Bake me Happy - Dark Chocolate Brownies

Dark Chocolate Brownies

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(infused with Raspberries and White Chocolate)

Are you the type of person to make the same New Years Resolution every year?  You know the one…the one that says that THIS. IS. THE. YEAR. that I will get in shape and lose weight.  Do you do that?  I do!  I always resolve that I will give up desserts but then that makes me all stressed out and unhappy.  You do know that desserts spelled backwards is stressed right?  I consider that to be a sign myself.  It doesn’t take much to make me give up on that resolution now does it?  HECK NO!  But!  I have made a valiant effort this time to get in shape…and I don’t mean the shape of an apple.  I do choose to go for a more hour-glass type of shape.  I don’t need to get all twiggy as I would have to give up food entirely and work out 12 hours a day to obtain that figure…and I still believe that I would look more “roundish” than “twiggish” even if I did the above mentioned types of torture to myself.  NOT COOL! 

However, I did start my resolution well before the New Year came into play this time.  I did this through December to help combat all the “holiday” eating that I succumbed too.  It’s a new type of torture.  They call it TRX (Total Body Resistance Exercise).  I call it the Try Really (hard to not die) Exercise.  It’s CRAZY HARD!  Its 45 minutes of butt busting, sweat pouring, can I actually die doing this, don’t laugh at me for crying kind of hard.  But I. LOVE. IT!  Yes, it’s true…I admit it.  Even though I have spent the better part of a month walking around like Gumby with every single inch (to include my hair follicles) hurting.  Note to self:  Don’t ever let yourself get so out of shape that your body hurts like this again.  Got it!?

So….while I was having one of my moments during TRX that caused my eyes to water because the sweat that was dripping into them was stinging…NO…I WAS NOT CRYING (that’s my story and I’m sticking to it)…a thought popped into my head.  It was the thought of super rich, ooey gooey dark chocolate brownies infused with raspberries and white chocolate and drizzled with more dark chocolate.  OH. EM. GEE!  Suddenly my eyes were “stinging” a little less…my butt was “lifting” a little higher and the “Burpies” (an actual form of exercise) were a touch easier to do.   I kept telling myself that if I could just make it to the end I would treat myself to just a bite of one of these decadent treats.  One measly little bite…I can do this!  *Do not judge me for my thoughts.  It beats sitting in the corner in the fetal position sucking my thumb crying for my mommy now doesn't it*  Alas, I survived yet another series of Try Really (hard to not die) Exercise.

Thus the brownies came to be. 

It started with my all time favorite brownie recipe.  You can find it here on King Arthur Flour's Website.  Then a jar of this...

     And a bag of these....

I love Ghirardelli chocolate don't you? 

So just whip up your favorite brownie recipe...or you can use the boxed kind.  In a pinch my go to brownie in a box is Ghirardelli's Double Chocolate.  I can't tell the difference between that and the homemade stuff so if your feeling lazy or just prefer the boxed stuff thats ok! 

Once you have your brownie batter all mixed up, add about a cup of the white chocolate chips in.

Mix it all up and pour the batter into your favorite pan.  My all time favorite is this one from Chicago Metallics.

Do you have one like this?  If not you simply MUST go get one now before going any further.  Its ok, I'll wait for you.  Go on.  This pan makes the BEST brownies ever if your addicted to the corners like my family is.  Every. Single. Brownie. has FOUR corners to enjoy.  Count that...FOUR!  YUM! 

So now that you've got your brownie batter in the pan, heat up about 1/4 cup of the Raspberry Preserves in the microwave to "loosen" the consistency.  You don't want it runny just a little smoother than straight from the jar.

Then drop them here and there by tablespoons on to your batter like so...

After that drag a knife through the batter to "infuse" the raspberry preserves into it.

Pop them in the oven according to the brownie baking directions and pace the floor while you wait for them to finish baking.  You'll want to pace for the full time as it burns calories so that you can eat more brownies.  This step is VERY important!

Let them cool, remove from pan and proceed to eat as many as you can with a glass of ice cold milk, or coffee or even a glass of wine.

But most of all...Enjoy them!

So tell me, what do you dream up during your killer work-outs...or just killer days in general.  Do you dream up new recipes or decorating ideas?  I'd love to hear about them!

You may find this post partying in the following places:

Monday:  Debbie Doos - The Girl Creative - Skip to My Lou - Craft O Maniac - Lisa's Craft Blog - The DIY Show Off

Tuesday:  Not Just A Housewife - My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia - Clean and Scentsible

Wednesday:  Savvy Southern Style - Blue Cricket Design - Seven Thirty-Three - Someday Crafts - Michele Raven Designs/

Thursday:  Delightful Order

Friday:  Finding Fabulous - Chic on a Shoestring Decorating - Fingerprints on the Fridge - Shabby Nest - Whipperberry – Miss Mustard Seed - French Country Cottage

First project of 2012 - The Front Door

Painting the Front Door

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(Benjamin Moore – Wythe Blue)

 

I have struggled with the decision on what project that I wanted to tackle first during the New Year 2012.  My list of projects grows by the second so this was not an easy decision to come by.  Do I go with what NEEDS to be done or what I WANT to have done.  Such a quandary.  Need and want really are the same thing...right?  I mean I WANT to be skinny healthy just as much as I NEED to be.  See...the same thing!  Mr. AKM begs to disagree though.  BOOO!!!  Sometimes I do not like him very much (but I still love him even when I hate disagree with him).

Several months ago our sweet little Australian Shepard, BlackJack, decided to do this to our front door when his cute little girlfriend (the yellow lab next door) walked by our front porch. 

NOT COOL!  He had never done this before, nor has he done it since.  While I was pretty mad at the time about it, I decided it was fate that it happened.  I had long since wanted to paint the door since we moved in but just never got around to doing it.  Its been on my LONG list of to-do's for 3 years.  Really I'm NOT a procrastinator.  I'm Not!  There were just other things that needed to be done 1st...like baking brownies or painting my toenails.  A girl has to have priorities ya know :) 

Sooo the dog ruined the door...then I got this sweet little coupon in the mail for a FREE pint of Benjamin Moore Paint at Ace Hardware.  Umm..SCORE!  So my want to paint the door turned into a "need"...see how that works out?  I'd been eyeing some pretty sweet doors on Pinterest that were all sporting the same color (Benjamin Moore - Wythe Blue).  Coincidence?  I think not!  So in about a week my front door will go from this...

To something more like this....

Cottage and Vine

Source

Source

I just love that color don't you?  It's like the PERFECT blue/green/turquoise-y shade (yes, turquoise-y is a word).  LA-UVE it!  So off to Ace I went and got my FREE pint-o-paint.  Squeals!

This weekend I shall begin the process of painting the front door to include sanding, filling in the lovely gouges that my dog left behind, sanding some more, taping off the glass and FINALLY priming and painting it.  Whew! So much for a small little door doncha think?

Tune in next week to see the progress....

DIY Pallet Wood Tray - Tutorial

How We Did It

DIY Pallet Wood Tray Tutorial

This project started with a stack of pallet wood.  We all know what this looks like so I did not photo this glorious stack of wood.  Though I should have, it was pretty impressive.  To prepare the wood we scrubbed it down with some soapy water and let it dry for several days.  Then we sanded the crap out of it to give it a smooth finish.  To achieve this finish we started with 80 grit and then finished with 220 grit.

Once the sanding stage was complete, we measured and cut the wood to the size desired.  This can be as large or as small as you like.

Don't worry if some of the wood is not straight (as you can see ours isn't).  It DOES NOT have to be perfect. In fact, you don't want it to be! These are suppose to look old, used and "vintage"! So it's okay if everything isn't totally square or lined up perfectly.  Just go with it...

Then with the help of our Porter Cable finishing stapler and some wood glue we have a completed tray.

So totally Simple!  And again, it is NOT perfect.  We didn't worry about filling nail holes because all of those nooks and cranny's are what makes these trays have lots of "personality"  :)  Just like us! 

Then it was time to add some handles to this beauty.  We had a bag of 3/8 " rope that we picked up from Home Depot for like 8 bucks so I decided...why not?  Lets use that!

I measured out where I wanted the handles to be and then took a 3/8" drill bit and drilled two holes in the fronts of each tray for handles.

I then cut the rope to the length I wanted...wrapped the ends with some duct tape to make it easier to slide through the holes...and tied off with knots.

To make sure the knots stayed "put", I applied a little Loctite liquid glue to the knots.  It is IMPERATIVE that you use the liquid and NOT the gel for this project.  The liquid will soak into the rope where the gel will not.  Check it out! 

Love IT!  And it was so totally SIMPLE!  In fact, I loved the look of it so much that I decided not to stain it after all.  Instead, I sealed it with 3 coats of Minwax Polyurethane in the Satin finish.  And Wah-LAH!

 

It's SUCH a great option for coffee tables, and costs about the same as your traditional run of the mill basket that you can pick up at your local home decor store. Also, think of the possibilities... 

You could add a cool stencil and then sand it a bit to jazz up the top, some decorative handles, or paint the tray a fun color!

What do ya think? Could you find a way to use this simple pallet wood tutorial to build a tray of your own, for a space in your home!?

DIY Homemade Pallet Wood Tray

Vintage Wood Tray

keep track of all your remotes, magazines and whatnots...

Do you have one of those coffee tables that seems to accumulate "stuff" no matter how hard you try (beg, plead, nag...complain) to get everyone to STOP putting everything that touches their hands on top of it?  Do you ever wonder what to do with all the stuff that seems to gravitate to your coffee table?  The magazines, the remotes, the drink coasters, kleenex boxes, toys, books....This has been a battle in my household, well, since I got married to be honest.  Then it got worse once I had kids.  I mean seriously guys, how hard is it to put the TV remote into the drawer NEXT to the couch?  I mean you just have to lean to the right instead of to the front.  Its not THAT big of a stretch.  You might get a little oblique action going on.  I'm just sayin'.  My guys, they just don't get it.  Everything must go forward.  Reading a book...leave it on the coffee table.  Playing with your Ipod Touch...leave it on the coffee table...blowing your nose, throw the dirty kleenex on the coffee table.  UGH!  (I'm so not kidding about the dirty kleenex either).  YUCK!  I still love them though...and I'd blame it on their mom, but thats ME!  Oh where did I go wrong?  It's not MY fault...they belong to their dad.  It's his gene pool that they get it from.

I made the decision to STOP the madness.  As in end it completely...cease it's existence.  I removed the coffee table!  Problem solved!  Ok, I didn't really get THAT dramatic, but I wanted too :)  Then my husband stomped his feet and said (in his demanding voice, snicker snicker, snort) that he would not stand for that!  Yea, whatever!  But I did have his attention so he was willing gritting his teeth to help solve the problem.

In came the idea...I saw a tray in a magazine that I thought was really cool but they wanted something like $75 bucks for it!  GASP!  For a tray...that is made of wood?  I'm sorry folks, that is RI.DIC.U.LOUS!

We can make it for FREE!  Oh yea bay-BEE!  That's what I am talking about!  F to the R to the E.E!  All yo need is some leftover pieces of wood...or an old pallet.  But just cuz it was free, don't go thinking it was all easy or nuthin like that.  Mr. AKM did have to pull apart some pallets to make this happen.  And from what I hear (due to his grumbling) that THAT is no easy task.  OH WELL!  Nobody said FREE came easy.  In the end, this is what we have...

The PERFECT place for everything...except dirty, snotty tissues! 

Don't you just love the variation of color?  And the rope handles?  Be still my heart.  I'm in deep...deep LOVE with this! 

You could even add a cool stencil and then sand it a bit to jazz up the top or use some decorative pulls for handles, or paint the tray a fun color and add some pretty pulls for a little girls room!  The options are endless!

What do ya think? Could you find a way to use this simple pallet tray for a space in your home!?  I'd love to see/hear your ideas!

Tomorrow I will be posting the tutorial on how to make these if your interested in the how to's of it all.

Update:  Find Pallet Wood Tray Tutorial here.

Linking up to the following parties...go check them out

The Girl Creative

Skip to My Lou

Craft O Maniac

Lisa's Craft Blog

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Savvy Southern Style

Blue Cricket Design

Michele Raven Designs

Finding Fabulous

Chic on a Shoestring Decorating

Fingerprints on the Fridge

Shabby Nest

Whipperberry

What to do...what to do...

The DVD Dilemma...SOLVED!

It seems that every year after Christmas I am itching to organize every aspect of my life.  Could it be due to the stacks and stacks of new "things" that we seem to accrue over the holiday?  Perhaps.  Could it be a bit of my obsessive compulsive nature coming out?  I can neither confirm, nor deny that THAT has anything to do with it (snort). 

Several months ago when I decided it would be a good idea to refinish our, then, media cabinet and move it to the Dining Room, I was left with these lovely boxes filled with DVDs. 

It wasn't the most efficient way to store our DVDs...nor was it easy to locate a movie to watch.  More often than not, we would end up with a HUGE pile of DVDs strewn all over the floor in an effort to locate the last Mission Impossible movie or Monsters, Inc...or whatever else was stored at the BOTTOM of the box (never the ones on top...no, no, no, THAT would be to easy). 

Mr. AKM must have got tired of watching me twitch anytime someone would want to watch a movie (I'm sure I've mentioned before that I am an obsessive a bit of a neat freak) so he put a little something special under the tree for me this year...

For those of us with Major OCD issues when it comes to organization, these are like crack!  I squealed with delight when I found these wrapped up for me.  Each sleeve holds TWO DVDs!  Sa-wooon!  I. AM. IN. LOVE!  After working on these for two days...a total of maybe 3 hours tops, this is what I am left with.

ROCK ON!  Is that not awesome?  Seriously people look at how cool that is!  I went from two boxes overflowing with DVDs to one little basket...and I STILL have room left over to add more!  AWESOME-SAUCE! 

I used a total of 3 1/2 boxes of DVD sleeves to finish the job.  Holy Crap that is a lot of DVDs!  I had some issues deciding on how I wanted to divide the DVDs up.  Do I do it by kids/adult/family/drama...blah blah blah or alphabetically?  In the end, I decided that alphabetically would be the easiest route when it comes to looking for a movie to watch.  Sooo...I pulled out some envelopes that I had and stuck a label on top with the corresponding alphabet.  Totally simple!  You can even use some cardstock or old file folders to make dividers.  Whatever works for you!

Take a look at how neat and tidy this basket looks sitting on the shelves in my living room now...

Just looking at it makes me happy all over again!  Now I need to figure out what I can store in that other basket...

So what projects do you like to tackle after Christmas?  Are you all into getting organized or are you the type to stuff it all in a box and wait until next Christmas to get motivated?

Linking up to the following parties...go check them out

The Girl Creative

Skip to My Lou

Craft O Maniac

Lisa's Craft Blog

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Savvy Southern Style

Blue Cricket Design

Michele Raven Designs

Finding Fabulous

Chic on a Shoestring Decorating

Fingerprints on the Fridge

Shabby Nest

Whipperberry