Happy Thanksgiving!

Our family celebrated as we usually do...

with lots of food, lots of relatives, and lots of laughter.

We are thankful for much.

As we packed up to come home, there were others who were headed to another set of relatives to celebrate again. I am happy to be back at home with a few leftovers for supper. I'll share a few special recipes from today over the weekend, but for the rest of the evening, I'm disconnecting from the web.

"What? We're going to ANOTHER Thanksgiving dinner now?"

Pie Spectacular

I've still not spent any time in the kitchen since I've had all the sinus-y problems  (I am beginning to feel better, thankfully) so I'm sharing this recipe from Mommy. She sent the photo and the recipe last night. She made this last year and her family declared it wonderful. I will say it must be a labor of love. Most of my recipes are pretty quick and easy, but there are times when you just need to do a little more. 

Yesterday I posted about "knitted love." I think this must be "kitchen love." If you don't knit and you don't cook, just say the words "I love you" to someone who needs to hear them today. 

Here is the email I got from Mommy last night:  

(Looks like her someone special got into the pie before she got the topping ready.)

...........................................................................................................................

Make this for someone you love.  (Or maybe make it for someone you'd like to love YOU!)

PUMPKIN PIE SPECTACULAR from Southern Living November 2009

MAKES 8 Servings

HANDS-ON TIME: 20 minutes

TOTAL TIME: 3 hours, 25 minutes (including streusel and topping)

1/2 (15-oz.) package refrigerated piecrusts

2 cups crushed gingersnaps (about 40 gingersnaps)

1 cup pecans, finely chopped

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 (15-oz.) can pumpkin

1 (14-oz.) can sweetened condensed milk

2 large eggs, beaten

1/2 cup sour cream

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 tsp. ground ginger

Pecan Streusel

7 ginger thin cookies, halved  (i.e., Anna's Ginger Thins)

Ginger-Spice Topping, ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Fit piecrust into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate according to package directions; fold edges under, and crimp.

2. Stir together crushed gingersnaps and next 3 ingredients.  Press mixture on bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of piecrust.

3. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.  Let cool completely on a wire rack (about 30 minutes.)

4. Stir together pumpkin and next 6 ingredients until well blended.  Pour into prepared crust.  Place pie on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet.

5. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.  Sprinkle Pecan Streusel around the edge of crust.  Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until set, shielding edges with aluminum foil during last 25 to 30 minutes of baking, if necessary.  Insert ginger cookies around edge of crust.  Let cool completely on a wire rack (about 1 hour.)  Dollop with Ginger-Spice Topping; dust with cinnamon.

PECAN STREUSEL

MAKES About 1 cup

HANDS-ON TIME: 10 minutes

TOTAL TIME: 10 minutes

Stir together 1/4 cup all-purpose flour; 1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar; 2 Tbsp. melted butter; and 3/4 cup pecans, coarsely chopped.

GINGER-SPICE TOPPING

MAKES 3 cups

HANDS-ON TIME: 5 minutes

TOTAL TIME: 5 minutes

Stir together 1 (8-oz.) container frozen whipped topping, thawed; 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon; and 1/4 tsp. ground ginger.

Knitted Love

The good thing about sitting at home more than usual is that I finished a pair of socks in record time.

Yarn:  Cascade Heritage sock yarn

Needles:  Size 2 (2.75 mm)

When I had complained commented on a Ravelry forum about the unexciting plain gray socks I was working on, someone wiser than me replied...

I do a lot of sock knitting, often in boring colors for the people I love. Yes, it doesn’t have the same impact as knitting with some wonderfully colorful new self-patterning yarn in luscious colors, where each row is revealing new color combinations.
But that same boring “same-old, same-old” can also be wonderfully calming and therapeutic when my day has been full of stress, deadlines, rude people. In the prayer-shawl knitting, they talk about knitting prayers into the work. I often find myself praying or holding the intended recipient in my mind as I knit. I try to knit in a little “knitter’s magic” to help the wearer have protection in his day-to-day activities, especially if he’s going to be in dangerous places (police, soldiers), might do dangerous things by accident or on a dare (children, adolescents), or needs healing (the chronically ill or those facing surgery). I think about all the wonderful adventures these socks will have, and the many places he’ll take them in the course of their life.
I charge socks with having a special destiny, to keep the wearer warm and protected, no matter what each day holds.
May your socks carry the same magic every time he wears them.

Thank you for these words of wisdom. My plain gray socks have gone on to their new owner already. May these socks bless the wearer. Hope she will feel the "knitted love."

Now it's time to feel better and get back into the kitchen

Happy Face

My kitchen has been closed this week while I've been hunkered down under a blanket. But I did come out long enough to tag along with Granddaddy to watch Baby Sister today while Mommy headed to the airport to pick up Daddy.

This happy little face would make anyone feel better.

Tea And Sympathy

I'm not posting anything new at the moment. 

I'm staying under a blanket for a day or so.

Turkey Time

Pattern: Knitted Turkey Cloth

Yarn: Sugar 'n Cream

Needles: Size 5

What a fun little knitting project! It could be done in one evening of after dinner TV watching (especially if it's football on the telly.) This little turkey is going in the mail to someone I've never met, a Ravelry friend who kindly sent me a little knitted gift. So this one is a surprise for her--a knitted thank you!

Pretty sure I'll make more of these before Thanksgiving. (If you are a newer knitter, make sure you know how to yarn over before a purl stitch before you start, or you'll do like me and end up a stitch short about row 25.)

Stay-At-Home Night

It was one of those nights when we discussed what was the easiest--going out to dinner or cooking at home. Cooking is sometimes easier. 

Tonight I made a quick soup. A perfect choice since we had both been out in the cold most of the day. The recipe is a favorite here. I like this soup because--in addition to being really good--it doesn't make a huge amount. There will be some left over but not so much that we have to eat it for days and days.

North Woods Bean Soup

2-3 teaspoons olive oil

1 large carrot, peeled & diced (or 1 cup baby carrots, quartered)

1 cup chopped onion

2 cloves garlic (or 1 teaspoon jarred minced garlic)

7 oz. turkey kielbasa, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

4 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1/2 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

2 (15.8 ounce) cans Great Northern beans, drained & rinsed

fresh baby spinach leaves

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add carrots, onion, garlic and kielbasa. Saute 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to medium and cook 5 minutes. Add broth, Italian seasoning, pepper and beans. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.

Place 2 cups of soup in blender and process until smooth. Return pureed mixture to pot and simmer 5 minutes. Remove soup from heat. Add a large handful (about half a regular-size bag is good), stirrring until spinach wilts.

Serves 5 (1-1/2 cup servings)

There are three bowls out tonight because Jessica got home from the big city in time to eat with us. So good to have her here for a couple of days. She brought her knitting home to get a little help from the "knitter-in-chief." (That would be me.) 

When we both pulled out our knitting projects after supper, it was funny to see how different our projects were. She loves bulky wool and large huge needles. And I'm working with sock yarn on tiny needles. Jessica says mine looks like doll house knitting.

She has a squishy-soft cowl and a fun headband/ear warmer on her needles at the moment. And I'm making socks. Just plain gray socks. She'll be done with her two projects before I finish the socks. Maybe I should check out the giant needle kind of projects next time.