The Almond Doesn't Fall Far From The Tree...

I am not a very culinarily daring person. I prefer to make and eat the very same things over and over and over. I want to eat what I know I'll like. However, I recently tried something new and am overjoyed with how well it turned out. Maybe time to stretch my food wings?

My Mom performed a major pantry overhaulin' and (minus Chip Foose) managed to completely reorganize and clean. She called me to come over and take home a bunch of pantry items she wasn't going to use. One of the random things included this:



For those of you who can't read extremely tiny out of focus print it says 'Just Hazelnut Meal - Great for Baking and Breading.' She gave me two bags of this weird fluffy mealy stuff. One is Hazelnut, one is Almond and she purchased them at Trader Joes.

Now, being a good little Dutch Girl, I love almond flavored everything. Almost ALL of our cookies taste like almonds, and many also have slivered almonds in them. My favorite chocolate even has almonds in it. I had to try this almond meal stuff. My ancestry commanded it.

The label says it is great for baking and breading and to substitute it for up to half of the flour in a recipe. It will add extra flavor and texture.

So last Friday Bubbalu and I made some Valentine's Day heart cut-out cookies using this Almond Meal stuff. After baking and frosting the cookies, Bubbalu helped me decorate.

First off, shake 18 million tiny sprinkles on the counter and floor and maybe 100 sprinkles on the actual cookies:



Then proceed to lick red hots and smash them into the frosting:



And we're done! Oh wait, repeat the process AGAIN? More sprinkles:



and more pre-licked red hots:



And finally FINALLY, we are done. Bubbalu got to eat one small cookie after we were done and despite the funny look on his face, he very much enjoyed it:



These cookies are AMAZING y'all, AMAZING. Cut-out cookies are already mighty tasty in my book because butter, sugar, flour...what's not to like? Then add in some Almond Meal? Positively divine.

And yes, I do realize that ground up almonds add a fair amount of fat, but as they say, it's a good fat. Because yes, that is what runs through my head when I can grab blub around my middle..."it's OK! It's a GOOD fat!". Um, no. We'll be eating these treats in moderation folks. Cause that's what's it's all about...(thank you for the insight Mr. Hokey Pokey).

I am anxious to try more of the Almond or Hazelnut Meal in other baked goods, maybe muffins or biscotti.

Anyone else baked with these Meals before? And if so, please leave a comment with any good hints, tips or recipes...

A

Happy Heart Day!

Happy Valentine's Day internets! I was woken up this morning (after sleeping in!) by 2 of my Valentines for breakfast in bed...although a certain really short Valentine of mine swiped most of my scrambled eggs.

My sweet husband once again made me my Valentine's Day card this year. It's kind of a tradition of ours. He goes and raids my scrapbook supplies and I pretend to not know what he's doing. He does an AWESOME job every single year and once again, he came through.

My littlest Valentine is sporting her very own handmade Valentine's Day bib thanks to her talented Great Auntie Jan.

Thank you Aunt Jan!

She gave me a HUGE smile after I took that photo. So I tried to capture it for you:

I missed.

In the spirit of hearts, love and all things cupidish Lil Chick is sporting a cute pink jumper from her Grandma. Of course, she was supposed to fit into it at Christmas, but she just curled up in one leg because she wasn't even five pounds.

I'm glad it fits now, and I'd say she looks pretty cute in it...or at least her backside does:



And you know my favorite gift of the day? Bubbalu said, "I Love You Mommy" for the very first time.

It doesn't get much better than that...

A

Wallyworld Picks Episode 3...

As many of my longer term readers know, I love to browse for clothing...actually anything...online. And I also don't mind posting what I've found because why not spread the shopping joy around? I am thrifty and practical at heart, but also love some frillyness and fun.

In light of the HORRIBLE!!! CRASHING!!! THE WORLD IS ENDING!!!! economy that we are all SO very aware of (thank you newspeoples, we are sufficiently freaked out already, let's just have some happy stories for today, k?) we are keeping things on a budget today.

Wallyworld is one of my online faves so here we go...

As you all either know from firsthand experience or have heard, your body changes a wee bit after having a baby...or two. And yes, I can testify to the truth in that statement. I would say these changes are ones I can live with...some good, some not so good.

Either way, I'll work with what I've got because I am not a member of the Free Annual Plastic Surgery Club. And if you have THAT little membership card tucked into your back pocket, please let me know how I can become a member. Well, maybe not, I'm not a huge fan of pain. And I recently watched an E! True Hollywood Story on plastic surgery gone wrong so I'm a little freaked out about it.

ANYWAYS, enough blabbing, back to the point. At this point in my postpartum reshaping plan, I am only looking for tops that would look good with my JOPS.

What are JOPS?

I have a certain pair of jeans that I am eager to fit into again. They are my Jeans of Perfection Svelteness. I may or may not be fitting into them in the next oh 4-6ish months, but we'll see.

So here we go, tops for my JOPS that I would buy:

First off this lovely Sequin Trapeze Tank for only $10.00 in a midnight Blue:



and I am actually digging it in green:

Of course it would require a jacket or light sweater of some sort unless you have some sort of amazing internal heating element. It's still 36* here after all.

Next up a lovely Shirred V-Neck Jersey Top for $14.00:

And a gray Short Sleeve Pocket Cardigan for $20.00:



However it would require a long sleeved undershirt of some sort, so how about this Button Long-Sleeve Tee for only $3.00:



And this last top, which I am surprised I like, is the Cap-Sleeve Trompe L'Oeil Necklace Tee for $9.00:

Could someone please buy this for me? Really. It's a Juniors, so maybe a large. I think it's quite cute. In a 'I'm a funky Mom who wants a teeny bit of style but still want uber comfort' kind of look.

Of course it would look great with some shiny black stilettos and my JOPS. With some black chandelier earrings and the always posh accessory of a sweet baby girl who is just starting to smile at her Mama.

Oh wait! I already have those things! Now I just need the shirt.

I've got the black stiletto's waiting...

A