For Brad’s first Thanksgiving in Australia, I had to find a good Pumpkin Pie recipe.  That was not as easy as you might think as, at the time, the vast majority of recipes included a ‘can of pumpkin pie filling’.  I have never really been a ‘can of’ kind of girl, and have always made things from fresh ingredients, so when I came across the following recipe, I couldn’t have been happier.

He says it’s the best pumpkin pie he has ever eaten… but don’t tell his Mum!

This recipe makes enough for two pies – don’t halve it, as both pies will disappear in no time, but they do keep very well for several days in the fridge, so they can be made well ahead of time.  They also freeze very well.

Ingredients:

● 3 eggs
● 1/3 cup brown sugar
● 1/3 cup caster sugar
● 2 cups mashed pumpkin – jap or queensland blue
● 1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
● 1 tsp. ground ginger
● 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
● 1/2 tsp. ground allspice
● 1/4 tsp. ground cardamom
● pinch salt
● 3/4 cup thickened cream
● 1/2 cup reduced fat cream
● 1 cooked 23cm shortcrust pastry case (recipe to follow)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 220C

2. Beat eggs and sugars together until light. Stir in pumpkin, spices and salt and mix thoroughly. Stir in both lots of cream. Pour filling into pastry case.

3. Cook the pie for 8 minutes, then reduce heat to 160C and cook for another 40-45 minutes or until filling is set (a knife inserted in the centre will come out clean). Remove from oven and cool completely before cutting.

Short Crust Pastry – enough for 1 pie.

Ingredients:

• 1 2/3 cups (250g) plain flour
• 125g unsalted butter, chilled, finely chopped
• 1 egg, chilled

Directions:

1. Process flour, butter and a pinch of salt in a food processor until mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
2. Whisk egg and 1 tbs chilled water in a bowl until combined, then with food processor motor running, add to flour mixture. Process until mixture begins to form large clumps, stopping machine before mixture forms a ball.
3. Turn pastry out on to a work surface and knead gently to bring together. Form into a disc for a round tart or into a log shape for a rectangular tart. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or for at least 2 hours

Have fun, and let me know what you think!

Put the heaped tablespoon of salt in a huge pot of water and bring it to the boil.  While boiling, add the chicken breasts, then bring back to the boil.  As soon as it comes back to the boil, cover with a tight fitting lid and remove from the heat .  Leave covered for half an hour.  Yes, it stays OFF the heat source.

Roughly chop the parsley and mint, then place in a bowl with lemon and salt,  tomato and extra virgin olive oil.  Allow to sit while the chicken is poaching (at least 10 minutes).  Steam or blanch the beans only until they are a bright green.  Drain and divide among 4 serving plates.

Remove the poached chicken and thickly slice against the grain.  Arrange on top of the beans, then spoon over the tomato sauce.

Serves 4 (this is a small meal size for our family, and would have been better suited to three people.)

Taken from Marie Claire Fresh + Fast and changed slightly for my own pantry limits.

50

Originally uploaded by Kerri McCrorey

I have been dreading this number for years, but now that it’s here, I’m really quite liking it.

I’m comfortable with the fact, for now, that today I am 50.

Brad, of course, will be running his tail off spoiling me rotten, as usual. In fact at midnight he took me to Krispy Kreme for my first birthday coffee, he has downloaded a girlie movie, that no self respecting male would admit to watching and he is currently baking me birthday oatmeal cookies.

….and it’s only 2:15am. Heh

So, it will be a Maccas birthday breakfast, followed by an Italian birthday dinner, with lots of birthday fun and snacks in between.

OOOOOO, maybe we can do a birthday Dark Knight screening?

The possibilities are endless!

The period of my pregnancy from about 34 weeks onwards, I called ‘The Blah Period’.

I was tired, looked and felt like a sack of crap and just wanted the damned thing OUT!

My first baby, the gorgeous Sooz, had given me no trouble through the pregnancy. No heartburn, no morning sickness. She did, however, have the habit of sticking a foot under my ribcage and giving an almighty shove.

I digress… Susan was due February 27. I had seen my Obstet that week and he informed me all was well, and as I was 4cm dilated it would be any time now. “Pack your bag” he said.

*ahem*

After two weeks, two more Obstet visits and two more suggestions that I pack my bag, he booked me in for induction the following day “Just in case you don’t blow tonight” were his exact words (23 years on and I still remember the words!)

Next morning I dragged my sleepless, sorry and literally aching ass out of bed, showered, woke up Limo Driver and we made our way to the hospital. I was BURSTING for a cup of tea, but wasn’t allowed one, so the morning was already off to a bad start, I not only had a sore ass, but I was in a FOUL mood!

In those days they gave me no idea what to expect from an induction, so I was flying blind.

I arrived at 7:30am and sat and sat until 9:30 when they inserted the drip. Every ten minutes or so they would come in with an expectant look. I gave them a blank look back “what?”. What are they expecting from me? What is supposed to be happening?

At 11:30 still nothing, and still no cup of tea. I was frothing at the mouth. Am I ok? Is everything going to plan? Where is my doctor? I haven’t seen him yet and assume he is playing a quick 9 holes at the local golf course.

12:00 midday and Midwife Extraodinaire comes in and says they are going to break my waters. “Awesome” I think, they are finally going to do something. I am taken into a delivery room and look in horror at ‘the crochet hook’. “You’re going to do WHAT? With THAT?”

Luckily for them, it was completely painless, though the memory of the device still makes me shudder.

The deed was done and again we have to wait… but for only about 2 minutes, when I get my first contraction. An ALMIGHTY contraction. I am taken back to the waiting room, as it is still ‘going to take some time’. *snort*

Still no doctor – must have been a quick 18 holes.

Limo Driver is timing my contractions from that stage on. Second contraction is 3 minutes later. 3rd is 2 minutes later. 4th, 5th and 6th, all two minutes apart.

Limo Driver decides to speak to Midwife Extraordinaire. “No, that can’t be right, it’s her first and it’s going to be a long time yet”. We had been dismissed. *shrug*

So, taking her at her word, we continued to keep time of the contractions. Maybe these weren’t contractions? Maybe I had the flu! That’s it, I had the flu! A painfully regular flu!

Where is my doctor?

12:30pm The flu is now at one minute intervals. Still no doctor. Midwife Extraordinaire comes in at Limo Driver’s insistance and takes me to the examination room, where BINGO! she realises I am fully dilated and about to drop a VERY large bundle on her nice clean floor!

“Oh” she says “I should call your doctor”. She hadn’t called him yet?

12:40 After approximately 20 contractions (or so) I ask “how long is this going to go on for?” Midwife Extraordinaire rolls her eyes and informs me that the average time is around 10 hours. I had been in labour for a grand total of 40 minutes and had already had enough. “Fine, that’s it, I’m outta here! Childbirth is cancelled!”

I glared at Limo Driver who had put me in this predicament in the first place and barked at him to take me home.

Midwife Extraordinaire was desperately trying to pin my legs to the bed to keep me from climbing off, telling me I was going nowhere as she needed to check my progress.

She looked

Looked again

Limo Driver looked.

Limo Driver almost fainted.

I was crowning.

WHERE IS MY DOCTOR???? 36 quick holes perhaps?

Sooz, though in no rush to leave her comfy spot, was not pleased that her safe abode had been forcibly crumbled. She was now making a SPEEDY exit!

Three times in my life I have been pleased when someone throws the ‘childbearing hips’ line in my direction. Each of those times was in Labour Ward.

Sooz was born at 12:48pm March 14. At 9lb 10oz, she was long, fat and screaming hungry. 10 fingers, ten toes, two beautiful big blue eyes and a head of blonde ringlets from the day she was born.

Oh…. and I forgot my bag! Heh

So, where was my Maternal Instinct? Another story, maybe for another time.

Kelley, I hope you’re proud!  My daughter tested “Near Death – have delusions of Godlike Power”.  I must have done something right!

Created by OnePlusYou

Yes, this is her on holidays with us in Hawaii, Christmas 2001. She always has been, and always will be, a great big dag!

She also has her medical for her potential new job this afternoon. The job of her dreams is riding on this medical, so it’s a pretty big deal . Lets hope all the party drugs are out of her system by now! *rolling eyes*

It’s ridiculous how your childrens’ lives can physically affect your well being.

I’m seriously a heap right now!

Xbox4nappyrash and ET, are you SURE you want to put yourselves through this? It sucks…. BIG time!

Our house is about to go up for sale. For those who have been keeping up with the program, we have done a lot of work on it over the last 12 months.

It’s such a relief to have all the work done and to have everything back in its place again.

These pictures show the fruit of our labours.

Feel free to ooooooh, and ahhhhhh in utter amazement at the beauty of our home. Heheh

Also feel free to bite me if you dont like it!

Oh, and the photos are all sucky and stuff because I took them with my phone. I keep forgetting to charge the battery for my digital *sigh*

I have a new laundry and I’m totally in love. *happy sigh*

I have NEVER had a nice laundry. I’ve never had a bench in my laundry. The laundry was always the ‘tacked on’ thing in every house I have owned/rented/squatted in. Even the house I grew up in had a shonky laundry. I have never had high expectations for this room.

That was until Sunday night.

It was like a bright light had filled the room and angels sang Hallelujah….. good GOD! Laundries do not have to be cesspits!

On Saturday, we decided that we were going to DO the laundry. We had been mulling over this for a while, and I had already measured, chosen and purchased the bench system I wanted. It had been sitting in flat packs in the back of our wagon for around three months. All we had to do was get into it.

Saturday we pulled all the crappy little hooks, gadgets and weird shit that had gathered there over the years, off the walls. We filled the holes, cleaned the walls and ceiling and waited overnight for the spakfilla to dry. The Hawaiian also got busy with the silicone and prettied up the edges of the sink, around the tiles etc.

Sunday – Paint paint paint – two coats done in around two hours. It was a hot day!

Now comes the tricky fun part. The dreaded flat packs! Legs, countertops, rails, brackets….. shit, no toggles for the gyprock walls, and its Easter Sunday. My boss came to the rescue, so we visit him, in paint covered clothes, to pick them up. “Come right over” he’d said. He neglected to let me know that his entire extended family were there! He will pay…… he WILL pay!! *sigh* At least my t-shirt, thongs and bag matched!

Toggles in hand we were able to complete the job. My skills with a tape measure came in handy. The benches fitted without a millimetre to spare!

Sunday night was the turning point after a lot of effort over the last 12 months to get this house renovated. We have done a massive amount of work, and every room still has one or two small things that need to be completed before we can put the house back together the way we want it. We needed to get something done and have a room finished. Our sanity depended on it. The laundry is THAT room, and we are OH SO proud of it

Pity the rest of the house is a dump! Heh!

It’s been hard work for the poor kids who have to party all night long and come home to bacon and eggs at 6 in the morning….. dragging all their friends whose parents arent so gullible.

These are my kids

Gorgeous, huh?

These are my kids after a few drinks

Yes… they’re ‘special’.