Chaos Kitchen Creations: Frozen S'mores
Recipe for frozen S'mores and a puppy play time video of adult Newfie Crokell and Mini American Shepherd puppy Dante. Also, in the most confrontational post ever we ask: beans or no-beans in chili?
It has been a wonderful week of change and a great week to celebrate new events, because the good should always be celebrated. I decided to make something complete decadent and wonderful in the summer heat. And what says summer more than S’mores? But who wants to light up a fire when it is so hot? (Houston this week has been in high 90s or even in the 100s).
So, I thought making something s’more-like but frozen was just what was called for.
Recipe: Frozen S’more Bars with Almond Butter
Now this is one of the easier recipes I have ever posted on this blog. I mostly made it because I real wanted something cold, fast, and fun. Now, I did end up making it a little slower because I don’t like items too sweet so my version of the marshmallow is pretty light on sweet.
Ingredients
1 package of Gluten-Free Graham Crackers (Partake brand is actually really tasty.)
1 package dark chocolate instant pudding
2 cups of cold whole milk
2 cups of heavy whipping cream
1 cup of marshmallow fluff
1 cup of cool whip
1 cup of almond butter (or your favorite nut butter)
1/2 cup of chopped peanut butter cups
Preparation: Pudding
This will use the 2 cups cold milk, 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream, and the instant pudding. Follow directions for the pudding and then whip the heavy cream in for 3 minutes and place in refrigerator to set.
Preparation: Marshmallow Whipped Cream
This uses 1 & 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream, 1/2 cup marshmallow fluff, and 1 cup of Cool Whip - optional if you want it extra sweet.
Whip the heavy cream for 10+ minutes on high until it has stiff peaks. Fold in marshmallow fluff and Cool Whip to taste.
Preparation: Assemble the Layers
Now we use the Gluten Free Graham Crackers, the pudding and marshmallow whipped cream prepared above, and the almond butter and chopped chocolate peanut butter cups.
Start with a layer of graham crackers at the bottom. Add about an inch of pudding. Drizzle or spread the almond butter on the pudding and drop the chopped peanut butter cups on top. Then add an inch of the marshmallow whipped cream and top with another layer of graham crackers.
Preparation: Let Set in Freezer
Place assembled S’mores in freezer for at least 1 hour. Then cut into servings and enjoy!
Critters in Motion
This weeks video is narrated by Tod but mostly it is just a recording of one of Crokell and Dante’s play dates. We don’t have them completely free range with each other inside and they are supervised outside. Crokell is a wonderful and patient, if big, brother. Dante is a fun but occasionally annoying younger brother.
(Tod here.) I’m still using CapCut (https://www.capcut.com/) for videos. This week though, CapCut updated their app so that the “Auto Reframe” feature is actually limited to the Pro (paid) settings. So, I paid the $89 and used some of the other Pro features.
I’ll do a longer post on this but I used Auto Reframe to turn the 16:1 aspect ratio into 1:1 (a square). It also tries to follow the action, which works pretty well. I added ten seconds or so of narration at the beginning. We also branded the video with Chaos Critters and our URL. (This is pretty cool in how they implemented it, making it easy to set how long you want a particular title in the video.) And since we paid the Pro costs, I added some music that CapCut provides.
How does this relate to our writing?
(Still Tod here.) Having a recipe this week is kind of interesting. We aren’t writing in the world that centers around food this week. However, in the Nano-Sapiens novelization that I’m writing, we confront the most contentious of food questions: beans or no-beans in chili? Which many or may not have to be a post of its own.
Chaos Tip of the Week
When in doubt, wear mismatched socks; it’s a bold fashion statement that screams, “I embrace chaos!”
Or you can be a cat pretending you are puppy. No one will know the difference and maybe you will get better treats.
Critter’s Weekly Question
When you join a new group, what do you find as the best way to get to know your new associates whether at work, school, or a club?
Alternatively, beans or no-beans in chili and why?
I'm beans-agnostic, but if pushed, I do think I prefer them. Gives it a little more body, you know?
For groups, I lean on a few of things I learned while campaigning. This is more about "getting to know each other" in a social situation, like a party or an event; but most groups eventually have something like this, so it's good to know...
First, be as forward and friendly as you can. This can definitely take practice as an introvert; but you can learn to put on a "stage version" of you that's more outgoing. If you are able to be silly with kids, pets, or some other situation, identify that and try to bring up that feeling.
Second, there are better opportunities to introduce yourself into groups. Socially, adding a third person to a pair is much less awkward than adding another person to a group of 3+ people. So look for pairs of people to join and make a triple. Or, if you're with someone, look for a stray single to invite to join you (though that's harder, and you may have to wait for a bit until another group spins off someone...)
Third, if there are no pairs, it's possible to MAKE a pair if you have a companion. :) Spouses work very well for this, and many couples do this without being conscious of it. Say you see a group of four people talking - two men, two women (two couples). If a man and a woman approach them, you can often (but not always!) split into two groups of three (three men, three women) if you introduce both of yourselves at the same time (man approaches men, woman approaches women).
Loved the video of the pups! 🧡
As far as getting to know co-workers, that first staff meeting always shows me who is worth getting to know and who isn't. Then I wait for the social functions and talk with people about things outside work. Mostly I listen and smile. That helps them feel comfortable talking with me.