Remember the Past

Fanny followers (I know, "followers" plural is pushing it by at least two, but reality is overrated),

I come to you, head in hands, contrite (I have a new word of the day calendar) and offering my sincerest apologies for leaving you in the cold for so long.

I know you all have been breathlessly awaiting my blogging return, and so, against better judgment, I will once again darken your door with my rapier wit and absolute lack of basic good sense.

Don't judge, I was having a bad morning
when this pic was taken!

She's BACK!

So, even though it is a full 4 months before I am due to start my next totally useless set of resolutions that I will follow for no less than 10 minutes (2009 record low) but no more than 1.25 days (passed out that year and lost a day - good thing 'drink less' wasn't on the list) ... phew, where was I?  Oh, yes, I resolve to actually post information on my blog that you all (again a stretch) can enjoy on a regular basis.  Not quite morning Joe kind of frequency but definitely more than the bi-annual sort.  

Just try to keep it on the down low.  We don't want the word to get out.

Sweet Candy Mine

Well, I have woefully neglected the Fairweather Favorites page.  So, for my zero followers, I am publishing a family secret recipe.  Since nobody actually reads this blog, I have to believe that the secret is still safe!

This is the easiest and most delicious little candy - trust me.  People gobble these up like, well, candy.

Coconut Joys

Ingredients:

1 bag sweetened grated coconut
1 stick salted butter (don't substitute - don't use 'unsalted')
1 bag powdered sugar
Dark chocolate for melting (I favor Scharffen Berger - but you can substitute without hurting my feelings)
Shaved almonds (or other nuts) - if desired (sometimes, you just feel like a nut; sometimes, you don't)

Directions:
Place butter in medium to large pot.  Melt over medium/low heat, being careful not to brown the butter.  Once melted, remove the pot from the heat and add the bag of coconut.  Mix well.  Once fully mixed, begin adding powdered sugar, mixing well with a large spoon.  It typically takes most of the bag (sometimes a bit more than 1 bag.)  You know you have added enough when you can roll a small amount together into a ball that holds its form.  If you squeeze your balls and butter runs out, then add more sugar (or head to the hospital if you aren't making the Coconut Joys.)

Now let's have some fun.  Using about a tsp of the coconut mixture, roll small and tightly formed balls (about the size of a large marble) and place on a covered surface (a counter with wax paper works great, so does a cookie sheet.)  Once all the coconut mixture has been formed into balls, stick your finger in the middle of the ball and make a depression (the balls will flatten a bit, but that is just fine.)

Melt your chocolate over a double boiler until it is melted (or risk it in the microwave - but be careful not to heat too high or you will bind your chocolate.)  Use a small spoon to scoop a small bit of the chocolate into the depression in each coconut ball. 

If you like, sprinkle nuts over your balls.  And now they are ready to eat!

Store in a container at room temperature.  They are best fresh, but they stay good for a while.  (I honestly don't know how long they stay good because they don't last more than a few days at my house.)

Yummy, Coconut Joys!

Smelling like a Rose

Girls always remember their pearls!

So fans, I have secretly been conducting scientific experiments on myself. 

Before you start worrying that I have joined BBC's Dr. Michael Mosley (or Dr. Jekyll for that matter), let me reassure you that my experiment was benign (benign is my daily calendar word of the day - used it!)

Anyway, it started about two months ago when I purchased a book from the 'almost free' table at B&N, Vinegar: 1001 Practical Uses, by Margaret Briggs (don't judge, look at the red caption at the bottom of the pic... "Over 400,000 copies sold.")


Margaret, where ever you are, you are brilliant!  I love your book.  I display it proudly in my kitchen. 

Anyway, back to my story.  I have to admit that I am/was already a (closet) vinegar fan.  I use it to wash my tile floors (I have dogs, and the slight acidity makes me feel as if I am really getting them clean, without harsh chemicals or contributing to the overuse of antibiotics), clean my coffee pot, shine up my hair, and much more (get the book if you don't already know these tricks.)  So, as I poured through the book (pun intended) and found additional uses for vinegar, I was in nirvana.  Then, page 118.  I mean, wow.  What a revelation.  Apparently, gals, you can use white vinegar as a deodorant.  Well, I was already a vinegar fan.  So, I decided to give it a try.

I got a small container with a lid (it's an old sugar container that I was not using) and poured some white vinegar in it and promptly took it upstairs.  I started my experiment on a Saturday morning feeling that it was probably best to not run a public experiment. 

Well, ladies, it worked!  It works, and it works better than the off-the-shelf product I was buying (which, by the way, was the super expensive "prescription grade protection.") 

I know.  You have questions; you have doubts.  So, let me give you a rundown of what I found:

• The experience is different but not unpleasent
• It goes on wet (like the old roller type deodorants), so let it dry before you dress
• The vinegar smell only lasts as long as the vinegar is wet.
• Once it drys you are good to go
• If you shaved recently, be prepared for a bit of a sting.
• It's not really bad, but you will notice
• It is effective for the whole day
• I certainly can't say the same for those expensive sticks I was buying
• Make sure you get coverage.  
• You don't have to soak in it, but spread it the same way you do your stick deodorant.
• Don't dab a micro-gram of vinegar on your pit and think that will work. 
• It will not stop sweating
• If that is your big concern, vinegar won't do the job

So now, I am one step closer to becoming a total granola head!  But, I don't care.  Vinegar rocks.  Try it.  Let me know what you think.