chubby cheeks.

voted best cheeks.

nom nom.

I'm completing part of my 4 goals by cooking at home and cooking better food for myself! A lot of veggies, garden goods, and home cookin'! The next goal: chocolate zucchini bread!

bake this.

Next week I am going to attempt to make chocolate zucchini bread. This is the recipe that I found to use unless some one informs me of a better one. It's from joyofbaking.com


Chocolate Zucchini Bread:

1 1/2 cups shredded raw zucchini (about 1/2 pound or 227 grams)

1 cup (130 grams) all-purpose flour

1/2 cup (45 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted (not Dutch-processed)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/2 cup (120 ml) safflower or canola oil

1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated white sugar

1/2 cup (105 grams) light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3/4 cup (125 grams) semi sweet chocolate chips



Chocolate Zucchini Bread: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place rack in the center of the oven. Grease (or spray with a nonstick vegetable spray) a 9 x 5 x 3 inch (23 x 13 x 8 cm) loaf pan. Set aside.

Grate the zucchini, using a medium sized grater. Set aside.

In a large bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, ground cinnamon, and ground allspice. Set aside.

In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the oil, sugars, eggs, and vanilla extract until well blended (about 2 minutes). Fold in the grated zucchini. Add the flour mixture, beating just until combined. Then fold in the chocolate chips. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake until the bread has risen and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 55 to 65 minutes. Place on a wire rack to cool for about 10 minutes, then remove the bread from the pan and cool completely.

Makes one - 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf.

soil.

I really enjoy gardening. There's some thing about getting my hands dirty and digging up the ground that relaxes me. Even when my back hurts I have such a good time that it doesn't even seem noticeable. So I am looking into taking some horticulture classes through DMACC-the picture shows some of what they offer and is quite intriguing. I think the most exciting are herbaceous plant materials, soil science, and fruit and vegetable science. And perhaps I can fit in a art or graphics class as well. Sounds like a fun time to me!

my town.

As I sit in my second home-really where my heart is-it makes me kind of sad to know that I'll be leaving it tomorrow. I spent almost 4 years living in Mt. Ayr with my grandparents and now that both of them have passed it's bitter sweet to come home. In a way I feel homeless even though I know there are a dozen places that I am welcome. Now that my aunt and uncle have moved into my grandparent's home I can't stay there. Emotionally I cannot stay there. After my grandma passed away it took me close to a year to set foot in my own house. It's almost like pieces of my heart are missing now that my grandparents have gone-it's not really my home any more. The town, of course, is but the house is no long mine. Since my grandpa passed a year ago in June the house has been cleaned out and family lives there, yet I can't bring myself to stay the night. I haven't been there since their things have been moved in and I am not sure that I really want to. I love my aunt and uncle, it's just not the same-no deer head, ashtrays, cobwebs, grandpa's chair, or his glasses on the kitchen table.
I truly love Mt. Ayr and as ridiculous as it sounds to people who live here and are dying to get out-this place is my get away. Where I can go and be stress free, feel welcome, and see people that are close to my heart.

It really is good to go where everybody knows your name.

bruschetta.

Homemade. Yummy. Best dinner in forever!

words of meaning.

My friend, Stephanie, posted this quote on facebook and I couldn't think of a more true statement.

‎"In these bodies we live, in these bodies we die. Where you invest your love, you invest your life."