Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Ramblings and Chocolate Dipped Banana Bread Balls.

Hi guys, thanks for baring with me, I know I haven't been posting anywhere near as much as I should be just lately. I have been so, so tired. I started a new job, which I love but seeing as I haven't worked in so long, it is kicking my butt! I swear I shouldn't be this tired, it's actually quite ridiculous! By the time little man's bedtime rolls around, I have been falling in to bed myself.

The doctor started me on some medication a couple of months ago too, which I am thinking has something to do with it... I might have to get it changed to something else :/ Has anyone had any experiences with Zoloft?

Tonight, I was actually going to write a post that I have been putting off for a really long time. A post about why I am in fact taking Zoloft in the first place and a post about some of the things my family have faced in the last year... Yesterdays events in Boston however, has put that on the back burner for now. I can't stop thinking about all those poor people that have been affected by the heartless bombings, especially those who awoke this morning mourning the loss of a loved one. :( I can't get over how much evil there is in this world, it makes me so sad. I really do wish that things were different. AND on top of all of that! The town that I live in had 4 bomb threats today!! Both of the court houses were evacuated for most of the day as were the middle school and the high school! Luckily, nothing was found, but seriously! What the hell is wrong with people!? I really don't want my Son to grow up thinking that all of this is normal :( Ugh!

So instead of my intended post, I am going to be posting a recipe for Chocolate Covered Banana Bread Balls that might just bring a smile to your face, it certainly did mine when I made them. I'll start with the picture:

Looks good?
I found the original recipe for these on Pinterest. The link led me back to an extremely yummy looking blog called Inquiring Chef, you need to take a dig around over there, some of her stuff made me drool on my keyboard!!

Here is how I made them:

I started off by making the Banana Bread, I have been using this recipe for a really long time and it always comes out so good!!


You will need:

2 Cups of All Purpose Flour
1 Teaspoon of Baking Soda
¼ Teaspoon Salt
½ Cup of Butter
½ Cup of White Sugar
½ Cup of Brown Sugar
2 Large Eggs
3 Very Ripe Bananas!

  • Pre heat oven to 350°
  • Combine the flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl.
  • In another bowl, cream together the butter and the sugars.
  • Stir in the eggs and the 'crushed' banana (I usually squish the banana between my fingers)
  • Combine both mixtures and stir just until you see no flour left! It is VERY important not to over mix!!
  • Bake for 1 hour

When cooked, transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely!


For the Banana Bread Balls, you will need:
  • 1 8oz Container of Cream Cheese (I used Mascarpone)
  • Around 8 oz of Milk Chocolate Morsels and another 8 oz of Semi Sweet Chocolate Morsels, you could even use white too if you wanted!
  • Shredded Coconut and Crushed Walnuts for the toppings (You can use whatever you want though!!

Now you need to grab a sharp knife and cut the  hard crust off the banana bread, you can discard this bit, or spread butter on it, which is what I did... I cannot let banana bread go to waste!

In a large bowl, crumble the insides of the banana bread with your fingers until it is in small pieces. Add the cream cheese and mix really well, until it all comes together.

Using a teaspoon, separate the mixture into roughly 40 or 50 balls. Roll the balls in your hands. The original recipe said that it made 60, but I think I must have made them a lot bigger because I only managed to get 40! Place them on a tray lined with wax paper. I didn't have any wax paper, so just put them straight on the baking tray) They should look like this:


Melt your chocolate in two separate bowls. I used the microwave. Just make sure you check it and stir it every 10 seconds until it's melted completely! And using two forks, roll each ball around in the chocolate until fully coated!

The messy bit!

Sprinkle some shredded Coconut on some of them and Crushed Walnuts on the others and leave them on the counter to set for about 10 minutes or so and then transfer them to the fridge until they harden.


My pictures are so not as good as The Inquiring Chef!
 

And there you have it. Chocolate Covered Banana Bread Balls. So good!!! My next ones will be the Brownie ones!!

Please let me know if you make these and how they turned out!

I hope everyone has a great evening. Hold your loved ones tight ♥

~ Tasha

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

The BEST Oatmeal Raisin Cookies in the world, guaranteed!

Whew! Busy week in our household what with family visits, Easter, the hubs' forty something Birthday and one hangover from hell! I KEEP thinking that Jagermeister is my friend and am always very, very wrong. Why is it, the older you get, the longer the hangovers are? I didn't think I was ever going to make it back here!

We celebrated Easter a little early as Cole was heading to his Grandma and Grandads house so that me and the hubs could go out on Saturday night, the Easter bunny was very kind to Cole, a little too kind. So much so, that I think that candy is now banned until his 18th birthday. Please imagine a cross between The Energizer Bunny, Tigger and a VHS tape stuck on fast forward and you may have a slight idea of my day on Friday. Seriously. BANNED. He made me out of breath just watching him.

Anyway, during all the craziness, I did get time to try out a recipe for Oatmeal Raisin Cookies. I have been searching for quite a long time to find a good one... They are never thick enough or chewy enough and whilst googling one day, I came across a recipe originally featured in Cuisine magazine that intrigued me. They were AWESOME. I do believe that I have found the best recipe ever!

I tweaked it a little bit and added a few extras and this is how they turned out:


Thick, soft, chewy and amazing. You should definitely try them out! Again, I think I'm on to a winner here!!!

Check out the recipe below and please, please let me know if you make them! I would love to know what you think!

Ingredients:

2 Cups of All Purpose Flour
½ Teaspoon of Kosher Salt
1 Teaspoon of Baking Soda
1 Teaspoon of Baking Powder
½ Teaspoon Cinnamon
½ Teaspoon Nutmeg
1 Cup of Softened Unsalted Butter
1 Cup of White Granulated Sugar
1 Cup of Brown Sugar
2 Large Eggs
3 Cups of Oats (Not Instant!)
1½ Cups Raisins
½ Cup of Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips (Totally optional)
½ Cup of Chopped Walnuts (Again, totally optional!)

Method:

Preheat the oven to 350°F

In a medium sized bowl, mix together the Flour, Baking Soda, Baking Powder, Salt, Cinnamon and Nutmeg.

In a separate, large bowl, combine the Butter, White Sugar, Brown Sugar and Eggs with a hand mixer set on low. Once combined, increase the speed to high and mix until fluffy.

Add the flour mixture to the creamed butter mixture and incorporate it all together gently. You only need to mix until just combined! Do not over mix!

Add the Oatmeal and the Raisins (And any optional extras!) Stir gently to combine.

Drop about 2 tablespoons worth of the cookie dough onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (or a cookie sheet sprayed with non stick spray will work too!) around 2 inches apart and squish slightly.

Bake for around 12 - 15 minutes until they are starting to brown on top but still look moist! They will harden up slightly as they cool, but if you overcook them they are going to dry out and get crunchy! The BEST thing about these cookies is their chewiness! If they don't look done, they probably are! Take them out! Trust me!

Once you have removed them from the oven, let them cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheet and then transfer them onto a wire rack to cool completely (You won't be able to wait that long though!)

Your house will smell so good too!

I hope everyone had a fabulous Easter and I really hope you enjoy these cookies as much as I did!

As always, thanks for stopping by ♥

~Tasha

Monday, March 25, 2013

Sure! I know Bob Smith from London!

I was asked a question by someone just recently, that made me think of a whole bunch of other mildly ridiculous and sometimes hysterical questions I have been asked since I moved State side...

Some of them have been asked by people who live in the US and some have been asked by people at home (I am not going to name any names.) Below are a list of 'serious' questions I have been asked. No jokes here!!




Questions from the USA

1. Ooooh! You're from England? Did you find it difficult learning a new language?

2. So what did you cook back in England? You had to buy everything from farms and make everything from scratch, right? You don't have grocery stores like we do here do you?

3. Oh my god, your accent is so cool! I'd LOVE to go to Australia! Did you ever get to meet Steve Irwin??

4. You're not from around here are you? Do I hear a Pennsylvania accent?

5. Oh, those black bowler hats that all the men wear in England are SO cute!

6. "Excuse me Mam, did I hear you say you were from England??? Do you happen to know someone called Bob Smith? He lives in London!?"

7. Do you know the queen?

8. (Cops in a restaurant) "I have a thing about the English accent, could you please say, in your sexiest English voice, {Mans Name} You are soooo sexy!" Uhm... No.

9. OH cool!!!! You're a Brit!! TOODLE PIP, PIP PIP, CHEERIO CHAPS!

10. Everything stops there at noon for tea and crumpets, right?

11. Your teeth are so nice! You must have had those fixed here, huh? Seeing as everyone in England has bad teeth and all.

Questions from England

1. Can you send me a gun?

2. Do you have cheese over there?

3. What about cows?

4. Do you not find it all very 'Jerry Springer?'

5. Aren't you worried about getting eaten by an alligator?

6. Oooh you're not going to be living anywhere near where that movie Deliverance was filmed are you? You know! De de ling ding ding din ding ding ding..

7. How big exactly is a supersized Big Mac? Can you eat a whole one? I bet they are HUGE!

8. Does your husband talk like the Marlboro Man? You know, "Howdy Pardner" Does he wear chaps?

9. A 20 hour drive from Maryland to Florida? But it's only 2 inches on the map!!

10. I don't understand American Football. ME NEITHER! ;)

11. They eat burgers every day! I bet you are so sick of burgers.

That is actually a relatively short list!! There are many more, I am sure!!

Have you ever been asked a funny question by someone out of town or country? I'd love to hear them if you have!!

Thanks for stopping by!

~ Tasha


Thursday, March 21, 2013

#MTMmixer ~ Life of the Party ~ Blog Hop!!




I am very excited to announce that I have been chosen to be 'The Life of the Party' over at More Than Mommies!

This is a huge blog hop that they host every 2 weeks and is a fantastic and super fun way to find some awesome new blogs to follow!

Welcome to everyone who is finding my blog by participating in this hop! I am so glad that you stopped by! (Bring coffee next time? I won't say no to vodka either...) My name is Tasha and as the title of my blog suggests, I am a New English Mum in America :) I moved to the US 5 years ago to marry my Husband who I had met 3 years previously when I came here to visit my Dad! The whole story of that can be found right here!

I mainly blog about day to day life, being a Mum, my craft attempts that would NOT put Martha Stewart to shame, England, but not the royals (pah) and all that stuff. I do like to throw in the odd recipe or two (because we all need food, right?) and I also love to review products and host giveaways!

I hope you continue to read what I have to offer and I look forward to visiting you back!

Now to the good stuff!!


Here are the "rules"
(Don't make us post bouncers at the door.)

  • Follow the Life of The Party - New English Mum in America - We will choose our Next LOTHP from those who link up their twitter handle. Use our hashtag #MTMmixer when tweeting so we can keep up with you there! We would still TOTALLY appreciate a shout out on Twitter if you don't mind!
  • Follow our Mixologists - This week our Mixologist is Ms. MommyHH6 - Every week we will choose one participant to get our party started at the #4 slot. All you have to do is link up under the first Linky (and follow the "rules") to be considered!
  • Follow the person directly BEFORE you on the hop!
  • Finally, we ask that you post one (or both!) of the following buttons in either a post or on your sidebar to let other people know where you are partying today!




 




 


The fastest way to see success for your blog in a blog hop is to head on over to other blogs, commentfollow and ask them to swing by and party at your place!
Have fun!!! Thanks again for stopping by!


Enter your blog address here - Blogs can be followed via GFC, Bloglovin', Email Subscription or RSS Feed



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Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Google Friend Connect Going Bye Bye...

Argh! Seeing as I am slightly slow... I have only 'just' found out that Google are retiring Google Friend Connect for good, very soon!! Would everyone who follows me on GFC kindly follow me on Bloglovin instead? Pretty please?

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Have you got the X Factor?



Cole sure does!

I thought this was so cute. He really does go for it! (He is singing to himself in the mirror, lol)


Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Guest Post - Say Hello to Christy from 'Mother of the Year!'

I would like to introduce the FIRST EVER guest blogger to appear on New English Mum in America! If you get a chance, you must visit her over at Mother of the Year

I love reading her blog and her hilarious take on motherhood! I hope you will too!

Here is a little bit about her:

'Hi! My name is Christy and I'm really funny. At least that's what my Gram tells me. She shows my blog to all her Bingo ladies. Besides being hilarious (obviously), I am the mother of two beautiful girls. They are actually the most beautiful girls in the world. I'm sure you thought your daughters were, but I'm sorry to say they were just runner-ups. Anyway, this blog is centered around me and the mistakes I make as a mother. Believe me when I say, I am never going to win Mother of the Year. Also sometimes referred to MOTY. Hope you enjoy as much as Grandma does!'

Thanks Christy for taking over the reins today!


*****************



My name is Christy. I am the mother of two beautiful girls and the host of this guest blog. I am constantly striving to win the title of Mother of the Year, but I just keeping falling short. Right off the bat, I lose points due to my vehicle. Everyone knows that all perfect mothers drive a mini-van. I refuse to drive a mini-van, practical or not. If it comes down to mini-van or no more kids, I’m going to ask to see what’s behind door #3. I definitely want to try for a son someday so maybe I’ll have to trade one of my daughters to ensure that everyone fits comfortably in my small car. Maybe I could just trade in my husband? Then again, I do need him to help make child #3 sooo I dunno.… I’ll work out the details later. I do know that I refuse to drive a mini-van, thus lowering my chances of winning Mother of the Year. Also, I did just mention something about trading in one of my kids. That probably wasn’t very Mother of the Year-ish either. Let’s not tell the Mother of the Year Committee about that.

Then there’s the matter of the PTA. I refuse to join. All Mother of the Years belong to the PTA. I stereotype PTA members. I have never actually met a PTA mom, but I’m assuming they are all Stepford Wife-ish. I can’t handle that nonsense. I’m more like the mom on Malcolm in the Middle. I watched that show long before I officially became a mom and I’m wondering if maybe she was a bad influence on me? She had a household of boys that obviously made her go nuts. I have only girls. I suppose I have no excuse. Then again, too much estrogen is never a good thing either.

So we have my refusal to drive a mini-van and my avoidance of the PTA. Besides that there are the small matters of forgetting my first daughter in the car when she was days old, dropping my second daughter, dumping an entire bottle on my first daughter, etc. You get the idea…

My chances of winning MOTY get slimmer and slimmer with each new day of my motherhood. One would think that I would get better at this mother business with time and experience. It appears that I am doing quite the opposite. I never really liked following the crowd anyway. Maybe this is the one time when that is a good idea. Either way, if you ever need to feel better about your parenting, I welcome you to come read my blog @ http://notgonnawin.blogspot.com/. I guarantee that you will realize you are not the awful parent you think you are….but I definitely am. Only moms featured on People of Walmart look worse than I do.