Thirty Days of Thanksgiving - Day 17

Day 17. The letter Q for Quilts. 

We’ve been having an on-again/off-again start to autumn. The leaves are falling at a steady (frantic) pace, and some days are sweater days, some aren’t. Today was a chilled-to-the bone curl-up-in-my-favorite-quilt kind of day. I brewed a cup of green tea, crawled under my favorite throw, and logged on my computer to check email and catch up with latest on FB and Twitter. Of course I’m thankful for all those ways to stay connected with friends and family – you are the best!

But this time of year when the first really cold blasts come, I’m also reminded of how much I love quilts. I’m thankful that many of the ones I have connect me to my past, one as far back as my great-grandmother. A few were made just for me which makes them all the more special. And a few I’ve rescued from yard sales, sad that the owners would turn loose of a piece of who they are because the color was no longer in style or they didn’t value the hours and love that goes into stitching together a quilt. I’m honored to have the ones I have. They are treasured. Here’s a peek at a couple of them.

Wishing you lots of cozy quilt days with your favorite cuppa this Thanksgiving!

CAFE SPECIAL OF THE WEEK - Cream Cheese Pumpkin Pie

Nothing says autumn to me like the smell of pumpkin! I love pumpkin-scented candles, trips to Starbucks for the pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin pie, of course, and in the past I've tried to make pumpkin cheesecake. Without much success. The recipes were either too rich, too complicated, too lopsided, toooooooo . . . you know? So, I have this fabulous Lang Calendar with garden recipes, and this one looks like a winner! I've not made it yet, but since we're hosting Thanksgiving this year, I'm going to try this one. Maybe you'd like to go first and tell me if it's any good.

CREAM CHEESE PUMPKIN PIE

Make a graham cracker crust: 

Mix 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs with 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 tsp. cinnamon, & 1/4 cup melted butter. Pat into a 9 - inch pie plate. 

In a separate bowl, mix three eggs & 1/2 cup sugar. Beat until fluffy. 

Add 8 oz. softened cream cheese & 1 tsp. vanilla extract. Beat again. 

Stir in 1 1/2 cup cooked pumpkin puree, 1 tsp. cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. ground cloves, & 1/4 tsp. nutmeg. 

Pour into prepared crust and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. 

Cool and enjoy! 

This one doesn't sound like it will be too sweet. A little rich, perhaps, but we all splurge some during the holidays. What's your favorite pumpkin recipe? Do you have one that's "healthy" and still tasty? 

Maybe you're not a pumpkin lover. What do you love about autumn? 

CAFE SPECIAL OF THE WEEK - Apple Pudding

Autumn is in full glory here. Crisp mornings. Cooler evenings. The leaves making an almost daily progression from green to gold to russet to blazing orange. Pollen filtering through the air . . . wait, that’s not one of the joys of the season. But despite a few sneezes and sniffles, there’s something a bit mystical about autumn. Rest. Relaxation. Shifting into another gear. Time to clean out the flower beds, put on your softest, lived-in sweater, and relegate your flip-flops to the top of the closet.

Another welcoming sight is the new crop of apples in the grocery story—crisp Fuji, juicy Delicious, those wonderfully tart Granny Smiths. Which brings me to today’s special: Apple Pudding. Not to be confused with the custard type puddings, this is more of a cake-like dessert, but very moist, cinnamon-y, and with a crunchy top when it’s fresh from the oven. And to be honest, you can use any kind of apples you want. You pick!

Some of my best memories are stepping into the house after the thirty-minute bus ride from school and having the smell of apple pudding meet me. My mom made this quite often, so it’s always a pleasant reminder of her. I think you’ll like it, too.

MY MOTHER’S APPLE PUDDING

1 cup sugar
3 Tbsp. butter (or margarine)
1 egg

Mix together. Add 2 cups sliced, peeled apples

Add:
1 cup flour mixed with 1 tsp. baking soda and 1 tsp. cinnamon
½ cup chopped pecans

Mix well – the apples will just have a coating of batter on them. Bake in 7 x 11 or 9 x 13 greased cake pan for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream and a glass of cold milk or your decaf beverage of choice. Yum.

What do you like (or dislike) about fall? Favorite foods? Any special memories you’d like to share?

Weird Phenomenon

While standing under a street light the other night, my friend Myra pointed up and said, "What are those strings in the air?" Tiny networks of silvery, almost invisible strands, floated in the calm, fall-is-in-the-air hush. Whispery threads that brushed against our faces. Tickly fibers that wafted on an upward journey. We brushed them away and kept on chatting.

A couple of nights later, the weatherman on our channel enlightened me and the viewing audience. He'd been getting a lot of phone calls, and the phenomenon has a name--ballooning. It's the way spiders send their babies off into the world to make their own homes. Who knew? This must have been a productive year for all the mama and daddy spiders because they are everywhere, mostly at dusk, or at least when that's when they are most visible. Or maybe I've noticed them more because of the gorgeous fall weather we've had the past week. Lots of patio time, lovely walks around the block with Zelda, our mini-dachshund, who by the way, is the Queen in this household. Not to worry--I'll save her antics for another post.

Just when you think you've seen everything, something new comes along. Isn't that just the way it is with God and his creation? Eagles push their babies from the nest, but fly beside them creating wind currents to help the fledgling babies until they find their wings. Now, spiders have their own specially designed system as well. Fine filaments that give the babies a path to follow until they find their place. Oh, the wonder.

The weatherman also reported that a legend accompanies the spider ballooning: "When spiders fly, the weather will soon be dry." Don't know how much truth there is in that, but we've had blue skies and simply breathtaking weather all week. I'm headed to the patio right now--with a cuppa my favorite brew, of course.

Be blessed this weekend.