Pumpkin pie and an extra little treat

Well we've had a few stressful days. With Thanksgiving in the U.S. we were suppose to entertain my Mother in Law and Hubby's cousin, who decided they'd like to come celebrate with us. Only one problem..... we now live in Canada and celebrated Thanksgiving last month. Hubby explained that to his mom and told them not to expect your traditional turkey, since we hadn't planned on celebrating a 2nd time. I felt guilty and decided to make a pie, to help it seem more like a holiday. I made the pie, only for our plans to change once again. We didn't have any company on November 26th, just yummy pie, LOL.

I attempted making a pumpkin pie, last month, for our Turkey Day. Let's just say it wasn't pretty. Hubby came home with sweetened condensed milk, rather than evaporated milk. I had already added the sugar to my pumpkin, so I couldn't use the condensed milk. I subbed half and half, but it just didn't turn out right. Since it was last minute and I really didn't feel like going to the store to buy evap milk, this time I searched for a recipe using the condensed milk. I found a super easy one and it was a great success. It will be my go to pumpkin pie, from now on. Creamy, not too sweet and not too many spices. Perfect with whipped cream.

PUMPKIN PIE FOR BEGINNERS
Adapted from startcooking.com blog

1 can of pumpkin (15 ounces)
1 can of sweetened condensed milk (14 ounces)
2 eggs
3 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1- 9 inch unbaked pie crust

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a medium bowl whisk together eggs pumpkin, sweetened condensed milk, pumpkin pie spice and salt until smooth. Pour into unbaked crust and bake for 15 minutes. Cover the edges of the pie with tin foil.

REDUCE OVEN TEMPERATURE TO 350 and continue baking for 25-30 minutes or until a knife inserted 1 inch from the crust comes out clean. Cool. Garnish with whip cream. Cover and store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Cindy's notes: I used pumpkin puree, which I had made a few months ago and put in the freezer.

Oh, and I wanted to share an extra little treat. You know that leftover dough you get when you trim the edges off your pie crust??? Well all my life, my Mom would take that dough, roll it out thinly, slather with butter, sprinkle liberally with brown sugar and cinnamon, roll it up like a cigar and pinch the ends. Then she'd place it, seem down, in a crescent shape in a pie plate and bake it along with our pies (until golden brown). The result is a sweet cinnamony delight. I call them poor man cinnamon rolls. A neat way to not waste a bit of dough!

Who doesn't love a good cookie??

My mom was here for a week or so, taking care of the kids, while I had the flu. Thankfully it was not the swine flu, but it was just bad enough for me to be unable to do much of anything. By Thursday of last week my appetite had returned and I wasn't coughing nearly as much as I had been. While watching Food Network, I saw a guy make these amazing looking Oatmeal cookies and top them with ice cream. I immediately asked my Mom to make me some. After a quick on line search for the recipe, she got to work. She made them smaller than the recipe stated and we ended up with about 26 or so cookies. These are so soft and chewy. The tiny bit of cinnamon adds a comforting warmth to them too. In the recipe it didn't specify how much cinnamon to use, so we went with 1/2 a tsp. The perfect amount in my opinion.

Before leaving my Mom also notice I had the ingredients to make her favorite Skor Toffee cookies ( Skor is a chocolate bar similar to Heath. Look for Toffee bits in your baking isle, by the chocolate chips). She couldn't pass up the opportunity, so she made up a batch of those as well. These are really good. Chewy and buttery. The kids were turned off by the buttery toffee flavor, but Hubby and I sure like them. Thanks Mom for coming to the rescue and spoiling us the way you do!!!

Soft Oatmeal Cookies
Adapted from Ricardo and Friends (Foodnetwork Canada)

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 x egg
2 1/2 cups rolled oats
Vanilla ice cream

With the rack in the middle position, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Set aside. In another bowl, cream the butter with the brown sugar and vanilla using an electric mixer. Add the egg and beat until smooth. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture. Stir in the rolled oats using a wooden spoon. With lightly floured hands, shape 75 ml (1/3 cup) of the dough into a ball. Place on a baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough, arranging 6 balls on each sheet. Press the balls until they are about 1 cm (1/2 inch) thick. Bake 1 sheet at a time for about 13 minutes; the centre of the cookie should still be soft. Let cool slightly. Using a spatula, gently transfer the cookies to serving plates. Garnish each with a scoop of ice cream.

Cindy's notes: we made these smaller dropping batter by Tbs onto the cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, for smaller cookies.

Skor Toffee Cookies
Lori (my sister in law)

1 box Butter Pecan cake mix
1 egg
1/2 C butter, melted
1 C Skor Toffee bits

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl combine cake mix with the egg and melted butter. Mix until well combined. Add in toffee bits and drop by Tbs onto a cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until edges start to brown.

Meal Plan Mondays

Well, I've decided to start sharing my meal plan with you. I usually plan our dinners every 2 weeks, since we get paid bi-weekly. I like to meal plan because it saves us from over spending on our groceries, when we shop. It cuts down on buying items we already have and stops me from procrastinating until 4pm, trying to think of what to make for dinner. I don't assign the dishes to specific days. I just write them on a paper, tack the paper to the fridge door and choose what appeals to me in the morning. I try to incorporate meals I know everyone likes, with meals I've never made. So here is what is on the menu this week. I'll include links to previously posted recipes.

• Goulash with a tossed salad
• BBQ Pork sandwiches with potato salad
• Black eyed pea soup with homemade rolls
• Pasta Primavera with roast chicken breast
• Pot Roast
• Leftovers

Midnight Mashed Potatoes

A Great way to jazz up mashed potatoes. Sometimes I just get bored with ole mashed potatoes, so I thought I'd give these a try. The recipe uses ingredients I usually always have on hand, so it's a great alternative to plain mashers. I found this recipe in the Cooking for your Family recipe box. The kids enjoyed them, so that is always a plus in my book. Slightly tart from the sour cream and Parmesan. Creamy and salty too. I didn't use the chives since I knew Mr.B wouldn't even think of touching them, if there were green bits throughout. They would taste even better with them in, I think. I didn't bake mine, since I was in a hurry, but am sure the crisp brown crust would taste wonderful!!

Midnight Mashed
Adapted by Katie from Quick Cooking

6 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons snipped chives
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon onion salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Place potatoes in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and cook for 15-20 minutes or until tender. Meanwhile, in a small skillet, saute the garlic in butter. Drain potatoes and place in a large mixing bowl. Add garlic; beat until smooth. Add the remaining ingredients; mix well. Transfer to a greased 2-qt. baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until heated through. Yield: 8 servings.

Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins

With my parents coming for the weekend, I wanted to make a dessert. I had some pumpkin and cranberries in the freezer, so I did an Internet search for recipes containing the two. It was a toss up between cranberry pumpkin bars, or muffins. The muffins won out, simply because I did not have any cream cheese to make frosting for the bars, LOL. I'm glad I did choose the muffins though, because they are AWESOME!! They are so moist and soft, yet they aren't crumbly. It's like eating a really moist cake. The hints of tart cranberries in every bite really help with the sweetness of the muffin. They are pretty sweet, so next time I make them, I'll reduce the sugar by half a cup, to see what that gives. These will definitely become a Fall favorite, since there is only one muffin left, out of the 18 I made on Friday. :o)

Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins
Adapted from Allrecipes.com

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped

In a bowl, combine the first four ingredients. In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs and sugar; add the pumpkin and oil and mix well. Stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in the cranberries. Fill foil-or paper-lined muffin cups three-fourths full. Bake at 400 degrees F for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Cindy's notes: I subbed 1/2C of brown sugar for the white, since I like the flavor with the pumpkin

Ham and Cheese Cannelloni with Italian Bread

This Cannelloni recipe was quite different than what we are used to. I thought it was good, but it didn't knock our socks off. It had a unique flavor, of tangy cheese and salty ham. This had been a Meal of the Week recipe (on CFYF) a few weeks ago, so I thought I'd give it a try, since we usually have most of the ingredients on hand. The ham smelled really good once you added in the Worcestershire sauce. The kids had mixed reactions about these; Queenie couldn't get enough of the ham filling, while Mr.B wouldn't even touch it. Hubby said it was good, but would be better if there was bacon added to it. It's a neat twist on a meal that could be altered in many ways. I served it with Hubby's favorite bread. I originally wanted to make Artisan bread, but Hubby requested Italian. So I got the bright idea of baking it like Artisan bread. It didn't turn out as well as I would have liked, since the dough spread out a bit too much. It also didn't crisp up as well as it usually does, which is a big reason for Hubby loving this bread. It was still good regardless, but next time I won't mess with a good thing, LOL.

Ham & Cheese Cannelloni
AdriaNAlly

Box of oven ready cannelloni
4 cans of flaked ham
6 cans of Campbells cheddar soup
milk
2 or 3 stalks of celery, finely chopped
1 onion finely chopped
butter or margarine
Worcestershire sauce to taste

Preheat oven for 400F. Saute onions, celery and margarine (use enough to make them soft and keep them moist...I don't know exact amount LOL)once onions/celery are soft, add flaked ham and mash down so no big chunks. Simmer on low, adding Worcestershire sauce, to your desired taste. Turn off, uncover and let cool down enough that you can stuff the cannelloni with your fingers.

While this is cooling, in a pot heat on low to medium heat the cheddar soup, adding milk until cheese is smooth, but not too thick or thin. *(I use a whisk for this to help loosen up lumps). In a long baking pan (I use cooking spray first to help from sticking), put enough cheese sauce to cover the bottom. Start stuffing cannelloni and putting them in the pan. This usually makes about 12 or more. If there is some meat left over, that's ok, keep it aside for now. Pour warm cheese sauce over top of cannelloni, making sure to get in between each one too. Sprinkle any left over meat on top.

Put in oven and bake for about 30mins, pull out and use a spatula to turn cannelloni over in the pan, try to make sure cheese sauce covers completely. Put back in oven for another 20mins then check with a butter knife or fork to make sure cannelloni is soft. Pull out and let sit for about 10mins.

Cindy's notes: I transformed these into stuffed shells, instead of Cannelloni. I also only used 2 cans of Cheddar soup and that was plenty of sauce.

Italian Bread - Bread Machine
Sandy

1 1/2 cups water
2 tsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
3 1/2 cups bread flour
2 1/2 tsp yeast

Layer in bread machine pan according to manufacturers recommendation. Bake on the basic cycle. Makes a large loaf (2 lbs).Add a tablespoon or two of water if the machine sounds like it is struggling (dough may be dry).

Sandy’s Notes: Sub’d 1 cup of whole wheat flour for 1 cup of white bread flour, added about 3 T vital wheat gluten. Baked on the Rapid Whole Wheat cycle - awesome!

Honestly......

I've been sent another award!!! I knew my slaving away in the kitchen would come to some good, LOL.

Thanks so much to Judy over at The Bashas, for giving my blog some props and a shout out. The award is the Honest Scrap award and the rules state that I must share 10 honest things about myself and pass the love around. So here goes....

1. I often wonder what ever possessed me to become a mother.
2. If I didn't have kids right now, I'd be having cereal for dinner.
3. I look forward to the days that Mr.B is in school, so I can have some alone time, while Queenie is sleeping.
4. I tell myself everyday that I should exercise, but I'm just too darn lazy.
5. I purposefully forget to buy new batteries for the kids toys.
6. I'm really craving a huge slice of chocolate cake right now.
7. I sometimes regret moving back to Canada.
8. I'm secretly hoping Queenie has a high spirited child, so she can know what it was like to raise her.
9. I want to go back to school and maybe become a hairdresser/ make up artist.
10. I really need to work on my patience and temper.

Here are the rules

Say thank you and give a link to the presenter of the award.

Share “10 Honest Things” about yourself.

Present the award to 10* other bloggers whose blogs you find brilliant in
content and/or design or to those who have encouraged you.

Be sure to tell the 10* bloggers chosen that you are giving them the Honest Scrap award and provide the guidelines for them.

*Or a number that you can reasonably accomplish in whatever mental/physical state you're in.

My Shout outs

Ms. en Place http://msenplace.blogspot.com/ ( love to see what new Cajun foods she'll cook up next)

My Kinda Rain http://txmykindarain.blogspot.com/ ( she always has the inside scoop on coupons and giveaways)

I'm the Mama! http://namolloht.blogspot.com/ ( we need more updates on you guys and C!!!)