Fall Foods

There is no time of year that I love better than the fall. I love the smells. I love the weather. I love the activities. I love the colors. I am more reminded of God's appreciation for beauty at this time of year than any other. What an amazing artist He is, and He chooses to share His masterpiece with us.
Another one of my favorite parts of fall is the flavors of the season. I made this Chicken Butternut Squash soup last year, and I cannot wait until it is cool enough to make is again.
One of my standby favorites is Pumpkin Soup that I first learned how to make in an Apples of Gold class years ago. Oh, and the apples!!! I love any recipe that includes mounds of brown sugar with apples. What is not to love?
I also love when Starbucks introduces their fall lineup- which occurred a couple of weeks ago in our area. Pumpkin Spice Latte, and Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins. Mmmmmmmm......
I posted a variation of this recipe a couple of years ago, but I have since made some modifications, and it is one of my most requested recipes, so here it is again. Bake up some muffins and ENJOY! The secret to this recipe is the heavy spices, so don't skimp. These will be darker than the Starbucks version, but just as delicious.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
3 cups flour
2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp fresh nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp ground cloves
Pinch of cardamom
1 tsp salt
1 tsp soda
4 eggs
2 cups honey granules (can sub white sugar here or 1 cup liquid honey)
2 cups cooked or canned pumpkin (it is so easy to make your own)
1 ¼ cups extra virgin coconut oil
8 oz package cream cheese
1 egg
1 cup powdered evaporated cane juice or powdered honey granules
*Chopped nuts** (walnuts, pecans, pepinos) (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. Mix ingredients together except cream cheese and nuts. Fill muffin tins (greased or paper cups) half full. Beat the cream cheese with the egg and powdered sugar. Put 1-2 tsp cream cheese in the middle, pressing down. Sprinkle with 1 tsp chopped nuts. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean from the muffin part (do not touch the cream cheese!). Let cool in pans for 5 minutes, then remove to racks to cool completely. Do not touch the cream cheese until it cools, as it is very very hot. Makes 24 muffins. I like to make the jumbo muffins.

Let me apologize to anyone who stumbles upon this blog today. I am going to be bragging unashamedly on my son, the triathlete, and there will be an ungodly amount of photos!

J-Man did a triathalon today. 50 meter swim, 2 mile bike, and 500 meter run! He did so awesome!!!!!

He waited patiently to jump into the pool, and then he passed four kids in the water. He did not hold back...

Until he got out of the water and decided to use his first transition time to pose for the camera and wave to the crowd.
Here he is posing with his brother, and ready for the race in his transition area. Check out that stud! As we walked into the park to prepare, he asked, "I wonder how I am going to win this thing?"

Thumbs up! Look at all of those yellow caps.

Jumping in the water!

That is J-Man's yellow head climbing out of the pool (ahead of everyone, I might add).

Taking his time in T1.

Out on the bike.

Go speed racer!

T2

Out for the run...

Look at that determination!!!

Finished!

This is what D-Man thought of the situation at times.

Our friend Sarah Grace competed as well. Here they are trying to act "too cool" at the finish line!

We had so much fun. I think that The Man got just as much of a work out as J did, running after him to take pics. We were so proud. I have to admit that I even got a little choked up watching him cross the finish line so strong as they called his name and he ran through the finishing ribbon!!!!! He worked so hard and is ready to do another tri as soon as possible.

First Day of School 2009

The first day of school went off without a hitch! D's bus comes at 7:15 in the morning, but the FANTASTIC news is that we know his driver. Ms. Kim was in our small group last semester. How fun is that?"The sun was in my eyes!"I actually did get a photo of him holding the sign right side up, but this one is so much better. :)

Crazy faces!

D learned how to cross his eyes, and he knows that it is a surefire way to crack me up!

J Man thinks he knows how to cross his...


Oh well!

Why no kid will ever come to another Birthday Party Here...

D-Man requested a "Green" Birthday Party. My quest was to find foods that are naturally green. In my efforts, poor D may never have another child come to his birthday again.

Very aesthetically pleasing... not very "kid-friendly." :)

We made green playdough (colored with spinach water).

Mmmmmmmmm...

A happy boy on his happy birthday. yummy cupcake!

Cousin Hayden with LOTS of green ice cream...

Uncle Kes sporting his green!

Christopher and Jaxon wearing green.

Making crazy faces with cousin "Little C."

Crazy excited about opening presents (on his actual birthday)!!!

Cookie cake on birthDAY!


Happy Birthday big five year old!!!!!

Happy Birthday D!!!!!!!!!

Five years ago today, D-Man came into our lives!!!!!!

(sidenote: I have been battling with blogger all day to get these photos in the correct order, and since I have obviously lost the battle, try to keep up with me).

D at one month...

Four years...

Five years...

Three years...

One year...

And, for his fifth birthday, we celebrate him as he told everyone else Happy Birthday today!!!!!

Love you, D!!!!!

In joy, Troye

Duelling Mohawks

J-Dawg has only 2 weeks left of his mohawk, so we decided to cut one for The Man as well.

Don't they look tough? Don't mess with them!

The Tortilla Man

A little mishap with bread dough (uh, I forgot to add yeast) led to my first attempt at tortillas. I borrowed a tortilla press from a friend (shout out to Kasey) months ago, but I have been afraid to try to make homemade tortillas.

When I checked my dough and realized that it hadn't risen, I decided on plan B, and got the tortilla press out...

It was so easy!!!!!

I know that they look like pancakes in this photo, but they are tasty homemade tortillas made with fresh ground wheat. They are delicious with nothing on them fresh off the griddle.

And, here is J-Dawg's "moon face" with his hot-off-the-press tortilla!
WaaaaaaHooooooo!!!

Patchwork Scarf

A scarf for Sarah- Grace.

I sewed together two pieces of an old pair of jeans for one side...

Then cut out random lengths of scrap fabric and pieced them together for side two...


Then added Sarah Grace's initials to the denim side (you can see the beginning of the "S" here)...

Sewed the pieces right sides together, and then turned it right side out to top stitch the edges...
Viola!!!

Dry Rub

This somewhat coastal, somewhat cajun dry rub is fantastic on EVERYTHING- fish, chicken, veggies, beef.
Mix some up and hang on to it as long as you can. You'll want to use it often though, so you might want to double up.

2 tbsp coarse sea salt
2 tbsp sucanat (brown shugah)
1 tbsp black pepper
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp dried basil
1 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp dried tarragon

Rub meat or veggie with oil and then rub a generous amount of this mixture, and grill to perfection! We used this for sweet red, yellow, and orange peppers and salmon last week... DELISH!!!!!

Dinner Caramel Apples

No photo here guys...sorry, we ate it before I even thought about it, but this is a yummy side dish for chicken.

Dinner Caramel Apples
2 tbsp butter
3 apples, diced (I used gala and i did not even peel them, but any firm apple will do)
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1-2 tsp pure vanilla
1/2 cup sucanat (may sub brown sugar)

Melt butter in med saucepan over med-high heat, add apples and saute. Sprinkle with cinnamon and add vanilla. Stir in sucanat. Reduce heat to medium and heat until apples soften, approx ten min.

Eat up, yo!

A Big Ole Pile o' Boys

Little C, E, D-Man, and J-Dawg Chillin' in B'ham

A Decade!

Happy Anniversary, Babe!!!!!! It has been ten amazing years. Thank you for loving me- and let's just be real- thank you for putting up with me for ten years. You are the perfect man for me! LU!

Crazy how we got married when we were 17, right?

Kristina's Strawberry Shortcake

This recipe shall forever be dubbed...

Kristina's Strawberry Shortcake

you must try it

Biscuits:

2 cups soft white wheat flour (aka wheat pastry flour)

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

3 tbsp honey granules (can sub white sugar)

1 stick butter, chilled

2/3 to 3/4 cup half and half, milk, or cream (use cream- why not?)

Filling:

1 quart strawberries

1/3 cup honey granules (can sub white sugar)

Whipped Topping:

1 1/2 cups whipping cream

Rinse berries under cold water; drain well. Hull and slice berries; place in a bowl. Sprinkle with honey granules; cover and let stand at room temperature for about 1 hour.

Whip the cream (sweeten with 2-3 tbsp honey granules if desired and 1 tsp real vanilla) until it holds a soft peak. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

In food processor (you can use a pastry cutter or fingertips) combine the flour, baking powder, salt and honey granules and pulse to mix. Cut butter into about 8 pieces and add to the mixture. Pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal, but with few pea-size chunks of butter left in the mixture. Transfer to large bowl and make a well in center. With fork, stir in cream until dough is just moist. Do not overwork. Let stand for a minute. Turn dough out on floured surface. Knead 2-3 times until dough holds together and is less sticky.

Gently pat the dough into a 3/4 inch thick rectangle and cut into 8 (3 inch) biscuits with a floured round cutter. Transfer to a greased cookie sheet. Brush on some cream and sprinkle with honey granules. Bake for 10-15 min.

Remove to a platter and split each biscuit horizontally with a serrated knife. Top with about 1/3 cup of berry mixture. Replace the tops and top with a tbsp or so of berries. Serve with whipped cream for topping.

Delish!!!!!

Fresh the movie

A documentary about food and crop preparation in America.
Fresh, the movie, Coming Spring 2009. Watch the trailer.

Oh the things he says...

J-Man had been having a rough morning with focusing and keeping his hands to himself, so on the way to lunch he and his teacher, Ms. Corrigan, had the following conversation...

Ms. C: J, you need to have a really great lunch and get yourself under control because your mom is coming to take you to the book fair this afternoon, and you won't be able to go if you can't control yourself.

J: Yes, Ma'am (as he straightend his back a bit and thought)

J: But, what if someone makes an angry face at me?

Ms. C: Well, I wouldn't like it if someone made an angry face at me, so what is something you could do if that happens?

J: I could move?

Ms. C: Yes, you could move. What else could you do? You could use your...

J: Manners!

Ms. C: Yes, you could use your manners. You could also use your...

J: Words!!!

Ms. C: That is right! You could use your words.

J: I could use my words, just like Martin Luther King did!

Ms. C: Yes, that is great. I love that you are remembering something that we talked about earlier in the year. You can use your words just like Martin Luther King.

J (walking off and mumbling to himself): I could use my words just like Martin Luther King... but, he got shot!


Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!!!!!!

Summer Sweet Corn

And now in an effort to bury that last post, here is a cute photo of J-Man eating cold corn on the cob. Nothing says summer in the south like eating a cold ear of sweet corn- except maybe eating watermelon and spitting the seeds in the yard.

I bought a cow!

Yes. There is half of a cow in my freezer. My small group that is based on natural/ healthy eating found "a guy" to purchase a farm raised, grass fed cow from. How crazy is that? We actually ended up purchasing 3 cows in total, but our family bought half of one.
I went to pick it up yesterday, and the first thing that I pulled up and saw at the butcher was two live cows in a pin. My thoughts were..."Whoa, am I really going to do this? Poor cows." I eat meat all of the time (and love it), but this makes it a little too close to home. In door number two, I saw two animals hanging, and about ten minutes later I looked in and a dude was butchering one. CRAZY! In door number three, this sweet little lady takes us into a humongous freezer to get our beef. Then she tells us that her husband, Big John, who owns the place has steped out because one of the goats got loose. Smart goat- run little goat; run like the wind!!!!! When Big John returned, he was not happy because he didn't find the goat, but he did get out of his truck with his rifle- just in case. I have to say it again- CRAZY!
So, I have about 60 lbs of ground beef, 30 pkgs of steak and a dozen roasts in my freezer. Anyone want to come over for dinner?
Mooooooo...
I am not going to post the photos that I took because I don't want to make anyone sick or turn anyone into a vegetarian (if I haven't already).

4295 Miles

My Youth pastor, Barry L, retired this year after 29 years of service in Athens, Georgia. How amazing is that. Almost as amazing is the fact that he is now biking across the country! Unbelievable!!! Check out his blog to follow him across the country. He began his journey last week. His wife Margaret is following him in the car. The photos are incredible!!!!!!!

Check it out here.

Obviously, the date on this photo is wrong. Check out those braces...