Seasonal Home Cookin': Favorite Fall Meals

I'm a huge fan of seasonal cooking. By this I mean that I have special recipes I only pull out and make in the winter, spring, summer or fall... (all you have to do is call... and I'll be theeeere!) Sorry... I digress.

Anyway today was wonderfully chilly and crisp, and it inspired me to put It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown! on for Bennett and make a fall-inspired meal for dinner tonight.

Tonight's meal was:
Buttermilk Baked Chicken
with Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Oven Roasted Applesauce*

It was an Autumnly Amazing!

To make the sweet potatoes, just peel, boil and mash a few sweet potatoes. Then add a little milk or cream, butter, honey and cinnamon. YUM!

*For the applesauce, I skip the whole "food mill" step at the end (sometimes Martha can take things one step too far. I love you Martha, really I do... but seriously... a food mill?! Who has time for that?) Anyway, after the apples are good and soft, I just grab a good old potato masher and go to town. We like our applesauce a little chunky. Or you could pop it in the food processor too!

Another one of my favorite fall meals is Rachael Ray's Open-Faced Hot Turkey Sandwiches with sausage stuffing and apple-cranberry sauce. Can I get a Yum-o?!

More fall recipes to come...
In the meantime, go make some hot apple cider, jump in a pile of leaves and try out these delish seasonal recipes!

My Favorite Season: It's Fall, Ya'll!

Holy Toledo, am I excited for fall!

Did I just say Holy Toledo?

That's what the fall does to me. It makes me giddy.

I LOVE FALL! The pumpkins, the apple cider, the candy corn, Southern California's glorious changing seasons... whoops. I guess I kind of miss out on that part.

But worry not, my pretties... I make my own fall. Come along. I'll show you...

Here's the console table in the family room all decked out for autumn.

Here are a few random little paper buckets that I grouped together on a white tray to make a counter-top candy buffet.

Here's the spoooooooooky mantle...

And here is my Halloween pajama-clad daughter, chewing on a rubber giraffe.

Happy Harvest!

Holiday PJ's: I'm Obsessed

Why is it that I just can't help myself from buying seasonal PJ's for my kids every year.

It's become an obsession. Until I have our holiday PJ's in hand, I just feel like something's missing. Like there is a huge, holiday void in my heart that can only be filled with kitschy sleepwear.

Here are Mallory's. Aren't they darling?

I nearly had a panic attack in Kohls when I realized they didn't have any Halloween PJ's for boys. (I know, I need help). But not to worry (and I'm sure you were agonizing over it)... I found these puppies for Bennett. They were on sale and meet my Halloween PJ standards (no witches, vampires, skulls or other scary things. That's not how we roll... we're a peaceful, pumpkin-lovin' bunch).

I keep telling myself to simplify my holiday traditions, decorating, baking and the like... and I'm trying... really I am.

But when it comes to holiday PJ's, I'm a goner. I'm hopeless. I'm beyond saving.

But really, who could resist seeing this little lady in these precious PJ's?

Mallory looks a lot like her Daddy in this photo: (If her daddy were wearing polka-dotted Halloween PJ's, that is)

Frugal Frannie: Make Your Own Taco Seasoning

I hate to admit it, but I'm not usually the Frugal Frannie of my family. I'm more like Convenient Constance or Aesthetic Annie.

Mc Preachy fills those shoes.

He's very McFrugal.

But I just came across a great money-saving tip, tried it out... and I'm a believer! It's a recipe for taco seasoning that you make yourself to use in chili, taco meat, fajitas, etc. If you're anything like me (Convenient Constance), you probably buy those taco-seasoning packets at the grocery store when you want to whip up your favorite Mexican dishes. The problemo is, those packets can be quite expensive. Well bienvenidos, Frugal Frannie. Welcome to my world. This mix is fabulous and much more budget-friendly.

BONUS: This tip will not only turn you into a Frugal Frannie, it will also make you quite the little Healthy-Hattie. Because those packets at the grocery store are loaded with TONS of salt, MSG and other gross, unpronounceable additives. This mix is au' natural and much more healthy for your family.

Here's the recipe. My one addition was... SALT! Okay, I know I just mentioned Healthy Hattie, but seriously, taco meat needs salt! And look at it this way, even if you add a good amount of salt, it will still not even come close to the amount of salt in one of those store-bought packets. So pat yourself on the back for saving on sodium and then shake it, baby, shake it!

Here's what I'm going to make this week with my sauteed and delish-seasoned ground beef:

Taco Salad a' la' Casey Crocker:

• Romaine lettuce-- washed, dried and chopped
• Ground Beef-- browned and seasoned with homemade taco seasoning mix!
• 1 can corn, drained
• 1 can black beans, drained
• 1 avocado, cut up
• tomatoes, chopped
• black olives, sliced
• dressing of your choice (I like spicy ranch for this salad.)
• crushed tortilla chips

Mix all ingredients together and toss. Top with crushed tortilla chips. Enjoy!

Halle-flippin'-lujah: These Cookies Just Might Save the World

My dear friend Arizona Amanda gave me the recipe for these truly, truly scrumptious (Chitty Chitty Bang Bang reference intended) cookies last year. And I hate to admit it, but I lost it. Twice.

Sorry Amanda. I will blame it on being pregnant and absent-minded. And the fact that I was moving. It has nothing to do with the fact that I am unorganized. Nothing at all.

Anyway, imagine my elation when I found the recipe the other day, in my wallet of all places. I just made them today and HOLY COW... they are good.

They are goodness incarnate.

They are the Mother Teresa of cookies.

WARNING: If you don't like peanut butter, just walk away. These cookies are not for you. Although, I think we will have some serious relationship problems if you don't like peanut butter, but I will try to move past it if you will.

Onto the cookies.

Peanut Butter-Chocolate Chip-Oatmeal Cookies

• 1 c unsalted butter, room temp.
• 1 c granulated sugar
• 1 c packed light brown sugar
• 3/4 c. creamy peanut butter
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 c all-purpose flour
• 1/4 c unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt (omit if you use salted butter)
• 2 c chocolate chips
• 2 c oats

Using an electric mixer, beat butter, sugars and peanut butt-ah until well blended. Beat in eggs and vanilla until smooth.

In another bowl mix flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Slowly beat flour mixture into butter mixture until well incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips and oats.

Drop two tablespoons worth, 3 inches apart on greased baking sheets.

Bake at 350 for 9-11 minutes. (note: if you forget the cookies and bake them for 25 minutes, they will be ruined... not that I did that.)

Take the cookies out when the tops just feel set when lightly touched. They will seem under-cooked, but don't worry... they'll firm up when they cool.

Let stand 5 minutes on sheets and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely... or just long enough that you don't burn your mouth when you start devouring them.

Now go forth and save the world, one cookie at a time!

Message in a Toddler: Today's Reminder That All is Not Lost

The last two days have been... shall we say... awful.

So far it has been one of those bad-Mama-weeks where everyone is cranky, nobody naps, nothing gets done and I begin to doubt my sanity and faith in humanity.

I always find on days like these, that God sends me sweet, little messages of hope and encouragement, usually by way of precious Bennett (in-between whines, time-outs and meltdowns, of course). Here's one from today. It came just in time: right before I was about to drink 5 cups of coffee, eat frosting out of the tub and cry my eyes out. It might not sound like much to you... unless all you've listened to for the past 72 hours is a whining 3 year old and a screaming baby. Only then, can you probably appreciate how this sweet little moment changed my perspective today.

It happened during breakfast this morning...

Bennett HATES eating. We all know that. Therefore, I dread mealtimes. Whining ensues, discipline abounds, nerves are frazzled. How many times must I say the words, "STAY IN YOUR CHAIR!" before they sink in? So this was how my morning was spent, doing everything I could to stay positive and make eating oatmeal fun! But try as I did, we had several "time-out-for-getting-off-our-chair" situations.

Enter Diego. Bennett has this toy called "Diego Knows Your Name." It is programed with a timer, and at certain times in the day, Diego will just randomly call out things like: "It's time to sleep, Bennett! Animal Rescuers need lots of rest. Good night, Bennett!"

Bennett has been getting really irritated with this toy lately. He doens't like Diego's assertiveness or his suggested activities. He'll say things back like, "No De-go! I'm not tired!"

Then this morning, right after I told Bennett to get back into his chair for the 5 bazillionth time, at a moment when we were both pretty testy, Diego chimed in from the other room:
"Come on, Bennett! Al Rescate! To the Resuce!"

Bennett turned to the toy and said in a very firm voice, "No De-go! I eating breakfast right now, and I do not want another time out!" He said it with such conviction, all I could do was laugh. I had to stop right there and applaud my little man for not giving into "peer pressure."

Even though my mealtime-ettiquette training hasn't quite sunk in yet, this little event got me thinking that other things are sinking in. Like doing the right thing even when your friends (or demanding action-figures) tell you not to. There is hope. All my work is not in vain. And that little reassurance was all I needed to put the frosting tub down and keep on keepin' on.

I Love You a Bushel and a Peck: Apple Pickin'

As a part of September's apple theme, McPreachy and I took the kids apple pickin' on Monday!

Here's Bennett on the way there:

We drove to Julian, a quaint, old town surrounded by U-pick apple orchards. First we ate lunch (and apple pie, of course) in one of Julian's fine eateries.

Mmmm.... apple pie... delicious

Mallory is such a sweetie-pie (Hah! Get it?!)

Bennett was excited about the boot-shaped water glasses.

I love my precious boy and his little puppy-dog eyes!

Then it was off to Peacefield Orchard where we picked a peck and a half! (say that fives times fast!)

Doesn't Mallory look like a nun with the blanket over her head like that?! It was very sunny, and we can't have our princess getting too much sun!

Apple pickin' (notice that I refuse to say "picking"... it must be said with a twang!) was especially fun for Bennett because for the last week or so I have been teaching him about Johnny Appleseed. He was so excited to pick apples just like Johnny.

Benny Appleseed

Mallie even joined in the fun!

Here's Bennett hugging the sweet man who owned the orchard. They were fast friends.

Our booty:

Johnny Appleseed Jr. couldn't wait to dig in!