Random thoughts on a Saturday

 

Beautiful graphic by Abby at Little Birdie Blessings

 Just a few minutes to blog today so I will just share a few random things.  

🌿  I wanted to share the carrot recipe I used on Easter.  I changed it a lot and can't now remember where I found it, but will share it as I made it.

ORANGE-MAPLE GLAZED CARROTS

1 1/3 cup orange juice (I purchased a small bottle of the fresh squeezed juice from the supermarket), divided use
2 pounds baby carrots
1/3 cup maple syrup
Freshly grated nutmeg
1/3 cup butter
2 Tablespoons cornstarch

Place 1/3 cup of the orange juice in a small bowl or custard cup and set aside.

Pour remaining 1 cup of orange juice into a medium saucepan and heat to boiling.  Add the carrots and stir to coat with juice.  Cover and cook for 15 minutes or so.  Stir in the maple syrup, freshly grated nutmeg to taste (recipe called for 1 teaspoon, but I wasn't sure how the kids would go for it, so I used probably 1/2 teaspoon or a little less), and the butter.  Stir until butter melts; cook, uncovered for another 10 minutes or so, or until nearly tender.  

Mix the cornstarch into the reserved orange juice; mix well and stir into the carrot mixture.  Cook, stirring, until mixture thickens somewhat.  If you think you'd like it thicker, mix up some more cornstarch in a little water or juice and add that.  (The cornstarch was my addition as I didn't think the carrots could be described as "glazed" at all.  Just carrots cooked in orange juice.)

Makes about 6 to 8 servings.  We thought they had a very nice flavor and made a good side for Easter dinner.

 🌿  Just looked at a writing prompt for today.  One was to list 5 things blooming in their garden.  Sadly, my garden is under inches of snow.  Possibly some shoots are up, like bloodroot or maybe even daffodils.  But they are not visible.

🌿  I'm getting back into making kombucha.  So far, so good!  

🌿 Cleaning the attic is proceeding apace!  We try to do a little bit every week and think we are a little over half done.   We are doing this by bringing boxes down a section at a time, and going through them in the living room where it's warmer and more roomy.  The stuff we save! I believe my hubby said that almost everything left up there still to go through is in plastic totes, so that will be a lot easier.  The cardboard boxes we've been going through have been such a mess.  Mice have really had their way up there for years.

Several of the local grands had been planning to help us with this project (and they may yet get in on it, or on the garage attic when we do that) but I am really just as glad they were quite busy with other things the past few weeks.  Dealing with mouse nests and food caches is just messy.

🌿  I finally finished the study Stand Firm, the Daily Grace Co. study on the armor of God.  What a blessing!  I think I will start their study on the book of Habakkuk next.

🌿 For those who are thinking something looks a little different with my blog, apparently The Cutest Blog on the Block, where I had obtained the blog background I'd had for years, is no more.  I can't tell you how shocked I was, at the end of a volunteer work day on Tuesday, to find the backgrounds missing from both of my blogs, and The Cutest Blog on the Block domain name apparently available for the taking.  

What to do?  I liked those backgrounds a whole lot!  The next day I did a little looking around and I am moderately pleased with what I found for my Christmas blog, but I'm not really crazy about the one for my Kitchen Table.  It will do for now, however.

All right, back to the kitchen!  Our local daughter had a birthday yesterday, and we are celebrating with supper this evening. 

Turning winter squash into a main dish

 

 I mentioned buttercup squash in a recent post, and realized through comments that some people have never heard of this wonderful winter squash variety.  It is our very favorite!

You can read much more about buttercup squash here, including its nutritional profile: Buttercup Squash.  It has a deep, rich, almost sweet flavor that we really enjoy.

 

It isn't watery like some winter squashes can be.  It tends to be on the dry side and sometimes when mashing the boiled squash, one has to add some of the cooking water to make it a better consistency for mashing and serving.

That said, my preferred way to cook buttercup squash is to bake it.  You wash the squash, cut it in half, scoop out the seeds and place the squash halves cut side down in a baking dish.  Add a little water to the dish, and bake the squash at 350º for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until it is tender.  You can serve it different ways -- scoop the flesh out and mash it, adding butter and seasonings; or turn the halves cavity side up and add a little butter and brown sugar or maple syrup.

I also like to turn buttercup squash into a hearty main dish by baking and stuffing it, usually with sausage of some type.  The other night I had just such a meal planned, but I tweaked it as I went along and the result was such a good autumn meal that I just had to share it.  You will want to start about 1 1/2 hours before you want to eat.

AUTUMN STUFFED SQUASH

1 medium buttercup squash
1 package chicken breakfast sausage in the apple maple flavor
Olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion (I used frozen)
1/3 cup fresh or frozen cranberries (or to taste)
Butter
Brown sugar or maple syrup
Salt & pepper

 Bake the squash as directed above for about 45 minutes.  Near the end of the baking time, slice the breakfast sausage and saute it in a small skillet in a little olive oil, adding the onions and cranberries.  Cook for about 5 minutes.  

Remove the squash from the oven and turn the halves over so the cavity side is up, replacing them in the baking dish.  Place a dab of butter and a spoonful of brown sugar or maple syrup in each one, then sprinkle with salt and pepper and fill the cavities with the sausage mixture.  Return to the oven until the sausage is heated through, 25 to 30 minutes.

I like to bake potatoes at the same time as the squash for a nice hearty oven meal.  Add a salad, and supper is ready.

If you can't find buttercup squash in your part of the country, kabocha squash would be the closest in flavor and consistency for a substitute.  I hope you enjoy this recipe if you try it!

Saturday six on Sunday night

Yes, I am moving slowly this weekend.  Not sure why.  I'd hoped to finish a Saturday six post but since that didn't happen, I thought I would just publish it for Sunday night.  So here goes ...

1.  A delicious meatless meal one night this week.  I found the recipe for Pinto beans like Cracker Barrel’s at my friend Denise's blog and finally found time to try it.  So good!

Photo borrowed from RefreshHer

In fact, I copied Denise's entire menu.  She suggested cooked apples (directions given in her post), roasted potatoes, and cornbread.  I had leftover cornbread, and made my own oven potato wedges:

OVEN POTATO WEDGES

4 large baking potatoes, unpeeled, each cut in 8 wedges the long way
2 Tblsp. olive oil
3 Tblsp. grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. to 1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. paprika
Garlic powder to taste

Put the oil in a gallon size ziplock bag and add the potato wedges. Shake well to coat with oil. Add the remaining ingredients to the bag and shake well again to coat with the cheese and spices. Place the wedges, skin side down, in a single layer in a foil-lined shallow pan. Bake at 350º-375º for 45-55 minutes or until cooked through, brown, and beginning to blister.

The potatoes take awhile to cook (as do the apples) but the pinto beans are very quick and so flavorful.  We both highly recommend this meal!

2.   Work for my hubby this week with our son-in-law.  Their interesting project is renovating a cabin that will eventually become a vacation rental.  Mr. T has been doing the sheetrock work (some will call it drywall).  He told the owner that he will trade his work for a stay in the cabin when it is all completed and ready for rental.  (That won't be anytime soon, so no worries on the stay-at-home score. ) Below is part of the view from the living room:

3.  A productive Saturday getting some cleaning done and even some baking, in addition to time spent at the old homestead.  Mr. T was able to take a good number of bags and boxes to the dump as well.

These daffodils bloom in a sheltered spot near the outside chimney at the home place

4.  Watching God work in our own lives and seeing how He gives us guidance and direction for each day as we commit our days and lives to Him even through this crisis.  This really should be at the top of the list every day.

Graphic from Baptist Bible Hour

5.  This is a small thing but an exciting one for me -- seeing my chives a few inches high!  (You folks who live in more moderate climes will not get this.)  On Friday night I decided to prepare a special supper of turkey burgers and potato salad.  My go-to potato salad recipe ( Bacon Chive Potato Salad) calls for chives, so I decided to go see if the chives, planted in a barrel in the back yard, were up.  They were, so I snipped some to use in the salad.  They seemed even more bright and flavorful than usual!

6. Free Honey Crisp apples!  My hubby was doing some work for folks who own an apple orchard.  They gave him a box of free apples.  True, not all the apples are in perfect shape, but most are, and the ones that aren't are still great for cooking and baking.  It's fun to see how God provides not only for our needs, but also gives us some special treats.  Honey Crisp is our favorite apple!

Photo is from Pixabay; these are not the apples he was given!

Hoping to blog more in the week ahead.  I have plenty of ideas, but we will see how the week goes!  Hope you've all had a blessed Lord's Day!

A delicious winter side dish

Photo is from Taste of Home

 I was going to wait and share this recipe in November or December, because it would make a perfect festive side dish for Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner.  But then I realized that Brussels sprouts are fresh in produce departments right now, and so any time in winter might be a good time to try this way of preparing them.

In keeping with my habit of reading through my past issues of Country Woman and Taste of Home during the appropriate months, I was glancing through the December/January 2011 issue of Country Woman last month and came upon this interesting-sounding recipe: Maple Bacon Glazed Brussels Sprouts. 

I had everything on hand that I needed to try making them, including a bag of fresh Brussels sprouts that really needed to be used up.  (Well, I didn't have bacon, but I did have real bacon bits, so just sprinkled some of those on at the end.)  The only thing I would do differently another time would be to use less maple syrup.  I think 2 or 3 tablespoons would be plenty.  It was just a little sweeter than I felt necessary.

One reviewer said that she simply roasted the Brussels sprouts with a little olive oil, salt and pepper -- and that when they were tender she just drizzled some maple syrup on them and sprinkled on some bacon.  I think I might try that next time, as it would be less work at the last minute.

Mr. T is not a Brussels sprouts fan, so he looked at them warily but was game to taste them.  He was very pleasantly surprised and said that he actually likes Brussels sprouts when prepared this way.  I do like Brussels sprouts as a rule, and this is a fabulous way to prepare and serve them.  Maybe you would like to try this, too!

Friday five

Time for another Friday five.  So many blessings and so many things to be thankful for, it is hard to know where to begin.  So I guess I'll just jump in.

1.  Happy mail!  Last weekend, a friend on Instagram (@justbeeing_maryjane) offered some of her unused journals to followers -- she posted pictures of the journals with a number on each one.  If we saw one we liked, we were to message her ... the first one to reply would receive that particular journal.  I chose one and Mary Jane messaged me when it was on the way.  I expected a journal in a mailer ... wow, was it ever so much more than that. 

Back of journal I chose

Front of journal

The journal was packaged inside a sweet yellow-checked bag sealed with a pumpkin sticker.  And there was the most gorgeous autumn-themed card made by Mary Jane herself.  The details on this card are so lovely -- the tiny leaf punched out at the lower right corner, and the adorable wooden leaf tied near the top with a bit of baker's twine, and more.

To say that this happy mail made my day would be a huge understatement.  Thanks again so much, Mary Jane!

2.  Buttercup squash from a friend's garden, dropped on my porch this week.  She had five extra and asked if I could use some.  Not wanting to be selfish, I asked for two.  (I had one on hand which I'd purchased at the supermarket.)  My husband's take on this: "I would have asked for all five."  We love buttercup squash -- it's our absolute favorite.

Just a generic photo of squash, pumpkins and gourds from Pixabay

3.  Fall cooking.  It was so nice to make an oven meal this week.  Turkey loaf, baked potatoes, baked buttercup squash.  And on Sunday, for guests, I made Creamy White Chicken Chili in the slow cooker, served with gluten free buttermilk cornbread muffins.  Oh, and another night we had this Roasted Squash Medley with leftover meat loaf.  Love being able to serve these heartier foods after such a long hot summer in which one just didn't want to use the oven or serve hot meals.

White chicken chili

4.  Getting out for a walk every day this week.  This is a biggie!  Several days there was a cold wind blowing, and yesterday snow pellets were stinging our faces, but it was better than the heat and humidity of previous months.  So grateful for a congenial walking companion and a scenic walking route.

Part of our walking route

5.  The thoughtfulness of cousins.  Recently the curtains at our beloved family cottage had to be replaced.  With colorful folk-art motifs, these had been chosen by my grandmother in the 1950s and had a special place in the memories of many grandchildren and great-grandchildren.  My cousin W. and his wife C. framed pieces of the aging and irreplaceable curtain fabric as keepsakes, and even made some pretty sachets from the smaller pieces.  Such a thoughtful gesture!

Framed curtain fabric

Sweet sachets.  I plan on sharing mine with my daughters.

Our beloved family summer place

There you have this week's Friday five.  I could have shared much more.  It's such a blessing to see God's goodness in our lives each and every day!

When Vee hands you a squash ...

[a little spin off "when life hands you lemons ... make lemonade"].

Vee actually did hand me a squash a week ago Saturday (along with many other lovely gifts which will be discussed in an as-yet-unfinished post).  I believe she said that her neighbor had given it to her and so she was passing it along to me.

The other night I needed a side dish with some BBQ chicken and potato salad for supper, so I decided to cook the gifted (or should I say re-gifted?😀) squash.  The side I ended up with was a little bit different and very easy, so I thought I would share how I did it.  I'm sure this would work with green zucchini as well, but it was so pretty with the yellow zucchini.  As per usual with food, I completely forgot to take a photo, so Pixabay comes to my rescue again.

So, here's the recipe:

A SIMPLE SQUASH SIDE DISH
 1 yellow zucchini or summer squash, sliced -- I cut the larger slices, from the middle, in quarters
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 tomato, chopped
Italian seasoning or basil to taste

Heat some olive oil (I think I used a couple of tablespoons) in a saucepan.  Add the sliced squash to the hot oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste, and stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes.  Cover the saucepan and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, for another 5 minutes or so, until the zucchini is nearly as tender as you like it.  Stir in the chopped tomato and the seasoning, cover and cook for another minute or two until the tomato is heated through.

Makes 2-4 servings.

I added the tomato for color, but it contributed nice flavor as well.  I wish I had thought to use my fresh basil in this!  I'm sure there will be other opportunities throughout the summer, as zucchini and tomatoes will no doubt continue to be abundant.

And there you have one idea for what to do when Vee (or anyone else) hands you a squash.

A delicious and easy summer side dish

I've been meaning to share this one for a few  weeks: Summer Squash and Potato Saute.  I may have blogged about this recipe in a previous summer.  It's a good summer side dish to know about -- great with fish, chicken, or even a grilled burger or steak.

Recently, though, I tried a spin on this recipe that makes it even easier.  I had purchased some yellow summer squash and zucchini, and had thought to make this side dish with them.  But I also had on hand some microwave-ready potatoes in the Savory Herb flavor from the Little Potato Company.  So I decided to incorporate them into the saute.

I just sauteed the sliced squash in olive oil until crisp-tender, then microwaved the potatoes according to package directions.  When the standing time had elapsed, I stirred the potatoes into the skillet with the squash and heated the mixture through quickly.

It turned out to be quite an inspired idea.  I liked the saute even better with the small whole potatoes than with the sliced red potatoes which the recipe calls for.  And the savory herb flavor was wonderful with the squash.   I have since tried the Garlic Parsley flavor in this recipe and it is also delicious.

Have you tried the products from Little Potato Company?  I had actually never heard of them until a few years ago when I won a giveaway featuring them.  I haven't tried all of the available products, but I can say that the microwave-ready potatoes with seasoning pack are absolutely wonderful. 

Of course, you can make this recipe as originally published.  But if you want a quick and easy side dish that will use up some of that zucchini and summer squash, you may like to try this variation as well.  I don't think you will be disappointed.

And from the September archives, Part 2

Just a handful more (okay, maybe two handfuls) of posts from the September archives.  I couldn't resist ...

From 2010, this Roasted Squash Medley is so delicious!  I plan on making this again very soon!

Photo from Taste of Home

I think I've shared this one before, but the Fall tea wallet, from 2011, is my own spin on someone else's design (link shared in post) and is such a fun project, I had to share again.  If you need a little gift for someone this fall, make one of these and fill it with fall-flavored teabags!

From 2013, a fun repurposing project was making my own padded mailers.  This was such an easy and enjoyable project.  Older kids could do it, too.

And from 2014, From the Hand of the Master Artist tells the story of a unique leaf I found. 

Saturday spiritual sustenance was a post from 2015 and might encourage you any day that you might have a longer amount of time available to spend with the Lord.

A wonderful weekend tells the story of 2015's ladies' retreat.  Retreats are always a highlight of my fall ... such a blessing!

 And that's it!  Hope you'll find a post you enjoy among this mix!

From the August archives, part 3

I just can't seem to stop myself from a third August archive post.  If I had time, there might even be a fourth, but I am going to try and do one on my Christmas blog as well.  I've tried to keep a balance in this post between devotional thoughts, recipes, crafts and memories.  Here we go ...

Thoughts from reading Jonah is a post from 2008 that might encourage anyone going through difficulties right now.

From 2009, Lifting up my soul to God is another post that resulted from my quiet time.  I hope it will be a blessing to someone else today.

Now for a few recipes:

Lemon Artichoke Romaine Salad is the perfect salad for serving to company alongside pizza or other Italian food.  It tastes impressive and reminds me somehow of Olive Garden.

Root Beer Float Pie is a cool and delicious pie for the end of a late-summer meal, or to bring to a potluck.

And Farmstand-flavored memories shares a recipe link as well as some precious childhood memories.

 Speaking of memories,A hike with the grandkids talks about a 2015 hike where we made some memories.

 And lastly, a crafty post: Around the felt campfire shares photos of a fun felt project I did for my local grandkids.  Still have a set like this in the works for the out-West kiddos.

There you have it!  Hope you've enjoyed this rummage through the archives.

From the August archives, part 2

Graphic by Abby at Little Birdie Blessings

Here we go with another post containing links from the Kitchen Table archives.  Enjoy!

Shades of green, from 2012, might be a good one to start with.  Green is so refreshing, don't you think?

From 2009, A tale of four curtains is a cautionary tale about not taking on a project one is not qualified to carry out.  The voice of experience speaking here.



How about a couple of recipes?
Crab Melt Loaf and a picnic by the pond, from 2011, may give you a new idea for picnic food.


Great Garden Veggies is also a recipe I shared in 2011, wonderful for using up garden tomatoes, zucchini, and summer squash.

For something sweet, this Blueberry Almond Buckle, from 2010, will help make use of any fresh (or frozen) blueberries you'd like to use up.

Now for some simple crafting!
I'm probably a little late sharing these Citrus Coasters, although it was an August post.  But they are easy and fun to make!

Or maybe you'd like to try your hand at making felt food, as in this 2013 post:  Hamburgers, Anyone?.  It has links to instructions for several other foods, like sandwiches and ripple chips.


Lastly, Appreciating the little things (2013) is something I aim at doing every day.


Hope you've enjoyed this prowl through the August archives.  I have a third archive post planned for later.

The week that was

A week without blogging.  Sigh.

What have I been doing that's taken so much time?  Life.  Just life.  As a friend of ours used to say, "That's life in the breakdown lane." 

So let's see if I can break it down:
Saturday:
*Enjoyed a Dunkin' Donuts date with my hubby.  Those Boston Cream croissant donuts?  Dangerous!

*Spent the rest of the morning in the kitchen.  Made 3 types of cookies to take to a cookie swap at the library; froze them.  More about this later, but here's one of the kinds I made:

Date-Nut Confections

* Spent the afternoon in the kitchen cooking and baking for Sunday's harvest dinner to celebrate our church's 36th anniversary.  Here's what I brought:
 Scalloped Onions
Buttercup Squash and Apple Bake
and also a mince-apple-cranberry pie for which I hope to share the recipe soon.

* Listened to a nail-biter of a high school football playoff game as I cooked.  My team won!
* That evening, went to celebrate a two-year-old's birthday with my daughter, son-in-law, and family.

One of our gifts to our little granddaughter was this:

An Owl Hot Pack which had been requested since the 2-year-old keeps borrowing her older siblings' owls.

Sunday: 
* Enjoyed a great day of Sunday School, morning worship service, harvest dinner, and an afternoon service which included a presentation by our Patch the Pirate Club.
* Visited my dad at the nursing home.

Monday:
* Did loads of laundry and other housework.
* Went to the dentist for a cleaning
* Crushed peppermints, made frosting and frosted these cookies:
Peppermint Meltaway Cookies for a cookie swap that night.

Photo from Taste of Home

 * Reheated wonderful harvest dinner leftovers for supper.
* Attended cookie swap.  My peppermint cookies were a big hit.  I'll blog about them in my Christmas kitchen, hopefully soon.

Tuesday:
* Housework, etc.
* Put supper in the slow cooker.
* Made a 3-bean salad for supper.
* Went to Dollar Tree to find more items for the Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes
* Went for a walk with a friend.
* Had a nice phone chat with my daughter in Nevada.
* Made 2 more of the little owls -- stuffed them with fiberfill to use as little stuffed animals for the shoeboxes.

  * Packed two shoeboxes.

Wednesday:
* Went for a walk with a friend.
* Worked on my Sunday School lesson.
* Planned the week's menus
* Made my grocery list.
* Housework, laundry, etc.
* Attended midweek prayer service at church.

Thursday:
 * Put soup in slow cooker.
* Did grocery shopping.
* Drove to the nursing home (an hour each way)
* Attended family support group.
* Started work on another stuffed owl.
* Housework, laundry, etc.
* Paid my dad's bills.
* Baked biscuits for supper.
* Shopped at Walmart in evening.

... And those are just the highlights, if you will.  There was plenty else going on!

That brings us to today, and I finally get to post here.  So thankful!