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Showing posts from June, 2009

Chonky Boys: The Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches that Scream Summer!

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Featuring my thick and nuggy Chonky Boy Chocolate Chip Cookies, these ice cream sandwiches are the stuff that summer dreams are made of.  If you've ever had the Cookie Ice Cream Sandwich at Disneyland , you are going to LOVE these!  These big and bold chocolate chip cookies are based on a recipe from my culinary school studies at Auguste Escoffier, but with a few modifications to give them that Jennuine touch.  They make the perfectas book for a fat slice of real vanilla bean ice cream.  And those mini chips?  You just gotta have that extra cronch! Thank goodness this recipe only makes 8 sandwiches, otherwise I would be eating them for breakfast lunch and dinner.  This way, my big family can help save me from my inner child diet-saboteur.   Print With Image Without Image Chonky Boy Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches Yield: 8 Author: Jenn Erickson Loaded with chocolate chips and buttery, brown-sugary vanilla flavor, these mall-sized cookies form a perfect partnership with a

Healthy Family Shopping Guide and Free Printable Wallet Guide

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Does it sometimes feel like you need an advanced chemistry degree to make it through a grocery trip without filling your cart with cleverly packaged junk masquerading as "health food"? I've  found that it's difficult enough to navigate the aisles with a restless brood of cephalopod-like children (yes, they appear to grow tentacles at the mere mention of the grocery store), without having to channel an encyclopedic knowledge of food science at every twist and turn. So, I've created a nice little cheat sheet that fits neatly in to your purse or wallet. The "HEALTHY FAMILY SHOPPING GUIDE" includes Dr. Sears' list of the top 12 healthiest foods to help keep you on track while your two-year-old is screaming "COOOOKIE!" I've also included a list of healthy vs. bad fats, power proteins and the goods on good grains. To help you extrapolate the ingredient lists on all those packaged foods, I've included a list of MSG pseudony

MSG BY ANY OTHER NAME?

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This is a great article that was published on rense.com. It was written several years ago, during the previous presidential administration, but the facts are still pertinent and alarming. MSG - The Slow Poisoning Of America "I wondered if there could be an actual chemical causing the massive obesity epidemic, so did a friend of mine, John Erb. He was a research assistant at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada, and spent years working for the government. He made an amazing discovery while going through scientific journals for a book he was writing called " The Slow Poisoning of America ". In hundreds of studies around the world, scientists were creating obese mice and rats to use in diet or diabetes test studies. No strain of rat or mice is naturally obese, so the scientists have to create them. They make these morbidly obese creatures by injecting them with MSG when they are first born. The MSG triples the amount of insulin the pancreas creates; cau

FREE FONTS FROM DAFONT...

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Looking to add a little style, pizzazz, or panache to your invitations, documents and projects? You'll never write a humdrum looking letter again with your free fonts from Dafont . Dowloading free fonts is safe and easy. You can find a font to perfectly suit every occassion. Putting together a birthday party invitation and want to use a font with true “character”? Try “ Calvin & Hobbes ”, “ Pokemon ”, “ Tartar Sauce ” (the Sponge Bob font), or “ Mickey ”. "Penning" a love letter? Try “ Jane Austen ” or “ Byron ”. Writing your own Declaration of Independence? Try the “ Jefferson ” script. For just the cutest little font ever, try “ Little Days ”. Planning a big fat Greek wedding? Try their GREEK fonts category. They also have Russian looking fonts , Mexican themed fonts and more. Create a neat little barcode label to put on the back of your personalized cards with a barcode font . Need a special font for Christmas ? Halloween ? Try their holiday font

VELVET CUPCAKES, PART II

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Our friend Connie at Velvet Cupcakes has added a new flavor with the spirit of summer in mind: " GIMME S'MORE "- ....graham cracker crust, choc, chocolate cake smothered with roasted marshmallow..mmmmmm... To order these to-die-for treats for your next event in the (831) area code, call 831.760.7023 or email connie@velvetcupcakes.org

RASPBERRY STREUSEL TOP MUFFINS

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Raspberry Streusel Top Muffins a jennuine recipe 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour ½ cup granulated sugar ½ cup tightly packed dark brown sugar 1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 stick butter, melted and slightly cooled ½ cup vegetable or canola oil 2 large eggs 1 cup sour cream ½ teaspoon almond extract 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries STREUSEL TOP 1/3 cup sliced almonds 1/3 cup rolled oats ½ cup tightly packed dark brown sugar ¼ cup unbleached all-purpose flour 6 Tablespoons butter, melted Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line one muffin tin with 12 liners, the other with 8. Prepare the topping: mix all ingredients in a medium bowl with a wooden spoon until combined and large crumbs form. Rest in the refrigerator while you prepare the batter. Sift flour, sugars and baking powder in to a large bowl. In a medium bowl, whisk melted butter, oil, eggs, sour cream and extracts until well combined and lighter in color. Make a well in the center of th

THREE GREAT PROJECTS TO GROW ON

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Here are three wonderful garden related projects to do with your children: 1. Upcycle Old Art into Handmade Seed Paper 2. Seed Bombs 3. Seed Packet Cards

SEW CUTE! SEW EASY! SEW FREE!

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...our #1 favorite online resource for patterns, tutorials and free projects is THE PRINCESS AND THE MONKEY . You could spend hours just browsing and being inspired by this ultimate collection. It's a craft nirvana! AND NOW, SOME MORE WONDERFUL PROJECTS FOR KIDS AND ADULTS, FROM BEGINNERS TO THE SAVVY CRAFTER... INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN HOODED TOWELS FROM BREAKITDOWNDE SIGN.COM - - - - CUPCAKE BATH BOMB TUTORIAL FROM LITTLE BIRDIE SECRETS - - - - FREE PURSE PATTERN FROM MADE BY RAE - - - - - EMBROIDER YOUR KID'S ARTWORK TUTORIAL FROM LITTLE BIRDIE SECRETS - - - - - PLUS THEIR TABLETOP IRONING PAD TUTORIAL - - - - - AND THEIR CHALKBOARD PLACEMAT TUTORIAL - - - - FELT DONUT TUTORIAL FROM CRAFTSTER - - - - PLUSH TOAST KEYCHAIN FROM DEVIANT ART - - - - FOR MORE GREAT PLUSHIE PATTERNS AND TUTORIALS, VISIT OUR FRIENDS AT PURPLEASURED

BUY HANDMADE ~ TAKE THE PLEDGE

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WE ACCEPTED THE CHALLENGE AND SIGNED THE PLEDGE TO BUY HANDMADE. TAKE A STEP TOWARD KEEPING OUR WORLD CREATIVE AND CONNECTED BY SUPPORTING INDEPENDENT ARTISTS AND CRAFTERS WHEN YOU MAKE GIFT PURCHASES. BABY STEPS TOWARDS BIG CHANGE... VISIT http://www.buyhandmade.org/ TO SIGN THE PLEDGE

FREE STUFF FOR CRAFTY BIRDS AND THEIR CHICKS

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There's simply no excuse for being bored this summer ~ not with all the easy click and print projects you can find free-of-charge from generous artists and crafters all over the internet. Many of the leads below were brought to us by Amy Locurto of Living Locurto , a graphic designer and mom of two. Visit her blog to see why we're LOVING LOCURTO! FUN AND FREE JUST CLICK ON ANY OF THE PROJECTS BELOW TO GET STARTED ICE CREAM CONE FAVOR BASKET FROM TANGARANG - - - - - - - - - - - - - OWL THANK-YOU CARD FROM BLUE FINCH STUDIOS - - - - - - - - - CUTE STUFF FROM CANONS CREATIVE PARK THIS PAPER MOUSE IS JUST ONE OF DOZENS OF AMAZING ANIMALS YOU CAN CLICK AND PRINT - - - - - - THIS WHIMSICAL CASTLE IS ONE OF MANY STRUCTURES YOU CAN FIND AND MAKE. THEY ALSO HAVE VEHICLES LIKE FIRE TRUCKS AND AIRPLANES. - - - - - - DO YOUR KIDS LIKE ORIGAMI? HERE YOU'LL FIND DOZENS OF AMAZING ORIGAMI PATTERNS TH