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Introducing • On A Personal Note • January 24, 2011

New Logo

by Shelly Mathie


I am introducing my new logo/website/blog.  I have incorporated my love of cooking into my business logo!  I have been including my cooking for quite some time as I work with clients.  My new logo is “Home-Made Simple”.  My old website and blog should forward you directly to my new sites, but since this is all new to me, I can’t guarantee anything! :))  I am excited about the direction that my business continues to move in and all the great clients I am blessed to associate with!  My new blog is “home-madesimple.blogspot.com, my website is www.home-madesimple.com, and my new email is shelly@home-madesimple.com (shelly.mathie@gmail.com will stay in effect as well.).     

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stories • January 24, 2011

Just 5 More Minutes

by Shelly Mathie


While at the park one day, a woman sat down next to a man on a bench near a playground.
“That’s my son over there,” she said, pointing to a little boy in a red sweater who was gliding down the slide.
“He’s a fine looking boy” the man said. “That’s my daughter on the bike in the white dress.”
Then, looking at his watch, he called to his daughter. “What do you say we go, Melissa?”
Melissa pleaded, “Just five more minutes, Dad. Please? Just five more minutes.”
The man nodded and Melissa continued to ride her bike to her heart’s content. Minutes passed and the father stood and called again to his daughter. “Time to go now?”
Again Melissa pleaded, “Five more minutes, Dad. Just five more minutes.”
The man smiled and said, “OK.”
“My, you certainly are a patient father,” the woman responded.
The man smiled and then said, “Her older brother Tommy was killed by a drunk driver last year while he was riding his bike near here. I never spent much time with Tommy and now I’d give anything for just five more minutes with him. I’ve vowed not to make the same mistake with Melissa.
She thinks she has five more minutes to ride her bike. The truth is, I get Five more minutes to watch her play.”
Life is all about making priorities, what are your priorities?
Give someone you love 5 more minutes of your time today! 

by: Bill Greer, Chicken Soup for the Veteran’s Soul
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candy • chocolate • recipes • January 22, 2011

White Trash

by Shelly Mathie

8 cups Chex cereal (I like Crispex cereal)
2-3 cups pretzels (the small round kind)
2 cups plain M&M’s
2 cups peanuts (I use party peanuts)
1 1 lb. vanilla almond bark


Combine all ingredients except the almond bark in a large mixing bowl, toss till mixed.  Melt the almond bark over low heat in a saucepan stirring often.  Pour over cereal and toss to coat. 


NOTE:  Any combination of cereal and nuts can be used.  Dried fruit would also make a nice addition.  WARNING:  Very addictive!

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bars • cookies • dessert • raspberries • recipes • January 21, 2011

Raspberry Cream Cheese Bars

by Shelly Mathie




1/2 pound butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 cups flour
1 cup rolled oats
12 oz. cream cheese
3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
2/3 cup raspberry jam (see NOTE below)


Cream butter and sugar in mixer until well combined.  Add flour and oatmeal and mix gently to make crumbly dough.  Pat 2/3 of dough into buttered 9X13″ pan, set aside 1/3 dough for topping.  


Combine cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk in mixer and beat until smooth – this will be a fairly thick mixture.  Drop cream cheese mixture onto crust and spread with back of metal spoon or spatula.  Soften the jam (see my NOTE) in microwave until pourable, and spread over cream cheese mixture.


Crumble remaining dough onto top of raspberry preserves.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes, or until crust is lightly browned.


NOTE:  I do not use the raspberry jam – instead:


RASPBERRY TOPPING
2 (10 oz) pkgs frozen raspberries, thawed
2 T sugar
2 T cornstarch
1/4 cup cold water


Mix raspberries with sugar in saucepan and heat to a boil; stirring constantly.  Mix cornstarch with cold water and add to raspberries.  Cook until thickened; stirring frequently.


This sauce is also good over ice cream, crepes, cheesecake, etc.  I make this a lot!

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candy • chocolate • dessert • recipes • January 21, 2011

Truffles Made With Love

by Shelly Mathie

1 pkg. (18 oz) Oreo Chocolate Sandwich Cookies
1 pkg. (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
2 pkg. (8 oz each) Baker’s semi-sweet baking chocolate, melted


Crush 5-8 cookies into fine crumbs in a food processor; set aside for later use.


Crush remaining cookies to fine crumbs.  Place in medium bowl.  Add softened cream cheese; mix until well blended.  Roll cookie mixture into 42 balls, about 1″ in diameter.


Dip balls in melted chocolate; place on wax paper-covered baking sheet.  


Sprinkle truffles with reserved cookie crumbs.  


Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.  Store leftover truffles, covered in refrigerator.


Makes 3 1/2 dozen or 42 truffles.


Tip:  For easy dipping, place truffle ball in melted chocolate to coat; roll if necessary.  Lift truffle from chocolate using two forks (this will allow excess chocolate to fun off) before placing on wax paper.



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candy • chocolate • dessert • recipes • January 21, 2011

Simply Sensational Trufles

by Shelly Mathie

2 1/2 pkg (20 squares) Baker’s semi sweet chocolate, divided
1 pkg. (8 oz) cream cheese, softened


Melt 8 chocolate squares.  Beat cream cheese with mixer until creamy; stir in melted chocolate.  Refrigerate until firm.  Shape into 36 balls.  Place on wax paper-covered tray.  


Melt remaining chocolate.  Use fork to dip truffles; return to tray.  Decorate with nuts, cake decors, powdered sugar, etc.  Can also drizzle white chocolate over the top.  Refrigerate 1 hour.  Store leftovers in the fridge. 

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candy • chocolate • dessert • recipes • January 21, 2011

Pretzel Bark

by Shelly Mathie

1 cup chopped pretzels
1/3 cup chopped pecans
1 1/2 pkg (8 oz each) Baker’s semi sweet chocolate, melted


Stir pretzels and nuts into melted chocolate; spread onto waxed paper-covered baking sheet.


NOTE:  You can put any combination of things in the chocolate – nuts, chocolate hearts (white with milk chocolate, milk or dark chocolate into white chocolate), M&Ms, dried fruit, etc.  Let your imagination go wild.  You can also put the melted chocolate on the pan and then press the above ingredients into the soft chocolate rather than mixing it in a bowl first.  Have fun!  Super fast and easy and oh so yummy!

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chocolate • cookies • dessert • recipes • January 21, 2011

Adams Family Chocolate Chip Cookies

by Shelly Mathie

2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup butter, softened
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups real milk chocolate chips
1 pkg. Reese’s peanut butter chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Whisk flour, soda and salt.  In a separate bowl, beat sugars, butter, eggs and vanilla until light and fluffy.  Add flour mixture and chips.  Blend on low.  Roll into 1″ balls, flatten slightly with spoon.  Place on lightly greased cookie sheet.  Bake 9-12 minutes.  Let rest on hot pan.

NOTE:  I sometimes substitute cinnamon chips (hard to find, but usually available around Christmas time – I buy and freeze for later in the year) and combine with the chocolate or the peanut butter.  Nice combination.   

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On A Personal Note • January 18, 2011

On A Personal Note

by Shelly Mathie

This past month has been crazy!  Filled with the good, the bad, and the ugly.  Fortunately more of the good, than the bad and ugly.  We spent Christmas day traveling to Arizona to visit our middle son, Brian, and his family.  They had a new addition to the family 2 weeks before and we were anxious to kiss her cute cheeks!  Briley Nicole is beautiful and so good!  She joined big brother Crew – he is a bundle of energy and so much fun!!!.  We were able to stay about 9 days and thoroughly enjoyed our time with family.  There is nothing quite as rewarding as watching your children with their own little families and seeing the joy that it brings to them.  We have been very blessed with all of our boys and their families!  Wish we all lived closer, but it makes our time together that much sweeter!

On a different note – my father-in-law had a stroke last weekend.  It affected his left side and we were very concerned about his condition, but he is just stubborn enough to not have any of it!  He has made terrific progress and is currently in rehab.  My mother-in-law fell and broke her hip in November and is still doing rehab for that – so the two of them make quite a pair!  Nothing like these types of events to remind you how short life is and how quickly things can change.  We are grateful to still have them both around and hope to have them for years to come!

Still really struggling with the “blog thing” as opposed to the monthly newsletter – would love to hear your comments about which method you prefer.  On the plus side, I can write whenever I want to, I do not have limited space, and you can comment!  I know that some will never come to the blog however and want to stay in touch.  Thinking of doing a postcard every other month.  Would love to hear your thoughts…..

Have enjoyed your interaction on my blog – thanks so much!  Would love to hear things you would like to see me post…..Happy 2011 – hope it is going well for you all!

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chocolate • cookies • dessert • recipes • January 13, 2011

Neiman Marcus Cookies (shared for Meredith!)

by Shelly Mathie

2 c butter
2 c sugar
2 c brown sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
4 c flour
5 c blended oatmeal (blend in blender to a fine powder)
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda

Add: 24 oz chocolate chips, 1 8-oz grated Hershey bar, and 3 cups chopped nuts.  Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes.

This can be cut in half (it makes a ton).  The oatmeal flour seems to help these be soft, but firm.  If you just soften the butter rather than melting it, that will also help it to not go flat.  If the first tray is not nice and fluffy, refrigerate dough for an hour and try again.

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