The Awkward Games...

If you still haven't figured it out, the Awkward Baker is a tad bit of a dork.  I eat geek-eroni for lunch and spaz-ghetti for dinner.  (Also, I drink wine with all of the above...which explains the terrible puns). I'm quite familiar with all things Battlestar Gallactica and I'm a die hard Jacob fan.  (I shall someday sculpt those abs out of  No Bake Nutella Cheesecake .)  It should come as no surprise to you that I am also a ginormous Hunger Games fanatic.(Peeta...if only I could smother you in butter cream icing and set you gently on top of a Cadbury Creme Cupcake...)  Ahem...Sorry about that.  I had an unfortunate "run in" with a very slow moving automatic door earlier this week and I still haven't quite regained full "Awkward Baker" composure yet.  Seriously though, why do they take so long to open???  A girl is just bustling about, high heels and sharp Spring dress, head held high and brand new "fancy undies" in tote.  The last thing on her mind is the speed of the self opening door!!!!  Of course I would get the "special" door and end up flat faced and bruised!  It didn't help that I belted out my signature  "donkey bray laugh" and then dropped the bag of lacey undergarments all over the muddy floor and had to retrieve them whilst maintaining a small shred of dignity.   
So back to my Random Act of Hunger Games Awkwardness.  Much like a sheltered pre-teen in the throes of a Justin Bieber concert, I have an awful tendency of becoming a tad bit...overexcited when one of my nerdy books becomes a movie.  Let's just say that my mind is excruciatingly lazy and I get sick of picturing all of my fave characters as stick people with bad hair.  My most awkward moment came from a "theme party" gone wrong.  I can only assume that when I wrote "Hunger Games Theme Party" on the Facebook e-vite that my intelligent friends (and their friends etc) would (despite my lack of clarification due to the door smacking incident) get my drift and come in character.  Nope.  I was the only one rocking a Katniss style braid down to my buttocks, sweet brown "gently used" hunting jacket and a set of (incredibly sharp..ouch!)  arrows .  Theme party fail. 

I've compiled a list of other awkward "Hunger Games" moments that could possibly arise in the next few weeks...


-Your sister asks if you would volunteer as tribute for her if the Hunger Games ever became a reality.  *awkward silence ensues*

-It's a gorgeous sunny day and you are cruising around, windows down, tunes blaring with your homies in tow.  Awkwardness ensues as  Rues Song comes on....for the 6th time...and you accidentally fist pump and yell "This is totally my JAM!!"

-You start giving the three fingered wave to everyone...(Three fingers to the lips then into the air)

-You begin to refer to yourself in the third person adding "The Girl on Fire".  The Awkward Baker...Girl on Fire... (actually, there was this one unfortunate incident with a creme brule torch and a bottle of whiskey....)

-You find yourself belting out "The Capital!!"  when someone asks where your dream vacation is. 

I know there are readers out there who are feeling me with this Awkward thing, so leave a comment!  Let me know I'm not alone and give me your own Awkward Hunger Games moment!!!

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It's Friday, and let me tell you that the Awkward Baker needs a drink.  I assume that you are all with me here, as I just made you read about my dorky obsessions.  I had so much fun making  Homemade Baileys on Valentines Day that I thought I would research other DIY drinks!  I came across this fabulous, easy recipe for Kahlua!!!!  How much fun would it be to roll up to your "Hunger Games" theme party rocking your own Kahlua for Mudslides?  No one would even notice that you are dressed up!  I found this recipe on one of my favourite sites, The Cupcake Project and it turned out AMAZING!  I'm half in the bag now and I haven't even BEGUN to mix drinks yet!

What you Need:

• 6 cups of your favourite brewed coffee (7 if you need one for yourself after a long day!) 
• 1 pound light brown sugar
• 3 1/2 tablespoons Vanilla
• 1/2 litre of vodka...sweet glorious vodka!!!! I sure do love you!!! (oops, took a shot or two for myself!!)

Do it up:

Edward Wandering Onto the Set of the Hunger Games

1. While the coffee is still hot, mix in the brown sugar.
2. Let it cool
3. Mix in vanilla and vodka.  (Do the running man to burn off calories that you will be soon be consuming...also because it's fun and looks hot)
4. Serve it up!  Alone over ice, ice cream topper, mudslides, wet dreams, screaming orgasms (yep, they're real!)  or add it to your baking for an extra oomph!  Cookies, icing and pudding would be DELIGHTFUL!!!!

Photo from "The Cupcake Project"

ENJOY!

May the wine be ever in your flavor!!!!



In place of a quote of the day, watch this hallarious video!!!

Kiss Me, I'm Awkward....Happy St. Pats!!!

I'm going to begin this blog by telling you how much I dislike St. Patricks Day.  Green doesn't go well with my "awkward".  I'm all for a holiday that encourages copious alcohol intake and ludicrous behaviour amongst the masses.  However, a holiday that has turned my least favourite colour into a trend?  Ew.  Also, I dont' get a day off of work for this "holiday" so I kind of feel that it's a sham (rock).  Get it?  ha ha ha.  I think the biggest reason for my tasteful disregard of St. Patricks day would be the leprechauns.  Creepy little friggers.  I have always had a deep seeded fear of their tiny hands, squishy faces and sneaky desire for pilfering.  You can try to dress them up in adorable tiny taylor made green suits and have them prancing about on rainbows doing jigs, but I'm not fooled.  All in all they are still stalking children trying to steal their "lucky charms".  Nothing creepy about that at all.  (Insert wildly sarcastic face) Saturday night while the rest of the planet is at an Irish bar, wearing their tacky variations of "Kiss me I'm Irish" apparel, I'll be under my covers with a large glass of wine (and lets face it, probably a large bowl of Lucky Charms because they are frigging magically delicious).  I'll probably have my "Celtic Lullabye" cd on full swing and I will be wating for the night to end. Please tell me I'm not the only person with a) a heavy diversion to the colour green and b) a paralyzing phobia of leprechauns.

 
As with  Valentines Day  I have put together a few easily avoided awkward moments stemming from my experiences with this "marvellous" holiday. 

That awkward moment when....

-You accidentally yell "LEPRECHAUN!!!"  at a "little person"  and poke them in the belly while demading they give you their pot of gold.  Also it's 10am and you're at work. 


-You head to the bar with your colourblind friend.  She's wearing red. 


-You reach into your (giant green) purse to haul out a pen to give the hot Irishman at the bar your number...but instead haul out a tampon.  Which causes you to have a mini freak out and you fling it into the air.  It lands in his lap. 

-You spew...green...all over your date. 

-You show up to work in head to toe green (including the "mossy stone" nail polish, neon hair clip-on and shamrock belt).  It's only March 16th. 

-You finally confide in your friends about your phobia of leprechauns.  Instead of being understanding (like you were when "Sally" told you about her "thing with feet") they use the opportunity to make fun of you at every social event.  You turn into the "crazy friend" with the "thing with leprechauns". 

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Although I dislike the holiday, I love the drinks!!!  Especially this fabulous one I found at  "Dine and Dish"  for St. Patricks Day Grasshoppers! It's super simple and filled with alcohol!  A recipe after my own heart.  I do love it when people mix ice cream with liquier!!!  This should take a bit of the edge off on Saturday before the Leprechauns arrive!

St. Patrick's Day Grasshopper Ice Cream Cocktail

• 5 Quart Plastic Bucket of Vanilla Ice Cream
• 3 shots of Creme de Menthe liquor
• 1 shot of Creme de Cacao liquor
• 1 shot of Irish Whiskey 

Mix all of the ingredients together and taste.  Feel free to add more (and more and more) liquer to strengthen the taste!  Top with whipped cream for extra tastiness!!!

Photo from "Dine and Dish"

Use your creative awkwardness to garnish these puppies!  Candied shamrocks, green sprinkles...the dollarstore is filled with tacky glasses, straws and serving platters!  What is YOUR favorite St. Patricks day drink???  Also, what are your plans for Saturday?  I need to live vicariously through my readers as I'll be under my covers! 

Quote of the day from How I Met Your Mother:

Barney Stinson: Let's drink green beer! Let's do green Jell-o shots! Where's your St. Patrick's Day spirit?

Lily Aldrin: We're drinking green tea.
Marshall Eriksen: With caffeine.

Cadbury Creme Whore

Stupid mornings...I dislike you with a passion that is generally reserved for my self loathing after gorging upon Double Fudge Irish Cream Cookies while watching an entire season of 90210 in just four days.  My husband can attest to this as he is quite often the victim of "Morning Bitch"  (My alter pre-coffee personality)  Morning Bitch is responsible for all manners of terrible nastiness...the random kicking of walls, growling into cereal boxes and quoting angry lines from "The Vagina Monologues".  It does however, seem to ease off a bit once the caffeine kicks me in the ass and I'm driving to work.  Thank Vodka though, because no one wants to put up with The Awkward/Grumpy baker...Not a marvellous combo.  My therapeutic morning drive generally consists of me, my coffee and Playboy Radio on Sirius xm.  Nothing will perk you up quite like the scandalous tales of a Playboy Bunny.  Ahhh...skanky girls and their weekend party tales, how I love you. This leads me into this weeks Random Act of Awkwardness.  


On Wednesday morning I was grumping my way to work when I realised that I had forgotten to pick up cream for my personal coffee stash.  (no one likes the communal cream jug...ew...We all know a certain "someone" who takes secret chugs while pretending to be on "Weight Watchers")  Anyhoo, I stopped at a sketchy gas station and left the car running.  The windows were down a tad, due to a caffeine high heat flash.  I thought nothing of it as I bolted into the store and made my purchase.  When I came out, I was slightly put off to see a couple of mullety truckers having a jolly giggle outside of my car.  Mortification hit as I realised that they were listening to "The Morning After Show" featuring an incredibly explicit , naughty encounter of a playboy bunny's weekend.  Let's just say that there may or may not have been some mention of  mastering the "fivesome" and some "Do it yourself" hints and tips.  (What??  A girl has to stay current in this day and age!!)  I attemped to wait until they grew tired of the radio escapades (yeah right) but since I was already late for work, I had to take the "walk of shame" and get into the car.  Awkwrdness ensued all around as I approached the car and after a few strained "mornins" we went our own awkward ways.  It's no surprise that i had to rush home after work and bake up my next incredible treat....wait for it...

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It's that time of year again...time to loosen your belt a few notches, pull your hair back and hide the scales.  Cadbury Creme Eggs....I like em big, small, in a chocolate bar, chocolate covered Joe Louis inspired cake, McFlurry... I especially like them inside of a mini cupcake...topped with Baileys Butter cream icing... Drool much?  Stick with me viewers, I won't steer you wrong. I may make you fat, but while going downhill, you will have a mouth filled with amazingness.  (Yep, perfect "That's what she said" moment!!)

Before we begin, let's take a little trip down memory lane...to a simple time, before global warming and celebrity crotch shots.  The old school Cadbury Creme Egg commercials.  I'm revolted and slightly irritated by the new commercials that have the slogan "Release the Goo."   Seriously???  I'm pretty sure I once had a skeevy old man with one eye and a curly mullet at a bar make that same suggestion....unfortunately it wasn't Easter, and there were no creme eggs in sight.  Just saying.  It's creepy and no one needs you to be releasing any goo all over their delightful Easter treats. 
So sit back and enjoy the nostalgia of the "bock bocking" bunny. 

Now that I've got you all in a craving frenzy, let's whip up a little concoction to satiate your appetite. It's super simple and can be modified in so many ways! You may choose to ditch the mini version and simply go all out with the big ones...Some days are just like that. 


 "Mini Creme Egg Cupcakes with Baileys Butter cream Icing"


What you will need:


For the cake:

• One box of your favourite cake mix.  I always use Ducan Hines because I love me a nice moist cake.  You will be following the directions on the box, so ingredients will vary.  They usually require milk, eggs and vegetable oil. 
• 12 mini creme eggs. 

For the Icing:

• 1 Cup of Butter
• 3 Cups of Icing Sugar
• 2 Teaspoons of Delicious home made Vanilla
• 4 tablespoons of  home made Baileys (or store bought of course!!!)

Do it up!!!

Note: Put your 12 mini Cadbury creme eggs in the freezer about an hour before you begin, to prevent a gooey mess in the oven. 

Prepare the cake mix according to the box (hee hee...box) and line your adorable mini cupcake tins with some fabulous liners.  I'm LOVING the gorgeous liners from "Bake It Pretty" !  Fill the cups, leaving a small space for the eggs to be plunked into.  Once you fill the cups, plop a small egg into the middle of each cupcake and stick them in the oven. Follow the baking instructions on the box and give yourself a jolly pat on the back for being a regular kitchen goddess. 

While you are waiting, mix up the icing!!!  Mix all of the ingredients together and give it a little taste.  If you find it to be a bit runny, add more icing sugar.  Too dry?  Add more baileys!  This buttercream icing recipe tastes amazing and is so simple!!! 

Wait until the cupcakes cool off then go crazy with your icing!!!  I'm going on a bit of a "Cadbury Creme Egg" recipe bender here soon, so bear with me for all things creme egg and alcohol based.  Feel free to leave your ideas and suggestions!!!!!  In other words, please help fuel my addiction!!!

Photo from Too Sweet Bakery

Quote of the day from "Happy Endings"

Brad [to Jane]: I'm not the one who always goes out to the terrace to stretch because quote, "the perv across the way needs to eat too!"

You're Awkward and I Know It....

One of my all time favourite pastimes would have to be relishing in the Random Acts of Awkwardness of others.  I adore my own awkwardness, however, spending the majority of my day red faced and flabbergasted is only fun-tastic for so long...I'm just that disturbed that I like the spotlight to be on someone else's "Freak Flag" once in a while.  Nothing is quite as delicious as watching someone get crapped on by a rogue pigeon or slip on the ice and end up in a strange spread eagle position while passerbys just avert their eyes.  You know it will probably be your turn in the next few days, but until then, the humiliation is all theirs. 

Just last week I was fortunate enough to witness a leggy blond woman ask for "3 1/2 inch screws" at the local hardware store.  The jiggly man behind the counter let out a small series of snorts and masked giggles, which sounded more like a donkey being molested by a drunk cowboy. The awkwardness that ensued was gorgeous.  I relished in the moment and continued to observe the remainder of the encounter through the dusty shelves of my hiding place.  There was a great deal of stuttering, strange hand gestures and even some feet stomping that give my own awkward reactions a run for their money.  Ahhh, other people, I just love when you show me your oddities. 

I think it would be fun to spend a day going about the town and creating awkward moments for others to walk into.  Just for giggles and snorts.  Perhaps you could lock all of the doors in a public washroom and watch in glee as people rush to squirm under for a pee.  Or on a "gassy" day you could stroll the aisles of the local supermarket and bolt after a toot, so that great awkwardness ensues for those attempting to have a civilised conversation.  You KNOW they are both thinking the other person did it, but through strained smiles and "mouth breathing" they are much too polite to say anything.  Oooh, or leave your cuchini lying around at a party and see how many people you can turn red faced when they ask you what it is!  Anyone have any of their own ideas on how to make others lives awkward?  ;)

I'm disgustingly excited for today's recipe...I'm talking "fat kid gets a shiny new red bike" kind of excited.  I'm talking "Grandma got a brand new bingo dabber" excited.  My world has turned back side up since learning how to make my own Baileys.  The sun is brighter, the snow is whiter and there is a tiny spring in my step that wasn't there before.  You may argue that it's probably because I'm permanently drunk (Baileys in my coffee, oatmeal, pancakes etc) and you are probably right.  Whatever the cause, life is fabulous.  So fabulous in fact that I am sharing with you one of the most delicious recipes I have ever stumbled across.....Double Fudge Irish Cream Cookies.  Yep, I said it. Your Welcome.  If you've already made a batch of your own Baileys, this is an awesome opportunity to use it in a recipe!  (If you have any left of course!) 

Also, I want to give a quick shout out to a viewer who was going to be a creative genius and try banana liqueur in her homemade Baileys concoction.  What an incredible idea Melanie!  Be sure you let us know how it turns out!  We are eagerly (ie drunkenly) awaiting your review!!!!!  I love love love a new and fabulous recipe, so always feel free to leave a comment with your ideas/recipes in them!

Let's get to baking shall we!!!!  I should also mention that I found this amazing recipe at one of my favourite baking blogs:  How Sweet It Is .  Seriously, check it out for some sweet ass drool worthy recipes. 

Double Fudge Irish Cream Cookies  (I just can't stop saying it...)

What you will need:

1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla  (yay!!  Use your homemade vanilla from my first ever post!)
2 2/3 cups flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon instant coffee powder
8 tablespoons Bailey’s Irish Cream liqueur (mmmm....it would also be fun to try the mint Baileys)
1 cup white chocolate chips
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Do it up:

Cream butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla until fluffy. Add in Bailey’s one tablespoon at a time. (One for you Mr. bowl, two for me..)  Add flour, cocoa powder, instant coffee, baking soda and salt and mix until combined.
Fold in chocolate chips. Refrigerate dough for 4-6 hours.
Roll into balls (hee hee...balls....) and set on baking sheet.
Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.

Now lock your doors, lace a giant cup of coffee with any remaining Baileys and have yourself an old fashioned "cookie fest".  You know, back in the day when you didn't worry about getting chocolate all over your face and stuck in your teeth, crumbs on your chest or coffee on your crotch.  Just shovel these bad boys in your mouth like a whore at a "Who's in my mouth party".  Leave the clean up until later and just delight in the feeling of a face full of chocolate and a full belly.   "Eat like no one is watching"

Photo from "How Sweet It Is"

I'd also like to remind you guys that I recently joined Twitter!  I'm new to the tweeting, twatting, tooting world, but I'm slowly figuring it out.  Follow me @TheAwkwardbaker

Quote of the day from Modern Family:

Cam: I'm playing a drinking game. It's called every time I feel depressed about something, I take a drink.
Mitchell: That's already a game. It's called alcoholism

Not your Grandmas Moonshine...Happy VD

Ahhh...sweet VD...No I don't mean that unfortunate STD you picked up in Vegas on your 25th Birthday...(Damn you Elton John impersonator...)Valentines Day...Nothing entertains me more than reading the bitter ramblings of single/ broken hearted ladies on Facebook...Yes I admit that I'm one of those creeps who gets a secret perverse joy out of the misery of others, while sitting in front of the computer drinking mimosas and gorging on box upon box of fancy heart shaped chocolates.  It's all I've got as the the other 21 hours of my day are spent in extreme awkwardness.  Speaking of which, nothing will bring out the strangeness quite like Valentines.  Whether it's the pressure for romantic perfection or the quest for a decent pair of control top panty hose so you can look sexy while stuffing your face. I've made up a small "To DON'T list"  for Valentines Day.  It's a lovely montage of awkward mistakes I've made in the past...and this morning.

-DO NOT unintentionally treat your neighbours to your morning dance performance AKA "The  Whitney Houston Tribute" As proud as you are of your sweet sparkly pants, gyrating hips and rendition of "I Wanna Dance With Somebody"...nobody needs to see that...put that away. Or close the blinds. 

-When sending yourself roses, assume that your coworkers WILL steal the little card away and read it.  So please dont' sign it "Can't wait for our steamy ice cream date tonight sexy...xoxo Awkward Baker."  The world isn't ready for you to be dating yourself. 

-Please try to avoid that awkward moment when you check yourself out in the mirror at work and discover (to your horror) that you should have worn a cuchini (CLICK HERE for more details on the cuchini...lol)

-Do not assume that because it was comfortable and easy to get INTO the beanbag chair at the V-Day party, that it will be at all flattering to get out of.  Just trust me on this. 

-Happy VD isn't actually an appropriate way to greet people today...Let's stop with the abbreviations already!!!

-When Facebook stalking, take extra caution not to "like" the depressing statuses of the love scorned.  Yes, it's funny when people air their nasty laundry to the public and immensely entertaining to us stable folk, however, there is always that awkward moment when you see them face to face after you "liked"  their "Valentines Day makes me want to jump off a cliff" status. 

-Now that your grandfather has a cell phone, make sure that when you are sending your loved one a "naughty text" that you actually send it to your loved one.  Gramps can't handle your whipped cream bikini photo. (Nor do you want him to).

Feel free to leave your own awkward, embarrassing Valentine tales in the comment section!!!!

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In celebration of VD (either the love day or your unfortunate STD) we are making HOMEMADE BAILEYS!!!  You read that right.  Baileys. From. Scratch.  It's simple, delicious and an amazing little treat to whip up for your Valentine!!  Note to readers: This is NOT your Grandmas Moonshine....everyone loves homemade Baileys.  (Especially Old Gregg)  I found my recipe on the The Cupcake Project website (love love love this site!!!) 

What you will need

• 1 Cup of heavy whipping cream
• 14oz sweetened condensed milk
• 1 2/3 Irish Whiskey
• 1 teaspoon of instant coffee
• 2 Tablespoons of Hershey's chocolate syrup
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla (Yay!! Time to bring our your homemade vanilla from my first post!)

Do it up
Combine all of the ingredients in a blender on high speed for 30 seconds.  Put in a tightly sealed contained and refrigerate.  Always shake before serving.  This will keep for up to 2 months!  (Ha ha, it'll never last that long, but good to know)

Make it Pretty

You can get super creative and decorate bottles or mason jars and give this out as adorable presents. 

Photo from :  The Cupcake Project

Have fun with the Homemade Baileys and have a wonderful magnificent Awkward Valentines Day!!!


Quote of the Day From "The New Girl"

Cece: There’s nothing less sexy than a dude asking if he can kiss you.
Schmidt: Nothing? I mean, what if I ate my own hair and pooped out a wig? What if I called my mom after sex and described it to her? What if I had a croissant blog?

Big Carl and Pee Accidents (just a bit)

Oh Saturday nights...how I do love you and your wine coated serenity.  I'm all curled up beneath a furry blanket with a fantastic Big Carl style wineglass and Air Supply bellowing sweet nothings in the background.  (Don't judge, we all have our "private guilty pleasure playlist")  Also, I'm scarfing down ice cream like a fat kid who just got sprung from a "Healthy Lifestyle Summer Camp".  For your orgasmic listening pleasure, I'm giving you the gift....of Air Supply.  So that you may read this post while experiencing the giant fluffy mullet and high pitched lady voice that I just can't seem to place. 

*Sighs*
Leave me a comment with your most embarassing "guilty pleasure playlist song"..I'm sure we have some in common!!!

So I've been deep in thought about all of the mini awkward moments that occur on a daily basis. Those quick, spur of the moment instants that leave you flustered and throw off your "game" for the rest of the day.  They happen to all of us and today was one of those days where I could check off about 5 from the following list.  Please leave your mini awkward moments in the comment section, and I will feature them in my next blog!  I can't wait to hear your awkward stories, as they make me feel a bit more human. 

That Awkward Moment When: 

-You say "Have a nice weekend!!!"  to the plumber...on a Tuesday morning. 

-You are elbow deep in a bottle of wine when your husbands religious non drinking coworker stops in...you burp and slur your way to the bedroom. 
-The "Pedro from Napoleon Dynamite"  look-a-like hears the click of your camera phone and catches you sneaking his pic on the bus. 

-A car pulls up next to you while you are jamming out to an 80s power ballad.  *the slow fist pump and heart clutch because it's totally speaking to you*

-You sneeze and pee just a bit...at the gym...

-Your New Years play list accidentally featured "Air Supply"...and you forgot your bearings for just a moment and let our a terribly enthusiastic WHOOP!!!

-One of your students says (in front of another teacher) "I saw you this summer at the Beer Store!!!!"  *crickets*  Me "Nooo..you did not..crazy kids these days..."

-Your dog sniffs EVERY SINGLE mans crotch.  It loves crotches.  So much. 

-Your glasses fog up the moment you walk inside of a store.  You are awkward so you leave them on and stumble around making several people uncomfortable. 

-You laugh inappropriately (and loudly) at jiggly people on bikes....

-You buy your niece a new sippy cup......
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"How YOU doing Princess..."

Tonight's recipe is an AMAZING little concoction I found at My Baking Addiction. No Bake Nutella Cheesecake.  Seriously.  I always have a giant jar of Nutella on hand, because let's be honest, it's chocolate bread spread.  The prep time is only 15 minutes and it serves 4-6 of your closest most awkward friends!!!  Yay! Fast and easy!!! (Luckily I outgrew THAT nickname after highschool)

What you need:

Crust
-12 Oreo cookies, smooshed.  (This is always good for relieving tension after your mini awkward moments)
-3 Tbsp melted butter

Filling
-1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
-2/3 cup Nutella (taste a few spoonfuls first though, just to make sure it's still good...)
-1 tsp pure vanilla extract  (Yay!!  Just use your homemade vanilla from my first ever entry!)
-1 (8 ounce) tub frozen whipped topping, thawed

Garnish

You can get pretty creative with this:  Crushed hazelnuts, chocolate bits, sprinkles etc.  My personal suggestion would be to pour a bit of Baileys or Caramilk Liqueur over the top just before serving, just as a little extra perk.  Do it up!!!

1.  In a medium bowl, mix the cookie crumbs and butter.  Evenly divide this delicious mixture into your individual serving dishes and press them into the bottom. 

2. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and Nutella until smooth. Add vanilla (if you did make the homemade vanilla, go ahead and take a swig or two.)  Fold in the whipped cream until it's all blended up!!

3. Evenly distribute the filling into the dishes! (Spoon or if you are feeling creative, use an icing bag and make it pretty!!!) Cover your concoction with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.


4. Make it pretty with a garnish!!!


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Photo from "My Baking Addiction"

Enjoy!!!  

Favourite Blog of the day:  The Awkward Blogger




Quote of the day from Demetri Martin:


"I like the beach. I like to get there really early before everyone else shows up and take like thirty bottles with notes in them and throw them into the water. Then I wait for everyone to come to the beach and when someone goes to pick up one of the bottles, I go up behind them because when they open it there’s a note saying ‘I’m standing right behind you.’”

Soft Meat and Alcoholic Milkshakes

My poor in laws. I often wonder if they would like a refund on this strange little awkward thing their son drug home. (The one who snorts too loud, drinks too much at family suppers to "loosen up a tad", giggles uncontrollably when anyone says anything remotely naughty and says inappropriate things to try and break awkward silences.  "Haaa haaa...that banana is huuuge....") 


Last night we were over for "pork chop night".  I'm not a grand lover of the chops, so I graciously declined.  Silence ensued and looks were passed...Feeling the awkward need to elaborate on my rejection, I began... "I love chops, seriously....but sometimes I find them a bit hard and chewy in my mouth...and I am in the mood for soft in my mouth...yep."  *Realises what was just said and makes awkward squished up face while shoving potatoes in mouth*  It's a real wonder my husband lets me out of the house. 


On a slightly related note, I was online shopping for my niece yesterday and came across the most fabulously perturbing toys.  I shall call the following section "Christmas Morning...Awkwardness Ensues" 




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It's a Lite Wand.....*snatches it from recipient and disappears*

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AHHHH!!!!  





 


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Help!! I'm stuck inside a giant dong!!!

 I could literally go on for hours with the disturbing toys I found.  I'll leave the best one for tomorrow though...just to keep you guessing!  Also, feel free to share your own disturbing toy searches with me.  I'm always up for a giggle. 

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It's Monday again (How the heck do they keep finding me??!!)  I'm thinking that the only thing to really get us all through today is an amazingly fabulous little treat...Yes I'm aware that at 10:00 in the morning, alcohol may or may not be the best option.  However, it's all in the name of blogging, so it's justified.  I found this super simple and DELICIOUS recipe for Oreo and Irish Cream Milkshakes. 


What you need:

Vanilla ice cream (I'm in love with breyers vanilla)
Milk
1 shot of Irish cream liqueur (one shot for the recipe, then one shot for you!!!)
1 shot chocolate liqueur (see above)
3 Oreo cookies + 1 more for garnish

Do it up:

Fill your intended glass up with packed ice cream.  Pour the milk in to the top of the glass.  Toss the mixture as well as your Irish Cream, Chocolate liquer and oreo cookies into the blender.  Mix it up.  Dance as you do this, just because you are about to have ice cream and liquer in your mouth. 

The website I got this from does a cute garnish with an extra oreo, so check it out here.  They have a ton of incredible recipes, so do yourself a favour and visit!  This would also work with the golden oreos or the chocolate covered  mint ones!   I'm thinking it would also be a great little treat to bring my in laws, so that they may forget about my "meat mistake"..... Now go and ENJOY!!!

Photo from The Hungry Mouse

Quote of the day:

"I saw this wino, he was eating grapes. I was like, "Dude, you have to wait"-Mitch Hedberg