Anise Drop Cookies Recipe

During the fall I really get into the mood for cookie baking. I got this recipe about 20 years ago from a friend and every year, I look forward to making these Anise Drop Cookies.

Anise Drop Cookies Recipe

3 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons Anise seed

In a large mixing bowl, beat together the large eggs with the granulated sugar; gradually beat in the all-purpose flour and the Anise seed. Drop by the spoonfuls onto a lightly greased baking sheet and allow them to stand on the sheet for 6 hours or until a crust forms.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake cookies in the oven for 7 to 9 minutes. Remove and let cool. Store cookies in an airtight container.

Italian Bow Tie Pasta Salad Recipe

Last weekend we went to my sister's house for dinner and she made this wonderful Italian Bow Tie Pasta Salad and I just had to get the recipe. It is really simple to prepare and it tastes so good!

Italian Bow Tie Pasta Salad Recipe

16 oz. bag bow tie pasta
2 cucumbers, chopped
2 bell peppers, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
3 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 red onion, chopped
4 tbsp. Salad Supreme Seasoning
16 oz. bottle Italian Salad Dressing

Cook the pasta, rinse and drain. Place pasta in a large salad bowl and then gently stir in the chopped cucumbers, bell peppers, celery, tomatoes and onions. Stir in the Salad Supreme Seasoning and the Italian Salad Dressing until all ingredients are well combined. Place a lid on top of the bowl and refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours before serving.

Looking Into Naturopathic Healthcare

Back in the early 1990's I was diagnosed with a rare genetic disease called Porphyria. Since that time, I have endured over 35+ surgeries, over 200+ hospitalizations, repeated rounds of home nursing care and still...I found myself in chronic pain, every day!

A friend of mine's mother suffers with a similar ailment and lives in Canada. She was telling me about a naturopath Toronto who specializes in Naturopathic Healthcare who has been helping her mother, who also suffers with quite a bit of chronic pain and various other health ailments.

She told me that a naturopathic doctor will evaluate a patient and do tests. Once the evaluation and tests have been completed, the naturopathic doctor will make suggestions and recommendations to the patient that consist of the most current and recommended natural therapies.

These natural treatments and therapies can include:

* Botanical Medicine
* Diet Changes
* Lifestyle Changes
* Nutritional Supplements
* Nutritional Injections
* Acupuncture
* Traditional Chinese Medicine
* Naturopathic Spinal Manipulation
* Hydrotherapy
* and more!

In the past I have tried both acupuncture and spinal manipulation. I had some good results with acupuncture in the past but I couldn't handle the spinal manipulation due to my severe osteoporosis. I would love to visit a licensed naturopathic doctor now and perhaps try some botanical medicine, nutritional supplements and perhaps some hydrotherapy.

I would love to know if any of my blog readers have tried naturopathic healthcare before and if so, how was your experience with it? Please leave your feedback below in my blog's comment form. I would love to hear your thoughts and about your experience. Thanks!

Applesauce Cherry Squares Recipe

I love making bar style cookies as it really saves me a lot of time. Don't get me wrong, I love making drop cookies too...but on busy weekends, I am all about bar style cookies!

Applesauce Cherry Squares Recipe

2 cups sweetened applesauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 pkgs. cherry gelatin mix
1 cup chopped nuts
confectioner's sugar

In a large saucepan, heat up the applesauce to a boiling, add in the lemon juice. Simmer mixture for 10 minutes or until the applesauce has thickened. Stir in the gelatin mix and stir until dissolved. Remove from heat and stir in the chopped nuts. Pour mixture into an 8" by 8" pan which has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for 6 hours so that they firm up. Remove from refrigerator and cut into squares. Dust the tops of each square with confectioner's sugar before serving.

Beauty Doesn't Have to Cost a Fortune Infographic

I just turned 45 back in June of this year and even though I am getting older, I still like to look good! I buy a lot of skin care products, beauty products, bath & body products and of course, cosmetics.

When I was younger, I had no problem blowing an entire paycheck on the beauty & skin care products that I wanted. Now that I am older, more mature and definitely more frugal, I realized how much money I wasted years ago by purchasing the high-priced beauty products that I wanted.

Seriously, I get the same results by purchasing affordable beauty products as compared to those over-priced products that seem to lure you in with a bunch of promises.

Here is a nice inforgraphic that I wanted to share with all of you today about high-end beauty treatments, celebrities and how you can get the celebrity-look at a reasonable price!

Thank you Bh Cosmetics for sharing this information with all of my blog readers!


Presented By Bh Cosmetics

Caramel Nut Café Recipe by KRUPS

Fall is just around the corner and it's time to start thinking about all of those yummy hot beverages that we all like to drink once the weather gets chillier outside. Well today, the great folks over at KRUPS is sharing their delicious looking Caramel Nut Café Recipe with all of my blog readers. YUMMY!

* Recipe and Image is courtesty of KRUPS.

Caramel Nut Café Recipe by KRUPS

· 1 teaspoon coffee liqueur
· 1 teaspoon almond extract
· 1 cup hot coffee
· Cream

Directions: Mix coffee, liqueur, and almond extract in a pot. Serve with cream.

Note: I made the recipe a few days ago and I used the whipped cream that comes in a can and it was absolutely delicious! Matter of fact, hubby and I have made the recipe at least 6 times in the past week! Delicious!

Homemade Chewy Peppermint Candies Recipe

If you are tired of purchasing peppermint candies and tired of how hard they are, well, give this Chewy Peppermint Candies recipe a try. You only need 3 ingredients to make them! My sister calls them peppermint cookies but I consider them more of a candy.

Chewy Peppermint Candies Recipe

2 lbs. confectioner's sugar
8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

In a large mixing bowl combined together all 3 of the ingredients in the order they are given in the recipe. I find it best to use an electric mixer set on low speed. Roll out the candy dough onto wax paper. Cut the candy into your desired shapes and place them onto a baking sheet. Place sheet in the refrigerator so they harden up. Once harden remove them and place into an airtight container.

Installed the New Pocket Door Latch - Door Knob

Our home remodeling and home improvement projects are moving along nicely! My hubby is just about done with the 3/4 bathroom that he built and added onto the house. This bathroom features an eco-friendly low-flush new toilet, new pedestle sink and he built us a new super large 2-person shower with those fancy rain forest shower heads that come down from the ceiling. Super cool.

He needs to finish tiling some of the walls, paint them, hang the medicine cabinet, mirror and a few other minor things and that bathroom will finally be done. He has been working on it for 3 months!

Anyway, to save on space, he installed a pocket door as the entry door into the new 3/4 master bathroom. We needed a nickel finish pocket door latch with security lock and he got one from DoorCorner.com.

It took him about 20 minutes to cut a hole into the door and to install the new pocket door latch. It was one of the easiest things he had to do with this new bathroom that he built. We are super pleased with how the master bathroom is coming along and as soon as the entire bathroom has been completed, I will post before and after photos here on my blog.

Disclosure: We received a complimentary product to conduct a review. All opinions, thoughts & ideas on this product are 100% unbiased and true to the best of my knowledge. We did not receive any monetary compensation and were not required to published a favorable review.

Home Improvement Project - Magnetic Mailbox Wraps

It's now the start of September which marks the beginning of the 4th month of our various home remodeling projects. We have been gutting and remodeling this old home for 3 solid months now. We were "thinking" that it would ONLY take 3 months to complete the projects and that we would be moving into the house this month...but, we were wrong!

We only get to do the "major" work on the house during the weekends and then go over 2 evenings a week to do some "minor" work. This is taking a lot LONGER than we anticipated and is costing us a small fortune!

We have a very ugly mailbox that needs to be replaced and instead of replacing it right now (will do that in early spring), we decided to purchase one of those decorative magnetic mailbox wraps.

Since our landscaping is being done in a coastal theme, we went with a coastal themed mailbox wrap. It only cost us $8.00 (including the tax) so we felt this was a great affordable option for us right now.

It took us ONLY 30 seconds to transform our ugly old white mailbox with rust spots into something that looks a HECK OF A LOT better! Don't ya think? Some of the old house number stickers are sticking out under the wrap on the front so hubby is going to scrape those off tomorrow and it will then look even better!

Now that I have one magnetic mailbox wrap, I want more! I think it would be fun to change them up as the seasons change. What do you think? We love it!

Moist Chocolate Cake Brownies Recipe

I love to make brownies and sometimes I will make fudgy brownies and at other times I will make cake brownies. All of this is in regards to the brownies texture and moistness. Today I am sharing with all of you one of my favorite cake-like chocolate brownie recipes.

Chocolate Cake Brownies Recipe

1/2 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 squares of unsweetened chocolate, melted
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons light cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped walnuts or peanuts

In a large mixing bowl sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Melt the chocolate in a bowl and stir in the butter. Beat in the granulated sugar and large eggs, beat well. Gradually beat in the flour mixture until all ingredients are combined. Add in the light cream and vanilla extract, beat again. Stir in the chopped nuts.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour brownie batter into an 8" square baking dish and bake in a preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes or until done. Let cool or serve warm.