Wish you were here!

I have not been sewing. At all.

We're too busy playing.

We're spending gorgeous days at the beach and loving summer!

Toes in the sand,

soaking in the sunshine---just as we should be.

Best Wishes,

Heather

Simple Goodness: Cherry Bars

Looking for something sweet?

These simple Cherry Bars were a real treat!

I found a recipe on Taste of Home today

but had just one can of cherries in the pantry,

so the recipe was halved and baked in a smaller pan.

ingredients:
1 stick of butter (1/2 cup)
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
a couple drops of almond extract1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

Middle Layer: 1 can (21 oz) cherry pie filling

Glaze: 1/2 cup powdered sugar, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract 

& 1/4 teaspoon almond extract plus one to two 

tablespoons of milk-----to your desired thickness.

I added all ingredients except the flour

to one large bowl and mixed with a spatula.

When thoroughly mixed, I added the flour all at once.

I had no problems doing so

but if you're one to follow directions like a good 

little doobee, add the flour gradually.

*Be sure to grease your pan.*

Using the same spatula, I spread about half 

of the mixture on the bottom

of the greased square pan. 

It's sticky, so don't be concerned. 

Spread the can of pie filling over the layer of dough 

and when complete, drop remaining dough on to the top 

of the pie filling layer. 

For a dark 8" square pan, I preheated the oven to 350 degrees

and baked it at the same temp for 30 minutes before 

increasing the temperature to 375 for about 15 minutes 

until the top is golden brown (approx. 45 minutes altogether).

Cool completely.

When cool, mix glaze ingredients and drizzle 

over the top of your baked masterpiece.

Slice and enjoy.

Happy Baking,

Heather

Chocolate Macadamia Goodness

YUMMY!!!

Years (GEEZ time flies!) Decades ago, our neighbor needed assistance 

caring for peonies that surrounded her back patio. 

Her name was Tave and she always kept some of these decadent cookies 

in her freezer----white chocolate macadamia. Mmmm.

She liked to take a few out of a pretty little tin before 

we watered, weeded and chatted. 

By the time we were done, the cookies were ready to devour. 

I truly think she looked forward to cookies more than I did!

Not  long ago, I happened to pick up some macadamia nuts 

at Costco and still had half of a bag left when I remembered 

Tave's favorite treats. How hard could it be to whip some of her cookies up?

It turns out they're very easy to make. 

The recipe I used made nearly 3 dozen. 

2 dozen were immediately popped into the deep freezer for another time.

I found a recipe (and the gorgeous blog, the Noble Pig) thanks to Pinterest 

and whipped some up tonight. I tend to make larger cookies than average, 

so I did bake ours for 15 minutes at 325, 

but that was the only change required for my oven 

and they were still soft & moist.

You can find the fabulous Noble Pig Blog & this amazing recipe here. 

If you're on Pinterest and would like to see what I've been up to, 

feel free to check my pins out here.

Best Wishes,

Heather

Happy Holidays

 I've been dreaming of a white Hawaiian Christmas. It's been too long since I've kept up with the blog. There just doesn't seem to be enough time for everything in our lives right now. Happy Belated Hanukkah, Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year to you all.

Soft & Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

(Samantha's fave!!)

7-9 minutes per pan. One batch makes about 36 cookies. Bake at 400 degrees.

Preheat oven. Combine & whisk the following ingredients in bowl #1:
2.5 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Bowl #2:
1 cup room temp margarine (or 1/2 c margarine & 1/2 cup Crisco)
1 1/2 cup firm packed brown sugar
Cream by mixer, add bowl #1 ingredients, combine.

Add:
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1 pkg chocolate chips
1/2 cup nuts (optional)

Drop by melon baller on a lightly greased pan. Silpat or freezer paper would also work.
Enjoy! This recipe has been in my family for years, it's not something I developed & would certainly give credit if I knew where it originated from.