Susie Homemakers...Almost

I went to our friend Maggie's house for our ritual "Girls' Night," and we had previously decided (thanks to a very creative idea from Maggie) to make a pie from scratch...crust and all. Seeing as how I have somehow managed to screw up a boxed cake mix in the past, I was sure this task would prove a feat for me. I do not consider myself a good cook; however, I was totally up for this idea since I'm always a fan of sweets and was sure that this project would not fail to entertain. After much deliberation, we decided on an apple pie, and Maggie found an "Award-Winning" recipe online. The most tedious and time-consuming part of the pie-making process was peeling and slicing the apples, but after this was done the rest was surprisingly quite simple. The pies turned out amazingly, and I would definitely recommend this recipe:

Caramel Apple Crumble Pie
- 1 pie crust, uncooked (see recipe below)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 3 Tablespoons flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 6 cups thinly-sliced applies (I used 2 golden delicious, 2 granny smith)
- 1 recipe of crumb topping:
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1/2 cup quick-cooking whole oats
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)
- 1/4 cup caramel topping, or to desired amount

Prepare pie crust according to recipe and place it in pie dish. Peel and slice apples thinly. Set aside. In mixing bowl, stir together sugar, flour, cinnamon, & salt. Add apple slices and gently toss until coated. Transfer apple mixture to unbaked pie shell. Stir together brown sugar, flour, & rolled oats in a bowl to create topping. Cut in 1/2 cup butter until topping is coarse like crumbs. *I found a pastry cutter to be helpful with this.* Sprinkle crumb topping over apple mixture. Place pie on cookie sheet. Cover edges of pie, if visible, with aluminum foil. Bake in 375 degree oven for 25 minutes. Then, remove foil and put back in the oven for an additional 25 to 30 minutes. Remove pie from oven and sprinkle with chopped pecans, if desired, then drizzle the top with caramel sauce. Enjoy when it is warm or at room temperature.

"Foolproof Pie Crust"
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 2 Tablespoons sugar
- 1/3 cup butter or margarine
Mix flour, sugar, and butter. Press into pie pan.

Foolproof Crust:

Apple slices in crust coated with cinnamon/sugar mixture:

The final product:

Pumpkin Project

As I have come to realize and accept, most of the craft and home improvement projects that I take on turn out to be much harder and more stress-inducing than I anticipated. This, however, is one that I can honestly say from first-hand experience is a piece of cake.

You want to start out with a Funkin® which I purchased at Hobby Lobby, but are also available online through the company's website. They range in price from about 15-25 dollars. Funkins® are basically carve-able artificial pumpkins made of a material similar to Styrofoam. The only other tool you will need for this project is a pumpkin carving tool, which you can purchase at any store that sells real pumpkins and carving supplies. It's basically just a very small serrated knife.

Start by carving a small hole, about 4-5 inches in diameter, in the bottom of the Funkin. This will be to insert the light source. You can create any design that you want for the front and free-hand it if you're brave. For mine, I decided to do the "B" monogram, so I chose the font that I wanted and created a template. Just print your template out from the computer and tape it to the front of the pumpkin. Next, use your tool to carve out the design.

Tip: Make sure to look at your design before carving to be sure that it will not "fall out". For example, if you were carving a letter "O", the entire circle would fall out if you carved a complete "O". You would have to be creative with the design so that the ends to not meet. You will see that I had to do this with the "B" as well.

Once you have the design carved just how you like it, all you need is to insert a
light source. The best thing that I have found so far is the small battery-powered LED lights that look like tea lights. They are not quite as bright as I would like, but it's the best I've found. Let me know if you have any ideas for a brighter light source.

Just put the Funkin® on top of the light and enjoy! The best things about this pumpkin are 1) it does not rot, 2) it does not attract ants/bugs, 3) it can be used indoors, and most importantly 4) it can be used year after year.

First Fire

It was finally cold enough to enjoy the first fire in our fireplace! Unfortunately, Chris was not home because he was working, but I was actually able to figure out how to start it. I found that the Duraflame logs are the best for beginners like me. All you have to do is place one log (still inside the paper packaging) in the fireplace rack and light both ends. It burned for about 3 hours, and I LOVED it! A fire just makes it feel like home. Now we just have to figure out how to keep Jack from trying to get in the fire...