So, I learned my first valuable lesson in blogging last night.  SAVE your work as you go!  I had a whole wonderful blog with recipe typed up & hit something wrong & everything was gone:(  I usually can find where to recover stuff, but I had no such luck last night.  I was so discouraged I had to go to On The Border & have a margarita with my husband.  Let me tell you, it was really good!

Let's begin again.  I won't put everything into one blog that I had last night, so it was probably a good thing.  I have to learn how to shorten things up & get to the point.

I started a part-time holiday job yesterday at Williams Sonoma.  Probably one of my favorite places in the world, besides my massage table.  Somehow there has to be a connection between massaging people & loving food, right?

There are so many great things about Williams Sonoma I can't get to them all today.  Two of the awesome products around for the holidays are the Pecan Pumpkin Butter and the Spiced Pecan Pumpkin Quick Bread Mix.  

Of course you can do the traditional things with them like make bread and pumpkin pie or you can make Williams Sonoma Ooey Gooey Pumpkin Bars!  I choose the latter.

Lets begin with the recipe for OOEY GOOEY PUMPKIN BARS, by Williams Sonoma

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 13x9" baking pan.

For the crust:
1 Package (1 lb. 2oz) Spiced Pecan Pumpkin Quick Bread Mix*
1 Egg
8 TBLS. (1 stick) Unsalted Butter, melted

In the bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with the flat beater, combine the quick bread mix, egg and melted butter.  Beat on low speed until the ingredients come together, 1-2 minutes.  Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and spread out evenly.  Press the crust down until it feels compact, using the back of a measuring cup can help.
Wash & dry the mixer bowl and beater.

For the filling:
1 Package (8oz) Cream Cheese, at room temperature
1 Jar (13.5oz) Muirhead Pecan Pumpkin Butter*
3 Eggs
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
8 TBLS. (1 stick) Unsalted Butter, melted
1/2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
15 oz Confectioners' Sugar

In the mixer bowl, combine the cream cheese and pumpkin butter.  Beat on medium speed until smooth, about 1 minute.  Add the eggs, vanilla, melted butter and cinnamon.  Beat until combined, about 2 minutes.  Add the confectioners' sugar and beat well, about 2 minutes.

Spread the filling over the crust.

Transfer to the oven and bake for 40-50 minutes.  Do not over bake; the center should still be a little gooey (hence the name).  To test for doneness, gently shake the pan; you should see a slight jiggle in the center.  Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for at least 20 minutes.  Cut into bars.  Makes 16 large bars or more smaller ones.  ENJOY!!

So, there is my first of many recipes I want to share.  I will get better at taking pictures and explaining stuff, but I just had to get the first one done to see how it goes.

I am now off to another gig I took on, demo-ing Soda Stream Machines.  It is a make your own soda/sparkling water machine.  Saves money, the environment & is healthier than regular soda.  I will give you more information in my next session.

Have a fabulous weekend!  And make some Ooey Gooey Pumpkin Bars!

Lets begin again.....

So it has been a couple years and I am really ready this time to start blogging!  I go through my daily life doing things that I want to let the world know about without posting every detail on other outlets.  I want to give people the option to read my thoughts & ideas if they choose, so a blog is the best way to do that.
Please join me in this journey through life, trying to enjoy as much as I can whether it be food, travel, shopping, or whatever it is going on in my life or mind.

I think we are all on a journey to finding our true selves and that takes us on different paths in different parts of our lives.  I am a professional massage therapist by day but my first passion in life is food!  Whether it be baking, cooking, eating, sampling, I love it all!  I love to try new recipes & cook for my husband.  Don't get me wrong, we also LOVE to eat out!  It seems contradicting, that why when I love to cook do we eat out so much, but there is just something about someone else doing the cooking & cleaning up that can't be beat.

With the holidays coming up, it is a great time to bake the classic recipes but also try some new ones.  I have found another website called www.pinterest.com, where everything brilliant on the web is all in one place.  Check it out, it's so cool!

Enough rambling, lets begin......