Gift Bags from Scraps

Mom gave me some leftover "cheater quilt" pre-printed fabric blocks and I made these gift bags out of it.  I used a super stiff iron-on interfacing, lined the inside and even put a blank tag with a fabric tie on the inside to use.  The picture was taken at my huge patch of cilantro, which is blooming and going to seed.  The butterflies and bees love it and it smells like a Mexican restaurant around that part of my yard!

Recipe for my AWARD WINNING Blonde Peanut Butter Brownies

Below is the recipe that won 2nd place in the baked goods division at the Burnet County, Texas Fair 2012 - but if you don't want to cook them yourself you can buy a freshly baked batch on Etsy:  www.burnetcreativeart.etsy.com.  And, you'll be supporting Burnet Creative Arts, Inc.'s school art programs!

Blonde Peanut Butter Brownies (aka Old Folks' Delight)

This makes a 9" square pan - so grease one up for this recipe and heat the oven to 350 degrees.

1/2 stick butter
1 1/2 cups brown sugar (not packed)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla (or to taste)
1/2 cup (approximately) crunchy peanut butter
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch salt
1 cup all-purpose or cake flour

You'll need your mixer for this recipe.  Start by beating sugar and butter until well mixed - or fluffy as the cookie recipes call it.  Add vanilla, egg, mix that together, then add peanut butter.  Mix all that until well blended, in the meantime, blend baking powder, salt and flour in a bowl, add that to your mixer bowl, blend all that - it will be a stiff dough.  Then add as many chocolate chips as you want - I usually add half a 12 oz. bag (then I eat the other half!).  Dump that in your greased pan, spread it out with your hands & fingers (AFTER you wash them) until even in the pan, bake for about 18 minutes - until light brown around the edges.  Take it out, let it cool, cut into squares.  That's it!  Enjoy!

Even I had fabulous flowers this spring!

This is a big red rose from one of my bushes.  When we moved to this house in 2000, we planted all kinds of roses in many colors.  Now, all of my roses are red and climbing so I think all of the bees and hummingbirds in my yard are doing their job!

Happy Valentine's Day Everybody!

My Art Doll is all ready for a Valentine's Day celebration.  I hope everybody has a wonderful Day!

It's been Awhile!

It's been awhile since I've posted anything on my blog.  We have had a very rough winter at Burnet Heating & Air, the phone quit ringing about Thanksgiving and has just now started back in February.  I spent a month in South Austin taking care of Vicki Lippe, who broke her leg just after Christmas and got a new job at the same time.  She couldn't drive, and has a brand new Ford Escape, so I moved in with them and drove her to work, did the grocery shopping, some cleaning, laundry, all the stuff she couldn't do because she was stuck in a wheel chair.  She is now out of the wheel chair & using a walker, husband Gary is taking over this week and she should be driving again the week after that.  I'm home now and have all my stuff to do here.  Cats are acting weirder than usual but they'll settle down. 

I finally finished this painting!

This my dad & 2 of his brothers painted from a photo taken in 1947.  I painted this in acrylics on a 24 x 36 all media canvas.  It was a booger and now I know better than to use acrylics - I'm stickin' with what I know & that's watercolor.  I've got a big sheet of watercolor paper to try this again!

It's Fall in the Texas Hill Country!

We finally got some rain all weekend over 5 inches for us in Burnet!  The sunsets and sunrises have been beautiful over the last couple of days and there is actually dew on the ground - that's something we haven't seen for awhile.  And, the temperatures are down to 87-90 degrees - get out the coats!  So now all the Texans who ran off to Colorado because they can't take the heat can come home now!