Hacked

I have been hacked.

Cha-cha-cha-changes

Wow...it's been three months. That is CRAZY. I can't believe it. I've been trying to find things to blog about - but nothing has really given me the motivation. I planned a ton of crockpot meals...none that I'd honestly share or make again. I work nights all.the.time and only cook a day or two a week. But a lot has happened - it's catch-up time. 

I lost my job, not my self-worth. 
Wow, that feels good to type, see, and say. I've had a really hard time dealing with the loss of my teaching job and the opportunity to blog about food and education in the classroom. I've tried to keep a brave face, but I can't live with my head in the sand anymore. It's time to get on with my life. 

So...I've been at my current job for three months now. Just had an employee review. It's going well and I enjoy it. I am really excited about the opportunity to go back to school - I just need to figure out what I want to major in and get started on the course work. 

Maria got engaged shortly after Christmas to an awesome guy. They're getting married in July of 2014. I am so excited to stand next to my sister on one of the most important days of her life. We hit the ground running on the bridesmaid dress shopping and it didn't take long...forgive the bad model. 

I am so excited about the shower and have tons of ideas and motivation in my Pinterest. My only hope is that I do not go all Kristen Wiig in Bridesmaids.

I look forward to this weekend - actually having two days off will give me tons of time to get into the kitchen and make some deliciousness happen. It also means actual time to figure out meals for the week, ones that I hope to share with you soon!

Cha-cha-cha-changes

End of the World Coupons

So, if you've been living under a rock, you know that tomorrow is where the Mayan calendar ended. Yes, the end of the world is tomorrow. I plan to spend the day baking up a storm for the Christmas festivities at my house...just in case they were wrong. In case you want to hurry up and stock up your house, here are some coupons that will get you through should you survive the end-of-the-world-insanity or last minute Christmas shopping, whichever should come first. 

Coupons For The Apocalypse

Fighting Zombies all day can be a real headache:

• $1.00 off Any Advil or Advil Migraine product
• $1.00 off any one (1) Advil Migraine product

You’re gonna want something to do on those long cold nights:

• $2.00 off one BATTLESHIP, SORRY! or TROUBLE Game
• $3.00 off one MONOPOLY MILLIONAIRE Game

Don’t forget the kiddos, they’re our only hope at repopulating the earth:

• $1.00 off any 1 Gerber Graduates 2+ Kid Selects
• $1.00 off any one Gerber Graduates 2+ Dippers
• $0.50 off ONE Pampers Wipes 60 ct. or larger
• $0.50 off two Gerber Graduates Yogurt Grabbers

When your husband is out slaying the walking dead, he needs to smell good:

• $3.00 off any one (1) Axe holiday pack

I hear blood stains are hard to get out of clothes:

• $3.00 off Seventh Generation Laundry Detergent

And you certainly need to wash off the Zombie guts before dinner:

• $2.00 off any (2) TWO Dial 8-Bar Pack
• $1.00 off One Lava Twin Pack or Two bars

Snacks. Snacks. And More Snacks. Fighting Zombies is hard work!

• $1.00 off 2 PLANTERS Nut Products
• Buy 2 Get 1 FREE 3 MUSKETEERS Bars
• $0.50 off ONE BAG OF KETTLE BRAND POTATO chips
• $1.00 off ONE Kashi Soft Baked Squares
• $1.00 off any TWO Kashi Crackers or Pita Crisps

Keep the putrid smell of Zombies out of your house (or what’s left of it):

• $3.00 off any 3M™ Window Insulator Kit

Fido and Fluffy can defend the homestead while you’re scavenging for food:

• $1.00 off one Purina Cat Chow brand cat food
• $1.50 off 2 Snausages or Snaw Somes! dog snacks

Leaves and berries can be bland, sweeten them:

• $0.85 off ONE Truvia Natural Sweetener

If you take to the seas to escape the Zombie herd, you’ll need this: 

• $1.00 off any Dramamine product

Doesn’t this stuff last forever?

• $2.00 off (2) Silk Pure Almond half gallons

Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate:

• $1.00 off Minute Maid Juice Box 10-pk
• $10.00 off 1 Filtrete™ Water Pitcher – 12 cup
• $1.00 off three Welch’s Sparkling Juice Cocktails (You might need something stronger though)

Where else are you going to store the food you scavenge?!

• $1.00 off any TWO Ziploc brand Bags
• $1.00 off any TWO Ziploc brand containers

You do have one of those camp coffee makers right?

• $1.00 off ONE (1) GEVALIA Coffee – 12 oz

And last but not least, you gotta look and smell good in the new world!

• $0.75 off any one Colgate Optic White™ Mouthwash
• $0.75 off one Colgate Optic White™ Toothpaste
• $1.00 off one imPRESS Press-on Manicure
• $1.00 off Maybelline NY Expert Wear Eye Shadows

Obvious Necessities:

• $0.50 off CAREFREE excluding 18-22 count
• $1.00 off (1) STAYFREE product

Tip: Defrosting Chicken Without Cooking It

Thought I was leaving you high and dry today? Nope. I've been indulging in the beginning of my weekend. DJ let me sleep in today, we've enjoyed a breakfast in our jammies, and finally went to buy his costume and fixings for treat bags for the 14 kids in his class. And what's an 80 degree-ish day without a trip to the park?

So now we're home and I just realized that we're having chicken tonight for dinner. Not a problem - except the chicken is frozen solid in a bag in the freezer. When I first started cooking and had frozen solid chicken, I would throw it in the microwave on defrost. The pieces of chicken would be partially cooked when the defrost was done. Gross. 

I'd love to share my preferred method of defrosting chicken without cooking it before, well, cooking it. 

Step One: Preheat oven to 200 degrees. 
Step Two: Place chicken on aluminum foil in a single layer. 

Step Three: Turn off the oven and place chicken in, setting the timer for 25 minutes. I've tried 20 minutes for smaller batches. 

Step Four: Take the chicken out of the oven and begin preparation for the delicious meal that you have ahead of you tonight. For us, it's Chicken Chop Suey. Another clean plate club recipe, maybe?

DO: 
Preheat oven to 200 degrees and turn it off when you put chicken in. 
Set the timer and forget about it. 
Dispose of the foil properly. No one enjoys salmonella. 

DO NOT: 
Peek on the chicken to see how it's doing. Precious heat will be lost. 
Try to eat the defrosted chicken raw. This process is purely for defrosting without cooking it, allowing you to totally control the cooking process. And everyone loves control. 

Enjoy!

Hot Fudge Brownie Larabars

Two days in a row...I am on a roll like butter! A Hawaiian roll, please. I love them so very much, but am too cheap to buy them. They are an indulgence of mine - like Twix, Starbucks, and chocolate. Just like Larabars...yep, too cheap to buy. When I saw this recipe on Chocolate Covered Katie, I knew that I had to make them ASAP. 

Now, if you've been reading long, you know that DJ can't be around nuts. Yes, there are nuts in this recipe. When this recipe was made, DJ was at school. All associated dishes and areas were cleaned and sanitized prior to his return. It's nice to be able to make things yourself - definitely try this out - you will not be disappointed at the taste and the money still in your wallet. You're welcome!

Hot Fudge Brownie Larabars

adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie, originally seen ad Fudge Babies.

Ingredients

1 cup walnuts 

1 and 1/3 cups pitted dates 

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

3-4 T cocoa powder 

1/8 plus 1/16 tsp salt chocolate chips, bar, or baking chocolate (I added chocolate chips)

Directions

Blend all the ingredients, using a food processor,

Place mixture in a dish lined with waxed paper and shape into bars. Cut into bars and wrap. 

Lunch On The Go: Turkey Salad Wrap

I have mentioned, without sarcasm, that I LOVE my job. I work alongside the executive chef and cooks and all their amazing talent. I sample on a daily basis so that I can adequately talk with the patients about their meal choices. Don't even get my started on the desserts that they roll out of the kitchen. So.damn.good. 

The down side? Trying not to purchase everything in the cafeteria. In an effort to not put my entire paycheck back into the cafeteria, I've started bringing my lunches. I found this recipe from Martha Stewart and had the feeling that it would be absolutely delicious. And it is. I adapted it slightly to use turkey lunch meat instead of cooking actual turkey because 1.) it's faster. 2.) I just worked an 8 hour shift and didn't care. 3.) Did I mention it's easy? Chop up four ounces of turkey, mix with some mayo, mustard, and vinegar. Wrap it up (whole wheat, please) with some spinach and carrot - you're good to go! 

I leave you with some pictures from our trip to the pumpkin patch this past Saturday. DJ had a blast! 

Hayride

DJ loved feeding the goats and sheep.

Turkey Salad Wraps
adapted from Martha Stewart

Ingredients

For the filling:

4 ounces turkey lunch meat

2 tablespoons light mayonnaise

1 tablespoon honey mustard

1/2 teaspoon red-wine vinegar

Ground black pepper

To assemble:

1 cup baby spinach, or arugula

1 carrot, finely grated 

1 (12 inch) flour tortilla, flavored if desired

Directions

Slice the  turkey and place in a medium bowl. Stir in the mayonnaise, mustard, and vinegar until combined. Season to taste with pepper.

Arrange arugula and carrot in the center of the tortilla. Spoon turkey salad down the center. Fold one end of tortilla up over a little of the filling. Fold the sides over to enclose the filling, and then roll up to close. 

Menu Plan - Week of 10/22

Hello! How are you? I'm doing fantastic - and no, that isn't sarcasm. I am loving my new job. I get to spend more time with the little man and am actually finding myself in the kitchen more consistently. I've trained on all three of my rotating shifts - which feels wonderful to be done! I love working alongside the cooks and chefs. I'm in hog heaven. Speaking of the little man, how handsome was he on school picture day?

In other fun and exciting news, I had a pretty awesome reaction to hair dye. For only being 30, I am quite gray. A head of gray hair is something that I'm just not ready for, so I have dyed my hair for the past several years. I blame the use of a new and different brand for the skin falling off my face at the scalp line. Nice way to start a new job, right? Hi. I'm Lisa. My face is not falling off and I do not have some contagious disease, I promise.

For the first time in weeks, I was able to sit down and actually plan a week of meals. A little different than in the past, I'm including the recipes that I plan to try to breakfasts and lunches this week. Hope that you have wonderful things planned. I'm looking forward to DJ's first trip to the pumpkin patch today. I'll be sure to share some pictures of our adventure! Enjoy the rest of your weekend! 

Plan for Week of October 22nd - in no particular order. 

Breakfast
Apple Bagel Sandwiches with Whipped Pumpkin Spread
Hot Fudge Brownie Larabars (so I don't stuff my face with samples in the kitchen!)

Lunch
Turkey Salad Wraps

Dinners
Ground Beef Stew
Pan Roasted Chicken with Maple-Mustard Dill Sauce
Stuffed Pork Sandwiches
Chicken Chop Suey
Beer Pizza

Pumpkin Garlic Rolls

Hi...my name is Lisa. I know it's been awhile. Towards the end at my old job, I was leaving the house before sunrise, working up to 11 hour days, and fighting an hour or so commute to the house. Add catching a cold to the mix, and dinner was just not happening. 

This weekend was pure bliss. I actually spent time in the kitchen trying to find ways to use the 5 cans of pumpkin that I bought on a whim. After a bit of Googling, my search ended with these rolls. I adapted the recipe slightly using a different glaze using butter instead of olive oil. I have a thing for a delicious, soft, chewy rolls with a delicious, long simmered meal and these fit the bill perfectly. Consider adding these to your spread this turkey day! 

Pumpkin Garlic Knots

Source: Handle the Heat, from (never home)maker, glaze adapted from Annie's Eats
Ingredients

For the rolls:

1 cup warm water

1 envelope active dry yeast

2 tablespoon honey or agave nectar

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

olive oil

1-1/2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt

3-1/2 cups unbleached bread flour 

For the glaze: 

3 tablespoons butter, melted

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves

Directions

Pour the warm water into a medium bowl and whisk in the yeast. Let sit until frothy, about 10 minutes. Whisk in the honey, 2 tablespoons olive oil, and pumpkin puree.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients then pour in your wet ingredients.

In a mixer using a hook attachment, pour the contents of the bowl. Set mixer on medium-low and mix until ingredients are incorporated. Knead dough for approximately 6 - 8 minutes. 

Lightly oil bowl and roll dough to cover and coat both sides lightly with oil. Cover with a damp towel or plastic wrap and let rise for about 2 hours; or until nearly doubled in size. 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F, put in a pizza stone (you may use a pan, too, but it works best with a stone), and divide the dough into two equal pieces. Place half into a freezer bag if planning to use another day. The dough can be frozen for up to three weeks.

To shape the rolls, tear off sections of dough and roll into a long shape. Tie in a know and fold the ends of the dough into the center. 

For the glaze, mix the melted butter, garlic cloves, and dried oregano and stir to combine. Using a brush or a sandwich bag, coat tops of rolls with glaze. 

Place the rolls on your stone (or on your pan) and let bake until golden brown on the tops, about 10-15 minutes depending on size of knots.

Happy Birthday, DJ

Every day at work, the lead teacher tells the babies that they are loved and they should be happy. Every day, I look out the window and fight back tears. The babies are loved while their parents are working, the same way that my little man is cared for by someone else while I'm working. If I said it didn't break my heart a little, it would be a lie. 

I pretend for a moment that I'm talking to DJ, telling him that Mommy, Daddy, Dukey, Pappy, Grandma, Ah, Nana, Gramps, Great Grandma, Poppa up in heaven, and everyone else that he comes in contact with absolutely adores him. 

Small tangent:

 I can't get over how tiny Duke used to be!

At 8:20 this evening, I will commemorate my life changing forever for the 4th year in a row. It's DJ's birthday today! 

My dearest DJ, 
You have changed my life in more ways than you know. You've given me more joy than you can ever imagine. I fell in love with you from the moment that I saw you. You have my heart you dear sweet boy. 

You are such an amazing gift. As much as I try to find the words that adequately express my love for you, there are none. You have changed my life forever and I love you with all of my heart. 

I love watching you learn and grow. You are such a joyful little man and I am so very proud to be your mommy. Happy Birthday, DJ! 

Menu Plan - Week of 9/24

Wow...did that week really just happen?

Several very important things happened: 
1.) I turned 30. It was just a normal day where I found out that I wouldn't be able to go for a promotion. At least there was my homemade ice cream cake to lessen my sorrows...

2.) I had an amazing interview about 10 minutes from my house...sitting on pins and needles waiting to hear!

3.) I was schooled by a crockpot. The lesson I learned, you can never, ever have enough crockpots. Or tupperware. Or scouring pads for when the food in the crockpot burns. Whoops. 

This week I'm trying a few of the recipes that I didn't get to last week like the creamy crockpot spaghetti, beer braised short ribs, and cran-apple chicken, but adding these recipes to my plans as well: 

Chicken with Paprika Sauce
Beer Pizza Crust, which I hope ends up being made unlike the Beer Pizza from yester-menu plan

Nothing says it's going to be a great week like having multiple beer recipes in the plans! 

Happy New Week to you! 

Dark Chocolate Chocolate-Chip Muffins

(Let me begin this post by humbly sticking my tail between my legs and apologize to Coleen and Sarah for the delay. 8AM and 8PM are two totally different things when scheduling, but better late (and delicious) than never!)

Time for another Blogger's Choice Reveal. I was downright giddy when I was assigned Coleen's blog, Does Not Cook Well With Others. I love Coleen's recipes, her photography, and her blogging style. I could choose any recipe I wanted - yes! 

For awhile, I had this recipe for Steak and Eggs with Molasses-Beer Sauce as my recipe of choice. I was dead set on it - until I saw Chocolate Chocolate-Chip Muffins. Really? I was smitten. I am averaging about two hours of commuting time in addition to a ten hour work day. These were the motivation that I needed to get my butt out of bed, peel DJ out of bed and get him ready for his day, and gear up for a day of all things baby. 

I adapted the recipe slightly to include dark chocolate because if you're doing something decadent, you may as well do it up right. I love the slightly-melted consistency of the chocolate chips inside the delicious, non-cupcake-tasting muffin. It makes 5am seem less...well, sucky. 

Thanks again to Coleen of Does Not Cook Well With Others.  for having a truly amazing blog that made deciding difficult and to Sarah of A Taste of Home Cooking for putting the swap together. 

Dark Chocolate Chocolate-Chip Muffins
adapted from Does Not Cook Well With Others, originally from AllRecipes

Ingredients

6 ounces dark chocolate (use high-quality bar chocolate, the kind you chop)

1/3 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup whole milk

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup sour cream

2 large eggs

1 1/2teaspoon vanilla extract

1 2/3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees . Grease silicon muffin tin or line 12 muffin cups with papers.

In a small saucepan over low heat, carefully melt the chopped dark chocolate and the butter. Let stand until cooled, about 10 minutes.

Lightly beat the eggs. In a small bowl, stir together the chocolate-butter mixture with the milk, sugar, eggs, and vanilla, until blended well.

In a large bowl, stir together flour, soda, and salt. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, pour in the chocolate mixture, and stir until just combined and lumpy. Stir in the mini chocolate chips, testing a handful for yourself to test product quality. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups.

Bake at 400 degrees F at least 18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove muffin tin from oven and let stand at least 5 minutes, before removing the muffins and letting them cool on a wire rack.

These can be served warm or can be frozen, if they last that long!

Here are all of the recipes that were made: 

Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hello, beautifuls! It is crazy how excited I get from a simple thing like a cookie. Or a day off like today. Or some of these cookies on my day off while in my jammies. Yes, please. I happened to have a few bananas that needed to be used pronto. Necessity is the mother of invention, so I hit my favorite resource: Google. 

A search brought me to these wonderfully delicious cookies that used the exact amount of banana that I had. Serendipity, I tell you. DJ stole these cookies from off the cooling rack all day and I probably let him have more than I should...Whoops. I can't lie - I was right there with him. 

Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies
slightly adapted from Simply Recipes


Ingredients
1/2 cup of unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup of sugar
1 egg, room temperature
1 cup of mashed bananas (about 2 ½ large bananas)
1 teaspoon of baking soda
2 cups of flour
pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of ground mace or nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon of ground cloves
1 cup of chocolate chips (can use pecans or walnuts)

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. 

In a mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the egg and continue to beat until incorporated.

In a separate bowl, mix the mashed bananas and baking soda and allow to sit for 2 minutes. 

Add the banana mixture into the butter mixture. Gradually add the flour, salt, and spices into the mixture and mix until combined. Do not overmix or the cookies will not inflate while baking.

Add the chocolate chips (or pecans/walnuts if using). Be sure to taste test one or two right just to make sure that they are safe.  Drop on silpat or parchment lined baking sheet in tablespoon measures allowing space between the cookies to expand and rise. 

Bake for 11-13 minutes or until nicely golden brown. Let cool on wire racks.

Menu Plan

Happy Birthday week to me! By the end of it, I will be another year older and hopefully wiser. I am so excited to make my birthday treat of choice and share it with you on Thursday!

I know that I promised to share a sweet treat with you yesterday, but there are times when things just don't work out - like not setting up in the refrigerator and staying gloopy. Disappointing. I will be trying the recipe again with a different type of chocolate and hope that it will work. The bathroom floor that my neighbor got the grout for is definitely NOT a disappointment. It looks sweet. Take a look: 

For meals this week, I am taking it easy on myself and firing up the crockpot. I tried cooking at the end of the work day and have to admit that it was unsuccessful. We ate so late and I was miserable by the time I ate, cleaned up, and got the little man in bed for the night.  

Monday: Chicken Noodle Soup
Tuesday: Parmesan Honey Pork Roast
Wednesday: Creamy Crockpot Spaghetti
Thursday: Beer Braised Beef Short Ribs
Friday: Pizza
Weekend: CranApple Pork Chops and Chicken Pot Au Feu

Sliceable Truffle Cake

Happy Friday! I told you that some sweet treats were going to fit the bill for my first week back to work. I actually found this recipe on Pinterest and knew that  I had to make this. I searched high and low for reasons to share them. A pan of chocolately deliciousness is a dangerous thing to keep around the house, mostly me. 


That's when the opportunity presented itself. My neighbor works for a company that sells grout - in a color that matches the new floor in our bathroom. As a thank you for his help, 

Freezing Tomatoes

Three days at the new job and it feels like it's been 20 years. I've been puked on, peed on, and changed more poopy diapers than I care to count. From the picture above, you can clearly see that my tomatoes have been very busy as well. That's only one of the plants - I have six. 

There are a ton of tomatoes that I will have to use up in a very short amount of time. As much as I'd love to eat bruschetta for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, woman can not live on tomato alone. I invited my neighbor to come over and take some of my bounty for use in her own kitchen (maybe she'll share her infamous chili recipe with me.) That's when she mentioned the ingenious idea of freezing my exploding bounty to use them later...brilliant.

Now that I have a day off, I am going to to be freezing a ton of tomatoes. The process for freezing tomatoes is pretty simple. I have absolutely no canning equipment. None. 

I cut two slits, making an X, at the bottom of the tomato. This makes peeling off the skins super simple. 

I carefully plop the tomatoes into a pot of boiling water. I let them boil for minute and place them on cookie sheet to cool enough to handle. 

Once they are cool enough to handle, I peel the skins off, remove any tough or rotten parts, and wrap them up in a good old sandwich bag. I portion them for one cup of whatever whole/diced/crushed tomato that the recipe would call for. 

So that's my day in a tomato skin...freezing tomatoes, spending some snuggle time with an under the weather DJ, and making a sweet treat for a wonderful neighbor. I can't wait to share it with you - so tune in tomorrow! 

Menu Plan - Week of 9/10

Happy Saturday Morning to my wonderful readers. I have been up and about for hours now (thank you, DJ!) and have this week's menu ready to go. 

This week, I'm embracing that thing called brinner, aka breakfast for dinner. When I was a Resident Assistant in college, the breakfast for dinner draw to unpopular events like "Learn How To Budget Your Time Wisely" made sure to draw a crowd. 

Here is the menu plan in no particular order: 

Country Club Chicken
Fajita-Ranch Chicken Wraps
Mama's Amazing Ziti
Pork-Potato Hash with Eggs
Rotini and Cheese
Braised Short Ribs with Egg Noodles
Greek-Style Pork Chops

I also focused on recipes that have a pretty quick prep time (not counting marinades) and are on the table quickly. It is my first full week back to working full-time with a room full of children under the age of two and I have the wonderful feeling that this.will.suck. Don't get me wrong, I love babies - I just don't know that I will be able to keep up with them. Better work some sweet treats in too to give me some motivation! 

I hope that you enjoy the rest of the weekend! 

Recipe Swap Reveal: Coconut Lemon Bars

It's time for another wonderful Recipe Swap reveal. The theme this time was dessert. I received Macadamia Lemon Bars from Christine's Kitchen Chronicles.

As much as I love almonds in salad and honey roasted peanuts, they are things that I can't have in the house thanks to an allergy with my little man. Hiding baked goods would be impossible with this adorable face. 

To be able to have everyone enjoy the fruits of my baking labor, I adapted the recipe to include coconut in the crust and topping instead of the nuts. The pan is gone. That's right - gone. There is something about toasted coconut that makes baked goods irresistible. 

Thank you Sarah from A Taste of Home Cooking for putting together another wonderful swap. Next up: another Blogger's Choice 

Coconut Lemon Bars
adapted from Christine's Kitchen Chronicles and AllRecipes

Ingredients

For the crust:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup coconut flakes

For the filling: 
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons lemon zest (preferably organic)
2 tablespoons coconut flakes
Powdered sugar for dusting

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F.  Grease an 8-inch square baking dish. 

In a large bowl, combine the flour, powdered sugar, and melted butter.  Stir in the coconuts.  Press into the bottom and 1/2" up the sides of prepared baking dish.  Bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned. 

In a small mixing bowl, combine the sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt.  Beat in the eggs, lemon juice, and lemon zest until light and fluffy.  Pour filling over hot crust then top with coconut.  Bake for 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned.

Cool completely on a wire rack.  Dust with powdered sugar and cut into bars.  Chill until ready to serve.