Bear Hat

Made up this little bear hat for my adorable nephew. It's mostly just sc around and around. I need to find the paper I wrote the pattern down on.

Lacy Hats and Scarves

Made these hats and scarves for my daughter and niece. I wrote down the pattern as I came up with it, but need to find the paper...The scarf was really easy, but the hat was trickier because I wanted the lacy effect to go all the way up to the crown (whereas most patterns have a solid circle of increase, and then the lace pattern begins).

Heidi Hats

I spit out a bunch of these cute little hats. I wrote down the pattern somewhere... I'll keep looking for it.

Honey-Peanut Butter Cookies

So I signed up to bring a treat to a ward activity tonight. But then I realized that I didn't have any white sugar. Or butter. And Jeffrey took the car to school today. So I was looking through my cupboards and scouring the internet for something I could make with what I had on hand and I found this recipe for Honey-Peanut Butter Cookies. I replaced the white sugar with brown sugar (one of the comments said someone had tried it and it worked great) and added a splash of vanilla. Other than that, I just followed this recipe. These cookies are so good!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 cup honey
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. In a mixing bowl, mix shortening, peanut butter and honey. Add eggs; mix well. Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt; add to peanut butter mixture and mix well.
2. Roll into 1- to 1-1/2-in. balls and place on ungreased baking sheets. Flatten with a fork dipped in flour. Bake at 350 degrees F for 8-10 minutes.

Rippled Baby Afghan

 I made this baby afghan for my best friend's son. The pattern is from Leisure Arts' Our Best Baby Afghans. I think I used Loops & Threads Snuggly Wuggly Yarn in Baby Denim Marl. But in any event, it was 100% acrylic, baby sport weight, blue and white variegated yarn. The pattern has you work up the spiraling hexagons, which are then stitched together to form the afghan.

Angel Hair with Cauliflower and Parmesan

So I started watching The Chew, and it is definitely my new favorite show. So one day they made Angel Hair with Cauliflower and Parmesan, and I decided it looked so amazing, I wanted to try it out myself. I made a few changes, based on what I had and what sounded good to me. It turned out so good, I think it is one of my new favorite dishes. You can follow the link to the original recipe, but this is what I did. (My recipe is for a single, but quite large, serving.) Also, when I made this for my husband, I added some grilled chicken to the mix. He really liked having the meat in it, but I think it's great without it.

Ingredients:
2 oz. whole wheat spaghetti noodles (1 serving)
salt (optional)
1 T olive oil
1 C chopped cauliflower
1/2 C sliced mushrooms
4 green olives, sliced
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1 pinch red pepper flakes
1 C spinach
1 T Parmesan

Directions:
1)Cook pasta according to package (I add salt to my water).
2)Meanwhile, saute cauliflower and mushrooms in oil. Add olives, garlic, and red pepper flakes.
3)One minute before pasta is done cooking, add about 1/4 C water from pasta pot to the saute pan. Drain the rest of the water and add the noodles to the pan. Add spinach and cook until water boils out.
4)Sprinkle with Parmesan and enjoy!

Chicken in Creamy "White Wine" Sauce

So one time Jeffrey and I went to Olive Garden and he got a chicken in white wine sauce. We decided to try to recreate it (sans wine, because neither of us wanted to buy any, even though we know it cooks out). So I found this recipe for Chicken in Garlic White Wine Cream Sauce. We made it pretty much the same way as the recipe, except we cut up the chicken, omitted the mushrooms (because Jeffrey doesn't like them), substituted gingerale for the wine, and didn't use Worcestershire sauce, because we never remember to buy it. I served it over whole wheat noodles, with lemon pepper-roasted asparagus. Anyway, the recipe is for 4 servings.


Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 T olive oil
1/2 C onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
5-6 fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/4 C butter
1/4 C white wine (or gingerale!)
1 dash Worcestershire sauce
1 pint cream (heavy or light)
salt and pepper
1 t basil
1 t parsley

Directions:

1. Lightly brown both sides of chicken in olive oil.
2. Add onion, garlic, mushrooms, and butter and saute about 4-5 minutes until onions start to become translucent.
3. Add wine and Worcestershire sauce and cook an additional 2 minutes.
4. Lower heat and add cream, salt, pepper, basil, and parsley.
5. Too high of heat will cause the cream to curdle.
6. Simmer on low 20-25 minutes until done.

Feijoada

Feijoada is a staple in our home because it was the first thing Jeffrey and I ever cooked together (on our very first date). It's super easy, and delicious! Everyone makes theirs a little differently, just depending on their preferences and what they have on hand, but this is my go-to recipe. The measurements don't really matter, but I put them in there to give you an idea. I always serve this with rice and farofa (a corn meal topping that is used in Brazil), but I added some green bell pepper this time to add some color and healthiness.

Ingredients:
2 cans black beans
1/4 package polska kielbasa (or some other tube sausage that comes bent in an oval-like shape)
slice salt pork, or thick bacon
garlic salt

Directions:
1)Cook salt pork (or bacon) in a pan, drain fat (unless you are my husband and want to keep the fat in...)
2)Rinse and drain beans. Pour beans in pot and add about 1/2 can water.
3)Cut up sausage (it should come pre-cooked) and add sausage and salt pork to pot. Season with garlic salt (our you could add garlic and salt separately to get the proportion you like).
4)Cook until water boils out and serve. (See, I told you it was super easy!)

Cheez-It Chicken

This is one of Jeffrey's favorite dishes, and I have to admit, it is pretty tasty. So I heard the idea of this somewhere, but I came up with the recipe that I use (which is why there aren't really any measurements..) I served this with some brown rice and roasted asparagus.

Ingredients:
boneless, skinless chicken breast (1 per person)
flour (I used wheat, but I don't think it makes a huge difference)
sour cream
Cheez-Its, or any other cheese cracker

Directions: 
1)Preheat oven to 350 (F). Spray a baking dish or cooking sheet with cooking spray.
2)Put some flour in a shallow dish; put some sour cream in another shallow dish, and stir so that it is smooth and "liquid" (where it spreads out instead of sitting in a clump).
3)Crush crackers. You don't need super fine crumbs, but the smaller the are, the easier they stick to the chicken. Place in a separate shallow dish.
3)Dredge chicken in flour, making sure to get all sides; put in sour cream and cover all sides; roll in cracker crumbs until covered. Place on baking dish. Repeat for all chicken pieces.
4)Bake about 30 minutes, or until center of chicken is no longer pink.

Bekka's Birthday Cake

I really wanted to make a nice cake for Bekka, since it seemed silly not to use my talents for my own daughter's party. Unfortunately, I did not bring any of my cake supplies, so I had to make do.

1) Cakes: I used 4 disposable 8"-square foil pans. I made one box of chocolate cake and one box of vanilla cake (each box filled two pans). I used chocolate, vanilla, chocolate for the bottom tier (for the adults). Then I cut the other cake into fourths and stacked two of the squares to make the top tier (for Bekka). To make the base board, I actually cut up a diaper box into two squares, taped them together, then wrapped them in foil.

2) Filling: I made crème patisserie (French pastry cream) which I used between the layers of the small cake, and between the bottom and middle layers of the big cake. Between the middle and top layers of the big cake, I used crushed mixed berries (thawed from a bag) that I combined with some vanilla frosting. I just used store-bought whipped vanilla frosting for the crumb coat.

3) Frosting: In addition to the whipped frosting I used for the crumb coat, I made marshmallow fondant to cover the tiers and make the ribbon and polka dots (I just eye-balled the width of the ribbon and cut it with a knife, and I used the bottom of a large tip to cut the pink dots and a No. 5 -- or No. 8, I can't remember -- tip to cut the green dots). I used neon food coloring (the only kind they had at the store) to get the pink, purple, and green (made to match the decorating icing). I used store-bought decorating icing to decorate the cake balls and to accent the ribbons and polka dots (the pack came with purple, pink, teal, and white). The pearl border between the two cakes was made with the vanilla frosting in a similar Ziploc piping bag, using a No. 8 tip (the same tip I used to cut the green dots. I can't remember if it was a No. 5 or No. 8).

4) Piped Flowers: To make the flowers, I cut a corner from a Ziploc bag, put used a No. 1 tip and coupler that I borrowed from my friend Erin, and filled it with store-bought brownie icing. I free-handed the floral design based on the Garden Greenery pattern from the Wilton Garden Terraces Cake. I also used this icing to write on the fondant gift tag.

5) Cake Balls: With the cake I shaved off the layers (so they would be flat and create an even square) and the other half of the second vanilla cake, I made cake balls. I crumbled the vanilla cake in one bowl, the chocolate in another and added store-bought whipped cream cheese frosting to both (I didn't measure, but you want to add enough that the crumbs all stick together). I rolled them into 1" balls and stuck them in the freezer to cool them. I cut all the chocolate ones in half, then cut an equal number of vanilla ones in half (I had a lot more vanilla than chocolate). I then rolled a chocolate half and a vanilla half together until I only had mixed balls and vanilla balls. I used vanilla melting candy and coated the cake balls. Once the candy was hardened, I decorated using the store-bought icing.

6) Finishing Touches: I added a lot of sugar pearls to the top cake, as well as to the pearl border between the cakes. I used the white decorating icing to make French dots on the bottom cake. I rolled some fondant and laid it around the bottom cake. I put some frosting on the bottom of the cake balls and stuck them around the cake. I then sprinkled the board with shaved chocolate (which I got from smoothing out the bottom of the cake balls).

Amigrumi Friends

 My cousin sent me this book of adorable crochet patterns, Amigurumi World. I've made the girl bear, the penguin, and the baby turtle and baby bunny. So, only the penguin has eyes right now... I had put eyes on the bear, but Bekka managed to get them off. Maybe the fabric glue hadn't set all the way, since they seem pretty stuck on the penguin. So I just need to figure out the best way to do eyes so I can finish up the bear, turtle, and bunny. Even without the eyes, Bekka thinks they're pretty fun and loves playing with them. Best part is, they're machine washable!

Matching Sunhats

I made Bekka and me matching sunhats for our trip to Lake Tahoe. I didn't really have a pattern, I just did a normal increase until I had the right diameter, then sc's all around until I liked the length (I switched the color for the last few rows on Bekka's to look like a ribbon). Then I resumed a normal increase until I liked the length of the brim. I tied a ribbon around mine. I also made a chin strap for Bekka's, just 25ch or so, and stitched it onto the hat.

Fluffy Blankie

I made this cuddle-and-carry sized blankie for Bekka. I used a soft and chunky yarn with a P hook: ch51, then 50sc across. I just repeated this until I had a nice square shape. I took fun fur yarn and did 2sc in each stitch around the edges.

Filigree Doily

So this pattern was actually for a bowl, but I used the wrong thread (size 10 cotton, with a US 7 hook), so it came out really small. I didn't realize the pattern called for such thicker yarn, so instead of starching and molding it, I just left it flat like a doily. Kind of useless, but still pretty!

Apron

I forgot to bring an apron, but didn't think I should buy one (since I already own 5) so I decided to make one instead. I made up the pattern, but I think it came out pretty cute. I used twisted dc's and a ruffled edge, but let me know if you want the pattern and I'll try to figure out what I did.

Pineapple Shawl

I found this (FREE!) pattern for a beautiful shawl and decided I had to have it. I used a worsted weight acrylic, so it came out a little bulkier than the picture on the pattern, but I still think it's beautiful. I also used it as a bathing suit cover up (although if I had made it for that purpose, I probably would have chosen a darker color).

Afternoon Tea Fingerless Gloves

I loved these little glovelets the moment I saw this pattern. I used size 10 cotton thread and a US 7 steel hook. I made ball buttons instead of buying some. These make me feel so dainty (but a lot of people were confused by my wearing them...)

Caps for Cancer Children

I made these for Camp Happy Times and Halos of Hope. (It was one of my gifts to Riley for his birthday this year.) Their theme this year was medieval, so I went royal. For the king's crown I altered this pattern for a kid's crown but I don't remember exactly what I did. I think I started with ch70, then worked the pattern pretty much the same. I also brought in color for the puffs (to look more like jewels) and I think I only used 3 or 4 dc for each puff. And I omitted the puff at the top, just brought it to a point. I found the tiara pattern here. I actually made up the pattern for the hats (they're almost identical, except for the brim on the blue hat). I don't remember exactly how I made the hats, but I did 1sc followed by ch1, increasing until I had the desired diameter. I'll try to do it again and write down the pattern this time.

Personal Pizzas!

So good and so easy. I just found a recipe for pizza dough (but used whole wheat flour instead of white flour). Pressed it into a disposable foil pan (because I didn't want extra dishes to wash), then layered sauce (from a jar), cheese (pizza blend, Italian blend, or just plain mozzarella all work great) and pepperoni (I used turkey pepperoni for mine, regular for Jeffrey's). It's simple and delicious, and is good for two dinners (or more, if you can control yourself!)

Butterflies

I made these using patterns in a book I got for my birthday: 75 Birds, Butterflies, and Little Beasts to Knit and Crochet

Knit Top

So this was my first time knitting, and I just made it up. I did a seed stitch using worsted weight acrylic yarn and boucle yarn (the fluffy stuff). Then I did a stockinette stitch until I liked the length. I crocheted ball buttons and button hooks (simple ch10's attached to the back of the top). I also crocheted the sleeves and attached them. All in all, I thought it was pretty good for my first knitting project.

Baby Arm Warmers and Slippers

I made up the pattern for the armwarmers, so I'm trying to remember what I did. I think I started with ch40 and joined in a ring with a slst. Then I did a row of hdc. I did three rows (I think) with 3sc, 2fpdc repeated around. On the fourth row, I did a twisted fpdc (3sc, fpdc in 2nd fpdc of previous row, fpdc in 1st fpdc of previous row) around. I did this until it was half the length I wanted to end with. Then I worked 8 rows where I did one sc2tog per row (in the first 3sc space on the first row; in the second 3sc space on the second row; until the 8th row results in 2sc, 2fpdc, all the way around). Then I made a scalloped edge by doing a ch6 (I think) and a slst every 4 stitches. When I put it on her, I put her thumb through one of the holes, because I thought it looked more chic that way. I don't rememberhow I made the slippers (I didn't use a pattern), but if anyone absolutely loves them, let me know and I'll try to figure out what I did for those!

Detachable Flower Baby Beanie

Here's the free pattern I used. I made the first flower pattern in pink. I altered the second flower pattern, combining it with the flower in this pattern. Basically, I started with the flower from the first pattern, but added a second layer, as described in the second flower. I then did the same thing, starting with 6 loops intead of 5, to get the black flower. I made a ball button (4 sc in magic ring, 2sc each, 1sc each, sc2tog 4x) and fastened it onto the side of the hat. I hope that makes sense. I think I used a G-hook and it fits my cousin's 1-month-old.

Diaper Covers

 I used this free pattern and used Red Heart Super Saver (which is acrylic yarn) because I wanted something that would be machine washable. I omitted the pockets in the pattern, and added a skirt to the second pair.

I attached the blue around the middle of the cover and did a row of sc around. Then I made a ruffle by doing a ch4 and 2tr in each sc.

I have used these in two ways. 1)On hot days when I only have Bekka in a diaper, I put these on over the diaper so she at least looks cute and girly. 2)I have used these as covers to cloth diapers (that don't already have a water resistant lining). The acrylic is water resistant, so it works really well. You could also use wool, but I didn't have any on hand when I made these.

Low Carb Chocolate Cake

So I used the Atkins' recipe for Decadent Chocolate Cake for my own birthday cake. The recipe calls for unsweetened chocolate, but I found it a little too bitter. Next time I will use semisweet. To balance the bitterness and make it look a little nicer, I frosted it with nonfat whipped topping that I had in my freezer. This kind of topping does have more carbs than regular whipped cream, but it definitely has less fat and fewer calories. I sprinkled cocoa powder on top. Since the cake was made in an 8-inch pan, I thought there was too much empty space on the cake stand. So I made a simple chocolate glaze with powdered sugar, milk, and cocoa powder (didn't measure, just added until I had the right consistency and color); I put the glaze in a plastic bag, snipped off a tiny corner, and piped the design around the cake. It wasn't perfect, and it sometimes came out faster (hence the thick parts) -- I think because there were small clumps of sugar that blocked it, and when I squeezed hard enough a lot came out at once. Anyway, here's the recipe.


Ingredients:

• 4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons water
• ¾ cup granular sugar substitute, divided
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 6 large eggs, at room temperature
• Whipped cream dusted with unsweetened cocoa powder (optional)

Directions:
Heat oven to 325°F. Grease an 8-inch springform pan and line the bottom with parchment paper; grease paper and set aside. Melt chocolate, butter and water in the top of a double boiler set over simmering water, stirring to combine. Remove from heat and transfer to a large bowl; cool to room temperature. Add ¼ cup of the sugar substitute, the cocoa powder and vanilla extract to chocolate mixture, stirring until combined. In a medium bowl, with an electric mixer on medium-high, beat eggs until mixture forms thick ribbons when beater is lifted, about 6 minutes. Reduce speed to medium; gradually add remaining ½ cup sugar substitute and beat until combined, 1 minute. Stir one-third of the egg mixture into the chocolate mixture to lighten. In two additions, fold in remaining egg mixture until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pan, smoothing top. Bake until evenly risen and almost set, 40-45 minutes (it will look like a brownie). Cool completely on a wire rack. To serve, run a knife around edge of pan and remove rim. Serve with whipped cream.

Nutrition:
So, using Hershey's baking chocolate and cocoa powder and Splenda sweetener, here are the nutrition facts for the cake I made (not including whipped topping).
1/8th of cake: 233 calories, 22 g fat, 2.6 g net carbs
1/12th of cake: 155 calories, 14.6 g fat, 1.8 g net carbs

Scones

So, I went the super easy route on these. We had some frozen dinner rolls that we needed to use before we moved, so after thawing them, I smashed them into thin circles and fried them in oil (between the 2 and 3 on the heat setting -- we learned the hard way that you shouldn't go higher than that). Turn once, let cool on paper towel to drain oil, then top with whatever you like. We had butter, powdered sugar, strawberry jam, and honey on hand. My favorite turned out to be butter and sugar, and Jeffrey liked the honey and sugar best.

Banana Coffee Cake

If you're looking for something other than banana bread to make with those over-ripe bananas, this recipe from Betty Crocker is a winner. The original recipe calls for 1/2 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips, which I didn't have on hand. So instead I topped the cake with a cinnamon-sugar mixture before baking to give it a little extra sweetness. To be honest though, I didn't really notice anything sweeter about the bites that included the cinnamon-sugar topping. Also, I had some leftover Buttery Brown Sugar Sauce, so I substituted 3 tablespoons of that in place of the butter. It's also great served over this warm cake, if you want it to be sweeter (since the cake by itself is not overly sweet).

INGREDIENTS:
Cake
2 1/4 cups Original Bisquick mix
1 1/2 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 3 medium)
(1/2 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter (or margarine), softened
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 egg
(1/8 cup granulated sugar)
(1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon)

Buttery Brown Sugar Sauce
1 cup butter
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla


DIRECTIONS:
1)Heat oven to 375°F. Spray 8-inch square pan (or 9-inch round if you happened to break your glass square pan and haven't gotten a new one yet...) with cooking spray. In medium bowl, stir all cake ingredients (except 1/8 cup sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon, if using) with wire whisk or fork until blended. Spread in pan. (Sprinkle cinnamon-sugar mixture over top, if using).


2) Bake 25-30 minutes or until gold brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 30 minutes.


3)If using sauce: Meanwhile, in 2-quart saucepan, heat sauce ingredients except vanilla to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly; boil and stir 2 minutes. Remove from heat; cool to room temperature. Stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla. Drizzle over warm cake. Serve warm.

Note**: This cake really does need to be served warm. I didn't think it would make that big of a difference so I had a bite of the cake when it was cold. It was dry and tasted too much like over-ripe bananas. But when it's warmed up (I'd recommend 20 seconds in the microwave if you've had it in the fridge) it is moist and just the right amount of banana flavor.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Squares

Thanks to canned pumpkin, these goodies can be enjoyed year-round! I mostly followed Betty Crocker's recipe for these, but I didn't have the ingredients for the topping. So I decided to make Cream Cheese Frosting, but then I saw a recipe for Browned Butter Frosting. They both sounded so good and I couldn't decide which one to use.

So I ended up making a half batch of each. I'm going to include the recipe for the full batch, but if you decide to go halfsies like I did, make sure you use the Cream Cheese Frosting first, since the Browned Butter Frosting is much more liquidy and will spread by itself. I found that the Browned Butter Frosting has a richer taste, and the Cream Cheese Frosting is sweeter. Also, the recipe calls for 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or the crust, which I didn't have on hand but think would be delicious.

INGREDIENTS:
Base
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter (or margarine)
1 cup quick-cooking oats
(1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts)


Filling
1 package (8oz) cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 can (15oz) pumpkin (1 1/2 - 1 3/4 cup)
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
3 eggs

Cream Cheese Frosting (full batch)
1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter (or margarine), softened
2-3 teaspoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups powdered sugar


Browned Butter Frosting (full batch)
1/3 cup butter (do NOT use margarine)
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2-4 tablespoons milk

DIRECTIONS:
1)Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray. In medium bowl, mix flower and brown sugar. Using pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Stir in oats and walnuts. Press in bottom of pan; bake 15 minutes.


2)In large bowl, beat filling ingredients with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Pour over hot base. Bake 25 minutes or until set and dry in center. Cool completely, about 2 hours.


3.a)Cream cheese frosting: In medium bowl, beat cream cheese, butter, milk and vanilla with electric mixer on low speed until smooth. Gradually beat in powdered sugar, 1 cup at at time, on low speed until smooth and spreadable. Spread frosting over bars (or half of bars if using both frostings).
3.b)Browned butter frosting: In 2-quart saucepan, heat butter over medium heat, stirring constantly, until light golden brown. Remove from heat. Stir in powdered sugar, vanilla, and enough milk until smooth and spreadable. Immediately spread over cooled bars (or remaining half of bars if using both frostings). Refrigerate about 15 minutes or until set. 

For bars, cut into 8 rows by 4 rows. Store covered in refrigerator.

Pumpkin Pie Snickerdoodles

This is a great recipe for when you only have 1/2 cup of pumpkin left over after making some other tasty concoction. I basically just took Betty Crocker's recipe for Pumpkin Cookies, added a bit more flour, and rolled in a cinnamon-sugar-clove-nutmeg mixture.

 They turned out great, with that perfect hint of pumpkin pie (I'm sure you could add more pumpkin if you wanted the flavor to come out more). They are kind of hard to photograph, and I wasn't sure which picture was better, so I included both. Also, if you really have a sweet tooth (or just happen to have a little extra Cream Cheese Frosting that needs to be used up), you can always sandwich the frosting between two cookies. Talk about scrumptious!

Ingredients:
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup butter (or margarine), softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup pumpkin
2 eggs
2 1/2 - 3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup granulated sugar
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
(or 4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice)

Directions:
1)Heat oven to 375°F. In large bowl, beat 2/3 cup granulated sugar, brown sugar, 3/4 cup butter and 1 teaspoon vanilla with electric mixer on medium speed, scraping bowl occasionally, until well blended. Beat in pumpkin and eggs until well mixed. On low speed, beat in 3 cups flour, baking soda, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and salt. Gradually beat in remaining flour until a nice dough consistency is reached (firm enough to hold its shape).


2)In small bowl, mix 1/3 cup sugar and pumpkin pie spices. Shape dough into 1 1/4-inch balls and roll in sugar mixture; place about 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets.


3)Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until set. Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheets.


Tips:
When rolling the dough, I spray my hands with cooking spray so that the dough won't stick to me. It's kind of gross, but it works like a charm. I also like to line my cookie sheet with aluminum foil because it makes it easier to work with just one sheet. As soon as I take the cookies out of the oven, I slide the entire piece of foil onto cooling racks. I can then put a new piece of foil on the cookie sheet (being careful of the hot metal) and start up the next batch. It also keeps the cookie sheet pretty much clean, making clean up a lot easier.

Slow Cooker Chicken Enchiladas

I've been making a lot of things in the slow cooker lately, and thought I'd make a slow cooker version of one of Jeffrey's favorite meals: chicken enchiladas. It was much easier to prepare (because you don't have to defrost and boil the chicken), and Jeffrey said that it was just as delicious as when I make it in the oven. I actually think it tasted better because the chicken absorbs the sauce a lot better. Or maybe I'm just biased because I don't like handling raw meat and I don't like the smell of boiling chicken (or the gross foam that builds up on the water).

Ingredients:
4 frozen chicken breasts
1 can (15 oz) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (7 oz) chopped green chiles
1 can (10 3/4 oz) cream of chicken soup
3/4 cup green salsa
1 tablespoon cornstarch
cold water
tortillas
toppings

Directions:
1)Place frozen chicken in slow cooker; add beans and chiles. Add soup and salsa (you can use more or less salsa, depending on how much flavor you want to get from it -- I actually didn't measure, so I'm just estimating how much I used). Cook on low 5-6 hours.

2)Remove chicken and place in bowl. Combine 1 tablespoon cornstarch with enough cold water to make smooth; add to sauce in slow cooker and turn temperature up to high. Shred chicken and return to slow cooker. Cook on high 15 minutes to let sauce thicken.

3)Spoon enchilada filling over tortilla; add desired toppings; roll up and enjoy.

Topping suggestions:
fresh chopped tomatoes
lettuce
sour cream
shredded cheese
hot sauce

Homemade Hummus

 I actually got this recipe off a can of beans, and love it!

Ingredients:
1 can garbanzo beans
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Reserving liquid, drain beans. Puree all ingredients, adding reserved bean liquid until desired consistency is reached (I use 1-2 tablespoons).

If you divide it into fourths, each serving has about 140 calories. A lot of people eat it with pita bread, but since I'm trying to have fewer carbs, I like to eat it with a serving of baby carrots of slices of fresh jicama. It comes out to about 200 calories, which I find to be a very satisfying and healthy snack.

Easter Basket

 I am really excited about how this turned out. I found this pattern for a little Easter basket. I used two strands instead of three (using Red Heart Super Saver yarn -- cafe and buff), and a K hook (6.50 mm).

The patterns for the lamb egg cozy and duck egg cozy were a little tricky since the pattern made them too big for the plastic eggs that I had. So I just had to keep checking after every round to see if it was time to stop increasing, or time to start decreasing.

For the lamb I used Red Heart Super Saver in buff for the face and ears. I used a boucle yarn that I've had for a long time, so I don't know what the brand is. I used Red Heart Super Saver in light raspberry for the nose detail. For the duck I used Bernat Softee Baby Yarn in lemon, and Red Heart Super Saver in carrot. Both patterns called for beaded eyes, but I don't want Bekka choking on them, so I made some little eyes out of yarn instead. For the duck, I made one single crochet in a magic ring and tied it off. Then I tied the two loose ends together, which bunched it into a circle. For the sheep, I tied two knots right next to each other, and stitched it on. I'm not sure, I keep thinking the sheep eyes make it look sad. I might change it. Anyway, you can do it however you like. The cozies are really cool because the egg pops in and out, so you can still fill it (I plan on filling them with Gerber puffs and yogurt melts for Bekka).

Now the bunny was the hardest, by far. I found this pattern, but wanted to make some changes. So here is my pattern, loosely based on the Lion Brand one. I used Caron Simply Soft in chocolate for the bunny, Red Heart Super Saver in light raspberry for the bow, Bernat Baby Fingering Weight in pink for the nose, and DMC Pewter Gray (#317) for the eyes and whiskers.

BODY (stuff as you go)
Round 1: Make 5 sc in a magic ring (5sc)
Round 2: 2sc in each (10sc)
Round 3: [sc in next st, 2sc in next] 5 times (15sc)
Round 4: [sc in next 2 st, 2 sc in next] 5 times (20sc)
Round 5: [sc in next 3 st, 2 sc in next] 5 times (25sc)
Rounds 6-8: sc in each (25sc)
Round 9: [sc in next 4 st, 2 sc in next] 5 times (30sc)
Round 10: sc in each (30sc)
Round 11: [sc in next, sc2tog] 5 times (20sc)
Round 12: [sc2tog] 5 times (10sc)
Round 13: 2sc in each (20sc)
Round 14: [sc in next 3 st, 2 sc in next] 5 times (25sc)
Round 15: [sc in next 4 st, 2 sc in next] 5 times (30sc)
Rounds 16-20: sc in each (30sc)
Round 21: [sc in next 5 st, 2 sc in next] 5 times (35sc)
Rounds 22-26: sc in each (35sc)
Round 27: in back loops only [sc in next 5 st, sc2tog] 5 times (30sc)
Round 28: in both loops [sc in next 4 st, sc2tog] 5 times (25sc)
Round 29: [sc in next 3 st, sc2tog] 5 times (20sc)
Round 30: [sc in next 2 st, sc2tog] 5 times (15sc)
Round 31: [sc in next, sc2tog] 5 times (10sc)
Round 32: [sc2tog] 5 times (5sc)
Cut a long tail and stitch through 5sc; pull tight and fasten off.

ARMS (make 2)
Round 1: Make 5sc in magic ring (5sc)
Round 2: 2sc in each (10sc)
Rounds 3-10: sc in each (10sc)
Fasten off

LEGS (make 2)

Round 1: Make 5sc in magic ring (5sc)
Round 2: 2sc in each (10sc)
Rounds 3-5: sc in each (10sc)
Fasten off

EARS (make 2)
Round 1: Make 4sc in magic ring (4sc)
Round 2: [sc in next st, 2sc in next] twice (6sc)
Round 3: [sc in next 2 st, 2sc in next] twice (8sc)
Round 4: [sc in next 3 st, 2 sc in next] twice (10sc)
Rounds 5-11: sc in each (10sc)
Round 12: [sc2tog] 5 times (5sc)
Fasten off


TAIL
Round 1: Make 5sc in magic ring (5sc)
Round 2: 2sc in each (10sc)
Rounds 3-4: sc in each (10sc)
Stuff lightly
Round 5: [sc2tog] 5 times (5sc)
Fasten off

RIBBON
ch 21 (or until chain reaches around neck)
Row 1: sc in 2nd ch from hook and each ch across; fasten off (20sc)

BOW
ch 7
Row 1: sc in 2nd ch from hook and each ch across (6sc)
Rows 2-3: ch1, turn; sc in each (6sc)
Fasten off

NOSE
ch 5
Row 1: sc in 2nd ch from hook and each ch across (4sc)
Row 2: ch1, turn; sc in same st, sc2tog, sc in last st (3st)
Row 3: ch1, turn; sc2tog starting in same st, sc in last st (2st)
Row 4: ch1, turn; sc2tog starting in same st (1st)
Round 5: ch1; starting in same st, sc around triangle; fasten off

EYES
make 5sc in magic ring; fasten off

Assembly:
Stitch ears to top of head. Stuff arms, legs, and tail, and stitch to body. Wrap ribbon around neck and join ends. Wrap yarn around center of bow 3-4 times and tie tightly; stitch bow to bunny over ribbon. Stitch eyes and nose onto face. Create whiskers using straight stitch. (**Note: Refer to original pattern to see other options for face detail.)