I thought they were amazing...

I do believe I mentioned some bacon chocolate chip cookies in a previous post...but I'm not sure and don't care to look. Anyway one night while searching for recipes when I should have been sleeping I found a recipe for the above mentioned cookies and of course I had to try them. Right? I mean who wouldn't want to make chocolate chip cookies with bacon in them, espeically if you had read the blog that I got the recipe from. So last Sunday morning I decided was the day to attempt making these oddities. It went well. I have never taken so much time and put so much effort into any chocolate chip cookies. Ever. I've made a lot of batches of cookies. Usually I dump in the sugar and butter and cream that together and then just add everything else. Sometimes I don't even cream the butter and sugar first, I just put everything in the bowl and mix with a hand mixer for a minute or two. This recipe was going to have none of that however. It required me to combine the flour and baking soda, then in a seperate bowl add the sugars and eggs (it called for 1 whole egg and an egg yolk, talk about gourmet) I also melted the butter until it browned but that was part of the appeal of the recipe because brown butter anything is scrumptious. No hand mixers were allowed so I stirred the butter, egg, sugar mixutre by hand and then I had to wait 5 minutes or so for the sugar to dissolve in to the butter and eggs. After all that I also had to cook the bacon! I know you'd think that I would have been prepared for that step but it was more work than it was worth. The cookies were delcious, don't get me wrong in fact they were the best I've ever made for sure. If I make them again I'll need someone to give them too so that I don't eat them all. But the family thought the bacon was a little weird and because of that I didn't get the praise I was hoping for (always disappointing). Now I know that taking a little more effort on my choc. chip cookies is worth it and I'll omit the bacon so that takes care of one dish I won't have to wash making these cookies so worth it.

The First Success

 I have been trying to successfully decorate cakes for many years and today I succeeded. It feels so good. My sister had a surprise party for her friend and was so kind and let me decorate the cake. These pictures aren't the best but I am so proud of my cake and it's all I've got.

COOKIES!!!

I hope you said that in your mind like Cookie Monster from Sesame Street does.

I have been making cookies the last couple days because there have been some flavor combos that I wanted to experiement with and I am proud to say they were a success...most of them. The lavander nutmeg and chocolate mint (as in mint leaves from the plant) weren't the greatest but the rosemary lemon, chocolate cinnamon cayanne chili powder cookies with spectacular. As were the fresh nutmeg and pepper and the lemon cardamom. Cardamom has to be one of the best tasting spices. It has replaced my love of cinnamon in that I want to put it in everything. The chocolate anise were also surprising delicious.

I was in heaven as I smelled and poured in the spices, herbs, and lemon zest. I have found my place in this world and plan to stay and make my mark in the baking world. I just discovered Pintrest as well and discovered a recipe for chocolate chip cookies with bacon in them. I have to try it. How could you not want to try that?

Rediscovering the joy of the Library

I LOVE libraries! The ambiance of the buildings is wonderful. As I walk in I start to feel smartness seeping into me. I know that's not really how it works but it's a nice feeling. I could spend hours in a library, or bookstore for that matter, but libraries are by far better because I get to keep the little treasures for just the right amount of time and then take it back and get more and it never clutters up my space (I really dislike clutter.)
Well I say that I rediscovered the library because this week I went to the library for the first time in a couple months and I went to the main library in Ogden which is where I would go as a child and there were so many memories that flooded me as I walked through the automatic sliding doors that I could never get to open when I was 5 because I was just too short. As I walked in there was the giant stuffed polar bear that used to always be dressed for the season but I guess he is getting old and it was just him, all alone in his chair, but he made me happy nonetheless. I went to the library in search of  The Flavor Bible sounds exciting, right? So far it is. It's a book all about getting past the elementary levels of food creation to create true masterpieces. There's a quote from the preface that I love! "Ultimately, cooking offers the opportunity to be immersed in one's senses and in the moment like no other activity, uniting the inner and outer selves. At these times, cooking transcends drudgery and becomes a means of meditation and even healing." Profound, enlightening, inspiring, and mouthwatering. Thank you Flavor Bible. I have a wonderful idea for sugar cookies that I needed this book for and I will get around to making my gourmet surprises next week. As for the skirt that I made well I wore it a lot this week and it is now wrinkly, grungy, and frumpy looking (it's been hot lately and my dear car has no AC) so I will have to post pictures later. Yes pictures are also on my list of things to do good thing I only have to work the weekend at my poor college student job that I resent more than I should because I need to be grateful for a job. That's another topic entirely. Ta ta for now!

P.S.

Ok so I know that about an hour ago I said it was bed time but I failed and am still awake looking at blogs and can I just say how completely in love with blogs I am! and by being in love with blogs I really mean I am love with people's lives! It fascinates me to be able to peek into a person's world and they don't even know that I'm doing it. Blogs are the ultimate in people watching which is one of my favorite past times. But anyway all this UPW (ultimate people watching) has made me envious and I want to be cute and crafty and classy like so many people seem to be. I live in a world where everyone seems to be similar. They dress the same and listen to the same music and watch the same movies and do basically all the same conservative things but I don't want to fit into their molds! I want to branch out because so far that is what has brought me the most joy in life. That's why I started this blog because I think that I am beginning to apply the things I have slowly been learning in the last five or so years and maybe my adventures and creations can one day inspire others to branch out in joy as well. And I have to do something to avoid becoming nonchalant and frumpy in my style and view of life and things in it.

Hmmm...So I'm starting a Blog

I know my title is a little obvious but it's how I feel about this blog. I never thought I would be a blogger but then I started looking at everyone else's blogs (by everyone I mean the many craft/sewing/art blogs that I have been looking at lately) and I couldn't resist. It's so appealing to have a place to show off what I've created because try as I might I have to be making something because if I don't I lose sleep at night. I lay there and think of what I'm going to do with the amazing $1.50 a yard fabric from Walmart that pretty much made my week at least 10 times better, the birthday cake for a friend or dear little sister, or all the things I could do with french toast. The possibilities are endless! So I have no idea what I'm doing and will be talking to my technologically savy friends and family to make this blog worth looking at and then the rest is up to me.

I already have my first creation to post because I made the most adorable skirt today. It's a paper bag skirt and I'm in love with it. I will be posting it tomorrow however because it's bed time and I'm already tired of blogging...we'll see how long this lasts...