Author Archives: Anne

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About Anne

Family: my wonderful husband, Adam, and our amazing little girl, Isla Dwelling: a small Cape Cod in the suburbs Real job: Human Resources Coordinator and Office Manager for DeskArmor, LLC. Homemaker tip: Even the simplest food can look elegant if you serve it properly. Presenting food on adorable platters is an easy way to impress guests. I am ashamed to admit that: I have never used a lawn mower. (I am blessed with a husband who takes pride in his yard) Three foods I can’t live without: cheese, olive oil, and chicken fingers Most important lesson learned: being a mom is the hardest job you’ll ever love One thing I am afraid of running out of: Clorox anywhere spray…and diapers

Buttercup Squash

Two weeks ago, three buttercup squash arrived in my CSA box. And for two weeks, they have been sitting on my counter. For some reason these little green and brown winter squash intimidate me.

Last night for dinner I decided it was time to use them up. I sliced, seeded and roasted them with a bit of brown sugar and butter. They were absolutely divine! The texture was incredibly rich and indulgent.  I almost felt like I should have been eating it for dessert!

Roasted Buttercup Squash

2 medium sized buttercup squash
olive oil for brushing
2 tablespoons melted butter
4 tablespoons brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Slice the squash in half and remove all of the seeds and stringy insides.

Brush the inside with olive oil and place them flesh side down on a rimmed cookie sheet.  (I would avoid using a flat cookie sheet because the squash might release some liquid as they cook.)

Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes or until the middle begins to soften. While it is cooking, mix the softened butter with the brown sugar.

Remove the squash from the oven and flip over so that the flesh is facing upwards.  Place in a baking dish and coat the inside with the brown sugar and butter mixture.

Cook, flesh side up, for another 20-30 minutes until fully cooked.

The squash can either be served in the skin, or scooped out and mashed.

3 Comments

Filed under Cook, Garden, Sides

Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Caramel and Pecans

I love making dishes and desserts that are full of fall flavors.  This Pumpkin Bread Pudding recipe has a rich pumpkin flavor with just a hint of cinnamon.  The caramel pecan sauce makes it indulgent and special enough for a dinner party.

Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Caramel and Pecans

Bread Pudding
4 eggs
2  15oz cans of pumpkin
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup sugar
1 cup half and half
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
10 cups french bread cut into 1 inch cubes (about 12oz)

Caramel Sauce with Pecans

1/2 cup pecans, toasted and chopped
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 Tbsp light corn syrup
1 tsp vanilla

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, pumpkin, milk, sugar, half and half, cinnamon, salt and vanilla.  Add the cubed bread and mix until fully coated.  Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350.  Pour bread mixture into a greased 9×13 inch baking dish.  Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes.  Uncover and bake for an additional 15 minutes.

During the last 10 minutes of baking, prepare the caramel sauce.  Cook the butter, brown sugar and corn syrup in a saucepan over medium heat.  Heat for 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved.  Remove the caramel from the heat and add the vanilla extract and pecans.

Remove the bread pudding from the oven and drizzle with the caramel sauce.  Bake an additional 5 minutes.

Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or a dollop of whip cream!

Mmmmm…the perfect combination of fall flavors!

Recipe adapted from Southern Living.

9 Comments

Filed under Cook, Treats

Campfire Birthday Party

campfire birthday partyMy sweet little girl turned 2 last week!  She has recently fallen in love with messy, gooey smores, so we decided to throw her a campfire birthday party.

campfire birthday invitationThe adorable red invitations were created by fellow HAP blogger, Stef and set the tone for the fun, outdoor party. The invitations can be ordered here in her Etsy shop, Morning Star Designs.

kids birthday party bug juice

Guests were served “bug Juice” in mini canteens adorned with name tags.

We snacked on all of Isla’s favorite foods!  Jagged cut wood signs painted with black paint were used as food tags.

owl birthday tshirt

The birthday girl wore an adorable personalized pink and red raglan tee created by Jamie at Sweet 3 leaf prints.

S'more cupcakesInstead of cake, we treated ourselves to smore cupcakes: devils food cake topped with marshmallow butter cream and topped with Hershey squares and mini graham crackers.

No campfire birthday party would be complete without a smore buffet!  My favorite combination?  Peanut butter cup smore on chocolate graham crackers with marshmallow fluff.

A red bandana banner created by Andrea at Where the Green Grass Grows hung above the food table.

S'more birthday party favorsAs party favors, guests were asked to take a “smore for later.”  The cellophane bags were tied with jute and a tag also created by Stef.

campfire party favorsAll the kids left with bandana knapsacks filled with treats and small toys.

happy trails bandana birthday favors

Happy birthday Miss Isla!

42 Comments

Filed under Birthday, Entertain, Family

Chocolate Pie

When my husband and I first started dating, we went to visit his grandparents. I was very nervous to meet them for the first time and soon found myself being pulled into the kitchen by his grandfather for some words of wisdom. I prepared myself for a long story about life and love and how to make it last. Instead, he kept it short and sweet. He looked me dead in the eye and said, “keep a guy, bake a pie.”

He truly believed that a way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.  This quote is a running joke in my family, but I do think of Grandpa every time I bake a pie.

So, in honor of him, I will share with you one of my Mother-in-law’s favorite pie recipes. This chocolate pie is so smooth and rich. It is the perfect go-to recipe for chocolate lovers.

Chocolate Cream Pie

1 (9 inch) pie shell, baked
3/4 cup white sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
2 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate, chopped
3 egg yolks
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Place sugar, flour, milk, and chopped up chocolate in 2 quart saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a whisk until mixture begins to bubble. Continue stirring for 2 minutes.

Now you will need to temper the eggs before you add them to the hot mixture. First, crack the eggs into a small heatproof bowl. Begin rapidly beating the eggs. While you do this, slowly add about ¼ cup of the warm mixture into the eggs. Continue beating until combined. This will prevent the eggs from scrabbling right when they hit the warm chocolate mixture.

Add the tempered eggs to the warm chocolate mixture and cook for an additional 90 seconds, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat, and stir in butter or margarine and vanilla.

Pour the filling into prebaked pie shell, and chill until set. Top with whipped topping, and a little grated chocolate.

Happy Birthday Haute Apple Pie!

4 Comments

Filed under Cook, Treats

Pound Cake with Nutella

I love recipes that turn an ordinary treat into something surprising and new.  That is how I feel about Pound Cake with Nutella.  Pound cake alone is a sweet treat, but can be a little plain.  Add a few swirls of the delicious chocolate and hazelnut spread and you have a new take on an old classic.

Pound Cake with Nutella

1 cup butter at room temperature
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1  cup Nutella

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter and flour a loaf pan and set aside.

Beat butter and sugar together on high speed until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating with each egg you add.  Finally, add the vanilla and salt.

Slowly add the flour and mix on low until just combined.  Be careful not to over mix.

Warm the nutella in the microwave until slightly warm.  This allows it to pour more easily over the pound cake.

Now you are going to layer the batter and the nutella.  First pour 1/3 of the batter into your pan.  Evenly pour 1/2 of the nutella over the batter.  Cover with another 1/3 of the batter and pour remaining nutella on top.  Finally cover with remaining batter.

Lightly swirl nutella with a knife.  Be careful not to over mix.

Bake about one hour or until firm on top.  let cool for about 10 or 15 minutes and turn out onto a wire rack.

This Pound Cake is great served warm or cold.

Enjoy!

1 Comment

Filed under Cook, Treats

Organization {Bedroom Closet}

We moved into our new house 5 months ago and in the midst of kitchen remodels and massive amounts of painting,  I have completely neglected other areas of our home.  For example, my bedroom closet was a total disaster.  In fact, I am slightly embarrassed to share these pictures with you, but if you promise not to judge, I will let you take a peek.

With fall just around the corner, my tall boots and bulky sweaters were just dying to come down from the attic.  I took one look at this mess and realized I needed to do some major rearranging before my closet was fall ready.

I had just one day and a $50 budget to get it all done. Here’s how it turned out:

Reorganizing a closet takes just a few simple steps.  The hard part is getting motivated!

Step 1: Purge

Set up three piles: keep, throw and donate.  Go through each item in your closet and be brutally honest.  Do you like it?   Does it fit?  When was the last time you wore it?  Allow yourself to keep only things that make you feel good and that you enjoy wearing.  I think I cleared out about a quarter of my closet and haven’t missed any of it.

Step 2: Think about what you need to make your closet work for you

Some people might need a solution for organizing sweaters while others need more space for hangers.  For me, I needed some serious shoe organization and a way to stack things on my top self so they were easy to find and easy to put away.

Step 3: Organize, Organize, Organize

Purchase things that will help you organize or simply use things you already have!  I purchased 2 shoe organizers, on sale for $22/each  from target, that gave me plenty of storage and also added a low shelf for my boots.

I also grabbed some inexpensive box organizers from Ikea to help organize my odds and ends.

So much better!  Now, everything has its place and with a little effort, my closet looks clean and organized every day.

How do you keep your closet organized?

6 Comments

Filed under Decorate

Mexican Street Corn

Due to the abundance of inexpensive sweet corn at the grocery store, my family has been eating it constantly. Don’t get me wrong, I love corn on the cob with lots of butter and salt but lately my taste buds have been craving something a little different.  So, I decided to try a new and interesting recipe.

I once heard about Mexican Street Corn, corn on the cob brushed with mayo and sprinkled with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and ground chili powder.  Rumor has it this type of corn is served by street vendors in Mexico. Although, in all of my trips there I haven’t been lucky enough to come across this treat.

Mexican Street Corn

5 ears of corn, husks removed
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Chili powder to taste
Cooking Spray, such as PAM
Tin foil

Tear off 4 individual pieces of tin foil, large enough to wrap one ear of corn. Spray one side with cooking spray, to prevent the cheese from sticking, and set aside.

Lightly brush the corn with the mayonnaise. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and chili powder and wrap in the prepared foil. Grill on a medium high grill, turning occasionally, for about 15 minutes or until corn is tender and slightly browned.

Enjoy the last couple weeks of summer!

6 Comments

Filed under Cook, Sides

A Bicycle Built for Two {Couple’s Shower}

My good friends, Lane and Craig, are getting married this September so my friend Angela and I  threw them a Bicycle Built for Two, couple’s shower.  They love the outdoors and are avid bikers, so the theme was a perfect fit for them!

The adorable invitations were created by fellow HAP blogger Katie.

Bicycle  planters and red balloons on the front porch welcomed guests to the party.

Guests were treated to White Sangria, vintage soda and a variety of beer.

The gift table had a bicycle basket for cards and a personalized print, created by one reverie,  for the couple.

A personalized cake topper, handmade of twisted metal by Heather Boyd, was a perfect touch.

For dessert, guests had vanilla cupcakes with cake toppers created by Lemon and Lavender.

As party favors, guests were asked to grab a bottle of personalized wine as they left.

The adorable labels were also created by Katie.

It was the perfect shower for a perfect couple.

Congratulations Lane and Craig!

8 Comments

Filed under Entertain, Weddings

Blueberry Butter with Basil

My mother-in-law brought me the most delicious blueberry jam from Maine.  So, I decided to get a little creative and make one of my favorite treats – flavored butter.

If you are looking for an easy way to experiment in the kitchen, this is the way to go.  Try  mixing different jams, seasonings and herbs together with softened butter and spread on biscuits, fruit or even grilled meats.  It is an easy way to add instant kick to a basic kitchen staple.

In this recipe, the blueberry jam makes the butter sweet and the basil is a perfect fragrant accompaniment.

Blueberry Butter with Basil

1/2 cup softened butter
2-3 tablespoons blueberry jam
2 tsp finely chopped fresh basil

Mix together in a small bowl until blended.

Store in the refrigerator for up to a week or freeze for up to 2 months.

Other combination to try:

Herb butter: Chop whatever fresh herbs you have on hand and blend with softened butter.  This is delicious melted over cooked fish.

Steak butter: Mix your favorite grill seasoning with softened butter and place a dollop on freshly grilled steak.

Strawberry butter: Mix 2-3 tablespoons strawberry jam into 1/2 cup of softened butter.  Perfect in the morning on waffles or bagels.

2 Comments

Filed under Cook, Quick & Easy, Treats

The Perfect Barbeque Ribs

It’s no secret that I am a huge fan of anything barbeque.  But, I have never been able to perfect the art of ribs cooked on the grill.

My mom gave me this recipe for fool proof ribs.  They are first cooked in the oven in beer and then finished on the grill.  Every time I make them they are fall off the bone, perfect.  This is also the second time this month I am sharing a recipe of something cooked in beer…are you seeing a trend here?

Barbeque Baby Back Ribs

1 Rack Baby Back Ribs
grill seasoning
3 cans beer
favorite BBQ sauce (I love Sweet Baby Ray’s)
9×13 pan
tin foil

Season your ribs with grill seasoning.  Cut the ribs in half and arrange them so they fit in your 9×13 pan. You will want to arrange them so they are “dome” side up. Pour 2-3 cans of beer over the ribs or until they are mostly covered. The top of the ribs will not be submerged in the beer. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 2 1/2 – 3 hours.

Take the ribs out of the oven, remove them from the beer and place them on a platter to take out to the grill. At this point the ribs are already cooked, but putting them on the grill will help crisp the up and give them a barbeque flavor. Place on a medium-low heat grill, cover in sauce and grill for 15-20 minutes.

Take off the grill and enjoy!

4 Comments

Filed under Cook, Main Dish