Foodie Friday: Pumpkin Hummus

Photo Source: Aarstiderne.com 

I first saw this recipe on Pinterest. I went to find the source of the recipe and it wasn't linked to anywhere!  I started digging around on the internet and found it ... on website written entirely in Danish. So, I'm going to post this recipe (I translated it to English - thank you, Google!) here for you. Make sure you read the notes at the bottom. 

Ingredients: 

1/2 - 1 chopped red chili

2 3/4 c. pumpkin

juice of 1 lemon

4 tbsp of tahini (sesame paste)

salt and pepper (to taste)

2 tbsp cumin seeds

3-4 cloves of garlic

Serves 4-6 people. 

To Make:

1. Scrub and peel pumpkin, cut into cubes and saute in a little oil in the pan. 

2. Season with salt and crushed garlic and cook further until pumpkin is tender. 

3. Cool it slightly and pour into blender. 

4. Blend the pumpkin into a puree with the remaining ingredients and season to taste. 

Serve with pita, veggies or flax seed crackers. Enjoy! 

Notes: 

Some things in the recipe did not translate, in particular the amount of pumpkin. After making all unit conversions necessary I arrived at 2 and 2/4 cups. The European recipe called for 1/2 kg which is roughly 1.1 pounds. Luckily, hummus is a forgiving recipe so you might want to play around with it and make modifications. 

Also, the recipe does not say if you should remove the seeds and pulp from the pumpkin... I would simply because i love roasted pumpkin seeds and would rather have them that way, but again, it did not say. 

I hope you enjoy this lovely fall recipe! Let me know if you make it, tell us how it turned out!

Happy eating! 

Just Because it is Hilarious!

What has my wee lad and I laughing our socks off these days?

These commercials (below).... Enjoy!

P.S. Little Lad's favorite is the "Liquid Gooold" one. That commercial reminds me of when my brother was little. After we watched Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, he would sing the Adam Pontipee classic "Bless your beautiful Hiiiiiide, wherever you may beee" with full blown opera-ish voice (what is that called?). It was hilarious, especially since he was a pretty young and definitely pre-pubescent lad trying to intimidate Pontipee's deep voice and singing style. Haha! It was so cute to see him trying to sing like that!

 

 Just so you know what I'm talking about, "Bless Your Beautiful Hide" And the other hilarious commercials in the series....

 





Seriously hilarious... seriously.

My Favorite Steve Jobs Tributes

I keep thinking about writing about Steve Jobs and how he impacted my life through his products and innovations but I can't seem to find the words. I'm going to leave it to a compilation of some of my favorite bloggers to give my tribute to Mr. Jobs.

On Yom Kippur and Gratitude, by Tori Avey of The Shiksa in the Kitchen. (It is relavent, I love this post).

My Plural Marriage, An Ode to Steve Jobs by C. Jane Kendrick of C. Jane Enjoy It.

Steve Jobs by Gabrielle Blair of Design Mom

and a short but sweet one:

Steve Jobs by Freshly Picked

The day he died, I found out 2 minutes after I woke up since it was on the news on the TV downstairs. Cancer. Gosh, I didn't know about that. I couldn't help but to think that this was the second person I know that has died of cancer in the last two weeks. About one minute after that my brother (who teased me for being a staunch Apple fan, until he too converted because the genius of the brand could no longer be denied), texted me to tell me the news. We exchanged a few texts of sympathy and shock. I called my best friend to tell her because her husband develops iphone and ipad apps pretty much since the beginning of that whole thing. She was surprised. No doubt he impacted their life, not only because of her husband's career but because all three of her boys had not only destroyed at least one apple product each in their first few years of life (costing them a small fortune because these were required work tools for dad) but, they are all proficient on the iphone or ipad by the time they are out of toddler-hood. As a result I got my son using the ipod early too. He took to it like a moth to a flame, or perhaps as it will be one day known, "like a toddler to an ipod".

My baby enjoying songs on our (his) ipod. 

For their family and mine, Steve Job's innovations are part of daily life. It's been a real blessing to me and so many others. I know that this can't be an easy time for his family. My thoughts are with them.  Yeah, I didn't know him personally but, I am definitely feeling the loss. As my friend over at Freshly Picked said, "You will be missed Steve, but your spirit lives on....In 5 (make that 2 at my house) devices in my house." 

Inspire Me Monday: Opportunities to do Good

I was going to post something else for today but since I've seen this I can't stop thinking about it and the ways we can come together for someone in need. I love that for this family it included neighbors, church members and eventually everything changed for them because of a stranger and their gift. I hope we remember that our opportunities do not have to be big moments like this either. We don't have to wait until we hear of something like this to make a difference. There are a lot of small and simple needs that are not as large scale as this but would make all the difference in the world to someone. Watch and be inspired to love your neighbor!

Foodie Friday: Apple Honey Cake or Cupcakes

Source: TheShiksa.com

Source: TheShiksa.com

I realize that today is not Rosh HaShanah, that it is Yom Kippur, which is a day of fasting (read more about that here). BUT, I wanted to give one more nod to these Jewish Holy Days with a recipe that I am so excited to try. So, I am posting another fab one from The Shiksa in the Kitchen. This Rosh HaShanah Honey Apple Cake recipe looks fantastic and I am excited to try it.

It also seems just perfect for fall. You have to scroll down a bit for the recipe but there is a place where you can print out a nice copy of just the recipe, which, I think is fantastic. I think the post makes good reading too.

Source: TheShiksa.com

Additionally, I am going to add the link to another post, titled, "Family Fun: Rosh HaShanah Honey Apple Cupcakes" because this is a great idea for those who want to celebrate Rosh HaShanah next year in style. This is a guest post written by Brenda Ponnay of Secret Agent Josephine, another great blog. There are adorable and free little printables for the holiday and she made the cake into cupcake form (which is what I will do when I make them). This recipe looks taste-y to the core! Get it... apples... core... heh. Aw, forget it! Enjoy!

Inspire Me Monday: General Conference

I feel very lucky to have the belief system that I have. I find that when I learn more about and study my religion, I am uplifted and motivated to be better. This past weekend was very inspiring to me. It was the semi-annual General Conference for my church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I invite you to go to this link and list to it, even one talk. It's difficult to point out one or two things that stood out to me, since the whole conference really lifted me and filled me with the Spirit of God. Pick a title of a talk that stands out to you. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the most inspiring thing in my life so thanks for allowing me to share that with you. Here's a clip of highlights from this past conference (October 1 & 2).