Chocolate Waffle Cookies

The other night some twitter friends and I were talking about waffles. I know, random. Anyway, I promised Ozma the recipe for Chocolate Waffle Cookies:

I totally stole this picture from the google. I am not making these anytime soon

1 1/2 C sugar
1 C melted butter
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 C flour
1/2 C cocoa
1 C chopped walnuts

Cream butter and sugar and add eggs one at a time till combined. Add flour cocoa, nuts and stir till just blended. Drop dough by heaping tablespoons full onto the sections of a hot waffle iron. Cook for 2 mins and then remove. It might take a few trys to see how long you need to cook them in your waffle iron, so experiment, your family will not mind! Dust with powdered sugar, or frost with your favorite frosting.

Variations: You can put different nuts, or no nuts, chocolate chips, sprinkles etc.

Before my son was allergic to peanuts I also did a yummy peanut butter frosting:

1 C smooth peanutbutter (or you can use almond butter which is just as good)
1/4 powdered sugar
1-2 T milk

Melt the peanut butter in the microwave and then add the powdered sugar. Add milk as needed to get to whatever consistency you want. Frost and let harden for about 15 mins.

Spooky Books

Here are a few Halloween-y book recommendations and one that is totally unrelated to this time of year but equally awesome. The first and second are part of a series and the third book is coming out March 2011. Here's the link to a website that tells more about the series: http://www.carrieryan.com/ It's basically a mix between the movies "The Village" and "I Am Legend". I couldn't put them down--very intense but not too ghory or freakish.

Book 1:

Book 2:

If you liked the movie I Am Legend, you should give the book a try as well, although there are some major differences between the book and the movie, I think both are great. It's a short book and a great read for October.

And finally, a book that has nothing to do with Halloween, but is in my top 3 favorite books of all time: A Thousand Splendid Suns. It inspires me to be a stronger woman and taught me about a part of the world I would've never learned a whole lot about otherwise (Afghanistan). It follows two women lives and most of the book covers the 80's, 90's and early 2000's including September 11. The author is from Afghanistan and it really offers a unique perspective on the life of an ordinary citizen there.
Happy Reading!

Who Wants To Save Some Money?

When it comes to saving money I want you to ask yourself one question. Where, in your budget, do you have the most wiggle room?

Really think about this. In our family it came down to the two most common areas. First - Eating out, going to movies, etc. (or what we call "Crazy Money"). Second - Groceries.

What I am going to focus on is how to decrease the amount you spend at the grocery store. How, you might ask, are we going to achieve this?

One word.....Coupons.  

I am what you might call a "coupon nerd". I love them. I have always wanted to use them but been to timid or confused or worried what others might think if they saw me using them, until about six months ago.

I got over caring what people thought very quickly. It was actually one of my first trips using them when I saved around 70% at the grocery store. I thought, "Who the heck cares what people think because I am saving money!" And then I found myself with a really, REALLY addictive hobby.

It's almost like a game, seeing how much you can save. My personal best was 102% saved. (No, that's not a typo.) I walked out of the store with an extra $1.08 in my pocket. (Yup, they PAID me.)

In the "Saving Money" tab at the top of the blog I will start by going over coupon lingo, how they are processed, when you can use them, where to find them, how to organize your coupons, and many other things.

If you have a coupon question or want to know about something specific when it comes to coupons just leave a comment below.

Until next time...and then the real fun begins!

A Cute Crafty Scarecrow

This week I am trying to plan a Halloween inspired craft each night.

Last night was pumpkin carving and then pumpkin seed planting.

(This is for your little ones. They plant the pumpkin seeds in the ground and then "magically" in the middle of the night the pumpkins appear. My kids loved finding them this morning.)

Tonight's activity will be these adorable scarecrows

How stinkin cute are these!

(And I can keep them up throughout November too.)

Wednesday nights activity will be Janina's inspired candy corn wreath.

Thursday will be Decorating Halloween cookies. And then the weekend is filled with parties.

Happy Crafting!

Yummy Eyes

I try to find something fun and spooky to make for a Halloween treat every year. My favorite, thus far, has been Peanut Butter Eyeballs. Oh my goodness. If you love peanut butter cups you will definitely enjoy these eyeballs!

(Photo courtesy of Taste Of Home)

You will need:

- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 3 Tbsp butter
- 2 cups powered sugar
- 2 or 3 cups of white chocolate chips
- A bag of M&Ms separated into colors. (Keep the brown, green, and blue to use as pupils.)
- Red gel icing

In a large bowl mix the peanut butter and butter together until smooth. Add the powered sugar. Once all three ingredients are mixed together make 1-inch balls. Place balls on wax paper that is on a cookie sheet and freeze for at least an hour.

When the peanut butter balls are done in the freezer, melt the white chocolate chips by placing them in a pan and then put that pan in one that is slightly larger and half full of water. Stir the chips until they are smooth and creamy.

Pick up the peanut butter balls with a toothpick and dip them in the melted chocolate. Let the excess drip off and place it back on the wax paper. Add an M&M to the top while it is still wet. Put in the fridge to cool.

Once they have cooled use the red gel icing (that comes in a tube) to make the eyes look bloodshot. Chill until served.

And that's all...unless you have a dessert problem, like me, and in that case your next step would be to not eat them all yourself. :)

Mummy Pizza

Today I have been going through my old pictures and reminiscing. As I was lost in the past I came across these mummy pizzas that I made last year for Halloween. They are simple to make. I used mini bagels, marinara sauce, string cheese for the wrappings and black olives for the eyes. I then stuck them in the oven at around 375 until the cheese melted and slightly browned. At the party we took them took they were snatched up faster than when witch grows a hairy wart.