Love this Crazy Life

Time flies when you are having fun, right? I can’t believe how fast the last month has gone!

Jonathan and Laura returned from Tanzania full of stories, videos, and photos.  I’ll let Jonathan tell you about his experiences in another blog.

After the travelers returned home, we jumped right into a full schedule. Laura wanted to head back to college right away to try and catch up on more assignments, so I took her back to USF just a day after they returned home. A day later, Jonathan and I had an organic farming seminar to attend a few hours from home, so he basically hit the ground running as well.

The following week was Thanksgiving. We were hosting this year, so I was able to plan the event how I wanted it. My rule this year – nobody brings anything, and everyone stays out of the kitchen until time for dishes. The exceptions were Christina, who made the dinner rolls, and Laura, who was my sous chef.  The day was awesome. It was the most stress-free Thanksgiving I have ever hosted!

Our menu was partly traditional, and partly not. As in, we didn’t have any cranberry anything, and no marshmallows made an appearance on sweet potatoes.

We started the meal with a Squash Soup appetizer. While our guests were eating their soup, Laura and I set the rest of the meal on the table.

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The rest of our menu looked like this:

Apple Cider Brined Turkey

Mashed potatoes

A Simple Gravy made with chicken stock (no drippings)

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Green Bean Casserole

Dinner Rolls (recipe follows)

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For dessert, I made a pecan pie, double layer pumpkin pie, and chocoflan

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After our meal, everyone pitched in on dishes, and then we relaxed. We took our Olson family photo (minus one nephew who is currently studying in India) so Grandpa could send out his Christmas letter.  It was nice to celebrate with Anita and Charles, who will be heading back to Canada in a couple of days to celebrate Christmas with Charles’ family. They will be heading back to the mission field after the New Year.

I am so thankful for my family, my in-laws, the outlaws, my friends. The list could go on forever. I have been so blessed this past year! Thank you, my dear readers, for being a part of my life for the last two years. I look forward to sharing more stories about my family, my farm, and successful ventures in the kitchen.

Fly Off the Plate Dinner Rolls

1 egg

1 1/2 cups warm water

4 1/2 cups flour

1/4 cup plus 1 Tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

3 Tablespoons instant dry milk

3 Tablespoons oil

2 1/4 teaspoons yeast

Mix egg with fork. Add ingredients in order recommended by your bread machine manufacturer. Put pan in bread machine. Select dough cycle, push start. After about 10 minutes, push finger into dough. If it is sticky, add more flour. When bread machine is done, shape into buns. Allow to rise about 20 minutes. Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Bake 10-15 minutes

 

Favorite Foods for Fall

The weather has turned colder here. We actually turned the furnace on last week. A few mornings were in the mid-20’s with wind chill readings in the teens. That is when I start craving comfort foods like soups, stews, chili, and pumpkin.

Tuesday brought a much needed get away for my Domestic Goddess friends. We were celebrating a couple of birthdays, and wanted to meet half way between Cottonwood and the Cities. Hutchinson it was.  We ate lunch at Zellas Restaurant (zellas.net), and a few hours later ordered dessert. I guess it shouldn’t come as a surprise that when four women get together for lunch, talking happens.

I had a most excellent mix up meal of half a grilled cheese sandwich (Provolone and cheddar cheese with a sun-dried tomato aioli on whole-grain bread), and a cup of Tomato Basil soup that was topped with a couple of shaved Parmesan cheese swirls and a drizzle of what appeared to be a nice balsamic vinegar. Very delicious!  For dessert, I had a slice of carrot cake.  Very moist, and not too sweet.  I should have taken pictures, I know!  All of these are comfort foods in my book, and totally hit the spot.

Fall weather makes me want to bake, and cook up new things as well. This year, my pumpkin kick is a little stronger. I love Starbucks’ Pumpkin Scones, but they are not exactly the best thing to eat regularly. I have also been craving chili, but Jonathan typically isn’t a big fan of it, but I think it is mostly due to his body’s intolerance of any peppers.  I found a recipe on SparkPeople.com called Unique Healthy Chili that tasted good even though I left out the green pepper.  The icing on the chili cake? It contains pumpkin puree! I tried it out on the family and Nick (our part-time hired help) yesterday, and they loved it!  It had great chili flavor, without being too spicy.  You could kick it up a notch if you like your chili to have an alarm status, but for us it was good as written.  Well, sort of.  Grandma Bredlow’s recipe altering habit is alive and well in this granddaughter!

This recipe is how I made it. The original called for 1 cup of bell pepper, ground turkey, chili beans, and water. With those ingredients, it is 212 calories per serving.

Unique Healthy Chili

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 pound ground pork

1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes

1 can pumpkin puree

1 ½ Tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon pepper

1 Tablespoon granulated beef bouillon

Salt to taste

1 can black beans (rinsed and drained)

1 cup vegetable stock (can use more if you like your chili more soupy)

Heat oil in large skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat, and sauté the onion and garlic until tender.

Stir in the pork, and cook until evenly brown.

Mix in tomatoes, pumpkin and black beans.

Stir in beef bouillon and vegetable stock.

Season with chili powder, cumin, pepper, and salt.

Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes or put in slow cooker.

Serve with shredded cheddar cheese over top if desired.

Serves 6