Date nights are ab amazing excuse to reconnect with your spouse. I absolutely love our date nights. They are filled with togetherness, laughter, and yes, even talk of our little munchkin but it’s a great break from our everyday routine. There’s no doing dishes, chasing toddlers, or watching Frozen for the zillionth time. Although I personally don’t mind the Frozen watching…Chris, on the other hand, can’t function when the only song in his head is ‘Let it Go’ because he can’t let that go. So date nights are the perfect way to get away and focus on us. Plus it doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg. Some of these ideas are great for those hoping to enjoy some romantic and fun outings without opening up your wallet.Read More
Archives for 2015
Best Darn Apple Butter: Canuck Style
Today I’m sharing a recipe that will leave your home smelling absolutely amazing, like fall apple fields. So Chris and I made a trip to The Apple Factory in Milton. No, we didn’t go apple picking, I would have probably loved that, but Chris has been gone most of the summer because of his job (he’s in the army) and then he was home for a week before he had to leave for another military exercise in England. Oh, the life of an army wife. So anyway, we decided to head over to the Apple Factory and picked up 3lbs of the most delicious apples and then we were ready to create apple magic.
I used my crockpot to make this amazing no sugar added Apple Butter. I love my crockpot. Whoever invented this pot of magic deserves all the apple butter in the world. *yes I have apples on the brain right now* So in order to save myself the mess and headache of a long clean up, I decided to pull out my slow cooker plastic bag things *yup, technical terms, people.
Okay, so here’s what you’ll need for this awesome “butter.” Yeah, I should probably mention that there is no butter in apple butter. And the only reason it’s Canuck style is because I’m Canadian and it has booze in it…Essentially, my apple butter is like applesauce, except I spread it on toast, slices of bread, scones, etc. It’s really good, well if you skip the Jack Daniels, and you don’t have to worry about added sugar.
You’ll need:
3lb of apples (I used softer, sweeter apples)
1/4 cup water
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp cloves
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup of Jack Daniels Tennessee Fire (optional)
First, peel all the apples. I’m pretty sure an apple peeler would have been handy but sometimes I like to rock it old school with my peelin’ knife. Once the apples are peeled, cut them into slices and toss away the core.
Place all the apple slices in the crockpot. Add the water, spices and Jack Daniels. Once everything is in the crockpot, set it to low for 6 hours. Now get all those Fall chores done, or make yourself my Pumpkin Spice Latte and enjoy the fact that your house will be gradually filled with an amazing Fall scent!
Check your apples once the 6 hours are up. Your apples should be very very soft and brownish.
At this point, I took my wooden spoon and stirred the apples. Once I started stirring, my apple butter began to take shape. Stir until the clumps are gone. Once stirred, I spooned the apple butter into mason jars and let cool before placing them in my fridge.
hmm…now I want bread and apple butter…I think I should go make some bread….enjoy!
PrintBest Darn Apple Butter: Canuck Style
- Total Time: 6 hours 20 mins
- Yield: 3 mason jars 1x
Description
Spread on toast, waffles, pancakes, or eat it straight from the jar. This butter won’t make you feel guilty!
Ingredients
- 3lb of apples (I used softer, sweeter apples)
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1 tsp allspice
- 1/2 tsp cloves
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 cup of Jack Daniels Tennessee Fire (optional)
Instructions
- Peel all the apples.
- Once the apples are peeled, cut them into slices and toss away the core.
- Place all the apple slices in the crockpot. Add the water, spices and Jack Daniels. Once everything is in the crockpot, set it to low for 6 hours.
- Check your apples once the 6 hours are up. Your apples should be very very soft and brownish. At this point take a wooden spoon and stir the apples. Your apple butter should begin to take shape. Stir until the clumps are gone.
- Once stirred, spoon the apple butter into mason jars and let cool before placing them in the fridge, or spread on a piece of hot toast and ENJOY!
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 6 hours
What will you spread your apple butter on?
Healthier Pumpkin Spice Latte
‘Tis the season for pumpkin spice. Can you believe Starbucks has already started selling their famous Pumpkin Spice Latte? This year it supposedly contains real pumpkin (it’s really disconcerting that they actually had to advertise that…). Anyways, at the end of August, I received one of those PSL Fan Pass via email, like everyone else subscribed to receive Starbucks emails. This was exciting news, every year I look forward to my Pumpkin spice lattes! So the next morning, I picked up my grande PSL and guess what…I did not enjoy it at all.
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The Best Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread. EVER!
Bestest Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread. EVER!
When the temperatures start to slowly drop, I get this urge to cuddle on the couch with Chris, sip on hot apple cider, and stuff my face with warm chocolate chip pumpkin bread goodness…Oh with a dab of apple butter. It has pumpkin in it, so it’s totally healthy…right? Okay fine, it might not be healthy, but it is worth it! Trust me.Read More
Lemon Square Obsession
I’m not sure what it is about the end of summer that strikes the Lemon obsession but I know it’s real. I can’t seem to get enough lemon. Now now, I’m not walking around my house sucking a lemon, Chris actually does that and it makes my jaw hurt. I’m just loving the scent and taste of lemon in my teas, on salmon, and of course in my desserts. In an effort to appease my obsession, I experimented in my kitchen. I wanted a dessert that would tame the LEMON beast and yet not be overly sweet or overly tarty. I’m actually trying not to look at them right now because I’m afraid I’ll have no control and eat the whole pan of them. I did bring some of them to work and my coworkers just ate them right up. It’s always a good feeling when the things I make don’t taste like fire and charcoal.
Disneyland 24 hrs….The most crowdest place on earth
Hi ya Pals!
So Chris and I spent a week back in May in California, courtesy of Chris’ aunt. Back when we got married, Chris’ aunt give us a week at her timeshare in San Diego. So naturally, being the Disney nerd that I am, I looked for any special event going on at Disneyland. We had never been to Disneyland before so we were totally looking forward to it. Mistake #1 – If it’s your first time going, don’t go during a 24 hour event/60th anniversary celebration. Just don’t do it. It was cool but we didn’t even last the full 24 hours. It was crowded! I mean a can of sardines had more room to move then we did that day.