FOT THE LOVE: FIghting for Grace in a World of Impossible Standards

Hello, everyone! Thanks for coming over to my blog; I know I've been awful about posting for a very, very long time. But this one is worthy of dusting off the ol' keyboard.

You may remember that I was part of the re-launch for Jen Hatmaker's INTERRUPTED. I was blessed  enough to get attached to this launch team, and what an incredible experience it's been! Imagine, if you can, a group of almost 500 women - and four men, whom we've dubbed the #bandoffour - who have been transparent, open, funny, accepting, and loving each other online for 22 weeks. No disagreements, no judgements on each other, meeting each other face-to-face whenever possible

We've been able to experience first-hand what Jen's book is about: loving each other, granting grace to ourselves and each other, encouraging each other - because life is tough sometimes, as we all know.

This book. It can be life-changing, if you allow it - and, in my opinion, will give you a great place to start to figure out what Jesus is asking of you, personally. I would be laughing one paragraph, gasping for air from the strike of truth the next, and wiping the tears from my eyes the net.

Jen writes this book as if she's sitting on the porch with you over coffee. She's real, she's speaking truth, and she's walking through the same thing she's talking to you about. I so appreciate that!

All of us on the launch team have our favorite quotes. It's so hard to pick - the phrases, the words, are put together to strike to the the truth of the subjects she discusses.Some of my favorite word actually come from the introduction; so many people skip it, but I love that it reveals the author's purpose.  I'm not going to type out everything - I'd be writing out the whole thing. :D

I will write more next week about the book; if you've read it, I'd love to  hear your take-aways. But the official launch is TUESDAY, AUGUST 18 - TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Go get your copy - it's available at almost any bookstore, and Target, even! :D

For more info on the book, go to http://forthelovebook.com The graphic is made by my friend, Brianna George.

Lo Mein

Happy Monday! :)

I don't know if you've heard, but the Southeast has had a little weather lately. :D So, this was my lunch one of those days - it's vegetable lo mein from Mandy's Recipe Box.

The prep work is the biggest part of this recipe, honestly - and most of it's taken care of with using cole slaw mix for the veggies! :) It was good; I would go a little lighter on the red pepper flakes the next time, because it was a BIT spicy - but Kenn loved it, too. He finished off the lo mein for me. :D

This is a YES, PLEASE. It's easy and tasty - oh, and I used Dreamfield's spaghetti instead of the egg noodles, so the carbohydrate impact wouldn't be so big. We love Asian food, so I know I'll be making this again SOON. :)

Have a wonderful week, friend. Be BLESSED!

Perfect Pizza Crust

Happy Monday!! I don't know about y'all, but we've been cooking in SOOO much the last week, with the ice and snow! I made this early last week for lunch, and was in the process of making it again on Saturday to put two crusts in the freezer - and ended up using them that night. Do you know how crazy expensive ordering pizza is?!?!??! Kenn likes mine better, anyway. :D

SO. This is Perfect Pizza Crust, from Carlsbad Cravings.

I will tell you right off: this is a YES, PLEASE!!!! - from me and my family. Crispy and chewy - and I made the dough in my bread machine. Oh, yeah I did. :D I halved the recipe the first time; we were only doing it for one meal, and my dad is gluten-free, so he wasn't going to share this one. :) This is half veggie, half mushroom, onion, and ground beef.

I will also tell you this: do NOT cook two pizas at the same time. That's what I did the second time, and the top one ended up almost steamed on the bottom, not with the crunch we expected - but the bottom pizza was perfect. I do recommend the broiling step, to brown up the cheese; we don't tend to use our broiler much, and I'm not sure why. It added the perfect touch to this lovely pizza! :)

I can't tell you if the dough freezes well yet; I have yet to be able to get a batch made and in the freezer! :) (Yes, it's because I'm lazy, and I know it. :D )

I really hope you'll try this recipe - either the long way by hand, or short-cutting with your bread machine. :D

Have a wonderful day! Be BLESSED, dear friend!

Baked Vanilla Donuts with Chocolate Frosting

Happy weekend! :) I hope you're staying warm and DRY - things around here are getting interesting, with another round of snow and ice followed by RAIN all day Saturday. It's going to be a MESS. I haven't left the house since last Sunday, so we've been doing lots of baking and cooking. :)

These Vanilla Donuts with Chocolate Frosting are one of the things I've made, brought to you from Call Me PMC,

Now, because it's snow/ice, there is no running to the store to get one or two things, as you well know. :) So I didn't have any Greek yogurt; I used lemon juice in my milk, as the recipe says you can. And I didn't use any canned frosting - YUCK! - but some chocolate frosting I've been saving from a past cake recipe to use. :)

I don't think any of us were knocked out with the TEXTURE of these. They were a LOT like sponge cake, which is okay when that's what I'm EXPECTING in my donut. :) And Kenn said they were very filling. :D I'm keeping the recipe in my "Good Recipes to Have" file, but it probably won't be one I go back to. (I'm trying another baked donut recipe this weekend, I THINK, so I'm excited about it. :D )

OK, I'm leaving you alone now. :) Have a WONDERFUL weekend, and may you be richly blessed!

Hearty Chicken Soup

Good Monday Morning! :)

I thought, since many of us are in this ice/snow belt, chicken soup would be a great thing to share today. :)

This recipe for Hearty Chicken Soup is from Recipe.com.

Now, I will tell you right away that I more used the METHOD than the direct recipe, because I didn't HAVE everything the recipe called for. :D For instance, my chicken thighs were boneless, so the stock wasn't as good for us as it could have been. <sigh> I made this for Kenn when he first started coming down with this respiratory stuff, and we all know chicken soup is good for the soul, healthy or ill though the person may be, correct? :D

With that said, this was good soup. I tend to not like soups too much, because they're SO liquidy. :D I'd rather have a stew or a chowder any day of the week! (Or something with lots of cheese in it... :D ) But I think it was a comfort to Kenn, and it said, "I love you" to him, and we ate it for dinner. :D I'm saving it in my "Good Recipes to Have" folder.

OK, everyone! Stay safe and warm, and enjoy your day! :) Be BLESSED!

Double Fudge Brownies

Welcome to Wednesday! Having a great week? I hope so! Today's been really pretty and sunny; tomorrow's high is 30. :D Ahhh, weather in the South...

Anyway. Today's recipe review is for these Double Fudge Brownies from Crazy for Crust.

First of all, there's a link in the recipe for homemade brownie mix. It's the easiest mix EVER, and it was fun to have it on hand. (Actually, I'm keeping some on hand! :D )

Then there's the fact that I made a batch of these brownies one day when I wanted a taste of chocolate, and wanted to try a new recipe - and Kenn and Mom benefited from my desire, too. :) I did NOT frost them the first time I made them, and they stored easily, were easy to get out of the pan, and didn't last too long. :D

I made THIS batch to take to a friend who'd been in the hospital - actually, the brownies went for her husband and kids. :D She's not supposed to be eating a bunch of sugar, either!

I loved the unfrosted brownies. I really thought the frosting was way too dark chocolate, and took the brownies to a level where I didn't want to eat them. Some people thought they were wonderful, but some really thought they were too dark, too. If you LOVE dark chocolate, try them frosted. If you're looking for a great brownie, try them unfrosted. :D

OK, I'm outta here! Have a wonderful day! Be BLESSED!

Baked Apple French Toast

Happy Monday! Did you have a good weekend? Are you staying warm? Today's recipe might help; it's Baked Apple French Toast from Work It, Mom!

I made this for breakfast with a friend. We had a great time, and I liked this because it was ready to throw in the oven early when I wasn't up to thinking very clearly. :D Plus, it was good - not too sweet, which I appreciate. I added extra cinnamon to the apples. :) The crusts on the baguette were a little difficult to cut through, so if I want to do a bit more prep work, I MIGHT cube all the bread, instead of just slicing it.

I served some bacon on the side, and it was a warming, comforting, easy breakfast! :)

OK, I'm outta here. Have a WONDERFUL day! Be blessed, friend!

Ham and Cheese Gnocchi

Happy Friday! Have you had a good week? I sure hope so! And that you can stay warm this weekend - I'm cold today! :)

Today's recipe is for Ham and Cheese Gnocchi from Kevin & Amanda. (Just click on the website's name, on any post, to go to the recipe! :) )

This is a YES, PLEASE! It's good, warming comfort food - and I thought it was even better warmed up for lunch the next day. :) I cut back on the cheese on top, because Kenn has an issue with cheese. :) I also used about half of the onion - and it was PLENTY!

It's easy to put together. I try to keep a package of gnocchi in the freezer, and we had ham in the freezer from an earlier meal. Poof! :D

OK, I'm outta here! Have a wonderful weekend, dear friend. BE BLESSED!

Butterscotch Chip Cookie Cake

Happy Friday! :)

Do you have someone who loves cookies? Then you NEED to make them this Butterscotch Chip Cookie Cake from Bake Your Day.

Kenn likes butterscotch, and I enjoy spoiling him every now and then. :) I had been meaning to make this for him, but just got around to doing so about a week or so ago. He liked it so much that he bragged about it on Facebook. :D

It's SO easy, people! AND I love the fact that you can do just about anything with it - I suspect it will be getting chocolate chips and pecans at a future date. :) It IS very rich, so cut the pieces small. You could throw this together tonight, so the family ( :D ) has something to snack on all weekend!

OK, friend I am outta here! Have a wonderful weekend! Be BLESSED!

Cheese Sticks (aka Cheese Straws)

Happy Wednesday (night :D )!!! Have you had a good week? Sorry I am having trouble getting into the habit of blogging again; I'm staying really busy. Kenn has turned in his two-week notice, so we're doing lots of "What if..." planning, etc., right now. :)

ANYWAY. This is a "How To Make Cheese Sticks" from allrecipes.com - and I know them as Cheese Straws. :)

I wasn't really thrilled with this recipe, but it turned out pretty good. :) First of all, it says to do this as soon as the dough is thawed enough to unfold; I really think the toppings/ingredients would do better if it came further up to temperature for maybe 15 minutes.

These are really good the first day, and pretty good the second day, and then forget about it. :) Also, think of doing something else - like using a different cheese, or maybe doing a sweet one like cinnamon sugar with butter instead of oil. :D

So I'm saying this is a YES, PLEASE, even though I'd tweak things a bit. LOL - like you never hear that from me.... :D

OK, I'm outta here. :D Have a WONDERFUL evening/day! Be BLESSED, dear friend!

New York-Style Crumb Cake

Happy Friday! Are you looking for something yummy and relatively easy to put together for your weekend breakfast? Try this crumb cake!

It's New York-Style Crumb Cake from Smells Like Home.

The cake was a LITTLE dry for my taste, but I can fix that - I think I need to weigh the flour next time, not just measure it. (I know that's the most accurate way to bake, but it was the day before Christmas Eve, and I had soooo much to do...) This was a really mild crumb, too - I probably tripled the cinnamon, and it was still very light in taste. I might have to do more next time... :D

OK, I'm outta here! Have a WONDERFUL weekend! Be blessed, dear friend!!!

Strawberries and Cream Angel Food Cake Roll

Phew! Happy Monday! Have you had a good six weeks?!? I don't know about you, but I've had soooo much to do, time has FLOWN.

Today's recipe review is what I made for our Christmas Day dessert, Strawberries and Cream Angel Food Cake Roll from Brown-Eyed Baker.

I had an admission to make: I've never done a cake roll before. My baby sister is fantastic at doing them - she does a pumpkin roll every fall that's beautiful and sooo good! - but I've seen too many of them crack and fall apart. I was REALLY nervous about doing this, but my sister gave me a pep talk and encouraged me to just go for it. So, I did. :D

I followed this pretty much to the letter, except for skimping a little on the strawberries inside the cake roll - it's the middle of winter, and they were a bit crunchy. :D

My verdict: YES, PLEASE! - especially when strawberries are in season, and would color and flavor the whipped cream more. My husband liked the fact that there was a variation of texture in the angel food cake, that it wasn't all just soft. :D It really was pretty easy; when I started to unroll the cake, it did start to crack - but I propped it up on rolled kitchen towels like my sister suggested, and didn't try to force it to unroll any further. I took my offset spatula and "stuffed" the center with the cream, instead of spreading it.

OK, I'm outta here! It's COLD here today! Brrrrr... :D Have a wonderful day, my friends. Be BLESSED!