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Adventures in cooking: Pumpkin spice no-bake cheesecake
One pie down, two to go. I’m having a blast on my day off listening to the Peaceful Holidays station on Pandora and cooking up delicious desserts for Thanksgiving tomorrow.
For a dessert that doesn’t always show up on the dinner table, try out this easy — and not too unhealthy — recipe for pumpkin cheesecake.
Ingredients:
— 8 oz 1/3 less fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese
— 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
— 1 tsp vanilla
— 1 tsp cinnamon
— 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
— 1/4 cup brown sugar, unpacked
— 8 oz Cool Whip Free, thawed
— 9 inch reduced fat Graham Cracker Crust
Directions:
1. In a large bowl using an electric mixer, whip cream cheese, pumpkin, vanilla, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and brown sugar for a few minutes until fluffy.
2. Add Cool Whip and whip until smooth.
3. Spoon mixture into pie crust and chill for a few hours, until firm.
Fun Fact: The average American consumes more than 4,500 calories on Thanksgiving.
But one slice of this pie has only 239 calories! That’s at least one guilt-free indulgence.
The beautiful candelabra above is going for $99 from West Elm— which is way too pricey for a seasonal item in my opinion.
This could be a fairly simple DIY project if you used a real tree branch and it would cost you just a fraction of the price. Although, that does seem like a bit of a fire hazard, but it’s just so prettyyyy.
(photo via sparklyofmyveryown:misswallflower)
This is just some of the loot Brad and I picked up last night for our Adopt-A-Family kids we’re buying Christmas presents for.
After strolling the aisles cluelessly — Is a 4T the same as a 4? — we had a good time trying to pick out cute items from the children’s wishlists.
Look at those little boots! And baby leggings! And that weeble-wobbly penguin! Such fun.
22 rules that every journalist should read - and follow -
My favorites:
2. We would invite our audience to participate in the journalism process, in a variety of ways that included crowdsourcing, audience blogging, wikis and many other techniques. We’d make it clear that we’re not looking for free labour – and will work to create a system that rewards contributors beyond a pat on the back – but want above all to promote a multi-directional flow of news and information in which the audience plays a vital role.
3. Transparency would be a core element of our journalism. One example of many: every print article would have an accompanying box called “Things We Don’t Know,” a list of questions our journalists couldn’t answer in their reporting. TV and radio stories would mention the key unknowns. Whatever the medium, the organisation’s website would include an invitation to the audience to help fill in the holes, which exist in every story.
15. We’d routinely point to our competitors’ work, including (and maybe especially) the best of the new entrants, such as bloggers who cover specific niche subjects. When we’d covered the same topic, we’d link to them so our audience can gain wider perspectives. We’d also talk about, and point to, competitors when they covered things we missed or ignored.
18. For any person or topic we covered regularly, we would provide a “baseline”: an article or video where people could start if they were new to the topic, and point prominently to that “start here” piece from any new coverage. We might use a modified Wikipedia approach to keep the article current with the most important updates. The point would be context, giving some people a way to get quickly up to speed and others a way to recall the context of the issue.
(link via jaclynday)
Black Friday Deals 2009: The BEST Offers From Major Retailers -
Thanks for the link, Mom!
And in case you missed it, check out my tips on braving Black Friday and saving money while shopping for the holidays.
Here in Chicago we are still in the almost-winter season, but the winter season keeps stepping on our heels.
Sweaters are my second skin when cold weather arrives, but we all know they have a stigma. You can’t find a good sweater without forking over a little extra cash — can you?
You can. The cardigan sweater coat on the left will cost you $325 at Piperlime.com, or you can snag the cable-knit sweater coat on the right for just $24 from Kohls.
The sweater coat trend would make a perfect gift for your old roommate, your little sister, or even your favorite co-worker.
Here are a few more wallet-friendly finds:
1. Cable-knit tie-front cardigan — Old Navy, $36.50
2. Double-breasted cardigan — Forever 21, $27.80
3. Toggle cardigan — JCPenney, $29.99
4. Button-front cardigan — Wet Seal, $24.50
5. Tie Heather sweater — Charlotte Russe, $34.99
Now go forth and be warm (and cute)!
Through the Adopt-A-Family program at my work, Brad and I adopted two individual children to buy presents for this Christmas. And tonight, we go shopping!
We have a 3-year old girl and a 1-year old boy, who are brother and sister. Here’s what they’re wishing for:
Girl: coat, boots, underwear, pants and shirts, backpack, PRINCESS TOYS, Cinderella doll, doll stroller
Boy: coat, boots, underwear, sneakers, soft ball, baby toys, blanket
We plan on warming their little feet with fuzzy snow boots, and warming their hearts with princess and baby toys alike. It goes without saying that helping them warms ours.
Adventures in cooking: Spinach and feta biscuits and cheddar corn chowder (which didn’t photograph well)
Brad and I made this last weekend for his parents. It was DELICIOUS and decidedly the perfect combo for a chilly November night.
Spinach and feta biscuit ingredients:
— 2 cups all purpose flour
— 1 tsp salt
— Fresh cracked black pepper (to taste)
— 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
— 1/4 cup butter
— 1/2 cup buttermilk
— 1/4 cup canola oil
— 1 egg
— About one small package of feta cheese, crumbled
— About half a bag of spinach, chopped
— 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
— 1/4 cup fresh basil, minced very fine
Directions:
1. In a large sauté pan, sauté chopped spinach and garlic until softened. Add feta and basil at very end and remove from heat.
2. Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a large mixing bowl.
3. Mash in the butter with a fork.
4. Combine the buttermilk, oil and egg in a separate bowl. Whisk together until completely combined.
5. Combine the milk/egg mix with the flour. Gently, stir in the spinach mixture and add pepper.
6. Spoon into greased muffin tin (makes about one dozen).
7. Bake at 375°F for 22-25 minutes.
I got all gussied up Saturday night to go out for sushi with Brad and then to a local bar for some drinks with friends. There’s little else like that feeling of a brand new outfit, and I got confirmation in the words of one of my guy friends who in his manliest tone said, “Soooo fashionista.”
Wearing:
Black and purple tunic dress — Target’s limited edition holiday dress line
Black bib necklace — JCPenney
Black opaque tights — I have no idea
Black chunky-heeled pumps — Isaac Mizrahi for Target
As soon as I saw this dress on the rack, I knew I had to pair it with a big-ass chunky bib necklace, particularly one in all black so that it didn’t add to the busy-ness of the print. I found the one above at JCPenney, but I didn’t love the thin, lobster-clasp closure.
So I took matters (and a needle and thread) into my own hands and made it my own. Since ribbon-tie necklaces are all the rage, I picked up some shiny, black ribbon for $0.76, sewed it around each end of the “bib” and then simply tied it around my neck. Click through the link to see the original, and check out the top left photo above to see the finished product.
The only thing I didn’t love about this outfit were the patent pumps which I’ve had for more than a year. The minute I put on the dress I thought about raising the hem a couple of inches — but maybe I just need some higher shoes instead!