Spring Fever

Is it me, or is our mood boosted 100% by great weather??? Usually, when it is our school districts spring break, the weather is "so so" in Indiana. This week we have 70s and 80s and I'm loving it!!! I acutally got a sunburn yesterday!

I've been keeping my time with reading, school functions, spring cleaning, and a little scrapping. Actually, I've been cleaning my crafting area so I have done little creating, but I'm getting motivated! A clean space always motivates me! Here is a layout I recently finished:





It's all about my iPod and what I'm listening to right now. I always find it interesting to look back to see what I liked during a certain period of time.

I also recently finished this book by Kristin Hannah:



It has been a long time since I've read a book that wasn't 'paranormal' in nature so I was pleasantly surprised at just how much I loved this book. I am on a site called 'goodreads' which allows you to keep track of all the books you've read, and all the books you'd like to read. You add friends to your list and can read their reviews and what not. It is a great site if you like to read. If you sign up, add me as a friend :)

Taylor and I just saw this recipe on ABC...it is for 'Monkey Bread Muffins'. YUM!

From the kitchen of Trisha Yearwood

Servings: Over 8
Difficulty: Easy
Cook Time: 60-120 min

"Monkey bread is usually baked in a large tube pan and served by pulling off a 'lump' of bread at a time. My niece Ashley tried this idea for making monkey bread in individual servings by downsizing the biscuit pieces and using our Hot Maple Syrup in the mix. The muffins are a lot cuter and less messy!"

-- Trisha Yearwood

Ingredients
1 12-ounce can biscuits (10 in each can)
3 tablespoons Hot Maple Syrup
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
2/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans

Cooking Directions
Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Place cupcake liners in 12 muffin cups. With kitchen shears, cut each biscuit into 4 pieces.

In a small bowl, combine the maple syrup and melted butter.

In a separate bowl, mix the sugar, cinnamon, and chopped pecans. Dip each biscuit piece into the maple butter, and roll in the sugar mixture. Place 3 or 4 coated pieces in each muffin cup, pressing to compact.

Bake the muffins for 15 to 17 minutes. Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before removing to wire racks. Serve warm.

NOTE: To make traditional monkey bread, grease all surfaces of a 10-inch tube pan. Drop the coated biscuit pieces evenly inside the tube pan. Pour the maple butter over the biscuits and bake at 350°F for 40 to 45 minutes. Let the bread stand for 5 minutes before turning out onto a cake plate. Pull off one lump at a time.

Serves 12

Here is Trisha Yearwood's recipe for maple syrup:

Ingredients
3 cups granulated sugar
2 cups light brown sugar
2 tablespoons dark corn syrup
2 cups water
2 teaspoons maple flavoring
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract

Cooking Directions
Mix the sugars, syrup, water, maple flavoring, and extracts in a medium saucepan and cook over medium-high heat until the sugars dissolve. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, as the syrup reaches the correct consistency.

Serve warm over pancakes or waffles. Store any leftover syrup in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Change it up by making bacon waffles. Cut bacon to fit each waffle grid. Close the cover and bake for 1 minute before adding waffle batter. Scramble some eggs and you have a complete breakfast.

Makes 4 cups

If you make this, let me know how it turns out! We are buying the supplies this week. :) Have a great day!