Muirhead Pecan Pumpkin Butter Dessert Squares

I wandered into a Williams-Sonoma one day and the aroma was amazing.  I had to find out what they were cooking.  The sales person handed me a recipe card and a sample of a warm dessert square.  It was delicious.  Then I looked at the recipe card, "Pumpkin? But I hate pumpkin anything!"  It was then that I was converted (well, not to all things pumpkin).  The dessert bars are made using the Muirhead Pecan Pumpkin Butter sold at Williams-Sonoma. 

Buy multiple jars, as it always sells out.  Make a batch for yourself to devour and then make another to bring to a holiday party and you will be the hit of the event. 

Here is the recipe from the Muirhead website.  You can search around for other recipes for the Pumpkin Butter too.  

Have fun baking and eating these!

Lindsay

Google Eyes

I'm starting to dig out the Halloween decorations and wanted to make a few things for the entry cabinet.  I will post everything when It's all finished, but for now here is a frame that I made. 

The "google eyes" are from the dollar store and so is the frame so the total cost is only $2.  Plus, it makes Liam laugh and that's priceless!

I'm going to put a picture of Liam, in his Halloween costume, in the frame. 

You can check out this Halloween project and many others at the Frugal Girls DIY Link Party

Lindsay

Chicken Tortilla Soup

With the weather turning a bit cooler, I was wanting something warm and comforting for dinner with a little bit of a kick.  I had to make chicken tortilla soup.


Photo courtesy of Pioneer Woman



I can't take credit for the recipe for this delicious soup.  It came from Pioneer Woman, but I did make a few minor adjustments.  It says to use 2 chicken breasts, but I used 3 and I also added 1 cup of frozen corn.  Also, next time I make this soup, I will only add 1 can of black beans.

It's delicious and filling and perfect for the cooler weather that is fast approaching.

Lindsay

A New Look for My Dining Room Chairs.

I've never loved my dining room set, but don't want to replace it until I find the perfect antique dining set.  I decided that since I will be living with this set for a while longer, I MUST recover the seats.  They are a very boring cream color and a few of the seats have small stains that I have tried to scrub off with no luck. 

So, off to Jo Ann fabrics I went, with coupon in hand, of course.  There, I found a beautiful fabric suitable for furniture.  It's a eucalyptus and tan stripe and made to look like silk (it's 100% polyester).  The total cost was $30 for 2 yards, 2 hours of my time, a staple gun and staples, and a screwdriver.

Fabric choice with area rug and curtains.

Here are a few before pictures.

1)Take the old seats off of the chair base.
2)Measure a piece of fabric large enough to wrap the top of the cushion with enough allowance to staple to the underside.
3)Lay fabric wrong side down on your work surface and put the cushion, top down, on the fabric.
4)Wrap the fabric so the edge comes to the underside and staple in the center of the top edge of the cushion.
5)Now, pull the fabric tightly, and put one staple in the center of the bottom edge of the fabric.

6)Alternating top and bottom, and continuing to pull fabric tightly, put a few more staples on the top and bottom.

7)Repeat steps 4, 5, and 6 on the right and left sides

8)For the corners, pull the fabric tightly over the corner and staple once or twice.

9)Neatly fold the fabric over the top of the corner and pull it firmly and staple in place.

10)Repeat step 9 the the side of the corner

11)Finish all 4 corners per steps 9 and 10

12)Staple the rest of the way around the fabric and trim off extra material

13)Flip the cushion over and admire your handy work!
14)Screw the cushion back onto the chair base.

And you just saved yourself $150 per chair (or at least that's what I told it would cost to recover ONE dining chair).

Here's the finished product and a "before and after" picture.

Do you like the before or after better?

Lindsay

A New Dish.

My parents and brother came over for dinner tonight and I really wanted to try something new.  I decided to make halibut and hasselback potatoes.  I know that halibut is nothing new but I have never, ever cooked fish in my life.  I'm happy to say that it turned out tasting very yummy!  Aside from a minor issue with the fish sticking a little to the grill, I would say that my first attempt was a success.

As for the potato, it was a recipe that I found on Pinterest. Here is the link, so you can try them too.  They were also very yummy!  The name alone might not get you to make this fantastic potato recipe, so here is a picture, courtesy of seasaltwithfood.com

Happy cooking to all of you.

Lindsay

What to do with all of those projects?

Liam and I do a lot of crafts and I have been looking for a way to store them.  I stumbled upon this site, Paper Coterie.  They are currently running a program where you get a $40 credit to use towards a purchase (most everything on the site is under $40).  I found this memory box and immediately knew that I HAD to have it for all of Liam's little projects and crafts.  They also have many other cute items like calendars, growth charts and albums.

You have until August 31st to use the credit and you only have to pay for S&H.  It only cost me $9.00!  I can't wait to receive it and please let me know if you ordered anything too.

Happy shopping!

Lindsay

It's a St. Louis thing!

Have you ever heard of Gooey Butter Cake?  I have never heard of it until I stumbled upon this blog, Extreme Personal Measures.  I've been saving the link for the time when I needed to bake a cake.  Well that time was this weekend for my little brother's birthday.  Let me say that those St. Louis people sure know how to make a great cake!  It's so gooey, sweet, buttery and just plain YUMMY!  Make it as soon as you can!

Photo taken from Extreme Personal Measures

Click HERE for baking instructions.

Lindsay