Brownie Points

As a rule I believe that something made from scratch will always be better than something made with a mix, but I have not had much success when it comes to brownies. Even when I've tried recipes like "Mother's Perfect-Absolutely-Every-Single-Time Brownies" and "To-Die-For-There-Is-Something-Wrong-With-Your-Head-If-You-Can't-Get-These-Right Brownies", the results have been disappointing. But after eating a friend's brownies and realizing that they were exactly what I love about brownies - gooey but not too gooey and just the right crispiness on top - and they were perfect every time, I asked if she would share her recipe. She put me off the first time but when I asked again she told me her secret, and now it's my secret, and I'm sharing: Hurray for Ghirardelli Triple Chocolate Brownie Mix! If you want to dress them up a little bit just sprinkle powdered sugar on top; if you really want to get fancy spread some chocolate chips on them when they come out of the oven and then spread like frosting after they've had a few minutes to melt. (Thanks Debbie D. ~ hope you won't hold this against me!)

I've decided to award Brownie Points when someone or something unexpected happens that involves chocolate!

Today's Brownie Points go to:

• Danica for the absolutely yummy chocolate cake she made for her sister's surprise birthday brunch ~
• Ron for bringing mi esposo TWO packages of alfajors from Argentina, and mi esposo for sharing ~
• Irma for giving me a huge candy bar just because I did a simple, menial task for her ~
• Nutella, which I try not to have in my house because I will eat the entire jar with a spoon in less than a week, but which I had to buy because it was cheaper to buy 2, and I had to give one to a friend who had never heard of it before ~
• My $5 roses that looked so beautiful today, and everyone knows that chocolate and roses are perfect together even if you buy yourself the chocolate and the roses!

Sampling of today's chocolate collection

Argentine Alfajor (extra Brownie Points for the beautiful packaging!)

A thing of beauty is a joy forever!

Those Lazy, Crazy, Hazy Days of Summer

Fry up the chicken, cut up the carrot sticks and wash the grapes, make up a batch or two of toffee bars, clean the boat and pack the beach towels ~ it's off to Pineview for a day (or two or three!) of waterskiing. Just don't forget the toffee bars, whatever you do! We had a pretty good routine and no one minded pitching in, especially if we could be ready to pull out before dawn and get the really good water before other boats started making waves. Mom would always get the first run - and then she would spend the rest of the day helping the newbies learn how to sit on the skis and balance, pulling them with a short rope close to the shore. Dad just about always drove the boat, and had such patience and was always so encouraging. I believe they had a 100% success rate with all the kids who wanted to learn how to ski over the years. Oh, those lovely days at Pineview! Who cared if there was sand in the chicken? If we weren't skiing or on the boat we were swimming in the cove or reading/sleeping on a blanket or eating. If the Thornblads were with us we would sail on their little red two-man sail boat in the late afternoons when the wind came up. Once in a while we would venture to other lakes: Bear Lake, where my dad taught me how to shore jump when I was 14; Coeur d'Alene, where we caravanned with Grandma Davis, aunts, uncles & cousins to visit Uncle Art and Aunt Ruth, pulling trailers and boats; Lake Mead, which I vaguely remember; and Lake Powell, which is way over-due for another visit!
The requisite treat for any trip to a lake always was and always will be toffee bars, but we will eat them on other occasions as well! I kinda think Keven fell in love with me right after I made them for him the first time.

Toffee Bars

Cream together:
1 cup butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Add:

3 cups flour

Mix well; stir in:

6 ounces chocolate chips

1 cup chopped nuts

(more if you are making them for Keven)

Pat into an ungreased 9x13-inch pan.

Bake at 350 for 15-18 minutes.

Cut into bars while warm.

With This Ring....

Did I hesitate when

Ayrel & Ben suggested having a chocolate fountain

at their wedding reception (almost) 4 years ago?

Silly question.

We ended up with three!
(which they hauled from SLC to El Paso):

Belgian milk chocolate, dark chocolate and white chocolate!

Needless to say they were a hit, and we repeated the equation at Tanja and Brad's wedding reception last month, with a slight variation: milk chocolate, dark chocolate and caramel sauce (thank you, Sandy, sweet sister 'o mine, for volunteering to provide and man the chocolate fountain table!).

Don't you think our very talented photographer chose a unique way to show off the cinnamon bears that were available for dipping? You can check out more of her beautiful photography by clicking here: http://ashleymaephoto.com/blog/

Forget Love ~ I'd Rather Fall Into Chocolate

I have never tried to disguise my chocolate habit, if only because it makes it quite easy for people to choose my birthday gift. But when a friend recently commented on Facebook that chocolate was the only thing I ever wrote about I did a bit of self-analysis and realized that chocolate is a passion. And then I began reminiscing about my best chocolate experiences and only had to look back a few hours for one of the best - a magnificient chocolate cake that defied any I had ever eaten. How could I keep so many delicious experiences to myself? What better way to share them than with a non-intrusive blog - you may read it if you like, you may ignore it if you don't like it, and I will continue to enjoy my chocolate and to look for new ways to revel in it, which will be happily shared!