OK.... IT'S OFFICIAL!!!!

I admit it, I am a cookbook 'aholic' and truly need help!! BUT...look at these goodies.....who can possibly resist???

We have all had this offer of sending for the book and trying the recipes for thirty days...blah, blah, blah.......yeah right...who are they kidding, they now have you right where they want you...hooked.........again!! :)

Of course by now you all know that I am keeping the book! I have to say , there are a lot of tempting recipes to try. Now, all I need is a live-in chef to make it all happen! LOL!

And...... just to entice everyone else,(what can I say, I am an enabler) here is one of the recipes.

Carole's Best Brownies ( pictured above)

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

5 ozs. unsweetened chocolate, preferably Nestle, coarsely chopped

4 large eggs, at room temperature

2 cups superfine sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, spooned in and leveled

2 cups coarselychopped walnuts

Position rack in the center of the oven. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Invert the baking pan, then tear an 18x16 inch sheet of heavy duty aluminium foil and center it over the top, smooth the surface, then press it down the sides. Carefully remove the foil shell, turn pan over and place the foil shell in the pan, shaping it smoothly across the bottom and snugly against the sides. Thoroughly butter the foil, taking care not to tear it.

Place the butter in a medium bowl and set it over a pot of simmering water. The bottom of the bowl should not touch the water. When almost melted, add the chocolate. After 1 minute, remove the pot from the heat. Let stand until the chocolate is completely melted, stirring occasionally.

In large bowl, whisk the eggs lightly, then stir in the sugar in a steady stream. Add the warm butter-chocolate mixture, and stir with the whisk to blend, taking care not to aerate. Mix in the vanilla and salt.

Strain the flour over the chocolate mixture in three additions, folding gently each time with the whisk just until blended. Fold in the nuts with an oversize rubber spatula or large wooden spoon. Immediately empty the batter into the pan, then spread evenly with bottom of large spoon. Bake for 28 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out slightly moist. A few particles of the brownie should stick to the toothpick. Do not overbake. Set the pan of brownies on a wire rack. Let stand at least 4 hours before cutting (are they kidding?)

Store in airtight container

ENJOY!!!!!!!!

A Mother's Day Tribute To My Mom

M-O-T-H-E-R

"M" is for the million things she gave me,
"O" means only that she's growing old,
"T" is for the tears she shed to save me,
"H" is for her heart of purest gold;
"E" is for her eyes, with love-light shining,
"R" means right, and right she'll always be,
Put them all together, they spell "MOTHER"
A word that means the world to me. I am not sure just when this picture was taken, but I am thinking when she was in her late twenties. She was a retired school teacher for grades k-6. She loved teaching kindergarten and also taught remedial reading to students that needed the extra help. I posted before how she rode a horse to her first teaching position. To this day, I am amazed at her doing that! LOL! She was a breast cancer survivor (single mastectomy) and also survived cancer on the tongue, for which she had surgery to remove a small piece of the tongue. She was a non-smoker but still had the misfortune to get that. She came through that also with flying colors and by doing her word practice everyday, you couldn't even tell she had the surgery. So important to get our tongues checked at each dental checkup! Through both of these very trying ordeals, she kept a positive attitude, which in turn, made her family stay strong and positive! There were five of us! :) She passed away at the age of 96 in 2006. A strong lady! We miss you Mom!