Perplexing Ponderings

The hubs, my hubs...says that I think too much. Often telling me hush during movies, quite guessing the endings, don't jump to conclusions with the book, take it with a grain of salt..........but I don't, I can't. Like most women I know, I over analyze EVERYTHING! On one hand this makes me very good at reading between the lines, because I am watching, listening, feeling, tasting (just kidding) what goes around me so that I can lay in bed at night and ponder over everything that happened; why I didn't say this, why I should have said that, why did she do that, should I have done this, did I have something in my teeth, did my child really have to pick her nose at that moment ......and eat it, am I a good mom, am I my mother, do my kids know how much I love them, was dinner nutritionally sound, why did I eat those nuggets, how many more diapers will my almost 3 year olds poop.....get the picture? And I know it goes on in my sleep as my mister had told me that I have conversations with him at night.....and sometimes I can remember every vivid detail of a dream that has me wondering in the morning what I need to change that day to get me back on track.....

...on track...that's a whole other issue...

Thinking can get me in trouble, because I often I say what I am thinking...not always good....but I am learning...you would be surprised about how much I have learned not to say.

But often thinking can lead to good things...such as new year resolutions....or over thinking, whatever you want to all it. This year has been nothing knew.

I have pondered my regrets and list of things that I failed to get done, get through or ignored, depending on how you look at it and I have now been pondering what I want to do with this spankin brand new year. Here is my list

1. Throw out what we don't use.
2. Fit back into the clothes that are piled into a bin that you wore more then six years ago...the bin is taking up room in my closet, but
3. Be happy in my skin, don't worry about the  tire hanging around my middle, until resolution #2 is met.
4. Finish a half marathon, just t say I did so that I can fit in with the crowd.
5. potty train the 7 month old since I am potty training twins
6. See my oldest graduate and not be a blubbering mess as he heads into the world....without me...
7. Watch my oldest daughter go to prom....and not bawl when I see her in her first formal dress which is just  precursor to an eventual wedding dress. (I am startin to tear up now!)
8. Find a farmhouse...and be happy if I can't
9. Make sure my kids know how much they are loved...even when I am yelling my head off
10. Keep my house in order...or at least appearing to be so...when the mister walks in.
11. get the stupid crumbs outta my computer so it will type decently!
12. Grow closer to my Savior through more prayer, more pondering and more scripture reading.
13. Touch my husband more...yaya, with eight kiddos you would think there had been a lot of that....but nope, ask the hubs, he's deprived he says
14. Cook all of Julia Child's recipes in 365 days an blog about it.......jk, its already been done, and fairly well I might add.
15. Get dressed in the morning in something other then lounge wear....aka....workout clothes
16. Blog more consistently,like in the AM before anyone wakes up......
17. Enjoy more Italian Cream Sodas
18. Finish the 10 books I have either started writing (or have composed in my mind)...starting with "it's ok to hate your mother...but you will eventually have to get over it."
19. Don't eat store bought bread...it has boiled down remnant of human hair in it......um, yuck.

Maybe this list would be better.....parts of mine is starting to bring me down....

"This year, mend a quarrel. Seek out a forgotten friend. Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust. Write a letter. Give a soft answer. Encourage youth. Manifest your loyalty in word and deed. Keep a promise. Forgo a grudge. Forgive an enemy. Apologize. Try to understand. Examine your demands on others. Think first of someone else. Be kind. Be gentle. Laugh a little more. Express your gratitude. Welcome a stranger. Gladden the heart of a child. Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth. Speak your love and then speak it again."
- Howard W. Hunter

If I can do that then all will be well with my world......or better.

I am still seeking my "farm" but I am also trying to be happy with what the Lord has given to my care and let my ideas of what should be go......not easy, but worth a shot....and maybe to share it as I blog.

Finding time to blog and keeping my house in functioning order is where I struggle.  I blog because it makes me laugh...at myself...and hopefully y'all laugh at it too, because crying gives me a headache and I do more then enough during the happy times. and to help me see all the good in my life when I start to think too much. But I want to know how yall do it?

How do y' all do it?How do you blog and keep your daughters hair done, let alone our own? How do you blog and manage get cleaning, laundry and ironing done? How do you blog and put  dinner on the table? How do you blog and keep the crumbs form getting under your keys? How do you do it all....and be happy?

Because as of this  moment...while I blog...none of the above is done...I did brush my teeth....but all my hard work for the last few days looks for naught. Tell me how you do it?!

But maybe I can get me a farm this way or maybe you can....one of us should get it!!! It's worth a try!

Or at least get a chance at  winning cute free stuff here.  Cutest girly girl headbands ever......and heaven knows we could use some help with all the girly girls hair around here!!  Nothing like winning free stuff to perk up your day...

and...

a dry hot cocoa mix that will melt your socks and make you feel all warm and cozy.....

I said I wanted to get healthier by eating more naturally and fit into my jeans....not give up chocolate! And by making hot cocoa mix, I can do that, there is no creamer made from soybean oil, or soy lecithin or preservatives......it's a start, along with a smaller mug!

Love your new years resolution makin guts!

Our Favorite Hot Cocoa

4 cups of sugar (or use powdered sugar)
1 cup cocoa
1/2 t natural sea salt
1 1/2 c dry milk
3 t vanilla powder

Mix all dry ingredients together and store in an airtight container. When ready mix 2 to 3 tablespoons in 8 oz of hot water. Top with real whip cream and heaven is almost right there!!! I love this hot cocoa...but my mister is still craving the ultra good ultra smooth ultra thick store brand mix.....it has hydrogenated oils in it...aka...creamer.....not good for you, so I will be trying to find a way to have that creamy goodness that my husband would probably pay money for.....I want to know! He wants to eat healthy...he just doesn't want to taste the difference! HA!

Confessions

I have a confession...yes.....a confession. We all like confessions, right?!  WE all like confessions because we need to feel normal, we need to know that the beautiful neighbor secretly chews her nails, or picks her nose or turns into an ogre come sundown.  We NEED to know this.....because we...and I mean me...are human and it makes my shortcomings not so bad.  And for the record, my neighbors are all extremely beautiful and fit and funny and really, really good people.....not a bad one among them...going to church is like attending a convention of beautiful people..and I'm the maid. Good People, I say.

Back to my confession, I have one, well I have a few, but it isn't that I totally get grossed out by my kiddos residual spit left in the sink after teeth brushing,....eeeehhhh...yes, I can deal with poop better then that slimy stream. No it isn't the confession that I get annoyed, and not secretly when my husband helps me with housework/laundry or pulls in the kids to help and doesn't do it my way. Like last night...after FHE...he has them bring down the whites....and yes they were in two overflowing baskets, and yes, one of them had been like that or more then a week, and yes, they had been dumped out and put back in more then three times, and yes, my husband hates, HATES pulling things out of the basket.....even if it is only underwear...he hates it....and hat within a matter of minutes...like 30...that the whites were all folded, more or less, and out of my hair. And it isn't the fact that he said he could see..."I was drowning"...hhhmmm...maybe I was, but I hadn't been asked to be rescued, BUT it is nice this morning that it is done and for the most part put away.

And it's not that my mctwinners run around the house nekkid most the day and hat I gave them red and pink starburst when they potty [I KNOW....GASP!]

No, my confession is much more serious.....

First, I know, I know...just get to it, but I need to explain for those that are not LDS (as we call ourselves) or Mormon (as the world usually know us, it is the same thing.) we have a lay ministry, all is done by volunteers from the top, down to the bottom.  When someone is "called" to help or to a position, that means we don't just raise our hand and volunteer for the job, we believe that through prayer, inspiration and thought, that the "calling" comes from God, and that He want us to be in that position for whatever reason.

So with that being said, can you guess my confession (yes there are probably a lot of confessions that I should explore)?

Hold your breath, get ready for it....

I was called to be a den mother......{gasp} a cub scout leader...and I cried.....{big sobbing gulp}

now, for my friends that may read this, when you are not being beautiful....let me tell you, that I love your boys, love them!  I love when they are over and we are debating (IE; shouting) which team is better - the U or BYU....I love that they run over to tell me that they are getting a puppy...because we were the crazy ones on the block to set a precedent that their parents are now feeling the pressure of! I love that they look after the mctwins and will bring them back...or try to....when they have silently and secretly escaped. Let me say it again...I love these boys!  They are sweet and kind and funny and witty and good boys from good parents.

...but I just never pictured myself in scouts...the husband does scouts and has been away on many a scout trip, I have helped my son with badges...but never once did I see myself in the women's yellow uniform, raising my hand to the scout pledge....I just didn't. It wasn't a calling that I ever thought about..after all, I have SIX girls. SIX.....and I get called to cub scouts....I don't even have a cub scout, for two more years...and then no more after that. It never crossed my mind, that that is where our Heavenly Father would want me....

...so I cried...and I cried a lot....(enough that one of the bishop's counselors commented on my crying to his wife...good thing she is one of my besties...she had my back) but just not until after... After I heard of all these other callings...and I was a den leader and after I made a teeny weeny comment to my husband and he wrote the sweetest note to me reminding me of the preciousness of these boys (and now I will start to cry again..thinking about it)....and after I felt the guilt of not being pleased and excited with my new position, because after all...the women that are doing it...are amazing and wonderful and beautiful and I could learn a lot from them!  But after THE NOTE......reminding me that this call was being extended through mortal men from God, because after all...we believe in personal revelation and that God still speaks to men and women! And He had spoken to not only me, but to His leaders that this is where I needed to be...and once again I was being/feeling rebellious and put off that I wasn't in one of my preferred callings...like young women's...after all I have SIX girls...have I mentioned...I have SIX girls! Or again...one of my favorite calling..Relief Society teacher.....but no I was going to be a den leader....

And the guilt was overwhelming as I was set apart (a special blessing to help and guide you in your calling)...and it was all I could do to stifle the sobs, because as a crier, as my dear friend's husband put it, the more I try to quit, the harder the tears come, and the more people look at me, with my red and tear streaked eyes and runny nose, the harder my chest heaves, and the more I try to swallow the tears....it just gets to be a messy wet scene.....and I was just that....

a runny messy wet scene, because I knew that this calling was where the Lord wanted me.....and I wanted to say no...but I didn't...and I wanted to be the kind of daughter that was happy and cheerful and "put me anywhere you need me" type of girl.

But I am not, I never have been....I have always questioned and examined and double checked and asked again..to the dismay of the hubs. some might assume I am whining...I am not....just trying to make sure that the Lord understands my position. You understand, right?

silly me...you'd think I would have learned by now.. but I am still working on that...

but late last night and early this morning as I researched the cub scouts and read a message from my sweet cousin that echoed my husband and the blessing already given..I knew that I was going to love this new calling and that this would be where I would fill my house with boys...just not my own as I had planned on as a young girl ( I even had lists of my children's names, maybe one or two girls among the list of boys names and no I didn't use one of those names!)  

That once again the Lord knew better then I, the plans of which I know nothing and yet to try to usurp. Silly me for wasting time and energy and tears on something of naught...

It reminds be of one of my favorite verses

Psalms 46:10

10 Be still, and know that I am God:


this calling will be......A.W.E.S.O.M.E! and I will L.O.V.E. it......

And like they say, confession is good for the soul...just don't hold it against me...

And like confession, chocolate is good for the soul, especially when it is a ruined looking lump of cake. So here is our recipe for Chocolate Addiction Trifle:

1 ruined (or perfectly ok) chocolate cake, cooked from scratch, or use a box if it pleases you.
1 box of White Chocolate Pudding (yes I should have made them from scratch..they would have been better...but that is not how my day went...remember I had just been called to be a cub scout leader an hour before I had guests over)

1 box of Chocolate pudding
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
2 cups whipped cream or Cool Whip (if you must)
1 Tablespoon of Cocoa Powder

Break up cake and layer 1/2 in a glass cake pan...it looks prettier!
Make white chocolate pudding and layer over cake
sprinkle 1/2 of chocolate chips over pudding

Whip cream with confectioners sugar, a little vanilla and Cocoa Powder and layer on top.
Repeat with remaining cake, chocolate pudding, chocolate chips and whipped cream.

When you are ready to serve, drizzle chocolate syrup over each portion.

And then listen as our guests tell you that it is the absolute best and that they must have the recipe o make for their Chinese grandmother....It will set the world aright!

Love yer confession listening guts!!

Chocolate makes everything better.....

I've been writing this post in my head for two weeks now....


I've had to erase and edit, and start over, yes...even in my head!

I bawled through the first one, the morning after Utah's pioneer day celebration....

Whao!  I am that moved by the day.....that, and i am still pondering, ok, totally questioning, why the fam and I have yet to be able to fulfill our (my) dream...and hopefully that of my husband....and seek out our own green acres. Just like our pioneer heritage.....

We drove around a little farming/ranching community, that I have loved since we moved north...and can't seem to return down south.....

grammies sitting on the porch rocking, the tick and hiss of sprinkler hitting the the grass whispering in the wind, the cow dogs yipping after their little boys....gardens, thick and green, getting heavy with ripening pods...

I could go on and on....but I won't. Let's just say that my granma, was still finding my farm layout drawings when she was still with us.....

we had had a conversation about my layouts just a few weeks before she died...she asked me what I was doing to fulfill those plans that I had had in my head since I was at least 8....the brood mare barn (forget vampire books, I devoured every girl and colt book there was to be had), the apple orchards...treats for my horsey pals of course, the pastures, my house with the wrap around porch....and so on and so on.....i said it must not be meant to be...she told me nonsense, keep trying.....at least I had found my cowboy....she always found the positive!

my mr. says I want it too bad.....so the universe says no...really? serious??

i cried some more, when my city gone country cousin blogs that she has cows...I am happy for her, thrilled for her....i encourage her to get chickens...then wonder.....why not me?

could it be that we chose to have eight kiddos in a down economy and didn't have our education finished until we had half our family......(that's a hint peeps...finish school before...or not....whatever feels right! but i do encourage my girls to go to college, go on a mission, play, travel, have fun.....but if you fall in love at 18 and marry...so be it....but please wait.....that could be just two short years away....I'm not ready..I still have babies at home.....and I mean literal babies, I am not ready for grandbabies....yet)  is it because I am wishy washy

 could it be that my husband choose a vocation in public service because the ranch/farm was already crowded, and well.... working for the gov, stinks? but thank heavens for insurance!  could it be that it is just not meant to be, that i have a different mission in life then I want....

who knows, except the Lord...and He seems quiet on the subject.....

so like i do in all irreconcilable dilemmas...I think about food and how i would do it if i did have my white farm house and picket fence....so i will leave you with this recipe, homemade chocolate syrup, without preservatives or chemicals or corn syrup....

so far we have had it on ice ream and shakes, in milk, added powdered sugar to it to make a glaze for homemade donuts, recipe here......and yes, even by the finger full....why dirty a spoon my son said....needless to say it was a hit.....

see...chocolate does solve everything....i even put it in my chili...yep.....seriously! i will keep you posted about my dream....i now have a deadline, i put us on the waiting list for a miniature jersey dairy cow....how fun is that?  and a post for another time!

Chocolate Syrup

2 cups Powdered sugar (you can use granulated, but the syrup tends to be more coarse and grainy)
1/2 cup cocoa (imagine dark chocolate here too!)
1 cup water
1/4 t vanilla
1/8 t salt

mix sugar and cocoa together, then stir in water and bring to a slow boil, not to fast or it can boil over! Boil for three minutes. Take off stove and stir in salt and vanilla. As it cools, it will thicken. I stored it in a mason jar for the ease of dipping a spoon...aka...finger...

store it on the top shelf in the fridge..because it will go fast!!

just so ya know...I just made a fresh double batch and stirred it into my homemade blueberry shake....totally rocked! and i licked the pan when i put it away

thanks for listening to my woes, which are more then one, since I licked the chocolate sauce pan!
luv yer guts

A Keeper for sure

YES....

it's me....for real....

i've been....well...a little busy

i had a baby...yes a baby...a real live baby girl....she's precious and adorable,

a keeper for sure......

don't forget I have twins too....goodness....who could forget....they're two

heaven help us...or me, probably them too...

and heaven knows we can't forget the five mcpunks above them....

two of them have jobs......i'm their taxi.....since one of them wrecked the car...when he was ditching....

but we aren't naming names.

i plan to be better, get a handle on things, even if it means leaving the whites sitting in the basket....

oh back up...i already do that...the hubs hates it...

but i did make a wonderful, delish, scrumptious and oh so easy chocolate lava cake....

the #1 mckiddo wanted it for his birthday.....it was only six days late....

he wasn't home...seriously i'm not that bad off....

it was not laborious or time intensive like some of the recipes....

only they (the Basalt Ladies) called it Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

either way it works!


1 cup flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 T cocoa powder
2 T baking powder
1/4 t salt
1/2 cup milk
2 T melted butter
1 cup nuts (optional)

Mix the above ingredients, spread in an ungreased square pan, 9x9x2. Stir together: 1 cup packed brown sugar and 1/4 cup cocoa, sprinkle over batter. Pour 1 3/4 cups hot water over the batter.  Bale at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.  While warm, spoon cake into dishes and spoon sauce over, top with ice cream or whipped cream. (can easily be doubled)

and, um...it's good in the morning, cold, right out of the pan...the whipped cream needed...just hide the spoon or the kiddos think that they can do it too!

and a little shout out to my cuz and her mama......this yumminess is in a large family collection of recipes that my cousin typed out for her LARGE extended family and was gracious enough to share it with me.  Her mom is about the best mother I know!  She was like my own when I was growing up.....i often think of her when my mouth is agape at some action by one of my kiddos...and I wonder what I should do...besides screaming....

i'll be back though, for real....i've missed yall!

Ole the Mole'!

While we are the subject of around the world flavors...that are healthy for us!!  I thought I would post a quick and oh so easy Mole sauce......no not as in the ground borrowing animal...but as in the south of the border, spicy with a hint of chocolate.....and by the way, that hint of chocolate will go far in your chili or pork burritos...but alas I forget where I am going with this...

truly, the art of Mole' sauce is an age old tradition, passed from grandmothers on down.....women toiling all day over a stove, a pinch of that and bit of this...

but lets be honest, none of us have all day in the kitchen to prepare for mouth watering artistry, let alone the patience...

okay, that one is probably just me!  But anyone can whip up this simple mole, with one arm tied behind your back or holding a baby...or wiping a nose.....you get the picture?!

YOU can do this!  Pour this over tamales, which is what we did last night, (and no..I didn't make the tamales, a friend did, but one day I will learn, until then...I have been known to buy them in the grocery store parking lot! Yep...I'm not afraid!!) add it to your homemade chimichangas.....which are really easy to make.....burritos, juevos rancheros!  It works!! Even pour it on those frozen bricks, they call food...I promise I won't tell anyone!  But eventually you'll realize that cooking from scratch is just as easy and far superior then opening that plastic wrapper.....

unless of course you have 1 million hungry teenage hole in the stomach horde drop in...then by all means break out the microwave...becasue heaven know that still happens at my house!  We are slowly working the good and REAL food in!


SIMPLE MOLE SAUCE
2 Tbs butter
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp cumin (my favorite spice by far!)
1 tsp cilantro...dried works perfectly well!
1/2 tsp minced garlic...I get this from a jar!
2 8 oz cans of tomato sauce
1 4 oz can of chopped green chilis

Saute onions in butter, until caramelized ( think caramelized onions are the answer to world peace...or at least calming the warring nations of men!) Mix in cocoa powder, cumin, cilantro and garlic, stir in tomato sauce and green chilis, bring to a boil, turn down immediately and let simmer a good ten minutes, 20 is better and 30 is the bomb!  But hey I know what happens when fists are being pounded on the table!!

Love your mole eatin guts!

...it could always be worse

It's been one of those days....

where I shouldn't get dressed, let alone get outta bed....

but out I did get at 5 am....to two bright eyed and bushy tailed mctwins.....laughing and ready to play.  Later they repay my kindness, by sleeping the morning away.....while I clean/laundry/sit on the couch and eat bonbons.

On this day not only would our second laptop in less then a year take a dive off a high cliff, with all of our pictures downloaded on one or the other, our a/c would also poop out....(a special shout out goes tot he builder who put in a way too small unit!...you're the best!) but thankfully September finds us cool enough to open the windows and let in a fresh breeze...

andto top it off...Mctwin # 2 would use me as a puking basin...that was great....warm, slightly curdled and totally disgusting....I wonder if there is some benefits to the skin?

No...just checking.....


but here I sit...laughing and blogging about it....

because if I don't, I will bawl.....which will get me no where but a headache and blotchy eyes

and because as a wise friend says...."it could always be worse"....

 and it can......

in less then six months we have been to the ER no less then FIVE times, two of which consisted of overnight/extended day stays, this does not even count the ear infections, shoulder dislocations and tears and physicals and well baby checks.

Thankfully we have had excellent hospitals and healthy outcomes...with a few scars to show for it all.

...and after dealing with insurance companies on a few of these situations......I had had enough.....

so I made cake pops...

oh, you have heard of them

pure deliciousness....

I took pictures, but my ancient pc won't recognize the camera...so please use your imagination!

This all came about because yesterday I was making a cake for a funeral dinner...and it fell. So I needed to make another one...because heaven help us...there was no hiding a 2 inch hole in the middle and I couldn't pull off this story here.  Thankfully the second cake held up; thank you cousin Rachel for that recipe, and I only burned the coconut topping under the broiler....

After dropping the cake off to feed the intended persons.....I had an extra horrendously ugly cake.... that still tasted yummy.  having just received a family cookbook from my cousin who complied more then 400 recipes from her family (I promise the check is in the mail!) and perused it while salivating.....I saw the recipe for cake pops from cousin Mandy.....and it looked fabulously easy, whereas some of the recipes I have seen...well seemed to take too much time....

so we crumbled the cake, whipped up a batch of peanut butter frosting, mixed it furiously...and set it in the fridge for a couple of hours to cool....later while finally being able to watch"Parenthood" finally!!! and if you didn't see it last season...please tune in...so funny...I laugh...because....well I think they have read some of my mind!!

I rolled the cake/frosting mixture into balls and stick a lollipop stick in it...not so hard.... and stuck them in the freezer. And today...I dipped them in chocolate ganosh....and it was good...........

Thanks to Bakerella,  where you can find recipes and directions galore the world is a much better place because although mine aren't half as pretty, I know that we are all happier people because we are eating cake off a stick....

and things can always be worse.....

so off I go to have another cake pop, count my blessings and try to fix my camera.....

love yer guts for making my world better!

Why I Eat Cake

In the last two days....

I have sent my three oldest darlings...

to scout camp and girls camp....

which makes me realize the following if I want to blog.....

1 - I really REALLY like my built in babysitters

They are the BEST!

2 - I need a maid, a laundress, a seamstress a cook and a wet nurse...

just kidding on the wet nurse....we are sooo over that.

Macdaddy would like one though.....just a thought for his 40th birthday

(oh my goodness how I love this man!  He puts up with my cake eating ways! and even bakes me a few too!)

3 - I need a new camera....

That would inspire me and maybe remind me to take my camera places

and capture these fleeting moments

4 - I need said pictures from said camera on one computer/laptop

they are currently spread across three...and one of them does not work...

5 - I need more sleep....

period....can you beleive they were this small.....and slept peacefully through the night...

well one did at least!

and I thought I could be a farmer....

still in the works on that one....

6 - I need a slightly larger house...

So I can hide from my lovely darlings.....and type without gummed cheerios dropping on my keys...

or type with more then two fingers....

...as I do now....

but wait...I like everything I do.....

what I really need.....

is just more hours in the day...

easy peazy mac and cheezy....

okay...I could probably use a babysitter....

  because left to their own devices for a few minutes...they do this...

but how cute is it?

So because I don't have enough time in the day,

I make myself feel better by eating this...

You'll like it too!! You'll thank me later 

when you can pull it out of the fridge at 4 am

and have a piece cuz your little ones...

won't sleep/barfing/coughing/gagging/crying/have bad dream/

and you need to get control of yourself!

I adopted the recipe from this site

and can't wait to go back to Smitten Kitchen's yummy looking cakes...

and her pictures do the cake justice!

Makes an 8-inch triple-layer cake; serves 12 to 16 (the book says, I say a heck of a lot more) I just made it in a 9 x 13 because I was short on pans and time....turned out wonderfully! although you will need to cook it for 55 minutes!
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, preferably Dutch process
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup neutral vegetable oil, such as canola, soybean or vegetable blend
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup coarsely chopped peanut brittle (I skipped this)
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottoms and sides of three 8-inch round cakepans. Line the bottom of each pan with a round of parchment or waxed paper and butter the paper.
2. Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Whisk to combine them well. Add the oil and sour cream and whisk to blend. Gradually beat in the water. Blend in the vinegar and vanilla. Whisk in the eggs and beat until well blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and be sure the batter is well mixed. Divide among the 3 prepared cake pans.
3. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out almost clean. Let cool in the pans for about 20 minutes. Invert onto wire racks, carefully peel off the paper liners, and let cool completely. (Deb note: These cakes are very, very soft. I found them a lot easier to work with after firming them up in the freezer for 30 minutes. They’ll defrost quickly once assembled. You’ll be glad you did this, trust me.)
4. To frost the cake, place one layer, flat side up, on a cake stand or large serving plate. Spread 2/3 cup cup of the Peanut Butter Frosting evenly over the top. Repeat with the next layer. Place the last layer on top and frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting. (Deb note 1: Making a crumb coat of frosting–a thin layer that binds the dark crumbs to the cake so they don’t show up in the final outer frosting layer–is a great idea for this cake, or any with a dark cake and lighter-colored frosting. Once you “mask” your cake, let it chill for 15 to 30 minutes until firm, then use the remainder of the frosting to create a smooth final coating. Deb note 2: Once the cake is fully frosting, it helps to chill it again and let it firm up. The cooler and more set the peanut butter frosting is, the better drip effect you’ll get from the Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze.)
5. To decorate with the Chocolate–Peanut Butter Glaze, put the cake plate on a large baking sheet to catch any drips. Simply pour the glaze over the top of the cake, and using an offset spatula, spread it evenly over the top just to the edges so that it runs down the sides of the cake in long drips. Refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 30 minutes to allow the glaze and frosting to set completely. Remove about 1 hour before serving. Decorate the top with chopped peanut brittle.
Peanut Butter Frosting
Makes about 5 cups
10 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
5 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
2/3 cup smooth peanut butter, preferably a commercial brand (because oil doesn’t separate out)
1. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add the confectioners’ sugar 1 cup at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl often. Continue to beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes.
2. Add the peanut butter and beat until thoroughly blended.
Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze
Makes about 1 1/2 cups
8 ounces seimsweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons smooth peanut butter
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 cup half-and-half (I uses evaporated milk since I was out of half and half)
1. In the top of d double boiler or in a bowl set over simmering water, combine the chocolate, peanut butter, and corn syrup. Cook, whisking often, until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.
2. Remove from the heat and whisk in the half-and-half, beating until smooth. Use while still warm.

I stored tthe cake in the fridge...oh so good...

Love yer ever livin eatin guts!