Red Velvet Brownies

The Morning Moon by frances robson

Good evening and come on in the house for a cup of coffee and little conversation in front of the fire. It is burning merrily in the fireplace and I am enjoying the beauty of the flames as they leap up the chimney in those beautiful orange and red colors. We need the warmth too for it is getting colder outside but we had a wonderful sunny day.

We were watching the local noon news the other day and I was a little shocked by one of the guests being interviewed. They were doing an interview with 2 nice, older ladies talking about resources available to caregivers in this area and the information was quite encouraging. I turned to watch, and not just listen, and didn't hear a lot after that point for the face on one of the ladies was so made up I was just stunned deaf.

Now I know this was a big deal for these ladies and I am sure they had called all their family, friends, neighbors and enemies to be sure and watch them on TV. After all, this is a rare occasion for most people and being a celebrity for a few minutes is quite a heady feeling so you want the largest number of people watching you as possible.

This nice lady no doubt had gone out and bought herself a new outfit, made an appointment at the hair dresser and she should have stopped there for that looked great. The next step ruined the whole picture for I guess she had visited Miss Mary Kay or some other makeup diva and had a makeover. Well honey, it was a flop if beauty was her goal for they had used the whole collection on this one aging face and it looked like a clown face. Not very attractive.

The eyes were outlined in dark eyeliner, the lashes were long and false, eyebrows were heavy and dark, and the eye shadow looked like she had used a smudge pot. They looked kind of like a raccoon which had been in a fight. Her cheeks were as red and merry as Santa Claus and the lips were outlined, filled in and highlighted with gloss in the center. I heard a makeup artist this week call them "porn lips" for they are what ladies with shady character made popular.

Bless her heart, she thought she looked pretty and some makeup person had used that nice face as an artist canvas for a bad painting. The more I watched the less I heard for all I could see was that poor lady's face and it was hilarious but not really funny. I am sure she thought she was plumb beautiful and was so proud that everyone was seeing her, but bless her heart, she just looked comical.

I sure hope some nice friend gave her some friendly advice - "Honey, here is a washcloth and some soap to go wash your face for I just know you have had an accident." If not, I am positive that many people gave her a second, third or fourth look before they cracked up.

Makeup is wonderful and I am all for it, for every old barn needs a LITTLE paint but not with a trowel but a little makeup brush and some finesse. As my sweet Southern Mama used to say, you want your makeup to look like you don't have any on just look fresh and beautiful which she always did. So please look in the mirror before you ask all your friends and enemies to watch you on TV and check to see if you look like a lovely lady or a clown.

Thought I would share a good recipe for Valentine's Day. I can promise you that your sweetheart will thank you for baking them for they are good.

Chewy Red Velvet Brownies

1 red velvet cake mix
½ cup butter, softened
3 eggs
¾ cup coconut
½ cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven 350 degrees. Grease 9x13 in. pan. Mix the cake mix, butter and eggs until all ingredients are incorporated. It is a thick dough – stir in coconut and pecans and press evenly into pan. Hands work best and spray fingertips with cooking spray to keep from sticking.
Bake for 26 – 30 minutes or until done. Sprinkle with powdered sugar while warm. When cooled, cut into squares.

That's about it for today and ya'll come back to see me and I'll usually have a pot of coffee ready and enjoy the brownies. Be careful going home and stay warm.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach