Baking Pies

Thanksgiving is only two days away! I adore Thanksgiving, especially all the wonderful food.

My fave--Pecan pie!!! :) 

I spent a good portion of the afternoon baking two pies in preparation for Thursday, a pumpkin pie and a pecan pie!

I don't use any particular recipe for the pumpkin pie, just the recipe on the can.  But, for the pecan pie, I used my Grandma Scott's recipe!

Pecan pie is one of my favorites.  I have tried a lot of it from bakeries, friends, and other family members (not in the Scott family). No one else's pecan pie comes close to my Grandma Scott's recipe.  To me, it will always be the best and never topped.  It is a requirement every Thanksgiving and Christmas.

I love pie! I am so looking forward to eating it on Thanksgiving.  Now I just need to resist eating it before then. Sigh.

Pumpkin Pie. Mmmmm......
(The pie got covered before fully cooling and left a condensation mark.)

I Want Some Gooey Goodness

One of my favorite treats growing up was Gooey Butter Cake. When Mom would bake it, it was a happy day at home for all. We all loved it. It wasn't until I got older that I discovered that the rest of the world had not heard of this sweet, delicious treat. Gooey Butter Cake is a St. Louis treat. If you are not from St. Louis, then it is likely that you have never had it unless you know someone from the area or have a friend who is friends or family with someone from St. Louis.

It is a cake I love to eat and it is easy to bake. Today, I decided to bake one up. Right now I'm seriously thinking of tearing into it before Chris gets home. Before I do that, I thought I would share the recipe (which you can also get from google, but my recipe has visuals. So there.)

First, you need your ingredients to get you started: 16 oz of powdered sugar, yellow cake mix, 8 oz of cream cheese (you'll want it out for a while before you start so it can soften), one stick of butter or margarine (melted), and 4 eggs (large is best).

All the ingredients ready to go.

Preheat the oven to 350.  Then, in a large bowl, mix the cake mix, melted butter, and 2 eggs.  Once it is fully mixed and sticky, you will spread it in the bottom of a greased 13x9x2 pan.

Layer 1.  I use a spatula to evenly spread it in the pan. The spatula is great, too,
because it won't have residual mix left on it.

Next, in a separate bowl, mix the powdered sugar (all of it) with the 2 remaining eggs and the cream cheese.  You will know it is ready when it is nice and smooth.

Layer 2.  Smooth as silk.

Once that is ready, poor the powdered sugar mix on top of the first layer.  Spread it evenly on top. Place the cake in the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes until it is golden brown in spots on top.

Before going in the oven

The cake is ready!! :)

You will want to wait until the cake fully cools before diving in and eating it.  I've heard of some people eating it while it is warm, but I prefer it at room temp (or even cool).

A piece of cake ready to be eaten!

Don't forget to eat some of the topping before cleaning your bowl.
It is yummy! Salmonella be damned! :)

For those of you who decide to try this, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Gooey Butter Cake

1 stick of butter, melted

1 box of yellow cake mix

4 eggs (large are best)

16 oz powdered sugar

8 oz cream cheese

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Mix 2 eggs with the cake mix and the melted butter.  Spread on the bottom of a 13x9x2 pan. Then mix the remaining 2 eggs with softened cream cheese and a pound of powdered sugar.  Pour the mix on top of the cake mix layer. Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes until lightly golden brown on top. Let cool before serving.

My Attempt at Being a Domestic Goddess

I am NOT the best housewife.  If I was, I would scrub the floors every week, vacuum every room (even if not used) every other day, dust daily, cook every meal--even breakfast, and do it with a smile and makeup on.  This does not describe me in the least.  I honestly hate cleaning on my best day, but realize it needs to get done.  I do the minimum necessary to survive.  Since I've had Ginny, my attempts have become virtually non-existent.  My focus is on her.

In an attempt to be a better housewife, which I deemed necessary once my lovely husband started voluntarily cleaning around the house (he hates cleaning more than me), I put myself on a schedule of sorts last week.  Before I did the schedule, I would find myself overwhelmed with the things that needed to get done around the house and would usually barely get anything done.  So, I created a schedule for myself with the hopes that it will give me a simple goal and be less overwhelming.  Here it is:

Monday:  Clean bathrooms
Tuesday:  Grocery shopping (NOTE:  No cleaning today unless I "want" to. LOL)
Wednesday:  Dusting
Thursday:  Floors
Friday: Scrub the kitchen
Saturday:  Make up day for any of the above and/or cleaning another needed area

It really seems to be working thus far, granted it is only week 2, but already I have a better attitude and feel as though I'm making some real accomplishments.

My zucchini bread and corn bread for tonight!

Since I have been feeling all proud of myself, I suddenly found myself with the urge to bake.  I've never been huge into baking.  I like it mainly when I am craving something sweet.  Otherwise, I'm okay with not baking.  However, in the last 2 weeks, I have baked (all from scratch) zucchini bread (twice--I'm doing it again today), a carrot cake with homemade cream cheese frosting, and corn bread.

Will wonders ever cease?  I may be on the road to being a domestic goddess after all.  Or maybe not. ;)

The chili I made for dinner tonight.  Notice my cheat?  Crock pot! :)