Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls


These are definitely a keeper!  I am usually not a pumpkin fan, but my husband is a huge fan!  We both really loved this recipe you can find by clicking here.  It is very Fall-ish and the perfect addition to this is a cup of hot chocolate....Mmmmmm! 
*The only alterations I made to this recipe was to use only a little milk in the frosting to make it more thick.  If you want more of a "glaze" add the amount listed.  Also, instead of kneading the dough myself I used the dough hook on my Kitchenaid mixer. 
Another bonus for this week is that Meijer has cream cheese on sale for .25 each!  Just click on this link and you can print the coupon.  It is on sale for $1.25 after the $5 off 5 coupon that makes them .25 cents!  I also used this cream cheese frosting on a spice cake mix I had and it worked very well.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Sunday Night Snacking...

Growing up we had one big meal on Sundays.  We would delightfully come home from evening church, throw on our pajamas and get popcorn and since it was Sunday we got pop! (A.K.A soda, coke, whatever).   I remember the first Sunday we were settled into married life and we came home from church, I, being excited for popcorn and pop, Eric wondering where dinner went and why it was ok to skip such thing!  We have adjusted, we usually do leftovers or cereal.  Lately, our new Sunday snack has been these spinach/artichoke pizza's, and let me say this is a tradition I can get used to!
It is pretty simple, just assemble (this is also a benefit, those of you who know how busy the day is on Sunday)
Needed:
Spinach
Artichoke Hearts (which we buy in bulk at Costco - love those things!)
Jar of roasted red peppers
Whole wheat pita
Your favorite cheese (I like either romano/mozzarella/parmesan).  This particular evening we had mozzarella on hand.

 Chop artichoke hearts and spinach then layer on your pita in the above order.  Throw this puppy in the toaster oven on the broil setting for about 5-7 minutes.  This is SO yummy.  Very healthy too!


Tuesday, October 5, 2010

More of Fall...

Today we were on a walk and the girls started collecting acorns.  I remembered that last year when Grandma Bonnie was here she put some acorns from her yard in a little glass dish and then stuck some flowers in them...it was simple and I liked the natural aspect.  After digging through some of the leftover garage sale items we found three matching glass bowls (I was actually glad for once that Mel Trotter hadn't shown up to take the stuff yet)!  A little trick to keep the acorns looking fresh is to hairspray them.  The alcohol acts as a glaze/sealant.



The idea was to give these away as gifts...specifically to Chloe's teacher.  I am kind of feeling selfish now after seeing three in a row, it makes a pretty tablescape...
I love the fact that these were virtually free and from God's abundant natural resources!

Monday, October 4, 2010

Fall

Today was our first morning that we woke up to frost (in 2010 anyways!).  The girls thought it was snow!  I was feeling very much the need for comfort food and warm goodness.  Stew and homemade bread is the best remedy.  I also came across a blog today of a  Pastor's wife who shows love to her family and friends through the art of simple cooking.  I realize this isn't a novel idea, however, since both sermons yesterday dealt with this idea of fellowship & hospitality I have been chewing these things over in my mind.  As I was getting dinner around I remembered I had bought some Fall-ish placemats and napkins on clearance last year (.75 each!!).  I went downstairs and dug them out.  The girls helped with the napkins (cloth napkins are a big deal and they felt like they were invited to a fancy dinner party).  I am going to make an honest effort to put more into our dinner time (with our family and having others over more).  Just adding a couple extra things made for a memorable and cozy experience.  Chloe said something that touched me during dinner..."mom, if I were a lost girl I would want to come to this house and eat this warm soup." LOL  I told her we would welcome her anytime! ;)