From Pumpkin To Pie

First get a couple of small sugar pumpkins.

Pop off the stems and whack 'em in half.

Scrape out the seeds. Don't worry too much about the stringy stuff, it's hard to get out when the pumpkin's raw, but easy after it's cooked.

Put on a jelly roll pan, or a cookie sheet with raised edges, that has been sprayed with Pam and bake at 400° for about an hour. (I know the oven's gross, but heat sterilizes and I'm allergic to oven cleaner.)

These are a little overdone, but not bad. Let them set until they're just cool enough to handle.

Then gently scrape out the stringy stuff you didn't worry about earlier. Trim off any burned parts.

Flip the pumpkin over and peel off the skin.

Tah-dah! Chunks o' pumpkin.

It's easier to process if you do it while it's still warm. This was refrigerated over night, so it's lost a little color and is more cohesive than warm pumpkin.

If, at any point, you find stringy stuff or bits of skin in the pumpkin, pull it out. Puree in a food processor until nice and smooth, then it's ready to use in the recipe of your choice.

Pumpkin Pie! The crust and filling are made and ready to put together.

Roll out the pie crust.

Pour in the filling and bake.

Cool the pies.

Now comes the best part... Eat the pie.

True, this is pretty much a repeat of my 10-21-2008 blog post, but it has photos to prove it really works.

The Most Fantastic Bug Photos Ever

My friend, Jess, over at bioephemera, has an astonishing talent for finding the finest in odd art.

Check out the bug photos she posted today. They knocked my socks off!

Why don't my bug photographs ever look like that? Even a fly looks glam when Martin Amm takes it's picture.

My bug photos are the acme of ugly. (Though I, personally, think this one's so ugly he's cute.)

Charles Shultz Was a Perceptive Guy

Click on the image
to see the whole cartoon.

Sigh, it's so true.

It's Beginning To Look a Lot Like Christmas

At least the snow part.

All this between noon and 4:30 today.

Mmmm...Bruschetta!

Sometimes when I walk through the deli section of the grocery store, the roasted tomatoes in olive oil and spices call to me too loudly to ignore. Those little buggers are expensive, but, oh, they're tasty.

From there it's a short stroll to the bakery department and the LeBrea bread.

Easy Bruschetta Recipe

Cut thick slices from a fresh Le Brea whole grain loaf.
Toast in oven set to broil until it's as toasty as you like it.
Flip and toast the other side.
Arrange roasted tomatoes on top of toast then pour over some of the oil and spices they were packed in.
Sprinkle generously with freshly grated parmigiana or romano cheese.
Put back under broiler until cheese shreds start popping.
Eat and Enjoy.
In the summer I like to mix the roasted tomatoes about half and half with fresh from the garden tomatoes, makes it even better.

Christmas Greed

The Engineer's family traditionally requires that each member submit a Christmas wish list by Thanksgiving evening. Anyone not submitting a list by the deadline is given a considerable grief and leaves him/herself open to receiving such class items as Chia Pets or nose hair trimmers.

My family has never done such a thing, though my sister did circle anything she wanted in the Sears catalogue. When she got into high school, she started circling the studlier guys in the underwear section despite never expecting to receive one. It was considered acceptable to ask someone what they would like, and we often did.

My brother's two daughters, 16 and 12, had one word replies to the question this year: "Money."

My Mother would have hung her children by their toenails and slowly flayed the skin from their quivering bodies had they dared give such an answer. To this day, it's an answer that shocks and offends me. (See Mom, some of your training did take.)

The younger generation of the Engineer's family shocked me ever more this year. Hmmm... Shocked doesn't really convey it... horrified, pole-axed, disgusted, appalled.. Yeah, appalled is a bit closer to how I felt.

13 year old nephew:
1.CCM Vector U+ Pro. Sr. ice hockey skates
$600 and his feet are still growing
2.Nike Bauer Vapor XXR Senior Inline hockey skates
$200 souped up roller skates - would he even wear these before he outgrows them?
3.Flak 5 Senior hockey gloves size 13 in black
$50, after the skates, these seem almost reasonable
4.CCM Vector U+ Int. Composite hockey stick 75/Ovechkin/Right
$160 could he be a little more specific?
5.Play Station 3
only $400 on Amazon
6.American Eagle gift cards
kinda like money in my book, but that's just me
7.!!!!!NEW TV FOR MY ROOM!!!!!!!! 32"
seems like he really wants to replace the TV he already has
8.xbox 360 or PS3 game-Call of duty World at War
$60 for blood splattered violence - I don't think so
9.xbox 360 or PS3 game-NHL 2009
not violent, only $57, but note he wants it either for the platform he already has, Xbox 360, or the Play Station 3 he's planning on getting

23 year old niece:
1. Garmin Nuvi
2. queen mattress set
3. Nintendo Wii Fit
4. Blue ray DVD player
5. couch and loveseat covers (black)
6. Dolce & Gabana The One perfume
7. gift cards- Target, Barnes and Noble, Kroger
Not as bad as the nephew, though a good queen mattress set runs a couple thou' these days. No TV on the list because Daddy already got her a 40" HD flat screen Sony.

And the Crown goes to:

30-something niece
(mom of 13 year old nephew):

2 Round trip tickets to Florida for Spring Break for my son and I we need a vacation
32-40" tv for my bedroom
Poofy Recliner for Living Room (Taupe or maroon color)
Ecliptical exercise machine
Sterling Silver jewelery
Coach purse-Ramblers Legacy or Patricia's Legacy-Black (either costs $400)
Gift Cards'
Bath and Body Works
Bed Bath and Beyond
Macy's

I think I'm going to get everyone underwear this year. Cotton underwear.

The Perfect Home

One of the things I like to do as I travel is give friends tokens of my esteem. This year I knit dishcloths as I traveled and gave them to the friends who hosted me. They seemed to think it was cool to watch their gift grow as we caught up.

I also took along three already knit gifts, two scarves and a hat. The scarves were well received, but the hat found its perfect home. The Dancing Grannies Hat went to a friend who lives in Bynum, a small mill town south of the University of North Carolina. She's an interesting character who is just a thesis short of a master's degree in folk lore.

My Bynum friend lives in a genuine millhouse made entirely of clapboard, inside and out. The only heat is a wood stove in the living room and a space heater in the bedroom. The floor is made of painted planks - very artfully painted in the bedroom.

Dancing Grannies Hat is going to feel right at home in this environment.