Fun and Games. And, of course, food.

We began our weekend on Friday with a reading poster celebration for Max, which included picking up dinner from McDonald's and eating it in the living room, while watching the 1967 version of Dr. Doolittle. 

Early Saturday afternoon we made our way to Bulverde for Weston's last football game of the season, which was followed by an end-of-year party and the passing out of trophies. This has been such a fun experience for us all!

Shortly after we returned home, we had some lovely house guests show up:  three sweet Baylor students, two of whom we've known since they were probably around Ruth's age. We had a blast cooking for them, playing capture the flag, staying up late and just hanging out. We tried out a few new recipes and definitely found some keepers, which I will share here:

Crock-Pot Pumpkin Bread

I'll admit, I didn't even know you could make something like this in the crock pot. I only use mine sparingly, and usually only for things like soup or roast, even though when I come across crock pot recipes, they always seem like a good idea. I just don't plan ahead enough. So, anyway, I really had my doubts about this actually working, but I thought it was worth a try, since I had a number of people to feed breakfast to before church this morning. Well, it not only worked, it may well be the best breakfast-type bread I have ever made! It cooked so evenly and was incredibly moist. And, it was SUPER easy! The old crock pot will definitely be getting more counter time in the future. So without further ado, here's the recipe:

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup of oil
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 1/2 cup of packed brown sugar
• 2 eggs (beaten)
• 1 can of pumpkin
• 1 1/2 cup of flour (sifted)
• 1/4 tsp. of salt
• 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. of nutmeg
• 1 tsp. of baking soda

Instructions

1. Blend the oil and both of the sugars into a large bowl.
2. Then, stir in the beaten eggs and canned pumpkin. Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
3. Pour the batter into a greased or oiled bread pan. (I used a canola oil spray that worked just fine).
4. Now add two cups of water to your crock pot and place the bread pan inside.
5. Cover the top of the crockpot with eight-ten paper towels. This is to trap condensation and keep the bread from becoming mushy.
6. Place the crock pot lid on top of the crockpot (I tried to make sure the paper towels were trapped around the lid so they didn’t slip) and bake on high 2 1/2 to 3 hours.

Mandi's note: I doubled the recipe and put it all in a Bundt pan, which fit perfectly inside my large round crock pot. A regular bread pan would only work if you had an oblong crock pot. I probably put closer to three cups of water in the bottom, and I cooked it on low overnight.

Knock You Naked Brownies

Both of the girls who were staying with us asked for a copy of this recipe. It's just ooey gooey happiness in a pan. I made a double recipe and only have four little brownies left. They could be quite dangerous if I didn't have a crowd around to share with!

Ingredients

• 1 box (18.5 Ounce) German Chocolate Cake Mix (I Used Duncan Hines)
• 1 cup Finely Chopped Pecans
• 1/3 cup Evaporated Milk
• 1/2 cup Evaporated Milk (additional)
• 1/2 cup Butter, Melted
• 60 whole Caramels, Unwrapped
• 1/3 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
• 1/4 cup Powdered Sugar

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix together cake mix, chopped pecans, 1/3 cup evaporated milk, and melted butter. Stir together until totally combined. Mixture will be very thick.

Press half the mixture into a well-greased 9 x 9 inch square baking pan. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove pan from oven and set aside.

In a double boiler (or a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of boiling water) melt caramels with additional 1/2 cup evaporated milk. When melted and combined, pour over brownie base. Sprinkle chocolate chips as evenly as you can over the caramel.

Turn out remaining brownie dough on work surface. Use your hands to press it into a large square a little smaller than the pan. Use a spatula to remove it from the surface, then set it on top of the caramel and chocolate chips.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from pan and allow to cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate for several hours. When ready to serve, generously sift powdered sugar over the surface of the brownies. Cut into either nine or twelve helpings, and carefully remove from the pan.

Nicole's Corn Chowder

This is more in line with my usual crock pot usage. It was a perfect lunch for a chilly fall day, especially when combined with some fancy schmancy grilled cheese sandwiches.

Ingredients
4 potatoes (peeled and diced)
1 can of cream corn
1 can whole kernal corn
2 cups chicken broth
8 ounces diced ham
1 cup of diced onions
1/4 cup butter
2 cups of half and half

Directions

Step One
Place potatoes, both cans of corn, chicken broth, ham and onions into the slow cooker.

Step Two
Cook on low for 7-8 hours

Step Three
Mash the mixture to your desired consistency, and then add the butter and half and half.

Step Four
Cook for an additional 30 minutes on high, and you are set!

Grilled Cheese Reinvented

the best thing since grilled cheese sandwiches…

is a grilled cheese sandwich made on sourdough bread.

with pepper jack cheese.

avocado.

bacon.

and apple slices.

yes, apple slices.

i am obsessed.

(Couldn't have said it better myself)!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend as well! Feel free to share a new "keeper" recipe you've tried recently.

*For links to original recipes (with pictures!), just click on the titles of the recipes.