2 Clever Blog

Peanut Butter Popcorn

So Lucky!

Pink :: I 'm so lucky to have a friend like you!

Thanks for not giving up on me on this blog. Seriously I think I am 3 or 4 posts behind you! Mr. Think gave me a wonderful birthday gift of a trip with my Mom and sisters for a week. I tired to post 3 times from my phone but it never worked. I got so frustrated that I ignored it all last week. I'll post about it later today. But I wanted to share about St. Patrick's day first. It looks like you once again had a fun one. Loved your ideas. We made our Leprechaun Trap, had our Lucky Charms and Green Lunch too.

I don't have a photo of it but I printed out "I'm so lucky because...." on the back of various green scrapbook paper strips. We wrote in what we felt lucky about and made a paper chain with them that we hung around the living room. It turned out pretty cute and it was a great way to talk about luck vs. blessings in our life. We came up with a lot so our chain was long!

I made my first batch of split pea soup for dinner that night. I love pea soup so can't believe that it was a first time I made some.  I think it will be a tradition from now on. I saw a cooking show where they cooked some bacon in the bottom of the pan before they made the soup and left some of the drippings in to flavor the soup. So yummy!

For dessert I made these : Individual Chocolate Mint Icebox Cakes

I have it written down as coming out of "Food Magazine". Not sure what that is so I guess I can't give proper credit. Sorry!

You use those Famous Chocolate Wafer Cookies. Mix 1/4 Peppermint Extract with 3/4 cup Light Sour Cream. Whip up 1/4 cup Heavy Cream and 1 1/2 tsp. Sugar until stiff peaks. Fold the two mixtures together. I added green food coloring to mine. Spoon 1 tsp. of topping on each cookie to make a stack of 5. If they seem to be sliding use something like a small glass or bowl to prop them up. I put mine in a casserole dish with small metal cups between them but they were pretty steady. Cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or up to 8 hours. I cut out a shamrock shape out of cardstock to make a stencil and sprinkled cocoa.

I tasted the mixture before I put it between the cookies and it was nasty! Sour cream and mint? Yuck. But after 4 hours I tried one and they were yummy. The cookies get soft so you can eat them with a fork. I can see these at a baby shower with pink or blue filling and a baby themed stencil on top. And quick and easy version would be with just Cool Whip.

Thanks for inspiring me green! :: Think

Oh Yes!!!.....Oh No!

Pink :: Today's post is a free-form poem. (Ahem.)

Oh Yes!!!.....Oh No!
by Think

Graeter's.
The best ice cream in the world.
Oprah even says so.

Made only in Ohio.
Suddenly at my local Kroger.
In Texas.
Shock. Elation.
Dancing in the aisle.
Tears of Joy.

Yes, worth the $4.99 for a pint.
Blackberry Chocolate Chip, in particular.

Mass Consumption.

Swimsuit? What swimsuit?
My hips curse thee.
Farewell, diet...... farewell.

(FYI, it's also a good antidote for PMS) :: Think

Cool Canisters You Can Cart

Pink ::

Tonight I had to bring the treat for our Daisy Scout meeting. (Daisy Scouts are pre-Brownies for those who have never heard of them before like me.) Little Think is in a troop with ten other 6 year olds. The moms are all there and usually a sibling or two. Totally crazy but fun.

I was at my Super Walmart this morning and saw these smaller jar canisters on sale 2 for $4. I got 8 and filled each one with a different treat :  marshmallows, Corn Chex cereal, pretzels, crasins, M&Ms, Oreos, peanuts, white chedder cheeseits, etc.

Awhile ago I had also seen these darling snowcone cups and had been trying to think of an excuse to buy some. (Sorry I can't find a website link for them but they were by the snowcone machines and syrups at my Walmart. I think my Kroger had some not-as-cute-ones in their seasonal section)

The girls loved being able to make their own treat mix. I loved how easy it was to take them to the meeting and bring home the extras. They are glass but pretty sturdy. I threw them in a laundry basket in the back of my car and off we went. They are now lined up on my kitchen counter for snacking until they are all gone. The only thing missing was cute scoops. I ran out of time & money before I could get those but now I'll be on the lookout because I am positive I will be doing this again and again! ....ice cream toppings, breakfast cereals, salad toppings, baked potato toppings, pizza toppings, haystack toppings, taco toppings...  Highly recommend picking some up.  (Sorry those Eavesdroppers who know me in real life. I cleaned out the store at Spring Creek and 75!)

Don't you just want to dive into these marshmallows :: Think

Cake Colors

Pink ::  I love your rainbow cake sliced photo.

But then I had to laugh at your mention of pink and brown. My mom was visiting me for my birthday back in 2007. She and Little Think made a cake for me that her mother, my grandmother, used to bake for birthdays years ago. Here is a picture of that cake. Chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry with chocolate frosting inbetween and white frosting on top.

hee-hee!

Great minds think alike! :: Think

My Lucky Day

Top of the evening to you - Think::

Oh how I love this day.  We all were decked out in green head to toe and ate lots of things we don't normally eat, like cabbage and corned beef. ( I wish I could say the same about Lucky Charms, but they can often be found in my cupboard)
After I picked up the two little girls from school I took them into Goodwill to find everything they could that was green.  There they were running through the store, "This is Green."  "I found Green"  Most of the employees know me and always laugh when the littles come in and treasure hunt with me.
They each got to buy one green item.  This was one of them for $1.99 - a metal fondue pot.  Do you not just love the color?
I quite like this new St. Patrick's day tradition and will add it to my other list.

 

My other new tradition is making this pistachio salad and freezing it cupcake liners.  I gave some to some neighbors and it was the perfect fast and easy treat to make.  (Do you love my new nutcracker I got this year - TJMaxx baby!)

1 sm. pkg. pistachio instant pudding mix
1 (20 oz.) can crushed pineapple
2 c. miniature marshmallows
1 (6 oz.) tub Cool Whip
Put undrained pineapple in bowl. Sprinkle with dry pudding mix and mix thoroughly. Add marshmallows and Cool Whip. Mix well. Serve.

Here was our Rainbow Cake we made this year.  We made 5 layers each a different color.  Green, Yellow, Purple, Pink and blue.
I learned a lot with this experiment and will for sure do it next year.  Here is what I learned.

• do NOT flour the pan.  Just spray really well so you don't get all the gooky flour gunk on the edges.
• use 2 yellow cakes mixes and about 2 cups for each layer
• the kids love taking ownership for each layer.  "I made the purple one!"
• 2 tubs of premade icing was able to ice in between each layer and the top.  One more would be needed to do around the edges
• we bought a large skittles bag, but wonder if an individual size would do

I can't wait to show you the sliced piece, but will take a photo in the morning when the light is better and I really need some sleep.

I loved reading everyone's comments from yesterday and really enjoyed seeing some people put the clever ideas to action.  This was especially fun. 

Happy St. Patrick's Day - only 2 hours left!
Pink::

unwrapped

Think::

Today I went to the awesome Marine Corps Exchange (exchange is where they have clothes and electronics)  near  Pentagon side of Arlington Cemetery.  It has some incredible deals along with all of their imported European Chocolate Easter treats - which are both yummy and beautiful.  I discovered from making a wrong turn that it is also connected to the Iwo Jima Memorial side of Arlington Cemetery, which is next to the Army Commissary (grocery store).  This was  huge discovery!

I ran into the Commissary to show my friend what the inside looked like and we found this!

How long have these been out?  Have I been missing the boat or what?  Small bits of caramel that are unwrapped.  Please tell me that you have not been using these for years and kept this to yourself.
These are making my love 2 love list for today!  I am making Caramel brownies 2night!

Pink::

ps::  I am going to miss that military discount like crazy in about 17 months!

2 words for you...

Pink ::

HOLY YUMMYNESS!

:: Think

Fruity Valentines

Pink :: You are not going to believe this...

My very good, very clever friend Amy just told me about this. (Thanks Amy, you are 2clever!!!) You can order personalized Fruit Roll Ups with your own pictures and words on them. I KNOW!!!! How cute it that! For Valentines Day, birthdays, etc.  It is $29.99 for a box of 30. I thought it would be much, much more than that. If you enter the code "freeshipping" at checkout your even get free shipping right now. It is at www.myfruitrollups.com. I'm about to pass out from idea overload. Class pictures for last day of school class party, Thank Yous to send after a birthday party or play date saying "I had a great time", church youth activites with theme printed on them, Girl Scout Motto, etc.

Seriously... think of the possibilites :: Think

Walmart Wanderings Part 1: Food Side

Pink :: So glad you had a great trip!

Since I can't compete with your Goodwill, here are some finds I found at Walmart a few days ago.

Bite Size Mini Saltines. I love saltines. Eat entire sleeves at one sitting. Such salty goodness. And I love anything mini. Can I tell you how cute they looked in my tomato soup? And I know these will come in handy at my next tea party with Little Think. A dab of strawberry jam would be charming.

The Diet gods are smiling on me. They know I have little or no self control. Takes me back to my lunches as a kid when there was a Twinkie for dessert. I usually only got one or two out of a box because my mom would eat the rest. Like Mother, like daughter....

I am hyperventilating over this next one. Found them on the cake decoration aisle which is by the craft supplies so not technically on the Food Side of Walmart but we are not being technical, right?

JUMBO CONFETTI SPRINKLES!!!!!

On anything they would be cute, of course. I mean come on - they are huge! But I am thinking one sprinkle on the center of  a homemade frosted mini cupcake and PRESTO....

A mini ripoff of expen$ive Sprinkles Cupcake. (Scream!)

(The real Sprinkes Cupcakes are oh so yummy. Lucky to have a store here by me. Have you had one?) How cute would a set of 4 of these mini ripoffs in a box be for Valentines gifts for friends. I am swooning just thinking about it. I was going to make some to show you but then I would eat them all...

But here are some cute mini cupcakes I just made for Little Think's Investiture into Girl Scouts as a Daisy Scout.

Not the best shot of them. They were already wrapped in Saranwrap when I remembered to document them. And I dumped half of them on the floor so I had to use my practice ones. (note the spastic one upper right) The Daisy Scout uniforms are blue so that's why the blue background. Little Think was not happy that the blue was not the same shade as the uniform but I have a limit of how much food color I'm willing to use. :) The center is a yellow m&m. I seriously used all canned frosting. Even the piped petals were out of the Betty Crocker squeese tubes with the extra tip set. Pretty painless that way. I made mass quatities of regular size cupcakes with sunflowers on top for a church event last year. Used mini oreos for the bumpy black center and piped lots of yellow petals and green leaves. Even had the teenage girls help make them. Pretty foolproof. Can't find the picture of those right now. (seriously need to organize my iphoto)

stay tuned for part 2 : the other side

It's no New York City but still pretty fun :: Think