Inverted Reese's Peanut Butter Macaron

Well...that was the idea for today's post anyway. Conceptually, I loved the idea of flipping a Reese's peanut butter cup inside out in macaron form -- chocolate on the inside and crispy peanut macaron shell on the outside. Then for a final touch, dip the macaron sandwich in smooth chocolate.

While the final result was absolutely delicious, if I do say so myself, I don't think it completely captured the peanut butter cup flavor. The chocolate ganache recipe that I chose had a fudgey consistency and sweetly dark flavor, and while that is delish, it's not quite the smooth milky chocolate used by Reese's.

So the search continues. I'll just have to try the inverted Reese's another time...oh how will I ever eat all of the rejects?  

So for today's post, I give you...Peanut Macaron & Chocolate Ganache!

Raven Feather Halloween Decoration

Hello all of you lovely people! Time certainly flies when you're having fun.

What holiday is it anyway? If the freezing weather or the Christmas displays outside of Lowes are to be believed, we must be in December. But according to the calender, Halloween is just around the corner.

I wanted to bring a touch of macabre to the house with a little Halloween display. Enter this simple decoration. An old black wicker basket, a few black feathers from Jo-Ann Fabric, some fabric flowers, and a pumpkin turned my bookshelf instantly spooky.

This is a super simple DIY that doesn't even require glue. Simply stuff the feathers and flowers into some stuffing or foam inside the basket and tuck it around until it looks just right to you.

What decorations are haunting your home for Halloween?

Linking at: Chic on a Shoestring, Give Me The Goods,

DIY Dining Chair Makeover

The garbage, it's not just for raccoons and feral cats anymore.

Let's face it. It's generally easier to throw out furniture and decorations when they go out of style rather than renovate it or even bother to sell it. Most sane people just don't want to be bothered with all of that work.

But there is a lot of hidden potential hiding in yesterday's decoration.

All it takes is a little creativity to take curbside rejects and turn them into something brand new and beautiful.

Visiting Tried & Twisted today is my talented mom, "The MommaBar", who recently put a little time and effort into a lucky roadside find to make a spectacular new chair for her sunroom.

Blackberry Lime Bars: Pucker Up!

What tastes like a pie, but is not a pie? What looks like jello, but is made of real fruit? And how is a raven like a writing desk?

The answer is a berry bar.

Well, that's the answer to the first two questions anyway. The answer to the third question haunts me still as one of life's great mysteries, right up there with the question of how did that horse make that woman go to college? But I digress.

I initially noticed this dessert's bright color and promise of fresh summer fruit flavor on Pinterest from places like ImprovKitchen and Sophistimom's recipe. I had never heard of berry bars like this before, so I had to give it a try.

Vegan Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

My first introduction to rhubarb was at the scenic home of a South African professor with a classy accent. He welcomed our writing club to his countryside home, complete with honey bees, nature walk through the forest, and flower-covered gazebo. While we worked, he supplied scones, pie, and coffee from a real French press. He was a one of the really good professors.

So when he handed me a strawberry pie that appeared to contain some kind of celery, I wanted to prove myself sophisticated, worldly, and knowledgable and not reveal my ignorance as to why anyone would put a vegetable in a fruit pie. Maybe it was a South African tradition, I thought.

Dairy-Free Pie Dough

There's one in every group — people who can't eat food.

It's a tragic fate, but genetics is a cruel master.

Living in a family that has experienced more than its fair share of dietary limitations has allowed me to see how frustrating and limiting special diets can be. Especially at parties. Especially at the dessert table where nearly everything is made with dairy, or gluten, or nuts, or eggs.

It's easy to give up hope in ever having a good dessert again and to go diving elbow-deep into the nearest pudding pie, to hell with the allergic reaction!

But happy news! Good, tasty, delicious food within special diets do exist.

For instance, you can make a healthy and tasty pie that's completely dairy-free.

DIY Antique Framed Memo Board

A lot of great creative projects start with a challenge. And my challenge — how to hide that hideous phone jack on my kitchen wall?

Due to the limitations of living in a rental, I couldn't tear the jack out, so I resorted to hide and seek. What do you think of my solution? The phone jack hasn't been found since!