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The weather is definitely turning colder here up in the Northern US, but ice cream can still be enjoyed as you are indoors and toasty warm. I slightly adapted a recipe from Lauren's Latest.

The texture of the ice cream wasn't 100% perfect and I am not sure if that is to blame on my ice cream maker or if I used too much of the pie crust pieces in the ice cream. It wasn't quite as creamy as I would have liked. I have reduced the amount of pie crust pieces in half, which is reflected below in the recipe. If you try out the recipe please let me know how it turns out. Enjoy!

Notes: My preference is that this ice cream is best eaten 'soft serve'.

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My little girl is growing up. Violet got to pick her birthday dinner. It was grape punch, cheese pizza, and a yellow cake with chocolate frosting. We also had wings and a 7 Layer Salad for the adults.

For the cake I cut out a number six from parchment paper, sprayed it lightly with baking spray, centered it on the frosted cake and had the kids add the sprinkles. Gently remove the stencil and it is ready to go.

This week I was tagged by Jess at Plucky's Second Thought for a 6 Things About Me post. Thank you for including me Jess! Jess actually picked 8 questions, sneaky girl, so I choose 6 to answer. I don't write personal info on my blog a ton, so here is a little break from the norm.

1. Do you have any pets?  If so, what kind.  If not, what would you like to have? 

Lulu and Sophie, Boston Terriers. They are sisters and sweet dogs, but a bit troublesome. They turned 1 over the Summer. In the past we've had more Boston Terriers, cats, fish, a hamster and a lab.

2. What was your favorite vacation?

I haven't been on many vacations at all, and none that stick out to me now. If I could, I would take trips to Paris, Italy and Ireland.

3. What is your favorite handmade gift you have received? 

Violet & Jack - my reason for living.




4. How do you take your coffee?

Strong with flavored creamer. The latest one I liked was a raspberry cheesecake flavor.

5. What’s your favorite meal ever?

Bagel with cream cheese, lots and lots of smoked salmon, capers, red onion and possibly tomato slices.

6. Favorite TV Show or Movie, ever?  It is so hard to pick just one TV show. I am more into tv shows than movies.


Adventure Time,


Gilmore Girls,


The Office



Under the Tuscan Sun.


7. Who am I tagging?

• Lisa at Creole Contessa
• Cindy at Hun...What's for Dinner?
• Stephanie at Plain Chicken
• Dru at Teenage Cakeland
• Jo and Sue at Jo and Sue
• Jamie at Love Bakes Good Cakes
• Stephanie at Cookin' Cowgirl

8. Here are your questions:

• What was your favorite vacation?
• What would your dream job be?
• How do you take your coffee?
• What’s your favorite meal ever?
• What is your favorite gift you’ve received?
• Favorite TV Show or Movie, ever?

This is as simple as it gets for a punch. Two ingredients, but the result is a gorgeous drink that is perfect for Autumn. If you would like to change things up, you could try substituting sparkling cider for the ginger ale, or making an ice ring out of apple juice or apple cider. Enjoy!

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Last weekend at Mom Spark I posted a recipe for a Winger's Sticky Finger Quesadilla Copycat. Head over to check it out!

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Our family really enjoyed this Pumpkin Chili. It was delicious! The turkey was nice and moist, and the only thing missing was a side of cornbread or maybe a sprinkle of cheese. Enjoy!

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Last Saturday I posted this recipe for Pretty Peach Pie at Mom Spark. Head on over to check it out!

One thing to note right off the bat about this recipe. I am providing two options for how to make it. The way that I made it was to use a large loaf of Cinnamon Challah bread from a local bakery. This type of bread has no frosting, which is why I went back and added the optional glaze at the end. If you aren't able to find Cinnamon Challah locally, this recipe by Vintage Kitchen Notes looks delicious.

If you are using cinnamon rolls with frosting already on them, use your best judgement to decide if you want the optional glaze. Try a bite without the glaze perhaps and see if you think it needs any additional sweetness that the glaze would provide.

In my opinion, the key to success for this recipe is using a very good quality of either Cinnamon Challah bread or cinnamon rolls. If you use a bad quality cinnamon roll, I am not sure it will make the best ever bread pudding. Really great cinnamon rolls that are a day old and just a bit stale are perfect.


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My curiosity was piqued when I saw this recipe for Pumpkin Alfredo with Cheese Tortellini over at Family Fresh Meals. Not only was it comforting and delicious, I even got the kids to eat a bowl. I really like cheese so I added a bit more Parmesan that what was called for in the recipe. Enjoy!

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This Cranberry Swiss Chicken is a fast and delicious dinner. One of the best parts was that the leftovers were even better.

The original recipe called for using mozzarella cheese, but to me that would have been a bit flavorless. I opted instead for Swiss. If you don't have any white wine on hand, you can substitute chicken broth. I found that the wine gave a lot of great flavor so I try to use it if at all possible. Enjoy!

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We're still on the hunt for the ultimate spicy raisin cookie recipe at our house, but in the mean time I tried out these Apple Oatmeal Cookies which turned out delicious and the kids loved them.

A few notes.

First - If you have a cookie scoop, use them for this recipe. These cookies don't really spread in the oven. How you drop the dough onto the baking sheet is pretty much the shape they will bake up with. So if you want more round, uniform cookie, bust out your cookie scoop. I lightly spray mine with baking spray so the batter releases more easily.

Second - I've added in some optional spices that you might want to consider adding to punch up the flavor of the cookie batter. Adding spices to the glaze is also a tasty option.

Third - This cookie is quite moist and on day two or three of this cookie, the cookies can become a bit sticky. You may want to freeze half if you wont eat them up quickly, or leave the lid off your container here and there so they don't become too sticky.

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Folks, as we are now cruising into September it is officially time for me to start posting more Fall and Winter recipes! Are you excited? I actually really am. I love the holiday season with my kiddos and I can't wait till it is time for seasonal decorations and food. Treats like gingerbread, pumpkin, eggnog and iced sugar cookies. It is a great time of year for cooking and baking.

To start things off I have sweet and savory dinner recipe. I was surprised at the finished sauce, it is not overly sweet at all for my tastes. Rather it had just a hint of sweetness that paired well with the tart apples and a juicy pork chop. Enjoy!

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