Ja cię kocham…

I love game days.  Saturday for the first time in…oh let’s see… 4 or 5 years, I put on my shin guards, picked up my old stick and stick bag and played some field hockey.  It felt so good to be a part of a team again, and I look forward to playing more and more.  (I just need to get back into shape before I REALLY enjoy it!)

I also love game days at home.  Jay had the picture-in-picture (PIP) on our television so we could watch two football games simultaneously.  Most of this multi-game interest can be attributed to a fantasy football league that someone is participating in addition to our Philadelphia Phillies who were ALSO playing at the same time.  Busy day!  A busy day of sports calls for game day snacks!

One of the snacks that I prepared for my darling sports-junkie husband was this hot and cheesy bean dip.  In 10 minutes I had it on the table with tortilla scoops.  The dip was so amazingly good that I wish that I had made more because between Jay, my sister, and myself, the bowl was completely polished clean!

Next time you have friends over to watch a game, whip up this dip.  It will be a crowd favorite, guaranteed.

Hot & Cheesy Bean Dip

Source: Annie’s Eats

Serves: 6 (or three piggies like the ones in my household!)

Ingredients:
1 Tbs. olive oil
½ onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and finely diced
1 (14.5 oz) can refried beans
2 Tbs. sour cream
¼ tsp. ground cumin
½ tsp. kosher salt
1/3 cup cheddar cheese, in ½-inch cubes
1/3 cup pepper jack cheese, in ½-inch cubes

Directions:
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add the onions and jalapeno, and sauté until tender, about 3-5 minutes.

Stir in the refried beans and cook until smooth, stirring occasionally.

Stir in the remaining ingredients and cook until the cheese is melted.  Transfer to a bowl and serve hot.

Jay tells me that I’m a facebook addict.  Apparently I completely zone out and do not hear anything anyone is saying while I’m surfing my friends’ pages.   Sorry, honey.  You know I love you anyway.

Here are some perks to succumbing to online social pages:

1. You find out that dear friends from preschool and elementary school live a quarter mile down the road.  (Hi Christina!)
2. You don’t feel so lonely on lazy Saturday nights because you find out that there are other people staying home, too.
3. You can send out invitations to parties without having to spend a dime.  A simple mass message on FB does the trick… AND it keeps track of who’s coming and who isn’t.
4. People post food that they are making allowing you to be nosey and ask for their recipe.

This leads me to my friend Molly.  I have known Molly since elementary school.  (I even have our 4th grade class picture from Mrs. High’s class…hehehe.)  Well, yesterday on Facebook, she posted that she was making crab-stuffed mushrooms for a family picnic.  CRAB-STUFFED MUSHROOMS!  I immediately asked for the recipe because it just sounded so good.  What makes this recipe even better is how easy it is to make them!  In a matter of minutes, I have these adorable mushrooms on my table and a happy husband with delicious food while watching the Eagles game.

Thank you, Molly!  These are literally the best stuffed mushrooms I have ever had.

Molly’s Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms

Serves 6

Source: My childhood friend, Molly

Ingredients:

24 baby portobella mushrooms, stems removed, and cleaned with a damp paper towel
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
6-8 oz. lump crab meat (sift through it with your fingers to make sure there aren’t any shells)
1 Tbs. Parmesan cheese
1 Tbs. +1 tsp. fresh parsley or dill, chopped
1 tsp. garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
cayenne pepper (optional)
mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray baking sheet with cooking spray.  Place mushrooms on sheet.

In a medium-sized bowl, mix the cream cheese, crab, parmesan, 1 Tbs. dill/parsley, garlic powder, salt/pepper, and cayenne pepper.  Put a generous amount of cream cheese mixture into the cavity of each mushroom.  Add a dash of cayenne pepper and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the mushrooms are hot and water starts to appear on the baking sheet underneath the mushrooms.  Garnish with dill/parsley.  Serve immediately.

Yes, it’s been a while since I’ve posted.  Now that my fall work hours have kicked in, I don’t get home until it’s nearly dark and my dinner photos do not do my meals justice.  Today, however, I was able to whip something up in the crock pot during the morning, take pictures while the sun was still shining, and eat it when it was dark

My sister, Emily, of Cleanliness is Next to Godliness has created a fall challenge for her food blog.  Basically you just make your favorite fall dish – ginger snaps, stuffed apples, pumpkin pie – and post it on her blog.  I cannot wait to see what everyone has decided to share.  Fall foods are my favorite!

I decided to make a pumpkin chili in the slow cooker.  This meal is incredibly low in the maintenance department, is inexpensive, makes your house smell so good, and is ready the second you come home from work.  Sound good?

Let’s give it a go…

Pumpkin Chili

Serves 8

Ingredients:

2 lbs ground turkey
1 large onion, diced
3 bell peppers, diced
2 (15 ounce) cans white navy beans, drained
1.5 cups chicken stock
1 (14.5 ounce) can chili ready tomatoes or diced tomatoes
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. ground cloves
salt to taste
cayenne pepper (optional)

Directions:

In a large pot over medium heat, cook turkey until brown; drain.

Add meat to crock pot. Add the remaining ingredients except for the beans. Cook on low 6-7 hours, or on high 4-5 hours. 30 mins before serving, stir in beans.

Feel free to add some sour cream, pumpkin pie spice and scallions as a garnish!

Move over Starbucks – here comes Do It Yourself Lattes for less!  Mind you, I love Starbucks.  They are convenient, offer fair trade coffees as well as a variety of seasonal and standard flavors to choose from!

See above for the Fair Trade certification logo.  This isn’t a Starbucks brand, but this gives you an idea of what to look for if you want Fair Trade products.  This logo designates this product as one that ensures sustainability and fair wages for producers that are typically marginalized in developing countries.  This logo makes a promise that citizens in developing countries receive a nice profit from their harvest. You can find coffees, teas, sugars, soaps, and much more that are are Fair Trade Certified.

Like I was saying, Starbucks is wonderful, but it is so gratifying to be able to replicate one of their drinks for pennies!  My sister Emily of Cleanliness is Next to Godliness (a food blog about eating clean) created this drink.  As a java junkie, I have become picky about my coffee and this one certainly passes the test!  It is sooooo good!  You have to try it.  You most likely have all of the ingredients already.  And if you don’t, you will spend next to nothing to acquire them!

This is a must for Autumn!

Emily’s Pumpkin Spice Latte

Source: Cleanliness is Next to Godliness

Makes 4 cups (depending on the size of your coffee mug!)

Ingredients:

½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup milk (I use soymilk)
2 cups freshly brewed coffee
1/4 cup pumpkin puree

**if you don’t have pumpkin puree… try pumpkin pie spice**

Directions:

In a medium saucepan, over medium-low heat, combine the pumpkin puree and milk. Stir for about a minute and a half. Then, add your vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg to the mix, and heat and stir until foamy! Pour in your coffee and stir until it is nicely meshed together!
Ladle it out into your favorite mug and enjoy!

I discovered Polish Pottery last year at my dear friend Christie’s bridal shower.

This is Christie with her hubby Eric.  (We were making homemade pizzas one night… what was I thinking giving Eric a knife?!?  Hehe.)

At Christie’s bridal shower, I was instantly drawn to the stunning deep cobalt and white pottery all over the house.   The hostess told me that she had registered for Polish Pottery for her wedding.  Dang it – why didn’t I think of that?!?!   Polish Pottery is incredibly durable and can go from your oven to your table to your dishwasher.  And it’s hand painted with love from Boleslawiec, a 13th century town on the far west side of Poland.  Boleslaweic (Bo-le- swa-vitz) is famous for it’s high quality pottery.

I chose the more traditional pattern of Peacock and Nature/Mosquito for my collection, but there are MANY other patterns to choose from – there are even Christmas patterns!  You can get all kinds of pieces.  Platters, coffee/tea serving items, place settings, and much much more are all available.  Several pieces are on display in my kitchen and in my “china” cabinet.  Of course, I use them frequently, but its too pretty to hide in a closet.  They need to be on display.

Jay and I registered for Cobalt Blue Fiestaware for our wedding, and the Polish Pottery matches perfectly with it.

Click here and here for online Polish Pottery websites.  I get monthly 10-25% of coupons for the online stores, which is fantastic!  You can also find it in local stores that sell pottery.   These are the kind of pieces that last a lifetime and can be passed on to your children and grandchildren.  Given that my family has strong Polish roots, I’m absolutely excited to add these pieces to my collection.