it's a miracle!!

well, maybe not a miracle... but close.

have you fallen victim to the supposedly awesome mug cake?

i have.

usually you end up with an eggy puck of rubbery nastiness. i had zero expectations when i tried this one but i was very pleasantly surprised!

i think that part of the problem with most mug cakes is the egg.

this one has none and VOILLA!

i have modified a recipe that i found that was ok... this is waaaaaay better!

what you'll need:

4 tbsp flour
1tsp-3tsp sugar (depends how you like it)
3 tbsp cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
generous pinch salt\

4 tbsp milk
1-2 tbsp oil

chocolate chips - however many you feel like


what you need to do:

mix all dry ingredients in mug with fork
add milk and oil
mix until smooth and make sure you scrape along the bottom of the mug or you'll get flour pockets
stir in chocolate chips

microwave for 1 min 45 sec to 2 minutes depending on your microwave.


top with goodies... last night i topped mine with fudge and then drizzled it with caramel. ice cream on top is delicious.... sink a spoonful of peanut butter into the middle before you cook it for a yummy variation... pretty much limitless.

ENJOY!

disclaimer: please do not blame me if you want to make one of these every night. they take less than 5 minutes from beginning to end, and are super yummy. not my fault.

tis the season...

it is 2 weeks until christmas.
yikes!

am i anywhere close to ready?

bahahahahahahaha

excuse me while i roll on the floor laughing.


we got the tree up this weekend. i think that may be a record for me.
it has a total of 4 ornaments on it right now since i haven't found the rest burried under the basement stairs. big sigh. last year we didn't put ornaments on the tree. this year i need to find them!

this weekend is christmas with fernando's family so we will be attempting our first sleepover with hugo... fingers crossed! i also need to get the presents all wrapped. i LOVE wrapping presents but i am already lowering my standards... i know i'm not going to have time to wrap everything as pretty as i'd like.

once christmas number one is done, then its time to focus on christmas number 2 which is christmas eve at my parents house. i dont have a ton to do for that one. mostly just wrap presents and show up. oh, and wear stretchy pants. there will be 4 of us and i am positive my mom will have enough food for at least 20.
we will open presents and then head home to wait for santa.

christmas day will be dinner at our house. i think there will be 7 of us including hugo. nothing big. well except for the turkey. my parents are buying the turkey so it might be huge.
lots of stuff to get ready for christmas here.

also in the month of december is my birthday and work christmas party. which happen to be on the same day.  i am going to be dressed up for my birthday!!! its been years since i have done anything for my birthday... i'm kind of excited!

thank you sir, may i have another?

this may have originally referred to some sort of food... but in my world i feel like a sleep beggar. just one more hour, just 10 more min... whatever i'm getting is rarely enough.
what makes it worse? the few good nights that get your expectations up and then BAM! no sleep for you!
hugo is his own little version of the soup nazi from seinfeld... except instead of exclaiming NO SOUP FOR YOU! he yells NO SLEEP FOR YOU!
i do love him more than anything in the world but it has been over a year since i have slept through the night. i feel like a zombie some days. thank god for coffee and food. without constant snacking and my coveted morning latte i think i would perish. (tad dramatic? well too bad... it feels like it!)

i have been staying up later than i would like to many nights but when the sleep nazi fights bedtime and its close to 10pm by the time i finally wrangle/wrestle him to sleep i just then get to start my work for the night. if it is the beginning of the week i have office work, the later part of the week kabukikreations stuff. it literally is always SOMETHING. i have a hard time just sitting and doing nothing to start with but having to work just means that i have less opportunity to actually do nothing. 3 nights a week are mandatory work nights for me and the rest i usually try catching up on things around the house and my crocheting. sounds like fun doesn't it! my life is definitely not one of glamour or leisure! but i guess if it was i'd probably be bored.... right?

Favorite frivolous kitchen item ever!!

I think this is probably the kitchen appliance I use the most. LOVE this thing. I make myself a latte almost every morning. So much better than fighting with the steam wand on my old coffee maker.

BTW it is the aeroccino by nespresso.
Amazing invention. Worth every penny and I have used it more than any other kitchen gadget I've ever owned.
If you like steamed milk you need one of these!

yummy breakfast cookies

yes. COOKIES!

in my books these are healthy and delicious... even though they're cookies.

what you need:

3 large ripe bananas (i used 4 smaller bananas out of the freezer)
2 cups quick oats
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/3 cup raisins (i didn't use these because yuck they're like little mushy brains)
1/3 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup skim milk (i used homo because thats what i drink)
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon

what you need to do:

preheat oven to 350
mash bananas
add everything else and mix together until incorporated.
let sit at least 5 minutes so the oatmeal can soak up the goodness
drop onto cookie sheet in tbsp portions and flatten slightly
bake for 15 minutes.

easy peasy!

and they are delicious... kinda like banana bread and oatmeal cookies had a love child.

AND you can have cookies for breakfast!

BONUS.

hugo loves them (i made him some without the chocolate chips)

next time i think i'm going to add chia seeds in the mix as well... and coconut. because i love coconut and i think it will be even tastier!

hope you enjoy these as much as we do.

happy birthday hugo!

I can't believe it has been a year! well, a year and a day. OOPS.
my little sea monkey is so big now!

here is the year in review.

hugo's first photo. i hadn't even seen him yet!

1 week

november 2011

December 2011

January 2012

February 2012

March 2012

April 2012

May 2012

June 2012

July 2012

August 2012

September 2012

October 2012

looking at these all together i am amazed at the little person he is becoming.

i feels like i can't even remember my life before hugo!

tasty tuesday i'm done with you!

i think that from now on i am going to post tasty recipes whenever the hell i feel like it! i can't count how many times i have though about posting a recipe but its not tuesday and i hate pre writing my posts... and then completely forgot about it by the time tuesday rolls around.

here's one that i had a hard time believing.
it seemed too good to be true... too easy to be real...

super easy peanut butter cookies

1 egg
1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup sugar.

thats it.
seriously.

preheat oven to 325

mix all 3 ingredients together with a spoon until well blended.
roll into 24 balls (i was lazy and just dropped teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheets. they were just fine. no fork marks but i didn't really mind.
bake 20 minutes or until lightly browned
when you take them out of the oven you can put a piece of chocolate on top or leave them plain... whatever you like! let cool on sheet for 5 min and remove to wire rack to cool completely.

i didn't know what to expect with this recipe when i tried it but they are already half gone so i guess its safe to say YUM!

PS.
i did not use the full 1/2 cup of sugar. it was closer to 1/4 cup.