Calling all Pumpkin Eaters!

Do you want to know something funny?

I don't like pumpkin. Neither does my mom.

As in pumpkin anything.

But we both love to cook pumpkin everything!

 Our families love pumpkin (everything), so we are more than happy to oblige their taste buds.

Especially in the fall when the weather is cooler and the smell of (anything) pumpkin is just heavenly as it cooks. 

 One of my favorite things to make each year is mini-pumpkin cheesecakes...with gingersnap crust. I have posted this recipe before, but it is one worth repeating. (According to the taste-test-experts that eat my cooking.) 

 It starts with a crust made of crushed gingersnaps and graham crackers. I always throw in a pinch of cinnamon as well. (The entire recipe is below.) 

 I use the end of a potato peeler to pack in the crust. I use one of those mini-cheesecake pans where the bottoms pop out. I ordered mine online. In fact I have two of them and they are so easy to use and worth the  (small) investment.  Funny story: TWICE my husband has thrown away the silver cylinders that go in the bottom of the pans. He always forgets what they are and thinks they are some kind of washer or disc. TWICE I have rescued them from their trashy fate. (And the Hubs is the one that LOVES cheesecakes!)

 I use an ice-cream scoop to put the same amount of filling in each spot. I know I did not take a picture of that, but believe me, that is what I do!  

 This is right after they came out of the oven. They do fall back a little after they cool, but that is expected. Don't let it scare you. 

 I made the pumpkin treats one day during a football Saturday and I put the mini-cheesecakes on this cute platter. I just thought I would show it off before it was filled with pumpkin cheesecakes. 

 How cute are these little bite-size cheesecakes?  

 With the cheesecake pan, they are so easy to do. It would be fun to make an assortment of mini-cheesecakes for a party....Or Thanksgiving! 

 I like to pipe my cool whip on the top, just to add to the cuteness factor.

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes
Ingredients
1 package (8 oz)  Cream Cheese, room temperature
½ c. pumpkin puree
¼ c. + 2 tbsp. sugar
1 egg
2 tsp. heavy cream
¼ tsp. vanilla
¼ tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. pumpkin pie spice 
¹⁄₈ tsp. nutmeg

For the crust:
8 gingersnap cookies
1 graham cracker
1½  tbsp. melted butter
1½ tsp. brown sugar
¼ c. pecans
pinch of cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a mini cheesecake pan with baking spray. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a food processor, grind all ingredients for crust, except for the melted butter. The mixture should resemble slightly coarse crumbs. Remove mixture and pour melted butter over. Mix until crumbs are wet. Press into the bottom of each hole. Place in oven and bake for 10 minutes.
3. While crust is baking prepare filling beating together cream cheese, sugar and pumpkin puree until smooth. Add spices, vanilla, heavy cream and egg. Mix until just combined.
4. Pour filling over each crust, dividing evenly. Place in oven and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool in pan for 20 minutes before removing cheesecakes (yes your cheesecakes will sink a little, this is normal).
5. Remove cheesecakes from pan using the bottom of a wooden spoon. Using a butter knife, remove metal bottoms and place cheesecakes in an airtight container. Refrigerate for 2 hours before serving.

Linking to:

Wow Us Wednesday

Open House Thursday

Foodie Friday
Tutorials, Tips and Tidbits
On The Menu Monday
Metamorphosis Monday

Turning over a new leaf...tablecloth

Just a simple Sunday afternoon dinner outside, enjoying the beautiful fall weather. My dishes are not the traditional fall colors, but I set the table according to a 

vintage tablecloth

I got from my mother. 

 I still wanted my tablescape to have a "fall" like theme, even if the colors were a little different for the season. I love the retro feel of the tablecloth. I used the colors of the corn to decide what dishes to use. 

 It just so happened that I had leaf dishes that matched the tablecloth as well, so I was sure to include them in the tablescape. They worked out perfectly. 

 Of course, I had to use some corn in the tablescape, since the tablecloth is covered in corn design. I chose a couple of Indian ears of corn, that were more on the muted side. 

 I cut off parts of the corn husk and used it to wrap up the silverware at each place setting. I used a (very small) piece of clear tape to keep the corn husk wrapped around the utensils. 

 I purposely tried to use a different color of husk at each plate. The colors of the corn and corn husk blended in perfectly with the muted greens and blues. 

 My leaf dishes and green goblets are both Wal-Mart specials. Neither were over $1, as I bought them both after the holidays. 

 I put some cabbage plants, pansies and the corn in an old earthenware bowl for the simple centerpiece. 

 While the corn skirted the edge of the tablecloth, the inner part of the cloth is scattered with leaves. My plates were a perfect match. 

 When it was time to use the silverware, it tore apart easily and that little piece of tape in the back was not a problem! 

 Sometimes the very simple tables are just as wonderful as the grand tables with expensive dishes. 

Especially outdoors, on a lazy Sunday afternoon, with beautiful weather, with some of my favorite people! 

Linking to:

Wow Us Wednesday

Open House Thursday
Tablescape Thursday
Tutorials, Tips and Tidbits

Apple Butterscotch Bars---And So It Begins

When I say, "And so it begins...," I mean my effort to supply you with (what I think are) tasty recipes to use during the upcoming holiday season. 

Then I think to myself, "Really, Self?  It's not like people can't just go to Pinterest and look up any kind of recipe they want in the entire world." 

But Self will not listen and so it begins that over the next several weeks I will share recipes with you. My promise is that every recipe I share will be tried and true and tasty! Like the Apple Butterscotch Bars for instance. Oh. My. Word.  These even got two (very large) thumbs-up from my two youngest sons. 

I started with this recipe because I had some apples I needed to use up. I can't even remember what kind of apples they were. I know they were not baking apples and they still worked very well. I am one of those kind of girls that makes-do with what she has on hand. I peeled the apples then chopped them up before mixing them in. 

I put the mixture in a casserole dish/cake pan and sprinkled butterscotch chips over the top of the batter right before I put it in the oven. Deliciousness. 

The recipe did not call for this, but I added it and it was wonderful.....I added caramel to the top of the cake bars right when they came out of the oven. The caramel melted down into the cake bars. It was SO good. 

I have added it to the recipe I am including. It is a step you do not want to leave out! 

Apple Butterscotch Bars with Caramel Topping

2 c. sugar
1 c. oil
3 eggs, beaten
1 t. vanilla extract
2-1/2 c. all-purpose flour
2 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
1 t. cinnamon
3 c. apples, cored, peeled and chopped
1 c. chopped nuts
1 c. butterscotch chips

Combine sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla in a large bowl. Mix in flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon; mix well. Stir in apples and nuts. Spread in a lightly greased 13"x9" baking pan; sprinkle with butterscotch chips. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes. (Optional)...When the bars come out of the oven, spread melted caramel over the top. (You can use the kind that is used on ice cream). Also I used a mixture of walnuts and pecans (because that is what I had), but I liked the walnuts best. It gives it some crunch! Makes about 3 dozen.....if my sons are not at your house! 

Just so you know, my recipe did not make 3 dozen. My sons cut their first (generous) piece to taste-test. Then after that the next piece(s!!) were even more generous....as you can imagine. 

Enjoy this delicious recipe. 

Linking this to:

Wow Us Wednesday

Foodie Friday

The 80's Called and they Want Their Furniture Back...

Way back when I showed these two pieces we acquired...for free. 

I had finished painting them, but had not put the new handles on the doors, nor had I put the new backing on the two units. I finished them shortly after the post, but I never got around to featuring them again. 

Not only did the two units get new paint (Coco and Duck Egg Annie Sloan), new oil rubbed bronze handles and a new bead

board back, but they got moved to the other side of the room. 

I swear there is a big entertainment/storage unit in Ballards catalog that is almost the exact same color as the Coco sans the Ducks Egg. I love the Ducks Egg showing through. Ballard's should take note! Ha! 

I especially love how my globe collection that sits atop the entertainment unit brings out the colors of the furniture exactly. 

Let me remind you how the two pieces looked the day we got them. They had been my sister-in-law's and she wanted something new. When she came to my house this past summer she did not even recognize the pieces. She wanted them back! 

I used our saws-all and cut off the dated piece of trim that was on top of each of them. There was also some brass trim that went around the bottom doors but I could not get it out. So I just left it and used my chalk paint to paint right over....and it worked perfectly! 

The backs that came with them were just that flimsy press board. I replaced it with bead board. 

The room where we put this unit is behind the den (which is behind the living room). We don't really have a name for the room, but I guess it would be considered a study. It is the room where I hang out the most. You can probably tell by all the vintage classroom material. This is the room where we have the big computer which I still use frequently. I keep all my photographs on an external hard drive on the big computer. I use my laptop to peruse everyone's blogs. 

I also have vintage Oklahoma memorabilia in the room as well. I thought the long side of the piece was the perfect place to hang the old Oklahoma banners. It breaks up the long side and has great muted colors. (Those are vintage Oklahoma postcards framed beside it.)

When I painted the two pieces, I painted them completely in the Duck Egg chalk paint first. It did cover it pretty well, but since I knew I was going to put another color on top, I did not make sure it was painted precisely. The wood was that shiny 80's wood (?) and the chalk paint went right over it with no problem. I then painted the Coco on top of the Duck Egg and only painted one coat of that. There were places where I went back and did a second coat, but not very many. 

I then used Minwax in the "Natural" color and waxed both pieces liberally. Then I took a soft sand block and sanded off places I wanted to sand. Some I went just to the Duck Egg and some places I went down to the wood. I buffed the wax and it turned out exactly how I had hoped. 

I used the bead board from Lowe's that comes already cut into the half sheet. It was the exact size we needed for each of the two back pieces....IF we nailed it up going horizontally. I thought that worked out great and gave it a little different feel. I put a little of the Minwax Natural on the bead board just to take the "whiteness" down a notch. 

Since the room is full of muted colors, the piece blends in perfectly. 

It has loads of storage, display and even great space on top. 

I'm SO glad my sister in law decided to update her living room!! 

Linking to:

Open House Thursday

Furniture Friday

Tutorial Tips and Tidbits

Metamorphosis Monday

Wow Us Wednesday