Brigadeiros and My First Succesful Omelet

So it's been a while guys. I have a new recipe to share with you!

Recently, on a show called Unique Sweets, I saw something that I knew I needed to try. In Brazil, there's this amazing confectionery treat called a brigadeiro. I can tell you right now, it's one of my favorite candies now. It's kind of perfect and amazing and rich and delicious. It's like a mix between a caramel and a chocolate and a truffle and sex and heaven. Seriously. These things are amazing.

You're probably asking what exactly makes these things so amazing, and how does one make them?

Reason number one why they're so amazing:
There are 3 ingredients. That's it. That's all.

Here they are:
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
2 Tbs. butter
3 Tbs. cocoa powder

Reason number two why they're so amazing:
The cooking process.

Step one: mix ingredients together in a medium size saucepan.
Step two: stir until thick.
Step three: Cool.

Done. 

Now, you can do one of two things now.

Option one: scoop the chocolatey deliciousness into a jar and use it for whatever you want. (ie: spreading on waffles, plopping on a croissant, eating it directly out of the jar during a painful period...)

Option two: roll into small balls and cover in toppings of your choice. This is what I did. I chose dark chocolate chunks that I cut up into teeny-tiny pieces, rainbow sprinkles, and cinnamon sugar. The chocolate chip covered ones were by far the favorite. My husband was disappointed by the cinnamon sugar coated balls, and Little-Bear loved the sprinkle-coated ones. I'm a fan of them all though.

 Brigadeiro rolled in Sprinkles.

So there you have it, brigadeiros!

 Little-Bear nomin' on a sprinkle-coated brigadeiro.

In other news, I was able--after 22 years and nearly as many attempts--to make a successful omelet. It was nothing fancy, just some pasture raised eggs, serrano ham, parmesan, and parsley. But to me, it was the best thing I'd ever made with eggs because it was the very first omelet I've ever made successfully. I swear, every other time I've attempted one, it's always turned into a scramble. This one stayed together, looked and tasted delicious, and was the perfect dinner for one.

 My first omelet!

That's all I have time for today, so until next time, enjoy life and your loved ones with just a spoonful of sugar!

Married Life, or Everyday I'm Giggling

So it's been a while friends, and as you've probably guessed since I never updated after my last post, that juice cleanse didn't really go so well. (How the fuck are you supposed to have energy to raise your active toddler when you're just drinking juice? Like...seriously? What was I thinking?)

Anyway, I wanted to share a moment with you all. My husband and I will have been married for two years on June 19th, and the reason we have lasted two years without killing each other is because we make each other laugh every day. (That and for some unknown reason I can NOT stay mad at my husband. Seriously. I've tried. A lot.)

Recently, we were cleaning our kitchen up--which happens all the time because WTF why won't the kitchen stay clean we didn't even fucking cook today--and we had one of those "stop what you're doing and fall down laughing" moments. Here's what happened.

Me (desperately trying to figure out how the dishes keep multiplying despite them not being used): "Hey babe, can you unload the dishwasher? I'll load it, I just need all this shit put away first."
Him: "Yeah. I like unloading it anyway."
Me: "Well I like loading it, so that works."
Both of us stop what we're doing and look at each other.
Me: "Well that only took two fucking years to realize!"
Laughter.

I adore my husband. I really do. He is my soul mate and I just utterly and completely love him. I love the way he frowns in his sleep unless I scratch his head, how he takes longer showers than I do, how I can never stay mad at him (no really, it's why he's still alive...), and most of all I love how he loves our son.

Another one of our Murphy Moments as I sometimes call them came a few nights ago when we were getting into bed and discussing my parents' upcoming visits. I'll just jump right into this one since there's really no describing it...

Me: "So mom's coming on June fifth and staying until the fifteenth, then dad's gonna get here on the seventeenth I think and stay ten days."
Him: "Okay, sounds good."
Me: "So I guess dad will be here for our anniversary if we want to do anything."
Him: "Okay."
We both settle into bed.
A minute later...
Me: "So don't get mad, but I was thinking yesterday about our anniversary and I seriously couldn't remember if it's the seventeenth or the nineteenth."
Him: "I was JUST thinking the same thing."
Laughter.
Me: "I love you."
Him: "I love you too."

I hope you and yours have as much love as we do. Until next time, enjoy life and love with a Spoonful of Sugar.

Juicy!

Howdy strangers! Shame, shame, shame on me. It's been a long time, I know. And what's even more shameful: I've fallen off the healthy-eating wagon. So, this is to let you all know that for the next 5 days (starting tomorrow) I'm going to be embarking on a juice fast.

This is something I'm really excited about though! I LOVE to juice! And guess what, so does Little Buddy! In fact, the last time I juiced I made a big jar of carrot-apple-ginger-lemonade, and didn't get to drink a drop because Little Buddy and Husband decided they were going to guzzle it. (Oh well, that's one way to get veggies into those silly boys.)

I already have some recipes I want to make, and am interested in suggestions if anyone has them.

Here are a few I want to try:

The Mean Green

6 Kale Leaves

1 Cucumber

2 Green Apples

4 Celery

1/2 Lemon

1 Ginger Root (thumb size)

The Tangy Cabbage

2 Pears

2 Apples

2 Wedges Cabbage

2 Carrots

1 Lemon

1 Lime

The Bruchetta

2 Roma Tomatoes

1-2 Cloves Garlic

20 leaves Basil

The Beet Rejuvenator (I love beets, so why not beet juice?)

3-4 Carrots

1 Cucumber

1/2 Lemon

1 Ginger Root (1 inch piece)

1/2 Beet Root(including stem and 1-2 leaves)

The Sunset Blend

1 large Sweet Potato

1 medium Carrot

1 Red Bell Pepper

2 Red Beets

2 Golden Delicious Apples

1 Orange, optional

Minty Fresh Berry
2 cups blueberries
2 kiwi
16 strawberries
2 cups mint leaves (packed)

Apparently you're supposed to have about 64oz. of juice a day, so I'm really happy our state refund check came and we get to get "prizes" as Husband called them (ain't he just adorable) at Whole Foods.

Follow my journey!

Inspiration

"No self respecting wolf nor woman would follow a culture that takes them to their deaths... instead of toward vibrant life. Be not young, be artful. Be not carving the body as though it is a block of wood, be strong, be healthy." -Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes

If you are a woman, or lover of women, or misunderstand women, or misunderstand yourself, please read this book.

I always thought that I was different from other girls, then other teenagers, then other women, and I've found through this wonderful book that it is because I've embraced the wild inside myself, the wolf inside myself, the Mother and the Maiden and eventually the Crone inside of me.

Do not flee from the carnal, the feral, and the wild, embrace it.

Love it.

Live it.

I hadn't planned to post anything today, but then I found the above quote and I had to share it. This will be my inspiration today, tomorrow, and always. If I am healthy, then I am strong, and I am beautiful.

Go love and be loved, and as always, enjoy your life with a Spoonful of Sugar.

Miss Me?

Hey guys, I know, I know, it's been FOREVER! But, you know how it is right? At least, you do if you're a parent.

Does this sound familiar:

"I really meant to sit down and ________, but then ________." (My blanks are usually filled with "write" and "Baby Bear pulled all of the DVDs off the shelf" or "Baby Bear spilled his whole bottle of juice all over himself" or "Baby Bear started shoving things in the refrigerator filter" or "Baby Bear attempted to upend the trash can." True story.)

So, let's play catch up for a few minutes.

1) We went to visit my family in Memphis.






<--- The bald head behind my mom and Baby Bear, yeah, that's Craig Brewer.






2) Baby Bear experiences his first Halloween.






<--- Cutest bat ever? I think so.







3) Baby Bear turned ONE YEAR OLD on November, 23.






<--- Organic carrot cake with no processed sugar, and homemade whipped cream for icing? Win! Smearing it on mommy's face? Bigger Win!





4) We roasted a duck for Thanksgiving.








<--- Crispy skin, moist meat, and 2 cups of rendered duck fat? OMFG, WIN!









5) We adopted a stray puppy for Christmas.






<--- This is Guinness, our new dog. He's huge, and apparently he's only 7 months old. He and Baby Bear are the best of friends.





6) New Year, New Me.

So, I weaned Baby Bear, but didn't wean myself from what I'd been eating and how I'd been eating as I nursed, so I gained a little weight. (coughalotofweightcough) So, this month I'm buckling down and changing my diet. I'm exercising more, doing some yoga, not keeping sweets around the house, eating healthier in general, and trying to keep my metabolism running on high speed.

So far, I don't really see any results, and I don't have a scale to see if any of this is working or not. The first week was horrible. I mean, seriously, I haven't felt so ill since being pregnant with Baby Bear. I was irritable, I was always tired, I had horrid headaches, and I had no energy. Wait...isn't the OPPOSITE supposed to happen? Well, when you're an idiot like me and you cut your calorie intake by like MORE THAN HALF (dumbdumbdumb!) it doesn't matter how many protein packed snacks and shakes you have, you aren't going to feel good.

Now it's a little better. I've decided not to literally count my calories. I've been able to create a sixth sense of calories basically. I'm eyeballing my portions, watching what I snack on, still making sure I eat frequently, and staying away from anything too heavy and fatty.

I'm still cooking regularly for Baby Bear and hubby, but am trying to get hubby to eat healthier. (Yeah, that'll happen. Just as soon as he stops smoking.) -_-

My new inspiration is Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond. She's amazing. I love her. If you don't know who she is, go find out right now. I don't know how she does it though. She uses full fat, whole milk, half and half, and butter in all her recipes but is still relatively thin. So I emailed her and asked. If I get an answer I'll be sure to share, because America needs to know.

That's it for now. Hubby gets home soon from an all day class with no lunch break, so I need to go make him something filling and yummy. Does anyone else wish they lived in a grocery store sometimes? (read: all the time)

Oh, also, on a totally non-food note: I've been reading a lot lately, now that Baby Bear can kind of entertain himself for a while (when he feels like it), and the books I'm reading now are the George R.R. Martin series, A Song of Ice and Fire. SO GOOD! GO READ IT NOW!

Love and kisses and sugars until next time!