This and That

This is the beautiful view that greets me most mornings when I look out my windows. In the summer, the leaves on the trees block the view of the neighbors houses. It also blocks the views of the beautiful sunrises and sunsets that we have here in Georgia. Even though the view is ever changing with the seasons, I LOVE what I see when I look out my windows - the sun always streams through making my house look warm and cheerful inside - unlike my old house which didn't get much sun at all.

I have been enjoying the time with my son who is now living here with us. He moved here from Washington State as I wrote about in this post. We have him settled now in his new school. I think he will adjust well - he is already making friends and this morning, he and his father are on their way to help work on our new church building. They are helping the Builders For Christ who are here as I wrote about in this post.

Last week was a very busy week. I am finally feeling my head above water.

Our church Ladies Group had a special evening planned to honor the wives of the Builders For Christ. They are here working side by side with their husbands building our church. Some of them help in small ways - cleaning up the worksite - warming the meals brought to them by the ladies of our congregation. All of their service is done for the Lord - They have dedicated their retirement years -when their lives should be slowing down from the hardships of work for the worthy cause of building churches wherever they are needed. I am in awe of this ministry! They give up time away from their homes, families and their home church families to do the Lord's work in this way. They live for weeks on end in trailers which are on our site. They put up with many inconvieniences and poor weather all without complaint! The ladies of our congregation wanted to honor them for their selfless acts of service to us by giving them a night out -a "ladies night out" so that we could get to know them better. We had so much fun - we played Bunco which is a fun way to get to know people because you are constantly getting new partners and rotating tables to play with new teams. We laughed all night long and ATE - man we ate! I think I am packing a few pounds around from that night! Each of the ladies from our congregation brought a dish to share and we also made up little gift boxes full of goodies for the ladies to take home to the men at the end of the evening. My contribution for the evening were Whoopie Pies

These don't seem to photograph that well, but believe me - they were a hit! I used to make these alot when the children were all at home. They are a cake like cookie with filling in the middle. A cross between a Hostess "Ho-Ho" or a Little Debbie, and an Oreo.
I forgot how many this recipe made and I decided to double the recipe - big mistake! We will be eating Whoopie Pies til next year around here! I don't think my son minds all that much though - they are slowly disappearing. AWWW! It is good to have a growing boy around!

Here is the recipe:

Whoopie Pies

1-1/2 cups shortening

3 cups sugar

1-1/2 cups sour milk (I add 2 tablespoons vinegar to the milk to sour it - wait a bit for it to curdle before adding it to the mixture)

3 eggs

3 tsp. vanilla

1-1/2 cups cocoa

6 cups flour

3 tsp. salt

3 tsp. soda

1-1/2 cups water

Cream shortening and sugar. Add well beaten eggs, sour milk, vanilla, flour, cocoa and salt. Dissolve soda in hot water, add to mixture. Drop by teaspoonfuls. (I use a small meatball scooper for this because they come out looking rounder and more uniform.) Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

Filling:

3 egg whites

3 tsp. vanilla

1-1/2 cups shortening

6 Tablespoons milk

3 cups powdered sugar

Beat egg whites untill stiff. Add vanilla, milk, shortening, and powdered sugar. Mix well, put filling between two cookies.

Enjoy!

These are the cupcakes that I made - it was around Valentines Day - hence the reason for the candies. I was in a hurry so they are kind of sloppy - but these cupcakes are one of my favorites and most asked for recipe.

They are filled with cream cheese and chocolate chips - they don't last long at any function I bring them to!

I got this recipe from my Mother in law. I would love to share it with you - be prepared though - these will cause your upper lip to sweat they are SO rich!!

Renate's Black Bottom Cupcakes
3 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 cups water
2 Tablespoons vinegar
2 tsp. vanilla
3/4 cup oil

Filling:
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 egg
8 oz. cream cheese
1(6 oz.) pkg. chocolate chips

Make cupcake ingredients in bowl. Pour into cupcake containers. Fill halfway.
Filling: Mix filling ingredients except chocolate chips. Whip until fluffy, add chocolate chips. Spoon heaping teaspoon of filling in center of each cupcake. (this will sink down inside the cupcake during baking)
Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Check with toothpick. Store in refrigerator.

I usually double this recipe - one will make enough, but they don't last long, so two is better :-)

I hope you enjoy these recipes and if you make them, I would love to hear feedback as to how you liked them!

I am so glad that it is Saturday - a day to get caught up a bit around here. I am off to mail some packages to my son in college and a belated gift to my granddaughter for Valentines Day.
Have a blessed day today,
Kymber