Since I don’t actually have my own “sweetheart” per se, I’ve decided that I’m pretty close to being in love with the UPS man…or maybe it’s just the truck. Just seeing it pull up in front of the house, makes my heart pound. It must be love!
I positively love having a daughter that can machine quilt my sewing projects like some kind of magical pro. I mean, seriously–check out those hearts. Amazing.
My sweet kitties–Beany and Jiff–who utterly refuse to sleep somewhere other than my bed. ~sigh…
Homemade potato salad, made the right way. You know, with my mom’s recipe, only I added chopped pickles, which she never would have done, but it’s fabulous–so we’re good. Don’t tell her.
The greatest creation in the cookie decorating world since sugar sprinkles. I mean it.
A boy with a very new suit…who is leaving soon.
Hope your day is full of love, and kisses, mushy stuff…and chocolate–lots of chocolate.
Now, I bet you’re thinking, “Oooh, yum. Chocolate suckers!” but careful now…somehow, this is even better. How about Hot Chocolate on a stick? Hmmmm? The idea is that you warm up some milk or cream and stir it with these little chocolate melties. Clever. Scrumptious. Adorable.
And easy.
You can use them yourself or give them out for the perfect little sweetheart gift.
Hot Chocolate Sticks
Ingredients:
8 oz. chocolate –your favorite kind will do- milk, semisweet, white–whatever.
1/4 cup cocoa
1/2 cup powdered sugar
Melt chocolate in a double boiler, being careful not to let the water get above a simmer. This will help your chocolate not get too hot and keep it’s pretty sheen. Be sure not to get even one drop of water in your chocolate or it will become grainy and sad. Once it is nearly all melted, take it off the heat and stir to finish the process.
Pour chocolate into a mixer and beat on low. Add the other ingredients and mix thoroughly. It should be quite thick now.
Press about 1-1/2 tablespoons of the chocolate mixture into each well of an ice cube tray. Insert a popsicle stick into each cube. I rolled some into balls because I only had one ice cube tray. That worked just fine too. Let them cool in the fridge.
After about 2 hours they should just pop right out of the tray. We dipped one corner or the bottoms into warmed red candy melts–just for fun.
Then while they were still warm, we found some other things to make them interesting–Valentine decos…
and red hots–and some we left just their plain, old selves.
When giving them away, be sure to label them clearly and give instructions for their use.
“One Hot Chocolate Stick stirred into 1 cup of hot milk or cream for the perfect winter evening.”
Doesn’t this ancient picture of “Snow Babe April” remind you of the picture of the little kid who was so bundled up that they couldn’t move? Cracks me up because I completely did that to my kids. In fact, whenever Prell was wearing this snow suit–with all the extra layers beneath it–we had to carry her up the stairs because with these tall boots and thick leggings she couldn’t actually bend her knees. But I’ll tell you–she was warm.
And check out her pint sized snow man. His eyes are made out of…Doritos.
Yeah, in retrospect, I find that quite odd too.
But what the heck…
we were fresh out of coal.
Hope you’re all staying warm in all this white stuff my friends.
