What is your favorite kind of Sweet Treat?

I love Ben and Jerry's Cherry Garcia, but I was recently able to get some Blue Bunny Bordeaux Cherry with Chocolate Chunks that was excellent for far cheaper than a small container of B&J. Unfortunately, I eat it if I have it. So, I can't do that very often. I also like cheesecake and English toffee. I love that crunchy buttery goodness especially when the chocolate is cold and solid, not warm and soft. I hate chocolate that is soft and melty. I won't even eat chocolate chip cookies that are warm.

As far as cheesecake is concerned, my absolute favorite cheesecake is White Chocolate Raspberry! OMG - that is just absolutely DIVINE! Plain cheesecake is top notch, but WCR is beyond heavenly!

I mentioned chocolate chip cookies, but my favorite by far is a White Chocolate Macadamia Nut followed by Starbucks' Oatmeal Cranberry Raisin. Of course, I really shouldn't eat either one, but who doesn't disobey dietary rules once in a while??

C is for Cheesecake (See? I told you there'd be food!)

I do so love cheesecake. It's probably one of the last things I should have in any great quantity, but it is so amazingly good - especially when it's extremely rich and loaded with cream cheese.

I absolutely love (there is no superlative that's really adequate here) White Chocolate Raspberry cheesecake made by Cheesecake Factory. Not that I go there to get it - they sell it at the pizzeria next to where I work, which is where I've really gone overboard. I buy a slice a week and it's just so decadent and rich and buttery. And, the chocolate crust is unbelievably wonderful with little chunks of dark chocolate in it. Shaved white chocolate on top and raspberry swirls throughout - it's heavenly!!


Then my friend Tom bought a cheesecake on Friday to treat me to for doing him a favor. Not nearly as good as the previously described cheesecake, but I could still eat a good lot of it if left to my own devices.


Thankfully, my daughter loves cheesecake, too, so when I bring some home, I know I won't be able to eat it all since she'll be eating it with me. Also thankfully, I don't buy it often because I WILL eat it. I've only been buying it because of its close proximity to me, so I've started taking my lunch. That way I won't be able to stand by the display case where the cheesecake's siren call beckons me until I crash my ship upon the rocks of its shores in order to reach it.

February already? Where's my box of candy??

Yeah, it's almost Valentine's Day. Can you believe it? I've already bought a couple of boxes of Dunkin Donuts Valentine's donuts to share at work and one box for home. I love their donut dough. At least, the raised donut dough. I'm iffy on cake donuts, unless they're moist. Like, most pumpkin and apple cider spice donuts are cake donuts and are pretty moist - not dry and crumby. I never used to like plain donuts - the kind with no coating at all. My dad loved them. But, I've come to appreciate them and really enjoy dunking them in my coffee. As far as having a box of chocolates goes, I can live with out it. If someone gave me a gift card to Dunkin Donuts, I'd be thrilled! I don't need much to know I'm appreciated. Usually my guy friend and I go out to dinner. Nothing romantic - just an acknowledgement that all is well. This year, though, he'll be in Arizona and isn't coming home until Valentine's Day. Oh well. He's leaving his car with me while he's gone, so I won't need to be asking for rides. That's as thoughtful as any dinner out.

Now, as far as Holidays go, St. Patrick's Day is next on the list and McDonald's Shamrock Shakes are already available! I got my very first one today, courtesy of my daughter. It's funny, though. For years I avoided them because I thought mint milkshakes were just a strange combination. Yet, in the past year, I've had Chocolate Chip Mint Milkshakes several times and they're WONDERFUL! So, I decided, "Why not?" They're OK, but I like my CCM shakes better. I'm spoiled.

I ought to also tell you that I started working again last month. My first job in four years! I am an official tax preparer, authorized by the IRS, even, to prepare and sign off on returns. It's a seasonal job, but it feels pretty darned good to be working, I have to admit. And, I like the work, so that's another plus. It has made it difficult for me to hang with my guy friend like I used to, though. With me working and him taking night classes, we just don't see each other as much as we used to.


That's about it for this installment. Sorry it's been so long. I'm getting used to being back in work and not online nearly as often as I used to be. But, I promise that I haven't given up on my blogging. And, I'll have a wonderful turkey salad recipe here soon to share. A coworker made the most amazing salad to share at work and no one was eating it. Needless to say, it came home with me and it was fantastic! I've already begged her for the recipe that she promised to bring in. Can't wait to share it.

Cupboard needs replenished, but money is tight.

It's going to be a Dollar Tree kind of month because the money just isn't here right now. My daughter took a second job just to have some more money because bills are killing us. Houses are expensive to live in.


This morning I wanted something to eat that wouldn't take long to make that wasn't the same old thing, so I mixed some pancake mix with chocolate Malt-o-Meal hot cereal and made chocolate pancakes. I must admit, they were pretty tasty. Not too chocolately, thankfully, because I'm not a chocoholic like my father was, but just a hint of chocolate without ruining the lifelong pleasure of the butter and syrup. I believe it bumps up the nutrition factor of the pancakes when I add a hot cereal to the mix (I've done oatmeal in the past with success). There's more iron in cream of wheat (which is what I think this basically is) than in the pancake mix plus some of the grain factor from the cereal. Maybe I'm fooling myself, but it was still a nice change of pace.


I've been adding vanilla flavoring to my coffee water before I make a pot and that has worked wonders for my pleasure of drinking the coffee. It never tastes as good at home as it does at the diner or at Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts, right? Well, now there's a definite improvement in the overall flavor. It doesn't take much flavoring to alter the entire pot. I'm sure you could do the same thing with any extract if you were of a mind to.


I came downstairs this morning and found that one of the cats (Chloe, I'm thinking it's you!) had torn a hole in the 20 lb. bag of litter and scattered it across the floor - the floor I had cleaned yesterday after changing the litter in the cat box!! I don't know WTH she, whichever she it was, was thinking, but good grief, cat!! The bag of food wasn't far away, but that wasn't touched. Silly little beasts!!


Got all the dishes done today after making my pancakes. I hate washing without a full load, plus we have to pay for water, so why run it when it's not fully loaded. My small pan plus bowl and utensils were just enough to finish filling the dishwasher. I even washed the lid to the recycle since some of the cans had splashed onto it. Great way to get that done!!


Speaking of recycle, tonight's recycle night, so I need to get it together and set out front for pickup in the morning.


Going to Dollar Tree in the morning, so wish me luck finding as much as I can for as little as possible to last until my next check. It's always an adventure, to be sure!

Chocolate Pancakes

If you've read my blogs along the way, you may have seen me mention how I'm not big on chocolate. My father was the ultimate chocoholic. His dream (he wouldn't have called it that) was to go to a food show all about chocolate. He loved chocolate cake, chocolate ice cream, Hershey's syrup in milk, Hershey's syrup over chocolate ice cream, Reese's peanut butter cups, ad infinitum. I didn't inherit that love. That's not to say that I didn't have the occasional craving, but for the most part, I could live without chocolate.

Now, I do like chocolate cereal. I especially like Cocoa Krispies or Cocoa Pebbles. I love how the milk is so chocolate-y when you're done. But, as much as I love it, I still have to drink water or something else afterwards to get the chocolate-y taste out of my mouth. I'm that way with most sweets - I don't like that leftover syrupy taste that lingers, even if I've enjoyed every bite.

Another chocolate cereal I love is Chocolate Malt-o-Meal. Basically, it's like cream of wheat with cocoa added. Oh my goodness! It smells so wonderful when it's cooked and then with butter and sugar added, it's most excellent. (I grew up with all hot cereals eaten with butter and sugar.)

Anyway, I'm not overly fond of sweet breakfasts, which is why the butter makes the hot cereal more palatable for me. The same is true for pancakes. The butter adds a savory flavor that cuts the syrup (which for me is usually low or no sugar). But, lately, I've been trying to keep pancakes from being just plain pancakes. Plain pancakes for me are like eating spoonsful of sugar. The carbs process so quickly and I end up just dragging even as my blood sugar skyrockets. It's like taking a sleeping pill. So, I've been adding whole grains to my pancakes - until recently, that grain has been oats along with some cinnamon for added flavor.

Maybe it's not a perfect solution, but when you're low income, you use what you have. What I have is generic complete pancake mix that I combine with a whole grain before adding water. The end result has actually been quite good. The oatmeal pancakes turned out wonderfully light and fluffy without any real evidence of the oats that I had added, despite the fact that they were so obvious in the batter itself. And, I didn't have the sugar slump after I ate them like I did with plain pancakes. The whole grains seemed to make a difference in how my body processed them.

So, after several days of eating Chocolate Malt-o-Meal for breakfast, I was in the mood for pancakes again. I decided to try mixing the malt-o-meal with the pancake mix and see how that turned out. First of all, I've always thought the idea of chocolate pancakes was disgusting. Pancakes are sweet enough without adding chocolate to them. Yet, I knew that the chocolate flavoring in the hot cereal wasn't that strong and it was, after all, a whole grain cereal; so, I decided to try it.

I have to say, I wasn't disappointed. Although they were somewhat heavier than the oatmeal pancakes (whether that is because of the cereal or because I changed pancake mixes at the same time, I don't yet know, although I suspect it's the cereal), they turned out amazingly well. The chocolate flavoring was minimal, yet I could smell its essence while they baked in the pan. As with the oats, the cereal grains cooked through while the cakes were baking because of, I assume, the intensity of the steam factor in the cooking process. I still eat them the same way - with butter and low-sugar syrup, although I really only put syrup on the top pancake to run down the sides.

I personally think it's a great way to sneak whole grains and fiber into the pancakes your family keeps requesting. The kids will be intrigued by the chocolate factor and you'll know they're getting something better in their bodies than a pancake usually is. Try adding oatmeal, applesauce and cinnamon. Or, slices of banana once the oatmeal batter is in the pan before you flip them. I know I've noticed a difference in how my body responds to the pancakes since I began adding the hot cereals, so I'm sure these additions will benefit your family as well. And, they won't even realize it!!

Still No Chicken Cooked

See? I told you I shouldn't have said anything about planning to cook chicken. I ought to know better.


That said, you know darned well I haven't gone without eating. I've been enjoying Chocolate Malt-o-Meal hot cereal. I first discovered this wonderfully tasty cream of wheat product when I moved to Utah. It's still pretty hard to find here in New Jersey, but when I do, I grab it.


I've also eaten out a couple of times. One night I ate at the Happy Buffet with my friend Tom. It's always pretty good, but I was hesitant because the two times before that, I had some unpleasant after effects. But, I decided to avoid two of the items I suspected were involved and learned that I was right about them. Nothing untoward took place later that night. It's a shame because I liked both items. I don't know how I knew which things were the culprits, but I did.


Then, I went to Sonic with my daughter. Well, actually, I went to Chick-fil-A with my daughter and then to Sonic for myself. She ate her Chick-fil-A while I ate my Sonic. I didn't care much for their fries and won't get them again, but I totally enjoyed the "Ring Leader" sandwich and the Coke Zero with sugar-free cherry syrup. I'll either get Tots or Onion Rings the next time. 


Last night we decided to treat ourselves to pizza. We ordered Dominos. They had a coupon for a Specialty pizza for $11.99 with the option of a medium one-topping for $5.00. We do love pizza, so I got both. I personally LOVE the Fiery Hawaiian while my daughter wants plain Hawaiian, so I split the difference and got half of a Hawaiian plain and the other half fiery. OMG! I might leave the jalapenos off, but I think adding that hot sauce just totally MAKES that pizza!! (I know, but I've never been much on conformity.) Of course, I've been eating pizza ever since, but heck! It's good!!!


So, that ends today's post (today being Friday, even though it's just after midnight Saturday). Hopefully, I'll have more to post without too much time passing.