my new favorite tradition. :)

Last year, we somehow made a habit of baking and eating lemon squares nearly every Sunday in Lent, because we get to break our fast of sweets on Sundays (each Sunday is a day of celebration...a 'mini-Easter' of sorts. If you count 40 days of Lent on the calendar, you'll find that Sundays aren't included. :D)...and for some reason we had this addiction to lemon squares. :P

This year I'm trying to keep the tradition. :D So I thought I'd post the recipe (that I altered a little) for lemon squares...'cause we love them so much. ;)

I'll try not to drool on my laptop. :P

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LEMON SQUARES

2 cups of flour

1 cup of confectioners sugar

1 cup of butter (2 sticks)

4 eggs

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 cups (regular) sugar

1/4 a cup of flower

5/8 a cup of lemon juice

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a 9x13 inch pan

2. In a medium bowl, stir together 2 cups of flour and confectioners sugar. Cut the butter into the mixture. Press into the bottom of the prepared pan

3. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until golden. In a large bowl, beat eggs until light. Combine the sugar, baking powder and 1/4 cup of flour so there will be no flour lumps. Stir the sugar mixture into the eggs. Finally stir in the lemon juice. Pour over the prepared crust and return to the oven.

4. Bake for an additional 30 minutes or until bars are set. Allow to cool completely before cutting into bars.

And then, of course, you have to put extra powdered sugar on top. Or it doesn't look as good. :)

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I like this recipe, because you don't *have* to have fresh lemons to do it. So it's easier to make without making Mom run to the store. Of course, it's always nice to have the fresh stuff, and if you do have it, feel free to juice your own lemons or add a little zest.

Anyway. Just had to post these, 'cause I love them so much. :D

Happy Sunday!

Of my wonderful coffee

"So, you're going to post about switching your frappuccinos to caramel macchiatos?" - Gab

Hmm...how did you guess, dear sister? Surely not because I happened to be taking pictures of my caramel macchiato this morning! :P

So, yes, it's true. Lately I've been switching my frappuccino recipe to on

e for caramel macchiatos. They're not the same icy drinks, I know, but they're still divine. So I'm going to post what I've been using to make my version of a caramel macchiato. ;)

(please just ignore my lovely shadows on the pictures. :P I kept getting in the way of the light)

CARAMEL MACCHIATOS

1 cup of coffee

caramel to taste (homemade preferred)

cream/milk

whipped cream

That's it. Yay! They're SO GOOD! Oh, and if you want to make your own caramel, but don't know how, here's a recipe I got of the internet ('cause everytime I tried the simple s

ugar-butter-cream thing it messed up...). It's super good. So please try it. (but I would definitely cut this *at least in half*...even in half it'll make a lot (meaning = about a jar when it's cut in 1/2))

CARAMEL SAUCE

2 1/2 cups of brown sugar

1 can of sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup of butter

1 teaspoon of vanilla

3/4 cup of whole milk

1. Mix the sugar and condensed milk together in medium saucepan, and cook on medium heat until sugar is dissolved completely. Set aside.


2. Melt the butter in another small saucepan, and stir in the vanilla and milk. Leave to simmer on low heat until mixture is smooth, about 1 to 2 minutes.


3. Slowly stir the butter mixture into the sugar mixture and leave to stand 3 to 5 minutes until mixture becomes thick.

 

4. Pour into bowl or small pitcher (or a jar...they work nicely) and cover. Store in refrigerator until ready to serve and enjoy!



So please, PLEASE try this out! It's perfect for those days when you need caffeine, but it's too cold for a frappuccino. I would make one for you myself, but, well, it's kind of hard to send it in the mail. I don't think the package man would really appreciate that.

Anyway, later guys!

Love,