On Repeat: "Happy" and "Tacky"

I know I am probably driving John nuts, but for the past 24 hours I have been listening to the following two songs over and over: Weird Al's "Tacky" and Pharrell's "Happy". It happens that the first is the a parody of the second and why both are so incredibly stuck in my head.

The joy of Weird Al's "Tacky" is the video, the best part of which is Jack Black, who is just too funny. It is all one big camera shot, which also makes it super fun to watch.

And it's hard not to get a perma-smile while watching (and dancing, obviously) to Pharrell's "Happy". I've been bouncing around the house to this song over the past few months, but the past few days I've increased my daily "Happy" level.

There is Just Something About Baseball

This spring/summer I've been pretty excited about baseball. I started following the Toronto Blue Jays at the start of the season and have had a fun time learning about all the players, MLB rules, and watching the team hit a tonne of home runs (see: Edwin Encarnacion in May).

I haven't been this into baseball since I was a kid and played Oro Minor Softball during the summers. My dad had two boys who weren't interested in baseball (they liked farming and computers respectively), but his baby daughter loved baseball. I can't say I was great at it, but I loved playing and there's a trophy on my shelf that says my team won First Place in 1991, so we must have been pretty good.

Thinking about my childhood baseball days always makes me think of Peter, Paul, and Mary singing "Right Field". Not only did Dad get me interested in baseball, but great music too. Adult me can't get to the end of this song without tearing up (just like I can't get to end of Field of Dreams without tears in my eyes...). There is just something about baseball.

Mug Brownie with Coconut Oil

One minute mug treats are just the best. They are quick, easy, use on hand ingredients, and they save me a trip to the store (and some money) if I have a craving that just won't quit. They also produce no leftovers, which stops any secondary snacking that could happen later. They really are the perfect treat solution for me. My go to is normally Mug Coffee Cake, but Mug Brownie is perfect for chocolate cravings.

I recently got some coconut oil and wanted to try it in my baking. It initially felt weird to use it, as I normally purchase and use coconut oil as a moisturizer or bath oil. I had to remind myself it was food and perfectly good to eat. I replaced the butter in the mug brownie recipe with coconut oil and was really pleased with the results. The brownie was pretty much exactly the same as the butter version but with a subtle hint of coconut (which was lovely).

For my Mug Brownie, I use the recipe found here. I cut the original recipe in half as I found the full recipe made a little too much brownie for me.

Mug Brownie
1 tbs coconut oil (or butter), melted
1 tbs water
splash vanilla
dash salt
1 tbs cocoa powder
2 tbs sugar
2 tbs flour

Coconut oil, sugar, vanilla, flour, cocoa powder

Method
1. Choose a mug perfect for the occasion. I chose my Care Bear Cousins mug, as I wanted to "treat myself to something special" as they suggest.

2. Melt coconut oil in mug. Using a whisk, mix oil, water, vanilla, and salt until mixed.

3. Add coca powder and whisk until mixed. Add sugar and whisk until mixed. Add flour and whisk until mixed.

Pre- microwave

 4. Microwave for 60 seconds.

1 minute brownie!

Enjoy as is, or got nuts and add whip cream and dark chocolate chips to the top.

Have fun!

Butter Tarts - A Canadian Tradition

This past Canada Day I was feeling festive and tried making butter tarts for the first time. I used some pre-made tart shells and Mom's recipe for the filling. They were delicious and really easy to make. They were the perfect addition to my Canada Day. I'm really excited to make these again - I just love them.

If you want to learn more about this fun little dessert, check out the Wikipedia page which has lots of great info.

Butter Tarts
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup
3 tbsp soft butter
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup pecans (or walnuts or raisins or nothing)
12 pre-made tart shells

Combine sugar, corn syrup and butter until mixed. Next add egg, vanilla, salt and pecans. Stir.

Place mixture into 12 tart shells, aiming for 2/3 full.

Bake at 425°F for 8 minutes. Lower temperature to 350°F and continue baking until filling is set and pastry is cooked, about 18 more minutes.

 Enjoy!!

Specialty Coffee Mix

We've been off coffee since November and I have to say I haven't really missed it. I replaced my morning beverage with Green Tea and then realized I like Orange Pekoe too. Mom recently gave me a hand-me-down tea pot and some of my Nanny's old tea cups (with saucers) so now I'm not only a tea drinker but a fancy tea drinker to boot.

John likes tea too, but periodically has a craving for coffee and reminded me recently of some coffee mixes I made a long while back. I misplaced the recipe I originally used, but I'm pretty sure it's the same as or was the recipe found here.

Vanilla Coffee Mix (recipe is from here).
1/3 cup instant cofee
1 cup instant skim milk powder
1/2 cup coffee whitener
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup vanilla pudding mix

Mix all the ingredients in a blender and blend until mixed. I thought I would use my Magic Bullet to blend it, but I realized once I measured in all my ingredients that it was super full and probably wouldn't blend right (magic or no). It made for an awesome photo, though!

I used my stand up blender to blend, and it took 30 seconds at most. So quick and easy.

 

 

Add three tablespoons of mix to mug and just add hot water. Adjust to taste. We have big mugs (ha!) so we keep adding scoops until it tastes right.

Add whip cream and cinnamon sugar to top of your bevy if desired and enjoy!