Texas Sheet Cake

In honor of all of the January birthdays (my friends, family and me too) I am posting a recipe for my very favorite cake, Texas Sheet Cake.



Enjoy!


Texas Sheet Cake


Heat to boiling point 1 cup water, 2 sticks butter, and 4 TBSP. cocoa. Remove from heat.Mix into the above mixture: 2 cups flour(AP), 2 cups sugar, 1/2 tsp. salt(sifted together).Mix well. Then mix 2 beaten eggs, 1/2 cup buttermilk or sourcream, and 1 tsp. baking soda together and add to batter mixture. Mix well. Pour into prepared 18 x 13 x 1 inch or 1 1/2 inch sheet pan and bake in preheated oven at 400F for 20 min.


Frosting:1 stick butter, 4 TBSP. cocoa, and 7 TBSP. milk. Heat to boiling. Remove from heat. Pour in 1 lb. box of confectioners sugar(powdered sugar), 1 cup toasted walnuts, and 1 tsp. vanilla and mix. Frost cake while cake and frosting is still hot


By the way - I think nuts in cakes are gross so I leave out the walnuts.

Happy 50th Birthday Smurfs!

The Smurfs -- led by Papa Smurf and Smurfette -- kicked off a year of 50th birthday celebrations Monday with Smurfberry cake and sasparilla juice.

The Smurfs, forest dwellers who live in little white-capped mushroom homes, developed their own "Smurf" language in which nouns and verbs were interchanged.

Their debut on U.S. television in 1981 launched their global rise to stardom and made the Smurfs a household name. A Smurf is a Pitufo in Spanish, a Schlumpf in German, Nam Ching Ling to the Chinese, a Sumafa in Japan and Dardassim in Hebrew.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/TV/01/14/belgium.smurfsturn50.ap/index.html

Dog + Cat = BFFs

A pet dog missed the family’s dead cat so much that he dug up his grave and brought the body back into the house.

When Oscar’s owners woke up the next morning they discovered the dog curled up beside Arthur, the late cat, in his basket.

His owners, Robert Bell, 73, and his wife, Mavis, of Wigan, Greater Manchester, believe that the dog had licked the cat clean before falling asleep.

Mr Bell said that the two pets were constant companions. Arthur, who was a large cat, used to help Oscar to climb on to the sofa.

Oscar, an 18-month-old Lancashire Heeler, had watched Mr Bell dig a grave in the garden and then lower the cat into the hole.Mr Bell said: “He had managed to climb out through the cat flap in the night, obviously with the intent to get Arthur back. Bearing in mind that Arthur was a huge cat, Oscar must have used all the strength he could muster.

To read more, click here:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article3162659.ece

The Church of Stop Shopping!

Check this out!
http://www.revbilly.com/about_us/

Statement of Belief :

: Reverend Billy and the Stop Shopping Gospel Choir believe that Consumerism is overwhelming our lives. The corporations want us to have experiences only through their products. Our neighborhoods, "commons" places like stoops and parks and streets and libraries, are disappearing into the corporatized world of big boxes and chain stores. But if we "back away from the product" - even a little bit, well then we Put The Odd Back In God! The supermodels fly away and we're left with our original sensuality. So we are singing and preaching for local economies and real - not mediated through products -- experience. We like independent shops where you know the person behind the counter or at least - you like them enough to share a story.We ask that local activists who are defending themselves against supermalls, nuke plants, gentrification -- call us and we'll come and put on our "Fabulous Worship!" Remember children... Love is a Gift Economy! — The Rev

Travel IQ

What is your Travel IQ ??

Check Here!

Be careful. It's totally addictive. Apparently I'm a troglodyte in terms of global geography. My IQ is 103.

Evel Knievel Dies at 69

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Evel Knievel, the hard-living motorcycle daredevil whose jumps over Greyhound buses, live sharks and Idaho's Snake River Canyon made him an international icon in the 1970s, died Friday. He was 69.

more here

Are these ladies worth the dough?

OK. These women are the highest paid in Hollywood. When I saw this list this morning I realized that I don't actually like any of them. I don't think I would specifically go see a movie just because any actress or actor was in a lead role. Do people actually do that?

1. Reese Witherspoon — $15 million-$20 million
2. Angelina Jolie — $15 million-$20 million
3. Cameron Diaz — $15+ million
4. Nicole Kidman — $10 million-$15 million
5. Renee Zellweger — $10 million-$15 million
6. Sandra Bullock — $10 million-$15 million
7. Julia Roberts — $10 million-$15 million
8. Drew Barrymore — $10 million-$12 million
9. Jodie Foster — $10 million-$12 million
10. Halle Berry — $10 million

from The Hollywood Reporter