No More Muffin Top!

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:00:00 +0100

I've been trying to eat healthier and lose some of my "pastry fat". However, I've also been pretty stressed out the past few months. And, since I tend to be a stress eater, I've really not lost any weight (though I haven't gained any either, which tells me that if I could lay off the comfort foods, I might actually be dropping weight...)

"They" (scientists, nutritionists, moms everywhere...) say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, especially if you're try [...]

Another Update...

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:00:00 +0100

I've been postponing writing this update, because it's really hard to think about. As you all know, my dad has been in the hospital since January with MRSA. I had gone up in February, after he had heart surgery, and it seemed he was slowly getting better. However, last week, he was having a lot of fluid in his lungs; the doctors cultured the fluid and found more MRSA. Since then, he has deteriorated very quickly. The doctors have started him on a steroid treatment, but at t [...]

Simple, Wholesome and Therapeutic

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 00:00:00 +0100

I miss baking. I miss the feel of soft, smooth dough pressed beneath my palm, and the ache in my arm from whisking a custard. I love the mechanical whir of the floor mixer, and the satisfaction of having a recipe turn out perfectly.There's a satisfaction to the physi [...]

Update

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

My dad is doing better, but is still not fully recovered. His heart is doing well, however his lung function isn't where the doctors want it to be. He's still in critical care at the hospital, and it's hard to know when he'll be well enough to be moved to a regular room, let alone go home. Thank you for all your prayers and well-wishes. Please continue to think of him, and also my mother. She's been dealing with this since January, and is terribly stressed.

Please Keep My Father in Your Thoughts...

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Hey, everyone... Things are pretty stressful right now. At the begining of the month, my father was feeling ill with flu-like symptoms. After nursing what he and my mom thought was the flu for a couple days, he collapsed and had to be taken to the hosptial. Blood cultures revealed that he had MRSA, which is a medication resistant staph infection. He was on anti-biotics for two weeks, and seemed to be doing better. The day he was supposed to be released, his blood culture [...]

Okra with Sausage and Shrimp

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 00:00:00 +0100

I've been doing great at getting to the gym after work, however, the downside is I don't get home until 6 or 6:30- which means by the time I walk in the door, I am starving. Kyle gets home shortly after, also hungry.

Mmm... sausages New Year's Eve [...]

The Remedy to Yet Another Turkey Sandwich

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Still staring down the last remains of turkey in your fridge? Can't stomach the thought of anymore turkey sandwiches?

Personally, I underestimated my family's turkey-eating capabilities and had hardly any leftover tu [...]

Apple Cider Roasted Turkey with Homemade Gravy

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100

I was fully intending to post my turkey recipe prior to Thanksgiving, you know, when it might have done some good. But I was a little busier than I anticipated- I worked every day for eight days before Thanksgiving, so there was a lot [...]

Pass Around the Coffee and the Pumpkin Pie

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0100

The holidays are rapidly approaching- it's truely the most wonderful time of the year! I love that once you hit October, you get a holiday every month until Valentine's day! Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas/Hannukah, New Year's, Valentine's Day- it's the best. It makes me feel all Hallmark card squishy inside.

This tI love Halloween. I love vampires (though not so much Twilight-y vampires...) In honor of the holiday, and my beloved gothy bloodsuckers, I created a bloody cheesecake for our Halloween party this year.

A hazelnu [...]

In Defense of the Grocery Store Decorator... Sort of.

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

When I have some time to kill, I love to visit the blog Cake Wrecks. Have you been? It's side-splitting. If you haven't been, go right now and poke around a bit. Don't worry, it'll open in a new window. I'll wait here... Back? Funny, right? Anyway, the premise of the blog is essentially that people send in photos of professional cakes gone horribly and hilariously wrong.

It's obvious from most (like, 98%) of the pictures that the cakes came fr [...]

St. Petersburg Mini-Vacay

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

If you're like, well... everyone else everywhere, you're feeling the pinch of the economy. (If you're not, send me a job application for where ever it is you work!) While I know better days are on the horizon, I'm impatient and don't like post [...]

Deconstructing Cabbage Rolls

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +0100

One of the sad things about living in a tropical clime is that my favorite season, autumn, is really more of an idea than a reality. Sure, you go shopping right now and there are cute sweaters, cozy looking flannels, corduroy pants and chunky boots... but it's still flip-flop and tank top weather. The leaves (on the palm trees) never change color, the air is never brisk and crisp, and I'm not entirely sure pumpkins can even grow in Florida. While it is finally starting t [...]

On a Roll... A Cinnamon Roll!

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Lately, I've been doing a bit of baking-for-cash, with cinnamon buns being a re-occuring theme. I don't eat many cinnamon buns, partially because that is waaaaaay too much sugar for me as a breakfast food (I'm more of a salty foods for breakfast kin [...]

Peanut Butter Cookies

pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Peanut butter is, for American children, at least, a comfort food without peer. It's sweet, salty, creamy, gooey, and nutritious. Unless you had a nut allergy, odds are it was a lunchtime staple when you were growing up, be it on a classic peanut butter and jelly (apricot preserves have always been my "jelly" of While I occasionally enjoy an omelet when eating out at breakfast places (eggs benedict or biscuits and gravy are really my breakfast weaknesses), I'll admit, I kinda have a bias against them. I'm not sure if its because I've had my share of Je voudrais une omelete du fromage. Hi! Remember me? I know I've been a bit negligent lately. Honestly, I've been busy, and a little stressed out... between family (family with babies- whoo, those'll wear you out!), friends (some from out-of country, and some with babies), a vacation and work, I've been lucky to check my e-mail once a week during the past month! Hopefully, though, things are going to be a little less hectic (not toI'm pretty sure it's a scientific fact that a pina colada is the most summery drink ever created. Icy and frozen, creamy, coconutty with a hint of pineapple, it practically begs to be sipped with your toes in the sand and the sound of crashing waves and rustling palm trees in the b Come with me and es [...]
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<h1>Aloha!</h1>
<p>pumpkin@pumpkinandspice.net — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 00:00:00 +0100</p>
<p mce_serialized= I don't know if I've suddenly become more popular, or if maybe summer's just a naturally busy time for everyone, but my calendar has been jam-packed lately. My birthday was June 1st, which was a Monday, so, of course, I got to celebrate the weekend [...]

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