Cream Cheese Pumpkin Pie

With Thanksgiving coming this week, I wanted to make a twist on your traditional pumpkin pie for dinner with friends.  I found the recipe here and for once did not tweak:

I started with an unbaked pie shell (yes, it’s premade.  I’m moving and working on cleaning out my pantry/small freezer a little.  Don’t judge.)

 

I forgot to bring the cheese to room temp and was impatient, hence the clumps.  (My microwave died last week and I’ve nixed another because of the move – yes, we’re in sad shape here lately – so I couldn’t just zap it before mixing.  HA)

The cheese layer is 8 oz of softened cream cheese, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla and 1 egg mixed together (Combine all but the egg together – then mix in your egg).  Pour into your unbaked pie shell.

Next, mix 1 1/4 cup pumpkin puree (either canned or fresh),  1/2 cup sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp ginger and 1/4 tsp nutmeg.  Carefully beat in 2 eggs and 1 cup evaporated milk before pouring over the cheese layer. 

Bake at 350 for 1 hour and cool before enjoying.

I’d love to be able to give you a great picture of a beautiful finished pie or slice of pie.  I really would.  Instead, you’ll have to settle for the leftover pie that was demolished when Little Man discovered it on the kitchen counter.

He thought it was delicious.

Butternut Squash Lasagna

My obsession with finding new squash recipes this fall started with this:

It created a need in me to find all sorts of new and different squash recipes to try. I stumbled upon this recipe originally in Mother Earth News. I tweaked the original.

What you'll need (the original - my changes are bolded below):
1 tbs olive oil
1 (11⁄2- to 2-pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups whole milk
Pinch of nutmeg
12 no-boil lasagna noodles
2 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Saute 1 diced shallot and then add cubed squash, toss to coat and season with salt and pepper.

Pour the water into the skillet, cover and simmer over medium heat until the squash is tender, about 20 minutes.

Transfer the squash to a mixing bowl or food processor and mash. Season the squash purée to taste with more salt and pepper.

Melt the butter in a medium-size saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and whisk for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in 1/2 cup white wine and 3 1/2 cups of milk. Bring to a low boil over medium- high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, whisking often, about 5 minutes. Add the nutmeg. Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly butter a 13-by-9-by-2- inch glass baking dish. Spread 3/4 cup of the sauce over the prepared baking dish. Cover the bottom of pan with one layer of lasagna noodles. Spread half of the squash purée over the noodles. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese. Drizzle 1/2 cup of sauce over the cheese. Repeat layering once more, finishing with a layer of noodles covered only by white sauce.

Tightly cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 40 minutes.

My helpers were trying to get into the cheese while waiting for the next step.  They were not impressed when I moved it out of reach after taking this picture.

Remove cover, sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses over the lasagna and continue baking until the sauce bubbles and the top is golden, about 15 minutes longer. Let the lasagna stand for 15 minutes before serving.

Ooey gooey deliciousness.

Ooooohhhh yeaaaah.

So, if you find yourself in the same conundrum I’m in (with lots and lots of squash), I’d suggest giving this a whirl.  I think buttercup could also be substituted for the butternut for just as delicious a meal. 

Enjoy!

Cold Weather Goals Update:

You can find my original goals here:

1) Personal

• I’ve lost 6 pounds and am down to 154.  Awesome.

2) Family

• We’ve had a few messy crafts.  One in particular involved preserving beautiful fall leaves in melted beeswax.
• We’ve had some play dates.  We need more.
• I have 1 handmade Christmas gift left to make and then some baking to do on the last week.

3) Kitchen

• I’ve tried quite a few new sweets.  One involved oatmeal cookie eyeball cookies for Monkey to take to school for her Halloween party (they were supposed to be peanut butter cookies but peanut products are a no-no to send to school because of allergies).

4) Turning house into home

• This is all one big SCRATCH off my list.  You may ask why I’m scratching it all at once.  The answer is simple.  We are MOVING.  Officially, as of December 23rd, we will be residents of the St. John Valley again.  We’ll temporarily be living with my folks (a month or 2), so I won’t be turning a house into home until next spring – maybe summer,  depending how quickly we can sell this place. 

How are your lists coming along?

Have a great day!

Leaf Peeping and Apple Dumplings

We’ve finally managed to get rid of the crap/cold/flu/whatever that has been plaguing our house for the past month. 

We decided to take a drive yesterday to do some leaf peeping and bring a picnic lunch for the kids.   In the Bangor area, the leaves aren’t very colorful yet.  However, just an hour north, the leaves are beautiful.

When we got back, I decided I needed to make some apple treats.  I was going to make an apple cream cheese cake, but then saw it needed to sit overnight.  I wanted instant gratification so opted to finally make T those apple dumplings he’s been hankering for.

Old Fashioned Apple Dumplings (recipe from Straight from the Farm)

I started by getting the insides ready.

4 tbs sugar

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/3 cup Craisens (optional – kept to the side)

4 medium baking apples, cored and peeled ( I had small apples so made 6 total)

Then I prepped the syrup supplies.

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 cups water

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

Next, I started on the crust dough.

2 cups AP flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

2/3 cup chilled butter, cut into cubes

1/2 cup 2% milk

1) Preheat oven to 375.

2) Combine flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.  Cut in butter until coarse crumbs form.  Pour in milk and stir to form a dough.  Add flour if too sticky.  Do not overwork.  Divide in half.  Roll one half on a lightly floured surface to 1/4” thickness.  Cut into squares.

3) Cut off top and bottom of each apple.  Rinse in cold water and pat dry with a paper towel.

4) Place 1 apple in center of each dough square.  Fill cores with Craisens and sugar mixture. Sprinkle sugar mix on apples.  Wet edges of dough and seal corners at the top of the apple.  Pinch to seal.

5) Place all dumplings in a baking dish, 1” apart.

6) Bring syrup ingredients to a boil, remove from heat and cool slightly.  Pour around dumplings and sprinkle 2 tbs sugar over top  (I used more sugar mixture from the insides on the top of the dough).  Bake for 45 minutes.  If browning too quickly, place foil on top for final 10-15 minutes.

Fresh from the oven:

We enjoyed them for dessert:

I opted for a small scoop of ice cream with more of the syrup drizzled on top:

Delicious.  

Cold Weather Goals - 2010

It's that time of year again. The air is turning crisper (well, not yesterday). The leaves are changing from a beautiful green to a beautiful array of reds, oranges and yellows. The birds are flying south.

I’ve been thinking a lot the past few days of what I’d like to accomplish this winter.  I liked how I had it broken down last year, even if I wasn’t as successful crossing stuff off the list as I would have liked.  It’s a new year, a new list, a new chance for success!

1) Personal

• Lose weight.  I was at 155 at this time last year.  Thanks to the unusual heat we experienced this summer, I drank far too much beer (I like beer in hot weather!).  I’m at 160 now and “rocking a beer gut.” HA!  My ultimate goal is to get down to 135, which will bring me to a healthy BMI for my height.  Time to try again.
• Do something for ME.  I spend every minute of my day (and much of the night sometimes) taking care of everyone and everything around me.  Girls night out.  Get a pedicure.  Go to a movie.  Anything.  (Hire a maid did briefly flit through my brain but I could never justify that with myself.)
• Finish the blog revamp I started last spring.

2) Family

• Bi-Weekly family outings…  again.  This is easier now that Little Man can participate.  We have actually been doing really well lately, too.  Some weeks we have multiple outings (pumpkin and apple picking all in one weekend) and others we have one great big outing (Common Ground Fair last week!) and others still, we stay home and do nothing (not very often).
• Weekly craft projects.  I set my mental standards way too high for myself last year.  The projects don’t need to be nearly as “elaborate” as I was attempting last year.  For instance, last week we had a finger painting experience.  Let’s just say I’ll probably be finding finger paints in random places in my kitchen for months.  It was simple.  It was messy.  It was awesome. 
• Play dates.  I am doing my children a disservice by not being out interacting with other kids their age more often.  Screw the house work.  It can wait.  Get those kids out there! 
• I’m trying to have a mostly handmade Christmas this year.  I actually have a pretty manageable list.  The gifts feel more heartfelt to me.

3) Kitchen

• Go through and try to insanely huge stack of recipes that have been pulled for sampling.  The baking stack is out of control.  (This is not going to help with goal #1.  At all.)

4) Turning house into home

• Our bedroom still has not been finished, though it was on my list last year.  Throw pillows.  Bed skirt.  Accessorize.
• Little Man's bedroom still has not finished (also on last year’s list!). Paint the bookshelf my dad built.  Make and hang pocket quilt.  Decide on accent color and attach said color to base of curtains I made him.  Continue my search for fabulous old dresser to redo for him.
• Complete the stairwell (also from last year). T only just put up the drywall late this summer.  Accessorize.  (Monkey and I painted not long after the drywall went up.  It was….  interesting.)
• Finish my kitchen remodel.  Paint walls.  Add end caps to base cabinets.  Coat rack project.  If I can find a cheap enough option, flooring.
• Finish my living room remodel.  Lamp shade.  Lamp cabinet/table. More throw pillows.  Rearrange furniture (I’ve only just gotten this into my head in the past few weeks – it will require talking T into as his muscles will be necessary to move the entertainment center).
• Finish cleaning out the basement.  Namely, get rid of anything we don’t need (like the 13 or so diaper boxes full of kids clothes).
• If I have time when the rest of this is done, I’d like to paint the hallway. 

I will now print this out so I can literally scratch things off as I finish them. 

Do you have any goals you’d like to share?

Have a great day!