Winner takes it all

You may recall a few posts ago where I mentioned my sister, mom, and niece would be on the Sept. 27th episode of The Price is Right.  They attended the taping back in June and managed to keep quiet about what happened.  I assumed, from the encouragement to watch, that one of them got to Contestant's Row.  Well... my sister got up on stage, proceeded to win her prize handily, won the top showcase spot at the wheel, and then won her showcase!  All in all, she won over 47K worth of stuff (a Ford Escape SUV, a trip to Hawaii, a trip to Colorado, some hyper enclosed shower/tub/tv/dvr/phone/fridge thing, and a vanity).  As Drew Carry told her, "It's surreal isn't it".  Also, the models are huge compared to my family.  I had no idea they were that tall.  Can't wait to see the new car and crazy shower assembly at Thanksgiving.

Three Day Weekend (for some)

It's getting chilly out there. This is my favorite time of year. Roasted pumpkin seeds. Sweaters and jeans. Crazy Halloween costume ads. This weekend is a 3 day weekend for most of us. Besides being a shopping "bonanza", it's also a celebration of Columbus Day. I intend to celebrate by doing some cleaning, going to an art opening, watching a movie one afternoon, and sipping hot chocolate (i.e. taking it easy). To help you take it easy, here's my recipe for hot chocolate mix. It's really a dark chocolate mix. No sugar laced brown water here. I altered Alton Brown's recipe to create a dark chocolate version, enjoy!

1 cup cocoa (baking or dutch. Dutch is better IMO)
1 1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup powdered milk
1/2 tsp salt (finely ground sea salt is best, don't use iodized)
2 tsp cornstarch
1 pinch finely ground cayenne pepper

I use skim milk to make this. You will have to experiment with it if you use other kinds of milk. Don't use water. It is just so... wrong IMO. Heat 1 3/4 cups skim milk. Place 2 heaping tablespoons of mix into your mug of choice (mine holds 1 3/4 cups, a big travel, insulated thing). Pour half of hot milk into mug, stir. Pour in the rest, stir. Enjoy.

It's late July. It's hot. It's humid. Stay inside (or on your porch with your feet in a kiddie pool) and drink lemonade.

Get a nice, decent sized pitcher. Add 1 cup lemon juice (make sure it's reasonably fresh and hasn't been sitting in your frig for 6 months) and 1/2 cup lime juice. Add 1 1/2 cups sugar and swirl until dissolved. Add 7 3/4 cups water, chill and enjoy. Goes great with BLT's and burgers.