S'mores bars

By now, you should know of our love affair with all things s'mores. That's why I was so excited to try these S'mores bars. And yes, they're delicious. And very quick and easy to make. Let them cool before you scoop them out of the pan because they tend to be messy. Or just stick your face in it. Whatever works.

Ingredients
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs (this was six full crackers for me)
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 king-sized Hershey bars
1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme/fluff (not melted marshmallows!)

Preheat Oven to 350 and grease an 8 x 8 baking pan.

In mixer bowl (or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, if you prefer - I just love the excuse to use my mixer!), cream together butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg, then add in vanilla.

In a separate bowl, mix together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. With mixer on low speed, slowly add flour mixture until combined.

Divide the dough in half and press half into the bottom of the prepared pan. Place chocolate over the dough - mine fit perfectly, but you may have to break your pieces. Spread marshmallow over the top. Add remaining dough on top.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Try not to burn your mouth.

Recipe from Sugar Cooking.

This rug makes me happy

Rugs are expensive. Did you know this? I did not know this. Not until we moved into a house with a cavernous living room and wood floors. It echoes. A lot. So we've been on the lookout for a good rug for months now.

At times we've had no rug.

At times we've used a dinky small, green rug that didn't really go with the rest of the room, was too small for the space and just looked old and shabby. But at least it covered the floor.

Point #2 about rugs: Most of them are also ugly. We looked all over and couldn't find one that wasn't ridiculous. Then we saw the Andalusia Rug at West Elm.

We love the simple but fun pattern. We love that the yellow color to pop against our gray walls. We do not love the price tag. So while we've been drooling over it for several months, we couldn't bring ourselves to bite the bullet.

Everytime we go to the outlets in San Antonio, I peruse the rug section at Pottery Barn. Hans hates look at rugs. He hates looking at rugs even more when it's at the Pottery Barn outlet and they're all rolled up and you have to dig through it. Tough. I kept thinking, one day we'll get lucky.

And then it happened. Last time we were there, I spied a roll of yellow peaking out from the mound of rugs. I pulled it out and behold! The exact rug I've been oogling for so long now. Hans didn't believe me. I had to pull up the picture on West Elm's website to prove it. And it was marked down 33 percent!

Giddy over our good luck, we snatched that bad boy up before anyone else could grab it. We brought it home and sigh every day over how lovely it is. The size (5' x 8') is so much better for the space and it really brings in a splash of color.

Outlet malls save the day, once again.

Skype saves lives.

Ok, maybe it doesn't save lives. But it is pretty amazing. Because this past Sunday, because it was Mother's Day, I got to Skype with AJ in Thailand! It was midnight for us and noon for him, but we were able to talk for about an hour. It was really funny watching all the Thai kids walk by in the background and stop to stare at his screen, haha.

AJ is doing really well! His Thai is very good and after having several native speaking companions in a row, his English is even a little rusty. He had to consult his companion a couple times for the correct English word and even responded to us a couple times automatically in Thai, before realizing he needed to switch languages.

Man, I love that kid. I'm grateful we got to talk and bummed we don't get to talk again til Christmas :(

Another successful retreat

Perhaps you've noticed I've been gone for awhile. Maybe not. I'm not sure who really reads anyway.

I had another big trip for work. This one was here in Austin, but felt like I was out of town. I left home at the crack of dawn Wednesday and didn't get home until late afternoon on Sunday. I worked 90 hours and slept about five hours a night. I was on my feet so much, my ankles, legs and feet got so swollen I had difficulty wearing shoes. At least I know what I can look forward to when I'm pregnant. It was exhausting. It was stressful. My brain feels fried and all I want to do now is sleep for a week straight.

But it wasn't all bad. No, in fact, parts of it were pretty awesome. Check it out:

• Wednesday we did a bat cruise - most of our guests had never been to awesome before and it was more fun watching them see the bats come out for the first time than actually watching the bats come out.
• Thursday we visited the Wildflower Center (beautiful!) and watched a screening of the documentary Bag It! It's about our society's use of plastic. It was pretty interesting and I'd recommend. We also ate my fav - trailer food. Yum.
• Friday was awesome. It was a full day and involved stand up paddle boarding, yoga, walking, fitness classes, a tour of Texas Disposal Systems' gigantic recycling facility, meet and greet with animals, armadillo racing, delicious Salt Lick BBQ and a special performance by Ray Benson and Asleep at the Wheel. Whew. My favorite parts were the overly-friendly warthog that stuck his snout up my skirt and feeding my buddy Stretch. He loves those carrots.
• Saturday we did a cooking class at Whole Foods (very yum) and had dinner at the home of Tom and Lynn Meredith. Tom's a former exec from Dell and they currently live in the Four Seasons Residences Penthouse. Let's just say... it's amazing.

Altogether, while I'm totally drained at the moment, I know I'm pretty lucky. How many other people get to do these kinds of things and call it work? Awesome. I love it.

Now I'm going to go sleep.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes

Take a moment to take that in. Chocolate chip cookie dough cake. Hollow out the middle and stuff with raw cookie dough. Top with brown sugar frosting and chocolate chips. Um, yes please.

I wanted to break in my beautiful new stand mixer with something special and this recipe from Bake at 350 fit the bill nicely. 

I made the cookie dough filling fist so that it could chill in the fridge while I made the cake.

Ingredients

4 T. unsalted butter at room temperature

6 T. brown sugar, packed (I used dark - I like it better!)

1 cup plus 2 T. flour

7 oz. sweetened condensed milk

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1/4 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cream butter and sugar in a mixing bowl on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, approx. 2 minutes. Add flour, condensed milk and vanilla and beat 'til smooth. Stir in chocolate chips. Cover and refrigerate for about an hour.

For the Cupcakes: 

Ingredients

3 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature

1 1/2 cups brown sugar (I used dark), packed

4 large eggs

2 2/3 cups flour

1 tsp. baking power

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1 cup milk

2 tsp. vanilla

1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.

Using the paddle attachment, combine butter and brown sugar. Cream together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, approx. 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition.

Stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl. 

Add the dry ingredients to the mixer, alternating with the milk and beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Speed should be low.

Add Vanilla.

Fold in chocolate chips. 

Distribute to cupcake tray and bake for 18-20 or until lightly browned and springy. Allow to cool thoroughly before icing.

For the Icing:

3 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature

3/4 cup brown sugar (dark), packed

1 lb. powdered sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

3 T. milk

2 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Mini chocolate chips

Cream the butter and sugar using the paddle attachment until fluffy. Turn speed to low and gradually beat in powdered sugar. Increase the speed and beat until smooth. Add salt, milk and vanilla and blend. After frosting, top cupcakes with chocolate chips.

I have to say, these were a huge hit. I left them on the counter while two of the roomies were at a late night meeting and woke up to texts saying how good they were. But be warned!! They are extremely rich. I was never even able to finish one, the boys couldn't finish more than one, and someone my office-mate managed to eat two, but went into a food coma. They're a huge indulgence, but very yummy.

My precious...

I'm having a total Gollum moment here. I'm so in love. Isn't she beautiful?

I've been wanting one of these for years. And now I finally have one! And the best part? It was completely FREE. I didn't pay a single dime for it! 14 months ago, I started using Swagbucks with the sole intent of saving up for a stand mixer. After many, many searches, codes, referral points and videos, I redeemed my Swagbucks for 53 $5 Amazon Gift Cards and bought this beauty. (Interested in getting stuff for free? Sign up for Swagbucks here - thanks in advance for the referral points, ha).

Tonight I'm going to break this thing in with some cupcakes!! I'm so happy to finally have one of these.

Homemade Mongolian Beef

We heart PF Changs. A lot. But given that it's downtown and not exactly cheap, we can't eat there all the time (I wish).Then I came across this awesome Take-out Fake-out recipe from Confections of a Foodie Bride. Worth a shot, right?

It doesn't look like much. I think both Hans and I were a little skeptical. Then we tasted it. So. Good. Seriously? So. Good. Make it now. Did I mention it's super easy, too?

Ingredients
1 lb. flank steak
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil + 2 Tablespoons
1/2 teaspoon grated ginger
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup of low-sodium soy sauce (make sure it's low-sodium, or it'll be too salty)
1/4 cup brown sugar (measured, not packed)
3/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1 large green onion, sliced thinly

Slice the steak against the grain, thinly. With paper towels, dry off the meat.

 Put the cornstarch in a shallow bowl and add the meat to coat. Use enough cornstarch to evenly coat each piece, but shake or brush off any excess.

Add the 1 1/2 teaspoons vegetable oil to a large skillet over high heat. Add the ginger and garlic and cook until fragrant.

Add the soy sauce, brown and red pepper and cook on high for about two minutes. Remove to another bowl.

Add the remaining 2 T. to the skillet. Add in the coated meat and cook until well-browned. Add back in the sauce. Stir frequently, or the meat WILL stick to the bottom!

Cook on high until sauce thickens and the meat gets crunchy. Add the green onions right before the end.

Serve with rice.