Cream Cheese Rangoons!

So, remember my Smoke Detector Saga from Yesterday?

Remember these:

N8dogg and I love Cream Cheese Rangoons, and after Sunday night we needed some love. :o)

So, I got out my supplies, and fried up a batch.

And since they are so good I thought I would share the recipe with you. :o)

You need:

• A package of Won Ton wrappers (found in the produce section of your grocery store)
• 1 (to 2) 8 oz packages of Cream Cheese (depending on how full you stuff your Rangoons) 
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup of water
• A couple of cups of oil for frying (we use our Fry Daddy, but you can use a pan too)

Ok, first thing you want to do is set up your wrapping station.

I lay out everything on a cutting board.

1. Open a package of  Cream Cheese, and set on plate with a spoon. 
2. Mix your egg and 1/4 cup of water in a small bowl to make your egg wash. 
3. Open your Won Ton wrappers, and set a stack on your cutting board.
4. Get out a cookie sheet to place your wrapped Rangoons on. 

Ok, once you have everything set up your ready to start wrapping. 

First, grab a Won Ton wrapper from your stack...

Then, add a little Cream Cheese...

Real Quick: We just use plain old Cream Cheese as filling, but really the possibilities are endless. You could add Chives (like Panda), Onions, Garlic Powder, or Worcester Sauce. Really anything goes. :o)

Also, I have found the best way to add the Cream Cheese (or whatever mixture your using) is to use a tea spoon, and then use the back of another tea spoon to scrap it off onto the wanton wrapper. It's kind of like working with cookie dough, and making really small cookies. :o) 

Ok, after you have added the Cream Cheese brush the sides of your Won Ton wrapper with the egg wash. I just use my finger, because I have found it works the best, but you could use a kitchen brush or even a paint brush to do this.

Next, just fold your wanton wrapper into a triangle, and press the sides firmly together.

Ta-Da! 

Now, just put your Rangoon on the cookie sheet, and start again.

Then, after you've made a few...or a bunch.

It's time to fry!

Like I said before we use our Fry Daddy, but you could just as easily heat the oil on the stove. Just be really careful, because Hot Oil is extremely dangerous.

I like to fry about 3 at a time, and give them one to two minutes on each side until they are golden brown.

If you are making a big batch, then I would set up another cookie sheet with a couple of layers of paper towels. However, since we were making a small batch I just placed some paper towels on a plate.

Give them a couple of minutes to cool off, and then eat and enjoy!

Then make some more, because they are really addicting. :o)

Happy Wednesday! 

The Smoke Detector Saga...

Hello, and Happy Tuesday!

How was your weekend? 

Mine was interesting...

I had to work Friday and Saturday night, and thankfully both nights were uneventful. However, Sunday was a different story... 

N8dogg and I were planning on going to Kanarraville to see the Eclipse, but he ended up having to work. We were really bummed, but got to spend the whole morning together, which was nice. :o)  

Anyway, after N8dogg left for work All. Hell. Broke. Loose!

It all started when my smoke detector started going off. First the one down stairs would beep a couple of times, and then the one up stairs would beep a couple of times. I checked it out, and the Carbon Monoxide light was flashing, but since we have had this issue in the past I just silenced it and went on my way. 

5 minutes later it did it again. I silenced it, checked them all again, and shrugged it off. 5 minutes later it did it again, and this little scenario continued for 20 very confusing minutes. 

I finally called N8dogg, and he told me to check everything out again, turn on the AC, open the windows, and then call him if it continued. So, I did everything he told me to do...and it still continued. 

I called N8dogg again, and he asked me if I was feeling light headed? No, I didn't think so. However, I had been working all night, and hadn't had any sleep so I felt tired and kind of run down, but was it more than normal? I didn't know?

So, after about a hour of this N8dogg said I needed to call the Washington City Non-Emergency number to see what they wanted me to do. So, I gave them a call, and told the dispatcher what had been going on for the the last hour and a half. She said she would send a Fire Truck.

What! 

A Fire Truck! 

Yep, at 6:30 PM a Fire Truck, and 3 Firefighters pulled up in front of my driveway.

Oh, and while all of this is going on all my neighbors are outside watching the Eclipse...in my front yard...because I had the best view.

Oh, and did I mention that my cats freaked out, and ran outside as soon as the first alarm started. Seriously, I thought they would never come back in. They watched all the excitement from the hill next to our house. I am pretty sure they are still mad at me.

Anyway, the Firefighters did their test, and sure enough no Carbon Monoxide. However, we did learn that our smoke detectors are faulty, and that I wasn't the first person in my neighborhood to call the Fire Department.

After 20 minutes the Firefighters determined that my house was safe, helped me reset my smoke detectors, and headed back to the Fire Station.

I reassured the neighbors that everything was okay, watched the remainder of the Eclipse, and wrangled the cats back into the house. Then, about an hour after things had settled down, both smoke detectors started going off again.

I literally cried, and finally ended up just disconnecting them.

What was supposed to be an awesome day with N8dogg turned into this nightmare. I was both physically and mentally exhausted, and decided that before I passed out I needed a pick me up.

So, I made these for dinner:

Because deep fried goodness makes everything better, but more on that later. :o)

Happy Tuesday!  

Happy Sappy Saturday!

So, guess what I found on Netflix last night...

Cruel Intentions!

Yay!

Ok, so let me explain. Cruel Intentions was one of my favorite movies when I was a teenager, along with  She's All That, Drive Me Crazy (also on Netflix), and 10 Things I Hate About You. (1999 was a good year!) 

I love, and own all of these movies! (Yes, that is my copy above). However, I have not watched them in a very long time, and I have to say watching Cruel Intentions last night was a real eye opener to how innocent and naive I was as a teenager.

There was a lot more "lovin" going on than I remember, and now that I actually understand what they are talking about it's a lot dirtier than I remember too. It's actually classified as a "Dark Movie" on Netflix, and after watching it last night I completely understand why. 

Anyway, like I said, I just LOVE this movie. Now, don't get me wrong the acting is awful, the plot is cheesy, and I had a hard time finding Ryan Phillippe sexy because he was so. freaking. young. but I still LOVED it! 

I loved how it made me feel like I was a teenager again. I felt young and twitterpated, and loved every minute of it! Which, I am pretty sure that feeling is the only reason I ever get the urge to watch any of these movies; because let's face it, they are all pretty much crap. :o) 

Happy Sappy Saturday! 

A Custom Frame for Mama Jo.

A Couple of months ago I asked my Mom what she wanted for Mother's Day.

I was expecting the usual, "Oh, I don't know. I don't really need anything. Whatever you get me will be great."

However, that's not what I got.

Instead, the conversation went something like this:

Kami: "So Mom, what do you want for Mother's Day?" 

Mama Jo: "A Frame."

Kami: ? "A Frame."

Mama Jo: "Yep, I want you to build me a frame for 9 5x7 photos that I can hang in my living room. Oh, and I want it to be black." 

Kami: "Ok...I can do that."

And so it began!

I started off with a hundred ideas, but could never quite materialize any of them. 

Then, I saw this Frame over at the Dear Lillie Blog, and got an idea to do the same thing but on a larger scale.

I started with a piece of wood that was 24x48 from my local Home Depot.

Next, I started collecting frames. I looked all over town, but could never find any that I really liked.

I ended up changing my frame plans altogether, and finally bought these at Kohl's.

I laid them out on my board, and determined where I wanted them to go.

Then, I got out the spray paint, and started painting.

First, the frames...

Then, the board.

Then, after a few coats of paint I laid the frames out a second time to make sure everything looked right.

Once I was happy with the layout I mounted the screws, did one final coat of black, and then finished everything off with a clear coat.

Then, once everything was dry I put the glass back in my frames, and hung them on the board.

Ta-Da!

What do you think?

I don't think my pictures do it justice.

It actually turned out really cool, and it looks amazing with my Mom's family photos in it...

Which I completely forgot to get a picture of.

Oops!

Well, hopefully she will hang it soon, and I can get a good picture of it on the wall instead. :o)

Happy Tuesday!