Suck It Martha Saturday: Sweet, Sweet Carbs Edition

I'm back! It has been an absolutely crazy last few weeks, but I am so glad to finally get back to couponing, and this blog, again. Would you believe me if I told you that I haven't even made any drugstore shopping trips in the last few weeks? I'm in withdrawl! I hope you all kept clipping and saving while I was away.

And what better way to celebrate my return than with another epic Suck It Martha Saturday? The school where I now work does a fairly regular potluck staff breakfast. This being my first since I started, I wanted to impress. I was originally signed up to bring muffins - scoff! I'll see your muffins, and I will raise you a scrumptious raisin scone:

They were a big hit, I think because, like bagels, they're chock full of delicious carbs and yet not overly sweet. I happened to have raisins on hand from making Irish soda bread a few weeks ago, but what I love about scones is that you can put just about any fruits, nuts, or chips in them.

My next attempt, sadly, suffered from a mechanical failure. I wanted to make a pain au chocolat - bread and chocolate. And I just happened to have seen this recipe for Yeasted Chocolate Coffee Cake from - guess who! - Martha Stewart herself. Now I've made pain au chocolat before, but I wasn't 100% happy with the recipe I'd used, so I figured I'd give Martha's a try.

The good news was, the bread tasted amazing. So freakishly good that just thinking about it is making me drool right now. The chocolate-to-bread ratio is almost absurdly high, so every bite is buttery and chocolatey, wrapped in a bare cocoon of gluten. The bad news was, all that chocolate wreaks havoc on the structural integrity of the bread. As soon as I tried to slice it, the whole thing dissolved into a shower of crumbs. I was able to salvage a few decent pieces that could pass for half-slices, but most of the loaf ended up crumbled into a ziploc bag. Where, don't get me wrong, it is still being devoured by yours truly, but I would rather have had my coworkers bowing down and worshipping it.


Here's what it was supposed to look like...



And here's how it actually came out.

 The lessons I take away from this? 1) Next time (and oh yes, there will be a next time), I will either make this as mini-loaves, muffins, or in roll form, like cinnamon rolls but with chocolate. 2) This is not the first time I've been disappointed by Martha's actual recipes. Her stuff always looks amazing, but in reality they're only so-so. I'm sticking to Allrecipes.com from now on.

In other news, travelers, Big Y is having a Buy 1 Get 2 Free sale this week, so I will try to jump back into things with your coupon matchups by this afternoon!