baking soda and ACV?

I have to remind you that it takes about a month for your hair to adjust after stopping shampoo.  You WILL have scary hair during that time - sometimes dry or full of static, sometimes super greasy and flat, sometimes normal.  But after that, your body figures out how much oil to produce for your scalp and you get fairly good hair!  Mine would be better if it wasn't highlighted which dries it out and if we didn't have hard water - those minerals don't help.

Come on back for Part 2 and I'll tell you what proportions I use and how I prepare it and store it.  I'll answer some questions I know you'll have and I'll give you a couple links so you can see how it's going for others.

The baking soda/ACV hair-washing is definitely working for me, so I linked it up for WFMW at We Are THAT Family!

Have you tried the "no poo" method?  What do you think about it?

Have a great day friends!

The Latest and Greatest

How about some bullet points (my friend Kim loves these), or in my case squiggly lines to let you know what's happening in my world?

~ My son turned 12 yesterday.  Big sigh.  I didn't realize how sentimental I would be about the number 12.  But he is turning into a young man, no longer just a boy.  And I mentioned on FB that he is close to 5'4" already and in a size 10 men's shoe.  I have had a few tears the last couple of days, but I'll be fine.  On to new adventures!

Who said this sweet little guy could grow up?

~ I don't have any more no-bake posts for you.  Shocking, I know - LOL! I gave you chocolate no-bake recipes, non-chocolate no-bake recipes, and traditional no-bake cookies - what more could you possibly need? :)

~ My giveaway for a copy of Notes to Aspiring Writers: Your Dreams, God's Plan is still open, but closing soon! Read my review and enter the giveaway!**Giveaway closed. Congrats to Mary Beth!**

~ It's R&R month over at Pennies and Blessings!  That means everybody will be taking it easy and sharing great links for you to read.  But more importantly - this is **Giveaway Week** over there to celebrate Mandy's birthday and a belated Blogiversary!!  Be sure to stop by and enter giveaways all week!

~ I plan to post an update on my baking soda hair-washing.  Yes, I don't use shampoo and instead wash my hair with baking soda and apple cider vinegar.  Crazy, huh?!  I recently took pics of my hair for a week so I could show you how it turns out.  I hope to post that sometime this week.

~ Remember I mentioned that I wanted to do a blog series?  Well, I have the topics for the series figured out and the intro post mostly written - in my world of procrastination that.is.amazing. - so I want to post that Intro this week (which will then force me to get the next post done!!).  The series is about encouraging bloggers - why you should start blogging or keep blogging even if you're new, small, nicheless, penniless, etc.  Don't be intimidated by all the blogging info out there - you can do it your own way and it's OKAY!  :)

~ I'll try to post a recipe this week too - maybe Lemon Blueberry Muffins (they were yummy).  How does that sound?

~ In real life this week: more birthday celebrating for the kiddo, Boy Scouts, getting together with friends, kiddo getting his bottom braces on, and a baseball game followed by fireworks!

Got all that?  :)  You know you want to leave me a comment with your thoughts and input!  What's the latest and greatest in your life?

Have a super day friends!!

And You Thought I Was Done No-Baking ~ Traditional No-Bake Cookies

Surprise!  One more no-bake recipe for you!  I've never posted these no-bake cookies here because it seems like everybody else already has them or a version of them posted.  Mine aren't really different, but I do have tips for you to get that no-bake perfection every time.  Of course no-bake cookies are yummy no matter what, but if you have that just-right texture and consistency they're even better.  Look at me, soundin' like I'm a no-bake expert or somethin'!  LOL!

The funny thing is that I never had no-bake cookies until about 10 years ago.  I found a recipe printed in an ad...for KFC!  Weird, I know!  Anyway I tried them and loved them!  When hubs tasted them, he realized that his mother used to make them when he was a kid.  Good cookie memories!  Now I'm happy to have them as a part of our family's cookie history. 

Also - you should know that I like to think of these cookies as kind of healthy.  They have protein in the milk and peanut butter, fiber in the oats, antioxidants in the chocolate  - if that doesn't justify a second cookie, I don't know what does!  ;)

Ingredients in the pan - be sure to follow the measurements *exactly* if you want cookie perfection! And I recommend using real butter. It tastes good and the cookies set up well.

Have everything measured out ready to go. Not only are measurements important, but timing too. And I know you're going to try and use extra oats. Don't do it. :) This amount is just right - too much and your cookies won't turn out as nice!

Important to remember - stir constantly until mixture comes to a FULL boil, then stop stirring, set your timer for 1 minute and watch the bubbles! This needs to happen for best set up. After 1 minute, immediately remove from heat.

After removing from heat, I like to add the remaining ingredients in the following order: stir in peanut butter completely; stir in vanilla extract; stir in oats until well-coated. You should have a thick wet batter.

Best way to get pretty cookies and consistent size - the cookie scoop! This is my Pampered Chef medium scoop, but any brand will do. Just fill it up and plop each scoop onto wax paper. I think the dirty tile grout really sets off the scoop nicely in this pic, don't you? ;)

Pretty scoops! Work quickly here - the mixture will start to set up and if you don't get your scoops out in time, it will start to get a little dry and crumbly.

After 3 days in a ziploc bag (good luck getting them to last that long - these 3 were set aside) - starting to dry more but still delicious!

Traditional No-Bake Cookies

6 tablespoons cocoa powder (I used Dutch this time, but either kind of cocoa powder works)
2 cups sugar
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
1/2 cup milk
3 cups quick oats
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Have all ingredients measured and ready.  Spread wax paper on counter or table.  In medium saucepan, mix cocoa powder, sugar, butter and milk over medium heat.  Stirring constantly, bring mixture to a full boil (very important to continue stirring until mixture reaches boiling).  Once it reaches full boil, stop stirring and continue to boil for 1 minute, then remove from heat.

Add peanut butter, vanilla, and oats.  Stir until well-combined and scoop out tablespoons or larger of mixture onto wax paper.  Cookies should set up within a few minutes.  With the size scoop I use, I get about 2 1/2 dozen cookies.  Store cookies at room temp in airtight container.

A couple of fixes if things go wrong:  If your batter seems too runny and you don't think it will set up, try putting the whole mixture into a 9x13 pan, chilling it in the refrigerator, and then cutting into bars.  If the batter gets too dry and crumbly before you get it scooped out, use it to top ice cream or even as a kind of chocolate cereal!

Do you make no-bake cookies?  What's your favorite version?

Have a fabulous day friends!

The No-Bake Obsession Continues

I couldn't just share the no-bake chocolate desserts and leave it at that.  It wouldn't be fair.  So today I'm sharing the few non-chocolate no-bake desserts I have here - now you really have no excuse not to whip up a yummy dessert this Summer!  :)

Creamy Root Beer Freeze

Strawberry Soup

Watermelon and Lime Granita

Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies

Quick Pumpkin Pudding

Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

What do you think?  Are you going to stick with no-bake desserts of the chocolate variety or did you find something here without chocolate that you might like to try?

Have a sunny but cool day friends!

Notes to Aspiring Writers: Your Dream, God's Plan {Review}

My sweet friend Brooke (I've *known* her on Twitter and on her blog A Life In Need Of Change for quite a while) has written a couple of eBooks.  Her most recent book is Notes to Aspiring Writers: Your Dream, God's Plan.

Don't think for a minute that this book is only for authors.  Or that it's a how-to-write-successfully kind of book.  It's different - in a wonderful way!  Brooke's eBook has a message for all Christian mothers, and especially bloggers and writers (bloggers *are* writers in my opinion, but since not all writers are bloggers I thought I should separate the terms).

I.love.this.book.  I started reading and couldn't stop.  Brooke writes from her heart straight to our hearts.  It's almost like she took the words right out of my mind in some places and I think you'll feel the same way.  She has some messages that may be a little convicting as you take the time to consider whether your dreams are really what God wants for you at this time or whether they are your own desires that you assume God wants for you right now.

The chapter that I most relate to is Comparisons & Striving - been there and done THAT!  Brooke could have been talking about me in that chapter.  But the chapter that I found most convicting (in a good way) was the chapter The Kindness of God Leads You To...One thing that Brooke said in that chapter was: "Can we be honest enough here to admit that it hurts to see what we thought was a spectacular idea grabbed by someone bigger and better?"  Ouch, but true.

Brooke has experienced many of the same thoughts, feelings, and frustrations that we have.  Her words are encouraging - from a sister in the trenches with us.  About her own experience, she said: "Laying down the dream and desire of my heart, and picking up the calling God placed in my life changed me."

Brooke has also included study questions at the end of each chapter so you can go in-depth and explore your own thoughts and feelings about these ideas.  I read the book straight through, but would like to go back and work through the questions at a slower pace.  In fact, Brooke is starting a deeper study of the questions on the book's blog today!

***Giveaway Closed!*** Congrats to the winner, Mary Beth!
You can get more info about the book on the website or on the Facebook page and you can buy the book here.  It's only $2.99!  Brooke blessed me with an extra copy to give away on my blog!  If you would like to be entered to win a copy of her new eBook, please tell me in the comments.  It's that simple!  But if you would like an extra entry, then share about Brooke's book in any social media form you prefer and come back leaving a comment to tell me what you did!

Disclosure:  I received a free copy of the book to review and an extra copy to give away on my blog.  My opinions are my own as always!

Have you already read Brooke's book (find out how you can get a free chapter)?  Did it speak to your heart?

Have a wonderful day friends!