Buena nuei!

That's Aragonese for Good Evening... Don't worry - I didn't know what Aragonese was either until I read this Wikipedia page on it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aragonese_language

Ya learn somethin' new every day!

Do forgive me for not posting yesterday! Dad and I were doing some research (on a project I can't tell you about yet) and that had me making friends with Google until about 11:30. By the time I was done, I'd had enough so I gave up and went to bed.

Yesterday was moderately busy. Nothing happened in the morning but at about 1 or 2 I made some tea in travel mugs and took it over to dad at the Ag-Rec shop where he's painting 8 or 10 sheets of plywood for some projects he's making for mom, Jill and me. It was nice to hang out with 'the old man' and visit - we easily solve all the worlds problems. teehee. That's when he hatched this plan (the one I can't tell you about yet)... after visiting with him for a while I marched on over to Jenny's for a "tea party" with Jenny, Shea and Eli (those two are total tea-mosters! Its so great!). Josh took the kids for a walk and Jenny and I chatted away. They invited me for supper - Jenny made this amazing stir-fry with peanut sauce that was absolutely to-die-for. We didn't have time for dessert (chilliwack mint icecream!) because I had to head out to worship practice at the church. It was a nice practice but I was pretty tired and was glad that we ended 10 minutes early! I came home and did reserach for dad and then hit the hay. It was a quiet morning but a very busy afternoon/evening.

Today was much the same... quiet morning but I went to visit dad again at the Ag-Rec shop where he continues to paint. He took me out to the Welfare office so I could turn in some paperwork (no biggie) and then he dropped me off at the Library so I could return a book and then hoof it over to Pricesmart and pick up some much-needed groceries.

And now, for my latest cooking endevour *drum roll please* marshmallows! I ate some of what was left in the bowl and it sure tastes good. It tastes a bit different then the ones Kraft makes but pretty fluffy and delicious nonetheless! My trusty candy thermometer died on me (got stuck at 210*F) so I threw my other one in at the last minute! Maybe I over cooked it, I don't know. We'll find out soon. They have to sit for 4 hours so I'll give 'em a taste in the morning (because I plan to be asleep at 1am!)

Just threw some wash in the machine after that's done, I'm going to bed! I'll hang it all up tomorrow.

Tomorrow I'm off to Parkholm and then Michelle's for tea at 1. Might stop and say hi to dad at the Ag-Rec building if he's there around noon. My trusty cousins are coming over for a movie tomorrow night at 8:30. I think we're watching Top Gun. Never seen it.

Talk to you soon!

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Marshmallows – woohoo!

Ingredients
3 packages unflavored gelatin
1 cup ice cold water, divided
12 ounces granulated sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups
1 cup light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
Nonstick spray

Directions
Place the gelatin into the bowl of a stand mixer along with 1/2 cup of the water. Have the whisk attachment standing by.
In a small saucepan combine the remaining 1/2 cup water, granulated sugar, corn syrup and salt. Place over medium high heat, cover and allow to cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Uncover, clip a candy thermometer onto the side of the pan and continue to cook until the mixture reaches 240 degrees F, approximately 7 to 8 minutes. Once the mixture reaches this temperature, immediately remove from the heat.
Turn the mixer on low speed and, while running, slowly pour the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl into the gelatin mixture. Once you have added all of the syrup, increase the speed to high. Continue to whip until the mixture becomes very thick and is lukewarm, approximately 12 to 15 minutes. Add the vanilla during the last minute of whipping. While the mixture is whipping prepare the pans as follows.

For regular marshmallows:
Combine the confectioners' sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. Lightly spray a 13 by 9-inch metal baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add the sugar and cornstarch mixture and move around to completely coat the bottom and sides of the pan. Return the remaining mixture to the bowl for later use.
When ready, pour the mixture into the prepared pan, using a lightly oiled spatula for spreading evenly into the pan. Dust the top with enough of the remaining sugar and cornstarch mixture to lightly cover. Reserve the rest for later. Allow the marshmallows to sit uncovered for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.
Turn the marshmallows out onto a cutting board and cut into 1-inch squares using a pizza wheel dusted with the confectioners' sugar mixture. Once cut, lightly dust all sides of each marshmallow with the remaining mixture, using additional if necessary. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.