A Little Break

I got to escape from Rochester for about 24 hours this weekend- and it was a much needed break! I went down to Canandaigua lake for a mini Kitchen family reunion and Lobsterfest! I had so much fun, and can't remember the last time I laughed that hard. Wadhams clan- I'm officially starting the campaign for Canandaigua 2012- a reunion of the Kitchens and Wadhams. Can you imagine the chaos? It would be so much fun!

I decided that if they were going to be feeding me a ginourmous feast of lobster and steak, I should contribute something tasty. I decided on macaroons- they are so yummy, don't cost too much to make, and can be done in about an hour.

Here is a picture of my ingredients:

• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 5 1/2 cups flaked coconut
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Bake at 375 until toasty : ) (about 12 mins)
• I also like to get crazy and add 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon- but be careful. You can't just add the cinnamon to the batter, because it won't spread evenly- you have to mix it in with the vanilla extract, and then it will spread throughout the batter more thoroughly.

The mixing bowl and spoon were a gift from my friend Christina- and I love them!! Thanks X! (She is off in Peru doing good deeds and volunteering her nursing skills- how cool is that?)

Silly me- I tried to be fancy and mix the batter in a cute bowl with a cute spatula.

I learned quickly that I needed a MUCH bigger pot, and these ingredients call for some good old fashioned hand mixin'

Roll those suckers up in ping-pong sized balls

*hint-wash your hands after about every 10 balls or so- otherwise, your hands get

too sticky to make properly shaped little cookies.

While making these fancy treats, I watched this not-so-fancy show. Have you seen "Swamp People"? If you haven't- you really need to. It is hilarious!!! It's about gator hunters in the Atchatfalaya swamp of Louisiana. It's a mix of "Deadliest Catch," "Beverly Hillbillies," "River Monsters," and the male versions of Paula Dean with giant rifles (think deep fried whole bullfrogs and alligator innards). Let's face it- I'm weird. I am fully aware of this fact. And I've always had a fascination swamps and the Cajun lifestyle. See weird? But The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has always been a favorite book of mine, and growing up my favorite parts of Disneyland were New Orleans Square, Adventureland, and Frontierland. So this show is right up my alley.

Twelve minutes later, these puppies were ready to come out of the oven!!

And here is a little teaser for the next post! Next time you see my kitchen... it will be one of these colors. Crazy, I know. But hey, it's my apartment- and I can crazy-paint it however I please : )