Car Seat Canopy

This is only the second car seat canopy that I have ever made, and I LOVE the way it turned out.

Like the previous blanket post, this canopy is for my friend Holly and she picked out the material. She chose 2 minky materials-one the print and the second the green for the inside. As I mentioned before, I am not a fan of sewing with mink---especially if both pieces being sewn are mink. I was nervous about how it would turn out. Surprisingly, it turned out awesome and it went together very easily.

I only wish the pictures did the colors justice :)

The Worst Hard Time....

...by Timothy Egan is the next book that I would LOVE to praise.  I realize that I do not get around to praising or reviewing books much on this blog even though reading is one of my all time favorite pastimes. 

This is a historical factual story of the survivors of the Great Plains and the Dust Storm of the 1930s.  The book starts out with a mention of the Homestead Act of the 1860s and the "rush" of "nesters" to the Great Plain States.  Then the author gives account of the Booming 20s when World War I was on and commodity prices were up.  During this time, the farmers were "booming" in wealth.  They were taking out mortgages to buy more land and actual machinery-doing away with the horse/mule and plow.  After the Booming 20s, the stories of the Stock Market crash, the Dust Bowl, the 7 years of drought on the plains, and the Depression are all told.  It talks about President Roosevelt's New Deal and Conservation plans.  The book ends with President Roosevelt visiting Amarillo, TX one day, and on that day, the rains finally began again.  In the Epilogue, the author talks about how the farmers have now drilled into the Ogallala Aquifer for irrigation, but how at the rate they are pumping the water, the aquifer will soon dry up.  The Epilogue discusses how there are very few profitable "homesteaders"-that most of the farm ground is now government paid and subsidized. 

This book was significant to me.  Why?

I love reading about history in different parts of our country, but more importantly, this book literally is "home" for me. My great grandparents on at least 3 sides of the family that I know of fled starvation and unemployment of the east coast and Ozarks to Kansas and Oklahoma during the Homestead Act of the 1860s and the Booming 20s. Most of them stayed through the Dust Bowl and stuck it out. Some died. Some (my grandmothers family) left and migrated to the mountains of Colorado. My hometown, the farmlands I was raised on, drove through, tromped through, etc, are all featured in this book.   My parents hosted many Boy Scout camp outs on the Comanche National Grassland in Southern Prowers County and Baca County.  This National Grassland is a direct-surviving Conservation effort to reclaim the land as mentioned in the book.  It was one of the few Conservation Projects that survived from the 1930s.  My hometown of Lamar is full of Work Progress Act (WPA) projects.  My high school football stadium and the original hospital are just 2 of them.  My brother played middle school football at that stadium; I ran high school track there; the whole town watched Friday night football games there.  The original hospital was later converted into the "first" college in town, and then later converted into an apartment building, which is where my brother's apartment was located.

From my great-grandparents who decided to settle the plains of Kansas through my childhood, my life was deeply impacted by The Worst Hard Time.  Though I obviously was not alive in the 20s or 30s, this book has been significant to me in understanding my great grandparents and why they chose to homestead where they did. It helps me understand the mentality of my 2 grandmothers that are still living after surviving the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression. 

It is a very good read and I am so happy that I finally took the opportunity to read it.

Monster & Mink Rag Blanket

My friend Holly is expecting a little boy and asked me to sew her a baby blanket for him. She picked out the fabric and let me arrange it how I wanted. This is the first time I ever tried using the mink (cuddle & soft from JoAnns) in a rag blanket. In fact, I usually avoid sewing with mink like the plague because I find it annoying to work with.

That being said, I love LOVE the way it turned out! This may be my new favorite way to sew rag blankets.

As a side note, I am so happy that the whether is getting colder and that gardening and canning season are over.  More time for sewing blankets and reading!!!! :)

Creamy Broccoli and Cheddar Soup

This is another Pinterest find and it was absolutely delicious!  It is from food.com and I thank them for the yummy recipe and for the picture. I admit that my 4-year old did not eat it, but he doesn't like soup unless there are noodles in it. 

Here are the ingredients that you need.

1 tablespoon melted butter
1/2 medium chopped onion
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup flour
2 1/2 cups half-and-half (I used evaporated milk as a substitute as I forgot to buy half and half)
4 cups chicken stock
1 lb. (16 oz.) fresh or frozen broccoli florets
1 cup grated carrot
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
8 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese

1) Melt butter in a large pot over medium-high heat, and sauté onion until soft, about 3 minutes. Add additional butter and flour, whisking for 3-5 minutes to create a roux. Whisk while adding the half-and-half and chicken stock. Simmer for 20 minutes.
2) Stir in the broccoli florets and grated carrot. Add salt, pepper and nutmeg. Simmer over low heat for 30-35 minutes.
3) Remove soup from heat and pulse with an immersion blender until smooth. Or, puree the soup in batches in a food processor until smooth, adding mixture back to the pot.
4) Return pot to low heat and stir in cheddar cheese. Simmer for 10 minutes, and serve.

That is all there is to it.  Enjoy! 

Pulled Pork Enchiladas

I know that I have mentioned before that we love Mexican food at our house and I am always a fan of trying something new.  These are super easy to make and are similar to other enchiladas that I normally make.  I just never would have thought of using the pork or seasoning it the way this recipe does.  Quite tasty and yummy.  Thank you Better Homes and Gardens for the wonderful idea! Another great thing about this recipe is that it is adaptable to your family's taste buds.

Here is what you need for these:
3 1/2 pounds boneless pork shoulder (I used a 2 pd pork roast and it made 11 enchiladas)

1-14 ounce can chicken broth

1/2 cup chopped onion (1 medium)

6 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp ground cumin

2-3 tsp ground chipotle chile pepper or hot chili powder

1 tsp salt

3-10 ounce cans enchilada sauce (here is where you can alter to suit your family.  I used 1-10oz can medium and 1-29oz can mild)

1 Tbsp snipped fresh cilantro

4 ounce can diced green chile peppers

8 ounces cotija cheese, shredded (2 cups) (I used normal shredded cheese)

8-12 8 inches flour tortillas

Snipped fresh cilantro

Diced tomato or quartered grape tomatoes

Sour cream (optional)

 

1.Trim fat from pork. In a 3 1/2- or 4-quart slow cooker combine pork shoulder, broth, onion, garlic, cumin, ground chipotle chile pepper or chili powder, and salt. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 10 to 11 hours or on high-heat setting for 5 to 6 hours.

2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Remove pork from slow cooker, reserving cooking liquid. Using two forks, pull meat into coarse strands.*

3.

4. In a medium bowl combine the remaining enchilada sauce, 1/4 cup of the reserved cooking liquid (discard any remaining cooking liquid), and the diced green chile peppers. Spread about 1/2 cup of enchilada-green chile pepper mixture in the bottom of a 3-quart rectangular baking dish; set aside.

5. Divide pork mixture and 1 1/2 cups of the cheese among tortillas, placing meat and cheese near the edge of each tortilla. Roll up tortillas. Place filled tortillas, seam sides down, in the prepared baking dish (place tortillas close together); top with the remaining enchilada-green chile pepper mixture. Cover with foil; bake for 25 minutes. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake, uncovered, about 5 minutes more or until heated through and cheese is softened and starts to brown slightly.

6. Sprinkle with additional snipped cilantro and tomato. If desired, serve with sour cream. Makes 6 servings.

 

It looks like a lot to do, but it is so simple since the majority of it is done in the crockpot.  The flavor was great and the meat was so tender.  Definitely a keeper and a repeat at our house.

 

PS...if there ends up being a weird a bullet point in the middle of the ingredients, I am sorry.  I tried very hard to remove it.

Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars

I totally did not create this one, BUT it was so super yummy that I wanted to have it recorded with all my other recipes.  I stole this one from pauladeen.com.  During the month of October, there are several fabulous food celebrations and holidays that take place.  Three of these are national apple month, national caramel month, and national homemade cookie month. SOOO...I decided to combine all this deliciousness with these fabulous Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars from Paula Deen. For me, personally, this is the absolute BEST of everything.  I LOVE caramel, apples, and cheesecake, so for me this was heaven :D

 

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 cup all purpose flour
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
2 large eggs
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, divided
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 granny smith apples, peeled, cored and finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup caramel topping (I used store bought, but I think homemade would be so yummy!)
Streusel Topping
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup quick cooking oats
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
*****Mix all this with a fork or your fingers until it is a nice crumbly mixture.

1)Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2)In a medium bowl, combine flour and brown sugar. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until mixture is crumbly. Press evenly into a 13-by-9-by-2 inch baking pan lined with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Bake 15 minutes or until lightly browned.
3)In a large bowl, beat cream cheese with 1/2 cup sugar in an electric mixer at medium speed until smooth. Then add eggs, 1 at a time, and vanilla. Stir to combine. Pour over warm crust.
4)In a small bowl, stir together chopped apples, remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Spoon evenly over cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle evenly with Streusel topping.
5)Bake 30 minutes, or until filling is set. (Mine was about 40 minutes)
6)Drizzle with caramel topping.

SOOOO yummy!


Sausage Corn Chowder

It is pretty much soup season again!!!! I am very excited about this.  This was a new soup for my family, and we all LOVED it! RJ, the picky 4 year-old, even ate 2 bowls.  Though the recipe is a stove top recipe and that is how I made it tonight, it can easily be adaptable for the crockpot too.

Here is what you need:
1 pound sausage
1 Cup chopped onion
3 Cups cubed red potatoes (I used 3 small Russet because that is what I had)
2 Cups water
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp marjoram, crushed
1/8 tsp pepper
1 15oz can whole kernel corn, drained
1 14oz can cream style corn
1 12oz can evaporated milk
***I also used about 1 cup chicken broth because it needed a little more liquid for my liking.

1) Cook sausage and onion until sausage is browned.  Drain off grease.
2) Return sausage and onion to dutch oven or pot.  Add in cubed potatoes, water, salt, marjoram, and pepper.  Bring to boiling; reduce the heat.  Simmer covered for 10 minutes. (I had maybe 30 minutes to an hour before the hubs came home, so I just turned the burner WAY down to the lowest setting and just let it simmer until he got home.  Then I did step 3.  This is also why I think I had to add the chicken broth.  I think the water just cooked off.)
3) Stir in the whole kernel corn, cream corn, and evaporated milk.  Cook and stir until heated through.

As I said, yummy!!!

Makes 6 servings; 491 calories per serving