October 2010

Happy Halloween!

October 31, 2010 · 29 comments

From Mr. How Sweet and me!

Alternate title of this post: Why I Don’t Do Crafts, Part 2.


We set about our pumpkin carving duties this afternoon. There were multiple times when I thought of just sticking the carving utensil into my eye.



After getting rid of the pumpkin guts, I considered roasting the seeds, but decided I was too lazy. Instead, I ate 2 Snickers bars.



I chose the simplest face stencil and still ended up cutting off an eyeball. Mr. How Sweet had the brilliant idea to put it together with a nail, and it stuck.

We sprinkled the insides of the pumpkin with cinnamon, just like my mom used to do when we were little. And of course, used vanilla votives to make it smell even more delicious.


Mr. How Sweet carved this amazing pumpkin – again, no stencil! Just looked at a picture and carved it out. I don’t even know who he is.

And he, of course, did the How Sweet masterpiece – complete with cupcake.



Now we are passing out candy and just finished a delicious dinner. After seeking counsel on Facebook and Twitter, I threw together some sort of beef goulash/stew/stoup with sweet potatoes and biscuits. Hit the spot!

Ugly meal, but deliciously comforting.


Now it’s time for Boardwalk Empire, STEELERS(!) and 600 Kit Kats.

Have a safe and happy Halloween!

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The Great Pumpkin Round Up.

October 31, 2010 · 38 comments

I am not even close to being done with pumpkin this year, but wanted to put this year’s favorites in one place. Enjoy the pumpkin overload.


Pumpkin Apple Muffins



Pumpkin Spice Breakfast Cakes



Homemade Pumpkin Pie Spice



A Healthier Pumpkin Cupcake



Pumpkin Pie Quinoa Parfaits



Harvest Apple Soup



And a few other bites of pumpkin deliciousness that I have bookmarked:

Pumpkin Nutella Bread

Pumpkin Spice Latte Ice Cream

To Die For Pumpkin Smoothie

Double Pumpkin Kissed Chocolate Chip Cookies

Pumpkin Bagels


What is one of your favorite pumpkin recipes of the season?

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Ghosts of Halloween’s Past.

October 30, 2010 · 32 comments

Growing up, we always lived in larger neighborhoods with lots of houses. That equaled lots of trick or treating and lots of candy. In the early years, my dad would take us trick or treating while my mom stayed home and passed out sweets. For years, my dad wore the same costume – he cut out the bottom of a pumpkin, cut out a jack o’ lantern, and wore the giant pumpkin on his head! We thought it was the coolest thing.

Who am I kidding? I still think it was the coolest thing.

After we walked to approximately 3 houses and cried and complained that we were tired from walking, we made it home and hustled over to Mother Lovett’s house to show off our costumes. I tried to steal all of my brothers’ Snickers bars and I happily gave up my Butterfingers. And we fought like hell over the Reeses.

I wore this glittery pink wig more years than I can count. My dad just reminded me that when I first wore it, I went as Jem. Please tell me you know who Jem is.

[the How Sweet brothers were Davy Crockett (I think?) and a fireman.]

And really, nothing has changed. I love hot pink and I love sparkly things, and would be thrilled if I could get away with wearing this on my head everyday.

Same goes for the blue spandex unitard too.

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Mini Mocha Chip Pancakes.

You know I’m not a coffee lover, but I sure do love coffee-flavored treats. And I especially love mocha-flavored sweets. But Mr. How Sweet? Not so much. The morning I made these, he stumbled into the kitchen, took one look at them, and assumed they were chocolate chip cookies. Into his mouth he shoved about 4, then promptly spit them right back out into the garbage can. A coffee fan he is not. I wanted to whack him upside the head. Luckily, I had made a giant batch for myself and to freeze for use throughout the week. And they do resemble chocolate chip cookies from a distance, don’t they? They also are similar to chocolate chip cookies in the way that you want to eat about 16 of them – at the same time. They are so delicious. You can definitely top them with your traditional butter and maple syrup, but I actually took a… creamier route. I added a dollop of whipped cream on top and ate it just like a cookie. I couldn’t wait for the butter and syrup. Plus, I used my favorite whole wheat pancake recipe. Whole wheat = eating more delicious ‘cakes. Feel free [...]

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Pens Pumpkin.

This was the Pittsburgh Penguins pumpkin that Mr. How Sweet carved last year. The man didn’t even use a stencil. He simply looked at an old t-shirt. I had no idea he could do things like this. I wonder what other talents he is hiding from me. Do you think Mr. How Sweet can out do the Pens pumpkin? I will share the 2010 pumpkins later!

16 comments Get More Sweet Eats →

A Day of Eats.

About a billion 3-4 times a day, I get requests to post a day’s worth of eats. I find this odd, but I figured I would please the masses and share a day with you! This was incredibly… weird. I am not camera-comfortable so this did not come naturally at all. Plus, since I quit my job my daily schedule is still all out of whack. I am getting used to it, but it sure is an adjustment. That being said – I think I cracked the code on the whole vegetable dilemma. What I’ve learned over the last few weeks is that I absolutely despise vegetables reheated, or leftover vegetables. This would be the number one reason that I haven’t enjoyed a vegetable for years. The meals I have eaten at home since I graduated college have been breakfast and dinner. There is absolutely never going to be vegetables in my breakfast, unless it incorporates a large quantity of bacon. And when dinner time rolled around, I think I was just so soured on vegetables that the thought made me sick. I still can’t palate the majority of vegetables, but am enamored with the odd ones: brussels sprouts and [...]

41 comments Get More Sweet Eats →

Shredded Sprouts Salad.

I told you it was coming. More sprouts! When I initially posted about brussels sprouts (shocking all), many of you chimed in and suggested shredding the sprouts into a salad of sorts. For some crazy reason, this sounded incredibly appetizing to me. And it was fun. Seeing the sprouts go from firm rounds to tiny shreds amused my simple mind. If I’m being truthful, I must admit that I’ve been eating the original sprouts mixture without the bacon grease or the bacon. Great news, no? I pan roast them with a bit of olive oil and balsamic, salt and pepper, and am good to go. But I must start slowly with a new recipe. So I added one simple slice of bacon and just a tiny bit of cheese – nothing too heavy. Makes a world of difference on these sweet teeth. We all know how much I dislike vegetables and this was such a fabulous dish. It could be because I really enjoy chopped salads. Or bacon. Or cheese. Or it could just be because it is utterly delicious. Scrumptious. Delectable. I truly believe that even the biggest veggie-hater (me) would love the shredded sprouts salad. Shredded Sprouts Salad [...]

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My Kitchen Playlist.

I’m warning you. I’m about to drop at least 100 points on your coolness scale. But that is okay. I think my kitchen playlist will show you just how much of an lost old soul I am. The truth is, I love listening to “older” classics, but I really enjoy newer versions of them. There are countless reasons for this, one being that I am incredibly awkward and can’t relate to my peers. But I will highlight the majors below. Music is nostalgic for me, and I am a very nostalgic person. I love listening to songs sang by Frank Sinatra and the like, because it reminds me of Mother Lovett and my mom’s dad (Mother Lovett’s first husband, the one I never met) dancing around their living room. I have no idea if this ever happened, but I like to think it did. She loved music like this and loved to dance. I love listening to easy listening music that would put most people my age to sleep (like Kenny G) because it reminds me of the nights when my parents would go out when I was a little girl. The lighting was dim, my mom smelled like White [...]

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Chocolate Peanut Butter Granola Bites.

Lately, I have been experiencing intense chocolate peanut butter cravings. No, there is a not a how sweet bun in the oven, though I did dip a tortilla chip into chocolate frosting on Tuesday afternoon. Whatever that means. I’ve said it countless times but you just can’t go wrong with chocolate and peanut butter. The combination is sublime. Dare I say it’s the best out there? And granola… well, granola can be my kryptonite. These are like tiny little granola “muffins.” And since they are mini, that means you can eat a lot of them. More than usual. Like, 3 pounds of granola instead of the usual 2. It’s all about balance. They are super simple too. I have included my recipe below, but you can take any granola recipe and give it a whirl. The key is making sure the batter is sticky enough and then allowing the granola to cool before you you remove it from the tin. Then you can have your way with it. Throw it on oatmeal. Stir it into yogurt. Add it on ice cream. Devour it plain. Dip it in more peanut butter. Then roll it in bacon crumbles. See? Whatever you want [...]

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Just One More Thing.

Mr. How Sweet has 2 of his own closets too. And he even has clothes (that aren’t brand new) with tags on them. But he also has every room of our house filled with this. So when you get bummed out because your significant other doesn’t buy you shoes and clothes, just remember that my rooms are full of… treasures such as these. And even worse better, this. Yeah. So there’s a tradeoff.

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