Eatables - Applesauce

I turned this:


Into this:


The whole house smelled amazing. And the applesauce tasted pretty good too.

Recipe(ish) after the jump.

Eatables - Oreo Truffles

I wanted to make something fun and delicious for Halloween. When I came across a recipe for Oreo Truffles online, I knew it was a winner. They were a big hit with all of my tasters, and I would definitely make them again. My only change would be to try to find a balance between drizzling and fully dipping the truffles.

Recipe after the jump.

Crafty - Glitter Pumpkin for Halloween

As I was browsing through some magazine or another at the dentist's office way back in September, I saw a Halloween tablescape that included pumpkins totally covered in glitter. Because I have no ability to resist things that are sparkly, I knew I had to try it for myself. I hit up the Dollar Tree for some glitter, and I got these three tubes for a dollar. I was hoping for orange, but the gold was a good second choice.



Then I just got out the modge podge and went at it. Despite precautions, glitter got everywhere. EVERYwhere.



After I had things pretty much how I liked it, I covered the whole pumpkin in a coat of modge podge to try and keep glitter from flaking off willy-nilly. It was mostly successful, but, as I said, glitter still ended up all over the place. The end result turned out pretty nice. There are a few thin spots, but I'm saying those are part of its homemade charm and character. Overall, I'm pleased and I'm going to keep it around as part of my Thanksgiving decor.

Celebrate - Halloween

Happy Halloween!



An owl jack-o-lantern. I saw a picture of this design online, and I loved how it looked. I was so pleased when my attempt turned out as cute as the inspiration.




Lots of treats for Trick-or-Treaters - chocolate for the kids, and dog treats in the bag for dogs. Yes, I did have one dog trick-or-treater.



A costume, just for fun.

Eatables - Apple Pie

One of the things that I absolutely have to do every fall is to make at least one apple pie. This is actually the second apple pie that I have made this fall. The first was a caramel apple pie, and the crust was amazing. From start to finish, it went together effortlessly and the end result was delicious. Unfortunately, the crust on this pie wasn't quite as good.



You can see it a bit in this photo here, but the crust was pretty thick. I had a difficult time rolling out the dough. It kept sticking to the rolling mat and/or the rolling pin. Overall though, it was a decent pie. The apples had a good flavor and density. I'm already planning making another!

Recipe after the jump.

Eatables - Corn Chowder

With the weather just starting to turn colder, I've been excited to try some new soups. This corn chowder was on the top of my list of ones to make. The recipe called for stirring in the bacon, but since I don't care for bacon, I left it on the side.



The chowder had a creamy, slightly sweet flavor. It was great for a cool, crisp fall evening. I plan on making it again.

Recipe after the jump.

Eatables - Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins

Now that it's October, I'm in the mood for all things pumpkin. My cousin told me that she made some chocolate chip pumpkin muffins and they sounded so good, I just had to make some for myself.

I was a little disappointed in how they turned out. They were tasty and moist, but you could barely taste the pumpkin. Actually, they were almost like a strangely dark, plain chocolate chip muffin.

Recipe after the jump is an adaptation from Betty Crocker's Cookbook.

Eatables - Pizza

Homemade pizza has been a favorite of mine since I was young. The one on the left has pepperoni, hamburger, green pepper, onion, and mushrooms. The one on the right is plain cheese.



I make the crust myself using a recipe for Refrigerated Pizza Dough, a recipe passed down from my mom. The recipe makes enough for 4 crusts, so I usually halve it. For the sauce, I take the lazy route and use Ragu's Pizza Sauce, Homemade Style. Once jar is enough for two pizzas.

Recipe after the jump.

Eatables - Chocolate Chip Cookies

These cookies are definitely a favorite. When I was a wee little girl in 4-H, I made these and won a purple ribbon at both the county and state fairs. The 'secret' ingredient that always keeps the cookies soft is the addition of pudding mix.


Today I made the mistake of using butter instead of margarine. The taste is pretty similar, but butter makes the cookies turn out totally flat. Next time it's back to margarine!

Recipe after the jump.

Eatables - Banana Bread

I had a bunch of over-ripe bananas hanging around, so I made some banana bread to use them up. This is one of the two loaves I made. I did a toothpick test before I took it out of the oven, but as you can see, it apparently wasn't quite done and the top center fell as it cooled.




I am not a fan of nuts, so I left those out. Overall, I thought it turned out pretty tasty. If I were to make this recipe again, I would cut down on the oil. The recipe calls for a whole cup, and the bread just didn't need that much.

Recipe after the jump.

Eatables - Beet Cake and "Walmart's Whipped Buttercream Icing"

I was talking with a couple of friends (both of whom bake) a few weeks ago and was shocked to learn that they had never heard of a chocolate beet cake. They have truly been missing out, because if you are at all a fan of chocolate cake, then you will love a beet cake. My only future modification and suggestion for other bakers would be to really process your beets before adding them in. I only semi-mashed mine, and I could tell that there were occasional, very small beet bits in the final product. However, beet cakes almost always turn out amazing, and this was no exception. According to my panel of refined taste-testers (aka housemates) this cake was delicious...until I added the icing.

By request from one of my tasters, I tried out a new recipe for the icing that I found online. It was called "Walmart's Whipped Buttercream Icing." The, er, sampling I did while making the icing tasted okay, but at the end of it all, we all agreed that it had a lard sort of flavor and each bite sort of coated the inside of your mouth. This unpleasant flavor was only enhanced by the fact that I put the leftover cake in the fridge. The chilled icing was really not good. I will not be using this recipe again.

Recipes after the jump.