Spring is Finally Springing!

Ah, finally.  Tiny buds herald the coming spring season.  Oh, how we have waited for this day.

I am not certain of the plant.  This is not in the yard at Crest Avenue.  I was walking along during my lunch break today and saw this and could not pass it without taking a picture.

I try to take a break everyday for lunch.  When the weather is nice, and even sometimes when it is not, I go for a walk.  I am on my treadmill every morning and every evening, but any time I can get in a walk, I do it. As we have talked about previously, walking is such good exercise.  it is low impact and the results in weight loss can be huge.  

Spring is Finally Springing!

Ah, finally.  Tiny buds herald the coming spring season.  Oh, how we have waited for this day.

I am not certain of the plant.  This is not in the yard at Crest Avenue.  I was walking along during my lunch break today and saw this and could not pass it without taking a picture.

I try to take a break everyday for lunch.  When the weather is nice, and even sometimes when it is not, I go for a walk.  I am on my treadmill every morning and every evening, but any time I can get in a walk, I do it. As we have talked about previously, walking is such good exercise.  it is low impact and the results in weight loss can be huge.  

I Have an Idea

I'm thinking about a project.  In the kitchen.  Something wonderful and tasty and yummy and delicious and fun.  As these thoughts are going through my mind, I see sprinkles.  Sparkling sugar!!!

These look red, white and blue from this picture.  Actually, there are a rainbow of colors in this jar.  I see green, pink, purple, orange, yellow, blue and clear.  You will have to check back on Monday to see what happens!!!

I Have an Idea

I'm thinking about a project.  In the kitchen.  Something wonderful and tasty and yummy and delicious and fun.  As these thoughts are going through my mind, I see sprinkles.  Sparkling sugar!!!

These look red, white and blue from this picture.  Actually, there are a rainbow of colors in this jar.  I see green, pink, purple, orange, yellow, blue and clear.  You will have to check back on Monday to see what happens!!!

New Pillows for a Restful Night's Sleep

If you are like me, you sometimes have trouble getting the correct amount of sleep.  Some nights I can't fall asleep.  Others, I fall asleep and then wake up and can't get back to sleep.  Others, I toss and turn and sleep for short amounts of time but do not get REM sleep.  I think part of this comes with age and part is from stress.  We all have stress.  These are difficult times we are living in.  I decided to take action on this lack of sleep thing and ordered two of Joy Mangano's new "Comfort & Joy" Temptexx Technology pillows. They are divine.

Many of you are familiar with Joy Mangano, I'm sure, from Home Shopping Network.  She has the most creative products and very reliable products.  I have two sets of her clothes hangers.  I have one set upstairs in black and gold and another set in the basement closets in gray and gold.  Very durable hangers.  She has a little steamer that she sells that looks really nice.  I already have more steamers than I know what to do with, so I didn't buy hers.  She has a room fragrance line, luggage - just lots of things that are well thought out and make life easy and enjoyable.  I love to watch her when she is on HSN.

The pillows arrived yesterday and I was anxious to get them on the bed.  So Baxter and I got them out of the box and into the pillow cases.  Enclosed was this card which gives you information on the design of the pillows.  There are two sides - one which is warm and one which is cool.  I'll be using the cool side.  The cool side is the dotted side that you see in the pictures above.  I cannot stand to be in a hot bed.  Ugh!!  I used these for the first time last night and they are wonderful.  So comfortable.  Very supportive of your head and neck and shoulders.  I slept like a baby.

These are the outgoing pillows.  And I was sad to let these go because these were very expensive.  They were advertised as having a cooling effect and that they would not eventually become lumpy.  You can see in this picture that they did, in fact, become lumpy.  And I don't recall them being cool.  Maybe in the very beginning.  But after they started to disintegrate, all cooling properties were gone.

So if you are thinking that you want to try some new pillows to improve your sleep, stop by HSN and check out Joy's line of goods.

New Pillows for a Restful Night's Sleep

If you are like me, you sometimes have trouble getting the correct amount of sleep.  Some nights I can't fall asleep.  Others, I fall asleep and then wake up and can't get back to sleep.  Others, I toss and turn and sleep for short amounts of time but do not get REM sleep.  I think part of this comes with age and part is from stress.  We all have stress.  These are difficult times we are living in.  I decided to take action on this lack of sleep thing and ordered two of Joy Mangano's new "Comfort & Joy" Temptexx Technology pillows. They are divine.

Many of you are familiar with Joy Mangano, I'm sure, from Home Shopping Network.  She has the most creative products and very reliable products.  I have two sets of her clothes hangers.  I have one set upstairs in black and gold and another set in the basement closets in gray and gold.  Very durable hangers.  She has a little steamer that she sells that looks really nice.  I already have more steamers than I know what to do with, so I didn't buy hers.  She has a room fragrance line, luggage - just lots of things that are well thought out and make life easy and enjoyable.  I love to watch her when she is on HSN.

The pillows arrived yesterday and I was anxious to get them on the bed.  So Baxter and I got them out of the box and into the pillow cases.  Enclosed was this card which gives you information on the design of the pillows.  There are two sides - one which is warm and one which is cool.  I'll be using the cool side.  The cool side is the dotted side that you see in the pictures above.  I cannot stand to be in a hot bed.  Ugh!!  I used these for the first time last night and they are wonderful.  So comfortable.  Very supportive of your head and neck and shoulders.  I slept like a baby.

These are the outgoing pillows.  And I was sad to let these go because these were very expensive.  They were advertised as having a cooling effect and that they would not eventually become lumpy.  You can see in this picture that they did, in fact, become lumpy.  And I don't recall them being cool.  Maybe in the very beginning.  But after they started to disintegrate, all cooling properties were gone.

So if you are thinking that you want to try some new pillows to improve your sleep, stop by HSN and check out Joy's line of goods.

There's One in Every Crowd

Parents.  Teach your children that this type of behavior is unacceptable.

On a crowded train in rush hour this morning.  And he remained that way when the train stopped and new passengers entered the car.  Unbelievable.

There's One in Every Crowd

Parents.  Teach your children that this type of behavior is unacceptable.

On a crowded train in rush hour this morning.  And he remained that way when the train stopped and new passengers entered the car.  Unbelievable.

Apple Cream Cake

Who doesn't love a delicious dessert?  I know I do.  Being diabetic certainly puts a crimp in the ability to enjoy lavish desserts.  But every now and then I sample.  Then I get on the treadmill.  Such was the case recently when I made Apple Cream Cake.  This was positively delicious so I want to share the recipe with you.

We started with four gala apples which equals three cups sliced.  Gala apples are just a little tart, but not too tart like a granny smith.  They are a good blend of sweet and tart and perfect for cooking.

We peeled and cored each apple.

This OXO vegetable and fruit peeler is just wonderful.  It feels good and solid in your hand.  The blade is slightly animated which makes it move across the surface with great ease.  You can see above what a nice job it did of peeling the skins off the apples.  Hardly any of the flesh remains on the skin.

 In a medium sized glass bowl we mixed together the sugar and cinnamon.
 

Then we quickly introduced the sliced apples into the sugar and cinnamon mixture.  It's best to work quickly at this point to get the apples coated.  Otherwise, they will start to brown.

With the apples and sugar and cinnamon incorporated, we moved to preparing the cake mix.  Just follow the recipe on the box.  This Pillsbury cake mix called for 1 cup of water, 1/3 cup oil and 3 eggs.

Once the cake mix is done (beat on medium speed for two minutes after all ingredients are combined), it is time to prepare your pan.

I love this Pam Baking Spray with Flour.  What took them so long to think of this?  You will be using a 9" x 13" pan for this recipe.

A thorough spraying all over the bottom and sides of the pan.  This pan is coated with a non-stick surface, but a little Pam for Baking will not hurt.  The last thing you want is for part of the cake to stick to the pan for whatever reason.  Use the Pam spray!

We filled the pan with the cake batter.

Then we added the sliced apples on top.  You can see that the apples and the sugar and cinnamon made a little syrup while marinating in the glass bowl.  All the better.  Make sure and pour all of that over the cake batter.

We added one cup of whipping cream to the top.

And immediately placed the pan in an oven preheated to 350 degrees.

The recipe calls for baking 60 - 70 minutes.  I used the convection baking cycle in my oven and it was done in 60 minutes.  Just a few minutes more would have been too much.  So my suggestion is to set the timer for 60 minutes and check.  If it looks like it could take another 5 or 10 minutes, then leave it in.  If it looks like the picture above, remove it.  Of course the standard test is a knife inserted in the middle.  If it comes out clean, then you have a thoroughly baked cake.

For topping, I mixed one cup of whipping cream and 3 tablespoons of sugar in a stainless steel bowl which was placed in the freezer for 30 minutes prior to mixing.  I used the whisk attachment for this.  You can put the whisk in the freezer also.  The colder everything is the better success you will have with the whipped cream.

We let the cake cool completely and then cut in into rounds.  I thought this was a nice presentation.

I thought it was an even nicer presentation with a little powdered sugar over the plate.

And and even NICER presentation with a large dollop of fresh whipped cream.

So there you have it.  Apple Cream Cake.  It is delicious and I am certain your family will enjoy.  Here is the recipe.

Yield: 12-15 servings

Apple Cream Cake

Ingredients

1 package yellow cake mix
3 cups sliced peeled tart apples
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup whipping cream
Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, optional

Add ingredients to Cozi shopping list

Preparation

Prepare cake batter according to package directions; pour into a greased 9" x 13" pan. Combine apples, walnuts, sugar and cinnamon; spoon over batter. Pour cream over the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 60-70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream if desired.

Apple Cream Cake

Who doesn't love a delicious dessert?  I know I do.  Being diabetic certainly puts a crimp in the ability to enjoy lavish desserts.  But every now and then I sample.  Then I get on the treadmill.  Such was the case recently when I made Apple Cream Cake.  This was positively delicious so I want to share the recipe with you.

We started with four gala apples which equals three cups sliced.  Gala apples are just a little tart, but not too tart like a granny smith.  They are a good blend of sweet and tart and perfect for cooking.

We peeled and cored each apple.

This OXO vegetable and fruit peeler is just wonderful.  It feels good and solid in your hand.  The blade is slightly animated which makes it move across the surface with great ease.  You can see above what a nice job it did of peeling the skins off the apples.  Hardly any of the flesh remains on the skin.

 In a medium sized glass bowl we mixed together the sugar and cinnamon.
 

Then we quickly introduced the sliced apples into the sugar and cinnamon mixture.  It's best to work quickly at this point to get the apples coated.  Otherwise, they will start to brown.

With the apples and sugar and cinnamon incorporated, we moved to preparing the cake mix.  Just follow the recipe on the box.  This Pillsbury cake mix called for 1 cup of water, 1/3 cup oil and 3 eggs.

Once the cake mix is done (beat on medium speed for two minutes after all ingredients are combined), it is time to prepare your pan.

I love this Pam Baking Spray with Flour.  What took them so long to think of this?  You will be using a 9" x 13" pan for this recipe.

A thorough spraying all over the bottom and sides of the pan.  This pan is coated with a non-stick surface, but a little Pam for Baking will not hurt.  The last thing you want is for part of the cake to stick to the pan for whatever reason.  Use the Pam spray!

We filled the pan with the cake batter.

Then we added the sliced apples on top.  You can see that the apples and the sugar and cinnamon made a little syrup while marinating in the glass bowl.  All the better.  Make sure and pour all of that over the cake batter.

We added one cup of whipping cream to the top.

And immediately placed the pan in an oven preheated to 350 degrees.

The recipe calls for baking 60 - 70 minutes.  I used the convection baking cycle in my oven and it was done in 60 minutes.  Just a few minutes more would have been too much.  So my suggestion is to set the timer for 60 minutes and check.  If it looks like it could take another 5 or 10 minutes, then leave it in.  If it looks like the picture above, remove it.  Of course the standard test is a knife inserted in the middle.  If it comes out clean, then you have a thoroughly baked cake.

For topping, I mixed one cup of whipping cream and 3 tablespoons of sugar in a stainless steel bowl which was placed in the freezer for 30 minutes prior to mixing.  I used the whisk attachment for this.  You can put the whisk in the freezer also.  The colder everything is the better success you will have with the whipped cream.

We let the cake cool completely and then cut in into rounds.  I thought this was a nice presentation.

I thought it was an even nicer presentation with a little powdered sugar over the plate.

And and even NICER presentation with a large dollop of fresh whipped cream.

So there you have it.  Apple Cream Cake.  It is delicious and I am certain your family will enjoy.  Here is the recipe.

Yield: 12-15 servings

Apple Cream Cake

Ingredients

1 package yellow cake mix
3 cups sliced peeled tart apples
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup whipping cream
Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, optional

Add ingredients to Cozi shopping list

Preparation

Prepare cake batter according to package directions; pour into a greased 9" x 13" pan. Combine apples, walnuts, sugar and cinnamon; spoon over batter. Pour cream over the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 60-70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream if desired.

Bunny Pizza Boxes

We talked yesterday about our excellent find over the weekend of the colored grasses and green translucent Easter grass.  I put the green translucent grass to work already in these cute boxes I will be sending out to two special addresses over the next couple weeks.

I am using the medium sized flat-rate boxes from the post office to ship these Easter Bunny Pizza Kits.  To fully line the bottom of the this box took two bags of grass.  And then the pizza kit on top.  I will most likely drop in an Easter card, seal them up and send them out.  A nice surprise for someone special of any age!  

Bunny Pizza Boxes

We talked yesterday about our excellent find over the weekend of the colored grasses and green translucent Easter grass.  I put the green translucent grass to work already in these cute boxes I will be sending out to two special addresses over the next couple weeks.

I am using the medium sized flat-rate boxes from the post office to ship these Easter Bunny Pizza Kits.  To fully line the bottom of the this box took two bags of grass.  And then the pizza kit on top.  I will most likely drop in an Easter card, seal them up and send them out.  A nice surprise for someone special of any age!