This week's book is a perfect fit if your trying to be organized in 2009!

You can win CLEAN SWEEP; the Ultimate Guide to Decluttering, Detoxing and Destressing your Home. Written by Alison Haynes.

Be listening to win.... 

Every year I add a new cookie cutter to my collection, two years ago I started making Christmas coyote cookies thanks to a cool cutter I found while on vacation on Route 66. This year's addition is an electric guitar cookie cutter as it's one of my daughter's passions. I got a regular guitar cutter too just in case the electric was hard to recgonize.  Here is the site to get almost any type of cookie cutter imanigible. www.Kitchengifts.com

And here is their famous sugar cookie recipe. Take note the dough MUST be chilled, some recipes even call for freezing the cut cookie 15 minutes before baking.  I'll try a few different ways and report back:

Happy Baking!

NO FAIL SUGAR COOKIES

This recipe is GREAT when using complex cookie cutters.  The dough holds its' shape and won't spread during baking. 
Make sure you let your oven preheat for at least 1/2 hour before baking these or any other cookies.

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs and vanilla.  Mix well. Mix dry ingredients and add a little
at a time to butter mixture.  Mix until flour is completely incorporated and the dough comes together.

Chill for 1 to 2 hours (or see Hint below)

Roll to desired thickness and cut into desired shapes.  Bake on ungreased baking sheet at 350 
degrees for 8 to 10 minutes or until just beginning to turn brown around the edges.  This recipe 
can make up to 5-dozen 3” cookies. 

HINT: Rolling Out Dough Without the Mess -- Rather than wait for your cookie dough to
chill, take the freshly made dough and place a glob between two sheets of parchment paper. 
Roll it out to the desired thickness then place the dough and paper on a cookie sheet and pop it into the refrigerator. 
Continue rolling out your dough between sheets of paper until you have used it all.  By the time you are finished, the
first batch will be completely chilled and ready to cut.  Reroll leftover dough and repeat the process!  An added bonus
is that you are not adding any additional flour to your cookies.

 Get your aprons ready!

I need your best Christmas cookie recipe! And a picture if you have one. Please send them to Beth@Star991fm.com so I can post them on this blog. Then we can all bake ourselves into a holiday oblivion and try a new recipe or two...we'll talk about the gym after the New Year :)

Thank you so much for your generosity and commitment to STAR 99.1 FM. Thank you for calling or emailing in a gift during last weeks Shareathon. This encourages me beyond belief. Blessings:)

Thank you so much for listening and for making STAR 99.1 an important part of your life. Please pray about giving a gift for this year's Shareathon we are listener-supported meaning this is YOUR radio station.I see and hear lives changed daily it's amazing how God's uses STAR 99.1. Please help us get fully funded. 1-888-STAR-991 or www.Star991fm.com

Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you

Here are the books I'm giving away this week in Beth's Book Club:

The Unseen By TL Hines I did get to interview TL who was diagnosised and treated for lymphoma during the writing of this book. Praise God he is healthy. The plot of this book revolves around the fascinating underground "Urban Exploration" movement. After you read this you'll wonder who might be watching you.

For the kids:

The Amazing Fact Book For Kids 

My youngest daughter disappeared for a good hour after I gave this book to her.

Happy Reading!

Jennifer's Easy Pasta

My friend Jennifer from Randolph, New Jersey enjoys a busy life with her husband and two kids. This is one of her favorite comfort food recipes plus evryone one in her family will eat it! 

Ingredients:

1 lb. pasta

1 head of broccoli

grated parmesan cheese

butter

salt & pepper

Boil water in a big pot.

Cut brocolli into small pieces

Add pasta and cook according to directions on the box.

4 minutes before the pasta is done throw in the broccoli

pour into collinder when cooking time has finished

puts lots of butter and cheeses in hot pot

put frained pasta and broccoli into pot, too

salt and pepper to taste.

Yum!

Please send your favorite recipes to me so I can post it for all to enjoy, pictures too!

Here's a delicious seasonal desert from Lorrie in South Amboy.

Plum Cake

1/2 cup sugar

1 stick of butter

2 eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 tsp almond extract

1 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

10 Italian plums, cut in half lenghtwise, pit removed

Topping:

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

Cream butter & sugar. Add eggs one at a time & mix well. Add vanilla and almand extracts.

In a seperate bowl, combine flour, baking powder & salt. Add these dry ingredients to the creamed mixture. Batter will be thick.

Grease a 9" round cake pan. Pour batter into pan & spread with spatula. Arrange plum slices skin side up on top of batter. Sprinkle with topping.

Bake at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes, testing for doneness after 30 minutes as ovens vary.

September 30, 2008 

I had the pleasure of hosting a fundraising dinner for American Christian School.

What a blast it was meeting everyone from the Headmistress to many loving parents. I was seated at the rowdy chicks table that included one very happy chaperone named Bob

7-7-08

Last week I had the pleasure of playing NYC tour guide to one of my dearest friends; Sylvia Chacon. Sylvia is an air personality in San Francisco, she works Middays at Star 101.3FM 

First stop...the bank! New York is a pricey place so we got cash at Chase Manhattan Bank where it just happened to be customer appreciation day. Chase had massage therapists available to anyone who had time for some stress relief. Here is Sylvia and her first official stop in the world's greatest city, she's getting a free massage! What a way to start the day!

 I think EVERY day should be customer appreciation day!

Off to the Empire States Buliding...

St. Patrick's Catherdral...

We met up with Shaq at the NBA store..

We checked out the singing waiters and waitresses at Ellen's Stardust Diner.

*Take note, I think Ellen's is a great place to bring out of town guests or to grab a quick bite before or after a show, BUT they are currently remodeling, which is a good thing, although our food and service was not up to their usual standards, we still had fun waiting an hour for our food!

Theater Row! Sylvia and her kids got to see the amazing Lion King on Broadway.

FAO Schwartz...

And of course we had to go to a Yankee Game where they clobbered Texas 18-7.

Great view!

We went to Junior's for cheesecake, the Statue of Liberty, Central Park and stood on the FDR drive to watch the Macy's fourth of July fireworks, unfortunately my camera did not have enough stamina to document these good times with my good friend. 

I hope you are having a good summer too.

bb

Here are the books I'm giving away this week:

- I'll Bring the Chocolate by Karen Porter

(doesn't the name just make you want to read it?)

- Sydney Clair's Season of Change by Pam Davis

(good pre-teen book)

Hope you Win!

2008-06-17 

Congratulations to the Class of 2008!

Especially my beautiful daughter Haylee who just graduated High School!

..I'll add a picture as soon as I figure out how, I'm new to this blogging stuff. I'd love to see your graduates picture too!

Special thanks to Mary Anne from Maplewood for these song lyrics....they make me cry.

Welcome to my blog!  I look forward to hearing all of what you have to say, so please feel free to post your thoughts, comments, requests, etc.