Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Scones

One recent morning as I was preparing to bake up something yummy for breakfast I heard a request for something with peanut butter...and something chocolate...and then oooh something with both! 

 

I will admit that this is not the healthiest of breakfasts and it wasn't something that I could put in a school lunch (not a fan of the nut ban at school), but it sounded like fun and I knew I would be able to produce something that would make everyone happy and it is so rare to actually get to do that. 

Peanut butter + chocolate + breakfast = peanut butter, chocolate chip scones. 

The only problem with these is now my kids want them all the time and giving in to that would just push me from good mom to bad mom status and that is not what I want. 

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Scones

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 Tbsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

Whisk the above ingredients together in a medium bowl. With a pastry cutter (or your fingers if your hands aren't overly warm) cut in 1/2 cup butter. 

In a separate bowl gently whisk:

1 egg

2 tsp vanilla

3/4 cup peanut butter ( I use an organic, natural peanut butter - you may have to adjust the amounts if you use a regular commercial brand)

3/4 cup heavy (whipping) cream

Add wet ingredients to dry. Mix until combined. (You may need to add an extra Tbsp of cream if it won't come together). 

As the dough is coming together add 1 1/2 to 2 cups chocolate chips (depending on how chocolatey you want the scones).  

With hands form dough into a ball. It should not be wet or sticky but fairly dry yet able to stick together. Line a baking tray with a silpat liner or parchment paper and place dough ball on a flat surface and flatten with palm of hand to create a round of approximately 1 inch thickness. With a pastry brush, brush tops with cream (you'll only need about a Tbsp). For added sparkle and texture sprinkle tops with vanilla sugar (or other decorative sugar).  Cut dough into twelve equal sections and place evenly spaced on lined tray.

Bake for 15-20 minutes on middle rack in oven. (You want them starting to turn golden around the edges). 

Like all scones these are best eaten warm. Enjoy!

If you are one of those rare individuals who does not like chocolate or if you are just in the mood for something extra peanutty these are also good leaving out the chocolate chips and adding 1 cup of chopped peanuts. I've only made them that way once and they were good but my family is full of chocoholics. 

Throw Back Thursday

Today I attempted to start a massive project.

Aside from what I needed to print for school, I have not printed a single photo in seven years. 

I also have not organized my photos. I do have them backed up on an external hard drive...but I really don't know where anything is. And so, today I decided that now is the time to organize, sort, delete...all of that fun stuff. 

First I had to find everything. 

As I opened up the computer and looked at the many thousands of photos I have accumulated many memories were brought to mind. I smiled, laughed and maybe even shed a few tears. 

What really stood out to me is how fast time has gone by. I mean seriously fast. I quickly scrolled through holidays, birthdays, and numerous road trips. My kids lives flashed before my eyes and I realized how soon they will be grown and gone. 

This was my first "photo shoot" with all four of my kids. I remember thinking how getting four kids to look at the camera at the same time was an impossible task and wondering how long it would take me to get a really good shot of all four of them (still waiting!). 

The baby can't wait to turn eight this year and the oldest has started making plans for university... 

I have put off organizing until tomorrow and am heading out to start the after school run and spend the afternoon hanging out with four of the coolest people I know.

Working Hard and Playing Hooky...

I've decided to take more time to work on my photography. Even though I spent a a year in photography school I didn't have as much time to practice as I would've liked. And then post move I've been so busy that I haven't taken much time to work on my photography.

I don't know why, but I tend to feel guilty taking time to do things I enjoy. I always feel like I should be finding extra work to do. I could always be doing laundry (why does laundry never end?), organizing something or washing the floors. I know practicing photography is useful (especially after spending the money to learn how to do it), but I like it so much that I feel like I should be doing something else. My husband's at work, the kids are at school. I shouldn't be enjoying myself...

My husband has been trying to convince me not to feel guilty and to take advantage of the time I have. This morning I decided to go out and take pictures of the beautiful mountains that surround us. When I stepped outside I realized that the sky was very overcast but I did see a bit of sun poking through the clouds so I went out anyway.

I really love the mountains. I missed them so much when we lived in the east. I was able to get a few shots that I was satisfied with considering the weather. I was planning on going alone. But, I brought along some company and enjoyed my time so much.

My seven and a half year old has been having a hard time going to school over the past few weeks. Every morning he dawdles and begs to stay home. Every morning I manage to get him off to school. The past two days he has been trying really hard to get ready and be on time without me having to drag/threaten/beg him. This morning he looked so cute. He came and told me he was ready. I told him how proud I was of him and that he was doing so much better. He just looked up at me and said (as he has every day this week). Mom, I only want some just me and you time. That's what he has been calling our one on one time for the past few years. He loves just me and you time. But, as one of four he doesn't get enough of it.

So today, I told him that I wanted just me and you time too. Watching his face light up and feeling his little arms around me and hearing his thank-you mommy's made me feel so happy. I know he shouldn't really miss school. But he's seven and a half already. Time passes so quickly. My kids are getting so big so fast. We had such a fun day together just hanging out. He even helped me with my "work"...

Normally, he doesn't like modelling for me. He made an exception for just me and you day. I love this toothless smile and I am so happy that I took the time to spend a day with him. Years from now I don't think the occasional day of missed school will be worth remembering... but a day of just me and you will hopefully never be forgotten.

Confucius and my lack of perfection...

"It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop" - Confucius

When I started writing this blog I wanted to keep a journal of my life moving forward. I wanted a way to mark our family's progress so that when I looked back I would be able to see how far we had travelled - that each small step we took brought us to a more perfect future. I was hoping that with each decision we made we would be able to see a direct upward moving line.

That obviously hasn't happened. My life - as I suppose all life - has moved forward and backward, right and left (or east and west in my case) and has curved in all sorts of directions. I sometimes feel like I'm not moving forward at all and I get frustrated.

But, when I look back  I am reminded of how much we have learned over the past five years. Life has been very difficult at times and even though we've been working very hard we've not seen the results that I thought we would. We are not yet where I thought we would be. What I do see is growth and lots of room for improvement and that is a good thing.

This quote reminds me that even when progress is not speeding along as quickly as I would like it to - it is still there and that is what matters. It is important to relax a little and enjoy the journey - not to expect perfection so quickly because it may not arrive at all in my lifetime. I have to remind myself that a lack of perfection is no reason to give up but is an excellent reason to keep moving forward one tiny step at a time.