Blueberry Coffee Cake...

A few weeks back Tales and I traveled with her basketball team for a tournament and one of my jobs was to bring a breakfast item.  You may not realize this...but things like trying to decide what to bake and bring to functions are somewhat hard for me!  I feel a little silly saying that because I when I arrive with my item in hand I want for it to seem effortless but that is soooo not the case.  I over-think it entirely too much and so it ends up sort of consuming me until I decide. 

I have an AMAZING cinnamon roll cake that I thought about making but then I thought about the girls playing ball all day and how it wasn't very nutritious and decided that I need to make something with berries (silly I know).  Blue berry muffins sounded good but then transporting dozens of them hours away seemed a little daunting, so I came across this recipe and was relieved to have found what I was looking for.  I'm sharing it with you today because I think it would be perfect for Easter breakfast this weekend. 

Basically anything with a streusal topping and I am sold.  I love the crispness of it...so delish.  Then add the sweet berries and you have an absolutely amazing combination.

To make the cake you will need 3/4 cup sugar, 1 stick butter (softened), 1 egg, 3/4 cup half & half, 2 cups flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 2 cups blueberries...

Beat together the sugar butter, egg and milk.  Add flour, baking powder and salt...

Before adding the berries to the mixture, I added 1 Tablespoon of flour and 2 teaspoons of sugar.  The sugar adds a little extra sweetness and the flour helps distribute the berries throughout the cake instead of them sinking to the bottom...

Once the berries are added you can transfer the dough into a greased 9x13 pan...

Now it is time to mix up the streusal topping.  You will need 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup flour, 1/4 cup oatmeal, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/4 cup butter...

Using a fork combine the ingredients until it is course lumps.  Crumble over the top of the cake and bake in a preheated 375° oven for 35-40 minutes. 

Cut into desired pieces and enjoy.  Add some scrambled eggs and bacon...your Easter breakfast is now complete!!

I couldn't help but share this!  Here is a photo of my Easter Bunny (aka Tater's) about 15 years ago...man how I wish I could transport him back to this age...even if only for a minute...

I wish all of you a happy and healthy Easter holiday.  Sweet Bunny-

Easter Nest Cookies...

I have been a little absent from my blog because I had to think long and hard about whether or not I wanted to continue.  It isn't because I don't like it...I actually love blogging...it was because someone has sort of ruined it for me.  I realize that I may be a little naive when it comes to the internet and sharing information about yourself over the world-wide web but because I always have the best of intentions then I think everyone else should too.  Unfortunately that is not always the case and last week I had someone (& I have no idea of who it is) post terrible comments about my daughter and the photos I post of her on my blog.  It was heartbreaking to think that someone could take something that I enjoy so much and make me re-think everything that I had posted over the last 17 months. 

It has taken me about a week of soul searching to decide that I will be continuing with my blog.  I refuse to let one terrible person ruin something that makes me happy!  I can not control how people react to what I put out there and I don't feel like anything I post is inappropriate.  So it is business as usual and whoever you are out there...please redirect your attention somewhere else...this is a blog about my family, everything I love and my life...go & get one for yourself!!

-----------------------------------

A few weeks back a friend of mine was the monthly Bunco host.  For dinner she had a fun Nacho Bar but for dessert he made Chinese noodle cookies, dipped in chocolate, white chocolate and butterscotch.  Needless to say I ate WAY too many of them, it was pretty ridiculous!!  And now I have been thinking about those darn things ever since!!  I have a love/hate relationship with this kind of food item...I mean I love them (obviously...anyone who can pork down 5+ cookies at a 2 hour function may be obsessed) and I want to make them but then I hate them because I love them so much.  Do you know what I mean?  My love for them makes me hate them because I loose all control kind of issue thing.  Moving on...

In trying to be rational with my newest obsession I decided that because Easter is this weekend it was the perfect time to mix up a batch.  Then to take it a step further I added a few chocolate Cadbury Eggs to each cookie and called it a nest and besides, adding Cadbury Eggs to anything is a good idea.

To make them all you need is a bag of milk chocolate chips, a bag of butterscotch chips, 1 1/2 bags of Chinese noodles and a bag of mini Cadbury Eggs...

Melt the chocolate and butterscotch chips together in the microwave.  Start with 30 second intervals, stirring between each setting until completely melted and smooth...

Add 1 1/2 bags of Chinese noodles to the chocolate/butterscotch mixture and stir until combined...

Drop by the tablespoon onto a wax paper lined cookie sheet and add 2 or 3 Cadbury eggs to the middle of each cookie...

Let set at room temperature or in the refrigerator until set and they are ready to go.

It truly is the simplest cookie recipe I have ever made and you could use any combination of flavored chips that you want.  In fact a mixture of chocolate and peanut butter would be fabulous.  Sweet nests-

--------------------------------

For the Easter holiday I kept everything simple.  I just added a few touches here and there.

My mantel got a touch of Spring with a pair of ceramic birds and a turquoise milk jar that I found at Michael's for 40% off.  I love the colors of them and they work perfectly with my Happy Easter sign.

After Easter I will remove the sign and keep everything else in place.  I'm ready for Spring!!

On my kitchen table I took a few antique jars and filled them with green grass and a plastic egg.  Two of them combined with my sweet rabbit look adorable. 

Tune in tomorrow for a delicious and simple recipe for your Easter breakfast or brunch.  Sweet YUM!!



Tuna Noodle Casserole

The one thing you may have already figured out about me is that...I'm not a seafood lover...like, at all.  In fact there isn't one other seafood recipe on this blog.  Yep, it has taken me nearly 250 posts to finally get around to posting one that has seafood in it.  Some of you might not even consider canned tuna to be seafood.  People are funny about things like that.  For instance I'm pretty serious about Gummy Bears but not just any ol' kind, they HAVE to be the brand Harbro.  There is not a substitute.  So I can understand people who are finicky about certain things like food items.

I like to use canned tuna in this recipe because it is a tasty way to get a protein packed meal for very little money.  My food budget has been a little tight as of late, so I am constantly looking for inexpensive alternatives to fill my sweet babies bellies.  I just watch when it is on sale and pick it up for less than .90 a can.  I prefer the water packed variety but you could definitely use oil packed if that is what you have on hand. 

Most tuna noodle casserole recipes use condensed soup as a binder but I have made a simple white sauce using a roux instead.  It might take a little longer but the taste is amazing, it isn't processed and you will be hooked. 

To begin you will need one package of pasta, 2 cans of drained tuna, 1 cup of shredded carrots, 1 cup frozen peas, 2 tablespoons butter, 2 tablespoons flour, 1 cup half and half, 1 cup milk, 1/2 cup shredded cheese, 1 clove of minced garlic, a pinch of nutmeg and salt/pepper to taste...

For the topping you will need 1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese and 2 tablespoons butter...

I begin by cooking the pasta. About 3/4 of the way through the cooking process I add the peas and carrots to the pot.  I want it to still have a little bite to it and not be over cooked because it will continue to cook in the oven.  Drain and set aside...

To the same pot I added 2 tablespoons of butter to melt...

To that I added 2 tablespoons of flour and stirred well.  Continue to cook for about 30 seconds...

Add the 2 cups of milk and stir with a whisk to get any lumps out.  You are going to want this mixture to come to a boil, so keep stirring it until that happens...

To the white sauce I added a pinch of nutmeg (it adds a great flavor), 1 clove of minced garlic, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper.  I also added back in the pasta and veggies, drained tuna and 1/2 cup of shredded cheese...

Mix well and pour into a greased 9x13 pan.  For the topping combine 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese and 1/2 cup of Italian bread crumbs...

Add to the top of the casserole with pieces of butter on top...

Bake in a preheated 400° oven for 20-30 minutes or until the top is browned and serve...

This is the perfect recipe for when you don't have anything defrosted or if you are trying to live on a tight budget.  It can be put on the table in less than 40 minutes and it is darn tasty.  Sweet casseroles-

Household happenings...

After 4 1/2 months Tale's basketball season has ended.  I hate to say this but...FINALLY!!  I absolutely love watching her play and she has came so far with her skills but 4 1/2 months was a bit of a stretch for me.  With almost daily practices, weekly trips to Klamath Falls for most of November & December, followed by three weekend traveling tournaments...I think that she and I are exhausted and ready to move on (for now anyway).  It has been fun to watch her and her teammates grow both on and off of the court.  They ended the season on a great note and made us all VERY proud.  Here are a few of my favorite shots of the season...

Alyssa sinking her free throw, Tales (#21) ready for the rebound...

Good D (defense)...



Being silly before the game...



Free throw time...



Inbounding the ball...



In other news...Tater got his driving permit on Friday.  I have successfully survived a handful of trips to the golf course and back but the question I keep asking myself is how in the heck I am old enough to have a driver??? 

I feel like it was yesterday that he was driving this...

And now today he is driving this...

It's funny and sad how time has a way of passing so quickly.

Tater is participating in his very first high school golf tournament this week.  He is very excited but nervous.  Go Honkers...

Lastly we had our sweet Sagey groomed last week and I just could help but let you all see how dang cute she is now...well always...but now for sure...

Thanks Cambria. 

Tune in tomorrow for a quick, easy, and inexpensive one pot dinner casserole...perfect for dinner anytime.  Sweet life-

A thought...

Integrity is doing the right thing,
                                           even when no one is watching...

Snickers Brownies...

A little over a month ago I threw a surprise birthday party for my boyfriend and these brownies literally stole the show!! So much so, that I just made them again for my brother-in-law's birthday because that is ALL he wanted!  Now I will warn you...they are a bit of sticky mess but worth every finger licking bite...if you like Snickers bars that is.  They also have four layers and you have to cool each layer before adding another, so it can get a little time consuming but please don't let that stop you!!  Take the extra time...believe me...you will be extremely glad that you did.

I planned the birthday menu around all things that I knew Darby loved and Snickers bars are one of his favorite late night snacks.  So when I saw this recipe on Pinterest a while back I knew that they had to make the list.  I have to say that, whoever came up with this is sinful in the very best of ways...I really just can't say enough about how darn good these things are.

You will begin by baking the brownie layer in a greased 9x13 pan.  You will need a brownie mix (I prefer a fudgy kind), the ingredients needed on the box (eggs, oil & water in whatever quantities called for) and 1/4 cup of fudge sauce...

Bake at 350° for about 20-25 minutes and let cool.  I like to bake my brownies until they are just set.  You don't want to insert a toothpick and have it come out clean...you want a little fudgy goodness on there.

The next layer is the peanutty nougat part.  You will need 1/4 cup of unsalted butter, 2 7oz. jars of marshmallow creme, 1/4 cup of peanut butter, 1/4 cup of evaporated milk, 1 cup of sugar, 1 1/2 cup chopped salted peanuts and 1 teaspoon vanilla...

In a saucepan over medium heat melt the butter and then add the sugar and evaporated milk... 

Let the mixture come to a boil and add the marshmallow creme, peanut butter and vanilla...

Remove from the heat and add the roughly chopped peanuts...

Pour the mixture over the brownie layer..

Spread it out evenly and let it sit in the freezer for about 15 minutes.  Once set spread the caramel sauce over the nougat layer.  This is the kind that I used, Mrs. Richardsons Butterscotch Sauce.  If it doesn't pour easily then you could heat in the microwave for a few seconds...

Spread evenly and freeze for another 15 minutes or until set...

The final layer is a mixture of 1 1/4 cups of milk chocolate chips and 1/4 cup peanut butter. 

Heat in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second intervals until completely melted.  Stir together well and pour over the caramel layer.  Refrigerate until set.

Cut into desired bars and serve.  I kept my leftovers (if you have any) in the refrigerator because they can get a little messy if you don't.

So there you have it...a homemade snickers bar that is even better than the original.  I think it may be time to make these again.  Sweet Snickers-

Keeping me in check...

I love how parents can keep you in check.  Even when you are 37 years old and a mama living on your own, with two bratty kids and a full time job...parents somehow still keep an eye on you from a distance and give you that kick in the butt you sometimes need.  For instance, last night as I was getting ready to go and visit Darb my phone rang...it was my sweet mama.  She says "I have a question for you."  I'm thinking she needs me to help her with something or pickup something for her, but nope...she wanted to know why I haven't been blogging??  For days I have been telling myself that I needed to get some pictures downloaded and get busy because it has been WAY too long since my last post but everyday life got in the way and I didn't...I guess I needed my mom to give me the shove I required to get it going again.

You see, my mama knows how much I adore blogging and she looks forward to those little emails in her inbox from Sweet Taters and Tales.  It is her way of keeping up with me even when life does get in the way.  Love you Mom!!!  Tune in tomorrow for maybe my most requested recipe...Snicker brownies!!  So yummy.  Sweet mama-

Life is good...

This Sunday will be the beginning of my 37th year of life (aka: birthday).  For some reason every year when this time comes around I like to take a step back to see how I feel about where I am at.  What things do I love about my life?  What things could be changed?  How am I doing as a mother?  How am I doing as a friend and even crazier, as a girlfriend (I haven't been someones girlfriend on a birthday since I was 19!  Don't do the math!  Believe me, its been a long time!  Ok, I will just go ahead and do it for you...18 years to be exact!)? 

There have been years where I feel very content with where I am and then those that were not good at all.  I'm sure we have all had a few of those.  This year I feel like I'm in new body in some sense.  I am a new person in a lot of ways...and I'm not complaining!!  The change is welcome and fantastic! 

To me the very best part of growing another year older is that I seem to accept myself more.  I used to worry more about what others thought and now I realize that I can only be who I am...if you don't like it then life is too short to waste precious time with that!  I'm not going to change something about me for ANYONE but myself.  It truly is such a freeing feeling to know and like who you are, time and years lived are helping to provide that for me.

During my 36th year I have became a much stronger person.  I am firm with my values and will stand up for them.  I am more willing to put myself out there and embrace change.  I count my blessings EVERY.SINGLE.DAY and there are many.  I have learned that trust isn't a feeling lost on me, you just have to find the right people to put your trust in. 

Life may not be exactly how I had pictured it to be on my 37th birthday but I'm alright with that.   I am a happy single mom of 2 wonderful babies, with a supportive family, fantastic friends, an amazing boyfriend & 2 very special sweet girls, a warm loving home and a job that I enjoy.  It's not a perfect life (who's is) but it's mine and it's much better than how I had pictured it would be...I'll take it. Sweet 37-