Happy Thanksgving to all my Foodie Friends!

Following in the footsteps of my son's first grade teacher --shout out Mrs. Fowler-- I'm going to list the first five blessing that come to my mind.

• My healthy, happy and loving children.
• My hardworking and supportive husband.
• My parents and extended family.
• My friends.
• My little spot on the internet.
  

Anthony's list (7-year-old)

• My house.
• My mom.
• My dad.
• My sister.
• My brother.

Bryson's list (5-year-old)

• My house.
• My brother.
• My sister.
• My mom.
• My dad.
  

Frankie's List (3-year-old)

• The dogs at the toys store.
• Four Kitty cats in little purses.

I would love to see your list. Want to share?
Happy cooking and Happy Thanksgiving!

Creative jucies not flowing!, Pumpkin Cupcakes and Turkeys

My creative juices are not really flowing right now! You see we had a minor flood which has caused major damage to our home. I will do my best to cook, bake, post and to visit your sites, but as the jackhammers come in and the wood flooring and walls go out I'm not sure how consistent I'll be.



I did make some yummy mini cupcakes last week that I would like to share with you guys.



Pumpkin Cupcakes
adapted from Martha Stewart.
Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon coarse salt 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (added a bit extra) 1 teaspoon ground ginger (didn't use) 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (didn't use) 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice 1 cup packed light-brown sugar 1 cup granulated sugar 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled 4 large eggs, lightly beaten 1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree Directions Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together, brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, and eggs. Add dry ingredients, and whisk until smooth. Whisk in pumpkin puree. Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about halfway. Bake until tops spring back when touched, and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes, rotating pans once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely. Not wanting to worry about refrigerating the cupcakes I made the following icing for the cupcakes. It didn't have the same exact taste as cream cheese icing but it was close. Ingredients Powdered Sugar 3/4 of a can of Sweetened Condensed Milk 1 stick of Butter 1 tsp Vanilla extract Directions My measurements are not exact except for the butter. I really just dumped everything into my bowl and added ingredients until it was the taste and consistency I wanted. Thanksgiving Turkeys Here is how I used the left over Oreos and Halloween candy. they are cute and easy to make.

Cornucopias

Easy to make, delicious and pretty on a plate, what more can you ask for?

Ingredients:

• Puff Pastry Dough
• Heavy Whipping Cream
• Sugar
• Cocoa

Directions:

• Wrap thawed dough around aluminum foil in the shape of a cornucopia.
• Bake according to pastry direction.
• Allow the cornucopias to cool then carefully pull them away from the foil.
• Meanwhile whip the cream, sugar and cocoa until it becomes very thick.
• Pipe into the cornucopias and serve.