fall

Culinary Challenge Week #26

Featured by Tally Ragsdale, posted in Baking

Welcome back to the culinary cooking challenge! And this week we tackled Sleepy Hallow. Let’s get to it!

I mean it’s creamy and fishy, so yeah it was amazing. Not the best clam chowder ever(that I got while visiting Door County, WI. read here) but still very good.

And it was even better with these ginormous rolls. They were absolutely fantastic!! Like so fluffy and perfect. I will be making these again and again and again.

I mean it was a good spinach salad…. But nothing spectacular or anything. Definitely a pretty salad.

Speaking of spectacular this is probably my new favorite cake. It is extremely sweet and moist. I think ate most of this by myself… *oops*

First off make sure you really, really grease your pans. These babies stick like crazy. They are also amazingly tasty and uniquely different from my normal breakfast go to fare. So yes I liked them. (Tay did too in case you were wondering)

So I botched this recipe(hence why there is no pretty crow on my bread) but it was still a delicious bread. I can’t wait to try this recipe again and do it correctly.

Someone say yay! I love baking scones. Probably next to bread in my favorite things to make. These Pumpkin Scone got better with age and the maple icing was by far the best part.

Autumn Chicken and Roasted Veggies 6 out of 10

So this chicken+veggie sheet meal was not nearly as good as other chicken dishes I have made. Just another run of your mill meal.

Last but not least were theses “okay” gingersnap cookies. I love gingersnap cookies! They’re probably my favorite after snickerdoodle and that’s why these were kinda disappointing. Super cute but in the end lacking.

And that is it! We are out of town this next week, so we will be back with another cooking challenge the week after that. But what did you guys think of our Sleepy Hallow recipes? Let me know in the comments down below.

Lots of love,

Tally

Culinary Challenge Week #25

Featured by Tally Ragsdale, posted in Baking

And welcome back! Or at least welcome back for the next two weeks. After that Tay and I are off on vacation(more on that later) But for this week’s culinary challenge are word was picnic. So basically anything that could get packed in a picnic basket. Here we go!

Not exactly the most healthy potato salad but I mean what potato salads are healthy. (Answer not many) High in calories and bacon, this was not bad. I can’t say I’ll be in a hurry to repeat it. But it wasn’t awful.

So these would have been amazing if I had put holes in all of them. The donut nuggets were not cooked all the way through(pretty much cooked just very slightly underdone) Which was distressing. But the proper donuts were fantastic!

These were buttery and delicious! They were really good two days after and reheated. I will be making these again and again and again.

The first night was definitely the best night for this soup as the noodles absorbed all the broth making it more like chicken and noodles. But of course that was tasty too.

I made my own authentic French puff pastry!!! It took 3 days to make it but oh was it worth it!! These completely homemade hand pies are the bomb. As a friend told me and I quote:

That pastry – the apple one DIVINE! Better than in any bakery I’ve been to or tasted! Truly. Sublime! 🙃☺️
-My Friend

So this salad wasn’t necessarily bad it’s just my Mom makes an absolutely amazing crab salad and this one wasn’t very good compared to it. That being said Tay enjoyed it.

So I did get my crackers thin and crispy enough that they made the cracker crunch. Unfortunately my spices were off just a bit so they weren’t very “tasty”. They didn’t taste bad they just didn’t taste much anything.

Yes we went on a picnic after our traditional long Monday Hike.

And that is it for Picnic Week! We will be back next week for a new week of cooking and baking. Our word is very appropriate for this time of year… Sleepy Hallow. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Lots of love,

Tally

Apple and Pork Festival

Featured by Tally Ragsdale, posted in Travel

Happy fall! Yes I am still on that kick and will be till December(or just right after Thanksgiving)

This weekend I made a much needed but quick visit down to my Mom and Dad’s. We relaxed by eating and watching old black and white movies; and going to the Apple and Pork Festival in Clinton, IL.

It was an absolutely gorgeous day! Sunny and warm but with the customary stiff breeze of rural Illinois. We had an absolutely amazing time.

We of course got a pork chop sandwich and apple fritters. Though it wasn’t a very “apple-ie” Apple and Pork Festival. We would have thought there would have been more apple related stuff… Apple pies, donuts, cider etc. Oh well!

All in all it was an absolutely fantastic day!

Visiting An Apple Orchard

Featured by Tally Ragsdale, posted in Travel

Nothing says fall like visiting a local apple orchard. Even if the Sunday afternoon you choose to go is the one Sunday in the whole month where it was 90 degrees… oh well we still pretended it was fall with hot apple cider and warm apple donuts.

Oh how many apples!! Did you guys do this every fall as a kid growing up? Being homeschooled if was one of our field trips we took. I still remember running from goats and chickens and getting all sticky from the amazing donuts.

This was the first time visiting Peck&Bushel Orchard in Colgate, WI. But it was beyond cute. From its organic orchard to it’s very impressive gift shop(Christmas gifts anyone?) and locally sourced- everything. I can’t wait to go back!

So will you be heading to any orchards this fall? Or to a pumpkin patch? (Which we will be doing too!)

Lots of love,

Tally

Holiday in Door County

Featured by Tally Ragsdale, posted in Travel

Happy Labor Day! (Or by the time you are reading this post-Labor Day) My sister and I had the day off, which since we both work for the same family does not happen often. And with adventure calling we headed north to Door County.

Us early in the morning(after snagging coffee) ready for the 2 1/2 hour drive north.

Our main goal for the day was to explore Cave Point County Park(a County park inside of a State Park) and paddle board up the coast of Lake Michigan.

We accomplished our goal! It was an absolutely gorgeous day with a warm sun and cool breeze. The water wasn’t freezing, which it normally is and it was crystal clear.

After our paddle board adventure we are our packed lunch(Swedish leftovers of course) and then hiked the park.

By 2pm or so we were headed north for coffee and some shopping in Sister’s Bay.

We enjoyed our visit immensely. And after some our light shopping we continued northward for some Ice-cream!!

The pumpkin ice cream and homemade waffle cone was amazing!

Tay enjoyed her cookies n’ Cream as well.

We kept heading north all the way to Gills Rock. Before we turned around for the long trek home. We stopped in Egg Harbor at Shipwrecked Brew Pub for some much needed supper and we were home by 10 pm.

If you stop at the *Shipwreck Brew Pub* I highly recommend the Clam Chowder- Delicious!

Culinary Challenge Week #22

Featured by Tally Ragsdale, posted in Baking

Welcome back to ole blog. I hope you all had a wonderful Labor Day weekend and are ready for fall. I personally have been ready for the last month or so. But now I no longer look like a crazy person with her pumpkins out in August. Now I am perfectly normal again. (She said sarcastically)

Our word this week was Swedish and it was very yummy. Let’s jump into it!

So at first I disliked this Sourdough(though I ended up making it a fake sourdough) loaf. I mean it smelled absolutely fantastic, but it was a lot of work(it had to rise all freaking day). However this bread gets better as it gets older. Both Tay and I agreed that by the third day it was at its peak.

Buttery, boiled potatoes with a turnip? Yes please!

I. Am. Never. Making these again. The construction and frying of meatballs is an absolute pain! It is so much easier to buy the meatballs frozen. That being said these tasted like Swedish meatball perfection.

Oh my gosh!! These were fantastic! So do you guys know those ginormous tins of short beard cookies sold at Sam’s Club around Christmas? The pretzel looking ones? So these cookies are like those but infinitely better. Like a thousand percent better.

I really loved this soup. Tay not so much. It wasn’t the best soup we’ve made during this challenge, but it made for a week of yummy lunches.

This salad literally needs to be eaten the day it is made. It does not keep well at all. It wasn’t bad tasting though. Basically a vinegar bath with dill. So very light.

A spicy, heart warming drink- Yum! It was nice to have a different drink than apple cider, which I would drink on continuum if ya know… that was healthy.

And that is all we were able to cook this week with the holiday. Do any of these Swedish delicacies look yummy to you? Our next word(which Tay is super excited about) is Scottish. Look out Highlands here we come!

Lots of love,

Tally

DIY Good Will Fall Wreath

Featured by Tally Ragsdale, posted in Lifestyle

Ah it’s getting to be that time… my absolute favorite time of the year… fall!

With the return of chilly days, crisp smells and crunchy leaves comes the return of Hobby Lobby’s seemingly endless fall wreaths. All drool worthy and all horribly overpriced. Okay well maybe not all of them. Some are worth the buck. And yet why would one drop $80 on a wreath, when you can drop $10 at Good Will and get the same results? I ask you, why?

Growing up my Mom was the master recreator. Any sign, wreath, floral arrangement, etc. you saw in store or on Pinterest she could recreate. Naturally having daughters she taught us also the fabulous art of DIY.

One of my favorite diy tasks was to redo my Mom’s ginormous wreath on the side of the house every season. We would cycle it through spring, summer and fall (a giant snowman head replaced it during Christmas and winter) and then back again.

My Mom was ever thrifty so we shopped clearance racks and garage sales for those perfect sprigs you finish off the decor.

It’s been a while since I have truly diy’d anything and I loved it! It brought back all the memories. So which style was your favorite? Comment down below!

Lots of love,

Tally

Culinary Challenge Week #14

Featured by Tally Ragsdale, posted in Baking

Hello, hello, hello! Who’s ready for a very magical round of cooking? (A very magically delicious week if you ask me) let’s jump to it!

Broccoli, turkey bacon, raisins, feta cheese and sunflower seeds covered in nonfat Greek yogurt, olive oil and rosemary. Yummy!! Yummy!! Yummy!!

Godric’s Bacon Cheddar Ale Bread 10 out of 10

So soft and sweet and buttery, loaded with bacon and cheese- So basically the perfect loaf of bread!

Our first recipe of the week this one is amazing! Such a hearty, comfort food. Thicker and spicer than a soup this beef and noodle concoction will definitely be made again in the future.

This was good but we both agreed not- wow material. Pie crust was heavenly(obviously- do you like my attempt at pie art? Uneven lace work is my specialty) but the thin tart filling was just okay.

Honestly I don’t know what I was expecting from Shepherds Pie but this version tasted a lot like sloppy Joes with mashed potatoes on top. So delicious just not what I had envisioned. Plus it makes a crap ton! We might be eating Shepherds Pie for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

These are so soft and delicious! Especially considering I almost ruined them by almost forgetting the egg- Yeeks! But thankfully these amazing little buns(which are perfect for breakfast by the way) turned out perfectly.

Thicker than oatmeal, but basically oatmeal. This vegan, pumpkin porridge covered in fruity goodness makes a very filling breakfast.

We ended our week like any good British cook and threw all our leftover bits and bobs into one yummy meal. I mean is sausage, gravy and mashed taters… Can’t really go wrong here.

(Also not pictured here, because I forgot to take a picture is Pumpkin Juice. Which Tay makes every year around Halloween time. So an obvious 10! I am so happy to get a pre-taste of fall.)

And that’s it guys. A day late and yet so worth it. Super excited about the coming week of cooking! Our new word is Caribbean. Just perfect for the summer heat.

Lots of love,

Tally

Everything’s Pumpkin

October 30, 2020October 29, 2020 by Tally Ragsdale, posted in Baking

Some of my favorite fall recipes…

…Thus far anyway. I think as soon as October hit everything I cooked baked or others made was pumpkin infused, spiced or shaped. And I am pretty sure my sister(my official taste tester is done with fall foods)

When my sister moved in with me the first of the year(read post here) we came to an agreement. I would do the cooking and laundry and she would do the cleaning and dishes(two things I am not such a fan of) But in the last month or so(partly to do with my new health journey) we decided to do one home cooked meal a week, one dessert and one soup/salad. Then we would eat on the leftovers the rest of the week.

Not all the recipes have been successes. In fact normally the dishes I like she doesn’t and vise versa.

I decided to list a few of my favorite recipes from this month in an effort to spread the love… calories.