Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Who doesn't like chocolate chip cookies, hmmm?  Well, those who do will also most likely enjoy these chocolate chip cookie bars!  I made these using a packaged chocolate chip cookie mix, and extra chocolate chips for the topping.  So easy and so good!  You could try this using your own chocolate chip cookie recipe if you prefer.  I don't mind letting Betty Crocker help me out, just follow the rest of the instructions and baking time below and it should be fine.  I like options too, and I really like...easy!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Ingredients:

1 package Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip Cookie mix (makes 3 dozen - 2 inch cookies)

1 or 2 eggs  (1 egg for cookie bars - 2 eggs for cake-like bars)

1 stick or 1/2 cup butter or margarine softened(not melted)

1+1/2 to 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips. (for topping)

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 F.  Stir softened butter and egg(s) in medium bowl.  Stir in cookie mix until soft dough forms.  Spread cookie dough in ungreased  9" pan.  Bake approximately 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.  Sprinkle with chocolate chips.  Continue baking 2 minutes or until chocolate chips are soft.  Remove from oven.  Spread melted chocolate chips with spatula or butter knife.  Let cool before cutting.     

 Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix

Spread cookie dough into ungreased 9" pan and bake.

Spread melted chocolate chips and cool before cutting.

I cut them into 16 squares of goodness! 

mmmm...I love these Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars!...

  

Snowman Wreath

Mr Snowman

Uh oh I've said the S word!

Here in the south we don't see much snow, and making a snowman is rare.  This snowman required zero snow to make him.  I'd be fine with only seeing this snowman this winter.  Although I'll have to say, 

I do love a white Christmas. 

It was very easy to make him and I didn't get cold at all!!{giggles}

I simply wired three grapevine wreaths together then added a knit hat, felt scarf, Christmas ornament and bow.  

I used some pretty sparkly dark green felt to make just the right sized scarf to keep him warm. 

He is there warmly greeting us and our guests.

Warm wishes to everyone!...

Chicken Fajitas

We love Mexican style food!  I'll admit we do go out for it mostly.  However, we do enjoy homemade Chicken Fajitas for dinner often when we are eating at home, and it's so easy and fairly quick to prepare.  You can, but you don't have to get all fancy with this dish either.  When finished cooking the meat and vegetables I simply serve it up right from the hot pan, having the warmed soft tortillas along with all of the other fixings to go with it on-the-ready at the table.  A side of tortilla chips and salsa, and some fresh made guacamole to go along with it, is what completes it for us.

You may choose to use steak instead of the chicken for steak fajitas.  This recipe provides plenty for the two of us as a meal, also there's usually enough left over for a serving of a couple fajitas for lunch the next day too.  Depending on how much is used for each fajita, this makes about six to eight fajitas.  I do use the fat-free refried beans and fat-free sour cream.  I prefer a large sweet vidalia onion, and all colors of bell pepper, green, yellow, orange and red make it look even more colorful and appealing!  This is a meal that's good just about anytime, and also makes for a great cool weather dish, especially with some spicy salsa to go with it!

Chicken Fajitas  

Ingredients

2 large skinless-boneless Chicken Breasts or 2 packages Chicken Tenders

2 large or 3 medium Bell Peppers

1 large sweet Onion

1 - 16oz. can Refried Beans

4 tbsp. Olive Oil

Fajita or *Taco Seasoning - to your taste

1 package Soft Tortillas - medium sized - approximately 8 to 10 tortillas 

1 to 2 cups or more Shredded Mild Cheddar or Mexican Blend Cheese

small container Sour Cream

Directions

Cut chicken into bite sized pieces.  Slice bell peppers and onions uniformly.  Add 2 tbsp. of the olive oil to a medium hot pan (non-stick or cast iron works well).  Add chicken to the pan, add seasoning and cook chicken while turning frequently for a few minutes until it is starts to change color and to appear cooked.  Remove chicken from pan, set aside for now.  Add remaining olive oil, peppers, onions and more seasoning to the pan, cook for a few minutes while turning frequently until softening slightly.  Add the chicken back to the pan, mix all together and cook for additional few minutes until beginning to brown, lower the heat and cover.  Warm refried beans in a small sauce pan or microwave in a microwave safe bowl.  Warm tortillas according to package directions.  Serve by spreading 1 or 2 teaspoons of refried beans and about 1/2 cup of the chicken mixture onto a warm tortilla down the center, add cheese and sour cream, roll up like a burrito.  Salsa, guacamole or hot sauce can be added as well. 

* link to my homemade taco seasoning:

 Taco Seasoning - Homemade

 

This serving style makes it easy to put the fajitas together with everything on-the-ready, adding as much or as little as desired to make it your own way.  It doesn't have to be fancy to be good!

Enjoy!

Labels:  Recipes

~ Tammy's Tip Today ~ Pillow Talk

The helpful folks over at Hometalk have some great information for and all about the home!

"Hometalk is where people share and help with everything home and garden."

I enjoy Hometalk's website a lot and I can easily get lost over there, because there's so much great information and many ideas, tips and photos shared there.  I read this post reminding us about keeping our pillows clean, making the point that we wash our sheets, how about the pillows?  "It's just as important to de-funk your pillows."

Well, considering the amount of time we do spend sleeping on them, it's something to think about.  I use pillow covers on my pillows along with the pillow cases, which I find helps keep them cleaner and protects them too.  None-the-less, I have washed mine from time to time, also I've sprayed them with lysol and placed in the dryer, I had read elsewhere this kills the germs and rids of dust mites too.  

Honestly, often I just purchase new pillows if they have flattened or I spot a pillow sale - fresh and new - wins every time for me!  It is recommended that we do wash them at least twice a year, or you can choose to buy new ones.  A good reminder of "when to wash or replace the pillows?", is when turning or flipping your beds mattress, which I do at least twice a year, usually around the "spring forward" or "fall back" time changes.  

A helpful tip after washing pillows:

-Place a couple of tennis balls inside white socks and then place in the dryer with the pillows when you dry them to help re-fluff the pillows.  You'll find more tips here on washing your pillows, and another great website for helpful DIY tips and ideas at brightnest.com.

I love lots of pillows!

Nite-nite, sleep tight!...

Monday Message...

~ My Monday Message ~

A favorite phrase that I love.

Live, Laugh, Love!

Sisters are like stars...

Today I am thinking of my two Sisters.  They both live in Indy and we don't see one another as often as we all would like but we stay close in our hearts, and thanks to phones and modern technology.  I am thankful for my sisters, their love, and for them being the first girls I ever looked up to.  Also they're the first best friends I ever had.  The oldest sister of the three of us is very sick right now and has been for some time now.  I pray for her to be well.  She is in my thoughts heavily today, I will continue to hope and pray for her recovery.

I received this beautiful cup from my other sister for my birthday this year, it reminds me of my sisters, and I use it daily.

Sisters are like stars, they make our lives sparkle and shine...

~Tammy~

Happy Thanksgiving

I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving always brings a feeling of gratitude for family and friends, along with an appreciation for all the special people in our lives, and the moments and memories that bring us joy.  A special time to count our blessings!

We were not able to have all of the family together this year for Thanksgiving.  Most of our extended family are in several different states, but our kids are close by.  One daughter could be here but unfortunately our other daughter and her family could not, and so at first thought of that I was thinking "well this could be a small intimate, down sized, non-traditional affair", uh huh, yeah right!  I always cook a large huge turkey (20lbs or more) mostly because we love the leftovers - turkey and pickle sandwiches...oh yes!, on fresh white bread, add mayo for me and mmm, mmm!  And I make some delicious turkey-n-dumplings, so some will be used for that later too!  

It was hubby and me, our daughter and a family friend for Thanksgiving dinner, and we didn't miss out on any of the traditional fare we are used to!  We had a beautiful and juicy oven roasted turkey that I was very proud of.   I mean that bird was worthy of me tootin' my own horn, beep-beep, and gobble-gobble!  It really was very good!  I usually always choose a Butterball turkey, and I've never been disappointed, and this year's turkey proved all the more why I swear by them.  With the turkey we also had the traditional sides of dressing/stuffing, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes and gravy, deviled eggs, cheesy macaroni shell salad - you can find a link to my recipe here, and desserts of my delicious chocolate covered brownies, and store bought pecan pie, blackberry pie(it was supposed to be cherry, sorry Daughter!) and vanilla ice cream.  Everyone pitched in with some help on tasks or prep, and mostly the after clean-up, which I never turn down.  I was busy with cooking, and then later eating, and enjoying said goodies and our time together, so photos of the food were not on my mind!  I did get a few photos of the dining room and table decor.

The table is all set and ready for our delicious Thanksgiving dinner!  

I love my beautiful gold tableware, and I enjoy using it on special occasions.

I created layered place settings using a gold placemat, a white paper placemat, and leaf print scrapbook paper, for each place setting.

I found this scrapbook paper at the craft store, and got the idea for using it this way,
I think it worked nicely and the colors were just perfect!

Aren't these the cutest?
I used pine cones that I spray painted gold, for place card holders.  

My girls did these cute name cards years ago using 3x5 note cards and a gold paint pen.  We still use them every chance we get!  These are easy and simple to make!

A while back I purchased several gold flecked dishtowels and cut them in half, sewed the edges, and made napkins out of them.  I just loved the look of them!
My sister sent me (for my birthday), the cute fall napkin rings with leaves and acorns on them...

...and also these cute leaf salt & pepper shakers too.
(Thanks again Sis, they go so nicely with my fall decor.)

I made this pretty floral arrangement a long time ago, and I like to change it up often.  I add different items to it for different occasions,  I added the gold painted pine cones and bows for my Thanksgiving arrangement.  I like that it is a simple white arrangement that I can enjoy on it's own as is, and also add embellishments that change the look.

This is one of my favorite floral arrangements.

And WOW look at these!
I did get a photo of my chocolate covered brownies, one with walnuts, and one without...mmmm

I'm very thankful for the many blessings in my life!

Simple Centerpiece

I wanted something simple and different for my thanksgiving table centerpiece.

I created this Simple Centerpiece by using pine cones (that I had spray painted gold some time ago for another project), a glass cake stand, a glass bowl with a candle placed in it, and bows.

  

I had all of the following items on hand:  

1. pine cones - spray painted gold  
2. glass cake stand
3. glass bowl
4. candle 
5. bows 

 I simply arranged the pine cones on the cake stand around the bowl with the candle placed in the center, and then tucked in some bows!  Voilá!

  

This turned out nicely and it was just what I wanted.  I was well pleased with the simplicity of it!

Jewelry by Tammy - Purple Passion

~ Beautiful shades of Purple ~

My passion for purple leads me to the many shades of this beautiful color.

Whether amethyst, lavender, lilac, orchid, plum, purple, or violet too and more...I love them all!
Making jewelry in my favorite color is something I do enjoy...with a purple passion. 

  

Purple swarovski crystals and gold glass with gold components.

Lavender pearls and lavender and gold glass with gold components.

Purple swarovski crystals and gold glass with gold components.

Lavender & white pearls and gold glass with gold components.

Purple Swarovski metallic crystals and gold glass with gold components.

Purple faceted glass framed in gold with gold components.

I love Purple!

A Night At The Opera - Carmen

This year's Atlanta Opera 2012-2013 season opener was a performance of Carmen.  We attended the first performance on Saturday night.  Carmen was our third opera, and has become a new favorite for us!  We decided to to go to all three opera performances this season, so we look forward to the next opera in March.  I felt a mixture of emotions throughout the performance of Carmen, with a few laughs during comical moments and a great seriousness in others, with a heartfelt, sad and tragic ending.  It's amazing to me when I think that this was the entertainment long, long ago before television, or cinema, and I often feel a sense of time travel when I attend one of these performances.  It's a memorable experience!

Ready for our date to the Opera!

Even better seats this time!

Carmen

"George Bizet's Immensely Popular opera set in sultry Spain traces Don Jose's ill-fated attraction to the alluring gypsy, Carmen.  When Carmen does not reciprocates his feelings, intense jealousy turns to vengeance and dooms the fiery romance to a tragic end.  Carmen is full of sizzling opera hits, including the famous "Habanera" and the irresistible Toreador's song."

sung in French with projected English translation.

The Atlanta Opera Presents - Carmen

I'm looking forward to the next opera "Traviata" in the Spring!



I love going to the opera...

Our Anniversary/My Birthday

Marty and I celebrate our Wedding Anniversary and my Birthday on this day. 

Today we mark thirty-two years of marriage together!

To:  My Hunkband Marty!

Wow, we celebrate thirty-two years together today!

We share so many memories, and there may have been days that we might question "how have we made it this long together?"  We have experienced hard times that pulled us to one another stronger and closer, as we've shared in life's journey together with love.  Sharing in good times and bad, that is what life and marriage is all about. Standing the test of time. Today is one of those really good days and a time that we can say "Hey we made it!", and be so very proud to have come this far and shared so much of our lives together.

We still hold hands and over the years we've walked miles together arm in arm or hand and hand.  You still make me smile, and melt my heart too when you look into my eyes.  My gentleman that still opens doors for me, looks out for me and keeps me safe.  I am comforted by your protection and I know you'll always have my back.  You have always been my rock when I've needed strength, my shoulder to cry on in times of sorrow, and through hard times, my soft place to fall.

Our friendship is and always has been the guide to our love for each other. Happy Anniversary to you and me, and may life bring us many more special moments together for each other to have and to hold from this day forward, for even better, less worse, richer, less poorer, less sickness and in good health, to cherish with even more love, til death do us part.

I Love You!

All my love, always...

image source
image source