A Great Cake Recipe that Makes Good Eating - Easy, Quick, Chocolate Microwave Cake

I don't enjoy baking but my husband and I often get cravings for chocolate - especially in pastry form. While at the grocery store, we always stop at the day-old bakery rack to see if any chocolate doughnuts are available.

When there's nothing in the house, this great recipe for an easy, quick, chocolate, microwave cake makes a good substitute for store-bought baked goods and as an added plus, I know what ingredients have gone into the cake. I also like the fact that no eggs are required in this recipe and I usually have all the ingredients on hand. While the finished product does not look as pretty as a bakery cake, this recipe is a time saver and satisfies a craving for chocolate pastry.

Chocolate Microwave Cake

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

3 tablespoons baking cocoa

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup cold water or cold brewed coffee

1/3 cup oil

1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract

Directions

1. Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl.
   
   
2. Combine the liquid ingredients in a separate bowl.
   
   
3. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir together the dry and liquid ingredients until well-blended.
   
   
4. Pour into a lightly oiled 9-inch square glass or Pyrex pan or a microwave-safe tube pan.
   
   
5. Microwave on high heat (use a turntable) for 6 to 8 minutes or until the cake tests done in center.
   
   
6. Cool completely in pan. Store airtight.

Serves 6-8

To serve, cut in pieces and serve with chocolate pudding, or sauce over the pieces.

We like to make parfaits by cutting the cake into bite-size pieces and topping with vanilla yogurt, berries, and nuts.

Over 12000! Recipes, Techniques and Tips for Cooking, Baking, Cleaning, Caring for and Repairing Your Home - Holiday Special Packages - Get Them Before They Disappear!

A Great Product that Makes Good Scents - Wickless Candle/Wax Warmer

My nose (and yours) is connected to a portion of the nervous system that controls emotions. That's why aromatherapy (the use of aroma to enhance a feeling of well-being) has an effect on mindset and emotions and explains why I become grumpy and blue when my house doesn't smell nice.

In my search for air serenity, I have tried:

• aerosol sprays but I don't like to add contaminants to the atmosphere and the sprays don't last very long in a large space;
  
• potpourri but the fragrance from dried out blossoms did not do it for me;
  
• potpourri warmers but I almost set the house afire when the tealight flame was larger than I liked and I thoughtlessly applied water to extinguish it (duh). Additionally, I set the hot warming pot on a cool surface and it cracked (duh again);
  
• to stay away from scented oil burners after my fiasco with the potpourri warmer;
  
• scented candles but I don't like the risk of an open flame or the soot;
  
• gel plug-ins but the plug-in gets caked and the aroma doesn't last long;
  
• scented oil plug-ins but I didn't care for the limited scents nor the cost of the oil refills;
  
• reed diffusers and thought this was the answer to my "a-room-a-therapy" quest.

Then a dear friend demonstrated the wickless candle/wax warmer she was using in place of scented candles.

The wickless candle/wax warmer is a system that uses a 15 to 25 watt lightbulb in a ceramic warmer to slowly melt a specially formulated wax cube. There is no wick, flame or soot to jeopardize house & home while the fragrant scent infuses the air. Additionally, the soft glow from the warmer imparts a serene ambience. Wax cubes can last from 20-80 hours and can be poured back into their package when you would like to experience another scent or create a different mood.

I've tried two of these systems (ScentSationals and Scentsy) and use a combination in my home. Scentsationals (www.ScentSationals.com) can be found at some Walmart Stores, all Hobby Lobby Stores and online. Scentsy (www.Scentsy.com) can only be purchased through a Scentsy consultant.

Scentsationals are good because:

• The warmers and waxes are less expensive than Scentsy (however, the selection of both scents and warmers is not as large as Scentsy);
  
• I can purchase them at my local Hobby Lobby Store at a discount during a 50% off sale or with a 40% off coupon.

Scentsy is good because:

• They offer a plug-in version of the warmer which is very convenient in those areas where space is limited. Medium and large warmers are also available;
  
• Scentsy offers a greater and better-made selection of warmer styles;
  
• Scentsy has more than 80 scents to choose from. (So many fragrances transported me to that serene place I was seeking that I found it difficult to prioritize the scents I wanted to use in my new, plug-in warmer because I wanted them all).

Now I can create that moment of relaxation I’ve been hankering for using a great product that makes good scents. When I need a quick aromatherapy pick-me-up, I just open a package of the fragrant wax cubes and take a sniff. Or when I have time for myself to sit and read a book, I flip the switch on my scented wax warmer, unwind, loosen up and enjoy the fragrant serenity that surrounds me.

To learn more about aromatherapy, nature's healing art, please click here.

Great Recipe - Sausage, Bean & Kale Soup

2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1-1/4 lbs. Italian sweet turkey sausage (squeezed from casings or bulk)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 carrot chopped
1 large potato, peeled and chopped into small dice
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 bay leaf
2 cans white beans, drained
4 cups chopped kale
2 quarts chicken stock (vegetable stock is good, too)
salt & pepper
grated paremsan or romano cheese

1. Heat medium soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and sausage and brown.
   
   
2. Add veggies, bay leaf and beans. Season with salt and pepper. Cook mixture 5 minutes to begin to soften the vegetables. Add kale and wilt.
   
   
3. Add stock and cover pot. Raise heat and bring soup to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook 15 minutes.
   
   
4. Adjust seasonings and serve soup with grated cheese, for topping.
   

Servings: 10

eCovers Uncovered - Cover Factory is a Great Product!

Are you searching for e-book cover software? It isn’t easy is it? Cover Factory is a great product that I highly recommend because it met all of my criteria:

• Flexible
• Free demo
• Functional
• Easy to use
• Inexpensive
• Extensive user support
• Text editing and drawing capability
• Can create books, boxes, cds, reports, membership cards, ezines
  

Don’t be fooled by the look of the covers on Cover Factory’s website. I wasted a lot of time evaluating other programs because I thought (mistakenly) that the images on Cover Factory’s website didn’t appear professional.

Here's an e-book cover that I created with Cover Factory.

What’s my suggestion if you’re looking for an e-cover program?

First, decide what type of covers you want to create. Some programs only create boxes and books, others can handle boxes, books, e-zines, cds, DVDs, reports, and membership cards.

Next, decide if you want flexibility in the angle, shadow, and reflection of your e-cover. Some programs offer customizable choices, others offer inflexible yes/no choices.

Then, determine how creative you, personally, want to be. Most programs come with generic templates for fast cover creation. If you’re more creative, an e-cover program with more features will be give you more satisfaction.

While it’s not necessary to use a drawing program with Cover Factory, or any of the other programs I evaluated, using Real Draw Pro or Compact Draw (both shareware), in conjunction with an e-cover program can produce some stunning effects that e-cover software alone cannot handle.

Finally, download the free demos of various programs based on your personal criteria—cost, type of covers available, user-friendly, etc. If you’ve never used e-cover software, download the free demo version of eCover Studio first. It is the easiest to use and will familiarize you with the terminology/steps of most e-cover programs.

Other programs that I evaluated and considered unacceptable were:

eCover Studio ($97)—NO SUPPORT—Although I liked this program based on the demo version, I had serious questions about the legitimacy of the seller because my e-mail to the sales contact was returned “undeliverable” and all other e-mail attempts to contact the seller went unanswered.

eCover Generator ($97)—LITTLE FLEXIBILITY—I found this program could not vary the angle or shadows of my covers and text-editing could not be done. More importantly, even though an updated version is advertised, I was sold an older version and provided an upgrade only when I asked for it. For $97 I expected to get the latest version!

OPERATING ISSUES—All of these programs had demo versions. I found them difficult to use and/or encountered operating problems with Windows 98: Virtual Cover Creator ($89.99), eCover 3D ($69.95), eCover Engineer ($38), eCover Constructor ($49), and The eBook and Box Cover Creator ($59.95).

Download the free demo of Cover Factory and decide for yourself.