Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting

On Tuesday afternoons I am lucky enough to be able to take my four-year old granddaughter to her ballet class. Such fun to watch the young girls blossom in gracefulness.  Afterwards we come home for some quality Nana time before her Daddy picks her up after work.  Some days can be a little tricky; the physical exertion of ballet class and no afternoon nap can often equal a tired (and cranky) little girl.  So I try to do things to keep her occupied, yet not over-exhaust her.  She loves to work with me in the kitchen so today we made these pumpkin cookies. They are quite easy to make with steps that were very easy for her to assist me with. The best part is they are delicious.  Most anything with cream cheese frosting is!  These cookies are rather like mini pumpkin bars; soft and full of cinnamon and pumpkin goodness.  I like to add a little crunch to them, so top them with some crushed Heath bar candy.  I guarantee the combination is a winner!

On the way home from dance today she told me she was tired.  I told her we would get into our comfy clothes and rest awhile before making our cookies.  She went to change and came out in her pajamas.  I asked her why, it was only 3pm?  She said, "Nana, these are my most comfy clothes."  How could I argue with that? So we baked cookies in our pajamas.  My husband wasn't quite sure what was going on when he came home but Avery and I had a nice day in the kitchen, being extra comfy!

Yes, we had powdered sugar everywhere! Oh, well!

 

 

 

PUMPKIN COOKIES

1 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup canned pumpkin
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup chopped walnuts (if desired)
1.4 ounce Heath candy bar (English toffee), chopped finely

FROSTING:
1/4 cup butter, softened
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy.  Beat in egg and vanilla.  Add pumpkin; mix well.  In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt and baking powder; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well.  Stir in walnuts, if desired.

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls (I use a small ice cream scoop) 2 inches apart onto greased baking sheets (or lined with parchment paper).  Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until edges are lightly browned.  Remove to wire racks to cool completely.

In a small bowl, beat the frosting ingredients until light and fluffy.  Frost cookies.  Top with chopped Heath Bar candy.

Guinness Beef Stew

In the course of the last week we've gone from keeping the windows open in the house to wearing sweatshirts and watching it rain.  Oh, how we need the rain! Even though it's already November I feel it's only now time that I start cooking fall/winter comfort food items; things like soup, pot pie, and stew.

I belong to a small food board. We share recipes there and it's the first place I go to on the web to look for a recipe.  The ladies who belong to this board never let me down, they are wonderful cooks and bakers. Betsy pointed us all in the direction of this stew and, one by one, we've all been making it. Today was my turn and I wasn't disappointed. The recipe was originally found on Cooks Country (recipe here).  Each of us has tweaked the recipe a bit to suit our tastes. Though the recipe does take some time to make, most of that time is in the oven. It's very easy to put together. We are still curing our wood oven so we cooked this in that oven. Unfortunately, for me, we had a torrential downpour as I was putting the veggies in the stew! It's not everyday I get drenched cooking dinner!

The recipe calls for a boneless chuck roast, that is then cut into cubes.  At the grocery store I went to, the roast was $4-something a pound.  "Stew meat" was virtually the same price.  As the stew cooks for such a long period of time, I didn't think meat quality would make that much difference so I went with easy and bought the pre-cut meat. Call me lazy, I don't care!

Beer & I don't agree much but I couldn't leave it out as it is such a big part of the recipe.  The brown sugar tempered it some and I found the flavor to be quite nice.

The stew, along with a baguette of sourdough bread, made a wonderful and filling meal. This won't be the last time we have this stew this winter!

GUINNESS BEEF STEW

1 ( 3 1/2 to 4-pound) boneless beef chuck-eye roast, pulled apart at seams, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 yellow onion, chopped fine
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups beef broth
1 (12-ounce) bottle Guinness Draught, divided
4 1/2 teaspoons dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon mince fresh thyme (or equivalent dried)
1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, unpeeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Season the beef with salt and freshly ground pepper.

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, add the onions and salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned, 8 to 10 minutes.

Add the tomato paste and garlic and cook for 2 minutes.  Stir in the flour and cook for an additional 1 minute.

Whisk in the beef broth, 3/4 cup of the Guinness, brown sugar and thyme, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pot.  Bring to a simmer and cook until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the beef and return to a simmer.

Transfer the pot to the oven and cook, uncovered, for 90 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking.

Stir in the potatoes and carrots and continue cooking until the beef and vegetables are tender, about 1 hour, stirring halfway through cooking.  Remove the pot from the oven and stir in the remaining 1/2 cup of Guinness and the parsley.  Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Don't know what to do with the rest of the can of tomato paste?  Put one tablespoon dollops (is that a word?) onto waxed paper, freeze for 10-15 minutes until firm.  Then store in freezer Ziploc bags.  Whenever you need a little tomato paste, just grab a dollop or two!

Butternut Squash Lasagna

I love squash, all kinds.  My husband, not so much, but he's slowly coming around! I especially like butternut squash.  It's good roasted but I really love a good butternut squash soup or ravioli.  I first made this lasagna recipe a number of years ago.  It's a Giada recipe (here) and I watched her make it on a Thanksgiving cooking show.  My family was pleasantly surprised that they liked it and I've made it ever since!

This week we are curing our new wood-fired oven; each day burning to a higher temperature.  As I was assembling this lasagna it dawned on me that I could put it in the wood oven. It cooked perfectly in there and had a mild smoky taste to it, which was quite nice for a fall meal. Like most lasagnas, it's equally good the next day, if not better.  I tend to like lasagna firmer than the just-out-of-the-oven texture.

There are a few steps to making this lasagna so it isn't something you want to do when you come home from a day of work!  The tasks can be spread out so it doesn't feel so burdensome.   I made this on a Sunday, had the football games on TV (I have a TV in the kitchen, too!) and a sewing project in my craft room.  I made the squash puree in the morning and shredded the cheese.  Later on I made the sauce.  After that, assembling the lasagna took no time!

Out of the oven and cooling!



Layers of squash puree, noodles, cheese and a basil-infused sauce.  Yum!

 

I find it easiest to use a vegetable peeler to peel the tough outer skin.  At larger grocery stores pre-cut squash is available.

 

Once peeled and cubed, the squash is cooked until tender.

Yes, amaretti cookies are added!  Sounds strange but they give the squash a nice sweetness and a little texture.  They could easily be omitted.

The puree.  Can be used for the lasagna, as a filling for ravioli, or even baby food!

 

The sauce is heated until thick then pureed with some fresh basil.  The combination of the basil with the squash is quite nice!

 

Ready for the oven!

Stitching for Jakey!

Ever since I knew we were getting another grandchild, and that it would be a boy, I've been sewing and cross stitching. Making things for a little boy has been a new adventure for me, we have three granddaughters.  Since their births I've been sewing dresses and ballet bags, using a lot of pink. But I can adapt easily and have managed to do some cute things for our little guy.

My son is a big New England Patriots fan. Now our family has always been into football but we've always been San Francisco Forty-Niners fans. Our Sundays revolve around football. My son fell in love with Drew Bledsoe and the Patriots in the 90's and he hasn't looked back. I can roll with it, at least it's not the Dallas Cowboys! I made Jakey this little blanket out of brown minky material, very soft and cuddly.  The other side has Patriots fabric.

I sewed a few bibs.  My daughter-in-love is a school teacher so a few of the fabrics were a nod to her profession.  The jeans bib was made out of a pair of old jeans I still had hanging in the closet (I hate clothes shopping, as a result I wear my clothes for a long time!) I have a picture of me wearing them, the first weekend I had them, at a race in Canada that my son was also driving at.  He had a very hairy ride on one run, doing a big wheelstand and getting out-of-shape.  It was an anxious moment for his mom. I guess there was a reason I was saving the jeans all these years, now little Jakey has a bib from them!

I first learned to do counted cross stitch when I was pregnant with my son. Over the years, I've stitched at sports and dance practices, racetracks, in the front yard while the kids rode their bikes. I always have a project in process and it always travels with me. This stitched piece didn't take long to do and I hope it's something that Jakey will always have to remember his Nana by.  The buttons used on the piece came from my Grandma's button box, which my Mom has.

There is one more baby shower to honor my daughter-in-love, to be held in two weeks.  Its theme is Mickey Mouse. I'm sure you can imagine the type of fabric that has been flying around in my craft room lately!

Autumn in the Courtyard

We've lived in our home 30 years now. When we moved in, there was a small front courtyard, behind a mid-length wooden fence. The courtyard was filled with grass.  The weekend we moved in I told my Hubbers I wanted a brick courtyard someday. Over the years we replaced the wooden fence with brick and added brick columns to the house. We added brick flower beds to the front lawn area. When we remodeled our home seven years ago we were able to brick the front porch. But the demands of a growing family kept pushing the brick courtyard to the back burner; things like braces, Catholic school tuition, cars, college, law school, weddings, grandchildren, etc. Three years ago it was finally the right time and our courtyard was built. We added some flower bed borders inside the courtyard area and a water fountain in the center. I love, love, love this space!  I spend many an early evening in this special place; reading, stitching, watching the birds in the water or at the feeders, chatting with neighbors out walking their dogs, or sharing a glass of wine with my Hubbers.

I especially enjoy the courtyard in the fall.  The temperatures are cooler, which makes sitting out here more pleasant. I plant fall and winter annuals with their bright colors and the smiling faces of the pansies. I supplement with colorful pumpkins and gourds. All these colors seem to "pop" against the warm red of the brick.

It took a lot of patience as I waited until it was time to get the courtyard bricked but it was well worth it. Besides my kitchen and craft room this is my favorite spot in our home!

Chopped Autumn Salad

I served this salad at the baby shower I hosted last weekend.  I needed something that would easily multiply for a crowd, yet be easy to make and serve.  It needed to look good, too.  The salad scored on all fronts.

Variations of this salad exist all over the Internet and Pinterest.  It's not so much a recipe as it is a mixture of various ingredients.  It is easily adaptable to each person's tastes.  For the shower I used the following ingredients, all chopped in bite-size bits, so we didn't need knives.

Romaine lettuce
Cooked chicken (ours was grilled)
Apples
Pears
Blueberries
Dried cranberries
Candied pecans (recipe to come, so good!)
Blue cheese crumbles
Pomegranate seeds

The dressing is a mixture of poppy seed dressing and balsamic vinaigrette.  I used a ratio of 2/3 poppy seed to 1/3 balasamic.  For this event I used bottled dressing but homemade would obviously be wonderful! You can also substitute a few tablespoons of quality balsamic vinegar in lieu of the prepared vinaigrette.

The first six ingredients were tossed with the dressing.  Each salad was garnished with candied pecans, the blue cheese crumbles and pomegranate seeds. 

I loved this salad.  There was a combination of sweet and salty in each bite, as well as soft and crunchy.

Drag Racing Baby Shower!

I grew up going to the drag races with my Dad. I went to the races pregnant with my son. Drag racing is in his blood. Last year I retired from the driving seat and turned my race car over to him. When we found out he is having a son I knew the baby shower I hosted would have a drag racing theme! I kept it colorful, incorporating all the colors of a drag racing Christmas tree (yellow, green and red), as well as traditional boy blue.  I added some feminine touches with flowers so that it wasn't all car-related. I hung race banners on the fences, giving the party a somewhat racetrack-like feel.

A highlight, for me, was a display of my son's old cars and toys.  My Hubbers and I have saved many of our children's special toys and memorabilia. I did a presentation where I gave my son his baby book, first Christmas outfit, quilt, stitched birth sampler and his toys. It got pretty emotional!

A local woman made the cake, incorporating car tools and the drag racing Christmas tree into it. It was awesome!  My Hubby made the cake stand out of a tire jack stand.

The table centerpieces were small floral arrangements that I placed in Wix oil filter boxes. I sprinkled the table with tools and spark plugs.  At each place setting was a baby buggy sugar cookie and a "wishes for Jacob" card to fill out. I made various banners in the shape of trophies.

We had a wonderful day with family and friends.  The parents-to-be got many needed baby items.

Two more months and we get to meet our little Jakey!