carmelita bars

I think I've mentioned before that there are several blogs I check daily for yummy ideas, and Brown Eyed Baker is definitely one. A few weeks ago, she posted this recipe for oatmeal carmelita bars... Doesn't that sound DELISH?

I had to make them. I actually had to make a double batch.

The doubled recipe means: 4 cups flour, 3 cups brown sugar, and 4 cups of oats... Imagine me stuffing that in my KitchenAid mixer, praying it doesn't explode. It didn't... just got a little messy ;) My mixer's a champ.

butter and sugar making friends :)

more flour! Yikes!

here's where we got REALLY messy... add the oatmeal and hope for the best :)

They were SO good. I'm not going to post the recipe, because you can go directly to her site... but here's the final push for you to try these:

How can you resist? 

I brought these to several gatherings, and they were a hit every time. So many different flavors... such a good combination :)

Christmas gifts

I've got some amazing parents this year that volunteer in my classroom. I wanted to put something together for them as a thank-you.. and I just happened to be making caramel corn for one of my book clubs:

after baking

I found these super cute gift bags at World Market (the best store ever.... tied with Target)... and put a tag on them that says, "Thank you for popping into PES so often!"

caramel cake with chocolate frosting

A week or so ago, I found a caramel cake mix at the grocery store. CARAMEL? I have never seen a caramel cake mix before! I was intrigued, thus I obviously had to buy it!

It's been sitting in my pantry for a while now... and I've been racking my brain to figure out what to do with it... thinking of flavor combinations.

Two or three days ago, I gave up. I googled it. And I found this beauty. I read the reviews and adjusted accordingly and OH. MY. WORD. And bonus! It was crazy easy to put together. And I may have eaten quite a few spoonfuls of the caramel cake dough... it was so delicious.

Here's the dough patted into a 13"x9" pan. The dough is really thick!

While that was baking, I found a recipe for chocolate frosting. I whipped it up (literally, haha) and WOW.

Beat the butter... and then you'll mix in your milk and sifted cocoa/sugar mixture. YUM. Add the very end, you mix in one teaspoon of vanilla. 

I thought you might need a close up of the icing. 

And then... putting two amazing things together:

So yummy. It was one of those things where I gave AJ a bite, and we just stood there making 'ooh' and 'ahh'  noises for a few minutes. I am going to buy another caramel cake mix SOON! You should too!

P.S. Is it care-a-mel or car-a-mel?

Here's the recipe for the caramel cake:

• 1 package caramel cake mix
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup (firmly packed!) brown sugar
• 6 tbsp. butter or margarine
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Step 1: Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease 13x9 pan.

Step 2: Combine EVERYTHING but the chocolate chips and mix it all together for a few minutes (until it's blended together) and then stir in the chocolate chips. IT IS REALLY THICK and it's supposed to be like that. Spread into the greased pan.

Step 3: Bake until a toothpick comes out clean when stuck in the center. Mine took 24 minutes. 

And the icing:

• 2 3/4 cups confectioners' (powdered) sugar
• 6 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 5 tablespoons milk (the recipe called for evaporated milk, but I'm not going to open up a can of that and not finish it, so I used skim milk... and it was still AMAZING)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Step 1: In a medium-sized bowl, sift the sugar and cocoa together.

Step 2: Cream the butter in your mixer until it's smooth. Alternate adding the sugar/cocoa and the milk until everything is added. Mix it up well!

Step 3: Add the vanilla and continue frosting until it's whipped up nicely. 

Step 4: Try it to make sure it's okay :)

sentimental

One Christmas party in elementary school, my mama was a hero. She had made homemade popcorn balls for my whole class. I was so proud of her. They were DELICIOUS and everyone wanted the extras.

I've never attempted popcorn balls... and I don't remember her ever doing it again either... but this comes close: caramel corn! YUM. I followed this recipe after finding it on the 'Best Desserts' list... and it did not disappoint. I did cut it in half though because we do not need to feed 20 people ;) But I'm pretty sure I could eat the 10-person serving! 

You start by melting a stick of butter. Yes, a stick. Imagine you're Paula Deen if it helps...

While I did that, I also popped some popcorn. Some of the reviews said to NOT use microwave popcorn and make your own... I trust those allrecipes.com people, so I did that. I have fond memories of my mom making popcorn on the stovetop as well... She's awesome!

Start with that... end with this...

And... then you add corn syrup, brown sugar, and salt to the butter and stir until boiling... and then it has to boil for FOUR minutes. EXACTLY :) Or so they say.

While you are being patient and waiting your four minutes, pour the popcorn into a greased, large baking pan (I used two Pyrex containers, one 9x13 and one a little smaller).  

When the caramel has boiled, mix in some vanilla and baking soda. Mix it and then start pouring over the popcorn! Try and mix it up with the popcorn. I then added some peanuts because I love caramel corn and peanuts together. 

You have to bake it for an hour and stir every 15 minutes. That was a little annoying if we're going to be honest.

But it is SO worth it. Delicious. AJ and I are trying not to eat it all while waiting for guests to arrive :)