Outrageous Cookie Bars

I keep all of these ingredients on hand at all times. This is the easiest treat to whip up with short notice. It does require time to cool before serving or else it falls apart.

Outrageous Cookie Bars

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs (sold in a box)
• 1 can (14oz) sweetened condensed milk
• 2 cups (12oz package) semi-sweet chocolate morsels
• 1 cup flaked coconut
• 1 cup chopped walnuts (don't leave this out!)

PREHEAT oven to 350F.

MELT butter in 13x9 pan by placing it in the preheating oven for a few minutes. Sprinkle graham cracker crumbs over butter. Stir well with fork. Press onto bottom of pan with fingers.

POUR condensed milk over crust; be sure to cover edges. Sprinkle with chocolate morsels, then coconut, then walnuts; press down firmly. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool completely before cutting.

*No high altitude modifications

The World's Best Cookie

I know the name is bold, but trust me, it earned the right to be immodest. This is my favorite all-time cookie. Not too sweet, not too gooey, a very mature flavor, and it sort of crumbles in your mouth. Plus, you can it a ton of the cookie dough and never get a tummy ache - - now THAT'S the sign of a great cookie! You're going to want to commit this one to memory!

The World's Best Cookie

• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 1 egg
• 1 cup salad oil (I like Enova)
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 cup crushed cornflakes
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup chopped walnut or pecans (don't leave the nuts out of this one!)
• 3 1/2 cup sifted all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• (I add a smidge of almond extract too)

PREHEAT oven to 325F.

In small bowl, combine oats, cornflakes, coconut and nuts. In separate bowl, sift together flour, baking soda and salt. Put both bowls aside. In large mixer bowl, cream together butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add egg, mixing well, then salad oil, mixing well, then vanilla. Add oats mixture, stirring well. Then add flour mixture. Mix well and roll into balls the size of small walnuts with hands. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten with a fork dipped in water. Bake for 12 minutes. Cool on cookie sheet for a minute before removing. Move to wire rack to cool and sprinkle the warm cookies with granulated sugar. MAKES 5 ½ DOZEN

Layers of Love Chocolate Brownies

I mean seriously. This is the real deal.

Layers of Love Chocolate Brownies
*with high altitude modifications

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour [*add 1 Tbs flour]
• 3/4 cup baking cocoa (ie, Nestle, Hershey's, etc)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, cut into pieces
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar [*subtract almost 1 full Tbs sugar]
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 3 large eggs, divided
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup chopped pecans (optional)
• 3/4 cup Nestle Toll House Premier White Morsels (I increased to 1 cup because I did not add pecans)
• 1/2 cup caramel ice cream topping
• 3/4 cup Nestle Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels

PREHEAT oven to 350F. Grease 8-inch square baking pan.

COMBINE flour, cocoa and salt in small bowl. Beat butter and sugars in large mixer bowl until cream. Add TWO (2) eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla extract; mix well. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Reserve 3/4 cup batter. Spread remaining batter into prepared baking pan. Sprinkle pecans and white morsels over batter. Drizzle caramel topping over top. Beat remaining egg and reserved batter in same large bowl until light in color. Stir in semi-sweet morsels. Spread evely over caramel topping.

BAKE for 30-35 minutes or until center is set. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into squares.

*I left baking temp and time the same because I like my brownies moist! Makes 16 brownies.

-Incredibly Easy Cookies CookBook

Light Sour Cream Coffee Cake Recipe

For all you fellow Bay Area kids that remember Lafayette's famed Milly's Kitchen and it's delicious, piping hot coffee cake, have I got a recipe for YOU! I should mention I also have a weakness for pretty much any baked good that contains sour cream, so this was obviously up my alley as well!

Light Sour Cream Coffee Cake

· 2 cups all-purpose flour
· 1 ½ cups sugar
· 1 tsp baking powder
· ½ tsp salt
· ½ tsp ground cinnamon
· 2 eggs, beaten
· 1 cup (8oz) reduced-fat sour cream
· ½ cup vanilla yogurt
· ½ cup butter, melted
· 1 tsp vanilla extract

Streusel:
· ½ cup packed brown sugar
· 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
· 2 Tbs butter, melted
· 1 tsp ground cinnamon

In a large bowl, combine the first five ingredients. In another bowl, combine the eggs, sour cream, yogurt, butter and vanilla. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.

In a small bowl, combine the streusel ingredients. Spoon half of the batter into a 13x9in baking pan coated with cooking spray; sprinkle with half of streusel. Top with remaining batter and then remaining streusel. Bake at 350F for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Place pan on a wire rack to cool.

TasteOfHome.com

High Altitude Modifications: Add 2 Tbs flour to the batter mixture; subtract 1 Tbs sugar from batter; shake off a smidge of the baking powder from the teaspoon before adding it the batter. The pro's say to increase the oven temp and decrease the baking time, but I think leaving these components just as they are in the recipe yields a fluffier cake in this case. Be sure to do the toothpick test to check for doneness when the oven beeps though -- you don't want it too gooey on the inside!

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Click HERE for Virtual Home Tour

October 2009 Newsletter

Events in October

13th Annual Eli’s Cheesecake Festival 10/3 & 10/4 ♦ To benefit local charities!
10th Annual Chicago River Flatwater Classic 10/4 ♦ The Chicago River’s only canoe and kayak race ♦ www.ChicagoRiver.org
Bucktown 5K Race 10/4, 8:30am ♦ Starting at Marshfield & Wabansia ~ www.Bucktown5K.com
Statesville Haunted Prison 10/2-Halloween ♦ Voted #1 Haunted House in Chicago for the past 8 years ♦ Tickets start at $30; groups of 12+ for $21 ♦ visit www.Statesville.org
Clark/Belmont Music Fest 10/10 Noon-11pm ♦ 3200 N Clark ♦ www.ChicagoEvents.com
Bank of America Chicago Marathon Sunday, 10/11 ♦ Starting and ending at Grant Park on Columbus Drive
Columbus Day Parade Monday, 10/12, 12:30pm ♦ Parade marches along Columbus Drive from Balbo to Monroe
45th Annual Chicago International Film Festival 10/8-10/22 ♦ North America’s oldest competitive film festival with a focus on international work ♦ www.ChicagoFilmFestival.org
Beer Festival 10/14 8pm ♦ Sample more than 40 local and international beers and appetizer pairings at Brasserie Jo @ 59 W Hubbard
Pug Party 10/17 Noon-5pm ♦ Over 400 pugs expected to attend, so arrive early at Zella’s for the celebration @ 1983 N Clybourn
Casting Call for “America’s Got Talent” 10/17 9am ♦ McCormick Place @ 2301 S Lake Shore
Fashion Focus Chicago 2009 10/22-10/25 ♦ The season’s hottest new looks are being spotlighted at various venues throughout the city ♦ www.ChicagoFashionResource.com
Fall Fireworks Cruise Fri & Sat nights, now thru Halloween ♦ www.ShorelineSightseeing.com
13th Annual Halloween Franken Plaza 10/23-10/31 ♦ Every day at Daley Plaza ♦ www.Chicagoween.us
22nd Annual Trick or Treat Trot 10/25 ♦ Come for the 5K Run, 10K Run, 5K Walk and Monster Mash Junior Dash in the lakefront park at Montrose Avenue ♦ www.caprievents.com/trick/
Pumpkin Carving at The Boundary 10/27 ♦ Pumpkin carving goes better with a candy apple buffet and a beer ♦ 1932 W. Division
Chicago Scene Dead Man’s Ball 10/30 9pm ♦ Best costume wins a free trip to Las Vegas at Crobar @ 1543 N Kingsbury


Stay Healthy This Season
Your Common Cold Questions Uncovered

Vitamin C
♦ Vitamin C is water soluble, so the body will get rid of any excess taken in.
♦ How much C can the body absorb and retain? According to studies, 500mg of Vitamin C twice a day is the dose that will keep the average healthy adult well saturated.
♦ There does not appear to be a harmful dosage of Vitamin C; common daily dosages in “immune system boosting” products can suggest using up to 4000mg. However, for daily maintenance, there is no viable reason to be taking more than 1000-1500mg in a day.
♦ Vitamin C certainly improves your system’s immunity, but once you have actually caught a cold, extra Vitamin C does not help.

http://www.nytimes.com/1996/10/07/business/with-winter-whisper-away-question-much-vitamin-c-should-person-take-each-day.html

Echinacea
First and foremost, Echinacea is not a product that should be taken daily. Many people make the mistake of taking an Echinacea supplement as part of their daily supplement routine. The philosophy behind this dosing method is, because Echinacea raises the immune system, using the product daily will help fight against contracting a cold. But this is not really the most effective use of Echinacea. This type of preventative measure is much more successful when using antioxidants like vitamins A, C & E.

Echinacea is most effective when you first notice that you have a cold coming on. In this case, your body has already begun to produce additional white blood cells to combat the cold. Taking Echinacea at this time helps to increase the number of white blood cells the body is producing. The resulting effect is that the increased numbers of white blood cells overwhelm the cold, eliminating it from the body.

Using Echinacea means being in tune with your body and how you’re feeling. Most people, who use Echinacea exclusively when they have a cold, still do not use the product properly, not in that they take too much, but that they take too little. Here are some examples of usage so you can start to get the most out of this incredibly effective supplement.

When you first feel a cold come on start by taking two Echinacea supplement pills. Wait a few hours and reassess how you are feeling. Do you feel better or worse than before you took the Echinacea? If you feel better, it’s a good bet that the Echinacea has already been successful defeating the cold. If you feel worse, the cold is stronger than current white blood cell count trying to fight the cold. At this point you should double the amount of Echinacea you take. You took two earlier so now you should take four. Wait a few more hours and reassess how you are feeling. If you are feeling worse than the before you should double the amount of Echinacea you take again. You took four last time so now you should take eight.

And you keep repeating this process until you physically can tell that the cold has started to subside. Think of the cold and your immune response as two bar graphs standing side by side. As the level of the cold increases you need to up your intake of Echinacea to increase the immune response to not just meet the level of the cold but to surpass it.

But winter colds are fighters, which is why you may need to keep doubling your Echinacea intake as to continually surpass the level of the cold in the body. As the level of the cold increases, increasing Echinacea helps raise the immune response to keep the cold at a lower level than the immune response.

Side effects of using Echinacea are few and mild, but some users have reported symptoms like nausea, dizziness and rash. With any supplement you should check with your doctor if you have any preexisting condition or if you have question about whether using Echinacea is right for you.
http://www.chicagoathome.com/detail.aspx?dct=54&id=6404&mid=2509&loc=rss

September 2009 Newsletter

Events in September


1 ~ Tuesdays on the Terrace ~ Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago Ave. ~ A weekly series of free alfresco jazz concerts. A pre-fixe dinner from Puck's Cafe is available for $19.
4–6 ~ 31st Annual Chicago Jazz Festival ~ Grant Park, 300 S. Columbus Drive ~ The city's longest-running lakefront music festival features local, national and international performers on several stages
4– 6 ~ Taste of Polonia ~ Copernicus Center, 5216 W. Lawrence Ave. ~ The 30th annual cultural celebration of Polish traditions includes live entertainment from Poland and the U.S., food, beer, arts and more
5–6 ~ 6th Annual Bash on Wabash ~ South Loop, 1300 S. Wabash
7 ~ Labor Day
11–13 ~ 89th Annual German-American Festival ~ Lincoln Square, 4700 N. Lincoln Ave. ~ Features brats, smoked sausages, potato salad, sauerkraut, German cakes, beer and wine for sale, plus live music, folk dancers and more
12–13 ~ Renegade Craft Fair 2009 ~ Damen Avenue and Division Street, 2000 W. Division St. ~ More than 200 local, national and international artists display handmade wares, including clothing, posters, comics, craft kits, jewelry, and more
12–13 ~ U2 ~ Soldier Field, 1410 S. Museum Campus Drive
12–13 ~ Celtic Fest Chicago ~ Grant Park, 300 S. Columbus Drive ~ The 13th annual salute to Celtic music, dance and traditions features live entertainment, beer, food, arts and crafts vendors and more
12–13 ~ Old Town Crush, Music and Comedy Fest ~ Wells Street between North and Evergreen Avenues ~ Formerly known as the Wine Crush in Old Town, the Wells Street festival expands to two days this year.
19 ~ Guinness Oyster Fest ~ Damen Avenue and Roscoe Street, 2000 W. Roscoe St. ~ An autumn kickoff pairs fresh-shucked oysters and pints of Guinness, in addition to other fare from local restaurants
23–30 ~ UniverSoul Circus ~ Washington Park, 5531 S. King Drive ~ Clowns, aerialists, acrobats, dancers, contortionists, animals and more perform under the big top during a traditional circus with an urban edge
25–26 ~ Oktoberfest ~ Lincoln and Southport Avenues, 3000 N. Lincoln Ave. ~ St. Alphonsus, one of the city's oldest churches, celebrates its German roots with a weekend of bratwurst, beer and live bands
30 ~ 6th Annual Metromix Best Bartender Bash ~ District Bar, 170 W. Ontario St. ~ Watch our Final Four Best Bartenders compete for a shot at the title and sip complimentary samples of each bartender's signature drinks
Saturdays ~ Millennium Park Workouts ~ Millennium Park, 201 E. Randolph St. ~ The popular alfresco series features early morning classes on the Great Lawn in tai chi, yoga, Pilates and aerobic dance/martial arts


What is an FHA loan?
From GetSmart.com

FHA (Federal Housing Administration) loans were established in 1934 when foreclosures were high and lenders were reluctant to approve mortgages for all but the least risky of borrowers.

Home loans insured by the FHA are once again gaining in popularity as more lenders tighten their borrowing guidelines. FHA loans can be a viable and sometimes less expensive alternative for borrowers making a small down payment.

Here are the basics on government-insured FHA loans:

On the upside. . .
• Low down payment. Most conventional loans require at least 5 percent down, and in a tight mortgage market many lenders prefer to see 10 percent or more. By contrast, FHA loans require a down payment of only 3 percent.
• More lenient approval guidelines. FHA loans follow a different approval model than most conventional loans. You do need decent credit, but it does not have to be perfect or even nearly perfect. Even a bankruptcy or foreclosure may not prevent you from getting an FHA loan. In addition, FHA loans allow for a greater percentage of your gross income to be used for debt (up to 41 percent, compared to 36 percent for conventional loans).
• Just about anyone is eligible. Unlike most other “affordable” loan programs, FHA loans do not carry a maximum allowable income cap. All you need to be eligible is a valid social security number and legal US residency.

On the downside. . .
• Lower loan amounts. Maximum allowable loan amounts vary by state and metropolitan area, but are typically lower than conventional loan limits. You can get the loan limit for your area by visiting the HUD website and entering your state and county.
• Not all lenders are good at FHA loans. If you think an FHA loan might be for you, choose your lender carefully. The guidelines and paperwork are different enough that unless a lender specializes in “government lending” (FHA and VA loans), you could face delays and unwelcome surprises.