Sweetness

I came home this afternoon with the best of intentions to go work out.  I'd intended to hit the gym yesterday after work, too, but a chaotic and frustrating afternoon just took the wind out of my sails and I accidentally fell asleep.  For two hours.  And still went to bed on time and fell right to sleep.  Apparently I've reverted back to infancy sleep patterns.  Anyway, I got home and immediately grabbed my work out attire, only to realize that ALL of my sports bras were in the washing machine waiting to move into the dryer.  I don't prefer to work out in regular bras so the gym didn't happen.

What's a girl to do instead?  Dust, vacuum, finish laundry, make dinner, and make a surprise treat for her husband!  Except it's not really that much of a surprise.  I recently became addicted to Pinterest and L perused some of my food-related pins and told me what he thought looked and sounded good.  What did I make?

That would be a salted caramel brownie bite (find the recipe here).  Except I haven't made the icing yet and honestly, I'm a bit on the fence about it.  The brownie bites on their own are rich enough and the icing recipe has enough butter and sugar to cause a heart attack.  Plus, L is not always a huge fan o' icing.  Or cupcakes.  And with the frosting, it becomes more of a cupcake than a brownie bite.

If you're now inspired to make these, here are some tips.  I read the comments on that page AFTER I'd bought my Kraft caramels and it was too late to turn back.  I decided to soften them up by unwrapping them all, placing them on a plate, and microwaving on 50% power in increments of 30 seconds (one scorched and the rest were all fine, but for the record, you would probably be fine throwing them in for a total of 45 seconds).  There's no temperature listed, so I baked mine at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.  Mine were fine, not crispy like that first comment, but maybe that person's oven runs hot (I have an oven thermometer in mine and it was actually 350 degrees on that rack.  Take that for what it's worth).  Happy eating!  Oh and be glad that these are just brownie BITES.  You don't need more than one at a time to satiate a craving.  Oh and one more thing!  Mini muffin cups are surprisingly challenging to find in the summer (apparently they are seasonal??).  I ultimately found Wilton brand ones at Target.  They aren't my favorite- they are INCREDIBLY hard to separate- but they get the job done.

NOW LET'S REWIND AND GO BACK TO THAT PART WHERE I MENTIONED PINTEREST!  If you are not pinning, you are missing out.  I'm a visual person.  Working in my current job has only exacerbated this.  Pinterest is a total feast for the eyes!  I love seeing what my friends have pinned and what's popped up on the "everything" board.  As a Harry Potter fan, this was my favorite pin from yesterday:

I applaud that particular prankster's creativity.  And maybe it's fake, but it still made me laugh.  I encourage EVERYONE to join Pinterest.  It's easy and fun and just a little corner of happiness on the internet because everyone pins things they like!  You do need an invitation so if you want one, just ask.  Happy pinning!