12 New Things ~ Attempting Pie Crust

Though Sarah Mae at Like a Warm Cup of Coffee is no longer doing this (she had to scale back), I decided to continue on my own and I thought you might like my November update!

For November I was supposed to make my own pie crust.  Ugh.  I made pie crust once or twice long long ago, as in over 20 years ago, and it didn't work out so well and was too much trouble I thought.  So I used Pillsbury refrigerated crusts all these years (and sometimes Marie Callender's frozen crusts).  I was perfectly content with this method as my hubs' grandmother complimented me many years ago on my flaky pie crust!  I had used Pillsbury, but didn't dare mention it as she only made homemade pie crust.  Instead, I simply thanked her!  :)

But as I'm trying to move toward less processed foods and more cooking from scratch, I made the decision to attempt homemade crust.  What I *should* have done was try out a few recipes before Thanksgiving.  But nooooo...that would not fit my procrastinator ways.  I decided to try out a butter crust (I don't care for shortening and am trying to use less oils that aren't extra virgin olive or coconut.)

I found a great tutorial on making butter pie crust at Smitten Kitchen.  I felt fairly confident that I could handle this crust and so went ahead and made it...the night before Thanksgiving.  It didn't go so well.  No fault of the recipe or tutorial!  Just my own unfamiliarity of working with dough!  I used the crust anyway.  'Cause wasting a stick of butter just doesn't sit well with me.  I should have started over.  Really.

Here it is.  Unsuccessful pie crust that should not be used.

Go ahead and laugh.  I won't be offended!  May I list out a bit of advice on pie crust?

- One should make sure that the chunks of butter in the dough are the size of small peas rather than the size of pea pods as in the above pic.

- When cutting the recipe in half to make a single crust, one should remember to cut the amount of water in half BEFORE adding it to the mixture.  Adding lots of flour after the fact to make up for it does not make good pie crust.

- After rolling out, if it looks like clumps of butter barely joined together by dough, one might consider starting over.

- If one is going to really mash the dough into a glass pie plate trying to shape it into something that resembles crust, it might be nice to butter the pie plate so the crust will actually come out later.

- If one gets too tired and decides to make pie in the morning instead, one should probably cover crust that is already in pan in refrigerator with plastic wrap so crust doesn't completely dry out.

- If one decides to use the crust anyway because one rationalizes that it will be filled with pumpkin deliciousness (I tried this Cinnamon Streusel-Topped Pumpkin Pie) so maybe nobody will notice, then during dessert time one should declare loudly "I don't know WHAT happened to this crust - I should get my money back!"

- One should get pictures of failed pie crust as it's sure to make a good post if one happens to be a blogger.

So now I see that pie crust takes practice and patience!  Yes, I will try to make this butter pie crust again.  I have a feeling that it will take me a few tries to get it right.  I guess that's what learning a new skill is all about!  It doesn't mean that you will be instantly good at it!

I did not yet finish my November project of reorganizing my China cabinets, but hey, the month isn't quite over!  My book for November was Pride and Prejudice which I finished today - *happy sigh*!  Love that book!  In fact, I didn't start it until after Thanksgiving because I knew it might distract me from making things like...pie crust.  I hadn't read Pride and Prejudice in years and realized that the A&E version of the movie (which I own thanks to hubs!!) is very close to the book which makes me happy!

Do you make homemade pie crust my friends?  Any tips?  Or are you a faithful Pillsbury user?  Did I make you smile today?  Are you laughing *with* me?!  :)

Have a great day friends!

Thankful For Thanksgiving

I'm just too busy this week to really blog!  Had some volunteer duties and lots of cooking/cleaning for Thanksgiving Day!  If you stop and think of me, just picture me in the kitchen!

I am so thankful that we are able to host Thanksgiving and that God provides us with the means to share such a yummy meal!  I am thankful for all the ways that my family has been blessed!  I'm looking forward to the fellowship and food!

I hope all of you have a blessed Thanksgiving no matter where you go or what kind of food you eat tomorrow!!

Happy Thanksgiving friends!!

P.S.  No CHOCOLATE Friday this week as I'll be on the couch recovering from the food and festivities!

CHOCOLATE Friday ~ Crazy About Cookies

 The end of another week - how about some chocolate to celebrate?  That's what CHOCOLATE Friday is here for!  I'll share some chocolate with you and you can share some by linking up your chocolate posts at the bottom!

I recently had the opportunity to review a cookbook.  Who could refuse checking out a cookie cookbook?  Not me!  I was sent the cookbook Crazy About Cookies by Krystina Castella to look through.  What a great book!  It's not your typical cookbook.  The whole beginning section is all about equipment, ingredients, and techniques for making cookies.  Very helpful if you're not not a cookie expert (I'm no expert!).  Recipes include everyday cookies, party cookies, occasions cookies, holiday cookies, and basic dough, frosting and filling recipes.  So many to choose from!

There are some fun recipes I'd like to try such as Potato Chip Cookies, Matcha Chocolate Swirl Cookie Pops, Cinnamon Swirls and the Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie.  There are even several healthy cookie recipes included!  Everything is easy to understand and the pictures are great.

I wanted to try out a recipe right away and this one just spoke to me.  Not sure what spoke to me - the cocoa powder, the semisweet chocolate, the chocolate chips, the white chocolate - hard to say really.  :)  These are full of yummy ingredients, including raisins.  In my world, the raisins take these right into the breakfast category.  ;)

These cookies are fantastic!!  So rich and chocolatey - just one will satisfy your chocolate craving!  I was graciously given permission to share the recipe with you!

Chunky Candy Cookies

Reprinted with permission of Crazy About Cookies, by Krystina Castella, copyright 2010, Sterling Publishing Co, Inc.

1 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup ( 1 1/2 sticks) butter
9 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1 1/3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup walnut halves
6 oz white chocolate chips
3/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup coarsely crushed toffee

1.  Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.  Butter 2 cookie sheets.

2.  Combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.

3.  Stir the butter and chocolate in a double-boiler over simmering water until melted.  Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla; set aside.

4.  Beat the eggs and sugars in a bowl until creamy.  Beat in the melted chocolate mixture.

5.  Gradually add the flour mixture until just blended.

6.  Stir in the chocolate chips, nuts, white chocolate, raisins, and toffee.

7.  Drop 2-tablespoon mounds of dough on the cookie sheets 2 inches apart, and flatten slightly.  Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until slightly cracked on top.  Transfer to a rack to cool.

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I hope you get to try out these delicious cookies and to check out Crazy About Cookies by Krystina Castella!

Disclosure:  I received a free copy of Crazy About Cookies to review.  The picture of the cookies and my opinions are completely my own!

Since I shared yummy chocolate with you, won't you share some chocolate too?  I know you have a chocolate post somewhere!  Go find it and bring it back to link up!  Feel free to share chocolate links and/or recipes in the comments too!

Have a chocolatey day friends!

Thanksgiving Menu

One week left people!!  For some reason, I'm not feeling stressed at all about Thanksgiving Day even though I'm not as organized as usual with it.  I think it's starting to feel easier after hosting it for so many years!  I am so blessed to have the space to host it and to be able to cook up lots of yummy food for family!  It will be a wonderful day of giving thanks, visiting, and eating.

My menu has started to feel sort of basic, but these are the dishes that everybody likes, so why change it?  I do throw in a new recipe or two every year to see what the family thinks.  Some dishes come back again and some don't.  For example, I made this Sour Cream Apple Pie last year (yummy),

but it turns out that most of the family members prefer a traditional apple pie.  And now I'm laughing 'cause I don't even plan on making an apple pie this year!  LOL - I'm pretty sure they'll all be okay though!

Here's the menu (always subject to last-minute changes!):

Appetizers

Boy Scout Popcorn - assorted flavors (Hey - we HAD to buy popcorn from our own son!)
Lacy Cheddar Crisps

Holiday Cranberry Spread*

Main Dishes

Brined Roasted Turkey
Ham

Side Dishes

Mashed Potatoes and Gravy
Slow Cooker Stuffing
Roasted Spring Veggies
Cranberry Sauce (trying a new recipe - if it doesn't work out, then I'll make this one)
Rolls (trying a Cooking Light recipe)

Desserts

Amaretto Cake

Pumpkin Pie (another new recipe - excited about it!)
Toffee Cookies

* We had this Holiday Cranberry Spread last year, but the place I linked to is gone!  Took me a bit of searching, but I found the recipe again (whew!) - thanks to The Queen Mommy!  I'm gonna list it right here so I don't lose it again!

Holiday Cranberry Spread

1 bag (16 oz) fresh cranberries, rinsed and sorted
1 orange, peeled and seeded
1 red apple, cored and peeled
1 jalapeno, seeded and deveined
1 cup sugar
1-2 packages (8 oz) cream cheese

In food processor, combine cranberries, orange sections, apple slices, jalapeno, and sugar.  Mix until blended.  Store in refrigerator 24 hours.  One hour before serving, soften 8 oz cream cheese and spread in bottom of glass pie pan.  Spread half of cranberry mixture over the top.  Cover and refrigerate until serving.  Serve with crackers (Ritz are yummy with this).  Can make another batch with second 8 oz. of cream cheese and other half of cranberry mixture!  It's soooooo yummy!!

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If you're in need of some pumpkin recipes for Thanksgiving, you can stop by my Pumpkin Recipes post for my recipes plus linked-up recipes.

Don't forget - it's CHOCOLATE Friday tomorrow!  Stop by and link up your own chocolate posts!

What are your Thanksgiving plans?

Have a terrific day friends!

Just A Bit Of Encouragement

I read a lovely quote in my devotional the other day and I just really felt the need to share it!  There must be somebody else out there who really needs to hear this...

From Streams in the Desert, November 12:

     "Brightly colored sunsets and starry heavens, majestic mountains and shining seas, and fragrant fields and fresh-cut flowers are not even half as beautiful as a soul who is serving Jesus out of love, through the wear and tear of an ordinary, unpoetic life."     Frederick William Faber

I hope that encourages you on this Monday evening friends!  Hugs!

CHOCOLATE Friday ~ Chocolate Pudding With Almond Milk

Sorry I'm so late in getting CHOCOLATE Friday up!  It got too late last night and my eyes wouldn't stay open.  Now the kiddo is at school and I got Starbucks for the hubs and me so I can finally finish!  I knew that CHOCOLATE Friday people are a generally friendly bunch and would forgive me.  :)  Let's get to the chocolate!!

I have a recipe and a review for you today!  I was recently contacted to try out some new almond milk.  I couldn't say no as my son LOVES almond milk and this is organic!

Almond milk is gaining in popularity as it's delicious, good for you, and a great non-dairy option.  I've been able to find it at most grocery stores now.  But Whole Foods Market has improved it!  Their 365 Everyday Value Organics brand now has organic refrigerated almond milks!  It's so great to have organic almond milk available!  You can use almond milk on your cereal, in your coffee drinks, and so much more.  How about trying this recipe for Cherry Almond Smoothies (yum)?

There are currently 3 flavors of 365 Everyday Value Organic Almondmilk that you can buy:  original, vanilla, and unsweetened.  My son really likes the original and the vanilla.  In fact, he noticed that they taste better than the other brands we've tried.  Not only do I like the flavor, but I really like knowing that I'm serving my family a quality (and affordable) almond milk.  And I HAD to try it out in a chocolate recipe!

Did you know that you can make your own chocolate pudding mix?  Forget the box with the long list of ingredients and try this!  It's easy to mix up and you can store the mix for when those chocolate pudding cravings hit.

Chocolate Pudding Mix

3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder*
1 5/8 cups (1 1/2 plus 1/8) powdered sugar
2/3 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt

In bowl, combine all ingredients.  Stir with whisk until well-sifted.  Store in sealed container for up to 4 months.  Makes 3 cups mix (enough for 3 batches of pudding).

*I recommend Dutched cocoa powder for this recipe if you have it on hand ~ (What is Dutched cocoa?).

This is actually a half batch that I made because I knew we wouldn't be eating chocolate pudding often enough to need 6 batches in the next few months.  You can easily double the mix recipe to have more on hand.  Isn't that a cool recipe to have?!

I made the mix into chocolate pudding, but I used my 365 Everyday Value Organic Vanilla Almondmilk!  Yum!!

Chocolate pudding all cooked up.

Chocolate Almond Pudding

Chocolate Almond Pudding

1 cup Chocolate Pudding Mix
2 3/4 cups Vanilla Almond Milk
2 tablespoons butter
1 1/4 teaspoons almond extract

In saucepan, combine pudding mix and almond milk.  Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture boils and thickens (takes a while, but it does thicken!).  Remove from heat, stir in butter and almond extract.  Pour into 6 serving bowls.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least an hour.  If you like "skin" on your pudding, cover top as usual with plastic wrap.  If you don't want the "skin", then push plastic wrap down onto the top of the pudding in the bowl (the skin will come off on the plastic - think of George making pudding skins to save and eat on Seinfeld).

To make regular chocolate pudding, substitute regular milk for almond milk and vanilla extract for the almond.

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Now go make your own chocolate pudding mix to have on hand!  And head over to Whole Foods Market to try out the 365 Everyday Value Organic Almondmilks!

Do you have a chocolate post?  I know you do - it might have posted this week or it might be buried in your archives!  Either way - go grab it and bring it back here to link up so we can share the chocolate!  Click here for more Chocolate Friday info or look at last week's yummy post and links.  This post will be up all weekend, so there'll be plenty of time to stop and smell the chocolate!  :) 

Have you ever made pudding from scratch?  Have you tried almond milk before?

Disclosure:  I was sent a Whole Foods gift card so that I could purchase almond milks to try and review if I so chose.  As always, my opinions are my own!

I'm linking this post up to Tasty Tuesday at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam - lots of yummy recipes there!

Have a chocolatey day friends!!

Tasty Tuesday ~ Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

Oh this is such a yummy recipe!  But I have to tell you a story first (isn't that always the way with bloggers?).

I was recently getting ready to make a cheesecake (this one) and needed a few things from the grocery store.  Hubs and son were forced decided to go into the store for me.  I had asked for 3 packages of Philadelphia cream cheese.  They called me while they were in the store and asked if I could use 1 more package.  Of course I could find a use for 1 more package of cream cheese, but why the 4th?  Hubs told me that son had spotted an offer - buy 4 packages of Philly and get a free cookbook.  I told them to go for it and assumed I'd be sending some proofs of purchase for a booklet.  But out of the store they came with this:

An actual cookbook!  And a nice one at that!  It's full of yummy recipes!  It's called Spread a Little Joy - OK I will - LOL!  Well yes I did look at the dessert section first and saw this recipe and knew I HAD to make it, especially since a few ladies would be coming over to my house and could taste test it for me (they all loved it)!  :)

I like this ice cream recipe because you don't need an ice cream maker!  It's very simple to make and it is SO rich and delicious - you only need small servings!  You might want to serve some at a holiday gathering.

Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

1 pkg (8 oz) Philadelphia cream cheese, softened
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup whipping cream
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled (I was able to get fresh at the store, but you could try frozen whole strawberries partially thawed if fresh aren't available)
3 honey graham crackers, coarsely chopped

Mix cream cheese, condensed milk, whipping cream, and lemon zest in bowl with mixer until well blended.  Freeze about 4 hours or until almost solid.

Beat frozen cream cheese mixture with mixer until creamy.  Put strawberries in blender and blend until smooth (my old blender had a hard time; could also try a food processor).  Add berries to cream cheese mixture along with chopped graham crackers and mix well.  Freeze 8 hours or until firm.

Take ice cream out of freezer about 15 minutes before serving.  Let stand at room temperature so it will soften a little before scooping.  Makes about 4 cups of ice cream.  Enjoy!

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Are you going to try it?  It really is simple and anybody that you serve it to will be oh so impressed with your culinary talents (while you chuckle to yourself at how little you worked making it)!

I'm linking this up to Tasty Tuesday at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam, where you can find all kinds of yummy recipes!

Have a tasty day friends!

Pumpkin Posting Party Recap

Thank you all for joining me last week for my fun week all about pumpkin!!  I hope you enjoyed it and found an idea or two or a recipe to try.

If you missed any of it, you might want to check out:

~ How to roast a pumpkin
~ Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bread
~ Pumpkin Recipes
~ Pumpkin Decor
~ Pumpkin Truffles

Would you like to know who won my little giveaway?

The winner is:

Susie

Congrats Susie!!

Don't forget to check out all the pumpkin recipes from Wednesday's post - there are some yummy links there (if you linked up a pumpkin recipe to Dessert Friday, I also added it to the pumpkin link-up)!

Have a fabulous Fall day friends!

Pumpkin Posting Party {Dessert Friday} ~ Pumpkin Truffles

Welcome back to the Pumpkin Party - it's the last day!  Be sure to check out the pumpkin recipes on Wednesday's post!  The first Friday of each month is Dessert Friday so I'm sharing a pumpkin dessert today (of course)!  You can link up any dessert posts below whether or not they have pumpkin or chocolate!

Can you believe this is what I came up with?  I must be crazy.  I've never made truffles before (why, I do NOT know) and so I ended up making Pumpkin Truffles for my first try!  Oh YES I did!!  Mmmmmm...

Pumpkin Truffles

2 1/2 cups white chocolate chips
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (if using fresh or organic, drain off any excess liquid)
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 cup dark chocolate chips
1 tablespoon oil (I used coconut oil)

Combine white chocolate chips and cream in saucepan.  Stir over low heat until chocolate melts completely.  Remove from heat.  Stir in pumpkin and spice until smooth and blended.  Chill mixture in refrigerator until firm.  Remove mixture from refrigerator and roll into 1-inch balls.  Place on wax paper.  Place pumpkin balls into freezer for 15 minutes or so.

Combine dark chocolate chips and oil.  Gently heat (in microwave or in bowl over simmering water on stove) until chocolate is melted.  Dip chilled pumpkin balls into melted chocolate and coat thoroughly.  Sprinkle tops with nutmeg while still wet, if desired.  Place on wax paper and let sit until they set up.  Store on wax paper in covered container in refrigerator.

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I'm so excited at how great they turned out!  And they're really not too difficult - you can make them too!  The mixture is very creamy and melts in your mouth.  If you prefer it firmer, you can increase the amount of white chocolate chips in the first step.  Also, these would be great dipped in white chocolate or dipped, then rolled in crushed pecans!  Oh the possibilities.  :)

Have you made truffles before?  Are you going to give these a try?

Now I know you've got some great desserts to share!  Link up any dessert post: chocolate, no chocolate, pumpkin, etc.  Can't wait to see what you've got!

Thanks for stopping by my Pumpkin Posting Party!  If you missed any of it, go back and check out:
 ~ Roasted Pumpkin
 ~ Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bread
 ~ Pumpkin Recipes
 ~ Pumpkin Decor

This post is linked to Tasty Tuesday at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam.

Have a fantastic day friends!

Pumpkin Posting Party ~ Pumpkin Decor

Welcome to another day of the Pumpkin Posting Party!  Don't forget to enter my little Fall giveaway and link up your pumpkin recipes to yesterday's post!

I like to do a little decorating for Fall and I am developing a love of pumpkins!  I only recently put a few Fall pumpkin touches around the house - very simple!  I still have to do something on my dining table and I may decide to shift some things around more, but I'll share my current simple touches.

That's it!  Not a lot, but it gives a hint of Fall.  I do want more pumpkin decor though - will keep my eyes open for deals!  :)

Do you decorate for Fall?  Do you like to decorate with pumpkins?

Tomorrow is the last day of the Pumpkin Posting Party and it's Dessert Friday - be sure to link up your dessert posts, with or without chocolate, with or without pumpkin!

Have a happy Fall day friends!

Pumpkin Posting Party ~ Pumpkin Recipes

The Pumpkin Posting Party continues!!  I'm just sharing pumpkin recipes today and hope you'll do the same by linking up some of yours below!  Did you check out my roasted pumpkin and enter my giveaway?  Don't forget!

Yesterday, I posted Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bread (yum):

But I have other pumpkin recipes posted here that I love!  Here are a few:

Pumpkin Blueberry Streusel Muffins

Pumpkin Bread

Pumpkin Pudding

Pumpkin Dessert

Pumpkin Pecan Biscotti

Pumpkin-Ginger Pie with Marshmallow Topping

Starbucks Pumpkin Scones

I do love pumpkin - how about you?!  And I discovered that today's WFMW is Fall recipes!  What's more Fallish than pumpkin recipes?  So I'm linked up at We Are THAT Family today where you'll find some more good recipes and tips.

Now it's your turn to link up pumpkin recipes - any pumpkin recipes!  I will also have a link up on Friday for desserts so you can split them up if you like or even link them twice.  If you don't have a blog - tell me about your favorite pumpkin recipe in the comments!  Share the pumpkin!!

Thanks for stopping by my Pumpkin Posting Party!  Have a lovely day friends!