Katie, from
Frugal Femina, did
THIS guest post on
Money Saving Mom this week about how to make your own pumpkin puree. We have bought several pumpkins this year and I hate to see them go to waste simply sitting on my side board looking pretty
(although it does look very lovely, hehe!) I decided to share the pumpkin puree instructions as well, along with some of my own favorite pumpkin recipes.
Microwave Pumpkin Puree
Cut the pumpkin in half. Scoop out all the seed and strings. Cube with the rind on. Put the chunks in a microwave safe bowl with a small amount of water. Cover loosely with plastic wrap. Cook on medium until soft...check every few minutes (microwave times vary). Once soft, remove from microwave and let cool. Once cool, peel off rind. Blend until smooth.
Crockpot Pumpkin Oatmeal2 cups quick cooking rolled oats
3 cups 2% milk
1/2 cup Pumpkin Puree
1/4 tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 cup raisins or Craisins
(I prefer Craisins, however, my youngest daughter is allergic to cranberries so we usually use raisins)1/4 cup brown sugar
Add all ingredients into a crockpot and cook on low for approximately 4-5 hours. I usually do this right before I go to bed
at night
(yes, I do go to bed way later than I should most nights) and it is ready for breakfast the next morning
(I usually get up around 5 and turn it off to let it cool and it is perfect at 7 a.m.).
Pumpkin Muffins 1 (18.25 oz.) package of yellow cake mix
1 3/4 cups of Pumpkin Puree
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease muffin tin
(I use a mini muffin tin for my children). In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, Pumpkin Puree, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Mix with an electric mixer until smooth. Spoon the mixture into muffin cups. Bake approximately 20-25 minutes
(shorter time for mini muffins), or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Pumpkin Pancakes2 cups pancake mix
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2/3 cup Pumpkin Puree
2 tbs. sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice
2 tbs. melted butter
1 egg
In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients. Then, fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Cook on a skillet, pouring 1/4 cup portions and cooking for 2 minutes on each side. Serve with syrup or
Pumpkin Butter.
Pumpkin Pie SpiceYou can buy this in a store or you can follow this recipe to make your own.
1/2 cup ground cinnamon
1/4 cup ground ginger
1/8 cup ground allspice
1/8 cup ground nutmeg
This makes 1 cup of Pumpkin Pie Spice, which is more than enough to make all the pumpkin recipes you have lined up this season.
Roasted Pumpkin Seeds Click
HERE for the basic recipe plus a huge list of optional seasonings to try.
Pumpkin Baby FoodYou can serve the pumpkin puree as is or combine Pumpkin Puree with any number of fruits. Cook your fruit of choice until soft and blend together with the pumpkin puree. Adding a little bit of cinnamon is optional.
This is something I definitely want to try for my son Elijah. He is still too young to eat baby food, so I will be freezing some of the Pumpkin Puree in some ice cube trays to use when he is ready. I am most interested in trying pumpkin and apples and pumpkin and bananas.
Tigger
Padme from Star Wars
Elijah in his skeleton costume (he stays at home with daddy for now but had to add this)
Tyler's best friend
Shrek baby Lola
my boss' daughter
Elmo (Tyler loves Elmo, so I did this for her)
WARNING, PHOTO OVERLOAD!
pumpkin guts
saving the pumpkin seeds for roasting
Jason carving the top
They all chose a skull face grim reaper
They all fought over who was going to trace the pattern, so they each got a turn
our little Wonka Bar
Jacob as Mike TeeVee
Ryan as Willy Wonka
Mackenzie as Violet and P&T as Oompa Loompas
One of the best decorated houses. They all were great though!
Bedford has the best participation during the holidays
I finally finished Elijah's Halloween costume...his Wonka Bar costume. After finishing, I realized that it might be chilly when he wears it and that he may need a hat, so last minute, I made the hat. Mackenzie gave me the idea to make it look like it has a bite out of it.
Super cute and I can't wait for him to wear it!
Microwave Pumpkin Puree
We had a very productive weekend for a change. We drove an hour away to visit with my mother and grandmother on Saturday. While out, we went Halloween costume shopping at Wal-Mart and Party City to get the costumes for the kids. They are really excited about our Willy Wonka theme. Mackenzie is just excited that she gets to chew gum. (I am fully aware that this seems a little ironic, especially since she will be walking door to door to collect unhealthy amounts of candy.)
Today, I finally dug out the Halloween decorations and put them up. I would normally have them up on October 1st, however, time just slipped away from me this year. I decorated the side board (see pics.) and I must say I do love it.
Lastly, I cleaned off our dining room table so that we could go back to family dinners. Because of the shear size of our family, Jason and I somehow along the way have gotten accustomed to just sitting in the living room every night eating our dinner while the kids sat at the kitchen table. I felt kind of bad and wanted to get back to sitting down to a nice family meal where we could reflect on our day, as well as discuss upcoming events. I also presume that it would cut back on the inevitable table arguing that goes on as if we can't hear them just around the corner, and the "ker-plunk" that we ALWAYS hear as Tyler's cup falls to the floor (No joke! At every meal Tyler spills her cup or throws it in the floor, and no amounts of "time out" or "booty taps" has stopped this nightly ritual).
October is "Scary Movie Month" in our house. Tonight we are going to pop the popcorn and enjoy one of my kids favorite scary movies, 13 Ghosts. We want to know, what are some of your favorite scary movies? Leave a comment telling us about your Halloween plans, costume ideas and what some of your favorite scary movies are. Everyone who leaves a comment will be entered into a GIVEAWAY for a $5 gift card to use at Blockbuster. The winner will be chosen randomly and will be announced November 1.
Check this out! This month at The Museum of Life and Science there are lots of exciting events to look forward to. Check out these events.
want to miss!
For everyone who truly knows me, you know that October is my absolute favorite month of the year. It is the first full month of Fall, the leaves begin to change on the trees, there's the N.C. State Fair, Hill Ridge Farms for hay rides, the corn maze, picking a pumpkin in the pumpkin patch, and of course Halloween. In our house, we celebrate Halloween and the month of October with "Scary Movie Month". All month long we watch a variety of scary (and some not so scary, kid friendly spooky) movies and Halloween classics. Stay tuned as I talk more in depth about all of the fun things we do this month.