minis

things are more adorable when they are mini, right?!


in case you couldn't tell, they are mini pumpkin pies with jack-o-lantern faces. if you want the recipe...click here. mine may not be quite as cute as the ones featured in the recipes, but hey...it was my first attempt. (the faceless ones were for eric...he later admitted that he could barely taste the chocolate.) cute and tasty.

Survival?

Is it an "attempt" if you're just trying to survive?! Between my thesis and moving...survival has been the main goal for the last 2 weeks.

We're currently moving from survival mode to functional mode...which includes my "attempt" to organize. Our new place is slightly smaller than our last place...that factor on top of the complete chaos that is created by moving has created a disaster area in our 2nd bedroom. My current "attempt" to deal with that situation includes shutting the door and walking away. Maybe next week will be a real "attempt"?!

PS...I should be embarrassed to admit that our "attempts" at eating well have resorted to freezer meals and frozen pizzas, but I'm not. That's just life. And life isn't perfect. And neither are my eating habits. Maybe this blog should be called "confessions" instead of "attempts"...

more tomatoes

tomatoes. lots of tomatoes. and though i love them, they are a lot of work (especially the little ones).

and since i don't want to invest in canning at this point in life, freezing is the best option. so, because this process was new to me, i thought i'd share it with you.

[to tell the truth, this isn't the first time i attempted this process. i actually completed my first batch, along with several calls to my mom, a few weeks ago. and that process inspired this blog. i figure i'm not the only one who calls my mom frequently during a project and never really knows if i'm doing it right or not. so i figured i'd share all of my attempts with you. back to the tomatoes...]

1. wash well


2. boil water


3. prepare ice bath (note to self: have enough ice on hand for the plethora of tomatoes. second note to self: prepare a bowl large enough for all of your boiling hot tomatoes)


4. dump tomatoes into boiling water. leave them in the boiling waters for...well...not very long (i probably took them out a bit sooner than i needed to but i'd say it's less than a minute)


5. drain tomatoes and transfer them immediately to the ice bath. leave them there for a few minutes while you get your next stations ready


7. peel the tomatoes. flash boiling, as above, cooks them just enough to loosen the skin.


8. cut the tomatoes into large chunks


9. bag and freeze


apparently (according to my mom), you can use these just like diced canned tomatoes after they thaw...we'll see. i have yet to try them yet.

that's all. (that and the 12 pans of cookies i baked this week. but we'll save that for another post.)