Housebound Writing and Heath Bar Trifle

Now is a perfect time to rejuvenate your spirit for writing. Think I'm going to tell you to "get writing" on these snowy, freezing, housebound days? Nope. Just the opposite. Don't write. Round up all those bits and pieces you already have started – notes made while driving, notes made in the middle of the night, pieces you began for your writing group. Round those up and type them up. Get everything typed and in your notebook. You do have a notebook, don’t you?

Ah-ha! Look at that body of work you have produced. Later, later, later if some pieces need rewriting, you have the work in a form where the revising and editing can be done more easily.

Don't think. (You know how I feel about thinking.) Don't think. Just type. Let me know how it goes.

And then, I have an idea for a next step. That will be for next week.

Meanwhile, thank you to all of you who called or e-mailed letting me know the website Calendar had not been updated. Unknowingly, I had shot the update into cybserspace to some unknown Jane person instead of to the right Jane person. Whew! All is now updated so you can find January and February classes at Calendar. Class locations are in Mission, Kansas; Leawood, Kansas; and Tulsa, Oklahoma. Note that I don't personally facilitate at every location, but I have personally trained every teacher and they are using my methods and materials with my enthusiastic support. So don't just sit out there in the cold alone. Join a class.

And thank you to those who let me know they were encouraged by the "Here Is Good" theme. Some of you have had a couple of years of illness, health close calls, job loss, and relocations; but, you let me know you plan to write yourself that Christmas letter and remind yourself that "Here Is Good."

If you want to continue e-mailing your comments, that is fine with me; but, just so you know, there is an option at the bottom of the page where you can post your comments to the blog. Some of you let me know you didn't do that because you had to open an account. I think that is just a matter of putting in your email address and a password -- you can choose something easy like spelling your childhood hometown backwards. I can't promise, but I don't think you will be hit with a bunch of extra junk mail.

Recipe

And now for an energy boost. You know what that means. A chocolate recipe. My friend and fabulous cook, Shirley, brought this to a Christmas luncheon. She said it was easy, and it certainly filled the bill for containing chocolate. I Googled the ingredients and found this recipe for Heath Bar Trifle at www.cooks.com. If this isn’t exactly Shirley’s recipe, it is close enough.

HEATH BAR TRIFLE

11 Heath candy bars
1 (21.5 oz) box fudge brownie mix
2 c. chocolate chips
2 lg. boxes (5.9 oz.) chocolate instant pudding mix
5 c. cold milk
2 lg. containers Cool Whip
1 c. miniature chocolate chips.

Bake brownies according to directions, except fold in 2 cups chocolate chips before baking. Bake in greased 9 x 13 inch pan for 28 minutes. Do not overbake. Cool completely. Cut into ½ inch cubes.

Make pudding mixture as follows: Mix pudding and milk together. Stir with wire whip or mixer 1 to 2 minutes. Fold in 3 cups of Cool Whip and 1 cup miniature chocolate chips. Place ½ of brownies in bottom of large trifle bowl, then ½ of pudding mixture, 4 Heath bars (crushed), and a layer of Cool Whip. Repeat layers. Decorate with crushed Heath bars. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. (Shirley made hers the morning of the luncheon.)

Shirley served hers in a regular clear bowl, and cooks.com suggested using a punch bowl.

Tip: Freeze Heath bars before crushing.

For more writing tips and resources go to the website www.angelinyourinkwell.com

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