Can we turn ourselves off for 10 minutes?

So, today I got this interesting e-mail; the subject was World of Darkness. The idea is that on Sept. 17th the whole world (yeap, that's right) will turn the lights off for 10 minutes: from 9:50 pm to 10:00 pm local time.

I can't help but think: can I do that? Of course, living in the sticks of Brazil, our electrical power supply is spotty to say the least. When that happens, my wonderful and practical husband turns the generator on and life resumes itself as before.

However, my doubts go further... I don't seem to be able to do "just" one thing at a time anymore. So, when I watch TV, I am also using laptop. Once a week, my husband takes my laptop to class because his is dead. When that happens, I watch TV and do crosswords. When I eat alone, I read a book while chewing I am not sure what.

When was it that we started multitasking full time AND by choice? when was it doing only one thing at a time became so dull? It seems we can't smell the flowers anymore, we have to smell and do something else. So, how am I going to turn the lights off for 10 minutes and do nothing? Oh, I know... when I am eating with my husband we don't do anything else. So, on Sept 17th, honey, dinner is going to be a little later.

Brazil's National Candy

If you have ever been to a Brazilian birthday party, you know brigadeiro (bree-gah-day-ro). There is no Brazilian party without it. It is the most delicious, luscious chocolate little candy. Still, it is so easy to make, Brazilian kids (12 and up) make them themselves even, or specially, if they are alone in the house. Something so good and so easy and quick to make, I don't know... it just seems wrong. Oh, yeah, it is fattening... that's the catch.

Anyway, if you can take a few more calories and bear the guilt, here goes the recipe. You can make it in less than 10 minutes AND enjoy it tonight!

You are going to need:

1. 1 can of sweetened condensed milk (not to be confused with evaporated milk)
2. 1 tablespoon of butter
3. 3 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder

Traditionally, Brazilians used to make brigadeiro in the pan but nowadays most people make them in the microware. In my opinion, you can't tell the difference.

Take a round and tall microwave-safe bowl and put all ingredients inside

1. Put in the microwave in high for 3 minutes
2. Stir
3. Put in the microwave for 4 more minutes
4. Stir vigorously until you get a shiny, homogeneous cream

At this point, the thing is done. You can serve in one of several ways:

• Just wait for the cream to get cold in its own bowl, take a spoon full of the cream and put in your mouth. The rest of the family can do the same. This is the way to serve on movie night with just your immediate family.
  
• Put in little, cute individual containers and wait until cold. Serve the individual container with little spoons.

• Roll them into little balls, Brazilian party style. The way to do this is to wait for the cream to cool down, smear some butter in your hands, take a little of the cream and roll into a little ball. You can put shredded nuts, shredded chocolate, or even unsweetened cocoa (truffle style) around the ball. Then, put the little ball into a paper container like the ones used for muffins, but much smaller (the ball should be the size of a Ferrero Roucher).

I know, I know...

You don't have to say anything, I know I have been a bad, bad blogger... my posts have been (very) few and far between, but what can I say???

Oh, wait a minute, I know!!! I can say:

1. Ana was home on vacation from college and I was nursing my baby OR
   
2. I am preparing a great soon to be posted tutorial on how to make a candle lamp out of a soda bottle and hand painted silk OR
3. I can say I have been very busy in my studio making myself a purse using a great and FREE pattern from Oh, Fransson!. My thanks to Elizabeth Hartman for the great tutorial. AND
4. I will try to be better in the future, even though my step-daughter Camille's wedding is coming up in 3 weeks, which means I will be away from home for 2 weeks, and I know it will be October before I can get my act together.