Thursday's Dinner

I want to rewind to last Thursday so I can share our yummy family dinner with you. Last week I was trying to use things I already had in the house and not go shopping - a little cleaning out. I was surprised by some of the things I managed to pull off, but Thursday's nights dinner definitely topped them all. We had Kelly's Chicken Noodle Soup with her grandma's egg noodles and butternut squash pizza. It was a fabulous combination - yummy!

This was my first time making egg noodles - I must admit they turned out a bit chewy. I'm assuming I didn't let them dry long enough (I didn't realize I should have made them ahead of time and we were all getting grumbly tummies so they only got dried for 10 minutes)- can anyone shed some light on this? I have absolutely no talent when it comes to making anything from any sort of dough that involves mainly flour and water, yet I keep trying.
Add yeast and we complicate things a thousand-fold. It is just not something I have a knack for, but I keep banging my head against the wall with it because I love eating anything made from a dough that is mainly flour and water.

The butternut squash pizza is one of the few recipes that I have made more than just a couple of times. I like to try new recipes and this sometimes means that ones we have tried that we like don't get made again simply because we are trying new recipes. So, if we've eaten a particular recipe time after time, it's really good in our book! This pizza is fairly easy to put together too. Just chop up an onion and a small butternut squash, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and roast at 425 until tender (usually about 15 minutes). Get your pizza dough rolled into your favorite shape (you could use ready made or homemade) while the squash and onions are cooking. Drizzle the dough with a little olive oil and sprinkle with parmesan or asiago cheese. Then add the onions and squash and sprinkle on a little more cheese. Put it back in the 425 oven to bake for another 10-15 minutes (until crust is golden and crispy - this really is best on a thin crispy crust). Then enjoy!

A little bit of everything

I've been fighting a cold since last Thursday and I think I'm getting over it today as I sit here breathing freely through my nose. So, I haven't done much crafting for the past few days - a little bit of work on the boys costumes that I will show later, but not much other than that. I did manage to do a few other things though....

1) I got my hair cut yesterday. I tried out someone new. I'm not so good at staying with one person - if I have one bad experience with them, I cut them off, at least for a little while. If their price it too high (not a problem here in Idaho, but very much an issue in California), I will go to them occasionally and fill in with a less expensive stylist. The last time I got my hair colored (I have a ton of gray and am way too vain to let it show) before I had Baby N was the day before he was born. It didn't really take and even turned my hair a bit green. I swore off this stylist because of this, but then I thought that maybe it wasn't her fault, it was probably the hormones.

So, the verdict of yesterday's cut and color experience - good. It is my same old hair style (my hair is pulled back here - I hate having it on my face!) and I was trying to go for something a little different. I think I'll have to either chop it really short or grow it out to get a really different look. Maybe I will chop it next time. I'm tired of this hair style, but it is a good haircut. It lays nicely and it took more than ten minutes to do (the reasons why I left my last stylist). And the best part - I got my hair cut, colored, and highlighted for the same price as just my haircut in California.

2) We made these delicious apple cakes, a recipe that my family started making when I was a teenager. Can you tell what they are supposed to be? Probably not, so I'll tell you - ghosts! My little ghost pan was probably not the best for this cake as it has a streusel topping that just bubbled and boiled over making a gooey, ooey, yummy mess that didn't do much for the shape of the ghost. I tried to make some changes in the recipe to make it healthier, but I think the streusel thwarted my efforts. Anyone know a way to make a healthy streusel?

Here's the recipe without any modifications:

Yummy Apple Cake
4 cups apples peeled and chopped
2 cups sugar
Cover apples with sugar and let stand for 10 to 20 minutes.

Sift together 3 cups flour, 2 tsp soda, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp cinnamon.

Blend 2 eggs and 2/3 c. oil into apple mixture. Add flour mixture, stirring just until blended. Add 2 tsp vanilla. Pour into 9x13 pan.

Mix and spread on top: 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup flour, 1 cup chopped nuts, 1/2 cup butter.

Bake at 350 for 50 to 60 minutes.

3) And while we're on the subject of food, Darcy tagged me for a food related meme - a food factoid for every letter of my name. Here we go...

J - Juice is a good breakfast beverage and breakfast is by far my favorite meal. I love cereal, oatmeal, pancakes, yogurt, waffles, french toast, eggs, omelettes, etc. I don't usually eat breakfast how I would really want to, but I still love it!

E - Escargot is something I've never tried and really have no desire to try.

S - Sushi is something I tried and was surprised to find it wasn't so bad. I'm not in love with it, but I'm not opposed to it either.

S - Spaghetti was my favorite dinner when I was a kid.

I - Ice cream is by far my favorite food. It got me through my first pregnancy. It's my favorite treat. I had a few ice cream birthday cakes as a kid - ice cream birthday cakes with ice cream on the side. I scream, you scream, Jessi screams for ice cream!!


4) And on my crafty to-do list - get going on the 11 purses I cut out last week (this was before the cold hit). Some of these will go in the shop and some I will save for the craft show.

We got a late start to this week because Ryan had the day off yesterday. Three day weekends are the best! Even if you don't go somewhere, it's so great to have an extra day to sleep in, especially when you're a little under the weather.

More Autumn

I'm not sure why I am so into autumn this year. I am normally a fan of autumn, but not like this year. This year autumn is my best friend. I walk outside and my heart jumps upon feeling the crisp air. I glory in those days that are dreary and i n those days that are full of golden autumn light. Everything about this season is making me a very happy girl this year.

Yesterday we made Amy's Pumpkin Chocolate Chip muffins and they really are "mackin good." Little P couldn't keep his hands off of them - every time I turned around he had another muffin. I guess that's what I get for leaving them in reach of a three year old. Even Baby N was a big fan and he's been a bit of a picky eater lately. This is only because he's finally going to have more than six teeth and it seems they are all coming at once - poor guy. Oh wait, poor me! I'm the one who was up with him four times last night while he cried and cried and cried.

And in the spirit of destashing and autumn, I put together some Autumn Inspiration/Goody Packs for The J Shop. Check them out!

Happy Autumn everyone! Again! (This is probably not the last time you will hear this from me.)