Pumpkin Whipped Cream

Tis the season for pumpkins! It's also the time of year when I make fresh whipped cream to put on my coffee, pies, on anything really! I had a little extra pumpkin puree, from making my Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread again last week, and I wanted to put it to good use. So I made some Pumpkin Whipped Cream. 

It's really easy to make. Here's what you need:

-1 pint heavy whipping cream

-white sugar (add to taste)

-1/3 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie puree, you need the pumpkin puree)

-1/2 tsp vanilla extract

-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

-bowl

-electric mixer

Mix the heavy whipping cream in a large bowl until it starts to form "soft heaps" on it's own. Basically, it's thickening, but if you mix it too long it will turn into butter! I've heard cold metal bowls are great to work with, but I don't have one of those. As you're mixing, gradually add in sugar. Just keep tasting it until it has the sweetness you like. With my old hand mixer from the 70's (thanks mom), it took about 5 minutes to get the consistency I wanted. Toward the end, add in the vanilla and cinnamon. When it's the consistency of  whipped cream, pour in the pumpkin puree. Don't mix in the pumpkin puree with the electric beater, fold it in with a spoon. That way you won't over mix. It will have a slightly orange color when you're finished. 

Beware: 

Don't overdo it on the vanilla extract! A little goes a long way!

I put my pumpkin whipped cream in a sealed tupperware container and refrigerate it right away. I COULD NOT WAIT TILL THIS MORNING WHEN I GOT TO PUT IT IN MY COFFEE! I'm about to go out and buy decaf coffee, just so I can brew another batch tonight so I can add in more Pumpkin Whipped Cream!

Aren't pumpkins just the best?! I love them! There are 8 sitting right outside my window as I type this. See? --->

 Here are some shots from when we visited the Pumpkin Patch on Halloween. This is the 3rd year I've taken Ivy. So fun. 

Have a great Thanksgiving week!

Aloha, Becca

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Cinderella Princess Party - Ivy is 3!

Ivy turned 3 earlier this month! I'm not the type to say, "Oh, my baby is getting so big! :(" I think each stage gets better and better and we have more and more fun together. 

Being the decisive child that she is, she began telling everyone that she was having a Cinderella party. Taking that as my cue, I started a Pinterest board for a Cinderella party and got to work. 

Her Actual Birthday:

Her birthday fell on the Friday of Fall Break, so she was enrolled in Princess Camp at my work. (At Princess Camp, they get to wear princess dresses and learn ballet and make crafts and read about Princesses). So on her actual birthday she woke up and opened a present-- a Cinderella Princess dress and Crown, and then got to wear it for the day at Camp!. I made her hair all pretty, like Cinderella's.

Two days later we had her party.
We've had all her birthday parties in my parents yard next door to our house:

Age 1- Ladybug Garden party

Age 2- Elmo Sesame Street party

Age 3- Cinderella Princess Party

Attire:

Originally she was going to wear the Cinderella dress for her party, but about an hour before the party, my friend Katie came over to give her a present: a Rapunzel Dress and long braided hair/crown. She immediately put it on, and I didn't even try to tell her to put on the Cinderella dress because, quite frankly, she'd been wearing it for 2 days straight (it was a little dirty), and this Rapunzel hair with the long braid was just too adorable. 

Decor & Ambience:

 I basically set up a 12'x12' white tent I got at Walmart for $125, and set up a bunch of our furniture onto my parent's lawn. I read a post from Sawdust & Embryo's about how she hosted a baby shower, but her living room was in the middle of a renovation, so she just brought her living room furniture out onto the lawn and it turned out great! Click here to read their post.

I bought a few yards of blue tulle and brought some bunting and garland's that normally hang in Ivy's room. I strung them around the inside of the tent. Blew up silver and white balloons, bought some candy corns (the green ones are candy apple), pumpkins, and a Fall flower bouquet from Safeway. I downloaded Disney's Cinderella soundtrack and had it playing throughout the party.

Food:

raspberries stuffed with chocolate chips and chocolate covered acai/blueberries!

The party guests were encouraged to wear Princess attire. They arrived bearing gifts, and Ivy decided (on the spot) that she would open each one as the princess gave it to her. 

Activities:

I bought a Cinderella Party Pack from Walmart which had all these Cinderella stickers, mazes, wands, keychains, rings and plastic Cinderella bags. Rather then put the fun stuff in the bags, I just put it out at the party for the kids to color and play with. Later we used the bags for the piñata!

I also found a 12-pack of crowns at Salvation Army last month for $2. I picked up some foam stickers and some princess stickers so that the Princesses could make a crown. 

 I asked my friend from church, Jessica, to come do face painting. This is top-of-the-line face painting... If you live in the area and want to book her, let me know!

I made up two games. You read that correctly. I made them up. That's just how I roll.

#1- Sweep the Pumpkin into the Bucket 

(this is Cinderella "pre-ball" and fancy dress)

#2 - Where did Cinderella lose her glass slipper?!

(this is Cinderella "post-ball")

I had all the princesses close their eyes (hiding behind the fountain under the watchful eye of my mom... mom, you weren't supposed to close your eyes! You were supposed to make sure the kids closed their's!) Then we hid the shoe. On this particular round, she apparently lost in the roof of the tent. How is that even possible, you ask? Um... that's not the point.

Last activity of the day: Piñata! I wasn't going to get one, but I called Kit and he told me we should... just cause its fun. The Disney Princess piñata was $21 at Walmart. The generic Princess castle (which I purchased) was $9. Score! 

Cupcakes and Cake:

Ivy and I have been eyeing this cake at Safeway for a few months. They have all the princesses and they're only $8.99! When I turned 5, I had a cake like this, but it was a random girl, not Cinderella.

I had my mom make funfetti cupcakes with food coloring blue frosting. 

And that was Ivy's Cinderella Party. Fun fun fun. 

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Cailin's Fall non-mantel, a.k.a. "Fantel"

Cailin got in on the Mantel spirit and sent me these pics of her non-Mantel. 

(See my previous non-mantel post here.)  

'C' is for Cailin!

I just spotted Violet Imperfection's post from last week, where she calls her fake Mantle a "Fantle!" Haha, I love it. (See her post here.)

Cailin painted the tops of these pumpkins with Modge Podge, then sprinkled some Martha Stewart glitter on top. The owls were a gift from our friend. Cailin LOVES owls.

See Jed peeking in the back? :) Cutie.

"J" is for Jed!

What does your Fantle look like?

Aloha,

Rebecca

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Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

I'm no Martha Stewart in the kitchen. 

But I do think I hit jackpot with the Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread I made last week. 

I left Ivy alone for 30 seconds while I took out the trash, and I came back in to her devouring the bread like a wild animal. No joke. So glad I took the photos before this happened. 

So after going over a few recipes, and examining what I had, here's what I came up with:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Grease and Flour a loaf pan.

Gather these ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cups flour
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree (not the pumpkin pie puree, just the plain one)
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips... (maybe I squeezed a little more than that in there...)

Mix the ingredients together in a bowl. (Wet together, dry together, combine!)

Add chocolate chips last.
Fill your pan.
Bake for 45 minutes.

Once a knife can be stuck in, then pulled out clean, it's done baking.

Let it cool for 10 minutes. 

Take it out of the pan. 

I like to put it onto a decorative plate. Just cause. 

There is also a glaze that can go on top after baking, which I used:

• Almond Milk
• Powdered Sugar
• Lemon Juice

You start with the sugar, then add the other two ingredients until it's the consistency you like. 

My husband doesn't even like pumpkin stuff (gasp!), and he ate a piece and said it was good. 

So give it a try! What's Fall without Pumpkin recipes? 

Or prize winning pumpkins? 

Or sticking your legs up on prize winning pumpkins?

 Aloha, Rebecca

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