Pumpkin Fudge

Have I mentioned how much I love everything Autumn? I love the smells of the leaves, the crisp cool air, the apple cider and the pumpkin spice. It is therefore no surprise that when I found this recipe a few weeks ago I was excited to try it. I was unsure of the results, but overall it tastes surprisingly pumpkin-ey and good. It is, however, VERY rich so if you are on a "diet" and can only eat one piece this is perfect as one piece is all anyone will want/need.

I can say that if you want something different but autumnish to take to a potluck or party, this is a fun, adventurous route and anyone that loves pumpkin will love this fudge. I omitted the pecans because I didn't have any in the house, but I am sure it would be simply divine if they were included.



Ingredients:
3 cups sugar
3/4 cup melted butter
2/3 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
2 Tbsp. corn syrup
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 (12-oz.) package white chocolate morsels
1 (7-oz.) jar marshmallow crème
1 cup chopped pecans, toasted
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preparation:
Stir together first 6 ingredients in a 3 1/2-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat, and cook, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Cook, stirring constantly, until a candy thermometer registers 234° (soft-ball stage) or for about 12 minutes.

Remove pan from heat; stir in remaining ingredients until well blended. Pour into a greased aluminum foil-lined 9-inch square pan. Let stand 2 hours or until completely cool; cut fudge into squares.

Cream of Broccoli Soup

I know, another soup. I just have a weakness for drinking my dinner.

This cream of broccoli soup is perfect for those who don't prefer cheese, (such as my husband) however, for those that do love cheese, the soup can be enhanced by a cup of shredded cheddar.

Another neat thing about this soup is the variety of ways to use the leftovers. We took this soup and mixed it into some cooked egg noodles and added peas and chicken and topped it with bread crumbs for a classic casserole. I also really enjoyed using the soup as a topping for a baked potato.



Ingredients:
2 tbsp butter
1 onion, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
8 c. broccoli florets
3 c. chicken broth
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp flour
2 c. milk
Ground pepper
Bacon bits (optional, but yummy)

Directions:
Saute onion & celery in butter. Add broccoli & broth. Cover & simmer until tender. Mash to rough texture. (If you are seeking a smoother, creamier texture you can puree the broccoli. In separate pan stir flour, butter & milk till boiling. Add to soup. Season with pepper & bacon bits.

Oh, just a side-note: I had a head of cabbage in the fridge and I put a good amount of cabbage into this soup and it was delicious!

Black Bean Dip

I have been the lucky recipient of a lot of party invitations recently and so I decided I needed a new "go-to" treat. I had a few requirements for this treat, the most important being that it needed to be savory, not sweet. I don't eat very many sweets and can really only enjoy a few bites at any given time so I mostly snack on veggies or pretzels, etc. I got the idea for a black bean dip when I rummaged through my pantry and compiled a recipe from things I already had on hand.

When I debuted it a few weeks ago, I was rather nervous as it doesn't look particularly appetizing. However, I didn't need to worry. The bowl was empty within minutes as the dip tastes divine and it is quite filling. I have also found that it is very tasty when made into a burrito. :)



Ingredients:

2 cans black beans
2 tbsp veg oil
½ med onion
1 c. corn kernels
1 can diced tomatoes, half drained
2 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp onion powder
1 cube cilantro bouillon
1 cube chipotle bouillon
1 tbsp chipotle pepper seasoning (optional, but adds a good flavor dimension)
1/3 c cheese, shredded
2 tbsp lime juice

Directions:

1. Place black beans in a medium size mixing bowl, partially mash beans -- beans should remain a little chunky.
2. In a medium size frying pan, heat oil over a medium heat. Stir in onion and garlic and saute for 4 min.
3. Mix beans, remaining ingredients into the frying pan; cook for 5 minutes or until thickened.

This tastes best when it has time to sit in the fridge for at least 2 hours. I personally prefer to serve the dip just slightly warm, but it is also good when chilled or hot.

Rustic Potato Stew (sounds gourmet, eh?)

Last night I came down with some kind of sinus infection and after a super rough night, all I wanted today was some warm soup and a cozy blanket. Sadly, my mom is 1100 miles away and her homemade soup is a little out of reach right now. After taking some pills I decided to "mom up" and make a pot of nutrition filled potato soup. Once again, this was a "made my own recipe" soup where I threw in everything I had in the fridge and luckily I had some good stuff in there.


Ingredients:

2 tbsp butter
1 med onion
4 carrots, peeled & chopped
4 celery stalks, chopped
7 red potatoes
2 cups cabbage, chopped
4 cups water
2 cups milk
4-6 tbsp flour
2 tbsp salt
2 tbsp pepper
2 tbsp dill
2 tbsp chicken bouillon

Directions:

I started by warming up the butter in the pot and adding the onion, celery & carrots. Let it cook up for about 10 minutes before adding the water and potatoes. Bring to a boil and let it cook for about 10 minutes. In a separate dish whisk the milk and the flour together before adding it to the pot. Add cabbage, salt, pepper, dill & bouillon. Let simmer for 10 minutes or until vegetables are cooked through.

I think this soup was just what the doctor ordered because I am already feeling quite a bit better. This was the first time I had added cabbage and I really like the inclusion. The soup was chunky and full of veggies and putting the cabbage and potatoes together felt like an homage to my Irish heritage. ;)

Sinful Cinnamon Rolls

The weather outside is quite chilly today and I decided I needed an excuse to use the oven to warm up the kitchen, so when I saw a friend's post on Facebook about cinnamon rolls, well, let's just say I couldn't help myself.



I've never made cinnamon rolls before and the idea had always been very intimidating but honestly, this was much easier than I had anticipated. The batch made 30 rolls, half of which I put in the freezer for this weekend at which time I will defrost them and let them rise before baking.

Ingredients

1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
1 cup water
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
6 cups all-purpose flour

Filling:
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 cups dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup butter, softened

Directions

Warm the milk in a small saucepan until it bubbles, then remove from heat. Mix in the butter; stir until melted. Add water and let cool until lukewarm.

In a large bowl, combine the milk mixture, yeast, white sugar, salt, eggs and 2 cups flour; stir well to combine. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.

Divide dough into two pieces. Roll each piece into a 12x9 inch rectangle. In a bowl, stir together the cinnamon, nutmeg and brown sugar. Spread each piece with half of the butter, half of the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture. Roll up dough, using a little water to seal the seam.

Cut each roll into 12 slices using a very sharp knife or dental floss. Place rolls onto two 9x13 inch greased baking pans. Cover and let rise until almost doubled, about 1 hour. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown.



I just made my regular white icing but you can always replace that with a cream cheese frosting if you would like. I assure you, either way they are delicious!

Better Than Delivery Pizza

This past weekend we were craving good pizza, so I decided to try my hand at making it.



I found a great pizza dough recipe online and made my very first homemade pizza crust. I will admit to having some difficulty when it came to rolling it out and I ended up spraying pam on my countertop and dusting it with flour so that I could pull the nicely rolled dough right off and move it to the pan without ripping. It took me a couple of tries, but the dough didn't seem too tough, despite being re-rolled 3 times.

I decided I wanted a sauce with more flavor, so I mixed a can of diced tomatoes with a can of tomato sauce and added onion powder, garlic, salt, brown sugar, and oregano. I let it sit in the refrigerator for a couple of hours to let the flavors mix together and it was perfect.

We bought pre-shredded cheese and were careful to find the bags labeled "right off the block" rather than the imitation cheese (as you will find it doesn't melt). We also topped the pizza with green, yellow and red peppers & onions (we used frozen ones that we happened to have on hand and we just defrosted them before putting them on the pizza), pepperoni, ground beef seasoned to taste like sausage (using fennel and sage), olives and pineapple.

I can honestly say that it was the best pizza I have eaten in a long time (though, I haven't had much pizza lately so my judgment may be off). The next day Alexander was asking if we could make it again. :) That's what I call a successful dinner!

Momma's Chili

With the cool weather setting in, I can't help but pull out all my favorite soup recipes and when I want comfort food to warm me up, I can't do much better than my mom's wonderful chili recipe. She usually served it up with fresh cornbread, but I made homemade biscuits instead (find the recipe here), and boy were they tasty! (As a side-note: I also used that biscuit recipe for a biscuits and gravy breakfast and the biscuits were solid enough to handle the thick gravy while still managing to be fluffy.)



Mom gave me a recipe for the chili, but nowadays I tend to just throw it all in the pot and guess at quantities. I think it tastes better that way. With that in mind, I will tell you my guesstimate on the ingredients:

2 large cans of tomato juice
Red/kidney beans (mom's recipe used dried beans that were soaked, but I always cheat with 3 rinsed cans of beans instead)
About equal quantities ( 2-4 tbsp, to taste) of the following spices: cumin, curry powder, garlic powder (or fresh garlic), sugar, chili powder (although I tend to add a lot more of this), salt to taste
1 lb ground beef, cooked with 1 chopped onion

Add it all together on the stove and cook for about an hour, give or take. If you use the canned beans I recommend waiting to add them until halfway through.