Pumpkin Butterscotch Cookies

I like winter and colder weather for a few reasons. I enjoy wearing my slippers around the house and cuddling up with a blanket on my couch. I love the feeling of extra blankets on bed when I'm falling asleep at night. The being cold right before you get into a nice warm shower is just wonderful. Snow covered trees and bushes are breathtakingly beautiful.

But some of those reasons are also why I don't like the cold weather. Like being comfy and cozy on the couch doesn't make me motivated to wash dishes (actually not much makes me motivated to wash dishes). And the warmth of my bed in the morning does nothing for getting me up and going early in the day. My showers take longer because why would I want to leave the hot water? And snow has a tendency to turn to an ugly grey color that is not quite as admirable.

Ah well, winter is something you deal with (the good, the bad and the ugly) when you live in the Midwest. In the words of Master Stark "winter is coming" and we gotta drag out our boots, coats, hats, mittens and scarves.

If you want to warm up your house a little bit without turning the heat up, I would suggest some baking. I've got grand plans of cookies, bars, candies and the such this holiday season so stay tuned for recipes. And feel free to send me your address and then maybe you'll get a goody bag in the mail (because we all know I shouldn't eat all the treats I make). 

To start off holiday baking season, I'm sharing with you some pumpkin butterscotch cookies that I made for Thanksgiving. Since our Thanksgiving festivities were smaller in number of people this year, we decided to make only one pie-- apple, which is definitely my favorite. My mom wanted something pumpkin-y and she really enjoyed my last pumpkin cookie, so I figured we should give these a whirl. I had made them before (like back in the day before Pinterest and this blog) so I knew they would be good. They are a nice soft cookie that is bursting with flavor. The dominate flavor is definitely the butterscotch but your mouth is left with pumpkin and cinnamon goodness at the end. I would recommend them for any holiday cookie platter!

Pumpkin Butterscotch Cookies (adapted from Annie's Eats)
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
dash of salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 canola oil
1 cup pumpkin puree (homemade or storebought)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup butterscotch chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon) in a bowl.

In a larger bowl, gently beat the eggs with a whisk. Whisk in the sugar until light in color, about 2-3 minutes. Whisk in the oil, pumpkin puree and vanilla extract. Stir in the flour mixture with a wooden spoon until just incorporated. Gently mix the in butterscotch chips.

Drop mounds of the dough onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 14-16 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through. Allow to cool slightly on the baking sheet and then transfer to a wire rack.

Makes 36-40 cookies of about 2-2.5 inch diameter.

Wheat Rolls

Have you heard the good news?

The greatest show EVER is coming back; well, technically it is a whole new show but it is based on the child of two of the main characters and will have some of the same stars. You know what I'm talking about, right? BOY MEETS WORLD! Now we are going to have Girl Meets World!

Can you just imagine Cory Matthews, the first love of my life, as a father? And Topanga, she'll be the prettiest mom on the block. Any thoughts of whether crazy Uncle Eric will have settled down with a lovely lady? What about Grandma and Grandpa Matthews? Will be get to see Joshua all grown up? Will there be a third actress for Morgan? Oh and we could never forget Shawn, Angela or MR. FEENY.

FEENY!

           FEENY!

                   FEE-EE-EE-EE-EENY!

We'll see how it unravels. I, for one, cannot wait! Come on over, I'll make the bread (like these delicious wheat rolls we had for Thanksgiving) and we'll get watching a seven season marathon of BMW!

Wheat Rolls (from King Arthur's Whole Grain Baking)
Ingredients:
1 cup lukewarm water
1/4 cup orange juice
1/2 stick unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces
3 tbsp honey
1 1/4 tsp salt
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup instant dried potatoes (not cooked)
1/4 cup nonfat dry milk
2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted, for topping

Directions:
Combine the water, orange juice, cubed butter, honey and salt in a large bowl. Begin to mix in the flours with a wooden spoon, but using your hands when the spoon no longer suffices. Knead the dough until you have a smooth dough, about 8-10 minutes. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap; allow to rise until it is puffy about 2 hours (maybe less if your house is warmer than mine).

Lightly grease a 9 X 13 inch baking pan.

Gently deflate the dough and transfer it to a lightly greased countertop. Divide into 16 equal (or as close to equal as you can get) pieces. Roll each piece into a ball. Place the rolls into the prepared pan, making sure any seams are facing downward and spacing them evenly. Cover with lightly greased plastic wrap and allow to rise for about 2 hours. They will once again get puffy and end up touching each other.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Remove the plastic wrap and bake until they are brown on top, about 25 minutes.* Remove from oven and brush with melted butter, if desired. Serve warm.

*If you are planning on freezing the rolls: I removed them from the oven, let them cool, covered them with foil and froze them. The day before Thanksgiving, I removed them from the freezer to let them thaw. To reheat, bake in a preheated 350 F oven for 8-10 minutes. Then brush with the melted butter.

Green Bean Bundles

While I was growing up we had family friends that lived almost right across the street. The daughter, Aimee, is my age and we went to school together for as long as I can remember. Once we were late for 3rd grade because we were playing on the snow banks in the church parking lot we had to walk through. I remember this vividly because I have always been, and will always be, a rule follower and walking into the classroom during the pledge of allegiance is not the action of a good little girl! We would play for hours with these plastic animals in her basement- my favorite was the family of white tigers. Sometimes when her mom and my dad were both out of town on business trips, we would combine the remainder of our families and head out to dinner at Ponderosa (don't even get me started on how terrible that place is...); the waitress once thought that Aimee and I were twins. 

Because both of our extended families were located in states far away, there were many Thanksgiving that we would break bread together. I don't know why (I will hazard a guess because my sister HATES green bean casserole) but one year Sara showed up with these green bean bundles. Both families loved them and they have become a permanent staple of our Thanksgiving feast. These guys a lot less labor intensive than the traditional GBC (especially if you make it from scratch, which is yummy, but not good for the mushroom haters) but a third of the ingredients is bacon. Come on, you can never go wrong with bacon, right? So try them out, even your green vegetable haters (aka my dad) will eat a bundle or two.

Green Bean Bundles (from the kitchen of our childhood neighbor, Sara)
Ingredients:
2 16-oz cans whole green beans, drained
12-16 slices bacon, cut in half
1 8-oz bottle French dressing

Directions:
In the microwave, cook the slices of bacon until they are slightly cooked but still malleable (about 1-2 minutes total). Pat dry with paper towel.

Arrange the green beans into bunches of 8 and wrap a half slice of bacon around each bundle, securing with a toothpick. Place all the bundles in a large baking dish. Pour the dressing over the beans. Cover and chill for at least 3 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Bake uncovered for 40 minutes, turning over the bundles halfway through the cooking time. Serve hot.

Orange Cranberry Sauce

I know this is a little backwards-- sharing with you Thanksgiving recipes AFTER the holiday. But I certainly cannot post recipes before I have actually made the dishes and until this blog has been around for awhile, I won't have the holiday dishes until after the holiday. So bear with me, ok? And enjoy the insight into Thanksgiving in my parents household.

Typically, Thanksgiving is all full of tradition at our house. Yes, the food is pretty traditional, but it is more the activities that make the weekend. My dad makes a pie (or two or three) early in the morning and a cinnamon crisp from extra crust for breakfast. We watch the Lions football game (because we're in Michigan). We eat food. We take at least one walk around the block (either before or after dinner or both). We scour the multitude of ads and make our plan of attack for Black Friday. We (the girls only-- my mom, sister and I) get up nice and early and head out with the crazies for some shopping which typically includes a soft pretzel partway through the morning and long lines and coupons and everything else associated with the madness of the day. Then we head home laden with bags to rest up for the afternoon. Friday night (and sometimes Saturday depending on the schedule) kicks off the Christmas season with leftover turkey sandwiches, chips and dip, pickle tray, and raw veggies in front of the television playing "White Christmas". We sing along (because obviously we know all the words) and lament the fact that every year the housekeeper cannot help but pick up the phone and overhear the wrong part of the conversation between Bob and Ed.

Well this year, unfortunately my sister and her family did not get to make the trip to Michigan for Thanksgiving. So we did a few things differently. Some of those included food! We have also been a canned cranberry sauce family (and don't get me wrong, I love the ridged deliciousness) but I had been itching to make my own and my parents were all for it. So we did. I read a lot of recipes online and we decided to add orange to enhance the flavor and start with a small amount of sugar and work our way up. We like tart things for the most part, so feel free to up the sugar if you want.

We all loved it. It is safe to say this is a permanent replacement (or depending on how many people are in town for the holiday maybe a permanent addition?) to our Thanksgiving feast. It would go great with pork or beef, if you are looking for a quick and easy side for Christmas as well. My only regret-- that we didn't make more!

Orange Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients:
12 oz bag of fresh cranberries
zest of 1 orange
juice of 2 oranges, plus water to reach 3/4 cup
dash of cinnamon
4 tbsp granulated sugar
4 tbsp brown sugar

Directions:
Rinse and drain cranberries. Place them in a medium pot. Add the orange zest, juice with water, cinnamon and 3 tbsp of each sugar. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Taste the cranberries and add last 1 tbsp of each sugar if still very tart. You can add additional sugar, equal amounts of each type, until you get to your desired sweetness. The total of 8 tbsp leaves it pretty tart; I've seen recipes up to double that amount so go wild if you want it sweeter.

Remove from the heat and refrigerate for a few hours until it sets up. Serve cool.

Makes about 2 cups of cranberry sauce.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving, y'all! I'm thankful for so many things in my life including my family, friends and you! Thanks for reading and sharing this journey with me.


Here are some pictures to share our day of food with you. A few recipes will follow eventually. I hope you are enjoying your meals, football, basketball, and shopping this weekend.

Tom, the turkey!

A little bit of wine

Sausage, cornbread and sourdough stuffing

Green bean bundles

Whole wheat rolls

Lime jello salad

Citrus cranberry sauce

Mashed red potatoes

The full spread!

My dinner plate

Apple pie (sorry it's half eaten :))

Okay. I'm about to fall asleep into a tryptophan coma.

Happy thanksgiving!

P.S. Make sure you save the bones from your turkey--- we're making turkey stock!

Butternut Squash Ravioli

Homemade pasta has been on my bucket list for a long time. I like the idea of making the dough, rolling it very, very thin, tossing it in boiling water for such a short time and ending up with a delicious bowl of noodles (of course garnished with some sort of delectable sauce). Aww... it would feel as if I was in Italy...

However, I do not have a pasta roller so although this dream may one day become reality, I rely these days on pre-rolled thin pieces of noodle for my homemade pastas. The first time I came across wonton wrappers as shells for raviolis in a Cooking Light cookbook, I knew I had to try it. Boy did they work great.

This butternut squash ravioli is a perfect use for that squash you picked up during one of the last farmers' markets of the season (the first time I made it I used a squash from my CSA box in NC). The squash and sage compliment each other perfectly, the butter becomes nicely caramelized, and the walnuts add a satisfying texture. You and your guest will feel like you are eating at a 4 star restaurant as you dig in to this dish.

Butternut Squash Ravioli (adapted from Easy Food and Wine)
Ingredients:
For ravioli:
1/2 cup low fat ricotta cheese
1/2 cup cooked and mashed butternut squash* (about 1/2 squash)
dash of nutmeg
16-20 wonton wrappers

For sauce:
2 tbsp butter
1/2 small onion, diced
1/2 tbsp fresh sage, minced
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Directions:
Combine the ricotta cheese, squash and nutmeg in a small bowl and mix until combine thoroughly. Working with a few wonton wrappers at a time, add 1-2 tsp filling to the center and then moisten the edges with water. Bring the edges together and twist to seal. Repeat until all the wrappers are filled. Heat a large pot of water to boil.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a small pan over medium heat. Add the onion, sage, and walnuts and cook until the onion is softened about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the parmesan cheese.

Once the water is boiling, add the raviolis and cook until they float to the top of the water, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from water with a slotted spoon.

Serve with the raviolis topped with the sauce.

Serves 2.

*You can roast the butternut squash until soft enough to mash. Or for a quicker cook, cut the squash in half, scoop out seeds, place the cut sides down in a baking dish, add 2 tbsp water and microwave for 7-10 minutes until the flesh is cooked.

Apple Cinnamon French Toast Casserole

I know, I know. Thanksgiving is all about dinner. The turkey. The mashed potatoes. The green beans. The rolls. The cranberry sauce. The stuffing. The gravy. The pies. The eating way too much that you have to loosen your belt. The falling into a food coma while watching the Lions play (and maybe win this year?). The "we should take a walk" because we ate too much. The leftover turkey sandwiches on Friday.

            Side bar-- is anyone else hungry now? I'm so ready for all that food to be in my mouth on Thursday. Can. Not. Wait.

But in addition to dinner, you'll probably be eating breakfast; you know, to stretch out your stomach and warm up for the real show. Or maybe you'll need breakfast on Friday or Saturday before the family leaves to head back to reality. If so, you'll probably want something that doesn't take a lot of effort (since you're putting so much time and energy into dinner). I have the perfect solution for you! Overnight french toast-- specifically this apple cinnamon french toast. It is delicious and so easy. It's kinda like sweet stuffing that you eat in the morning. Feel free to multiple to feed the hoards of people at your house.

I expect this to be on your holiday menu (doesn't have to be Thanksgiving, but certainly around Christmastime). You'll enjoy it. I promise :)

Apple Cinnamon French Toast Casserole
Ingredients:
4 cups white bread (I used Vienna bread), cut into 1 inch cubes
1 apple, cored and diced
2 oz cream cheese, diced
4 eggs, beaten
2/3 cup milk
2 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Directions:
Grease a 8 X 8 inch baking dish. Place half of the bread and half of the apple in the dish. Top with the cream cheese. Top with the rest of the bread and apple.

Combine the eggs, milk, syrup and cinnamon. Pour over the bread. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 375 F. Bake for 45 minutes until set. Serve topped with more syrup (and alongside crispy bacon!).

Serves 3-4.