pumpkin pie candy-so easy! let the kids play with it

I don't know why but I'm having problems with these pictures today. One is the dough straight from the mixer, one is the dough after it was kneaded, which made the texture much better, and one is a few finished pieces.

I just had an extra sweet potato and I didn't want to feed it to the chickens so I invented something instead...YAY a new recipe! This was so fun and the kids are playing with it right now. It feels like a playdoh and tastes so yummy.

1 sweet potato
powdered sugar
pie spices such as cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, etc.

stuff to roll it in, optional, chopped nuts, coconut, cinnamon sugar

in a food processor or just smoosh it up if you don't have one,
mash up the sweet potato (cooked well in the jacket tastes best, it naturally carmalizes) then add powdered sugar slowly until you have a very stiff dough. Add spices to taste.

For my size of sweet potato (med) I used about 2 lbs of powdered sugar and about 2 tsp of a pumpkin pie spice mix that I made before.

I used the food processor until it began to get a little too stiff, then I moved it to the mixer with the dough hook. The kids took it from there. They're making balls to roll in chopped pecans, coconut, and cinnamon sugar. These are very rich but I'm going to have a hard time not eating them all.

Purple funeral potatoes...

We were gifted 100 lbs of potatoes yesterday. I was excited but imagine my surprise when I started grating and they were bright PURPLE!
I googled purple potatoes and found that they were Peruvian but are gaining popularity in the U.S.
My kids love anything with big color.
So, today we are having purple funeral potatoes, veggies, and Bryers Neapolitan for dessert.

For the funeral potatoes I raw grated a casserole dish full, added enough milk to almost cover the top, some real butter pats, real sour cream with only cream as an ingredient, and sharp cheddar cheese with annatto grated very finely. These all got mixed together and afterwards I'll taste and salt cause you never know how salty the cheese is. Some of us also like garlic sprinkled on it.

These cook for an hour at least at 350.

BTW, I use way less sour cream and butter and more milk than most recipes call for. I just feel like it's more affordable that way and I can have it 4 times for the cost of 1 normal time.

For lunch we had bagels and lunchmeat with lettuce, and a smoothie just for a quick idea.

Homemade dipped cherry cordials and other chocolates

Oh my goodness, I'm drooling. We're making dipped cordial cherries.

We made a fondant out of 1/4 c butter
2 1/4 c powdered sugar
1 TBSP of the juice the cherries were packaged in
1/2 tsp vanilla (listing only alcohol and vanilla)
1/8 tsp almond extract (listing only alcohol and oil of almond)

If you don't have approved extracts just use a little more juice. Mix it all together and knead well till it's like playdoh. Add more powdered sugar if needed.

Then we wrapped that around some all natural maraschino cherries (not approved, got them at Whole Foods and took the chance out of desparation.) keeping the stems on, and froze them for an hour.

We melted a bag of ghiradelli chocolate chips (we used semi-sweet but might try different kinds if this works) on low and then let that cool so it wasn't hot but it was still liquid. Then dipped the cherries and fondant via stem in the chocolate, covering completely. Set it on waxed paper and put it back in the freezer.

Now we'll set it out at room temperature for 3 days, that should semi-liquefy the centers. I can't tell you how excited I am for these.

These were my kryptonite before. I was doing great for Christmas and then a well meaning neighbor gave us some regular chocolate covered cherries. Oh, I almost opened that box and if I had I'd have eaten them ALL and been a monster for 3 days. I'm proud to say that the box is still unopened just waiting to pawn off on an unsuspecting person soon. We'll wait for our yummy ones, and they should be WAY better than dollar store chocolates!

BTW, you can make the same fondant but flavor it with any approved flavoring or plain cocoa, knead well, shape, freeze, and dip for different flavored chocolates. They'll stay solid because they don't have the cherries to liquify them.

another FYI, many times nuts have BHT sprayed on them or the packaging so while they may look natural, be aware unless they're in the shell or approved.

Thick egg nog

Here's another version of egg nog, thick like at the store...

1 gallon whole milk
9 egg yolks, (you can save the whites for making meringue cookies)
3 cups white sugar
1 tsp. grated nutmeg
2 TBS real vanilla (approved or only alcohol and vanilla listed, no vanillin)

Mix the milk, egg yolks and sugar in a large pot and bring to a rolling boil, stirring occasionally. WATCH THE POT CLOSELY so it does not boil over. As soon as it reaches a rolling boil, remove from heat and add nutmeg and vanilla. Allow to cool to room temperature; then refrigerate in large jars or a crock.

I personally hate thick egg nog and like the other version I posted, or this kind watered down with 7-up. But, I know a lot of you love this slimy stuff so I'm posting it ;.)

Veggie Dip or Salad Dressing

I have a variety of dips and dressings I make with just a few ingredients...here's what I use

sour cream (I use Daisy, the only ingredient is cream)

mayo (I use Best Foods regular)

Use either sour cream or mayo, or a blend of 1/2 and 1/2 of both.

about 1/2 tsp salt per cup of dip

1 tsp onion powder (not onion salt)

1 clove of garlic, minced or squished

1/2 tsp of dill

1/4 cup of blue cheese (made with whole milk or just milk, not lowfat)

I mix all or a few of these together. To thin for a dressing just add a little whole milk.
This will taste much better the next day as the flavors meld together. Add more salt the 2nd day if it needs it. Be creative, add your favorite spice.

Eggnog

"Have any ideas on how to make deviled eggs or eggnog Feingold-worthy? Thanks!"

Deviled eggs are very easy to make but you need to know brands of Mayo and Mustard and possibly pickles if you like pickle juice in your eggs so you'll need to see Feingold.org for those. There are popular brands of all of these items on the list.

For eggnog there is actually an approved brand on the list but here's a homemade recipe, it will taste thinner but it's sooooooo good! I personally only use homemade organic eggs that were unwashed till I was ready to use them. That way the protective coating stays on to protect from any germs.

12 eggs, separated
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 qt whole milk
1 1/2 qts cream

beat egg yolks and sugar together till they're creamy. Add milk and cream, whisk together till completely integrated.
whip egg whites till stiff peaks form. Fold into the previous mixture. Sprinkle with nutmeg.
Remember to refrigerate this until you're ready to serve it. It's best if you can fold in the egg whites just before serving.

Baked, Caramelized Sweet Potatoes

I learned the secret to the best Sweet Potatoes. Most people don't cook them long enough. If you leave them in a little longer than they need to be they'll develop this great natural caramelized coating just under the skin.
So, scrub your sweet potatoes, heat oven to 450 degrees. Place sweet potatoes in something with a bit of an edge like a casserole pan or cookie sheet. Bake for about an hour (this will vary greatly with the size of your potatoes). You will start to smell a caramelized, almost burned smell. When you poke the sweet potato it's done but when you poke it and it oozes a little bit then it's really done! The outside skin will look dry and wrinkly like you really over baked it.
Take out the sweet potatoes, break in half, and squish out all the good filling. You can serve it as is or whip it up. I like to top with butter, sugar, and a spice mixture of cinnamon, cardamom, and a tiny bit of ginger.

NOTE: In The All of a Kind Family they talked about street vendors who sold small sweet potatoes out of their carts. We tried to duplicate this by breaking a sweet potato in half and wrapping up in a napkin. You eat it like an ice cream cone and kind of squish it up to the top of the cone as you go. My kids love sweet potato cones for a quick on the go lunch.

Steamed veggies with butter and salt

I have a memory of Grandma's carrots. I used to wonder why they tasted so good..veggies, yuck. But there was something special about her carrots. Never canned stuff, and always on the table with dinner. She's great at always serving a fresh veggie or two.
Just chop your veggies into bite sized pieces, add a bit of water in the pot, and steam them over medium heat till they're soft enough. I like mine with a little crunch. Drain out the water and add a nice sized pat of butter and some salt to taste. Serve hot!

Sometimes I like to add 2 TBSP of honey also. The kids don't like it that way but I do.

Thanksgiving Dinner-Rolls

This recipe is more rich than my everyday rolls but they're sure worth it for a holliday.


Ingredients
2 cups whole milk
2 TBSP yeast
2 tsp salt
1 egg
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter
5 or more cups flour

Combine all ingredients and stir till mixture forms dough, dough should be soft but not sticky, add more flour if it's too sticky. Use dough hook or knead for a few minutes.
Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise till double (if I'm in a hurry I skip this part).
Punch down and turn out onto a floured counter. Hand knead just a few times then shape and let rise till double again. Remember to butter your pan so they don't stick.
Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes

Turkey-Thanksgiving Dinner

Just start Turkey shopping early. Find a turkey that says minimally processed. We had good luck with the Archer Farms turkeys from Target last year. They had a solution of real butter and salt added. Yes, you might pay a little more but remember that you're paying for 18% weight of a "phosphate solution" normally so you're really getting a good deal for all your meat.
We bought 6 turkeys last year and every other month I cooked one, packaged the meat into freezer bags, and used it for sandwiches for the month.
The turkey carcass goes into the stewpot or gets broken up into the crockpot and simmers on low for 2 days, then gets strained and picked. It makes the best broth ever.
I use the broth for a base for rice or soup. The gelatin that comes out from the long, slow cooking is amazing nutrition.

Cranberry Sauce, Thanksgiving Dinner

I was searching for a picture of cranberry sauce and found this blog entry that has a step by step tutorial. They add juice to their sauce and it sounds like a yummy addition. I'm all about simple but these shouldn't take too much more time or money. Remember to use 100% juice and the frozen kind and you should be safe.

http://figswithbri.com/?p=76

I usually just get a pot (bigger than you think in case of foaming) and dump in the bag of cranberries or about 4 cups if you have a large bag, add 2 cups of sugar and 1/4 cup of water to get it going. Then turn it on medium and let it do it's thing for about 30 minutes. That's it.
We buy 4 huge bags at the warehouse store when Thanksgiving comes along because I love to throw a handful of cranberries in my smoothies. They do wonders for the urinary system.
My dd uses this cranberry sauce as jam on EVERYTHING.

Thanksgiving Dinner

OK, this is my first post about Thanksgiving Dinner. A friend requested holiday tips so here they are...when dealing with family in the beginning I sent out a letter that had the always acceptable list and an explanation of what we were doing and why. I'm sure many people threw it in the garbage but some wanted more info.
Then, whenever we had a get together I would say, can I bring ______ because it's safe for my kids to eat. Eventually the nice members of our family saw a change in my kids and started remembering that _______ was safe for the kids so they would bring it. Then I could ask to bring another ______ and so on and so on.
Even if someone normally brings a salad but they're willing to put the dressing on the side it helps so much!
So, on to a few recipes. I will put these under the topic "thanksgiving" so you can look up a nice plan when you're ready.
Here's a basic menu of what I'll be making or asking people to bring.

Turkey (minimally processed)
fresh cranberry sauce
homemade rolls
fresh steamed carrots with butter
fresh steamed green beans with butter
baked caramelized sweet potatoes
pumpkin and apple pie
sweetened whipped cream
seltzer water mixed with 100% frozen apple cranberry juice

It's a very simple menu and besides the turkey and pie it will take about 30 minutes of my time.
If you have a favorite Thanksgiving recipe send it to me and I'll see if it's safe or can use some tweaking.