Caramel Apple Streusel Bars

Yum, yum! I made these after Sunday dinner yesterday and they are SO good! Half the pan is gone, and I don't have much hope for the lifespan of the rest. Seriously good dessert.

Caramel Apple Streusel Bars- 12 servings
1 8 oz. can crescent rolls
3 c. peeled and chopped cooking apples
1/2 c. caramel topping
1/4 c. flour
3/4 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. quick cooking oats
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 c. butter or margarine, softened
Heat oven to 375. Spray a 13x9 in pan with non-stick cooking spray. Unroll dough, pinch seams to seal and press into bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of pan.

 Sprinkle apples over dough.

In a 1 qt, saucepan, heat caramel topping and 1/4 c. flour to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil 1 minute, stirring constantly, until thickened.

 Drizzle over apples. But don't get any on your self, because it will burn to China.

In a medium bowl, mix brown sugar, flour, oats and cinnamon. With a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture looks like fine crumbs.

Sprinkle over apples.  

 

 Bake for 18-20 minutes or until top is golden brown and apples are tender. MMMMmmm.

Learning is Hard

So I took all of my new camera equipment to the barn yesterday because all of the riders were there for a clinic. Easiest new camera lesson of the day: I learned that my new camera eats up memory card space and battery power. I'm going to need more memory cards and another battery. Hardest lesson of the day: Barbara, even though you are snapping away at 8 pictures a second, you really should increase your shutter speed so the focus can keep up. Too bad I didn't learn that important lesson until the last half hour of shooting. Lots of my early pictures were blurry. The ones that weren't- well, that was just dumb luck. But at least I know what to do next time!

Here's some pictures of Shannon and Rocko from yesterday.If you click on them individually you will see what I mean. So, so sad. The last one is not too bad, though. I'm learning, but it's hard.

 

 Early in the day, Rocko was outside getting some fresh air. By the look on his face he just can't figure out why I'm so far away and why am I not over with him, feeding him an endless supply of treats?

Photoshop Baby Steps

Look carefully at these two pictures:

Before:

And after:

Can you tell a difference? (Please tell me that you can tell a difference.)

Can There Ever Be Enough Fleece?

Can't find Xena? Look for the closest fleece blanket and you will find her. Even better if you are laying under the fleece blanket, just to add that extra warmth. The old girl is 10 years old now and enjoys her creature comforts which are a) food and b) fleece blankets. That actually doesn't sound like that bad of a system!

Tuscan Garlicky Bean Soup

 Want to try an easy Crock Pot dinner? One that will make your house smell so good? One that costs less than $4.00 to make, total? One that makes you feel like you're eating something super-healthy? Then you might want to try this recipe- Tuscan Garlicky Bean Soup.

Tuscan Garlicky Bean Soup- serves 8-10
1 lb. dry Great Northern, or other dry white, beans
1 qt. water
1 qt. beef broth
3 Tbs. olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 Tbs. chopped parsley
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

Plan ahead, because you need to put the dry beans in a bowl, cover them with water and let them sit for 8 hours or overnight.

 Drain and rinse well. Yes, my colander is ancient. It belonged to Bruce's grandmother. But it functions, ok?

 Combine beans, 1 quart fresh water,and beef broth in a slow cooker. My CP is circa 1983. Still going strong. Come to think of it, that measuring cup is circa 1983 also. Still measures just fine. Do not mock me about the age of my appliances.

 1983, close up. Sidenote: Don't you just love those CP liners? Whoever invented those should get a Nobel Prize or a very nice raise, at least.

 Action shot: Beef broth goin' in. I think I will give my new camera special name: Awesome New Camera Stratford.

 So now we have a murky looking liquid in the CP, with a few wimpy floating beans. Believe me, it gets better.

 Now you saute the garlic and parsley in the olive oil in a skillet. If you've never smelled what this smells like before, you will want to saute garlic and parsley every day, just to smell that smell.

 Stir the garlic and parsley into the CP. Add the salt and pepper. Now you have murky liquid, a few wimpy beans and some floating greenery- looking good, right?

Cover and cook on low 8-10 hours, or until beans are tender. Yum. Bruce had several helpings. BTW, this recipe is from the Lazy Day Cookin' cookbook that I know several of my blood relatives already own. Because I was there when they bought it. Enjoy!

Don't Be Sad, Now

Ok, I know you must be disappointed, but this is the last Disney blog that I have pictures for right now. AND, there are no new Disney trips in the foreseeable future, so as much as you'd like to see Disney pictures everyday on this blog, you'll just have to content yourself with these for a while. We spent a day at the Big DL before we left on the cruise and this is what we saw:

And these are some of the things we did. Fun Disney Thing: Call all of the ride operators by name. They all wear name tags, and it really freaks them out. "Thank You, Esteban!"

It was probably one of the most fun Disney days I've had. We capped it off with dinner at Ariel's Grotto, where Lindsey stole all of the white chocolate dessert. That gave us premier seating for World of Color. Ben, Linsdey and Brian hadn't seen it yet and it didn't disappoint!

National Human Beings Week

Yes, today starts National Human Beings Week. So- hug someone, celebrate being a human being! There are a lot less exciting things to be, you know.