Wednesday Ramblings

Santa came a little early this year:

I might have jumped up and down a few times when Paul walked in the door with a perfectly-shaped box.  I tried to keep calm.  But I couldn’t.  He told me to open it and then took it back, placed it under the tree and then I opened it and sat on the couch where where we snapped photos of everything in our house…including Emma!  She says “Merry Christmas, friends!”  She might have been sick of us by this point in the night.

I can’t wait for some daylight to get to play with our new toy.  For now I’m reading this brilliant book about food photography and styling.  Have you read it?  What’s your #1 food photography or dSLR tip?

I finally got a doughnut pan, friends. I went straight to Amazon.com after my visit from the Fairy Hobmother and her Amazon.com gift card.  It arrived Monday and I’ve been just staring at it…what kind of doughnut should I make?  And can we please change the spelling to donut?  It’s so much easier to type that way, am I right?!

I finally got one of these, too:

(Photo credit: Amazon.com) Do you have one?  You need one, it’s the coolest thing. Pour in olive oil, pump and spray…genius, I’m telling you!

One last thought today, I loved this: (Source)

So happy and blessed to be living this life…every.single.day.

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Cheddar-Ranch Dip

The minute that I saw this dip on Leah’s blog, I knew I had to try it. You know that I don’t like ranch dressing but I do love the flavor of dill, especially in dips. I’m a big time snacker. I love crunchy, salty snacks and most of the time I would much rather snack all day than sit and eat a huge meal.

We spent Thanksgiving with Paul’s family so I nearly immediately emailed the recipe to my mother-in-law saying that I didn’t think I could resist making it for Thanksgiving. She replied that she didn’t think she could resist me making it either! At that point, it was locked in, on our menu and it was a great addition.

When I started making it I then started thinking of all the ways to adapt it for different flavor twists: taco seasoning and Mexican cheese; Italian seasoning and mozzarella cheese; onion soup mix and Swiss cheese…the possibilities are endless. So needless to say, this is more of a frame of reference than a recipe.

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Apple Pomegranate Crumble

I typically only buy fruit that is in season.  I first discovered pomegranates in college one winter when they happened to be extremely inexpensive.  What college student isn’t looking for cheap produce?!  I remember practically living on pomegranates that winter.  They are not the easiest fruit to eat but the effort that it takes to get to the good stuff is so, completely worth it.  (Rachel (of Not Rachael Ray) did a great tutorial on how to eat a pomegranate, click here for that tutorial.  She also gives an awesome list of recipes that use pomegranate seeds)

I came across some pomegranates recently.  They called my name and I could barely hold it together long enough to get the thing home and tear into it.  The arils (seeds) are wonderful to snack on by themselves but I really wanted to bake with them.

I  remembered this apple crumble recipe that I absolutely love.  I originally posted it early in the life of Bake Your Day but  I thought that the tart of the pomegranate would go perfectly with sour of a Granny Smith apple.  It really was a great combination and was rounded out perfectly with the buttery, gingery crumble topping.  I’m a fool for that topping!  Plus, I’m always looking for a reason to use my mini tart pans!

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Wednesday Ramblings

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What are you counting down right now?  Countdowns are fun and one starts tomorrow!  Sarah at Baking Serendipity is counting down the days to Christmas with a Peace, Love and Joy Advent Jar.  I am so intrigued by this idea and I’ve been brainstorming since I read her post yesterday.  What are things on your list for the next 24 days?  I don’t mean gift lists, trips to the mall and parties…well, maybe a couple parties!  I’m starting my countdown tomorrow and I would love to hear your suggestions on how to spread joy, love others, be peaceful and bring Christ back to Christmas this Advent!

November was a fantastic month!  It went by so fast but it was full of blessings and I can’t wait for what is to come this month.  Our Thanksgiving was wonderful, I hope yours was too!

Have you gotten your cookies yet for The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap?  I haven’t gotten any yet but I also haven’t sent mine out!  I’m heading to my mom’s house this weekend to make our cookies and they will be sent out Saturday afternoon.  What is your favorite Christmas or holiday cookie?

One more thought for today:

(source)

I think prayer is the best way to keep calm through the hustle and bustle of the season!

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