I Made it.

So lately I've been into the cookin' and a-makin' scene. It's fun to create things, fun to try new things, and just all around an enjoyable outlet. Luckily, for FHE last night, we got to make gingerbread houses, and I made this wonder:


If that tasty lil' CheeseWiz fire doesn't warm your heart,...your heart must be made of pretzels. This lil' scene was where my heart longed to be right then. Except at a blue-lake...not a white frosting one. (Though that may taste better than lake water.)

Then, later that night, I came up with the wonderfully delectable decision of getting up early this morning to make fresh blueberry muffins from scratch for breakfast. Behold:


Yep. They were perfect, if only lacking because I didn't get up with enough time to also try making the streussel topping. Don't they look great? Fresh blueberries and everything. Yep. That was a good decision. Go for goal. What a perfect way to start my day!

And because it was delicious, I have to share with you what I made last week along with my tasty dinner:



It may not look like much, but friends--that is homemade, from scratch, brownie pudding cake deliciousness in all its picturesque glory. Too bad it's not photogenic. (I actually didn't take pictures of this dish, so these are courtesy of the web.) But it sure tastes DElish, and is super easy to make. Not too rich or sweet, either, which surprised me. The batter separates while cooking into a chocolatey brownie on top, and yummy hot chocolate pudding on the bottom. Top with vanilla (or in my case-- because it was all I had--strawberry cheesecake) ice cream and voila! This was courtesy of Tim's Christmas gift to me--a cookbook entitled "Chocolate!" (He also got me a Betty Crocker one I've been wanting.) Here's the recipe, because I love you:

Brownie Pudding Cake

*Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
*In a large bowl, combine 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 2 tsp. baking powder, and 1/4 tsp. salt. In a large measuring cup (the ones with many cups) combine 1/2 cup milk, 4 TB melted butter (half a stick, I believe), and 1 tsp vanilla. With a wooden spoon, stir milk mixture into flour mixture until just blended. Pour into an ungreased 8-inch square baking dish.
*In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup packed brown sugar and 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa; sprinkle evenly over batter. Carefully pour 1 3/4 cups boiling water evenly over mixture in baking dish; do not stir.
*Bake 30 min (batter will separate into cake and pudding layers). Cool in pan on wire rack (or, in my case, straddling atop two cutting boards) for 10 minutes. Serve hot with whipped cream or ice cream. (It's delicious by itself too.)

So there you have it. Makes me want to shout "hooray!" So fun. Lovin' it.