Tasty Recipe

I'm leaving on a road trip to NH tomorrow, so I have been packing, planning, and running around all day today preparing. I did, however, take the time to make some cookie bars to bring on the road. One of my friends posted this recipe on facebook, which looked good to me, but needed some minor editing. (Peanut butter, raisins, and cinnamon applesauce? Not in my kitchen!) Here is my revised version:

INGREDIENTS

• 1/3 cup Bisquick (slightly rounded)
• 2 cups quick oats
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup regular applesauce
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup honey

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 by 9-inch baking pan with whatever oil available; set aside.

In a mixing bowl, stir together baking mix and oats until well blended. Add remaining ingredients and stir until well combined.

Press dough into prepared baking pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. (Mine took about 18.)

Cool completely before cutting into bars. (I skipped this step and ate one while they were still warm. Mmmm!)

Here is what they looked like:

I can only figure that these are healthy-- no butter, no added salt, and no processed sugar. They have a different taste than what you might expect, as the flavors of the honey and the applesauce really stand out, but it is a good taste! I will be wrapping the rest of them up in some waxed paper and stowing them away for the trip.

Musical Obsession: Regina Spektor

(Photo from npr.com)

Hooray! Hooray! Hooray! NPR decided to post Regina Spektor's new album on their website for all to enjoy. Link: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=105518205

The Rain, Rain, Rain Took My Baby (Chive Plants) Away

I got all excited because I thought I was actually going to have success at growing something from seeds, but after a surprise thunderstorm during the night on Friday, I awoke to find that my chive plants had taken a steep plunge off the side of my porch. (Apparently they realized they were in my care and committed "chive-icide.") I thought all was lost, but then this morning, when I decided to clean up the carnage and start over, I saw this:

Somehow, despite the fact that over 75% of the soil fell out of the pot, the chives hung on. They are brave plants to continue to remain in my care... I plan to add more soil to them later, and vow to move them closer to the house when it storms from now on!

Do-it-yourself: Air Conditioner Repair

I recently moved into an old house that does not have central heating and cooling. Instead, it employs two window units to chill the place down, which usually works out alright as it is not a very big house. The a/c unit in the bedroom is a Whirlpool brand relic. I initially doubted its cooling capacity, but that thing has been an absolute air conditioning beast, chilling my bedroom down to temperatures that normally only occur in places like Siberia and the Upper Peninsula so that I may snuggle up under as many layers of blankets as I like, even when the MS weather is 90 degrees overnight.

However, in the past week or so, I have been noticing that the unit has been making some funny noises, almost like the fan was trying to chew something up. I did not think it was terribly abnormal, but it did seem strange to me that the noises only occurred in the morning, after the unit had been running all night. This morning I finally took a look at it, and this is what I saw:

That would be ice, people. Lots and lots of ice. There is only one cure for an ailment such as this one, and that is to defrost the unit. This can take up to 36 hours depending on the temperature of your house / outdoors, how much ice there is, etc. I decided to take the Ashley approach, which is always to agitate the situation in order to speed it up.

I'm pretty sure this goes against every electrical safety thing I have ever learned, but oh well. It is working, and I haven't lit anything on fire. Yet. It is really hot in here, though. (And I know, it's really messy in my house, but I just moved, which I think is a worthy excuse.)

That cup fills up about every 15 minutes, and I've been defrosting for about three hours, which should tell you how much water is coming off the thing. At least it's draining outside, not inside like I expected it to! 

Once this thing is ice-free and dry, I'll have to take a look to figure out what is causing the ice to form. It could be something as simple as a blockage in the airflow, which I can just adjust, or it might be that the unit needs to be recharged, in which case I will be calling the landlord!

In other, better news, my chive plants are growing! I actually planted something that grew! I had a couple of starter kits,

which came from Target c/o Jake, but I have a particularly brown thumb and can't usually keep my plants alive for longer than it takes to get them from the store to my house.

But there it is-- growth! There are actually two little chive plants growing. Hopefully they don't figure out that they're in my care and decide to kick the bucket.

To update on the a/c situation-- it appears the problem is a severely nastified filter. I plan to clean it off and let the fan run for a while to get it all dried out. Hopefully I can get it running properly before nightfall!

Midnight Cravings

It is the middle of the night and I am jonesing for some chocolate. I searched relentlessly through pages and pages of recipes on the internet, each one as unsuccessful as the last. Most of them take too long to satisfy my impatient appetite, but then I remembered this one, which my friend Joel sent me a few months back. It would be great except for the fact that I have no microwave and don't have a clue as to what temperature my oven is actually heating (not that the recipe says how to make it in the oven, but I'm open to a little experimentation). The reason why I have no microwave is due to a recent move, and I have been having a daily microwave vs. vacuum cleaner debate. I need both, but have only money enough for one, and I'm thinking that quick-midnight-chocolate-cake-recipe almost weighs out dead-bug-and-dog-hair-sucker-upper. Anyway. I then rummaged through the cabinets to check out all my ingredients, briefly debating making tapioca pudding before deciding that that is just the gross and desperate result of a tormented, snacky mind. After consuming a handful of semi-sweet chocolate chips, I decided to make the chocolate cake recipe after all. Then I realized I have no idea where the dish I would bake it in has gotten to. So I ate another handful of chocolate chips and some coconut flakes, wrote this blog, and am now going to bed. Tasks for tomorrow include finding the baking dish and purchasing a microwave... maybe. I will probably just try the oven experiment.

Product Review #1: The Dark Roast is Yum

I absolutely cannot make it through the morning, at least not with the appearance of being any sort of human life form, without a cup of coffee. I'm pretty picky about the selection of my caffeinated beverage-- only certain brands are acceptable, and I like to grind the beans myself. I usually like to drink Dunkin' Donuts tasty blend, but here in MS the Double-D's are pretty difficult to come by (the stuff they sell in the grocery store is produced by Proctor & Gamble, so it's not "real," unfortunately). 

About two weeks ago, I ran out of my DD beans, so I switched back to the old standard, Community Coffee Medium Roast beans. They are a close second to the DD's, and waaaaaay more palatable than Folger's or anything else you can buy for a reasonable price at Kroger. Yesterday, I finished off my Community beans, and headed out to Kroger to buy some more. Much to my chagrin, Kroger had put the beans on sale, and the only bag left was Dark roast. Dark roast?! Noooo!! How am I supposed to drink dark roast in the a-m? Price speaks louder than any other variable, though, and when I compared the $4.99 beans to a lovely $10.79 bag of Starbucks, the Community beans won out. Well, I am sitting here now enjoying the most delicious cup of coffee I have had lately. The dark roast is not so bad!

On a side note, a DD's just opened about 30 minutes from my house, so I will be going there tomorrow to stock up. Nothing will ever beat out the DD's!

The Hunt

Although I have found gainful employment making old ladies believe that no shoes will love their feet like the shoes at my store, I do not feel that shoe sales will be a fulfilling job forever, so I have been busily hunting for another job. I am a licensed teacher, so it would make sense for me to find a teaching job. I'm having a lot of fun filling out tons of paperwork, and occasionally I find something excellent, like this recommendation form for one of the counties with which I am applying:

2. Check any traits below which characterize the applicant:
__Nervous
__Tense
__Discouraged
__Depressed
__Irritated
__Critical of others
__Argumentative
__Impatient
__Intolerant
__Domineering
__Sullen
__"Cocky"
__Easily embarrassed
__Frequently worried
__Prejudiced toward race or nationalities
__Lacks humor

(Later on the form...)

3. Is there any reason this person should not be considered? ____________________

So... any check marks in question 2 should probably answer question 3, right? Or is question 3 just in case my references haven't already said enough bad things about me? Just saying.