Pumpkin Crisp

This comes to me from my old college roommate Jen. She wrote:

We had this at my scrapbook retreat. I swear, it's like a cross between pumpkin pie, pecan pie and a cobbler (served warm over Blue Bell Vanilla ice cream).... It was so yummy. Of course, how can you go wrong with 2 sticks of butter! :-)

Pumpkin Crisp

1 16 oz can of plain pumpkin
1 can evaporated milk
3 eggs
2 cups of sugar
3 tsp pumpkin spice
1 yellow cake mix
2 sticks of butter/margarine
crushed pecans

Blend pumpkin, milk, eggs, sugar and pumpkin spice together with mixer. Pour into a 9 x 13 cake pan. I spray mine with Pam first. This liquid will be runny. Spread drycake mix evenly over pumpkin mixture. Melt butter and drizzle over dry cake mix. Sprinkle generously with nuts and bake at 350 degrees for 50 - 55 minutes. Top with cool whip and/or serve over vanilla ice cream.

Woman's Day

Well apparently there are people out there actually reading this blog. I was contacted by someone from Woman's Day digital outreach team. Yeah me! They sent me a few Thanksgiving ideas to share with all of you. I am out traveling to see family myself for the holidays so I won't be able to try any of these yummy ideas myself but hopefully I will hear from some of you and what you tried. Here are the topics Jagdish shared with me:

• Thanksgiving Recipes 2009
• 8 Divine Thanksgiving Wines - Under $10
• 8 Unconventional Thanksgiving Side Dishes
• 10 To-Die-For Thanksgiving Pies
• 4 Decadent Thanksgiving Desserts

Happy Thanksgiving !!

Turkey and Stuffing done Easy

Looking for an easy Thanksgiving dinner? I found this recipe from Rachel Ray. I will say that we tried the yummy cranberry orange stuffing and it is super easy and yummy! I found the cranberry muffins at Whole Foods. They were a little hard to find but once I found them the rest was easy. I didn't try the turkey and gravy from this recipe...I like to cook the whole bird. You can click on the link above for the recipe. Let me know what you think if you give it a try. Also send me any other quick Thanksgiving recipes you might find. Happy Turkey Day!!

Thanksgiving Ideas

Looking for fun Thanksgiving ideas. It can be anything from recipes, traditions, crafts and decorations. I have been a little busy and could use your help with ideas. I will post some of the crafts we have been working on at home soon.

Leaf Rubbing

Here is another fun fall activity you can do with you children. Go on a nature walk and collect a variety of fallen leaves. If you are able to identify the trees/leaves, even better. Lay your collection of leaves on a smooth surface, vein side up. Place a piece of paper over leaves. Shade lightly over the leaves/paper with a soft pencil or crayon. An image of the leaves should appear. My kids love doing this. They kept saying it's like magic and couldn't wait to make more leaf rubbing collages.

Pumpkin Pumpkin

October is the unofficial month of pumpkins. There are so many fun things to do with pumpkins and way too many books to share. Pumpkin Pumpkin is one of my favorites, it takes you through the cycle of the pumpkin. Here are a few of our favorite things to do with our pumpkin.

1. Visit a pumpkin patch
   
2. Measure and weigh your pumpkin
   
3. Count the seeds
4. Taste the pulp
5. Roast the seeds....wash the seeds, pat dry, coat a pan with oil, add seeds to pan, lightly salt, bake in oven at 400 for 45 minutes.
6. Sing Pumpkin Songs:
   Five Little Pumpkins
   Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate, (hold hands up)
   The first one said "oh my its getting late," (hands on cheeks)
   The second one said "there's a chill in the air," (hug self)
   The third one said "but we don't care," (shrug)
   The fourth one said "we're ready for some fun," (jump)
   The fifth one said "lets run, run, run," (run in place)
   So woo went the wind, and out went the lights,
   And the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight (sit down).
7. Carve your Pumpkin coat the inside with Vasaline to make it last longer

Apples, Apples Everywhere

While apples are in season why not share this wonderful book with your children. This beautiful book by Marjorie Priceman will take you on a wonderful adventure and opens to door to talk to your child about how do items make it to our super markets. The best part about the book is the recipe at the end. You can make a yummy apple pie with your little one.

Have extra apples left over from your pie? Make apple prints. All you need are apples, paint and paper. Cut your apples in half either vertical, showing the apples true shape or horizontal, showing the wonderful star. I like to use plastic forks as handles so we do get too messy. You can even turn your prints into stationary by printing on card stock.

Another fun activity with apples is apple tasting. Run out and buy all the apples that your super market carries and let your little ones try them. Talk to them about which they liked better and why. I learned very quickly after doing this we were a mix household of gala and granny smith lovers.