The Season Of Hope

Today was the first Sunday of Advent. It's been a while since we had a wreath at home but this year we really needed one. When our girls were small we had a special breakfast each of the four Advent Sundays and lit a candle when we sat down to eat. (Then went to church to see another one lit.) This year it was just coffee in a Christmas mug but that was enough.

I didn't grow up in a liturgical church. (Although I think many non-liturgical churches now observe some seasons like Advent and Lent.) But I have come to love the traditional observances, the changing colors of altar linens that reflect the liturgical calendar, and the creeds that we say together. It's how we feel connected. 

And on this holiday weekend when we were without family here, we figured out that we could still be together. One afternoon the little girls and I had a zoom visit while their parents worked on their outside decorations. Little Sister taught me how to cut paper snowflakes. And then she led me in a dance class. Even Daddy-O got involved in that. It's been a while since he and I danced and it was fun. 

It was all so much fun that we decided to do it again the next day. Then I thought, "Why stop with a couple of days? Let's do the 12 days of Christmas!" They have been out of (virtual) school this week so we got three of the days in. So far they have been in charge of planning what we do. And we have a time limit of about an hour. 

We also spent some time this weekend pulling out Christmas decorations. Daddy-O told me that I've decorated more this year than I have in ages. Maybe ever. It's partly because I've been home more. No road trips to see school Christmas programs or choir cantatas. No weekend in the mountains. Just home. And it's partly because we, like everyone else, needs some extra cheer this year. Our house looks like I'm aiming for a "Festival of Lights." Nothing is fancy, but there are little pre-lit trees in multiple corners and on the porches. I'm waiting on a new wreath with lights for the front door. And then I'll declare it finished.

On our 2nd day of zoom Christmas we drew portraits of each other. We had the 3rd day of Zoom Christmas this afternoon. If you haven't zoomed, it's pretty easy. (Is there anyone who hasn't zoomed yet?) Today they taught me some new zoom skills. We did a screen share where we could both draw on the screen. And we could still see each other and chat—see the small windows on the right?—while we were working. We drew the four seasons today. 

Going clockwise from top left we drew Spring, Fall, Winter and Summer. This was so much fun once I found the buttons to click so that I could change colors and line sizes. And erase. They are patient teachers.

Today's 12 days of Christmas zoom also included tic tac toe. Baby Girl and I are pretty evenly matched so we had a lot of no winner games. And then she led me in a stretch class. Thank goodness, for many months now I've been faithfully doing an online fitness class (Grow Young Fitness) so I was totally able do all that this six year old asked for. Now, my form didn't quite look like hers, but I was close enough considering there's over a half century between our ages! I'm glad there are no photos of that activity.

We have ended each of our Zoom visits with a joke session. After three days we might have told all the winter/Christmas jokes we know. Can't wait to see what they have planned next. 

Daddy-O got into the decorating spirit this weekend, too. When you have a red barn in the pasture beside the house, it begs for a big wreath. There is a wreath on the other barn, too. And it won't be long before there is one on the tractor. 

So all in all, it was a good Thanksgiving weekend. Even though this year has been different, some things always stay the same. The advent candle we lit this morning was the candle of hope. This year in particular, we need that. And we need a candle that reminds us to keep hoping.

One For The Books

Pumpkin Crunch

As I searched through the recipes here on my blog to find some of the traditional Thanksgiving foods, like cranberry sauce and pumpkin crunch, I found the recipes attached to photos of previous Thanksgivings where the table(s) groaned under the weight of the dishes. More than once, another surface had to be quickly cleared to find a place for more dishes as the last families arrived with their contribution to the meal.

Like so many of you this year is not going to be that kind of day. We will be having turkey for two. And we surely won't have that many choices of casseroles to fill our plate. I am working on the basics today. Fingers crossed the turkey turns out okay tomorrow. It's a little one. I am never the one cooking the turkey so we hope it will be edible. 

Yesterday I heard from friends and family whose plans were still changing. Plans were aborted at the last minute when people thought really hard about traveling, or sharing a restaurant meal. And one sweet friend planned a celebration of life service this week instead of a Thanksgiving dinner. So what is there to be thankful about this year? 

One of the tables at last year's feast.

For me, high on the list is the huge store of Thanksgiving memories of large gatherings with so much food you never tasted it all. Decades of Thanksgiving memories like that are in my head. And I'm thankful for Zoom so that we can share dessert tomorrow with the littles. Am I thankful that I won't have as many dishes to wash in the morning? Maybe a tiny bit. It was always a lot of work to get the food cooked, packed up and make it to the destination by noon. But it was great fun. 

Maybe you are still having a big gathering. Maybe you are home alone. Maybe it's a small group sitting around tables outside. Maybe some new traditions will be started. I, for one, am just thankful for another day.

If you have never tried this recipe I'm posting it again. It isn't new. We've been making it for years. But I took it to my book club last fall and it was the surprise hit that made it to several Thanksgiving tables last year. Even the non-pumpkin lovers enjoy this one. It's easy. Can be made the day ahead. 

Mine is cooling right now. This year I only put nuts on half of it. (Daddy-O and nuts do not get along well.)  

PUMPKIN CRUNCH

15-oz. can pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
12-oz. can evaporated milk
3 eggs
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 box yellow cake mix
1 and 1/2 sticks butter, melted
1 to 1-1/2 cup chopped nuts

Mix pumpkin, evaporated milk, eggs, and cinnamon thoroughly and pour into a lightly greased 9x13-inch baking dish.
Sprinkle dry cake mix (straight out of the box) over pumpkin mixture. Pour melted butter over cake mix. Sprinkle with chopped nuts. Bake 1 hour at 350º. Let cool completely

Topping:
1 8-oz block cream cheese, softened
1 box powdered sugar
1 8-oz container Cool Whip

Using a hand mixer, blend cream cheese until fluffy. Mix in powdered sugar. Then mix in whipped topping. Spread over cooled pumpkin cake. Refrigerate. Cut into squares to serve. Can sprinkle lightly with cinnamon or chopped pecans to garnish. (I never do this part.) 

One For The Road

This certainly is not an original idea. I've seen it done several times before as you likely have, too. But in this year of accelerated online shopping, it seemed appropriate to put this box beside our front door for drivers who are working long hours. Sometimes it's after dark when a package is dropped off, like the box delivered last night.

Goodness knows there were plenty of empty pasteboard boxes here to hold the goodies. This one happened to be the exact size I needed. And it works as well as a nice basket. Which I didn't have. Doubt the drivers care one bit.

You could fill a box with anything. (Have any Halloween candy left over?) But I ordered something special because I loved these labels. And we selfishly hope plan to eat some of them. They are delicious. I saw someone on Instagram use these particular treats for a box like this. And I instantly recognized them as ones we loved to buy at a local gift store where Mommy lives. She would use them for teacher gifts. Or a tiny surprise for her little girls. And I may or may not have stopped by that lovely shop more than once and picked up a little bag to enjoy on my drive home.

That shop sadly has closed its doors. We still miss the gift shop...and the cookies. I didn't realize that the cookies are available online until I saw the Instagram story. You can use the search box on the website.  I just discovered stores near me that sell these when I was finding the link for this blog post. If you order, you can choose from many, many labels. There's something for every occasion. Party favors. Thank You. Get Well. Holidays. Stocking stuffers. They also come in bigger packages and large containers if a 2-oz bag isn't enough. 

If I hadn't come across these cute little cookie bags, I would have bought individual packaged cookies from the grocery store. Why not homemade goodies? I do love baking, but in today's world a prepackaged treat is just the safest. It certainly is the easiest. And many people feel more comfortable with a wrapped item. 

Why am I even telling you about this? Not at all to say what a nice person I am. (I do try.)  But I wanted to say that this has been so much fun for us. When Daddy-O comes in near dusk, he asks, "Any more gone today?" "Hey! Another water bottle was taken." And that makes us happy. This little box doesn't hold many at a time, so it's easy to see when one or two have disappeared.

Some of these treats will go to other people—the ones who do helpful things but don't come to our front door. It's just a tiny way to say "I see you. I appreciate what you do." During this season of thanksgiving in a year where so much has been upended, it feels good to say "thank you." 

Disclaimer: I am not advertising at all. But someone is sure to ask about the cookies...

These cute cookie bags came from Oh Sugar! You can order them online (shipping is a little pricey) and get the labels you want. But there are many retail locations that carry them. You can do a search on their website for stores in your area. 

 

Another March Around The Sun

I took last week off from blogging. It was my birthday week so I treated myself a little. We did get to see Little Lady, and oh, how she had grown. I ate cinnamon rolls. A friend dropped off the cutest little bundt cakes for us so I really did have birthday cake. (I don't think it counts if you have to bake it yourself.) I got birthday cards and text messages and even phone calls to wish me happy birthday. 

I watched Christmas movies to my heart's content while I started pulling out some Christmas decorations.  Hallmark is the king of this market, but I found some good ones on Lifetime. And I haven't even gotten to the new ones on Netflix. We all know that our beloved Hallmark Christmas movies follow a formula—accidental meeting of people who don't get along, forced togetherness turns into love, the first kiss is interrupted and then at the end when all is well and they DO get to kiss, it snows. Maybe they are fun because they are predictable...in a world where not much else is.

My favorite one of the week—above average for this genre—was Christmas In Vienna. It's from Hallmark. It's worth watching just to see the city of Vienna at Christmas. So many scenes of that beautiful city during the holidays. And I happened to see the female lead do an interview a couple of weeks earlier and she really is a classical violinist. It was refreshing to see a real musician in one of these movies. (I checked. It still comes on a few more times in the coming weeks.)

I also gave myself time off in the kitchen. When I did cook it was recipes I've made many times before. Daddy-O had to fend for himself part of the time. That "meat" on the plate is exactly what it looks like. Spam. Don't judge. I didn't have to cook. I promise I will feed him better this week.

I don't have my week's menu plan done (it's a new thing for me and a hard habit to get going) but maybe it will include something that calls for remoulade sauce. Regardless of my menu, I'm posting the recipe here right now, so that I know where to find it later. I nearly panicked when I went to look for the paper copy the recipe and it wasn't where I thought I had put it.

This was delicious a few weeks ago when I made it to go along with crab cakes. Maybe this week I do something with shrimp. 

REMOULADE SAUCE 

1 cup mayonnaise 

2 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning 

1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped 

1 tablespoon horseradish sauce 

1 tablespoon whole grain mustard (I used German mustard) 

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce 

1 teaspoon Texas Pete hot sauce (or to taste) 

1 teaspoon lemon juice 

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Mix all ingredients and store in refrigerator.

Enchilada Chicken Stuffed Sweet Potato in the Slow Cooker

Enchilada Chicken Stuffed Sweet Potato

Today is Election Day 2020. It calls for some easy, comfort food in the kitchen. 

This recipe fits the bill.

I have seen this recipe from SkinnyTaste pop up on Instagram more than once. The idea that I could bake sweet potatoes and make chicken in my slow cooker at the same time intrigued me. So last week when I had sweet potatoes that needed to be used and a pack of chicken breasts in the freezer that needed to be cooked, it seemed like time to try this. I must say this is about the easiest meal I've ever made. Healthy. Delicious. Easy. What more could you ask for? 

I only made one change. I used a can of enchilada sauce instead of making my own like the recipe suggests. Truth be told, I'll probably use canned sauce the next time—and there will be a next time—but I will use medium sauce instead of mild. You might rather go for hot even. But the mild just didn't have enough pizazz here. Top the stuffed potatoes anyway you like. We went for the basics. Sour cream and cheese. And I was delighted to find the very last parsley waiting for me in the garden. It surely makes a better photo with that little pop of green in the picture!

ENCHILDA CHICKEN STUFFED SWEET POTATOES

4 medium sweet potatoes, skin on

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts (my pack had 2 breasts)

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1 (10-oz ) can red enchilada sauce 

Your choice of toppings: sour cream or Greek yogurt, shredded cheese, chopped scallions, cilantro

Wash and dry the sweet potatoes. Wrap individually in foil. (I love the box of foil sheets for this.)

Season chicken with salt and garlic powder. (I used my house seasoning instead) and place on one end of a 6-qt slow cooker. Spoon 1/4 cup enchilada sauce over chicken. Refrigerate remaining sauce for later.

Place potatoes on the other end. Stack them up to fit. Cover and set to cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours.

When done, remove chicken and potatoes. Place chicken in a bowl and use two forks to shred. Stir in remaining sauce. 

To serve, split sweet potatoes and top with shredded saucy chicken. Sprinkle shredded cheese on each potato and place under broiler for a couple on minutes to melt cheese. (I skipped this step.) Add any other toppings you choose.

I am enjoying seeing fall photos on Instagram. Some even include snow! We don't have much leaf color here yet. Here is what our fall looks like so far...