Sweet Potatoes & Pears

Looking for a new sweet potato recipe? Well, I have a very sweet one for you to try.

You'll need:

2 medium sweet potatoes

2 pears

2 TBS Butter

1/4 c. brown sugar

1 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. allspice

1/8 c. milk

Peel and cube your sweet potatoes. But them in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the potatoes are fork tender, about 15 minutes.

Peel and cube the pears. While the potatoes are boiling, melt the butter in a small pot. Add in the sugar, cinnamon, and allspice. Cover and let simmer until the pears are very soft.
Drain the water from the tender sweet potatoes and smash partially with a fork. Add in pear mixture and continue to smash with a fork until you reach your desired consistency.
At this point, you can add in milk if needed. Enjoy!

Bench Redesign

Since we are hosting Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, I knew that we needed more seating. Our table only has four chairs, so we needed at least 2 more.

I started my search on Craigslist. After a few days of looking, I decided that a bench would work as well as a chair. I called the seller in the morning and in the afternoon, I went and picked up this bench!

It had very ugly, green vinyl on the cushion. The back was also scratched and dented, but I saw the potential.

I chose fabric from Amy Butler. It is called celery/imperial fans from the Nigella collection.
On Saturday night, I reupholstered the seat with the new fabric. On Sunday I cleaned the wood and used wax & wood touch-up to cover the scraps and scratches. And ta-dah, it's a new bench!
What do you think?

Holiday Magic Parade

How was your weekend?

Ours was fun, but very busy. On Saturday we went to Royal Oak to the Holiday Magic Parade. This is a great parade! It lasted almost an hour and had a variety of floats/people/animals.

While we were waiting for the parade to start, I spotted Jay Towers from Fox 2.

Blake didn't care much that Jay Towers was there, he was excited to see "Sana" though.

Me and my best girl waiting for the parade to start.

One of the best parts of the parade is always the fire trucks. This year, Blake really wanted one of his own!

A variety of participants were watched and clapped for by the K Clan.

Then it as time for the Shriners in their mini cars. These guys were crazy! A few times I feared that my feet were going to be run over or that the cars were going to jump the curb...but my feet were safe as were the parade goers and all was well.

Blake was enjoying a nice cup of coffee as he watched the parade. ;)

And finally, just as Blake was getting ready to eat poor Sara...

the big man arrived!

After the parade we went to a Coney Island and had a great, greasy lunch. It was a great day!

Keep Trying...

Have a great weekend!

Yoga

A Yoga studio opened downtown a few years ago. I wanted to go, but never did. Then I got pregnant with Blake, and then, well....you know the excuses.

Last weekend at a Moms Night Out with my Mom's Group I was talking to another Mom and she mentioned that she goes to Yoga once a week at this studio. She invited me along and I accepted!

I brought along a yoga mat, which turns out was too thick, so I borrowed one from the studio. I was in the level 1 and it was 1 hour and 15 minutes long. I really liked it. It was strenuous at points, but also relaxing at others. Very nice.

So, I've decided to go once a week and hopefully begin to feel more flexible and stronger.

Tim Tams

Photo: NYC Food Guy

Do yourself a favor and go get a box of these delicious cookies. They are chocolate and caramel and made by Pepperidge Farms. Be careful though, you may be tempted to eat the entire box or at least half of it.

I found them at Meijer (on sale this week) and according to this blog they can also be found at Target.

Homemade Bread Day

Who else is celebrating today?! I don't know about you but I love obscure holidays (can anyone say National Pig Day?). Maybe it is the teacher in me, but I just love them.

Anyway, today, November 17, is National Homemade Bread Day. In honor of this holiday, I'm baking homemade bread for my family. I've made this recipe once before and we gobbled the bread down very quickly.

Homemade Wheat Bread

Description:

A slightly sweet, healthy half-whole-wheat bread

Yield:

1 loaf

Ingredients:

1 cup warm water (110-115 degrees F)
1 tablespoon milk
2 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (see additional notes for a 100% whole wheat version)
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons instant active dry yeast

Instructions:

1. *Combine first 6 ingredients in a large mixing bowl; stir.

2. Add flours and yeast, and knead until dough is smooth and elastic, about 10-15 minutes. Place dough in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover with a clean towel and let rise until doubled, about 40 minutes.

3. Punch dough down; knead for a few minutes until smooth and then form into a loaf. Place in greased loaf pan and cover. Let rise in a warm place until almost doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

4. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. If loaf starts browning too soon, lightly lay a piece of foil on top of the loaf to prevent too much darkening.

5. Remove bread from oven and allow to rest in pan for a few minutes. Remove to a wire rack and cover with a cloth. Slice and enjoy while still warm! Leftover bread can be stored in an airtight bag or frozen until needed.

Recipe from Tammy's Recipes.

If you have a great bread recipe that you use or found, please let me know. I love trying out new recipes.