Carving pumpkins 2014

I almost didn't carve a pumpkin this year. Tucker loved to watch me carve so much, that it was painful to think of doing it alone this year. However, I knew he would want me to continue the tradition, so I bought a pumpkin anyway.

I should have known that Ringo would want to be part of the action.

What is this, Mom?

Hmm, smells pretty good.

If you've followed the blog for a while, you may remember that Tucker LOVED to eat pumpkin guts. To my shock, Ringo ate some too. . 

Yummy!

 

 

Being that he's a kitten, he didn't have the patience to sit with me the entire time. Perhaps next year. . .

The finished pumpkin:

Lit up:

An amazing welcome Ringo card

 Our friend Roberta stamps the most amazing cards. Over the years, I've shared several of her creations. She sent one recently for Ringo's arrival, and it's wonderful.

Making homemade yogurt

I've wanted to try making homemade yogurt for a while, but it seemed a bit daunting. . .but, I finally bought the supplies, found a recipe, and decided to give it a go.

Here are the jars I made in one batch:

Here is my first bowl, topped with some jam and honey.

It was delicious! However, the texture seemed a bit gooey. . so I did some more research. I don't think I let it set up long enough. The recipe said 4-6 hours but it seems that 10-12 is best. I'll try that next time.

It's too bad the cats don't like this. . .all the more for me! Ha!

Hello Kitty cookies

Our friend Roberta had given us an adorable Hello Kitty cookie cutter.

I was going to visit a friend who'd recently had a baby. Her daughter, nearly seven, liked Hello Kitty, so it was the perfect reason to try out the cutter. This is what I made:

Closer up photo:

I used real ribbon for the bows! They turned out great and the entire family loved them. :-)

Raised donut recipe

I never imagined anyone would actually be interested in the old recipe I photographed. . .so here is the donut recipe from my grandma's collection. She noted it was from Farm Journal magazine, and wrote "excellent."

Filled raised do-nuts

2 packages dry or 2 cakes fresh yeast
1/2 c. water
3/4 c. milk, scalded
3/4 c. shortening
1/3 c. sugar
1/4 t. salt
2 eggs
5 c. sifted flour (oddly enough, she had written salt, but that is obviously an error!)
24 cooked pruned, pitted

Soften yeast in warm water. Combine milk, sugar, shortening, and salt. Stir until dissolved. Cool to lukewarm, add yeast, eggs, and 1 c. flour, beating well. Add remaining flour. Deep fat fry.

It's canning season

I am thrilled that my tomato plants have started producing, and this weekend I made and canned salsa. Here is the recipe I used.

Last night, I tried a batch of tomato sauce.

I used a blender to puree the tomatoes, and Sadie did not like the blender! 

She stayed out of the kitchen while I was using it.

Blizzard (and cookies!)

We're still digging out from a blizzard overnight. Total amounts of snow are unknown with all the drifting, but I measured 14" this morning, along with 8" or so from the previous morning. Here's a video of our backyard and driveway.

Since I was stuck inside, I made some Valentine cookies. I tried a glace icing for the first time, and it turned out great! (and a bonus, the cats didn't bother the icing)

Oatmeal bread

I tried a new recipe today and it turned out well, so I thought I would share it.

Oatmeal bread

(courtesy of King Arthur Flour; modified by Rene Schweitzer)

6 c. unbleached bread flour

2 c. rolled oats

4 T. butter or margarine

3 t. salt

6 T. honey or brown sugar

4 t. instant dry yeast

2 ½ c. warm milk

Dissolve yeast in milk and let dissolve for 2-3 minutes, then stir with wire whisk. In a large mixing bowl or electric mixer, combine the oats, butter, honey/brown sugar and two cups of the flour. Mix the salt with ½ c. of the flour and add to the mixture. Continue adding flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and is tacky. Cover and let rest 15 minutes. Knead (machine 5 minutes, by hand 10 minutes) and place in a lightly greased bowl. Let rise one hour—dough may not double completely in size. Cut dough in half and shape into logs, placing in greased loaf pans. Let rise for 1 to 1 ½ hours, or until the dough is about 1 inch above the pan. Bake for about 30-40 minutes in a 350 oven.

Strawberry jam

It's the time of year when berries are ripening! I made some strawberry jam a couple of days ago. It's very easy to make. Here's the recipe I used (originally from Natural Health magazine, modified by me).

3 quarts ripe strawberries, washed, stemmed and cut into pieces
1 package powdered pectin (1.75 oz.)
8 cups sugar

Brush berries with a potato masher in a large bowl. Add pectin and stir well, pour into large pot and turn on high heat. Bring to a full boil (bubbles should cover the entire surface). Add sugar, continue stirring and return to a full boil. Boil rapidly for one minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, skim top. Allow to cool five minutes and skim again.

Ladle into sterilized canning jars, leaving 1/4" of space at the top. Place lids on jars. Place jars on a rack in a pot of simmering water, making sure jars are completely covered with water. Boil for 15 minutes; cool. Carefully remove from water. Check for proper seal. Store in a cool, dark place.

NOTES:
Save the skimmed jam--it's still good on toast. Nothing beats fresh jam (my Grandma taught me that)!

The seals on the jars might take several hours to seat. You may hear popping noises as they cool and the jars seal. This is normal.

The brand of pectin you choose might require less sugar. I used 8 cups for a double batch.

ENJOY!

Old-fashioned spritz cookies

I found an all-metal cookie press at a thrift store last week, and tried it out yesterday. I made these cookies (flowers and butterflies). I love how the colors turned out in the flowers!

Crockpot granola recipe

A yummy recipe from the Crockpot cooking blog. I've been enjoying this for breakfast for about a week. 

4 T. butter or margarine

3/4 c. honey (I used organic)

4 1/2 c. oats (I used quick cooking)

1 c. ground flax seed

1/2 c. pecans

1/2 c. slivered almonds

1 c. raisins (you could use Craisins and/or dates too)

Combine the dry ingredients in the crock pot. Melt the butter in the microwave and add to dry ingredients. Stir in honey. Cover, but vent with a bamboo or chop stick. Cook on low for 3-4 hours, stirring occasionally.

Pour onto a cookie sheet or baking pan lined with parchment paper. Let dry overnight. Store in Tupperware container or Ziploc bag. Yummy and loaded with fiber!

Tie-dyed eggs for Easter

I recently discovered a blog that had a tutorial for using old men's silk ties to color eggs. After a stop at the local Salvation Army to pick up some ties (shown above), I gave this technique a try.

Here are my completed eggs. A couple of them came out lighter than I'd hoped, but , still, all are very pretty.

This is one of my favorites. The tie itself was ugly, but the egg is so bright and colorful. This photo doesn't do it justice.

I like the paisley print on this egg.

The eggs in the basket. I'm going to try this next year, perhaps boiling them a bit longer to see if I can get the colors brighter. And I'll be scoping our yard sales for cheap men's ties!

Old fashioned hard candy

One of my favorite things to make during the holidays is hard candy. It's something few people bother to make anymore, but that gets rave reviews when I give it as a gift. As a side note, it also makes the house smell wonderful.

This recipe is an old one from my Grandma's Niespodzany's recipe box. I do not know its origin.

1 c. sugar
1/2 c. light corn syrup
1/3 c. cold wter
1/4 t. flavoring oil (must be OIL not extract)

Line a baking pan with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray.

Combine sugar, corn syrup, and water in medium-sized saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar is dissolved.

Cook until it reaches hard crack stage (310 degrees on a candy thermometer). While it is boiling DO NOT STIR. Remove from heat and stir in flavoring and food coloring (if desired).

Pour into prepared pan. As it's hardening, cut a knife or metal-edged spatula to press score marks into the candy. When cool, break into small pieces. Dust with a little powdered sugar if desired.

Notes:
1. Works best if you make a double batch.
2. Use coordinating food coloring to match the flavor--red for cinnamon, green for peppermint, etc.
3. Store in glass jars or cellophane bags.
4. Flavoring oils can be found in a number of stores during the holidays, or you can order online at LorAnns.