finding ways to stay warm

Cold weather warrants a warm meal and a new scarf!


Tonight Chef Lucky treated us to dinner including arepas and picadillo. The aroma brings back memories of childhood and the food fills your belly with goodness. There were big helpings and plenty of left overs. The recipes for both are very "shit-it-in" and not exact, with creativity being rewarded in flavor. Inquiring minds should...ask Lucky!

Also on tonight's agenda was the finishing of a new scarf. Morgan suggested that I play with color more. Using various yarns and fun colors, I was inspired to change the pattern of so many other scarves in my closet. The result was this fun new garment that could be perfect for staying warm in the Andes or strolling down the Pride parade. Either way, the colors are fun and it will be sure to keep me warm this spring!

Pattern:

• This is a basic ribbed pattern: knit 2, purl 2, knit 2, purl, continuing on for 360 stitches. This will create the length of the scarf.
• Begin with one color, using the basic ribbed pattern, continue for 10 rows.
• Begin new color, leaving a little extra of first color to be sewn in later.
• Add as many colors as you want, in this case I chose 4.
• After you are done, be sure to weave in the extra length of each color. Doing this will prevent you from having to make unsightly knots and will prevent the scarf from unraveling later. It will also make friends like Kelli happy that I learned and listened!

Momma knows best...and how to cook chili!

Momma surprised me with a visit to DC for the holidays! Hooray! Unfortunately, she had to return home, but before she did she made a batch of chili for all.

Ingredients:

• 2 cans (16 oz. each) of dark red beans


• 2 cans (16 oz. each) of light red beans


• 2 cans (16 oz. each) of diced tomatoes (mix and match on your preferred additional flavors)


• 1 pound ground chicken


• 1 large white onion, diced


• 1/2 tsp of garlic


• 1/2 tsp of ground cumin


• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Cook meat in a skillet.


2. Combine meat, beans, tomatoes (drain 1 can before adding to mix), onion, garlic, cumin, salt, and pepper into the crockpot.


3. Turn crockpot onto high for 6 hours.

Serving:

Add shredded cheddar cheese on top of a served bowl of this chili. Can also be paired with tortilla chips for a chicken tortilla chili!

Pumpkin Milkshake = Good Stuff

Leave it to Chef Spike to create the most amazing milkshake ever: Pumpkin/Squash! The cashier reassured me that this tasty treat is the best thing they have going right now. He is correct. The yummyness of pumpkin puree fills your mouth like cold pumpkin pie. The treat includes little surprises of graham cracker as you sip. Topped off with candied pumpkin seeds (best idea EVER) and this treat will rock your world! (believe me, it did!)

Pumpkin in 2010

It's Election Day. After a brief hiatus for election madness, the pumpkin trail continues. This morning started with a pumpkin muffin filled with cream cheese frosting from Starbucks. Tasty you ask? Delish! If you are looking for a delightful breakfast treat, head over and get your own.

Post-lunch dessert? Don't mind if I do! Election Day deserves some pumpkin ice cream. I had the option between pumpkin and pumpkin pecan. Unfortunately, the pecans in the latter overpowered the pumpkin flavor. So I went with the original.

Happy Election Day pumpkin lovers!

Mutiny on the Campaign Trail

Delaware has funny laws about alcohol. You can't buy it in the grocery store and beer is generally sold separately from the wine and spirits. Okay maybe not so weird, but definitely inconvenient. Luckily we hit the motherload today.

Unfortunately, pumpkin ales are flying off the shelf so that both stores and their vendors are already out of stock.

I was able to get my hands on a 1 pt. 6 fl oz. of Heavy Seas' (Mutiny Fleet) The Great Pumpkin: Imperial Pumpkin Ale.

This spicy ale includes a deep pumpkin flavor with the spicy aftertaste that I love. Oh and it's brewed in Baltimore. Yay! :)

49 degrees is perfect for a blizzard

One perk of Wilmington, DE is the local Dairy Queen. Since it is pumpkin season, the DQ has decided to join the pumpkin craze and offers a pumpkin pie flavored blizzard. After all it is the flavor of the month. Hooray! This sweet treat combines Cinnamon Toast Crunch (for the pie crust), vanilla ice cream, and real pumpkin puree. Together they create the perfect pumpkin pie blizzard.

You can find a Dairy Queen near you: www.dairyqueen.com/us-en/store-locator/

DQ also features a pumpkin pie ice cream cake. That will probably have to wait until the weekend when I have Adam here to share it with. :)

pumpkin inside pumpkin

As the weather is dropping it is time for a hearty meal. This pumpkin chili provides just that! A twist on a classic this version gives you a taste of pumpkin. Perfect this treat by serving it in a pumpkin bowl.

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds of ground turkey (veggie friends: try tofu crumbles)
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 2 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans, drained
• 1 (46 fluid ounce) can tomato juice
• 1 (28 ounce) can peeled and diced tomatoes with juice
• 1/2 cup of canned pumpkin puree
• 1 tablespoon of pumpkin pie spice (this is a seasonal spice that will take some searching)
• 1 tablespoon of chili powder
• 1/4 cup of white sugar

Directions:

Chili:

1. In a large pot over medium heat, cook turkey (or tofu); then drain.
2. Stir onion and bell pepper and cook for 5 minutes.
3. Stir in beans, tomato juice, diced tomatoes, and pumpkin puree.
4. Season with pumpkin pie spice, chili powder, and sugar.
5. Simmer 1 hour.

Pumpkin bowl:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
2. Clean and dry small pumpkin.
3. Cut off top to create a bowl.
4. Dig out insides, use a spoon to scrape sides clean. Clean pumpkin seeds and dry.
5. On a cookie sheet place cleaned out pumpkin bowl upside down on the pan. Also place dried pumpkin seeds on the pan at the same time.
6. Bake for 45 minutes. When removing from the oven, the pumpkin bowls will be soft but still in tact. The inside walls of the bowl are eatible!
   
   

ps. turns out that cats love pumpkin seeds too!

home alone...and baking!

Time at home alone means reign of the house and freedom to bake more pumpkin treats! Tonight I can finally make the pumpkin cookies. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1/2 cup of butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups of white sugar
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 1 can of cream cheese frosting (absolutely necessary!)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, and salt; set aside.


2. In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and white sugar. Add pumpkin, egg, and vanilla extract to butter mixture, and beat until creamy. Mix in dry ingredients. Drop on cookie sheet by tablespoonfuls; flatten lightly.
   



3. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated over.


4. Cool cookies, then drizzle cream cheese frosting with a fork.


5. Enjoy!

oh and for you cat lovers, turns out Dexter loves pumpkin too! :)

Heaven in a Little Mason Jar

Heaven in a little mason jar? Don't mind if I do. A long rough day at work and a last minute dinner plan change led to the discovery of this unique dessert. After a delicious dinner with adult beverage at Sonoma, I decided that a dessert as in order (much to Adam's dismay).

ricotta cheescake: squash puree over cheesecake, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, topped with pumpkin seeds.


Talk about winning him over! This little treat combines his love of cheesecake with my love for pumpkin and a little alure of squash. Needless to say, Adam ate his fair share of dessert.

Punkin!

It's day 4 of the great pumpkin food feast. Naturally, it is time for another pumpkin beer. Today's selection: Dogfish Head Punkin Ale. A few weeks ago I found a list of over 200 pumpkin inspired ales and this one tops the list. It's my first sample from the list...for now.

This pumpkin flavored ale was richer than past samples. It paired nicely with a beef stew. Clearly the perfect beverage for a hard day and this 50 degree weather. Cheers!

Bring on the Pumpkin!

It's October 1st which means the start of all things PUMPKIN! Clearly pumpkin season started with fall, but now I will start my official countdown of all things pumpkin. What kind of things you ask? Well this month I will sample pumpkin beer, breads, muffins, cupcakes, ice cream, cider, wine, etc. So if you like all things pumpkin you will love this journey!

For the 1st day of this fabulous month I have sampled 3 pumpkin items:

1) Post Road's Pumpkin Ale: This was a yummy blend of pumpkin and spice. It was full flavored with a thick pumpkin aftertaste.

2) Smuttynose's Pumpkin Ale: Spicy aroma alures you to this tasty ale. A little lighter than the previous beer, this has less of an aftertaste.

3) Woodchuck Reserve Pumpkin Cider: By far the winner of the evening! You start with a simple cider taste with a lasting pumpkin flavor. Perhaps the best part is the pairing orders on the back. Not sure what to drink this cider with? That's ok, the turkey and duck icons let you know that this pumpkin cider would be perfect for a Thanksgiving feast. You can also pair it with squash ravioli, creme brule or cheesecake!

Welcome Fall and welcome the return of the blog

Today marks the first day of Fall. Lucky for you this also marks the return of my blog. Last time I attempted to focus on my adventures in Albuquerque, but the campaign got in the way. This time I'll focus on what I know best: crafts and food.

Stay tuned!