Happy Pumpkin

This cat probably ate more Turkey on our day of Thanksgiving than I did.

 

 

 

 

He probably would have kept going if the plate didn't run out.

 

Digesting under the Christmas tree.

 

Tough life he leads...

 

We were expecting to find turkey barf that evening or the next morning, but he kept it all in! Edited:  Bret found some this morning, 4 days later...not sure if that still counts.

Amazing Race 11/25

• Good episode overall. I like that the teams are splitting off more and are not always on the same flight. 
• The Double U-Turn strategy by the Twins and Texans was awesome!  It obviously paid off, and I couldn't be happier.  It is nice to see smart racers every now and then.
• Abby made me feel a little bad for her out there dancing and organning in the rain, but Ryan squashed that sympathy pretty quick.
• After the first leg, I said it's a game and you always have to do what you can to win.  At that time, it was Abby and Ryan doing the winning when they passed the double amputee, and now the tides have turned.  Boo Hoo, no $2 Million for you two...
• Lastly, who in their right mind would want to race with another team when you know you are at the back of the pack?  Two episodes in a row for that matter!?!  Thankfully, the Doctor Beekman was able to talk some sense into his buddy.  Phil even tempted him with an option to lose!

 

Butternut Squash Soup

Two weeks ago, there was a pretty bad homemade soup flop in this house.  Sorry Honey!  I had the best of intentions with homemade chicken broth, noodles and frozen vegetables.  Well, the issues started with weak broth, and then to make matters worse, I took out all of the floating fat (it looked like a good idea at the time...) but just didn't work. There was no flavor and all of the salt and pepper in the house could not save it.   As of yet, I am obviously not soup chef extraordinaire, but maybe someday?

Bret was nice enough (or hungry enough) to eat it all, but I know I need some practice.  Remember when I linked to a couple soup recipes last week?  Well, I a couple!  The butternut squash soup seemed the most straight forward and afforded me the opportunity to use my immersion blender!  Sorry, the new appliance will lose it's novelty at some point, but I'm still looking more ways to use it :)

Butternut Squash Soup

See the recipe here that was originally inspired here.

1. Chop the Squash!  This was the hardest part, but once I figured out to use my "Rock n' Chop" Miracle Blade it went fairly smoothly.

2.  Slice onions and saute in stockpot with rosemary and a little oil till softened.

3.  Add butternut squash cubes, broth, milk**.  Bring to boil and simmer till the squash is tender.

4. Sip a little red wine while you wait :)

4. Immersion blend the soup!!! Then add cream cheese and S & P to taste.

In action!!!

5.  Enjoy!

* I used soy milk in place of regular milk and cream because I didn't have either available.  As the soup simmered, the soy milk separated somewhat and looked grainy (causing more failure nervousness!).  Luckily, the immersion blender did its thing and the soup turned out super smooth and rich.

I had that fairly large bowl for dinner with some crackers and was way overly full.  I didn't expect the soup to be so filling, so be warned!  This recipe is a keeper, and this could even be a weeknight supper (especially if the squash was cut the day before).

Do you have a go-to yummy and easy soup recipe?