So life has been pretty crazy lately. Between Hubs' birthday today (Yay!) and getting my house ready for my family to visit next week (double yay!), I've also somehow managed to reserve my cap and gown for graduation next week AND find a new job! It's a part-time thing for now, so I'll still be able to cook.

But there are a few housekeeping things first...

So, obviously, you already know that I am completely unprepared to post about Daring Bakers or Barefoot Bloggers at this point. I *did* make Ina's Outrageous Brownies, but made a few key boo-boos; when Ina says butter and flour a pan, she doesn't mean butter and cocoa powder. I thought I'd be sneaky and use that little tip I saw a long time ago, where a chocolate cake recipe called for a buttered and floured pan and the chef used cocoa powder so the edges weren't covered in white powder.

That was mistake #1.

Mistake #2 was that I forgot to "rap" the pan on the stove shelf halfway through baking. I was in a bit of a rush to meet with a couple of friends for a super light dinner, and was completely distracted. Listen to Ina when she says to do something. She's not just a crazy lady who loves food- she knows what she's talking about.

Mistake #3 was using a 9"x13" Pyrex dish instead of a half-sheet pan. I didn't have a big ole half sheet pan that wasn't grody-looking, so I thought it'd be alright and I'd get FAT brownies instead.

Nope. lol What I ended up with was a pan of insanely rich delicious brownies that I have to eat out of the dish with a fork. That's fine with me, since I could eat the entire thing on my own. They are so rich, so chocolate-y... the inside is almost fudge-like instead of cake-y, brownie-like. *drool*

Now, on to Daring Bakers... This recipe is somewhat involved and I intend to do it over Sunday/Monday, as a "welcome" for my mom, who is visiting me here for the first time! It will be a bit of a culture-shock for her, I think, but I hope DB's streudel recipe will impress her and make her feel a bit more comfortable. :) Plus, she had mentioned cooking for me, so my gumbo post may be a guest post by my own mommy! Yay!

So, again, I apologize for being a total slacker. I hope having a job will make me more organized and focused, since I won't be a depressed lump sitting around my house anymore. :) So, thanks to all of you who visit and comment and leave me encouraging words. I really do appreciate it!