Stuffed Dog Massacre

I hope you guys all had a wonderful Christmas! This was the hilarious chain of events that happened at our house Christmas Eve night. I purchased this sweet $10 stuffed dog toy that sang and danced. I thought at the time I purchased it that it would at least last 2 days. WRONG! As you can see from the photos Odee was waiting patiently to see what Santa brought him; Daisy on the other hand not so patient. Daisy went straight for the jugular and fiberfill burst out everywhere. Odee finished him off scattering fiberfill everywhere. All that is left of the stuffed dog is a empty decapitated body. The other gift was obliterated so fast I couldn't even take a photo. The treats in their stocking is all that remains of Christmas!

Blessings,

Jill

My Favorite Side Dish

The hubby and I have a busy schedule for Christmas. We will be going to my mom and dad's tomorrow night to exchange gifts with my family. Then Christmas Day back to Mom and Dad's for Christmas dinner. Then to my MIL and FIL's to exchange gifts. And somewhere we will squeeze in opening the few gifts we got for each other and of coarse Daisy and Odee's gifts. We didn't spend much on each other this year because when finally purchased a big screen hd tv and that was our gift to each other! So I wanted to share with you guys my favorite side dish that I will be bringing to Christmas Dinner. Mashed potatoes is right in behind this dish! I love good mashed potatoes and try adding a dollop of sour cream when mashing them. I saw Paula Deen do it and trust me it's divine. Any ways here is the recipe!

SPOON BREAD CASSEROLE
1 pkg. JIFFY Corn Muffin Mix
1/2 c. melted butter or margarine
1 8 0z. can of whole kernel corn; drained
1 8 0z. can cream style corn
1 c. sour cream
2 eggs
Preheat oven to 375; grease a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish. Pour margarine and corn into prepared dish. Blend in sour cream. Beat eggs and stir into casserole dish along with corn muffin mix. Blend thoroughly. Bake about 35-40 min or until center if firm. Enjoy!

Appetizer Recipes

These recipes are sooooooo yummy and crowd pleasers. So yummy in fact I had none left from our holiday church party to photograph. But trust me they are simple and delish.

Lil' Smokie Bites

2 pkgs of little smokies

2 pkgs bacon (thin sliced works best)

2 c. brown sugar

Note this is the original recipe doubled so if you don't need this many half it.

Begin by cutting your bacon into thirds. I cut the whole package at one time. You should end up with three piles of short pieces of bacon. Wrap a piece of bacon around each lil smokie and place a toothpick through it. It's best to use a deep cookie sheet or jelly roll pan to bake these in. Now take your brown sugar and sprinkle it all over the lil smokies. Bake about 1 hour at 350 or until the bacon is done. Serve warm or reheat for a few minutes in the oven. Enjoy!

Cream Cheese Bacon Roll Ups

2 cans of crescent rolls

1 t. seasoning salt

8-10 slices of bacon

1 pkg. cream cheese softened

Begin by frying your bacon until its nice and crispy; chop it and add to your softened cream cheese. Add the t. of seasoning salt and set aside. To prepare your crescent rolls. Open one can pressing all the seams together. Ending up with a long rectangle. Spread half of cream cheese mixture all over the dough. Roll up jelly roll style and wrap in wax paper. Refrigerate for about 10 min. Repeat with other can of rolls. Remove from fridge; using a serrated knife slice dough about 3/4" thick and place on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for about 10-12 min or until they are golden brown. These are good served warm or room temp. Enjoy!

GEEEEZZZZZZZ Can you tell I LOVE BACON!

New Ebay Offerings

I will be listing these items on eBay tonight! The box with the beeswax hearts is perfect for year round but especially for Valentines Day.

Reese Cup Delight

Don't you just want to dive in this folks??? I sure do. I made this yummy dessert for Thanksgiving this year and just had to share the recipe with you guys. I made it tonight for our Christmas party at church. This recipe came from a Taste of Home magazine; however I tweaked it a little bit. And I added way more Reese cups than called for. If you like peanut butter and chocolate or Reese cups you will LOVE this. I sure am a faithful Reese cup fan; sometimes I go out on a limb and eat a white chocolate Reese cup or a 5th Avenue but I always come back to the traditional Reese cup!

Crust:

1/2 c. butter softened

3/4 c. all purpose flour

1/2 c. graham cracker crumbs

1/4 c. sugar

Line a 13 x 9 x 2 in. baking pan with foil; grease the foil. In a small mixing bowl, combine the butter, flour, cracker crumbs and sugar; press into prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 min. or until set. Cool.

Chocolate Layer:

3/4 c. butter cubed

4 squares (1 ounce each)unsweetened chocolate chopped

4 eggs

2 c. sugar

2 t. vanilla

1 c. all purpose flour

In microwave, melt butter and chocolate; stir until smooth. In a mixing bowl combine eggs, sugar, vanilla and chocolate mixture. Gradually add flour. Spread over crust. Bake for 30 to 40 min. or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool.

Peanut Butter Mouse Topping

1 c. creamy JIF peanut butter

1 12 oz container of COOL WHIP

16 single Reese cups chopped

For topping, warm peanut butter for 30 seconds in microwave. Fold into whipped topping; spread over chocolate layer. Sprinkle with Reese cups and refrigerate over night. When ready to serve lift out of the pan with the foil. Cut into squares and remove foil. Enjoy!

I will be adding more recipes tomorrow! Lot's of yummy savory appetizers for your holiday parties. Bless you All!

Jill

My All Time Favorite Cookie

These are my all time favorite cookies ever......period. They are SNICKERDOODLES; I love the texture of these soft buttery cookies. There is a trick however to baking them. You have to remove them from the oven just as the top turns a little brown or the bottoms will burn and they will be dry. This recipe makes approx. 3 dozen. Better make a double batch of these little sinful babies.

SnickerDoodles

1 c. butter

1 1/2 c. sugar

2 eggs

2 3/4 c. flour

2 t. cream of tartar

1 t. baking soda

1/2 t. salt

sugar and cinnamon combined

Cream sugar and butter together. Add one egg at the time. Stir dry ingredients together; gradually add to creamed mixture. Roll into small balls and then roll in the cinnamon sugar mixture. Bake 8-10 min. at 350 degrees. They flatten and should be lightly baked. After cooled I added some powdered sugar for a snowy effect. They are no measurements for the cinnamon and sugar mixture. However I used approx. 1 cup of sugar and about a tablespoon of cinnamon.

The Weather Outside is Frightful but Electric Furnace is so Delightful! LET It SNOW! LET it SNOW!

I must admit I am LOVING this weather! It gives me a good exuse to stay inside warm and toasty in my pjs watching food network and movies. And this is what I did all day yesterday! Today I have a big pot of chicken soup on and I will be doing some ebay listing. I almost have all my orders done and I am so thankful to all of you that ordered from me this year! A special thanks to Andi, I got several pet doll orders from her blog!

I snapped a few photos of my tree inside which I finally got the ornaments on. I wanted to do a garland of some sorts but didn't get around to it. I took a picture of my favorite ornament; a glass pickle! I just adore it, for those of you whom don't know the story it goes like this. German's would hide a pickle deep in the boughs of their christmas trees and whoever found it would have good luck all the next year. Only I don't hide mine it's too pretty. I took the easy route this year and did ALL my shopping online. And boy was it every a big stress reliever. Our family did a elephant christmas this year. So I had to purchase a girl gift and a boy gift to bring. And everyone buys from mom and dad and the kids. I am excited to see what everyone will get and you can trade if someone is willing to trade with you. Hope you are all snug and warm and safe this Sunday! Blessings,

Jill

Open House

Saturday was my sister's open house at her shop. I sell my wares at her shop with her. We had a nice turn out with lots of yummy snacks and fresh popped popcorn along with lots of home made candy. I ate way too many of my mom's chocolate coconut bon bons. Above it Brook my niece enjoying a slice of pizza. Thanks to everyone who came to support us and visit with us at our open house.

FREE Gift Wrapping on Ornies till' Christmas!!!

Greetings Everyone! Hope you guys had a blessed Thanksgiving! I am offering free gift wrapping on all my ornaments until Christmas. I have added a pic of what the ornament looks like gift wrapped. They come in a brown kfrat box tied up with a sprig of greenery and a hand made gift tag. This includes my pet ornies and all my other ones too! Also here is a sneak peek at my new santa I will be offering on Ranting Raven the 1st of December.

Prepping for Turkey Day

Hi Everyone! I am busy prepping for my holiday dishes. I will be having Thanksgiving at my mom and dad's like always. So I am responsible for some side dishes and one dessert. I am trying to get my list together to go to the grocery store tomorrow. I found this wonderful site that has wonderful step by step recipes; hopefully some you may want to try :)

http://thepioneerwomancooks.com

My Critters!

Season's Greetings

Kentucky Hoe Cakes

I got a serious craving for this yummy fried bread. These are a staple in the south and as the story goes farmers made these on their hoe's on an open fire while working in the fields. Hence the name "Hoe Cakes". These can be served in a multitude of ways. They work wonderful with any meat dish or a big bowl of pinto beans. Or they can be served with maple syrup. Lol, I had to include the pic of Odee begging while I was frying them; Daisy was running amuck more interested in finding out what her daddy was doing. You can fry these in a well seasoned cast iron skillet or a non stick skillet. When frying these do not flip them over until they are all bubbly on top (same method you use when frying pancakes). Here is my recipe:

1 cup self rising cornmeal

1/4 cup self rising flour

1 cup milk

Lard for frying

Mix all ingredients together expect the lard; whisk together until smooth. Place the lard in your pan and get it nice and hot. Add your batter; max them any size you want. Serve warm with butter or syrup. YuMO!

Simply Primitives releases tomorrow :)

Tis' the Season for Planning Ahead

Well it's begun! We are all in a frantic rush watching the days till Christmas click by. I am in a pressure cooker trying to get all my orders out by Christmas, not to mention I haven't even started Christmas shopping. I have two come up with 2 gifts the 5th and 7th of December for my nephew and sister. I think I have them figured out; I will be getting my nephew a MP3 player and fixing my sister a gift basket filled with Bare Essentuals (which I also LOVE). So today I made a mondo pot of chili; which is very smart to make a big batch. It's just hubby and I so I put it in 2 serving size freezer containers so we can heat and eat anytime. But chili is a very versatile dish; it can stand alone or makes awesome chili dogs and chili and cheese fries. Which I had for supper! Yeah I am guilty I eat like a pig; total junk. But I workout every day either aerobics or walking to keep me from gaining weight. Sadly, I never eat healthy. But I do drink huge amounts of water and try to watch my salt intake and eat small portions of the JUNK. Thought I would include my recipe and photo in case you guys want some chili. Lol, I think I would get points deducted for my plating skills!

Basic Chili

2 pounds ground beef

1 large can tomato juice

1 small can tomato paste

1 cup ketchup

1 can of kidney beans

chili powder to taste

brown sugar to taste

OK I guess you are saying where is the onions and peppers??? Well me and hubby hate them so you guys add all that if you feel the need. Brown hamburger and drain. I use a nice big dutch over so I can do everything in one pot. Add your tomato juice and paste; then add your ketchup, beans and chili powder. When everything is combined add your brown sugar to taste oh yeah and salt and pepper. Simmer on low 2 hours! Enjoy and Freeze the leftovers.

2 Peas in a Pod

Look at the photo I took of Daisy and Odee! They look like 2 peas in a pod. I did some decorating in the workshop last night and I took a few photos of what I did. I put on my Christmas music and it really got me in the mood! Look at my faux fireplace :) I also hung some old clothes on the mantle like they are drying by the fire. I decided to go for a natural theme. All the tree has on it besides the lights is strung cranberries and dried sweet potatoes. The mantel is done in fresh pine greenery and a few dried oranges tucked in here and there and my old pitchfork in the center. You can see a sneaky peeky at my new Santa for Simply Primitives too. I also used one of my prized possessions to decorate with. It's an old red sap bucket from Maine filled with greens. Hope this gets you guys in the mood too

So Much to Do So Little Time

It feels like winter here in Kentucky today even though its the beginning of Autum. However I love the cool weather. I had to double layer when I went for my walk today and my face still got cold. I so needed my walk today to clear my head and take a moment to breath. Lol, seems like these days all I get to do is Feed Things. Lol, I know have a total of 9 dogs, 2 cats, a pig and a husband to feed! It's overwhelming some days. Ex specially now that the puppies are eating. I can't believe they are already eating as they are only 3 weeks old. And about the time I get all the animals feed hubby comes home and says what's for supper? Another stress for me is that I clean the house every day and it never feels clean enough...........maybe I am a little OCD. Regardless the laundry is never done and the house is never clean enough. Hubby is a hopeless pack rat.........I swear he brings home anything he can get his hands on and flops it down on the coffee table. I had to give him a room for all his junk but he tries to clutter the rest of the house too. I HATE CLUTTER! Lol! How did this blog post get so ANGRY? On a positive note The Humble Arts and Ranting Raven just released. I also listed some new on ebay and I am working on some new Christmas items. I am going to put my Christmas tree up in the shop because it inspires me so much; I just love this time of year. Blessings to everyone!

Halloween

Front Porch Decor

Hubby in his Afro Wig!

My Mother in Law the "Witch"

Micheal Myers

Hope all of you had a Happy Halloween! We sure had a blast! Me and the hubby opened a country grocery store this year in April. We all dressed up last night and sat on the porch giving candy to the trick or treaters. The cutest was a little baby dressed as Eore from Winnie the pooh............I didn't have a chance to get a pic of him as we had so many! I did get a pic of the scariest in a Micheal Myers costume. We ended up having about 160 kids! Lol, I think we had more fun than the kids................all the kids were scared to death of my MIL; they didn't even want to come up on the porch!

That's Some Pig

Since the weather was out of this world today I was out snapping photos! It was just cool enough to wear long sleeves. I snapped a photo of Clover my pot belly pig while he was napping and his old barn where he stays. As you can see most of the leaves have already fallen. The heavy rains recently and the frost made them fall before I could get some good photos. I realized I had never posted pics of the workshop (where I spend ALOT of time). I was lazy on the fall decorating this year as I was pressed for time! But anyways there are pics of the workshop and inside the shop. I still have some work to do on the outside of the shop...................have to paint the trim around the door add some lattice to the bottom etc etc. Lol, always plenty to do and never enough time!!! Thought I'd share my family's favorite dip recipe with you guys.............I serve this at every occasion as it always gets gobbled up and it makes a big crock pot full.

Hamburger Dip

2 lbs hamburger

2 rolls of mild sausage (2 one pound rolls)

1 lb Velveeta cheese

2 cans of cream of mushroom soup

1 crock pot liner (makes clean up super easy)

Begin by browning your hamburger and sausage; drain off all the fat and set aside. On medium heat melt your Velveeta cheese with your 2 cans of cream of mushroom soup. When mixture is melted completely add your hamburger and sausage. Stir to combine. Place your liner in your crock pot; this is optional, if you don't use a liner spray a little non stick spray in your pot to make cleanup easier. Place dip in the crock pot and cook on low for 2 hours stirring occasionally. Serve with tortilla chips. Enjoy!

Blog Quiz

Jobs I have had: Babysitting & Dairy Queen
Movies I could watch over & over: Cold Mountain, The Notebook, Any of the Saw movies, Halloween, Friday the 13th, Gladiator, A River Runs Through It, Seven,
The Secret TV shows that I watch: Plastic Surgery/Before & After, Wife Swap, Trading Spouses, Army Wives, Jericho, Diners, Drive Ins and Dives, Iron Chef Challenge, Racheal Ray
Places I have lived: Salyersville, Ky lol that's it!
Favorite Foods:
Turkey and Dressing, Pizza, Chicken and Dumpling, Fried Chicken, Heck any Comfort Food!
Favorite colors: Red, Orange, Black
Places I would love to be now:
- On vacation in Ireland or up north in Maine

It's Raining!!!!

It has been raining off and on here today.............which is so inspiring. I just love the way it sounds on the tin roof in the workshop. I got a little carried away making new things when I should have been working on orders. I made a new santa which I listed on ebay and a new pantry jar. Also I am listing below the recipe to my pumpkin bread on yesterday's post.

Pumpkin Bread

3 1/3 c. All Purpose Flour

2 t. Baking Soda

1 1/2 t. salt

1 t. cinnamon

1 t. nutmeg

3 c. sugar

1 c. Vegetable Oil

4 extra large eggs or 5 large eggs

1 16 ounce can commercial pumpkin

2/3 c. water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Grease lightly two 5 x 9 loaf pans on the bottom and 1 inch up the sides; set aside.

Onto wax paper, sift together flour, soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, place the sugar and oil; using mixer, beat on high speed until light and blended. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add pumpkin and water and mix until blended. Add the flour mixture in halves beating well in between.

Pour batter equally between the two pans. Smooth with a spatula. Bake one hour or until toothpick comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool. Eat and Enjoy! Makes 2 large loaves.

Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread

Fall is here in Kentucky! The trees are stunning this year! Looks like the drought didn't affect the turning of the leaves. I had a chance to bake some pumpkin bread; I look forward to making this bread every year. It's soooooooo moist and tasty, more like a cake consistency than bread.
The weather here is turning cool and it makes it so inspiring to work and create things. Here is a new pumpkin I made with a real dried stem.