It's been a while

Well, I know it has been a long time, but I promise I haven't fallen off of the blogging wagon. My husband and I have taken part in the stressful yet wonderful process of buying our first home. Yeah! It is beautiful and we love it very much, pictures will be up as we finish each room. I have a few things to post and hope to get to them shortly, but for now here is a picture of the front of our new home!

Something a Little Different

I enjoy taking pictures, if you can't already tell, and some dear friends of ours had not had their family photos done for quite a long time. They really wanted a natural setting with natural pictures of just the four of them. Their concern was they needed someone who could be patient with and who knew their son Malachi.

Malachi was born in 2004 a seemingly healthy baby boy. When he was roughly a month old he got sick. His intestine had twisted and started to die off. After a number of complications and miraculous happenings, Malachi is fine. He is a very special boy and my husband and I love him very much.

Below are some of my favorites from the shoot. Thanks for giving me the honor of photographing your precious family. Here are Chris, Rachel, Malachi and Ruth!

Thanks for looking :)

Peanut Butter Blondies and Cupcakes from a Box

We recently participated in a multi-family yard sale that ended with a delicious meal. I was asked to bring dessert and decided to use the opportunity to make a couple of new things. Peanut butter blondies and yellow cupcakes with chocolate frosting.

I found this boxed mix at Target, on clearance, and decided to go for it. The brand is Cherrybrook Kitchen. They have multiple cake mixes, cookie mixes, frostings and more. All of their stuff is dairy free, egg free, peanut free and nut free. Check out their website, it is full of useful information.

Follow the directions on the box, fill the cupcake liners 3/4 of the way to the top, and bake for the appropriate amount of time. When they are done, they will look something like this.

While the cupcakes are cooling, prepare the frosting. Here's the recipe, from this book:

1/4 cup margarine, softened (Earth Balance is best)
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
3 tablespoons soy milk
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

I can not seem to make a spreadable frosting, and it's becoming frustrating. This time I think my problem was the sweetened cocoa powder I used instead of unsweetened. I'll have to buy the right kind next time. :)

The one change I did make to the frosting was the shortening. Instead of a hydrogenated shortening, I found an organic, non-hydrogenated shortening. The texture is much more smooth than the regular kind. This is useful for vegan frosting as it helps to make it less oily.

First, cream together the margarine and shortening until well combined. Then add the cocoa powder.

Next, add the powdered sugar in 1/2 cup batches and beat well, adding a splash of soy milk after each addition.

Last, add the vanilla and beat for 5 minutes.

Voila! 

In the end, they tasted ok. The texture was excellent, very soft and moist. However, the cupcakes were SO sweet, and so was the frosting because of that darn sweetened cocoa powder. The combination was too sweet for me and too sweet for my pals, but they did get eaten. 

On to the main event. The peanut butter blondies. Amazing! Here's the recipe, from this book:

3/4 cup peanut butter

1/3 cup oil

1 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup nondairy milk

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/3 cup peanuts (optional)

First, pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees and grease an 8x8 pan. Next, mix the peanut butter, oil, and brown sugar with a fork in a medium sized bowl. 

Next, add the non-dairy milk and the vanilla. 

Finally, stir in the flour, salt and baking powder. As you mix in the flour, the dough will become very thick, so it's best if you mix the rest with your hands.

Press the dough into the pan, making sure it's pushed evenly into all the corners, and bake for 22-25 minutes.

It will be done when the edges are just turning brown. The middle will still be very gooey, but this is what makes it delicious!

I chose not to add the peanuts on top, but I'm sure it would add a nice texture. Also, you can add chocolate chips, vegan ones of course.

My husband and I loved these so much that I made them again tonight. This time I added some cocoa powder to the mix to give them a bit of a chocolate peanut butter taste. Incredible!

Thanks for reading. :)