Tasty Tuesday: S'mores Brownies

National S'mores Day was this past Saturday.

So, you know what that means, right?

We had to celebrate!

We've made a few variations of the classic treat in the past: s'mores in the oven, s'mores bars with Golden Grahams, s'mores brownie bars, and s'mores ice cream. I wanted something different this time though.

I started with a box of brownie mix and went from there, adding some of this and a little bit of that. And then a bit more of this. My little ones helped, of course, and insured that it was very s'more-esque.

I popped our creation into the oven and sat down with the whole family to introduce the kiddos to Disney's Alice in Wonderland. We laughed at the White Rabbit. We laughed at Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum. We laughed at the Mad Hatter.

We laughed a lot.

And I checked on the brownies. And rechecked the brownies.

We didn't have any mini marshmallows, like I had originally wanted to use, so I cut regular marshmallows in half and placed them on top. I wasn't sure if they'd melt before they burned.

But there was no need to worry.

Everything melted into a delicious ooey-gooeyness.

 
And we were so sad when they were gone.

This is one will be making again. Soon.


S'mores Brownies
Ingredients:
1 box Duncan Hines Double Fudge Decadent Brownie Mix, prepared according to package directions
5 whole graham crackers, broken in pieces
13 regular marshmallows, cut in half
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions:
Mix graham cracker pieces into prepared brownie mix and pour into greased 8X8 pan. Top with marshmallows and sprinkle on chocolate chips. Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes, or until brownies are done. 


Notes:
You could use any brownie mix or recipe, really. The one I used makes a smaller batch. If you choose to use another, but bake in the same size pan, the brownie portion will be thicker. If you choose to use another, but bake in a larger pan, you'll need to add more of the other ingredients, as well. You can also substitute the regular marshmallows for the minis.

Welcome, Spring!

Spring has sprung! Or at least it's in the process of springing. Today was gorgeous. The sun was shining and the temperature was nearly 70. The kids played outside all day. It gave me a chance to get caught up on housework that has been all but ignored this past week. To say I've been ill is an understatement. I didn't even venture out of bed all day Thursday. Friday was a little better. Saturday, I felt well enough to attend an all-day youth conference. (Read: Saturday, I was too stubborn to miss out on an all-day youth conference.) Sunday, I paid for my stubbornness. And I was still completely wiped out Monday. I won't list all the ailments I had, but trust me, for me to see the mess all around and not even attempt to clean it, meant I was sick. Really sick. The kids have been fantastic. Jake helped a lot with the other two, and all 3 helped get anything I needed. I'm sure allowing them to watch an excess of television and eating poptarts (which are reserved for Sunday morning breakfast) for lunch helped them all behave better. It has been an off-week for sure. 

But when I woke up this morning . . . I felt human again! I have been non-stop all day. What a feeling! Since it was so nice outside, I was able to open the windows, disinfect the house, and chase all those germs away. (Thankfully, they didn't seem to bother anyone else before they left.) In between cleaning, laundering, washing, organizing, sorting, vacuuming, and cooking, I was able to spend some time outside with my loves. 

Zac spent most of the day in the swing. If I wasn't pushing him, one of the other two were. Even so, he was content to just sit there a few minutes before calling someone over to give him another push. 

I showed Jake and Alyssa how our tulips, daffodils, and strawberries are starting to grow. Jake made sure to pick me the first flower of the season. Then, they continued to pick nearly the rest of the bunch.

They loved being able to eat lunch outside again. They all just had to sit on the same side of the table. I guess they really do love each other.

 These 2 spent most of the day digging in the mud, looking for worms.

After dinner, we all headed back outside to sit by the fire. Zac found his way back into the swing and conned Daddy into pushing him. We brought out the fixings for s'mores once it got dark.

Little Guy was not quite sure what to think of the gooey messy that was placed in his hands. He kept licking his fingers, trying to get rid of the stickiness. He took a few bites of the s'more, handed it to Jake, and settled in with the bag of raw marshmallows.

I feel good, the house is clean, we had fun together. It was a wonderful day. Welcome, Spring. Glad to have you back.

Theory Thursday: Burning Marshmallows

In our graham cracker post, I talked about how much Jake loves roasting marshmallows. Absolutely loves it. I think he likes roasting them more than eating them . . . maybe. 

But like I said, it's not really roasting, but burning. He plunges the stick with the marshmallow straight into the fire, intent on setting it ablaze. Once the marshmallow is engulfed in flames, he laughs an almost evil laugh. He stares at the helpless marshmallow as it slowly melts and disintegrates into nothingness. He then turns to grab his next victim from the bag.

It really is a very scientific process. We documented it for those who have never had the opportunity to experience this phenomenon for themselves. 

Or maybe it's because Jake enjoys it so much.

Don't worry, Leighton and I were both right there with him. We also had a bucket of water next to us. No one was harmed in the making of this documentary.

I cannot guarantee the same about the marshmallow.

Tasty Tuesday: Graham Crackers

Homemade graham crackers? Yes, it's true!

Ingredients:

1 cup whole wheat flour                                 1 large egg

1 cup all-purpose flour                                   1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup  sugar                                                1/4 cup honey
1/2 teaspoon salt                                            2 to 3 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon cinnamon                                     additional milk for glaze
1 teaspoon baking powder                             cinnamon-sugar (optional)

Directions:

1. In a mixing bowl, combine whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon and baking powder. In a separate bowl, beat egg till light, then add oil, honey and 2 tablespoons milk. Stir into dry ingredients until you have a fairly stiff dough, adding additional milk if necessary. Wrap dough in waxed paper and chill until firm, about 1 hour.

2. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead gently until it holds together. Roll dough out till it's about 1/16-inch thick; make sure rolling surface is well-floured, or you'll have trouble transferring crackers to baking sheet. Preheat your oven to 375°F.

3. Cut dough into 3-inch squares, prick each square several times with a fork, and place on lightly greased cookie sheets. Brush the tops with milk, sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar if you're so inclined, and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until crackers are lightly browned. Remove crackers from oven, transfer to a wire cooling rack, and cool completely. Makes about 2 dozen graham crackers. 

These crackers don't included ingredients like soy lecithin, malted cereal syrup, or sulfite and enzymes.

Apparently, they don't included milk either, cause it's not in the picture.

Measure your sugar, making sure to spill some on the counter.

Don't forget to clean up your mess!

Squeeze the honey into a measuring cup.

Squeeze the honey into your mouth.

He told me, "It doesn't taste like it does in the movies."

That didn't stop him from drinking half the bottle.

Mix some of the dry ingredients into the wet.

At this point, Jake said, "It doesn't look like it would taste delicious."

Continue mixing the dough. 

Look at that muscle action! Baking is strenuous work.

Taste the dough.

Eat more dough.

Keep shoveling dough into your mouth until your mom kicks you out of the kitchen.

Plop the dough onto wax paper. Wrap it up and toss it in the fridge.

This is a very active recipe. Please, consult your doctor before starting this fitness program.

After it's chilled roll it out with LOTS of flour. We don't want another repeat of the noodles glued to the counter, do we???

We ended up with glued dough anyway . . . again. I forgot the tip about small batches. Some people never learn. 

Fool me once, shame on you, Dough! Fool me twice, shame on me.

Use a ruler to measure the thickness of your dough.

Cut out some fun shapes . . .

Peirce the pieces with a fork . . .

Brush on some milk . . . .

. . . and sprinkle on cinnamon and sugar to your heart's content.

I eventually gave up with trying to pry the dough from its permanent home on the counter while still attempting to maintain the shape of each cracker. We just rolled the dough directly on the cookie sheet. Guess what? No sticking! The second half we didn't even bother cutting, but made one giant 10" graham cracker.

I put the cookie sheets in the oven and set the timer for the minimum bake time of 15 minutes. I then proceeded to make dinner. 

Peel.

Cut.

Mix.

Turn around approximately 14 minutes later and see blackened graham crackers.

Mmm, appetizing. I'm thinking about calling them chocolate graham crackers. That's why they're so dark. Think anyone will buy it?

They really don't taste bad. Quite the compliment, I know. Not all of them came out quite this dark though. The kids have been eating them and seem to like them. 

Of course, we had to have a fire last night to make s'mores and try out our homemade crackers.

Jake likes to catch the marshmallows on fire just to watch them burn. He even likes the burnt taste. Yech. I've explained art of marshmallow roasting. This is not it. This poor marshmallow will forever bear the shame of these burn marks scarring its surface.

How sad.

It's a good thing it was eaten so it could quickly forget its misery.

These graham crackers are not as light and fluffy as store bought ones. These are crisp and crunchy. They do have a good flavor, though I still prefer Honey Maid. It was fun making them, but I'm sure we'll stick with coupons and sales instead of flour and a rolling pin. 

And it did give us an excuse to sit by the fire as a family and roast burn some marshmallows.

Tasty Tuesday: Indoor S'mores & Camping Trip

We still have some birthday cake and petit fours, so I didn't want to make anything big. I remembered that a friend of mine told me about making s'mores in the oven. And since Alyssa got a tent, sleeping bag, flashlight, and fishing pole for her birthday, they would be perfect.

A few weeks ago, I mentioned how much we love camping. My brother and sister-in-law own property about an hour and a half from our house. We camp with them a few times a year and always have a great time. We won't be camping with them anytime soon though, since it's currently 32 degrees and expecting  more snow. We went camping by ourselves instead. In the living room.

What? It's time for bed?

Fishing in our lake.

It's a keeper!

Cinderella wanted some of that s'more. Trust me, its all over her face . . . on the sleeping bag.

Much safer eating s'mores in the kitchen.

Hmm, that looks tasty.

Fish on! Fish on!

Alyssa liked standing over the fish she wanted. If that didn't work, she picked up the fish and stuck it to the magnet.

Cookin' up some grub.

Cotton balls on skewers are great for roasting marshmallows over a toilette paper tube fire.

Mmm, roasted perfectly!

 They liked turning off all the lights and shining the flashlights and lantern. They had fun "sleeping" in the sleeping bags in the tent. It got a little crowded when Daddy joined in though! Jake's favorite part was definitely fishing. (It's his favorite part of real camping too.) We also went for a swim in the lake and almost got attacked by an electric eel! Despite the dangers, we had a great trip.