Winter Fun For Kids

My son, Eugene, is obsessed with snowmen lately, and no, not because of Frozen.  Wisconsin got dumped on with snow once so far this year (odd) and I took Eugene outside to make a snowman.  It was roughly 2 inches in totality (the snow was not packing snow) and melted within the week.  It hasn't snowed since, so paper snowman crafting it was!! We had a blast making this and Eugene is very proud of his work.

Coffee Shop Drinks at Home

If you're anything like me, you love coffee shops and all they have to offer.  But let's face it, we don't always have the time (or the money) to go that often.  I've never invested in fancy coffee makers (aside form my espresso pot) or those hand-held frothers so I couldn't believe how awesome this latte turned out today. 

TO MAKE:

1. Make espresso on stovetop (or brew strong coffee in a coffee pot)

2. Heat 8 ounces of evaporated milk (I used 2%) in the microwave for 2 minutes

3. Pour heated milk into blender & mix on high for 1 minute (letting steam out the top as it froths)

4. Combine the espresso & milk, spooning foam on top

That's it!!! You can add caramel or chocolate sauce to the evaporated milk before microwaving for added flavor.  I prefer my coffee less sweet so I just added a little sugar to the blender mixture.  You could also add any flavor coffee syrups to this drink as well as sprinkling/drizzling anything in your pantry to the froth if you are feeling creative.  This tastes amazing iced, as well!! Enjoy.

Holiday Art Print

I have been working on designing our Christmas cards this year- as in, I am creating the artwork for said card in Photoshop.  I finished the design and loved it so much I went ahead and turned it into an art print available in my Society6 and Etsy shops. This would make a great gift for a buddy or to put on your own holiday wish list.

Cheers!

Simple, Four Ingredient, Buttercup Squash Soup Recipe

Finally the days are cooling off and sweaters, boots and winter gear are slowly finding their way out of storage and onto us.  Chilly nights call for warm, hearty soups and fresh baked bread.  You will not believe how easy and fast this delicious squash soup is to make.  Using 4 simple ingredients and then pureeing the mixture in the blender results in the most rich, velvety, tasty soup.  

Simply halve a buttercup squash (not to be confused with a butternut squash, although that would certainly work, too) and roast face-down in a 350 degree oven for about an hour or until very soft.  At the same time, roast a pan of orange, red and yellow peppers for about an hour or until slightly charred.  When peppers are done, throw them into a paper bag, close bag and let sit for at least 10 minutes.  This will make removing the skin very easy.  After removing the skin and seeds/innards, throw the squash and peppers into a blender and add 4 tablespoons of butter.  Stir butter until it melts.  Lastly, add 2 cups of milk or cream and puree until you reach a soup consistency.  Add more liquid as needed.  Soup is now ready to eat.  If the soup has cooled too much from the cool milk, warm soup on the stove.  You could also make this soup vegan by omitting the butter and adding vegetable stock instead of milk/cream.  Add croutons, chopped nuts, seeds or Crème fraîche to soup. Enjoy!

Super Easy Apple Bread

Hello, world.  Did you go to the apple orchard yet this season?  Are you having a hard time coming up with yet another apple recipe?  Are you sick of apple crisp? I did, I was and I am.  So, I made some apple bread that is so easy a kid could do it.  And then I let my almost two year old practically do all of the work.  He had blast.  I even had a mini bread pan (shown in pic) so Eugene could have his own loaf.  This is one of those awesome dump all the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, add the apples and almonds, stir and bake kind of recipes adapted from here.  In this recipe, I used all white flour, used applesauce instead of apple butter and used brown sugar-glazed almonds.  It is so soft and so, so good!  Enjoy!