I have a problem. I’ve pinned too many cookies on Pinterest.

I have so many I want to try.

The good news is that I can’t eat most of them (gluten) and I gave my dad and grandpa a “cookie of the month” subscription for Christmas. Which means I’m making a batch of cookies to mail to them every month this year.

Now which cookie should I make? Can you help me out? I can’t decide. Vote for the one I should make.

If I get a lot of participation with the voting this month, I might turn this into a giveaway (as in you’ll get your own bunch of cookies mailed to you as well). This is going to be a monthly voting conundrum I feel.

The Contenders

Chocolate Ritz Peanut Butter Cookies (we call them bark cookies) 

Cinnamon M&M Oatmeal Cookies

Meltaways

White Chocolate Topped Gingerbread Cookies

The Voting

Voting closes on January 10. I’ll announce what cookie won on January 15.

Share on Facebook

I’m ringing in 2012 by going to the Bears vs. Vikings showdown at noon today (aye carumba!).

Who will win? It is a tossup. When I bought the tickets I thought the Bears were sure to win … but now I don’t know. It’s sure to be an interesting game!

Happy 2012 everybody! If you’re suffering from a hangover and/or from watching football, why not try making one of these football-friendly comfort foods?

Amazing chili 
Greek Turkey Burgers and Coleslaw 
Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever
Nutter Butter Knockoff Blizzards
NACHOS.

Also, in case you’re wondering, I did NOT dye my hair red again. I snagged this pic from my facebook from last year. However, it is about this same length again! 

Share on Facebook

It’s been a while since I posted some love about another blog.  But I’ve been wanting to post about DIY or Buy for a long time.  And she’s been blogging a lot more lately, so I feel like it’s a good time to post.

DIY or Buy focuses on analyzing exactly what the title implies: should you do something yourself or are you better off buying? Her tagline is “Make it or buy it? We’ll help you decide.”

My favorite posts include dishwasher detergent, egg nog and granola. This past week she did a promenade of fried foods in honor of the Iowa State Fair. I slightly feared for her health, but she made it through!

Anyway … if you are in the mood for some good tutorials, fun things to do yourself and maybe some greening of your daily routine, check out DIY or Buy.

Share on Facebook

So I got this …

… from Bethany Sew&Sew — in the mail. Today.

AND

Mark got these …

[cookie cutters]

[spatula]

… from his sister for his birthday.

Thus, this weekend, the most nerdtastic baking session will occur.

Share on Facebook

Last month was crazy. Here is a sneak peek at things that happened before I get to blogging about them …

… Mark’s brother Nick’s birthday in Stillwater …

… Mark’s 25th birthday in Chicago …

… awesome new fabric …

… moving …

… a really awesome project for Drake …

... and LOTS and lots of food.

(asian lettuce wraps)

(chicken strips with honey mustard and sweet corn)

(kung pao chicken)

(stovetop creamy mac and cheese made with REAL cheese)

(chicken, broccoli and mushroom alfredo with pappardelle’s tomato cracked pepper pasta)

(tomato, basil and chevré pizza)

so hopefully I will have some time to share these experiences with you!  And of course all the recipes.  I will also try to start sharing points plus numbers with you at the suggestion of Kelly.

Share on Facebook

I’ve been making these cookies for years, but I think I made my best batch EVER last time I made them.

The original recipe is here, but this is my modified more awesome (and more healthy) recipe.

chimes’s monster cookies

3/4 c Natural Peanut Butter
1/4 c butter, softened
1 c dark brown sugar
2 egg whites
1 t vanilla
1.5 t baking soda
2 1/4 c rolled oats
1 c organic 70% cocoa chips

1. In a large bowl with mixer at medium speed, beat together the first 4 ingredients till light and fluffy.
2. Add eggs and vanilla; beat 2 minutes.
3. Blend in baking soda.
4. Stir in oats and remaining ingredients.
5. Dough will be very stiff and crumbly.
6. Drop dough by 1/3 cup measures, 4″ apart on a ungreased baking sheet. Or for smaller cookies, drop by tablespoons full.
7. Flatten with a spatula to 3 1/2″ cookies.
8. Bake in 350 oven for 12-14 minutes or till golden.
9. Remove and cool on racks.

Share on Facebook

I left a little surprise on my kitchen table for Mark. He’s been working incredibly late hours the past few weeks. So I wanted to do something nice for him.

Cinnamon Toast Crunch treat in the shape of a heart. So much more awesome than a regular Rice Krispie Treat.

Noms.

Share on Facebook

This week’s Humpday Blog Love installation is dedicated to The Hipster Housewife.

The Hipster Housewife is a blog started somewhat recently by Des Moines’s  own Cat Rocketship. If you live in the Des Moines area and haven’t heard of Cat, get out from that rock you’ve been living under.  Cat is a huge mover and shaker in the Des Moines Art scene. She’s a painter. A director of a local indie craft show (that I blog about often — Market Day). And she’s just recently embarked on her latest endeavor: housewife.

Well — not in the sense of the word you would think of — she’s not a June Cleaver or a Roseanne.  She moved her painting studio to her home and does an array of housewifey type things … like cooking, cleaning, and other things.  You can read all about it in this fabulous guest post she wrote over at small strokes.

Anyway, The Hipster Housewife is where Cat chronicles her adventures. Some of my favorite posts include figuring out that you can EAT the honeycomb (I did not know this!) and making cheese with her friend Kyle.

I’m a little bit jealous. I would love to have a studio at home and do all these fun housewifey things. That, and I love Cat’s idea of feminism — I DO WHAT I WANT TO DO. Don’t tack on “… as long as I’m a doctor/astronaut/physicist”.

Anyway, go check her out. I’m sure she’d love to have more than my daily comment on her blog. I’m wondering if she’s beginning to think I’m stalking her …

Share on Facebook

OM nom nom nom nom!

What could be better than combining chocolate and beer? Frosting it. With cream cheese frosting. Oh, and putting it in a portable and cute cupcake form.

Last Sunday was my b-day and my friend Danielle and I made Guinness cupcakes for our friends to enjoy at my little gathering.

I used this recipe for the cake and this recipe for the frosting. These were super super naughty, but soooooo good!

Here is my lovely cupcake display — of course, I frosted them hot pink. Would you expect any less? And Naked Michael Jackson had to come to the party too. It’s not a party without naked michael jackson.

Share on Facebook

Yay! I’m excited that I finally got around to making my lovely cake stands from vintage plates and milk glass bud vases. They turned out beautiful and eclectic.

I’m  not sure where I’m going to sell them other than at local craft shows — I don’t trust the USPS to get these shipped in one piece. They’re also really heavy, so shipping would be super expensive.

What do you guys think? I have 2 more that I didn’t photograph, but I would love to make more!

Share on Facebook