ONE DAY LATE - -SORRY BUT TIME RAN OUT!!!

Well - good evening!  I am one night late -- just had too much on my mind and too busy in the kitchen to write!  Lots has happened -- one of which was one of my favorite events - Pilot Club's "Tablescapes."  WE get companies to sponsor a table (only $250.00 - which all goes to help individuals) and then decorate it - either advertising products or showing how to set a wonderful holiday table.  I have happily decorated Southside's table for the past three years and this year I asked Angie Hines, sister of Susan Myers who owns Red Barn Flowers and Gift, to help me.  Well Susan supplied all of the great decorations and Angie helped me arrange the table.  As you will be able to see - it was awesome - not really something you could add food  dishes and have a meal - but a wonderfully decorated table.  - Some of the decorations will be calmed down some - but will wind up on my table!  They are both wonderfully talented ladies who are willing to help a friend and I appreciate them so much!  Several ladies disected my table and went straight from Tablescapes to Red Barn - and for that I am also grateful.  There were many other tables just as awesome - some a lot more functional but very festive! 

I am getting ready to cook at church again on Wednesday and again on Saturday for a ladies event.  My poor husband never gets a home cooked meal anymore - I really wear myself out with all this "outside cooking!" He is very understanding and I appreciate him so much!

I tried a new recipe I heard about and it might be a good substitution - but does not do the real thing a run for its money!  The recipe for Lemon Bars:

EASY LEMON BARS

1 Angel Food Cake Mix
1 Can Lemon Pie Filling

Combine well and bake in greased and floured pan for approximately 30 minutes at 350 degrees or until done at touch. (You know when you gently touch the top, it doesn't leave an indention but bounces back.)   It puffs up kinda like a Souffle and definitely has the lemon bar taste but not the tartness or texture.  I did sprinkle with powdered sugar!!

For this Wednesday night I am having Frito pies with homemade chili, Fritos, and cheese.  The Chili recipe was posted back in 2010 - called "Real Texas Chili."  We will also have a great green salad with Spring Mix greens, Spinach, walnuts, cranberries, grapes, Feta Cheese, and an olive oil drizzle.  Dessert will be Milk Chocolate Brownies with walnuts, and Pumpkin bars. This is the last Wednesday I will be cooking until 2012 if they ask me again!

Today we had a Halloween fest with scary Halloween themed food.  Some really great efforts from several employees at our branch.  Our two hostesses deserve our greatest thanks. Melissa and Kim get the event  going each year with a rousing poem of invitation, really fun table decorations, and all out efforts for scary foods.  They deserve our greatest thanks for going all out trying to make sure our branch has something special!  This year we had "Spider Pies", a goulish halloween seafood salad, pumkin-banana cupcakes, really good and very cute skeleton pimento cheese sandwiches to just name a few!  I made a Great white Pumpkin ball - which was ridiculously expensive because it called for two logs of goat cheese.   I had no idea - but those little 2 X 1" logs were $4.79 a piece.  Here is the recipe and then I will tell you what I did with the remainder!!

GREAT WHITE PUMPKIN

2 - 12 OZ. blocks white Extra Sharp WHITE Cheddar cheese
1 - 8 0z. cream cheese
2 - logs blue chees (found mine at Fresh)
1/2 tsp. black pepper. 
That was it. -- and Boring TASTE!!!

So - I added 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper and 2 tablespoons minced garlic (Penzey's of course)

Then I rounded into a ball resembling a pumpkin.

Then you are suppose to make lines so it will look like a real pumpkin.  I made a mess - so this morning Travis redid it and it really was great.  He added pretsels for stem and then took some grapefine from our garden and put the leaves and vine on top.

I had lots of compliments - brought the 1/3 that was left - combined it with Pimento cheese fixings - more cheese, pimento, jalapeno, Duke's mayonnaise and I believe we have some awesome Pimento cheese!

Well - it is really getting late and I am really, really tired - just thinking about the six recipes of Chili we will make and all of the desserts! 

Have a great Tuesday - do something great for someone else - and Praise God for all of your blessings!

Thanks for checking in!