Mallowed Peanut Butter Macaroons

   When you love marshmallows the way I love marshmallows, you find ways to add them to any/everything! 

Mallowed Peanut Butter Macaroons

Ingredients:

• 2 Cups Sugar
• 1/4Cup Butter
• 1/3Cup Cocoa
• 1/2Cup Milk
• 1/2Cup Peanut Butter
• 1/2tsp Salt
• 1tsp Vanilla
• 2 1/2-3/4 Cups Quick Oats
• 1 1/2 Cups Mini marshmallows

Method:

1.  In a medium sized pot on medium heat put sugar, butter, cocoa and milk. Stir as it warms and melts, and be sure to get the cocoa lumps worked out of it.
   
2. While this is warming, lay some wax paper out onto the counter to have ready for when you need to scoop these out.
3. Once warmed and combined, let it boil for at least a minute, and up to 1 1/2 minutes.  You want the sugar to dissolve, but if you boil it too long your cookies will loose their glossed look and will be dry. Thumbs down.
4.  Remove from heat and stir in the peanut butter, salt and vanilla.
5. Add oatmeal in increments until the consistency looks good. What's good? I know, it's so relative! Basically, you want it to not be too thick or you'll dry the cookies out.  Stir until coated.
6. Now, add about half your mallows, and stir until just combined (not melted and combined, just worked in), then add the remaining marshmallows and stir.
7. Now quickly (before the mallows fully melt, and the mixture dries) scoop or drop by heaping tablespoons-ful onto wax paper. The temperature of your house will determine how long it takes them to set.

Yuummmm!

   These are a seriously gooey, chocolatey and delicious variation on my regular old macaroons (or whatever you call these!). Not that my regular cookies are not good, they are great (in my humble opinion) :)  But really, adding marshmallows just kicks 'er up 10 notches!
   They keep well too. I can make a batch and keep them in an airtight container for a week so my kids can enjoy them after school...and if there are any left I have a few too on my treat day! It's hard looking at these all week and not gobbling them all up! 
   Anyway, I hope everyone had a good week!
   Mine was good; even with some hiccups. Mainly having Keziah home sick for a few days made things different, but by no means difficult! Each of my kids on their own are really so sweet....now, put them together and it can be a different story! 
   This week I also taught a dance number for the Belleville Theatre Guild's spring show, The Drowsy Chaperone....it was a tap dance! Do I dance? Yes. Do I choreograph? Yes. Can I tap dance......well, not exactly. I own tap shoes from some other life I was in, but I am not a "tap dancer"! In fact, when my husband saw the tap shoes sitting out he said, "what are those ugly shoes for?". We've been married nearly 11 years and he has NEVER seen them, so that should give you a hint at the last time I was tappa tappa tappin'! Also, pregnancy has been known to make foot size increase...and mine sure did! I sent a picture of my battered feet with many bandages to a friend, but I'll spare you all those ugly details! The shoes that fit just right many moons (and pre-babies) ago, now just, just fit. Ouch.
   All that to say though, I feel really accomplished for choreographing an entire dance in a style that I have only ever been moderately trained in! I felt stressed day and night about it; I would honestly wake up in the middle of the night and hear the song in my head, and I would be mentally tapping out rhythms! Every sounds I heard (including typing on a keyboard!) sounded like tap variations to me! Right now my fingers are tap dancing!!! Hahaha!!
   "They" say you can do anything you set your mind to. And usually that statement makes me irritated! If I set my mind to becoming a dinosaur, no matter how much I want it, I shall never be a dinosaur! Whomp whomp.
   However, within reason, I say "hear hear!" to that vague statement. I was asked to choreograph this piece, and I set my mind (and feet and body) to do it! I worked at it every day, slowly and painstakingly, adding a new sound or step as I went, and suddenly ("suddenly" as in 3 weeks later!), I had it done and I was teaching it! :)  
   This amusing anecdote is meant as an encouragement to you today! If you see a task ahead looking ominously large and un-manageable, just start at it....pick away at it. Do what you can with what you have (knowledge, resources, etc.), and see what you can do when you set your mind to something!
   And if you want to learn to tap dance, but not pay for it or have others witness the event, just go to YouTube! Seriously, there are a tonne of tap teachers on YouTube and you can take it at your own pace! Just in case you wanted to know. :)
   Happy weekend! 

xoxo