Chocolate Fix Needed Stat!

Men may not get it, but I'll bet about 75 to 80% of women will.  A couple of weeks ago, I was in desperate need of a chocolate fix - largely due to hormones - and I didn't want to go to the store. Besides, it was 9:30pm. Who wants to go anywhere that late at night on a weeknight?  Well, besides those devoted husbands eager to satiate their pregnant wives' cravings.

For months, my beautiful little sister (she's nearly 20) and I had been playing around with a microwave brownie recipe she had found on a blog named "Cut Out + Keep". You should check it out, because it was definitely a good idea!  A little side note:  we used Swiss Miss Hot Cocoa Mix instead of NesQuik, because it was what we had on hand. We both appreciated the recipe for the chocolaty goodness that it was. It hit the spot when we needed it, and we were both ever so grateful.

Then, the wacky experimenter in me, decided to play around with the recipe.  I used unsweetened cocoa powder, which meant to cut the bitterness, I needed sugar. I didn't like the idea of oil because it seemed...well...oily. I switched to melted butter but, shamefully, reduced the amount. It was nice and fudgy!  You'd think that would be enough experimenting right?

Heck no!

I continued to play with it for a few more weeks until I became...sickened by chocolate. I know! I am so ashamed to even say it!  How does one become sickened by chocolate?

My sister decided she wanted to play with my experiment as well.  Her recipe came out more cake-like, and she was still using the oil.

Our efforts created this yummy bit.  I love my sister, so I will give her partial credit. Hehe!

Warning...the following recipe is rich with chocolatey goodness. You may want to share. Or not...

Yummy Microwave Brownie Goodness

4 Tablespoons of all-purpose flour
4 Tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder

5 Tablespoons of granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon of baking powder

3 Tablespoons of melted butter/margarine (sister uses oil)

5 Tablespoons of water

Mix ingredients well in a large coffee mug, soup mug or large ramekin.  Place in microwave and heat on high for 2 minutes.

Let stand for 1-5 minutes. If you don't, you very well may singe your tongue and the roof of your mouth. You have been warned.

I have added a bit of frosting to the top when I had left over. That was good as well. You could add fresh fruit as a garnish, if so inclined. :)

Variation: For a slightly less rich brownie, instead use only 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder and only 4 tablespoons of water.

Enjoy!

Chicken and Cheese Topped Biscuits

It sounds crazy, right? When I first thought of doing it, I thought I'd lost my marbles.

As you may already know, I am an avid Pinterest browser. I have been seeing all these recipes pop up for all kinds of things made in muffin tins. There's been individual meatloaves, taco shells, lasagna cups...just about everything you could think of.  Then, I thought of something else.

I hadn't been able to figure out what to do with some leftover cilantro lime chicken that I had taken out of my freezer. Originally, I planned on doing chicken burritos, but my husband said he really wasn't in the mood for a burrito. Well that just burst my bubble.

I began perusing the refrigerator to see what else I could make when I see that my sneaky hubby bought refrigerated biscuits. (If you know anything about me, you know that I hate buying packaged foods.)

Out of spite and a little inspiration, I decided to try something a little funky.

Chicken and Cheese Topped Biscuits

1 can Pillsbury biscuits

leftover chicken, shredded

shredded cheddar

taco seasoning ( I used my own blend)

Preheat oven to 450F degrees. Remove a biscuit from the can and flatten in your palm.  You may stretch it slightly as well to best create a bit of a cup in the pan.  Lay biscuit disc in bottom of muffin tin and allow it to form to the sides. In center of biscuit cup, layer chicken, cheddar, and seasoning. Do this for the remainder of the biscuits to fill your muffin pan.

Place in oven and allow to cook for 10-12 minutes. These will be extremely hot due to the melted cheese, so please be careful when removing them from the pan. 

We garnished with a little sour cream and salsa to spice it up.

Yields 10 biscuits. (Your can's capacity)

Gardening Adventure Update

If you remember, a while back I started a new adventure. Gardening. Things were looking so very good, but then we went on a week-long vacation. Not good. Our smaller plants (peppers) didn't get enough water or got too much, and our larger plants were wilting or drying.

One thing that I did notice and was excited about was that our Galia melon and summer squash bushes were growing very well. The Galia melon bush began growing like crazy, and I remembered a trip that my husband and I had taken while at Disney World for our honeymoon (10 years ago).

August 15, 2012

At EPCOT, they have an agriculture boat ride where you learn about what foods Disney World grows on property and some alternative growing techniques. They had melon growing on trellis and being shaped into Mickey Mouse icons. They had tomatoes hanging upside down and hanging from their root. They were growing vegetables and trees in sand. Herbs were being treated by way of a vitamin wash and hydroponics. Way cool! If you get the chance to visit, I highly recommend it!

I digress.

Based on what I had witnessed on that tour, I decided to use an old chair back and create a makeshift trellis.  The result was amazing!  It started growing like mad! We had our first melon within a week.

The melon did get too heavy and began bending the vine, so much so that the vine began to crack. I decided to figure out a way to give the melon some support so that it didn't break the vine and kill the fruit. It is a VERY yummy fruit.

August 19, 2012

Then another little melon showed up three days later and I felt the need to give them both a little support.  I had an abundance of soda bottles so I created a makeshift clamp with which to hold each melon individually.  What I did for each was cut the top of a 2-liter bottle off. I then cut the bottle in half from top to base. The very bottom of those bottles are much thicker and harder to cut, so I left them intact to act as an anchor.  The result of which is below. I know how it must look to a few of you, but believe me, it was unintentional. That just happened to be where the melons grew. The irony is not lost on me. Hehe.

August 22, 2012
Notice the change from August 15th?

The other day, we noticed that the supports themselves were slipping because the melons were causing the "clamps" to expand, pulling them back through. My husband suggested wiring the bottles to the trellis. What our minds came up with together, was so much better.  

We took a thicker gauged wire hanger and cut it into pieces taller than the space between the slats. We brought one half of the bottle through the opening between the slats and punched the wire through, allowing the other half to remain on the other side of the trellis still allowing a shelf of support.

Wire holding the 2-liter bottles to the "trellis.

Bottles hanging out

 

August 28, 2012
Can you see the difference from
just six days prior?
Just wow!

The Galia melon vine continues to grow and is attempting a takeover of the entire bed. It looks as though it is making an effort to mate with both the tomato and summer squash plants. We have to keep redirecting it, but may soon have to move the tomato plant. Every redirect seems to cause it to attempt to reach out to the plants again. It's stubborn for sure, but luckily we are on top of what's going on.

I have seen bees pollinating the flowers on the plant, so I am sure the growth is partially due to their diligent efforts. The songs from the Bug's Life show at Disneyland keep playing through my mind. Some bugs are good for gardens.

My little nieces come over two to three times a week and keep wanting to go outside to look at the plants. They want to help water them, but I have to disappoint them on the days they come over later in the afternoon. They are getting so excited, I'm considering having them help me plant our next round of seeds.

August 31, 2012

The growth has been progressing so well that we found a new baby melon very quickly!

So yesterday, we saw what you see in the picture on the left (below). It was time to loose it from its vine! We were stoked. 

September 8, 2012 - Ripe and ready to snip!

In little over a month, we have gone from seed to snip. We have at least two more melons on the vine. We can't wait to get going on more items. And to think this was all a practice round to see if we could do it.

I gave the melon a day to rest and then, this morning I cut it open. Isn't it pretty?!

Now, I just need to figure out how to save the seeds for next year!

Happy Gardening!