Take a Risk

*Excuse the format, troubles with blogger, but I don't want to leave out this yummy fall recipe.

Fall, pumpkins, falling leaves and caramel apples go together. I love caramel and apples but I don't want to risk needing a new crown from biting into caramel and apple. This recipe solves that risk.

Spiced Caramel Apple Cupcakes

1 box of spice cake mix

3/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce

1/2 cup Caramel topping

1 granny smith apple

peeled and grated

2 egg whites

1 egg yolk

Directions: Put all ingredients into a large bowl and either mix by hand or use a mixer until well blended. Bake cupcakes with liners in a muffin pan at 350 degrees for 22 min or until tooth pick comes out clean. Let cupcakes cool in pan for about 10 min. then turn out onto a wire rack, and let cool completely before frosting.

At this point I'm thinking this cupcake is like health food, no oil, unsweetened applesauce and only one egg yolk.

Well folks, at my house dessert is not about health food so thankfully there is frosting. Frosting and some extras, like sugared pecans and caramel sauce.

Frosting

1 1/2 sticks or 3/4 cup butter

2 1/2 cup confectioners sugar

1/8 cup maple syrup

1/2 tsp.vanilla paste or extract

2 T milk

Directions: soften butter and add the rest of ingredients. Turn on mixer and beat until well combined. Whip, whip it good. Then pipe on the frosting. Or if you don't pipe just frost thick.

*Garnish with sugared pecans and caramel sauce.

Nope, there isn't anything healthy about these cupcakes. I think we took care of that risk.

My Winter Plan

Last evening Hubby and I attended the Haggen's Be Our Guest Food & Wine Festival with Brian and Holly. It was a delicious experience. I have the holiday season entertaining ideas swirling through my mind, including some amazing cheats.

As we tasted, if we liked the wine, we had our card scanned. Now I have a "wine cellar" at Haggen's. I can easily refer to it. This is amazing stuff for the over 50 crowd. I can never remember which wine and what year that I actually liked.

A ballroom of wine and food, another of beer and snacks and a dessert room with dessert wines, Twin Brook Creamery eggnog and chocolate milk, desserts to die for and my favorite of the evening, Sandeman 20 Year Old Tawny, Duoro Valley, Portugal.

Sipped slowly, with the fire roaring, snow falling, and Chocolate Meets Olive from Haggen's Market Street Catering. Mmmmm, crazy good! It's my plan for the cold, harsh winter that is in the forecast.

Thanks Brian for the invite, we loved our night out with your sweet wife, Holly.

Wednesday...

We had such a nice evening out with our friend, Adelene on Monday. I may have fallen off the Eat Less, Move More. The burnt cream was worth every calorie. A lot of calories and even more laughs. Thanks Ad!

Our addition is moving right a long, framing inspection is coming up, plumbing and electrical rough ins are finished,the furnace is connected, the windows are in and the dry wall is stocked for Monday morning. Hubby is off tomorrow so lots of progress will be made then.

Today I am calling and coordinating, and trying to choose carpet. I'm also working on a cute teacher, family, little buddy Christmas gift. Jerrie and I have been like little elves getting the Lynden Pioneer Museum gift shop ready for our Shoppers' Night on November 18th. Save the date. We are offering our usual great sales plus a showcase of crafty gifts ideas...

Super fun stuff!

Hawley thinks the addition is a new dog house. I just let him think that for now. He has a bed in there and loves all the subs coming to visit.

Shhhh, don't tell Hawley but when my bed goes in, his goes out.

Fun with Remodeling

Okay, this is fun! Anthropologie has a feature on their website that you can slide the knobs and handles to a cabinet to see how they look. I pick a cabinet, "paint it black" and then slide my hardware choices over to see how it will look.

Uhmmm honey, I may need a bigger remodel budget, I just found wallpaper, bedding, and doo dahs at Anthropologie. They have four home types and you can find yours and then shop IT! I found mine.

Lots of fun, that Anthropologie...

Martha is Amazing

This morning is busy, the electrician is here finishing the rough in. The drywall is being stocked. Huge truck with wrong address, so I've chased them down the road twice, then they barely fit on my bridge to the house. Jason is coming to measure the bathroom cabinets and after everyone gets started I need to make a lot of calls. Then I need to run some errands. I'll be ironing and baking in between, two good filler chores.

We have a fun week at our house. Busy. Tonight we are going to Anthony's with Ad. Max is telling his coaches that he has to leave football practice on time tonight because he is going for dinner with a senior from our church. Ad thought that was funny. Max invited himself along after Ad invited Hubby and I.

*Wednesday night is more fun, involving wine and food and Brian and Holly. Some of my favorites!

*Friday Night Lights are in Seattle this week.

Football game is at Kings. Go #83 and Lyncs!

*Saturday night is pumpkin carving in the party barn. I'll be cooking up some ghoulish treats.

So, with all that I am giving thanks this morning for Martha Stewart. Home Depot now carries MSL carpet and paint. I used Martha's paint when we bought our house nine years ago. Now, she has carpet and here is the BEST part. Next to each paint color is a small symbol, next to each rug sample is a small symbol, just match the symbols and everything will coordinate. There are apples, leaves, moons, stars etc. Brilliant! I'm leaning toward the asterisk symbol. Creamy grays, rather than tan creams.

I need something easy in this building project. Barely, just barely, keeping up. Long list today and then a fun, busy week, thank goodness for Martha or I might not make it.

i {heart} martha stewart living...

Ferrying to Friday Night Lights

Last night the Friday Night Lights were in Friday Harbor. It's a fun day/night/day. Hubby and I left around noon, stopped in Burlington at Lighting Universe and then caught the ferry with the team.

Barely...

It took longer than we thought to get there and Max and Tyler needed Mc Chickens and McDoubles, so we stopped at Mickeys and got the goods. It was a little tense, we were hurrying and getting texts from Max, "best hurry", "where are you?"...

Getting your stinkin' burgers, kiddo!

It was gorgeous on the ferry ride over.

At boot camp on Friday morning the Ball Boys' Moms were a little worried about sending their guys along with the team. Their Dad's are coaches and are busy with the game. I told them I'd check on them once in a while. Not really committing myself, just going to be mindful.

Max gave them a little end of the season thank you gift. Sugared them up! They work hard and deserve a little appreciation. They are fun to watch during the season. Dylan, Sam and Jake take their job seriously and make the Lyncs look good.

The Lyncs won, we had no rain, and the ball boys were on the ferry on the way home. I checked.