Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Rosie the Riveter {or Ruthie the Registerer}

"We Can Do It!"

Today is October 31 and our office for the past several years has celebrated with a fun dress up day.

So here I am as "Rosie the Riveter" or should I say "Ruthie the Registerer"!


I love costumes that don't cost a lot!  I spent $2.50 on fabric for the scarf and 50 cents for the poster board.  Thanks to my friend Dee who let me borrow the tool belt and drill =)  Here are a few other in the office that dressed up!  Gotta love my office family!











Monday, October 29, 2012

The Colors of Fall

It's pomegranate season!  Time to enjoy these beautiful ruby gems full of delicious goodness!

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Comfort Food {Chicken Pot Pie}


Today I made a dish that I had never tried making before.  With the weather changing and cloudy cooler days I was in the mood for some comfort food.  I remembered that a few weeks ago I had come across a recipe for Chicken Pot Pie here.

It looked delicious and so right after church I headed for the grocery store with ingredient list in hand.  I did a few adaptations of my own.  I roasted my own chicken legs and thighs instead of buying a whole rotisserie chicken from the store.  Also, I didn't have cognac on hand so I substituted some white wine instead. Oh, and not really being a fan of bought pastry crusts I made my own.  Of course if you want to make this faster by all means go ahead and use it.  Make one and share one with a friend!

Chicken Pot Pie
Ingredients:
3 Tbs Butter
1/2 Onion, chopped
2 large Russet Potatoes, cut into 1" cubes
3 Carrots, cut into inch pieces
1 container of baby Belle Mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup white Wine
3 Tbs Flour
1 1/2 -2 cups Chicken Broth
3/4 cup Milk (I used fat free)
2 1/2 -3 cups Chicken, cooked and cut into small pieces (I used 3 drumsticks and 3 thighs)
1 cup Peas, frozen or fresh
1 tsp Thyme, dried
1/2 tsp Rosemary, dried
A few springs of fresh Thyme
1/2 tsp Poultry seasoning
Salt & Pepper to taste
Pie Crust, unbaked
1 Egg yolk + 1 tsp Water for the egg wash

Add first five ingredients to a heavy pot (dutch oven).  Cook for 10 or until the veggies are a bit soft.  Add the wine and then the flour and cook for a minute or two.  Then add the chicken stock and milk and cook until thickened.  Add the chicken, peas, and seasonings adjusting as needed.Transfer the mixture to the baking dish of your choice.

Roll out pie crust and cu some vent holes.

Place over the mixture in baking dish and press dough over the edges to seal.



Brush the top with the egg wash 

and put in a preheated oven (425) for 12 minutes.  Cover with foil and continue baking for another 20 minutes or until top is golden.  Enjoy!




Thursday, October 18, 2012

Baking Pies for Noah's Heart Fundraiser


This past Friday I spent the evening baking some pies for a fund raiser.  (Read about Noah's Heart here)

I decided to make two pumpkin and one apple.  Since I was baking these to raise money I opted to buy an inexpensive but cute pie plate instead of the disposable foil ones.  I found this really cute one at the local Marshall's store.  It said "Stay Calm and Make a Pie" along the rim.


The other had an apple pie recipe printed on the inside of it.  Cute, cute!


My favorite recipe for pumpkin pie comes right off of the Libby's can but I have adapted it and changed it up a little to suit my taste.  I posted it last November.  This time I used cinnamon, allspice, ginger and pumpkin spice.  If you want to you could just pour the recipe into a glass baking dish minus the crust.

This year I also used an old recipe I have had written down on a little piece of paper.  I believe it came from one of my Mom's cookbooks.  It is a really fool proof pie crust recipe.

Never Fail Pie Crust Recipe (from my Mom's Amish cookbook)


The secret to a good crust is to use ice cold water and don't over mix or handle the crust too much.  Just combine until the ingredients are mixed together. I like to mix up the pie crust ahead of time (the day before) and then refrigerate it in round discs ready to be used.  The recipe makes two pie crusts.







Wednesday, October 03, 2012

Silouettes in the evening

Silhouettes and sunsets... one of the many things I'll miss about summer.



This time of year I am usually driving home right at sunset.  The dark silhouettes contrasting against the painted sky make for a beautiful picture.  I will miss this next month when the time changes and I'll be driving home in the dark.
  
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Tuesday, October 02, 2012

A sweet little girl turns 4!

This past Saturday my friend's little girl turned 4.  To celebrate we had a little birthday party at the beach!  Kate is a little miracle and a big blessing from God.  She is growing up so fast.

Her little friends were excited to celebrate with her...


and so were her bigger friends!


Lighting the candle with the ocean breeze going was a bit of a challenge but daddy got it done.


I think her favorite gift was a guitar which she immediately began to play and entertain us all!  
Happy Birthday dear Kate!!!