pumpkin spice roll-out sugar cookies

I did it- I made a big Thanksgiving dinner today.  For one person, my son.  He couldn't remember having a big traditional dinner so I thought we should do it.  The rest of the family wasn't all that thrilled but I did it (they like our tradition of raclette for dinner)!  All the clean up is just about taken care of and now we're awaiting the arrival of some friends to join us for dessert tonight.  Cheesecake, cherry pie, pumpkin pie cake, fresh fruit, etc.  These are cookies that the kids can decorate and either eat tonight or take home.  This recipe is terrific.  It calls for sugar-in-the-raw which adds a satisfying crunch, while eating and while cutting the shapes out with cookie cutters.  The perfect fall sugar cookie.

pumpkin spice roll-out sugar cookies (from my friend Brittney's daughter who shared these at Activity Days)
1 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup turbinado sugar
3/4 cup baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 egg
1 tablespoon milk
2 3/4 cup whole wheat flour

Cream together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy.  Add in the tubinado sugar and cream for an extra minute.  Add the baking powder, salt and pumpkin pie spice; mix well.  Add the egg and milk.  Beat well.  Add the flour, mixing until well combined.  The dough should be soft and not sticky.  Turn out onto sheets of waxed paper and roll.  Cut out shapes and transfer to baking sheets lined with parchment paper.  Freeze sheets for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat oven to 365.  Remove cookies from freezer and bake 8-10 minutes or until the edges begin to have a hint of brown.  Cool cookies on baking sheet 2-3 minutes then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.  Decorate if desired.

spicy giardiniera pizza topping

About a year and a half ago my husband gave me the most delicious pizza and pasta topping for my birthday.  We wanted more after we polished off the jar but unfortunately the store, Tuesday Morning, no longer had it.  After a long wait, my husband decided to find a recipe and make some.  It is delicious!  What I love about this recipe is that it is far less greasy- the store bought topping was marinated in oil which is not my preference.  We all agree that it is less spicy than the other but that's an easy fix! :)

spicy giardiniera pizza topping (my husband found the recipe somewhere?!)
1 green bell pepper

1 red bell pepper

1 big carrot

1 celery stalk

1 onion

5 jalapeño peppers

1 habanero pepper

1 cauliflower

1 heaping tablespoon minced garlic

1 heaping tablespoon dried oregano

1 heaping tablespoon red pepper flakes

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1 C. white vinegar

Dice all the vegetables and combine with the spices and vinegar. Add a little water if necessary and marinate in the refrigerator overnight.

2 little cans of diced black olives

2 big jars of pimento stuffed green olives

1/2 cup olive oil

Chop the green olives and combine with the black olives, olive oil, and the spicy vegetable mixture. Allow to marinate in the refrigerator for at least 2 days.

delicious cheese sticks

We got home from dance this evening and my oldest had these made about 3 minutes after we walked in the door.  I rarely eat fried foods but these are delicious! One of my weaknesses is cheese.  The more cheese the better!  We enjoyed these with homemade salsa.  I asked her if she found this idea on Pinterest and she said no- she saw some egg roll wrappers that had been sitting in our fridge for weeks so decided to try this out.  Brilliant!

delicious cheese sticks
12 string cheese sticks
12 egg roll wrappers
water to seal the edges

Roll up each cheese stick in an egg roll wrapper.  Seal the ends with a little water.  Pour enough canola oil in the bottom of a pan to coat the bottom.  Heat to medium.  Cook the cheese sticks until light brown and bubbly.

stuffed pork chops with butternut squash and figs

Hall of Fame.  Seriously!  It's been killing me that it's taken so long for me to post this after making it and enjoying it so much.  Posting delicious dishes sort of seals the deal for me; makes it official.  Will life slow down?  No.  It just speeds up and gets more complicated.  That's okay if you can slow down long enough to enjoy a dish like this.  Thanks, Erin, for the great recipe!

stuffed pork chops with butternut squash and figs (my friend Erin K found it at skinnytaste, slightly adapted)
3 thick boneless pork chops
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small white onion, chopped
1 1/4 cups diced butternut squash, 1/2-inch diced (I used 1/2 package from Trader Joe's)
5 black mission figs, chopped (I picked out 5 from bulk foods section)
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 cup baby spinach
3 fresh sage leaves, chopped (next time I'll add a few more)
1/4 teaspoon crushed black pepper
cooking twine
cooking spray

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add olive oil.  Add onions and saute for 2 minutes.  Add squash and 2 tablespoons water and cover; cook on low for 10 minutes.  Remove lid and add figs, garlic, spinach, salt, sage and pepper and cook for another 3-4 minutes.  Set aside to cool.
Cut a pocket into the sides of the pork chops, careful not to cut all the way through at the ends.  Season the inside and outside of the pork with salt.
Stuff each with about 3/4 cup of squash mixture. Cut cooking twine long enough to tie each with twine.  Cut off extra twine.
Preheat oven to 375.  In the skillet over medium-high heat, carefully sear each pork chop on each side- 3 sides.  If your skillet is oven-safe, cover with foil and place in the center of the oven.  If not then transfer to baking dish and cover with foil.  Place skillet or baking dish directly into the oven and cook for 30-35 minutes.  Allow to sit 5 minutes before cutting off twine.  Enjoy!

slow cooker indian-spiced lentils

First of all this dish is outstanding!  Second, it was exciting because I don't recall ever buying red lentils so I got to try something new.  My kids looked at it and were unsure but ate it up. Then asked for more!  My husband said it tastes a lot like what we'd get at Evergreen, our favorite Indian restaurant downtown.  I was excited to try this recipe because my teenager wants to eat less meat.  Not only is this recipe full of lentils but also an enormous bag of spinach!  This recipe is very healthy with lots of protein and iron and other good stuff I'm sure.  A big thank you to my friend Mandy for passing this recipe along!

slow cooker indian-spiced lentils (my friend Mandy found it at Our Best Bites, slightly adapted)
2 cups red lentils
10 ounces fresh spinach, chopped
15 ounce can diced tomatoes
1 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
4 cups chicken broth
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon mustard seeds (I omitted this)
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon lime juice
handful of chopped cilantro plus more for garnish
serve over cilantro lime rice- it was delicious!

Combine all ingredients except for the lime juice and cilantro in the pot of a slow cooker.  Cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-7 hours.  Before serving add the lime juice and cilantro.

cilantro lime rice

This is my new favorite rice.  I discovered how versatile it is when I used it for Mexican bowls one night,  Thai chicken another night and last night withIndian-spiced red lentils (a recipe you have to try!).  It complements so many dishes really well.

cilantro lime rice
2 cups brown basmati rice
5 cups water
1 tablespoon chicken broth granules
big handful of cilantro
1/4 cup lime juice
salt and pepper to taste

Put rice, water and chicken broth granules in a rice cooker.  Turn on and allow to cook.  When it's done cooking add cilantro, lime juice and salt and pepper.  Stir well to combine.  That's all!

instant pot thai chicken

This was really tasty.  I liked that the flavors were mild.  I paired it with some cilantro lime rice that was leftover from a different night and it went together perfectly.  I wasn't sure if my kids would like the peanut sauce but they did!  They ate the chicken and dipped naan bread (from Trader Joes) in the extra sauce.

instant pot thai chicken (Pressure Cooking Today)
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed (I used a bag of thawed chicken thigh strips which was 2.7 pounds from Tyson)
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons lime juice
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (I need to use more next time!)
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon corn starch
2 tablespoons water
1/4 cup chopped peanuts, optional
green onions or cilantro chopped for garnish, optional

Select Saute and add 1 tablespoon oil to the instant pot.  When oil is hot brown the chicken in small batches.  Set the browned chicken onto a platter.
When all the chicken is browned, add chicken broth, peanut butter, soy sauce, cilantro, lime juice, red pepper and ginger.  Stir to combine.
Add the browned chicken to the pot with any juices that have collected on the platter.  Turn off Saute.  Cover pot and lock lid in place. 
Select Poultry and 10 minutes cook time.  After 10 minutes turn off pressure cooker and use quick release method.  Remove chicken thighs from the pot leaving the sauce.
In a small bowl, dissolve cornstarch in 2 tablespoons water.  Add cornstarch mixture to the sauce in the pot stirring constantly.  Select Saute and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  After sauce thickens, add thighs and coat with the sauce (if you want a sweeter sauce, add some sugar).  Serve garnished with chopped peanuts and/or green onions.

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