LM's In Trouble!

Look what happened to Lil' Missionary over the holiday weekend. Those dastardly ninjas found weapons!I'm sure he'll figure a way out of this...somehow.

Punkin' Chuckin'

In preparation for Christmas decorating, all of the fall pumpkins, gourds, gorkins and cornstalks had to be moved off the porch. As a short cut, the guys just chucked those various squashes over the fence and into the garden plot, where they will become the seed stock for next year's gorkins. Some of the pumpkins were pretty big which made for some interesting Punkin' Chuckin'.

Fluffy Pumpkin Cream Pie

I've found that people either really like Pumpkin Pie, or they don't. Easy as that. Peter would not be a happy camper if there was no pumpkin pie on his Thanksgiving table. Ben hates it. So, in my search for a happy compromise, I found this recipe and gave it a try for this year's Thanksgiving. Everyone agreed that it was much better than your typical Pumpkin Pie. It still has a nice pumpkin flavor without all that...squashy-ness. Plus, it literally takes less than 5 minutes to make. You might want to give it a try!

Fluffy Pumpkin Cream Pie- serves 8
3/4 c. cold milk
1 (3.4 oz) pkg. instant vanilla pudding mix
1/2 c. canned pumpkin
3/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 (8oz) carton Cool Whip, thawed, divided
1 9" graham cracker crust

In a large bowl, whisk milk and pudding mix for 2 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes or until soft-set. Stir in pumpkin and pie spice. Fold in 2 c. Cool Whip. Spoon into crust. Spread with remaining Cool Whip and garnish with a sprinkle of extra pumpkin pie spice.

Photo Tutorial!

Pudding, pumpkin and milk, whisked together:Folding in that Cool Whip. There's just not much to this pie!

Barbara's Cranberry and Orange Sauce

I've never been a fan of cranberry sauce. I think that had something to do with my ridged, purest tendencies when it comes to Thanksgiving food. Or food in general, right Lindsey? But a few months ago I tried some at The Garden restaurant at the JSMB. Mmmm. I've tried to re-create it here, and it's good stuff!

Barbara's Cranberry and Orange Sauce- 3 cups
1 (12oz) pkg. fresh cranberries
1/2 of an orange, zested
1 1/2 cinnamon sticks
1 c. orange juice
1/2 c. white sugar
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
1 (11oz) can mandarin oranges
Additional sugar, to taste.

In a medium saucepan, combine cranberries, orange zest, cinnamon sticks, orange juice and the sugars. Add enough water to cover, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer for about 1 hour, or until the sauce has thickened. Taste for sweetness, and adjust with additional sugar if necessary- I added another 1/4 c. plus 2 Tbs. white sugar. Let cool. Add mandarin oranges and refrigerate in a covered container.

Photo Tutorial! (Cranberries are very photogenic.)

Cranberries, cinnamon and orange zest.Everything else!Water to cover. Question/Observation: How can you tell when the cranberries are covered if cranberries float?Bring to a boil. You house will smell like heavenly wassail. :)Nice and thick sauce, with an unattractive ring of crusty orange juice foam. Mmmm.Add those oranges!

Thanksgiving Wrap-Up

We had a nice Thanksgiving yesterday at Grandma Stratford's. Ben helped make the traditional Stratford Fruit Cocktail:Shannon stuffed the celery:Andrew dressed up like and Indian. I think he might have his continents mixed up:
Ken carved the turkey:This is the "Big News" bunch. Camille, on the left, told us that she is getting her mission papers ready to send in. Awesome! Alan and Hannah, the couple in the middle, announced that they were expecting a baby, come July. Fantastic! Leah, on the right, is the Kennedy's exchange student. She will be moving on to another host family on Saturday. We will miss her!After dinner activities included napping, going through the Black Friday ads and general catching up.Then there was the Pile On game. Notice Ken on the right. He is actually asleep while all this is going on.The twin entertained us with some acrobatics, which made Grandma a little nervous, I think:And we finished the day with a rousing game of Angry Birds. It was a nice, quiet Thanksgiving Day! I hope you had a great day too!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! I hope you have a wonderful day! After I put the turkey in this morning, I had to take a picture of the beautiful sunrise:
Our big meal will be at Grandma Stratfords. We are bringing my mom's 7-Up Salad and Bruce made green bean casserole:He made it last night, and it was quite a production.
Have a wonderful day!

Blizzard Twenty-Ten!

It was the Great Blizzard of 2010! At least that's what the media called it. Through the day yesterday, we were warned of the approaching storm. It was going to be a blizzard! With 70 mile an hour winds! Schools were closed! Flights were canceled! And while it was exciting for an hour or two, once the front passed it was a beautiful night. This is what my backyard looked like at 5:30 pm. Now it's very, very cold. I plan on staying inside my warm house and doing some cooking and baking for Thanksgiving. Stay warm, everyone!