Pumpkins, Pumpkins, Pumpkins!!!

This weekend I made a little Homemade Pumpkin Puree with some small pumpkins from my Dad’s garden. Apparently, compared to the canned version, it is well worth the effort. We shall see…I will report back.

If you are interested in making some for yourself, check out the Pioneer Woman’s tutorial HERE.

I also decided to roast the pumpkin seeds…I was feeling very non-wasteful. It had been FOREVER since I had done that and Oh, what treat!

You just pull out all of the seeds and wash the orange goopy stuff off.

• Lay them out on a cookie sheet
• Pour 1-2 Tablespoons Olive Oil over them
• Using your hands, make sure the seeds are nice and covered
• Sprinkle a little salt or seasoning of your choice
• Then put them in a 325 degree oven for around 25 minutes.(check on them every 10 minutes or so to make sure they are baking nice and evenly.)

When you are done, you have some nice crispy seeds.

As you notice, my seeds are not terribly brown. That is because they were roasted at a low temperature, not toasted at a high temperature.

If you want yours nice and brown…bake them at 400 degrees for about 10-15 minutes.

Want another pumpkin idea? How about making your pumpkin into a chalkboard…

…or making it a nice metallic shade?

Hit the spray paint aisle and let your imagination go wild!

P.S. You might notice a few changes in this blog in the next little while. I will still be posting my own rantings and ravings, but I will also be posting the talents of others I see in the blogging world. Stay tuned!

A Low Calorie Option

I was watching the Biggest Loser last night and there was a segment with celebrity chef, Curtis Stone, where he was teaching the contestants tips for eating healthy. One tip he gave was to increase the volume of pasta dishes by making half of the "noodles" zucchini. Isn't that brilliant! You make the dish the same way, you are just adding more veggies and decreasing the starchy, higher calorie pasta.

And the best part...another way to use Zucchini!! The possibilities are endless!

The following are tips from Slashfood.com on making Zucchini Spaghetti, by Marisa McClellan...

"A while back, I hit upon a way of mimicking spaghetti noodles with zucchini that has become one of my favorite ways to prepare it. I use the fine matchstick blade on my mandoline (Amazon has some for under $10 that would do the job nicely) and slice the zuke lengthwise, so that I come away with long strings of squash that look like squared off spaghetti (don't use the inner seeded area, as it just shreds).

I heat a little olive oil in a nonstick pan, mince a couple of cloves of garlic and toss it all together over medium heat until the zucchini softens but isn't mushy. I like to eat it just like that, a sort of "pasta" alio olio that's a bit healthier than the traditional one due to the use of veg instead of starch. You could also top it with pasta sauce or toss other veggies in for a primavera. Play around, anything goes as long at it tastes good."

How about...

Zucchini, Potato and Scallion Pancakes?

Molten Chocolate Cake with Zucchini?

Zucchini and Corn Quesadillas?

Whole Wheat Zucchini Walnut Muffins?

Kitchen Sink Minestrone?

Click on the above links for great recipes!

Create away!

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

In an effort to use up the zucchini I grated the other day, I decided to make another "zuke" recipe...this time a sweet one!

Chocolate Zucchini Cake!

I started by creaming together the white and brown sugar, butter and oil.

I then started to add the rest of my wet ingredients and realized that it called for buttermilk...which I didn't have...so I just made some :)!

1/2 cup milk to 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon (or vinegar). Let it sit for 5 minutes. There you have it...

Homemade Buttermilk!



After mixing all of my wet ingredients up, I started to combine my dry ingredients...flour, cinnamon, salt, baking soda,unsweetened cocoa powder and allspice...aagghh, allspice! What is that! I don't have any allspice! So, once again, I just made my own :)! Love Google!



Homemade Allspice- equal parts cinnamon, nutmeg, ground clover and black pepper. I used 1 teaspoon of each.




Mix all of your dry ingredients together and slowly add to your wet ingredients.

Already looking good isn't it!

Once it is nice and combined and has a neat looking swirl like this one...

Add your grated zucchini.

And mix it up smooth.

Put it in a 9x13 inch pan and sprinkle it with 1 cup chocolate chips...mine are looking a little old, but they melted up nicely...luckily! Then, put it in a 325 degree oven for 45 minutes.

When its done, you get something that looks like this. I am telling you, those chocolate chips are a wonderful addition to this cake! After it has cooled, frost with your favorite frosting. Mine is chocolate...plain and simple.

And for all of your hard work, you get this. I am telling you, this is one tasty, tasty cake. It is beyond just your average chocolate cake. Wonderfully rich, wonderfully moist, wonderfully tasty. Pair it up with a little ice cream and you won't even know what hit you. Make some today, you will be glad you did!

Mom's Chocolate Zucchini Cake

by tessabella76

1 cup Brown Sugar, firmly packed

1/2 cup Granulated White Sugar

1/2 cup Butter

1/2 cup Vegetable Oil

3 whole Eggs

1 teaspoon Vanilla

1/2 cup Buttermilk

2 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour

1/2 teaspoon Allspice

1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon Salt

2 teaspoon Baking Soda

4 Tablespoons Cocoa

2 cups Grated Zucchini

1 cup Chocolate Chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl, cream the sugars, butter, and oil. Add eggs, vanilla, and buttermilk. Mix well. Mix dry ingredients and add to wet ingredients. Stir in zucchini. Pour into greased 9x13 pan. Sprinkle top with chocolate chips. Bake for 45 minutes or until knife or toothpick comes out clean. Let cool, then frost with your favorite frosting.

Chocolate Frosting

6 Tablespoons Butter

2 2/3 Cup Powdered Sugar

1/2 Cup Unsweetened Baking Cocoa

1/3 Cup Milk

1 teaspoon Vanilla

Cream butter. Add powdered sugar and cocoa and slowly mix together while adding the milk. Finish off with the vanilla. Easy, Peasy.

Zucchini Casserole

My garden is now in heavy production mode. I love it! I love to watch things grow...but what am I to do with all of this produce? That is question I asked myself yesterday. Hence the creation of this post and a slew of posts to follow...what to do with zucchini and other tasty garden produce.

My zucchini plant is on overdrive...as most are. My challenge with this is that I am the only one in my family that LOVES zucchini, so I spent some time yesterday finding different recipes that will help me use my produce in creative ways. Here is the first...Zucchini Casserole

Here are a few fruits of my labors that will be going into this particular recipe.


You start off my sauteing your onion. Mine made me cry...terribly...but fresh onion is worth every tear!



Next grate your zucchini. If you have a food processor, use it...it will make for quick and easy work.


Now that you have that, you can start adding all of your ingredients into a large mixing bowl.



Make sure and beat your eggs a little bit before you add them.



And try making your own Bisquick rather than using the store bought variety (which is totally fine if that is what you have on hand.) This particular recipe uses half whole wheat flour and oil rather than shortening...give it a try.

Now your recipe is almost complete...

...but don't forget those onions...tasty little things.

And mix it all up.

Put it all into a greased 9 inch pie plate and stick it in a 350 degree oven.

When it is done you will have this! It is one tasty treat. And the best part is...even "non-zucchini lovers" will devour this...my husband went back for seconds. The heavens were singing! I made mine for dinner, but it would be a tasty breakfast and an even tastier brunch. So, give it try!

Zucchini Casserole

by KarenPie

1 whole onion (finely chopped)

1/3 cups oil

1/2 cups Parmesan cheese, grated

4 whole eggs, slightly beaten

1 teaspoon parsley

3 cups zucchini, grated

1 cup cheddar cheese, grated

1 cup Bisquick (I use homemade, the recipe is below)

Lightly saute the onion in some of the oil. While the onion is cooking, combine the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl. Don't forget the rest of the oil. Add the cooked onion and pour the mixture into a greased 9-inch pie plate. Bake 35-40 minutes at 350 degrees, until golden brown across the top.

Homemade Bisquick

by KarenPie

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

4 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup baking powder

1 tablespoon salt

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1-1/2 cups instant dry milk powder

1/4 cups sugar

1-3/4 cup canola oil

Mix all dry ingredients together in the bowl of your mixer. With the mixer running, pour oil in a steady, thin stream over the dry ingredients. Mix well. Store in a large, air-tight container in the freezer. Makes 13 cups.