Author: jennifer

Inspiration

Musings on Life and Beauty



“The only artist who is perfect in all forms of creativity – in technique, in originality, in knowledge of the past and future, in versatility, in having perfect content to express as well as perfect expression of content, in having perfect truth to express as well as perfect expression of truth, in communicating perfectly the wonders of all that exists as well as something about Himself, is of course God – the God who is Personal.”

-Edith Schaeffer The Hidden Art of Homemaking (quoted in The Reluctant Entertainer by Sandy Coughlin ) Last night I felt captivated by the wonder of the evening light as it slanted across the earth and kissed the tops of trees with gold.  I am in awe of our Heavenly Father’s use of light and color, how the light saturates already perfect colors and creates in them a brilliance that takes my breath away.

Each morning I watch breathlessly as the first shafts of sunlight cut through the morning clouds, their angles sharp and bold as they glance off mountains and across the valley.

This morning my heart is full of gratitude for an infinitely creative God, full of thanks for the privilege of witnessing even the smallest portion of that creativity.  I am grateful for eyes to see and for the yearning I feel when I watch these beauties unfold.  My own feeble efforts at creative expression are not even elementary in comparison with His greatness, yet His love for us shines through his artistry with such brilliance that I feel compelled to press on.


Each year I keep a gratitude list during this season of Thanksgiving.   A simple (and common) exercise, it never fails to remind me that, far from being a scarce and rarely tasted drink, I’m swimming in abundance.  God’s simple gifts are as plentiful as the air I breathe so thoughtlessly.  My list helps enlarge my heart and remove the scales from my eyes.   This year I have decided to log it on Hopeful Homemaker.  You can find it at the top of my right hand sidebar where I’ll be adding to it daily.  If you haven’t already, I hope you’ll start one too.

What are you grateful for today?
How might expressing that gratitude affect your day?

Hopeful Homemaker

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Dinner in a Pumpkin

All Things Pumpkin, Main Dishes



This dish isn’t sweet, but it certainly spotlights pumpkin!


My Mom made this dinner for us when I was growing up, and I make it every fall for my own family.  Traditionally, we eat it around Halloween, but it’s a lot of fun to make it during November as well.

Dinner in a Pumpkin 1 small to medium pumpkin 1 onion, chopped 1 Tb. oil 1 1/2 to 2 pounds ground beef 4 Tb. soy sauce 4 Tb. brown sugar 1 (4 oz) can sliced mushrooms, drained 2 cans cream of mushroom soup 1 1/2 cups cooked rice 1 ( 8 oz) can sliced water chestnuts, drained.

Cut off top of pumpkin and thoroughly clean out seeds and pulp.  Preheat oven to 350.


Note:  The recipe says that the pumpkin cooks in about an hour, but my experience has been that it always takes about twice as long as that for the pumpkin meat to be tender.  Therefore, when I clean out my pumpkin I lightly salt the inside, replace the lid, place the pumpkin on a baking sheet and bake it by itself while I prepare the meal.  This gives the squash a head start on cooking.

In a large skillet, saute onions in oil until tender.  Add meat and brown.  Drain drippings.  Add soy sauce, brown sugar, mushrooms and soup.  Simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add cooked rice and water chestnuts.


Remove pumpkin from oven.  Spoon mixture into pumpkin and replace pumpkin top. Bake 1 hour or until inside meat of the pumpkin is tender.  Remove from oven and serve.  For a vegetable, scoop out pumpkin flesh and serve with salt and pepper.


I always enjoy seeing my children taste the pumpkin meat.  Several of them are usually wary of it, but I scoop them all a small spoonful of it, and almost invariably they request more.  It’s a fun way to help them try new things.


Enjoy!  And thanks, Mom, for making this all those years ago, and for passing it on.
Jennifer

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Pumpkin Dip

All Things Pumpkin, Desserts



This is my newest pumpkin recipe,  shared this season by a good friend.   I like it so much that it’s first on the list for my “Queen of the Season” series.


It’s quick and easy, tastes light, and requires no cooking!  The ingredients are easy to keep on hand and it makes a good-sized batch.  My family loved it.  Are you interested yet?  Here goes!

Ingredients:

1 small (15 oz) can pumpkin 16 0z Cool Whip 1 package (5 oz)  instant vanilla pudding 1/4 tsp. ginger 1/4 tsp. nutmeg 1/4 tsp. allspice 1 tsp. cinnamon 1/2 cup raw sugar or brown sugar gingersnap cookies (I used Anna’s Gingerthins.  You can find them at Costco during the holiday season, or call your local grocery stores to locate some.)


In a bowl, mix together pumpkin, pudding and spices.  Fold in Cool Whip.  Just before serving, mix in raw sugar.  Serve as a dip with gingersnap cookies or with sliced granny smith apples for a healthier treat.  I served it in these little bowls for the perfect sized serving.   This dip will keep in the refrigerator for a few days.  It’s delicious, and I hope you love it!


Jennifer

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