Minty Goodness

This morning I made Mint Brownies to take tonight to our Christmas Enrichment Night at church. I should have waited until the afternoon to make them - it's a wonder any of them made it over to the church!

We had a beautiful evening. The theme was The Attributes of Christ : Faith, Hope, Charity and Love, Virtue, Knowledge, Patience, Humility, Diligence and Obedience. Several different sisters shared their feelings and thoughts about Christ's example and how we can strive to follow Him. We sang Christmas hymns and it really helped me feel the spirit of this season in which we celebrate not only Christ's birth, but all that He has done and does for us. It was just what I needed.

Then we ate. (You can't have a girl's night at church without lots of yummy food!)

Today's Favorite Things are...

1. Mint Brownies. These little squares of decadent, creamy, rich, chocolaty, minty perfection are an essential part of the Christmas season for me. Recipe to follow...

2. Mint Foot Lotion. Sorry if it grosses anyone out to be considering both mint brownies and mint foot lotion in the same post, but I just put some mint lotion on my feet and am enjoying a mint brownie as I write this (washed my hands in between - don't worry) and I'm feeling very refreshed.

3. The fact that my mom and I can call each other a million times a day if we want to. Which we did today. Because we just kept thinking of things to ask/tell each other.

4. Spending time with my girlfriends. I am so blessed to be surrounded by good, exemplary women who have high standards and morals and are trying to live a virtuous life. This includes all of my friends, not just the ones who attend my church.

5. Spending time with my husband cuddled up on the couch under one blanket with Teddy all curled in a ball on our laps while we just veg, decompress, relax and watch one of our favorite TV shows.

And now, I present to you the best recipe ever for mint brownies:

Christmas Mint Brownies

Brownie

1 Cup flour
1 Cup sugar
1 stick butter, softened (I can never remember to get my butter out and put it on the counter to let it soften beforehand. My mom always does. But I nuke it in the microwave for a few seconds to soften it. Just don't melt it completely.)
4 eggs
1 16 oz. can Hershey's Syrup (it's a miracle the Hershey's syrup makes it into the brownies every year instead of straight into my mouth.)

Mix all together and put in jelly roll pan. You know, a big cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. But don't overcook or they will be dry.

Mint Frosting

2 Cups powdered sugar
1 stick butter, softened (Again with remembering to soften the butter...)
1 Tbsp. water
1/2 tsp. mint extract
3 drops green food coloring

Mix until smooth and spread on top of cooled brownies. It's going to make a thin layer, so I always make evenly-spaced little globs of icing in rows over my brownies and spread them together with a butter knife. Yeah, I'm OCD like that.

Chocolate Icing

1 stick butter
1 Cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Melt together and when room temperature, spread on top of mint frosting. I drizzle it all over evenly (cough*OCD*cough) and then spread it with the back of a teaspoon.

How great is it that this recipe has 3 whole sticks of butter in it?