When You Give A Friend Nutella ... and cover reveal.

Hello, everybody! The Fresh Pioneer is back and I've got a few yummy deserts to share. 

I was going to share my apple crisp but a friend got me this and well.... when a friend gets you a six pound bucket of Nutella, you're obligated by the laws of chocolate to use it!

Behold... friendship.

 So, the first recipe is really easy but was so delicious I might just add Nutella to all my mochas. Make your latte how you usually do... whether in Mr. Latte (my BFF) or simply by heating milk and espresso together.

 Melt one TBS of Nutella and 4 TBS of milk in the microwave for 30 seconds and stir until smooth. Pour into the bottom of your mug.
                                           
My kids decorated these mugs with oil based Sharpies and then we baked them in the oven to "set" the paint. Anyway, this mug... whenever I look at it I think of all the wonderful verses about the beginning of a new day... or it could be , "Better start praying, Mama's coffee is gone."

                                              Pour in the latte. Simple, right? But it gives it an incredibly smooth taste, almost like Mexican hot chocolate, but not as sweet.

 Top with whipped cream and slivered almonds and more Nutella sauce, if you wish.

 Another shot of the mugs. I love kid art. I always want to put it up in the cabinet so it doesn't get broken, but then they wouldn't get the fun of using their special creation.

 So, the next recipe is very easy. Nutella stuffed doughnut holes, but they're baked, not fried. (I think that's because the Nutella would leak because every recipe was baked, and I don't think that so many people care about added grease. You'd think somebody would have tried to fry them. So, even though you may want them fried, I'd recommend baking.)
1 cup flour
1 tbs sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
Mix all dry ingredients together and make a well in the bowl. Add in the wet ingredients and place in a greased cupcake tin, about 1/2 full.
2 tbs oil
1 large egg
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup milk
Bake for 350F for 15 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.

Fill with Nutella using a frosting applicator. Melt butter, toss in sugar and cinnamon. Enjoy!!

 And as for us, it's that time of the year. Not grape time, but balloon time.
                                           
                      We get up at 4AM (some of us are more perky at that hour than others),

                                            and drive out to the vineyards or the fields. The major festival is this weekend and there will be launches every morning and then a night festival, but today they were filming a move for an IMAX-type Disney ride. It was an interesting experience because as they filmed, we had to duck and run, or hide behind trees as the camera flew by (on a drone). So, instead of just the usual ground crew tasks, we also had to play hide and seek from the camera. Of course, the little people loved it.
                                        
Usually three balloons this size would take a crew of thirty, but they needed it to be small (because of the camera and not being able to hide that many people) so fifteen people doing the work of thirty was quite a work out.
                                                   
Here, after unrolling, attaching ropes and the top vent, they're opening the envelope, getting the fan running.

 When it all checks out, they attach the basket and light it up. Cue Fall Out Boys, except we try not to light anything on fire, especially ourselves.

 The first one standing up is always a special moment.

 We got good exercise running up and down the hill. The second balloon went up and was tethered.

 The third balloon needed a lot of heat to stay upright and out of the nearby trees, which means it needed more weight before they could safely rise any higher. My older boys had to be "dead weight", haha, but they also had to duck out of the way when the camera flew by. Pretty funny to watch them. They looked like groundhogs, up and down, up and down.

My favorite moment: I was holding  the lead rope (which guides the balloon upright as it's filling). You have to be very strong and run whichever direction at any moment and it might be the only time you ever wished you weighed more than you actually do. 

Anyway, I really wanted a picture of the sunrise and so I asked my ten year old to grab the rope... and he worked like a champ! Right before he slipped and got dragged down the field. Fifty thousand cubic feet of hot air will show you who's the boss. We're still laughing about it. (This is also why you wear leather gloves and all your gear.) 

And I almost forgot... a cover reveal! (I thought I'd shared it here, but I just looked and I don't see it. It must have been just facebook and my blog. But if I have and I'm not seeing it, I apologize for spamming. LOL.)

The fourth Cane River Romance is titled A Star to Steer By. Our plucky heroine spends most of her time in a big foam cupcake costume. It's one of those stories where someone has an awesome secret identity, except hers isn't so awesome. Coming Oct 31st!

Feel free to stop by my facebook page Pride, Prejudice, Cheese Grits or my blog The Things That Last! 

Until next time! 

Nutella Swirl Brownies

This has been a pretty tough winter so far, hasn't it? And worse for some parts of the country than others!

After our stellar beginning with our October 4th&5th blizzard (go here if you don't remember that storm!), we've been pretty normal. Cold, snowy, and windy.

But who wants winter to end when you can snuggle next to the fire (or your heater, or your furry friend) with Nutella Swirl Brownies?

Oh yeah, let's go there!

This recipe came to our house through my daughter's friend, Mia, who lives in Norway. Mia is great. We got to know her this summer when she stopped by to meet Carrie in person (they're internet friends), and toured our part of the States.

Believe it or not, she loves chocolate as much as we do!

She sent this recipe to Carrie, who promptly made a batch. Or two. Or three. Maybe more.

These brownies are fabulous!

Nutella Swirl Brownies

You start with the brownie recipe on the back of the Baker's Unsweetened Chocolate.

(By the way, did you know that the man who started the Baker's Chocolate company was named Baker, and that's how the company got it's name? I always thought it was because they made chocolate for bakers.)

Ingredients: 

4 ounces Bakers unsweetened chocolate (that's a whole box)
3/4 cup butter
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
1/2 cup Nutella (that's about half of a 13 ounce jar)

That may seem like a lot of sugar, but remember: you're using unsweetened chocolate.

Preheat your oven to 350°.

Break the chocolate into small squares. In a large bowl, heat the butter and chocolate together in the microwave until the butter is melted. Stir until they're well combined and all the chocolate is melted. You may need to heat the butter a bit more to make sure it's done.

Add two cups sugar, and stir well.

Add the eggs and vanilla, and stir again. In fact, don't stir - beat that batter so those eggs are completely incorporated into the batter.

And then add the flour and stir until it's all smooth, chocolaty goodness :)

Pour it into a 9"x13" baking dish. I like to line mine with parchment paper. It seems awkward at first, but when it comes to getting the brownies out of the pan, it's heaven!

Now, open the jar of Nutella.

What? You already opened it? The jar is half empty?

 /Jan shakes her head./

Well then, take as much Nutella as you have - up to 1/2 cup - and drop it by tablespoonfuls on top of your brownie batter.

By the way, you don't have to use Nutella. Peanut butter is delicious! Or cream cheese! Or - wait for it - make cheese cake batter and use some of it to swirl in your brownies!

Oooh, oooh! Or marshmallow cream! How decadent is that?

Take a knife, and swirl that Nutella (or whatever decadent ingredient you've chosen) into the batter.

Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes, or until done. Either stick a knife or toothpick in the middle (if it comes out clean, the brownies are done), or use the touch test (lightly touch the top of the brownies with your finger - if the top springs back, they're done).

While we're waiting for the brownies to bake, let's talk about cowboys :)

It's time for the Black Hills Stock Show and Rodeo, and we have cowboys, cowboys, cowboys!

I wish I had more pictures to show you, but we'll try some of these....

Father and son cowboy boots.

This is the G Bar G Saddles booth in the vendor hall. This family
has been handcrafting saddles since 1965. You'll have to go
check out their website here. These are the real deal.

The vendor hall is fabulous. Saddles, boots, hats, furniture, gloves, western clothing (the real stuff, not the dude ranch bling), stock fencing, stock trailers, trucks....

...and the petting zoo, featuring Osama bin Llama.

And there is nowhere else you can go - except the county fair - where you see this:

Okay, I hear the timer ringing, so let's get those brownies out of the oven.

Now's the hard part - you have to let them cool. Thoroughly.

While we're waiting, we are NOT going to discuss football.

Okay. Remember how we lined the pan with baking parchment? Once your brownies are cool, just lift the parchment out of the pan and lay the brownies on a cutting board.

Isn't that nice and neat?

Next, cut the brownies and serve.

Everybody grab a glass of milk and dig in! I've saved a cozy spot for you right by the fire.

Nutella stuffed Nutella cookies

Helloooooo, everybody! The Fresh Pioneer is back and this recipe involves FRESH Nutella. (See what I did there?)

'Tis the season of cookies and my kids saw a giant container of Nutella at Walmart. And so.... It would be wrong to just eat it with a spoon, right? (Ok, just play along.)


 Plus, it seemed as if Mr. MANLY MIXER (still not sure what his name is, but we're working on getting acquainted) was in the holiday mood. Looks like he's been using the snowflake paper punch!

 So, this recipe is the essence of EASE.
1 cup softened Nutella
1 cup chilled Nutella
1 cup flour
1 egg

Got that? One, one, one, one. We're not even making it to the number TWO.

But.... I've got six kids so I have to double. I'll use those math skills and... two cups of softened Nutella,  two cups of chilled Nutella (not in the picture), two cups flour, two eggs.

 Mic the flour, softened Nutella, and egg in a bowl. Mr. Manly Mixer was really enjoying this part.  Flatten in a 3 inch disc shape. Kids were thrilled with this. Mash, mash, mashity-mash.

 Take the Nutella from the fridge. (I had a feeling it would really slow things down if we were hacking the Nutella out of the jar as we try to assemble the cookies. Key to kids in the kitchen? Be prepared... So, I had an older kid hack out the Nutella into 1/2 tsp bits and put it back in the fridge. I'm sort of surprised there was anything left after she performed that task.)

 Flattern another cookie dough round and lay over the top. Now, these can be square, like ravioli, but who's got time for that? Plus, the circle is the most perfect shape in nature.

 While they're cooking at 350F for 8-10 minutes, make some tasty tea.

 Fresh from the oven, sprinkle with powdered sugar. It makes them look more festive (and less like poop, which someone said on facebook).

Crack them open....  Best eaten right away, so the Nutella inside is soft and warm. We actually took these to an ice skating party and they were delicious the next day!

Until next week, Christmas EVE!!!!