Sunday Happy

It’s been a crazy week for sure. The new house, Thanksgiving, (a few times), lots and lots of family… Let’s just say that I am one tired lady.  

And now that thanksgiving is over (how did it go for you?) its holiday crazy go time. Although I am still really confused as to why the hell we haven’t gotten any snow. I am officially now pissed. It better snow soon or else (what I do not know) But things are getting real around here and I need to step up my game, like maybe even decorate the Noosk house with some lights, and of course Christmas music, 24/7. (the mr is not a fan of the music) Yeah, this is what I need to do.

A little new house update. First, we are going to start referring to the house as the Noosk house (cause its in Winooski) We have started ripping down the 70’s style tiled ceilings that are all over the entire house (so ug) and measure everything. Lots and lots of measuring. The mr is doing up house plans on a computer thingy and he needs to measure like ever nook and cranny of this place with exact measurements. Not something that I want to do (I bake cookies instead) And oh man, the oven. I don’t know what to do with it. I am falling in love with it but the mr says a hell no to keeping it. So until we do in fact get rid of it, I will continue to bring things over to bake in it.

So for today, I am going for a light load of work, maybe taking the afternoon off to finish up some little projects at home and to maybe keep myself from getting completely sick (I feel it coming on). I need to rest up for the onslaught of holiday cheer, cookie making, tree decorating, (YEAH TREE!!), light hanging, and wall and ceiling tearing down during the weeks ahead. “I am so EXITED! Are you?

Some internet fun stuff to look at if you want.

-I am so excited to make snowflakes. 

-Prop Stylists: The Unsung Heroes Of Food Photography 

-Good information here about getting you tree home screwing up your car.

-A beautiful tree dropping its leaves 

-SALT DOUGH ORNAMENTS! 

-I would probably go crazy here. Food Network's Prop Closet

-I am all about this. Swapping The Street For The Orchard, City Dwellers Take Their Pick Of Fruit 

-I have always wanted to do something like this Our Year of Living Airbnb 

-Ever wonder how cereal is made? I did, but son't anymore.

And a few pictures from the week.

Have a great Sunday!

-C

Apple Acorn Squash Pie with an Oat Crust

Sunday was the first, and probably the biggest Thanksgivings we are going to this week. It was my family, which consists of my mom, 8 siblings (plus a few spouses) and 9 little’s. A small little house bursting at the seems with a bunch of shit heads. There was a pumpkin pie food fight, secret Santa’s name picking that had to be redone 3 times (because we cant count) and much to much time devoted to sister selfies.  It was a blast.

 And my mom always requests everyone to bring something to diner so I of course wanted to contribute a pie. One pie, something that would appeal to as many of those crazies with dietary restrictions as possible, that was a not gross, but still not full of crap, and that people would want to eat. So I went with an apple and acorn squash pie that happen to be vegan, gluten free, and a little on the less sweet side. (Look at me trying to be all nice an accommodating)

 But guess what. My mom, well she bought 5 other freaking pies from the farm stand to supplement my pie. And yeah, when the time came for dessert my pie got a few nibbles, and I was told that it was fantastic, but they all went for the super sugary, full on butter and fat, custard pies… Dietary restrictions thrown aside. And I am ok with that because my pie got divided up between a few of the ladies and they ended up easting it for breakfast. So my pie turned out to be the day after thanksgiving breakfast pie. And that might even be better then being the night of pie cause everyone knows that left over pie eaten for breakfast is the best kind of pie!

So if you are looking for a good pie that is great the day of Thanksgiving and be good for breakfast the next day, this is the pie for you.

The stuff. Apples, an acorn squash (only going to need half), some old fashion oats, earth balance, brown sugar and a lemon. Also need a little bit of cinnamon, ginger, and salt. oh, and a bit of water.

Oats, earth balance, some sugar, a pinch of salt and a bit of cinnamon all go into a food processor to blend. While its blending, add in a tablespoon or two of water to help all the stuff come together.  Once it starts to pull away from the sides, turn off and call it ready. 

remove about 1/2 a cup of the crumb and set aside for topping and dump the rest into a pie plate. Press into the dish until it looks like a pie crust.

Stick into the oven to pre bake. 

The crust is in the oven and the apples and the squash are not going to cut themselves up so you are going to have to do it. And personal preference here, peel the stuff or don't (I wouldn't usually but I know the people eating  the pie and they are peeled people) So remove all seed and stems and slice both the apple and squash intto 1/2 inch slices. Cut the squash into pieces that are similar to the apple, 

Earth balance into the skillet first then topped with all the chopped stuff, the spices and some sugar and stick it on the stove to cook down. You want to get the pan hot with a medium high heat then turn it down to a low heat, stirring and them placing a lid on the stuff until the squash and apples are slightly tender (not falling apart) and the sugar has caramelized.

And note.. If you notice that the sugar is caralized before the squash and apples are tender, just add in a splash of water and mix around to prevent the sugar from burning.

Filling all ready to go, just add in the juice of the lemon here.

The left over crust crumble, some more earth balance, cinnamon, oats and sugar get mix together to make a little crumble to sprinkle on top. 

And now all there is left to do is to put it all togehert. Filling goes into pre-baked crust.

And gets topped with the crumble. 

Into the oven it goes (give it about 45-50 minutes to bake)

And pulled out when the top is all golden brown and smelling pretty.

Left to cool for a few minutes, then sliced into thinck pieces and shared all around!

Now thats a pie that's meant for breakfast!

-C

---

Apple Acorn Squash Pie with an Oat Crust 

Makes 1 pie

The Crust 

• 3 cups  old fashion oats
• 2 tablesppon brown sugar
• 4 tabelsoons earth balance
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1-2 tablespoons water

Filling

• 1/2  acorn squash (about 3 cups chopped)
• 4-5  apples (any kind will do)
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• 1 lemon
• 4 tablespoons earth balance
• 6 tablespoons brown sugar

Crumb topping

• 1/2 crumb that is set aside
• 1/2 cup old fashion oats
• 2 tablespoon earth balance
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3-5 tablespoon brown sugar (more if you like it sweeter)

Start by making the crust. This crust is going to be prebaked so preheat the oven to 375.

Stick the oats, some super soft or even melted earth balance, brown sugar, a pinch of salt and cinnamon, and a splash of water into a food processer and pulse until a fine crumbly crumb is made. Remove about 1/2  cup of the crumb and dump the rest into a pie plate. Press into the dish evenly and once you are happy with the looks of the crust, stick it into the oven. Bake for about 20 minutes or until the crust is just starting to brown.

While crust is prebaking, peel (if you want), core and slice apples into ½ inch pieces. Now grab the squash while you are at it and cut it in half, remove seeds, peel (if you want) and slice into ½ inch pieces (make them about the same size as the apple pieces.) Get yourself a big skillet and add in the earth balance, all the chopped up apples and squash, the spices and the sugar and stick on the stove one medium high heat. When the skillet is nice and hot, the butter all melted and the sugar is starting to melt, turn heat down to medium low, stick a lid on the pan, and cook for a few more minutes (like 7 minutes) until the squash and apples are slightly fork tender , but not falling apart. If the sugar starts to caramelizes before the stuff is tender, add in a splash or two of water to stop the sugar from burning. Remove from heat, add in the juice of the lemon, and set aside.

 And for the crumble. Just add all the crumble ingredients together and mix around (I used my fingers).

So crust is pre-baked, filling is precooked, and crumble is ready. So now all you need to do is put it together.

Dump the filling into the crust and then top with the crumble. Stick the pie into the oven and bake for about 45-50 minutes or until the filling is fork tender and the crumble on top is nice and golden brown.

Remove from oven and let cool for at least 5 minutes (15 minutes is even better), and serve it on up!

Split Pea Casserole

Just about every morning I wake up at the ass crack of dawn (actually its still dark out) make coffee, do a few things, usually read a bit while eating my breakfast and drinking my third cup of coffee, and start a pot of soup for lunch. All before 7am when I yell up to the mr. to get his butt out of bed.  I love it and I look forward to the mornings of me time.

So soup. I like to start the soup early and let it cook for a while. I start the soup, bring it to a boil, and then stick it on simmer with a ton of water. And then I am off for the day. The deal is that I leave, but the mr. leaves about an hour after I do and he will turn the burners off. And he has been so good about it. Sometime I might shoot him a text to make sure the burners are off, but most of the time I just trust.

Well about a week or so ago, I made soup, went about my morning. Upon my return home, before I even walked down the driveway, I could smell the burning soup.

 I rushed in just in time. The house was not on fire! But the pot of split pea soup… it was about to be. The pot consisted of about  three-inches of thick, burnt to a black brick, soup and about an inch of super thick burnt but still slightly green pea goop on top.

Now don’t judge me here, but that goop…. I ate it. And it was so good. I know, I sound kind of gross, but whatever I don’t care. That little bit of super thick burnt pea paste was some of the best burnt food that I have ever eaten.(I love burnt food)

So this casserole gets a bit of inspiration from that goop. No, it is not burnt to almost an inedible state, but it gets thick and a little crispy and is so so freaking good. This is one of those dishes that I will make and continue to eat even though I cannot possibly eat any more. It’s that good.

As for leaving the stove on while I am gone.. That's not really happening anymore.

The stuff.  Dried green split peas, some water, Italian spice blend as well as garlic and onion powder. Also salt and pepper, a bay leaf, carrots, an onion, a couple of potatoes, a chunk of cabbage, and a parsnip. All good, all of what I have in the fridge at the moment. 

Start by chopping up the onion and sticking it into a big heavy pot. Take all the spices and mix them together in a little bowl and dump half of them into the pot with the onion, the bay leaf and a splash of water. Place on medium heat and cook until the onions start to soften and the water has evaporated. 

After the onions have cooked a bit, add in the dried split peas and a bunch of water (split peas suck up water like crazy) Turn the heat up to high and bring the stuff to a boil then turn heat to a medium and place lid on pot. Let cook for a while, giving it a stir every now and then to make sure nothing is sticking and burning to the bottom of the pot

While the split peas are cooking, chop up all the veggies into mouth sized chunks and mix them together with the rest of the spices and toss them into a skillet or casserole dish. 

And the peas.. Once they are all falling apart, they are ready.  Now is also a good time to preheat oven. 

Dump the cooked split peas all over the veggie mixture and mix around a bit. Grab that last potato and slice really thin.

Top the veggies with the potato and sprinkle with salt and pepper. 

And into the oven it goes!

Bake until the veggies are all tender and the top is all crispy (about 35-40 minutes) and eel free to even stick under a broiler for an even crisper top.

Pull it from the oven when its ready and let it sit for a few minutes to set up a bit...

And scoop yourself a big helping and eat! All it needs is a fork (But mustard tastes so good with it too!)

Have a great Monday!

-C

---

Spit Pea Casserole 

serves 3-4

• 3/4 cup dried green split peas
• 3-1/2 cups water
• 2 tablespoons Italian spice blend
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 bay leaf
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 yellow onion
• ¼ head of cabbage
• 3  white potatoes
• 2-3 carrots
• 1 big parsnip

Note… I used the veggie that I had on hand. So say you don’t like parsnips, don’t use them or want to add celery, go for it. Just make sure to have at about 4-5 cups of chopped up veggies.

Take all the spices and mix them together. Dice onion into little pieces and stick into a big heavy bottom pot with half of the spice blend, the bay leaf, a few pinches of salt and pepper, and a splash of water. Stick on stove and cook for a few minutes until water evaporates and the onions are fragrant and starting to soften. Now dump in the dried peas and 3-1/2 cups water.  Bring it to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and place a lid on the pot. Cook the peas, stirring occasionally, for about 45 minutes of until falling apart.

In the mean time, dice up the veggies (leave one potato to top with)into mouth sized chunks and stick them in either a casserole dish or a 12-inch oven safe skillet. Mix in the other half of the spice blend

Preheat oven to 375

Once the split peas are done, take the pot and dump into the chopped veggies and mix around. Take remaining potato and slice thinly. Top the casserole with thin slices of potato and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Stick that bad boy  into the oven.

Bake for about 45-50 minutes or until the potatoes are crispy and the peas have thickened. 

Remove from oven, let rest for a few minutes, and serve it on up!

Sunday Happy

t’s go time! Today is just the first of the few Thanksgiving dinners that I will be attending. (This one is my family with all the siblings and the littles.. big fun!) I made a pie (I'll post it soon) and maybe if I get to it, I’ll make some bread. (but probably not)

So big news… Tomorrow the mr and I are closing on a house.. WHAT!!! And not just another rental property. This is a bona-fide single family, little brick bungalow…. with a yard!  

It’s crazy. We have never lived without tentants, let alone a single family.It's going to be magical! And walls! Living in a 200 square foot room for the past year ash a half has really made me appreciate the merits of a good quality door. But I need to hold my horses cause we are not moving in right away. There is a bit (maybe a bit more then a bit) of work that needs to be done to the place (few walls moved, maybe the roof jacked up.. new kithen and bathrooms..etc) All fun stuff, but stuff that needs to be done. So yeah,. Crazy crazy, busy busy.

But other then that news, I gots the holidays on my mind and am already thinking of where to stick the Christams tree. I am also contemplating weather I shoud even bother sticking the snow tires on the car this year (still no snow here in vt… it’s unreal) and decided that if we don't get snow before christmas that we will have to sell the new house and just move to Alaska. 

Anyways. Are you ready for this week? Are you preplanning, pre baking, pre everything. Or are you a, do it all the day of,  kinda person?   Whatever your plans, just make sure not to stress to much and to carve (pun intended) out some time for yourself, to do you things.

Internet stuff from the week. 

-I mean, wouldn't you. Woman Knits Tiny Sweaters For Rescued Chickens To Keep Them Warm 

-Something passive amidst all the terrible new this week Kids in Canada are doing the most heartwarming thing to help the homeless prep for winter

-Got to try this. How to Make Your Caramel 100x More Exciting: Replace Cream with Fruit  

-Some of the most amazing origami I have ever see.

-And I am in love with these paintings

-I need this bear sleeping bag like now. 

-Maybe soon we won't have to wonder. What Does "Natural" Mean—and What Should It Mean? 

-Yeah Coffee!! Drink To Your Health: Study Links Daily Coffee Habit To Longevity

-This wood stove…. so good. 

And a few picture.

Happy Sunday!

-C

Pumpkin Hot Chocolate

We have been super busy the past few weeks and haven’t seen any of the littles for a while and I am starting to miss them. So the other day, (when it was actually kinda cold. its been way to warm here!) when I was in the neighborhood, I stopped by my sisters house after the kids got out of school with pumpkin hot chocolate supplies and to hang out. Unfortunately, one of those littles (Miley Lu) was to cool for me and went to hang out with her friend, but whatever, that just left enough hot chocolate supplies to make the one that stayed the biggest cup he could handle, look through all his pictures, and sit around talking about his fart hole. 

Pretty great visit it I do say so myself.

This hot chocolate is just a little seasonal twist on regular old hot chocolate. I bet that some of you out there might end up with a bit of extra pumpkin puree come next week and this is a great way to use some of that up. The pumpkin make the hot chocolate a little thicker, a bit more hearty, and adds a nice smooth creaminess to the drink. And some fiber, which is always good.

 Now all we need is some snow.

The stuff. Milk (any kind you drink) pumpkin puree, cocoa powder, crown sugar, and a pinch or so of cinnamon. 

Oh, and pick out your most favorite kick ass mug (it will just sate better that way). I brought over the rainbow bug cause Judah loves him some rainbows. 

Dump all the stuff into a pot and stick it on stove on medium heat.

Whisk it all around, and continue to whack until the its as hot as you want it to be.

Pour it into a cup (preferably one with rainbows on it) and  top it off with whatever you like on top of your drink  (I added a bit more milk froth and a spinkle more of cinnamon)

And serve up, to yourself, or to the monster little waiting for his chocolate fix.

Have a great day!

-C

---

Pumpkin Hot Chocolate 

Makes 1 cup 

• 1 1/4  cup milk (cow, nut, soy.. whatever)
• 1 heaping tablespoon cocoa powder
• 3  tablespoons pumpkin puree
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar(more if you like it sweetness) 
• a pinch or two of pumpkin spice blend (or just some cinnamon works)

Take all ingredients and place into a pot.  Whisk everything together until fully incorporated. Place pot on medium heat and keep whisking until the hot chocolate is heated to your preferred temperature.

Pour into a mug and feel free to top with whipped cream, sprinkles, marshmallows or whatever you heart desires.