Ace in the Hole -- In the Kitchen

Frosted pumpkin cupcakes get spiked with fluffy sweetened cream cheese.

I just love fall! Just a few of the great features that I enjoy about fall include the reds, oranges and magnificent yellows that appear as the green leaves release their moisture and turn color; cooler, crisper air; WVU football (!!); fresh apples from the orchard; and pumpkin!

And so, what would fall be without some recipes that include pumpkin? My November issue of Rachael Ray magazine included this delicious recipe!

















Don't let this photograph fool you--these little delights were super yummy!



Ingredients:

One 8 ounce package cream cheese--at room temperature
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
2 large eggs, plus 5 large egg whites
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 and 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup light brown sugar
Simmering water
3 sticks (12 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon-size pieces and chilled

Instructions:

• Place a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with baking liners. Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and confectioners' sugar for 3 minutes. Beat in 1 egg white and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla.
• In a bowl, whisk the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt. In another bowl, mix the pumpkin puree, 2 eggs, granulated sugar, oil and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Whisk in the flour mixture.
• Layer each muffin cup with some of the pumpkin batter, then the cream cheese mixture, then more of the batter. Bake until springy to the touch, 25 minutes. Let cool.
• Using the electric mixer, beat the brown sugar, remaining 4 egg whites and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Fill the medium saucepan with enough simmering water to reach a depth of 1 inch; place the mixing bowl on top. Whisk the mixture until it registers 160 degrees on an instant-read thermometer.
• Transfer the bowl back to the mixer and beat at high speed until fluffy; lower the speed and beat to room temperature, about 5 minutes. Add the butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, then beat at high speed for 5 minutes. Beat in the remaining 1/2 teaspoon vanilla.
• Transfer the frosting to a pastry bag; pipe large rosettes on top of the cupcakes.

These cupcakes were moist (a key for me and Tim) and truly delicious. The only part I will change when I make them next time is the icing. Using 3 sticks of butter for 12 cupcakes made my stomach hurt. It did not turn out to be the yummiest icing and was very tedious to make. The next time, I will use a cream cheese icing, instead. I will also use a larger tip to make larger, fluffier rosettes.

I hope you enjoy!

What's up with Little Man lately?

Little Man is just a little over 15 months old! What in the world has he been up to these days?






I can hardly believe how fast my Little Man is growing up! This is such a fun age because it seems like every day reveals a new moment, a new little something learned, a new expression or something fun for mamma to adore!
























What's up with you:

• You are still wearing size 4 diapers;


• You continue to eat very well--although one day you like carrots, the next, not so much! You love graham crackers, yogurt, yogurt melts and toddler cookies for your snack;


• You took your first steps just a few Fridays ago and continue to take more and more steps everyday--you love hearing us clap and cheer you on;


• Household items have become your toys of choice (see photos above and below--pots and pans, laundry hampers...);


• You enjoy playing with other boys and girls your age and are so sweet to them;


• You have a mouth full of teeth -- sometimes you enjoy having them brushed...other times, not so much;


• You enjoy bubble baths and have copied mommy in putting the bubbles all over yourself;


• You continue to drink 3-4 6oz sippy cups full of milk every day. Sometimes you are lazy and require us to hold the sippy cup for you, although we know you can hold it all by yourself;


• You love climbing the stairs to get to your bedroom--even more toys;


• You continue to take at least one good nap a day and sometimes an extra short nap, too;


• You are in the 75-90 percentile for height and only in the 25-50th percentile for weight (what can I say your long and slim);


• You are wearing size 18-24 month clothing;


• Your momma and daddy love you beyond belief!

Laundry basket...maybe one day I'll be mommy's helper!

Falling asleep playing with my toys!




















Mommy and Dustin on our geocashing train ride! Fun times!

A week away -- VACATION!!

Once again, I have found myself behind on my blogging. Last month, we enjoyed a week away from the daily grind--we spent the week at Lake Cumberland. It was a very relaxing time and well needed! Here are a few photos from our week:

Here is a photo of the marina close to where Tim and I stayed--we stayed in a cute little cabin right inside a State Park.

A waterfall, as seen from the pontoon boat that we rented for an afternoon.

We did lots of geocashing during our week stay at the lake. The goal was for Tim to reach 100 cashes while we were at the Lake. While we did not quite meet this goal, we had a good time hiking and finding some treasures. Tim was also able to debut this backpack, with Dustin riding in the back! Dustin really enjoyed the ride!

Me giving Dustin his milk while taking a ride in the Pontoon. He enjoyed the pontoon, but not the lifejacket!

Too much action for little man, he pooped out right on the boat!

We went swimming one evening in an indoor, heated pool at the lodge at the State Park. Dustin absolutely loved this swimming experience!

This is a waterfall that we saw during one of our cashe searches.

I just loved this sign outside of a dinner where we actually had lunch. Oh, the food that is served in small town USA!!

A pretty photo of the lake.

We had a very enjoyable week at the lake. I was even able to begin and finish a book during the week. I read the Shack--if you have not read it yet, I recommend this book. What a wonderful personification of God the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost!

Jackson Tyler Anderson

Dustin is going to have a baby brother!

We had our appointment with the Perinatologists first thing this morning. Everything looks well with Jackson Tyler Anderson!!

We are very pleased that the ultrasound showed everything as it should be at this state in Jackson's development. We had some anxiety going into the appointment, in light of the news that we'd received at this stage during my pregnancy with Dustin. I think Tim and both held our breath until the appointment was over!

The due date is still slated for March 1--I am 18 weeks and one day along (as of today)!

A Zesty Italian, a Chocolate German and the sweetest little American!

Once again, I am getting behind in my blogging!! At this point, I have several posts (including photos of our trip to Lake Cumberland) that will take me a little bit to catch up! Where does all of the time go?

There are several recipes that I have wanted to post for well over a month or so now. Since I already had the photographs loaded to the computer, I thought that this would make for a quick post!

But first, a photograph of Little Man (the sweetest little American):



















He is not walking yet, but it is only a matter of a very short period of time. Given that Dustin is extraordinarily mobile, without walking, Tim and I are perfectly content with him taking his time to walk. I am not a huge fan of overalls, however; I did think that the overalls in the photo above were adorable!

A Zesty Italian:















Tim tried his hand this past summer at square foot gardening. For the first season of growing, it turned out fairly well! One of the more abundant crops was zucchini. I found several new recipes in which to use the veggie. Growing up, I enjoyed fried zucchini and squash. I found a little bit of a variation that makes a yummy appetizer:


Ingredients

Olive oil, for frying
1 3/4 cups freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
1 1/2 cups Italian breadcrumbs
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3 medium zucchini, cut into 3-inch long by 1/2-inch wide strips

Directions

• Pour enough oil into a large frying pan to reach a depth of 2 inches. Heat the oil over medium heat.
• Stir 1 1/2 cups Parmesan, the Italian breadcrumbs, and salt in a medium bowl to blend.
• Whisk the eggs in another medium bowl to blend.
• Working in batches, dip the zucchini in the eggs to coat completely and allow the excess egg to drip back into the bowl. Coat the zucchini in the breadcrumb mixture, patting to adhere and coat completely. Place the zucchini strips on a baking sheet.
• When the oil is hot, working in batches, fry the zucchini sticks until they are golden brown, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the fried zucchini to paper towels and drain.
• Arrange the fried zucchini on a platter. Sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan and serve. (We enjoy serving this with marinara sauce.)

Adapted from recipe by Giada De Laurentiis

A Chocolate German:
















This German Chocolate Cake absolutely tasted even better than the photographs possibly show. This recipe is from annies-eats, a blog that I have become quite fond of for finding new recipes to prepare for my family. The dishes on annies site typically involve multiple steps and are thus not your thirty minute meals, but they are quite fun to prepare and usually pretty tasty, too!

So far, the cakes that I have selected to bake from annies site have been a bit dry. So, I elected to shave 10 minutes off of the cooking time on this cake, to help keep it moist (the original recipe called for a baking time of 45 minutes). This helped, but the cake could have ideally used a cooking time of about 30 minutes (at least in my oven). For me, the general rule is that the cake needs to come out of the oven when it begins to pull away from the side of the pan. This time, I was not paying close enough attention while preparing the frosting and missed the cake pulling away!

The syrup in between the layers did add some moisture to the cake. The original recipe called for rum. I used the water substitute, since Peanut would surely not favor rum! In any event, if you love chocolate (as I do), you will most certainly love this cake!
















Ingredients

For the cake:
2 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped
6 tbsp. water
4 large eggs, separated
16 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1½ cups sugar, divided
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla extract

For the syrup:
1 cup water
¾ cup sugar
optional--(2 tbsp. or dark rum)

For the filling:
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup sugar
3 large egg yolks
6 tbsp. butter, cut into small pieces
½ tsp. salt
1 cup pecans, toasted and finely chopped
1 1/3 cups coconut


For the icing:
8 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 tbsp. light corn syrup
3 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 cup heavy cream


Directions

• Preheat the oven to 350° F.
• Line two 9-inch round cake pans with parchment paper. Butter and flour the sides of the pans; set aside.
• Using a double boiler (or the microwave in short bursts), melt the bittersweet and unsweetened chocolate with the water, stirring until smooth. Set aside until the mixture cools to room temperature.
• In the clean, dry bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on high speed until they form soft droopy peaks. Slowly add ¼ cup of the sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form. Transfer the egg whites to a separate bowl and return the mixer bowl to the mixer base.
• In the bowl the electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter with 1¼ cups of the sugar. Beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in the melted chocolate. Mix in the egg yolks one at a time, scraping down the bowl as needed.
• In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Mix half of the dry ingredients into the butter mixture on low speed just until incorporated. Mix in the buttermilk and vanilla extract until combined. Mix in the remaining dry ingredients just until incorporated. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold about a third of the egg whites into the batter to lighten it. Then fold in the remaining egg whites just until incorporated.
  Divide the batter between the prepared cake pans and bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the cake pans for 10 minutes, then remove from the pans and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• While the cakes are cooling, make the syrup. Combine the water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium-high heat and heat until the sugar is dissolved, stirring occasionally.
• To make the filling, combine the cream, sugar and egg yolks in a medium saucepan. Put the butter, pecans and coconut in a mixing bowl; set aside. Heat the cream mixture and cook, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom until the mixture begins to thicken and coats the back of a spoon. Pour the hot custard immediately into the pecan coconut mixture and stir until the butter is melted. Cool completely to room temperature. The mixture will thicken as it cools.
  

• To make the icing, place the chopped chocolate in a bowl with the corn syrup and butter. Heat the cream just until it begins to boil. Remove from the heat and pour over the chocolate. Let stand for 1 minute, then stir until smooth. Chill thoroughly in the refrigerator or freezer until firm enough for decorating.

• To assemble the cake, cut the two cake layers in half horizontally to yield four layers. Set the first layer on a cake circle, cut side up. Brush well with the syrup. Spread ¾ cup of the coconut filling over the cake layer, making sure to reach the edges. Set another cake layer on top of the filling. Repeat, using the syrup to brush each cake layer, then spreading ¾ cup of the coconut filling over each layer, including the top. Ice the sides of the cake with the chilled chocolate icing. Pipe a decorative border around the top layer, encircling the coconut topping.

Source: adapted from annies-eats.

Happy eating!

A Boating We will Go

We had a very fun filled weekend that included some boating time on Lake Cumberland, here in Kentucky!

This was Dustin's first experience on a boat; I must say-he did quite well! The only part that Dustin did not enjoy was the part where we made him wear a life jacket! While we were anchored and enjoying the coolness of the water, we let him play in the boat without the jacket--he had a great time!

Tim and I also enjoyed the time in the sun and with friends. I would love to have gone water skiing. However, this will have to wait until Peanut is born!

Here are some photos of our little man playing with Lauren:

I was not able to get a picture of both of them facing the camera at the same time! Oh well, Dustin had a fun time!

Our little man was so worn out by the next day that he took two naps! He also went to be at a quarter after seven the next evening. His normal bedtime is 8:00!

Dustin is proving to be a smart little boy. This weekend I asked him to hand me a green shirt of his while folding his laundry. Although I did not expect it, he handed it right over! It is so fun to watch him at this age--something new every few days!

Peanut and Product

During the last several months, I have had several friends announce their pregnancies. During my pregnancy with Dustin, I spent a considerable amount of time reading the Baby Bargains book and multiple, multiple websites and reviews of baby products to ultimately come to a conclusion about which items to purchase for my little man. I just love to pass on all of the good information that I found and that information which was given to me by many wise mothers who have walked the path before me!



And so, in honor of pregnant mothers who are making their registry lists, below I have listed a few of the products that have worked so well for us! As a bit of a disclaimer--none of the manufacturers have paid me to endorse their products. In fact, anytime I endorse a product, person, service or place on my blog, it is because I genuinely like their product/service/place/person.



First, let's talk about SIDS. While there is no product out there that will prevent SIDS, there are a few that I have used to reduce the risk of SIDS to Dustin. I was particularly paranoid about SIDS, since Dustin was born with a significant lung condition. But, there is lots of great advice out there; based on years of research and the number of infant deaths attributable to SIDS is at an all-time low. There are a few things that I have learned and implemented in our home:

• No co-sleeping;




• Firm mattress;




• No smoking around baby;




• Use a ceiling fan;




• Use a pacifier;




• No bumpers or blankets in the crib; and




• Back to sleep!

All of the above are certainly not absolutes. More detailed recommendations can be found at the American Academy of Pediatrics website, and other reputable organizations that provide education about SIDS. The above points were the rules that we followed, based on our own research. That being said, there are a few products that we use or have used that have provided us with more comfort regarding the chance for SIDS:

The product above is the Anglecare Motion Sensor monitor. The flat blue piece goes underneath the mattress and detects if the baby is no longer moving, including breathing. While this product does not reduce the chance of SIDS, it gave me comfort that if Dustin were to stop breathing the monitor would alarm. This product worked great, until Dustin began rolling all over the crib--at which point the monitor would alarm because it simply could not detect Dustin's movement (the pad is too small to cover the entire crib). By that time, Dustin was big enough to move around on his own and turn his head.

The second product that I still enjoy using is the breathable bumper. I elected not to use a bumper in Dustin's crib, after reading reports of severe and fatal injuries to infants who got caught in the soft fluffy bumper. But, we had troubles with Dustin waking up in the middle of the night with his little hands and feet stuck between the slats of the crib. And so, we found the Breathable bumper. The bumper is made of a very light netted material, which allows baby to breathe if his little head gets caught up against it. I really like this product!

This next project is a fun one. It is the excersaucer that Tim picked out. I must say, this was the Mercedes of excersaucers, but turned out to be well worth it! It comes with a play mat that baby can lie on and play with some of the removable parts. Once Dustin was older, he enjoyed playing in the circle. Now, the circle has been taken apart, to form half of figure eight. Dustin can walk around it and continue to play with all of the toys. And, the fun will continue with Dustin's brother or sister.

The last product review for the evening is a sheet set from Clouds and Stars. This was, bar none, one of the best gifts that I received. I received the gift after Dustin had been home for several, several weeks. By this time, I had struggled with changing wet sheets in the middle of the night. (If your baby mattress fits the crib snuggly, it is so hard to change the sheet.) This set completely took away that frustration! The bottom portion stays in the crib, while the top "sheet" simply zips in. So, when your baby wets the crib, there is much, MUCH greater ease in the changing. And, when I went to search for the URL for posting, I noticed that the set is a bit cheaper on Amazon!

I have been thinking about baby products more frequently lately. Our little "Peanut" is now approximately 12 and 1/2 weeks in uterus! Dustin will soon have a little brother or sister and we will have to replenish our baby products!

When I picked up Dustin from the daycare today, I received some good news! Apparently, my blog has now earned me with a referral fee for a parent who chose to sign their son/daughter up at Creation Kingdom after reading about it on my blog!! (Reminder--see disclaimer, above.) Of course, this is so unintended and unexpected!! I am pretty excited and this has now motivated me to update my blog more regularly. So, whomever you are -- THANK YOU!!