Menu Monday: S is for Sweet Potato Casserole

I mentioned last week this weekend...wait.  What day is it again?

We are on DAY 5 of being snowed/iced in, and it continues tomorrow.  (They've already called off finals for Tuesday, too.  We were supposed to open at noon today, but thankfully, they went ahead and closed campus ALL day.)  I know what the day it is; I just have no frame of reference for the past as the days seem to melt into one another quite unlike the snow outside our doors.

(I really do love snow and winter and the magic it brings.  I'm just bummed we didn't get to go see Theatre Squared's production of A Christmas Carol this past weekend.  And we're out of bread and low on eggs.  No more French toast pour moi.)

Anyhooooo, I mentioned sometime recently that Zach and I do a Fall Feast every year.  Usually, we get a rotisserie chicken, I make the sides (green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, and Stove Top, which my husband prefers to actual cornbread dressing...weirdo), and we do the dessert up right.  We eat and watch A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving and Garfield's Thanksgiving.  It's something we started when we were dating: We decided to do our own "Thanksgiving" since we wouldn't be together for the holiday.  (That first year, I don't really remember.  I'm actually now not even sure if we did what we would call a Fall Feast now.  But our second year, when we were married, we actually watched the Halloween specials and had Halloween Funfetti cake...but I don't remember if it was before or after Halloween.  We do things in our own time.)  And it is a glorious tradition!  "The more you eat, the more grateful you're gonna feel..."  That song kinda irks me, and I don't think it's true for commercialized America, but I also find it stuck in my head for days after, so it does what it is supposed to do, I think.

Anyhooooo, this year, we did it much later this year than usual because we've been so busy and traveling on the weekends...and then when I ordered two chickens from my co-worker's son, I knew we just HAD to wait until they came in, so I could roast one for Fall Feast.

They finally were ready the week of Thanksgiving, and so I brought them home for Fall Feast...the first week in December.

It was my first time to roast a chicken, and it was a ROARING success!  The crowds went wild for the citrusy, herby, golden-skinned chicken!  (By crowds, I mean Zach and Amy.)  But I was very proud of my bird.  :)

I realize this is a terrifying angle.  It looks like a fish face.

I made some "Texas Roadhouse" (copycat) rolls along with the usual green bean casserole, but I decided to do more of a sweet potato casserole than just candied "yams."  I combined two recipes, and it was delish!

SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE

3 cans of sweet potatoes, drained

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

dash of ginger

dash of pepper

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. almond extract

1/4 tsp. salt

1 egg, beaten

4 Tbsp. melted butter (1/2 stick)

1+ Tbsp. heavy whipping cream

mini marshmallows

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease an 8x8 pan.

-Mash sweet potatoes by hand until mostly smooth.

-Add all ingredients except marshmallows, and combine until well blended.

-Spread half of sweet potato mixture into pan and top with marshmallows as desired.  Spread remaining sweet potato mixture on top.

-Bake for 30 minutes.  Top with marshmallows as desired and bake for 10 additional minutes until marshmallows are brown and bubbly.

I know this is one of those dishes that is more like candy, but we only have it at Thanksgiving and Christmas, so I think we get a pass.  And I forgot to make the Stove Top, so it was one less dish.  :)

For dessert, we had a homemade chocolate cake made by a coworker's husband.  Holy YUM!

What are some traditions you have this time of year?

Friends and Food a.k.a. My Labor Day Weekend

Here we go again!  I'll try to get back on the blogging bandwagon this week, but don't hold your breath.  Here's how my weekend turned out:

• left work 15 minutes late Friday afternoon because I was bidding my friend and coworker goodbye :(
• got toasty on one glass of wine
• ate way too much Indian at Taj (chicken korma, samosas, dosas, etc.)

• enjoyed Ruby Sparks
• did lots of laundry and enjoyed snuggly kitties

• ate way too much Mexican-Eastern fusion at Table Mesa (guac, Cheap Dates, salad, fish tacos with black beans and rice, a chocolate chimichanga, and two West Coast Pimms Cups [OMG!]  My new favorite drink!)
• watched The Spiritualist at Theatre Squared

• recalled how it feels to walk everywhere
• went grocery shopping with my husby
• made some more Berries and Cream salad and cheesecake brownies

• took a nap
• discovered there's a Harps in Bella Vista (!!)

• ate way too many finger foods at La Casa Haas
• had fun at game night with the Haasies

• wasted my Labor Day watching ten episodes of Pretty Little Liars, checking out the sale on Zulily and debating buying this, and uploading 530 photos to Snapfish only to decide the coupon I had wasn't go to work :(
• showered, made the bed, organized the linens, brushed the kitties, made spaghetti, cleaned the kitchen, cleaned the bathrooms, and organized the coupons in about four hours

(Dinah, pre-brushing)

And that's a wrap!

Be Grateful #7 and #8?

I am sooo behind.  ;)  Big surprise there, huh?  Life has been busy, busy, busy!  I've already been at my new job for a whole month now, and this week, I was struck with a cold, so I am taking it slower.  This means I am a little behind on my day-to-day things like laundry and lesson planning, not to mention this!

on our non-snowy Snow Day

1)  I am thankful we got a "snow" day!  A week ago Thursday, we were hit with a little ice.  Originally, we were going to do a delayed opening, but about thirty minutes before we had to leave, the school closed!  Zach and I celebrated with French toast and the season three special of Downton Abbey.  (We SAW that coming from a mile away, but talk about heart-wrenching!)  We got snow on Tuesday, too, but it started to melt just about as soon as it piled up, so we were still open.  :(

Our bridge was covered in a solid sheet of ice by the time it quit sleeting. 

2)  I'm thankful for how well my new job is going.  I'm kickin' butt and takin' names!

French Toast--I served it with bananas and Nutella!

3)  I'm thankful my Thirty-One party turned out better than I expected.  My cousin is a consultant, and she talked me into having a party after I had a Scentsy catalog one for my niece last year.  As of Wednesday morning, when my orders were due, I had only sold $47.  By ten that night, I had made it to $209!  This meant that I got to take part in the hostess rewards AND helped my cousin out with a little cash from the commission.  My husband, who is a bit OCD about organizing, LOVED looking through the 31 catalog.  *lol*  He picked out some things for the car, but I am excited for my server set (casserole carry case)!

 Amy gives Zach bunny ears.

4)  I'm thankful for former students.

Scrabble:  This time, Amy own and Zach lost.  A reversal of fortunes from the last game.

5)  I'm thankful for freebies!  We have a Sam's Club membership and get awesome things from them.  Just this week, we got an Air Wick warmer and fragrance.  Our kitchen smells lovely.  :)

I made my photo look Instagrammy.  ;)

6)  I'm thankful for friends!  Last weekend, we had dinner and Scrabble with the Ganns and then joined the Jebarajs and others for our dinner and Theatre Squared night.  We were supposed to have gourmet grilled cheese night with our friend Amy last night, but I came down with a cold, so it is postponed a week.  :(  Still, last weekend we had enough fun to carry us to today!

snowy Non-Snow Day

7)  I'm thankful for the new Tempur-pedic mattress that is on its way to us.  Zach wanted a bar for his birthday, so we started looking last weekend at Hank's and Ashley's.  We ended up walking away with new mattress set and $300 worth of free pillows and sheets AND a bar!  Our furniture won't be in for at least another week, but I can't wait to have a comfy QUEEN-sized bed.  :)

I measure the snow using these two birdies.

8)  I'm thankful for the new niece or nephew we will welcome in the fall.  :)  Zach's sister Erin and brother-in-law Josh phoned us Wednesday to announce they are expecting.  Many prayers appreciated for a healthy pregnancy and baby.  They are moving next weekend, and I told Erin she doesn't get to lift anything.

9)  I'm thankful for my husband when I am sick.  He went to get me medicine and Dixie Cafe last night, and he is sleeping on the couch.  I volunteered to sleep on the couch to keep him safe and healthy, but he refused.  Such a sweetie.  :)  I'm also thankful he puts up with my grumbling on snowy non-Snow Day days and non-snowy Snow Days!

10)  I'm thankful to have discovered what St. David's Day is.  I love anything that acknowledges the beauty of a daffy.  :)

11)  I'm thankful for Kennedy Coffee and their chai tea lattes.  HEAVEN in my mouth!

12)  I'm thankful I found my eyeglasses.  I usually keep in them in the passenger side of the car; somehow, they made it to the driver's side, and I was panicked when I didn't find them in their usual spot.

13)  I'm thankful I got my permanent crown installed (?) without incident!

14)  I'm thankful for Ms. Juanita at work who gave me a Milky Way in honor of my granny.  She has switched to eating whole foods but was tempted to eat it.  When I mentioned on Facebook those were my granny's favorite (we even had them at her visitation!), she surprised me with it.  I thoroughly enjoyed it when I had to give up hope of a snow day this week.  I'm also thankful for my supervisor Lenora who shows that she appreciates our hard work and makes work fun!

Be Grateful # 17

Last night, we saw a production of Tennessee Williams' play Period of Adjustment through Theatre Squared.  I enjoyed it but I had been hoping for a laugh-out-loud play like the one we saw in September.  I am still processing it.  Thankfully, my husband offered a brilliant analysis of it this morning on our way to work that helped me put it in perspective.  And I really adored this '60s set.

1)  I am thankful I am DONE with this semester (other than entering final grades on Monday)!

2)  I am thankful I have time now to craft, cook, clean, and enjoy Christmas.  :)

3)  I am thankful that I started working on next semester already.  I am also thankful that I was very productive this week, working away in my office to Christmas music.

4)  I am thankful for new experiences, like getting to try Bordino's FINALLY (AMAZING sirloin and creme brulee!) and seeing new plays and going to Silver Dollar City for the first time this weekend.  And I am thankful to have these experiences with new and old friends.

5)  I am thankful I'm learning what makes really great writing while still appreciating grammatical topics.  (No, I don't mean to imply that grammar is not important to writing because it is essential to and inherent in it, but sometimes, you have bigger fish to fry than deferred prepositions.)  I just want folks to understand and appreciate why grammars exist in language, so then they can break all of those prescriptive rules to have fun.  ;)

6)  I am thankful for feeling and being appreciated.  For my students' final exam, they had to write an in-class argumentative essay in which they argued for the grade they felt they deserve (in addition to a small grammar component).  I so enjoyed grading them, and not just because my students often praised and thanked me for my work.  Many laughs and even a few tears resulted as they crowed--sometimes deservingly and sometimes not--about what they accomplished and lamented their failures.  I learned so much about them and what they experienced in and out of the classroom this year, and it allowed them to take an honest look at their own strengths and weaknesses and how much they progressed through this course and through college.  (It's Comp. I, so for many, this is the first semester in school.)  My greatest hope is that I help set them up to be successful in college, that they learn a lot about how to improve their writing, and that they enjoy the process.  Back in August, I came up with this idea for my final exam, and I am so glad I used it because it allowed me to assess my students, allowed them to assess me, allowed them to assess themselves, and allowed me to assess myself.  I am ready to come back in the spring even bigger and better!

Be Grateful #6

yummy white chocolate cream brûlée at Greenhouse Grill before Noises Off

1)  I am thankful it's week six of the semester.  Only ten to go until finals (I believe ;)!  I do enjoy my classes (teaching and students), but as this is only my second semester to teach, it's still rough at times.  Speaking of that, I'm relieved that the quality for my Phoenix class this time around is much higher.
2)  I am happy that we bought a Theatre Squared subscription so we can go to hilarious plays every other month.  Noises Off made my weekend.
3)  I am grateful for the encouragement I find in the Quaker meeting we attend.  We don't get to go as often as we like, but when we do, we are never disappointed in meeting with Friends and with God.
4)  I feel appreciated by my workplace this week.  They honored us part-time folks last Friday with a video and a certificate.  :)
5)  I am so proud of my husband, who was one of two people from our division accepted to an advanced leadership training program.  He's going to keep doing great things!
6)  I am pleased that husby and I got to celebrate our anniversary (third wedding/fourth together) with a low-key celebration.  It was so sweet!
7)  I am ready for the weekend:  Vietnamese home cooking in our home, zoo times in Tulsa, and Florence + the Machine in Kansas City!