Egg Salad Sandwich...

Just in time for Easter and all those hard-boiled eggs, I present to you my egg salad sandwich recipe!

Egg Salad Sandwich Recipe

Ingredients:

• 8 eggs
• 1/3 cup mayo
• 2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 Tablespoon chopped parsley
• 1 Tablespoon chopped dill
• 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic salt
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Fill medium size saucepan with cold water. Carefully place eggs in, making sure the water covers them. Place on burner over high heat. Wait until the water comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium and boil for 10 minutes.

Remove from heat, drain water and then place the eggs immediately in a bowl of cold water. Unshell the eggs and then chop them up.

Stir eggs and all ingredients in a bowl, toast two slices of bread and serve with lettuce or pickles (however you like it).


You can also make a few extra hard boiled eggs for Easter egg dyeing purposes : ) Now hop to it!

“There is nothing better than a friend, unless it is a friend with chocolate” -Charles Dickens

This needs no explanation : )

Apple Cinnamon Muffins...

With leftover bananas you make banana bread; additional blueberries makes blueberry pancakes; extra lemons makes lemon bars.

But what about apples? This recipe for Apple Cinnamon Muffins is very quick and easy - use any kind of leftover apples to make this delicious breakfast treat!

Before...

After....

                                                     

Apple Cinnamon Muffins (Makes 8 muffins)
Adapted from a Perfect Baking recipe by Parragon

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 small apples; peeled, cored and finely chopped 
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 egg, beaten
• 5 tablespoons butter, melted

Topping:

• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

 Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line 8 muffin tins with paper liners. Sift flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon together in a large bowl. Stir in sugar and chopped apples. In a smaller bowl stir milk, egg and butter until well mixed. Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until combined. Divide batter evenly among liners. Mix together topping ingredients and then sprinkle over the muffins. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden.

If an apple a day really does keep the doctor away, all you have to do is eat half of these muffins which shouldn't be too hard : )

Fran's Chocolates...

might be my hands down favorite chocolate in the entire world. And that is saying a lot because I have quite a sweet tooth.

What about Fran's is so enticing? A bite of smooth caramel surrounded by milk or dark chocolate. The best part about it though is the sprinkling of gray or smoked salt on the very top. The saltiness against the buttery caramel and rich chocolate is divine. Gray Salt Dark Chocolate Fran's are my favorite.

They make wonderful gifts, but these heavenly chocolates aren't cheap: a box with 7 chocolates cost $12; 20 is $25. They are worth every penny though, and are much more a chocolate to savor than devour.

And they give a free sample at their store locations in Bellevue, University Village or downtown. Now that's what I call ending on a sweet note!

Fran's Chocolates - www.franschocolates.com
1325 1st Ave
Seattle, WA 98101
Hours: Monday - Saturday 9:30am-7pm, Sunday 10am-5pm

Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate Chips...

Peanut butter meet chocolate. You're going to love each other.

Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate Chips
slightly adapted from Martha Stewart's Peanut Butter Cookies recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips*

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Mix sugar, brown sugar and butter with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy (about 3 minutes). Add egg, then vanilla and finally peanut butter. Add flour and baking soda until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop spoonfuls of batter onto a parchment paper covered cookie sheet. Leave about an inch and a half between the cookies. Bake for 7 minutes. Pull cookies out and lightly press crisscross fork patterns into the cookies. Bake for an additional 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

*Mini chocolate chips are my new best friend. Sure, they don't give you that single bite of melted chocolate, but they are good when using two different flavors like peanut butter because they compliment without overwhelming.

These cookies are seriously crumbly and sugar. Disclaimer though: you won't be able to stop at just one!

Send a S'more...

America's favorite campfire treat: the s'more. Sticky, gooey marshmallow combined with warm, melted chocolate inside a crumbly graham cracker sandwich. Delicious and very simple.

When I received a s'more in the mail last week, it instantly brightened my day. I had never seen or heard of anything like it. A little note accompanying the package directed me to the "Send a S'more" site - www.sendasmore.com

From the site, you can send an individually wrapped s'more to friends and family with everything they need to make the campfire treat: ingredients and a candle. Include a personalized note or let your identity remain a mystery. But rather than sending someone a congratulatory card or note of thanks, why not send a s'more? Or like my admirer did, why not send it just because?

Trust me; it will mean so much s'more : )

Happy St. Patrick's Day!...

May your day be filled with an abundance of frothy Guinness drinks, a little luck o' the Irish and the color green : )