Guys, life is busy! A weekly date night, at least one worth blogging about, has been impossible. This week I am making up for it with an easy date idea you can customize yourself and an easy, yet delicious dessert recipe!
Last Wednesday was my husband's birthday. We literally did nothing to celebrate on the actual day because he spent the whole weekend on a special trip just for him to celebrate- an IMSA race weekend at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Actually, all of us got away for a few days and had a mini-vacation. It was wonderful, but coming back to reality was a major struggle (even more so than usual!). Monday was full of groceries and unpacking. Tuesday was lots of catching up on housework, and by the time Wednesday rolled around I still did not have my act together.
Thursday the timing was perfect though. I had finally gotten caught up, the two-year old was being cooperative, and it was gloriously sunny outside so I had plenty of creative inspiration flowing.
I wanted to keep things simple. My original idea was chillin' on the patio, making s'mores and enjoying beverages. Not sure how to execute the outdoor s'mores idea without a fire pit or even a grill, I had to improvise a little. That's when I came up with Lazy S'mores! (Yes, the recipe is further down!)
I wanted to make the s'mores look a little put together, so I did plate my ingredients
beforehand. I used a very simple version for the actual date, but I have included instructions for a fancier/more put together version. For the simple Lazy S'mores I just got a box of graham crackers, 2 Hershey's chocolate bars, and a jar of marshmallow fluff. I laid them out on my pretty summer dish and spooned the marshmallow into a bowl- of course I let Avery have the spatula after I was done and she thoroughly enjoyed what she thought was ice cream.
During our snack time, we made the s'mores ourselves by spreading on the marshmallow fluff, adding the chocolate and sandwiching between two graham crackers (you know how
to make a s'more, so not sure why I went into that much detail).
I also wanted to do something special for my hubs since it was his birthday, so I had the idea to help him with one of his DIY projects he already had all the materials for and had been wanting to finish. While this activity had the potential to turn out absolutely disastrous (and had a few close calls!) I decided in advance that I would not try to take control of the project, but simply be a helper and even be willing to sit back as a cheerleader and let him do what he wanted, if needed. Ladies (or gents), this makes for a great yet super simple date night idea- I am sure your spouses/significant others have projects they have been meaning to work on, but either just can't find the time or the motivation. Best of all, the money had already been spent on project supplies just sitting in their original Menard's bag, so it required zero planning or spending on my part. I did not have to step foot in a hardware store on my own volition.
As it turns out, we didn't actually have all the materials he need to finish the project, but we got some of it going (he had already assembled and put on some of the carpet with his dad beforehand). Guess now I already have another easy date night idea once we have the rest of the supplies! And, yes, this is a cat tree. Our second one actually, because we are in fact crazy and now are the proud caretakers of not just two, but three cats.
Anyway, Lazy S'mores recipe is below. As always, thank you for joining this date night DIY journey and I do honestly still want to hear your stories if you try any of these date nights.
Lazy S'mores for Two
Ingredients:
-4 whole graham crackers, plus 1 graham cracker set aside (maybe you messed up when you were breaking down the other 4 graham crackers, so now you have a crumbly, ruined one)
-1 Hershey's chocolate bar
-1 small jar of marshmallow fluff/marshmallow creme
-1 cup of chocolate chips
Instructions:
Break each graham cracker in half. Separate the chocolate bar so you have four rows of three attached pieces (just break apart the four rows in a standard sized bar, or do whatever you want. Like I said, you already know how to make s'mores, just go with it.) Spread marshmallow on one side of each graham cracker. Assemble s'mores.
Next is the melting chocolate part, which can be a process. I put 1 cup of chocolate chips in a small bowl and microwaved for about 60-90 seconds, stopping every 10 seconds to stir the chocolate. This step is important because you want a good consistency, which can only be achieved by even heating of the chocolate, and you also want to avoid burning the chocolate. Meanwhile, your spouse can be crushing up that crumbly, ruined graham cracker you set aside.
Once the chocolate is good and melted you can dip the s'mores about halfway, or even spread the melty chocolate on. Then top with crushed graham cracker and chill in the fridge for a bit.
This recipe is also easy to double or even triple if you want to make it for more than two, or if you don't share chocolate well, like me ;)
