What's for Dinner- Harvest Pumpkin Spice Bars

www.bettycrocker.com

Harvest Pumpkin-Spice Bars

Bars
4 eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 can (15 oz) pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup raisins, if desired

Cream Cheese Frosting
1 package (3 oz) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, if desired


1. Heat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease bottom and sides of 15x10x1-inch pan with shortening. In large bowl, beat eggs, granulated sugar, oil and pumpkin until smooth. Stir in flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, ginger and cloves. Stir in raisins. Spread in pan.
2. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until light brown. Cool completely in pan on cooling rack, about 2 hours.
3. In medium bowl, beat cream cheese, butter and vanilla with electric mixer on low speed until smooth. Gradually beat in powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, on low speed until smooth and spreadable. Spread frosting over bars. Sprinkle with walnuts. For bars, cut into 7 rows by 7 rows. Store in refrigerator.

Look at that Beagle Belly!

Applesauce and Apple Butter

Guess what I did today?

I made 6 pints of Applesauce

8 Jelly Jars of Apple Butter

What I am Watching- You've got Mail

You've got Mail is one of my favorite movies. I could watch it over and over again. In fact I do! Something about the Fall makes me want to watch it. Maybe it is the line in the Movie..... "I love fall in New York. It makes me want to buy school supplies." I feel that way every fall!

So on a beautiful fall day, I curled up on the couch with a cup of tea and pressed play. I love how New York is like a character in the movie. I love the chemistry between Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks. I love her Store. I love the ending, It makes me cry EVERY time I watch it. Ok..... I love everything about this movie!

What is your favorite Movie?

Refashioning adult shirts into girls' dresses.

This is so cool.

Makes me wish I had a little girl to sew for!

Simple Green Frugal Co-op: Refashioning adult shirts into girls' dresses.

Stretch your Leftovers

Any way you slice or dice it, there are lots of ways to turn your leftovers into culinary delights. Try these creative ways to cut the waste in your kitchen!

Bread: The heels of loaf bread can be easily used to make croutons, be toasted for French onion soup. Use the leftover buns for garlic bread to serve with another night’s meal.

Meat: You’ve got a half a steak left over from dinner; by itself, it won’t make a meat. Instead, chop it up and use it in a steak and egg omelet for breakfast or as a soup/stew starter for another night’s dinner. Or put it in a plastic container, top it with frozen mixed veggies and freeze for a lunch you can reheat at work.

Vegetables: Don’t toss your left over veggies! Either put freeze in a Ziploc, or keep a container in the freezer for veggie orphans. When the container has enough assorted vegetables, make a veggie and rice soup, or use the vegetables for stir-fry.

Milk: Not enough left for a glass in the bottom of the jug? Don’t pour it down the sink. Put it in a zip-seal bag and freeze it for sauces and cream soups. When you’re ready to use it, melt it right in your pan from a frozen state—no need to thaw.

Eggs: Even if you don’t use all your eggs before the expiration date, they stay fresh for quite a while. Crack them in groups of three, beat and freeze in a plastic bag to use later. Most cake and brownie recipes require three eggs so you can thaw the eggs in the plastic bag under cold running water in a matter of minutes. Or, thaw and scramble for breakfast.

Win this Quilt

Now through October 17th

Have a chance to win this gorgeous yellow quilt! Make sure to check out the hosts blog to read how to get extra entries.

http://pigtailsandsnails.blogspot.com/

My First Pie

Apples straight from the Orchard

Thanks Sara!!

My pretty pie crusts I made from scratch

My first Homemade, Handmade Apple Pie.

Next up...... Applesauce!!!

Free Magazine

I signed up to get a free issue of Countryside Magazine: The Magazine of Modern Homesteading.

I got my issue yesterday. I can't wait to sit down and read it!

Get your free issue at http://www.countrysidemag.com/

Another Job

More good news....... I got a job with this company:
http://utcares.com/main/default.asp

I will be working as a At Home Customer Service Agent. I will train in their Call Center for 3 months and then I will be working from Home. The good news is, it is full time hours. On the down side, the shift is 10 pm to 6 am. But I will deal with that. Just means a change in sleeping habits.

I will work for Home Instead until I start with UTC in 3 to 4 weeks. As much as I like the idea of working with the elderly, Home Instead can't guarantee me full time hours. And full time hours is what we need right now.