Decadent Peanut Butter Pie*

‎"Pie is meant for sharing. Pie connects people. Pie knows no cultural or political boundaries. Pie makes people happy. And happy people make the world a better place. That’s why the world needs more pie." ~ Beth M. Howard

I stumbled into Beth Howard's blog as I was leafing through my Country Living magazine, where she was featured.  The title is what caught my eye:  The World Needs More Pie.  She also has a memoir that is due out in print shortly: Give Piece a Chance.  I'd never heard of her or her blog until this morning, but I did feel an immediate bond of sorts with her.  I am a pie baker, albeit on a much much smaller scale!  And she is right! Pie DOES make people smile.  Why IS that?

I think some people are just intimidated by pie making.  They think it is something mysterious and best left to the professionals.  Nothing can be further from the truth.  I think the thing I like most about making pies is not only is it a creative outlet, (a beautiful and delicious home made pie IS a work of art, is it not?) but results are fairly immediate and as Beth says, pies make people smile!  Rarely does anyone say, "sorry, I don't do pie", so the chances of having your masterpiece rejected are fairly slim.

So I thought I would put this recipe up today in case anyone wanted to make it for Valentine's Day this week.  My friend Jennifer brought a couple of these to our Thanksgiving dinner last year and it was LOVE at first bite!  I put one together this afternoon...it's chilling in the fridge right now!  Very easy to make and only takes a couple of ingredients.

Makes one pie, 6-8 servings/ prep time:  15 mins. / Ready in 2 hrs.

Ingredients:

1 cup JIF Creamy Peanut Butter plus 2 Tbsp (divided)

1 8-oz. package cream cheese, softened

1/2 c. sugar

1 12-oz. container (4 1/2 cups) frozen whipped topping, thawed (divided)

1 prepared chocolate pie crust

1 11.75 oz. Smucker’s Hot Fudge Topping (divided)

Directions:

1. Beat together 1 cup peanut butter, cream cheese, and sugar in large bowl with an electric mixer on medium until well combined.  Gently mix in 3 cups whipped topping until thoroughly combined.  Spoon mixture into pie crust.  Using a spatula, smooth mixture to edges of pie.

 2. Reserve two Tbsp. of hot fudge topping in the corner of a resealable food storage bag; set aside.  Microwave remaining topping on high for one minute.  Stir.  Spread topping over pie, covering entire peanut butter layer.  Refrigerate until set.  Spread remaining whipped topping (1 1/2 cups) over hot fudge layer, being careful not to mix the two layers.  

 3. Cut a small corner of bag containing topping.  Squeeze bag to drizzle topping over pie.  Place remaining 2 Tbsp. peanut butter in a resealable food storage bag.  Cut bag corner and squeeze to drizzle in opposite direction from topping.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

So if you want something quick, yummy, and mysterious to serve on Valentine's Day, this would be it. And don't forget to smile!

* Decadent Peanut Butter Pie ©/® The J. M. Smucker Company

When life gets tough, the tough get crafty...

I haven't felt a creative bone in my body for months now, but I thought I could use some craft therapy.  To be honest, I didn't think of it myself, but took the challenge of an acquaintance after I posted on a local Facebook swap group that I belong to that I was in search of a Valentine's Day wreath.  She showed me the one she made and so I set out to try to copy it.

I discovered it is a little late to be shopping the craft stores for Valentine's Day supplies so I didn't get as large a styrofoam heart as I wanted.  The one I got is about 13 inches across.  I would have preferred something up to twice that size.  Then I bought a large bag of red glass stones, the kind you see in vases or in fish tanks, a roll of red tulle, (my friend used red cellophane) and a roll of ribbon.  I already have a hot glue gun and glue sticks.

So first I covered the styrofoam heart with the tulle, tucking in the end on the back with a little dab of hot glue.  Then I simply covered the entire heart, front and back, with the stones.  You wouldn't have to put them on the back, but I'm just weird that way...

In all seriousness, this project took less than an hour to complete.  The glass beads made the wreath very heavy, so I was hesitant to put it on the outside of my front door.  We are having a lot of strong winds and some snow lately.  So I decided to find a place indoors to hang it.  This is a funky old desk in our living room, where I am also displaying some vintage valentines I got from the flea market a while ago...

To complete my Valentine's Day decor, I added a store bought banner...

And now will someone please pass the chocolates?

What are YOU doing to decorate for February???

My age is showing...

For my writer's group assignment this week, I was given the prompt "gone". That could take me any number of places in my cluttered brain, but I decided to just spout off a little. I feel like I'm standing alone on an issue and maybe someone out there can just help me understand!

Because I feel like something is definitely missing these days. Like a sense of propriety.

When I told my psychologist-brother what's been bugging me, his response was "your age is definitely showing"! I put a status on Facebook last week on the subject which drew pretty much the same kind of response.

So what IS it? OK, simply stated: I just don't GET the need for pajamas in public. A week or so ago I was at Panara, for example. In walk three teenaged girls with who appeared to be a mother. The three were all dressed in flannel pj's and fluffy slippers. Beside the point is the fact that we were experiencing near-zero temperatures, snow and ice. I can't even imagine walking to my mailbox in slippers of any description. (Do they wear these same slippers around their homes after they have been trudged through dirty snow in parking lots?)

Then last week, my granddaughter's Christian Pre-School featured "pajama day". All the little boys and girls were to wear their favorite pj's, bring their blankeys and stuffed animals, and watch a movie together. This happened exactly one day after she and I had our first "purity" discussion which was hard enough to do on a 5 year old's level. We talked about things like modesty in public...

Now before everyone pounces on me about the innocence and fun of pajama parties for children, please understand I am ALL about children having fun. Anyone who knows me in the slightest knows I put my heart and soul into all kinds of fun activities for the littles in my charge, and even neighbor kids. I used to love going to slumber parties at a girl friend's house when I was young. And it was all girls and in a home, and closely supervised I might add. We had a screened front porch on our house, and we used to love to have sleepovers there in the summer. The boys and girls took turns.

I'm just wondering why we need to blur the lines of what is for public consumption and what, in my humble, old-fashioned opinion, should remain in the privacy of one's home. I did some checking and other private Christian schools in the area also participate in the current fad of having children (and in the case of my granddaughter's Pre-School, teachers too) wear their nightclothes to school. I know it is done in the public schools as well. I guess I naively thought that there might be a slightly higher standard imposed at a Christian school, or ANY private school for that matter. I mean, SOMEONE is paying for this kind of "education".

There are so many areas in our society-at-large where lines have been blurred, especially in the morality department. I'm not going to take the time to list the examples that are going through my mind right now. So does this start in Pre-School? Common sense might ask that question. And where does it end?

Our local zoo frequently sponsors overnight events where the kids are invited to sleepover in their pajamas...with strangers. I just saw an article where a local breast cancer awareness group had a "pink pajama party". Borders offers Polar Express pajama parties for the public. I'm serious, I just don't GET IT.

I'm not against pajama parties. My hubby and I had a pajama party last night. It was Valentine's Day and he was doing some ministry at the church, helping people in employment transitions, after a long work day of his own. I knew it would be very late when he got home and he would be exhausted. So I decided to surprise him. I cleaned our bedroom up, lit a bunch of candles, filled the soaking tub, set out clean jammies and towels, gave him supper in bed, complete with wine and chocolates. He loved it. I in my flannel nightgown and he in his flannel pj's, snuggled up on a long winter's night. It was wonderful. Just the two of us relaxing together. Just the way it should be. And no, there are no photos.

Valentine's Day Give-away!

Stop over at Joanne's blog, Blessed is She Who Believed, and enter her Valentine's Day give-away. The book sounds fantastic, and who wouldn't want a Starbuck's gift card? Someone will be a lucky winner! Thanks, Joanne!

for my hubby...

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY !

Who would have ever thought way back when we were 16 and 17 and "just friends" in high school, that all these years later we would be together, sharing a life of love and still making memories? I love you more each year and thank God every day for you! He has been so good to us!

"Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup, you have made my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance." Psalm 16:-5-6.

Check out this free giveaway...just in time for Valentine's Day

$40 Hand-Stamped Jewelry Giveaway at Patina Soul

Check out one of my favorite blogs.....Patina Soul! They are having a fabulous hand-stamped jewelry giveaway. Leave a comment on their blog by February 13th, and also mention it on your blog, and you will be entered to possibly win a $40 gift certificate for their jewelry!

http://patinasoul.blogspot.com/2010/02/40-hand-stamped-jewelry-giveaway.html#comment-form