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Originally posted at Falling Into My Own Sarchasm and cross-posted here.

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Originally posted at Falling Into My Own Sarchasm and cross-posted here.

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Originally posted at Falling Into My Own Sarchasm and cross-posted here.

As promised - Christmas Pics!

Ok! Technical difficulties overcome. Here are the pics from Christmas morning. Enjoy! [gallery]

Originally posted at Falling Into My Own Sarchasm and cross-posted here.

Monkey Bread - A Christmas Morning Tradition

So, I've had several requests for my monkey bread recipe after posting about it on Facebook this weekend. I make it a couple of different ways so I'll try to post each of the recipes here. Enjoy!

Basic (easy) biscuit recipe:

Yield: One large bundt/tube pan of ooey gooey goodness Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 cans Pillsbury Grands! Homestyle buttermilk biscuits
• 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup butter, melted

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F/175°C. Lightly grease 12-cup fluted tube pan (or bundt pan) with shortening or cooking spray.
2. In large plastic food bag, mix granulated sugar and cinnamon.
3. Separate dough into 16 biscuits (there are 8 per can); cut each into quarters.
4. Shake in bag to coat dough pieces. Arrange in the pan evenly.
5. In small bowl, mix brown sugar and butter; pour over biscuit pieces.
6. Back 28 to 32 minutes or until golden brown and no longer doughy in the center. Immediately turn pan upside down onto serving plate to allow caramel to seep through.
7. Pull apart to serve. Serve warm.

[caption id="attachment_592" align="aligncenter" width="960" caption="Basic Biscuit Monkey Bread Recipe"][/caption]

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Basic dinner roll recipe

This version uses dinner roll dough rather than the Pillsbury Grands! biscuits. The biscuits do tend to make the mixture a bit "lighter" and "fluffier" but the taste tends to be a bit more salty and more like biscuits. I prefer the flavor of the dinner roll dough to the biscuit dough, personally. Yield: One large bundt/tube pan of ooey gooey goodness Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 12 dinner rolls (I use the frozen dinner rolls if I'm not up to making them from scratch)
• 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup butter, melted

Directions: The night before:

1. Cut dough into small, ping-pong ball size pieces.
2. In large plastic food bag, mix granulated sugar and cinnamon.
3. Shake in bag to coat dough pieces. Arrange in the pan evenly.
4. Place uncovered on counter over night to allow dough to rise.

The next morning:

1. Heat oven to 350°F/175°C. Lightly grease 12-cup fluted tube pan (or bundt pan) with shortening or cooking spray.
2. In small bowl, mix brown sugar and butter; pour over biscuit pieces.
3. Back 28 to 32 minutes or until golden brown and no longer doughy in the center. Immediately turn pan upside down onto serving plate to allow caramel to seep through.
4. Pull apart to serve. Serve warm.

Just as with the first recipe, some people like to add nuts and/or raisins to their monkey bread. If you would like to do so, sprinkle 1/2 cup of chopped nuts and/or 1/2 cup raisins (or other dried fruit such as Craisins, dried cherries, chopped dried apricots, etc.) throughout the dough pieces as you put them into the pan, layered.

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Variation 1

Some people like to add nuts and/or raisins to their monkey bread. If you would like to do so, sprinkle 1/2 cup of chopped nuts and/or 1/2 cup raisins (or other dried fruit such as Craisins, dried cherries, chopped dried apricots, etc.) throughout the dough pieces as you put them into the pan, layered.

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Variation 2

I love to add fresh granny smith apples to my monkey bread. It really gives the flavor a kick and at least gives some semblance of healthy food. LOL. To do this, I take 3 medium to large granny smith apples and core and peel them. Then I take one of the apples and cut it in half. With one half, I make thin slices (I use my mandolin slicer) so that the hole from the core is in the center (so they look like large Os). I layer the bottom of the pan with these thin apple slices before I put the dough into the pan. (This makes the bread look really nice when you flip the pan over onto the serving plate and have the caramelized apples all on top.) The other two and a half apples get chopped and all but 1/2 cup get sprinkled throughout the dough as it is layered in the pan. The last 1/2 cup gets mixed in with the melted butter/brown sugar mixture - only this mixture actually gets cooked over a low setting for about 5 minutes to let the flavor of the apple infuse the mix.

Originally posted at Falling Into My Own Sarchasm and cross-posted here.

Merry Christmas!

We had a pretty great Christmas here in the Kellogg household. The kids were happy, the adults were happy, we vegged out quite a bit and even managed to get a nap in! We saw the new Muppets movie (ridiculously cheesy, but I'll admit it was pretty fun) and then we went to Mt. Fuji for dinner. The kids love the hibachi grill and the little "show" that gets put on while they cook the food. We don't normally go out on Christmas for Christmas dinner but with my back/health the way it's been, Dan and I decided it would just be easiest and the kids really enjoyed it. This isn't going to be a very long post - just going to add some pictures and wish everyone a very Merry Christmas (if you celebrate it). Hope you are all well out there in internet land! Aaaaaaand.... never mind on the pictures for now. I am having a technical malfunction with getting the computer to read the disk so I promise I will upload them either tomorrow or the day after. Really, I promise!

Originally posted at Falling Into My Own Sarchasm and cross-posted here.

A heads up to my readers

Just want to let y'all know that I've been having some crazy, and even some scary, health stuff going on. A lot of it appears to be med-related (ie interactions with other mess, how my body chemistry is interacting, etc). Because of this, I'll be blogging a lot more but they will likely be what y'all would consider pretty boring blog entries. The majority of what I'll be posting about will be health-related. How I'm feeling that day, what happened, what symptoms I experienced, how I'm feeling mentally/emotionally, etc. It will mainly be a way for me to keep track of my symptoms and all gives access to my team of doctors to read my posts and hopefully get a better idea of how to help. I'll still post recipes and other non-health-related stuff as separate posts, as well, but for awhile at least, it will be nearly all health stuff. I guess this is as good a time as any to start taking part again in NaBloWriMo (National Blog Writing Month), right? Lol!

Originally posted at Falling Into My Own Sarchasm and cross-posted here.

The Parlotones came to town!

The Parlotones came back through Denver on October 25th. As I always do when they come to town, I cooked them dinner and brought it to the venue. In addition, this time I also helped them out with their merchandise table. Being a merch chick is kinda fun, I gotta say, although it would have been much better and easier if the tubs of merch had been even remotely organized. Ah well... I had time before the show to get things mostly organized - same styles with same styles, and then separated into sizes. It worked. They also seemed to be very hungry guys because there was NO FOOD left afterwards. It was weird not being in the very front by the stage while they performed... or even in the same room. LOL I had to stay with the merch to sell stuff. I was surprised that people actually came out to buy their stuff *during* their set. Go figure! But the way the venue is, I could hear perfectly and there were HDTVs showing them so I could still see them. Just no pics this time. We were about to get our first real snowstorm of the year that night and they had to drive to Salt Lake City the next morning. I gave them some route advice (ie AVOID I-80 AT ALL COSTS lol) and such and let them get out of the venue and out to their hotel to get some sleep before the long drive rather than keeping them all to myself. ;-) (As if, right? hehehe) As it turns out, I-80 ended up being closed and not re-opened until nearly 1:30pm, so my advice was good - but I-70 had been shut down, as well, for about 30 minutes apparently... and, of course, the guys *had* to show up during that time so they were re-routed to US40 up through Steamboat Springs and Craig. EEEK!!!! Can you say disaster in the making? Yeah, it really was. I felt so bad for them... still do, in a way, even though I know it wasn't my fault, but still. They did make it to SLC in time for their show but only barely. Ok, it's November now and I *really* should be working on my novel so I'm going to do that. Before I do, however, I've had several requests for my "menu" of what I served the guys for dinner. So here's the menu and some pics:

• A veggie tray with some homemade ranch dressing
• Large portabello mushroom caps stuffed with fresh baby spinach, chopped tomatoes, and feta cheese with a drizzle of a balsamic vinegar reduction
• Asparagus salad with asparagus, grape tomato halves, and fresh mozzarella balls, soaked in a balsamic vinegar/pepper/garlic/celery salt "dressing"
• Spinach and four-cheese ravioli (I bought the actual ravioli) with a homemade tomato-basil sauce
• Chocolate chip cookies for dessert (a dozen soft and chewy and a dozen extra crispy - not burnt, just crispy lol)
• Two loaves of my somewhat famous banana bread (last time they saved this for breakfast - this time they apparently couldn't help themselves hehehehe)

[gallery]

Originally posted at Falling Into My Own Sarchasm and cross-posted here.

Happiness is...

... finding a friend you thought long lost and realizing that, not only does the friendship pick up where it left off, it has easily grown into an amazing relationship built on trust, honesty, and even love. I've had a rough go of things of late. Health-wise things have been verging on the edge of dismal and emotionally I've been a wreck - to the point that I'm back in therapy (official current diagnosis - Complex PTSD). It's been hard but I'm pushing through - thanks, especially, to my long lost friend, who completely understands me and gets me like no one else ever really has. It's amazing to have that kind of relationship with someone and not have to worry, really, about offending them, and if you somehow do, you know you can explain it and they'll get it and any hurt feelings dissipate instantly. *warmsigh* One of the best things about this friendship is that we can talk to each other musically. Meaning, we can often use lyrics to help us express ourselves, entire songs, etc. Music carries with it such strong emotional content - be it anger, love, passiveness, etc. - and we can communicate that way and it helps us to truly understand where the other is coming from on an even deeper level. I have to say, it's one of the most amazing things I've ever experienced in a friendship. And what's even more amazing is the fact that this music is being drawn from nearly every genre (though, thankfully, I don't believe we've crossed into the realm of country music LOL). What's even better is that, for as much as he has helped me these last couple of months, he believes I have helped him, in turn. That makes me feel like maybe I'm not such a failure after all. That maybe I can do some things right. Something I've been struggling with lately. Now, don't get me wrong, this doesn't mean that all of my other friendships are "chopped liver..." I adore my friends, especially my besties Christy, Traci, Skya, and Lisa... but sometimes there's just something different about a male best friend... someone who is going through what I'm going through in a way, and can understand and see me from something other than the female point of view... To my old (and yet new, in a way) friend, I say: Thank you. Thank you for sharing *you* with me. Thank you for being a part of my life again. Thank you for loving me despite all of my flaws. Thank you for showing me that it's okay to love through adversity. Thank you for being you. Thank you for letting me be me, without my "game face." Thank you for everything.

Originally posted at Falling Into My Own Sarchasm and cross-posted here.

I'm paranoid, self-destroyed...

What do you do when the psychosis takes over? Ignoring it doesn't make it go away - it makes it worse. Diving into it is even worse than ignoring it. Medicate it? Isn't that just covering up the underlying issue? Catch-22. So I cope. As best I can. Hold onto sanity by a thread, watching it fray as it swings me to and fro. But what happens when that thread finally snaps? Do I just fall silently into the waiting abyss? Do I go screaming? Do I take anyone down with me? See, if I tell you there are voices telling me I'm no good for anyone or anything, y'all will think I'm crazy. Well, maybe I am. But it's not necessarily "voices" voices... it's my own inner-self-destruction mechanism. That inner hate and despising. That part of all of us that says the negative - but mine isn't just saying it. It's screaming it. I can't ignore it. It's taken too firm of a hold. Can anyone else hear these voices shouting at me? I sometimes wonder... So I try to focus on something, ANYTHING, else than my own mind. Music is always good - I can lose myself in it. Music can lift me up and calm me down. So, yes, I turn to music. But then a song will come on that threatens to push me over the edge - because it hits just a little too close to home. Like Weaknesses by Blue October.

My weaknesses, Rear their ugly faces on a day to day basis. Stay calm and try to see this, I'm always sensitive relaxing, always delicately asking. But I can't seem to fly away, I'm feeling small, tall and sick of it all, and all I want to do is crawl. You...fly alway, I'm feeling small, tall and sick of it all, and all I want to do is say... How to cook up pride? If you lemon your behavior it will side a different flavor. How to change my mind? If you break apart the candy, gently slip it in my brandy. But I can't seem to fly away. I'm feeling tall small and sick of it all, and Esti says that it's my calling. Fly away. I'm feeling tall small and sick of it all, and I want to do is say... Hold your candle high. If they jeopardize your meaning, you must strike upon their ceiling. If I'm right then who am I? Well I am simply just the candy, that you slipped within my brandy

Any other time I would turn to Blue for comfort. I can't right now - it's too much. Too close to the truth. Especially when what I want is to throw myself "into the ocean, end it all." Bad, no? I'm hoping writing about it will prove to be cathartic, ground me... I turn to love, but even that seems to have ripped me apart. Where do I turn? Who do I turn to?

Sometimes I feel like weeping Awake and when I'm sleeping Perfecting how to put a game face on.

Originally posted at Falling Into My Own Sarchasm and cross-posted here.

Thank you, Hurricane Bells fans!

Steve and Hurricane Bells have reached their goal!!! A HUGE thank you to everyone who pledged to help out this amazing music and such a great charity, to boot! Steve - I'm so proud of you and I can't wait to hear the new album. Congratulations!!!

Originally posted at Falling Into My Own Sarchasm and cross-posted here.

Steve / Hurricane Bells needs our help!

Okay peeps. I know I've been all about South Africa of late (for good reason, of course!) but I want to make sure that we're not forgetting to help out a great musician. Now then, those of us that know Steve and/or Hurricane Bells know the beautiful quality of the music that is put out. That kind of quality isn't without cost! Sure, the writing of the music and the playing of the music doesn't really cost a thing, but putting it out there so that the rest of us can enjoy it? Making sure it's mixed properly so that the full extent of the music comes out? Yeah, that costs money. I'm not saying y'all should give up on your next trip to Portugal or decide against buying that new minivan you need for the family. ;-) (Though, hey, if you wanna give thousands upon thousands of dollars to the cause that would be AMAZING!!!) I bet you could give up a couple of Starbucks coffees or a couple of value meals from McDonald's though. (And be healthier for it, right?) If all of my friends who either know and love Hurricane Bells AND/OR know and love Blue October AND/OR know and love the Twilight series gave just $10 to this great cause, goal could be met lickety-split! So here's the deal. This money isn't just to go sit in Steve's (or anyone else's) bank account to make them rich and famous. This money is going to two places: 1) The mastering and manufacturing of the album along with the touring and promotion of the new album to get it out there in the public's eye and 2) Some of the donations go to charity - Steve's charity of choice is Education Through Music, a very important charity if you ask me! And hey, if ETM gets enough donations and such, maybe they can go National and bring music back into our schools as so many schools seem to be doing away with their music programs these days - a very sad, sad thing. So have I got you excited about this? Are you ready to pitch in a few bucks? GREAT! If you look over in the sidebar on the right, you'll see a little widget for this project. Click on that and you're all set. If your eyes are just too lazy to look away from these words in search of the widget, and hey, I understand, my eyes are exhausted!, then just click on this little link: http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/hurricane-bells Much love to you all and thank you! ~M

Originally posted at Falling Into My Own Sarchasm and cross-posted here.

Hooray for Independent Music!!

I know I've posted a post like this recently, but there's no harm in doing it again, especially when it benefits fantastic musicians. See over there on the right-hand side of my blog in the side bar? See the pic of the guy playing the guitar? That's Steve - amazing guy, amazing singer, amazing guitarist - he's just all-around amazing. Hurricane Bells is the name of his group and rather than dealing with all of the BS politics associated with mainstream music today, he has taken it upon himself to create a label and make sure things are done right - ie, his way, the way the music *should* be from the musician's point of view. He's taking up pledges to help get the latest album released. The few bits of I've heard of it so far are GREAT and well worth a quick pledge of $10 (or more if you're up for more, of course!!). Think about it. What can $10 get you today. A venti Caramel Macchiato at Starbucks with a piece of lemon pound cake runs about $7 once tax is included. Are those calories really necessary? Could it be skipped for a day or two to pledge money to an independent artist? Ride your bike to work for a day or two, take public transportation, or even car pool with someone, and save yourself $10 worth of gas! In addition to the money being used for the release of the new Hurricane Bells album, part of the proceeds will also be donated to NYC-based charity Education Through Music. This charity supports keeping music in the schools in NYC - and who knows, if they get enough money, maybe they can even expand nationally! So, c'mon. Click the link. Make a pledge. Feel good about yourself for supporting independent music AND a worthy charity. You can do it - I did!

Originally posted at Falling Into My Own Sarchasm and cross-posted here.