Happy Thanksgiving!

It's hard to believe that it's already December, much less that Thanksgiving is already behind us! Once again, this year has flown by way too quickly. The years seem to get shorter and shorter, going by faster and faster.

This year, my family joined me in College Station for a family Thanksgiving. That means, it was the first time that the youngest kiddo hosted Thanksgiving- or any holiday for that matter. Does this mean I'm an adult? If so, when did that happen?! Alas, those are questions for another day.

I had so much fun spending time with my family. Mom and Dad got into town in the early afternoon and we prepped for the meal the next day. We divided the menu between Catherine, my mom and me. I was in charge of making the cornbread stuffing, cranberry sauce, and rolls. For the rolls, I went store bought, but for the stuffing and cranberry sauce I went homemade. I also made some pecan pie cookies - an extra because I saw the recipe and couldn't resist. And, in true Jen style, I blogged about it. You can find the recipes I made here: Cornbread Stuffing, Cranberry Sauce, and Pecan Pie Cookies.

I always love cooking with this woman. :)

My mom and I cooked/prepped for the next day while my dad kept us posted on the various football games and River Monsters being caught. After we finished cooking, we had a quick bite to eat at Panera and they called it an evening and went to check into their nearby hotel.

For a few hours I was worried we may not have running water on Thanksgiving as the water main down the street busted and there was water pouring down the street. Thankfully the emergency crews came to fix the problem and water was restored by the time Catherine got into College Station in the wee hours of the morning. It could have been an interesting day had it not been turned back on!

On Thursday, my parents came over and we threw everything in the oven and we enjoyed a glass of wine or two. We sat down to our Thanksgiving meal a little after 2pm at the table that Catherine and I grew up eating meals at together. Note the ketchup on the table- courtesy of Catherine. ;)

After eating, we promptly crashed on the couch for a post turkey nap. Then we bundled up and headed to campus to watch the game. Mom and Dad watched the game at the Alumni Center on the big screen and Catherine and I went to the game- her first since she was a student in 2008! 

Selfie of Catherine and I courtesy of her phone.

Welcome to Kyle Field!  

The Nationally Famous Fighin' Texas Aggie Band executing the technically impossible move. Amazing to see in person.

Although the Aggies were outscored by LSU, it was a great game and we left without totally freezing our butts off. All in all, it was a wonderful Thanksgiving. I'm looking forward to our next family holiday where we can have the whole Smith clan together- we missed you Susie & Ramey! See ya soon, Christmas! :) 

Homemade Cornbread Stuffing

Thanksgiving. It's all about spending time with friends and family and remembering the blessings in life and what you're thankful for. Right behind those things- it's the homemade comfort food. The food that helps make the day what it is- the mac 'n cheese, corn casserole, and last but not least- the stuffing!

More specifically, cornbread dressing. I remember having the white bread dressing once and don't know why anyone would ever do that to themselves when cornbread is an option. So. Much. Better. 

I found this recipe on FoodNetwork.com as well (like the cranberry sauce).  I've never made stuffing from scratch before (just the box kind), so this was another fun adventure. I didn't know quite which recipe to go with, but the first ingredient is bacon, so how could it not be delicious?!

My mom helped me make this when she got into town on Wednesday afternoon. It was fun having her in my kitchen for once. It also probably made her appreciate her huge kitchen, too! Hah! 

Cornbread Dressing

Ingredients

1/2 lb. bacon (amount depends on how bacony you want it)

1 cup chopped onion

4 stalks of celery, chopped

1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped

1 tbsp fresh sage, chopped

1 cup pecans, chopped

2 bags of dried cornbread stuffing mix

1.5 cans chicken broth

1/4 stick of butter

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Cook bacon in skillet until crisp. Turn heat down to medium low and throw in onions and celery. Saute until tender (about 5 minutes). Add the thyme and sage and saute until just fragrant- don't overcook. Turn off the heat and stir in pecans. 

Pour dry cornbread mix into bowl. Add in bacon and vegetables. Stir in chicken broth. Put mixture into large casserole dish. Add thin slices of butter on top of the casserole. 

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and cook until the top is crispy- about another 15 minutes.

This was pre-cooking. I forgot to get a post-cooking picture before we dug in. :)

Pecan Pie Cookies

Mmm mmm mmm, Thanksgiving dessert! Isn't that part of the meal that everyone really looks forward to? The sugary cap to an already overindulgent meal. The last bite you take before you go pass out on the couch in the post-turkey coma.

I've never been a big pie person. Never the pumpkin or the pecan. I can get behind apple pie- warm with a dollop if Blue Bell vanilla on top. But other than that, I could really pass on the pie. I am, however, a huge can of cookies. Yum yum! So many different kinds of cookies and so many fun combinations. I found these cookies in the search for a yummy thanksgiving cookie to make- pecan pie cookies. All the flavor of the classic in the delivery method of a cookie. 

Pecan Pie Cookies

Recipe makes 10 3-inch cookies. 

Ingredients

1 prepared single pie crust (I used Kroger brand, comes in 2-pack)

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1/2 cup pecans, chopped

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup corn syrup (dark if you've got it)

2 eggs

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup melted chocolate for drizzle topping

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

In a large, nonstick pan heat butter, pecans, brown sugar, corn syrup, salt, and eggs. Cook on medium-low heat until just thickened (kind of like the consistency of pudding). 

Remove from heat and set aside. 

Unroll pie dough on parchment paper and use a 3" cookie cutter to cut out circles. Place circles on parchment paper on a cookie sheet. Gently roll the edges of the dough up to form a wall- about 1/4 of an inch. 

Spoon a tablespoon of the pecan pie mixture into the middle of each cookie. 

Bake for 8 minutes or until the filling has just set. Remove from the oven and let cool on pan. Once cooled, remove from pan and place on cooling rack.

Optional: Drizzle melted chocolate on top of the cookies. Yum! :) 

Homemade Cranberry Sauce

I've always been a canned cranberry sauce kind of girl. Growing up, I remember my favorite part being the can-shaped cranberry goodness at the kid's table. I didn't mind that you could literally see the ridges from where it formed in the can, I probably even thought it tasted better that way.

However, this year I have grown up. Since it's just the four of us this year, there was no reason to have both canned and whole cranberry sauce, so homemade it is! I found this recipe on FoodNetwork.com and made a couple tweaks.

Homemade Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients
1/3 cup agave nectar
1/2 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
zest of 1 orange
1/3 cup water
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 cups fresh cranberries

Super Easy Directions
Throw everything in a medium/large skillet. Stir so all ingredients are combined. Bring mixture to a simmer.

Ready to cook!

After a few minutes you'll hear *pop*pop*pop* - that's the cranberries exploding because of the heat. This is, by far, the most exciting part... just make sure you've covered the skillet with a lid or that you're not standing too close!

Cook for about 10-15 minutes or until mixture has thickened up. Your kitchen will smell amazingly of cranberry, orange and cinnamon- like you've lit a fall-scented candle. Yum!

Finished cooking.

Once it's finished cooking down, remove from stove and let cool before serving. I made mine a few days before, so I let it cool and then refrigerated it. 

Cranberry Orange Muffins

You can always bank on moms to have the good stuff in bulk. When prepping for thanksgiving, she let me have a big ol' bag of cranberries that she had. In addition to having some to make homemade cranberry sauce, I also have plenty left over to make these bad boys.

A few months ago, I signed up for the weekly digest of Sally's Baking Addiction and every week I get an email fun of delicious recipe ideas. So much inspiration and so little time and money to make them all. This is one of those recipes- one that I knew I had to make!

Cranberry Orange Muffins
Makes 12 medium-sized muffins.

Ingredients
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temp
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs, room temp
1/2 cup yogurt (I used vanilla greek yogurt)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract (I used vanilla bean paste)
zest of 2 oranges
1 & 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp orange juice
2 tbsp milk (I used skim, can use any kind)
1 & 1/2 cups cranberries (fresh or frozen will work)

Glaze (optional): 3 tbsp orange juice and 1 cup powdered sugar

Directions

In medium or large bowl (I used my KitchenAid mixer), cream butter on high until smooth. Add sugars and cream together until smooth.

Scrape all ingredients to the bottom. Add vanilla, mix. Add one egg at a time mixing well. Then, add yogurt and make sure all ingredients are combined. Mine turned out a weird consistency- I think the protein in the greek yogurt did something odd- but it all worked out when I added the dry ingredients.

Add orange zest and mix until combined. Add salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon- make sure to mix well. Then, add flour and mix until combined.

Finally, add orange juice and milk and mix until combined. Using a rubber spatula or large spoon, mix in cranberries.

Fill well-greased muffin tins 2/3 of the way full with mixture. Top with 2-3 cranberries for color.

Bake at 450 for 5 minutes, then without opening the oven, lower the heat to 350 for 15 more minutes (the recipe said 18 more minutes, but mine were done in 15). The muffins will be finished baking when a toothpick comes out clean! :)

Optional- top with orange glaze drizzle. Mix together 3 tbsp orange juice and 1 cup of powdered sugar. Mix well and drizzle on top.

These turned out so yummy! 

Now... what am I going to do with other 2 & 1/2 pounds of cranberries?! ;) 

Playing Catch-Up and Making Cupcakes

It's been a busy few weeks- hence the no posting. Lots has been going on at work- lots of fun things, at least! 

My department put on a really fun project for our current students to take part in. We partnered the event with our monthly "Kolache Day" and asked students to tell us what they "gig" or love about being an Aggie. We got some really fun and enlightening responses. While we got some of the expected answers- "traditions," "12th Man," and the "Aggie Family," we also had a lot of students tell us that they loved being a part of something bigger than themselves.

The below response was a personal favorite of mine- Fish Camp! :)
It seems like just yesterday I was out at Lakeview with Camp Crawford. So many good memories!

Halloween also happened since I last posted- and it was such a fun day at work. One of the best fun things about working about The Association is going all out for Halloween. And I mean all out! Two of my coworkers donned full body paint and dressed up as wind animals (see pics below)!

Then came Aggie Ring Day on November 7th. The Association of Former Students presented over 2,100 Aggie Rings to Aggies who had worked long and hard to earn them. It's always a fun day- and busy! It was fun to see the steps add up on my Fitbit app (I also got a Fitbit since I last blogged)! I was over 12,000 steps at the end of the day without even trying. What what! I included the picture below to show what Aggie Ring Day typically looks like- so. many. people! 

Then, last week came Elephant Walk. Thankfully, I had no part in planning the event or making sure it went off without a hitch. My office helps with creating PR materials, but thankfully my duties are done long before event itself. So, last Friday some of the staff from my office went over to participate in the festivities, which, means taking photos with these gigantic, beautiful animals! 

Then, comes the cupcakes! 

These are, simply put, the easiest cupcakes I have ever made. 

I ran across the concept on Pinterest a while back and thought, "there's no way that you can actually make cupcakes that way!" Well, ta-da! It works! 

Cupcake Ingredients

1 box of cake mix

12 oz. soda

Any "extras" you want to add

Yup, it's that easy! So far, I've made cranberry cupcakes and Dr. Pepper Devil's Food Cupcakes. They've both turned out great!

Cupcakes- round 1!

1 box yellow cake mix

12 oz. cranberry sprite

chopped dried cranberries

frosting (can't have cupcakes without frosting!)

Cupcakes- round 2!

1 box devil's food cake mix

12 oz. Dr. Pepper

1 cup dark chocolate chunks

frosting- green! 

Yum! :)

Phillip Phillips, Football & a New Recipe

There haven't been many dull moments lately- between traveling to Mississippi and enjoying some events here in College Station- it's been a busy, but fun few weeks.

On Wednesday, Jacob and I went to the Phillip Phillips concert hosted my Texas A&M's MSC OPAS. Phillip Phillips is quite the entertainer and it was a great show. Lots of screaming girls and "I love you"'s yelled from the crowd.

Friday night was a late one but very fun. I had the honor of helping put on the 2014 Distinguished Alumni Gala where The Association of Former Students recognizes former students who have gone above in beyond by giving back to the university and their community. This year, 12 were honored at a beautiful ceremony and I had the honor of coordinating the student volunteers that make the event extra special. It was a lot of work and a late night, but it was so fun! :)

Now THAT is a fancy dessert!

On Saturday morning, we woke up early to watch some pre-game football analysis. We also took advantage of the time to do some prep for our Sunday crock pot meal- seasoning our pork!

In the early afternoon we headed to campus to tailgate before the Aggie football game. It rained earlier in the day, so Spence Park was one giant mud pit. Yuck!

The Aggie game was a late one, starting at 8pm. It was another rough game. The Aggies just didn't seem to have it together and the quarterback's inexperience definitely showed, giving up 14 points off of turnovers. Just not a good game all together. Ags ended up losing their second in a row 20-35. They're now 5-2 (2-2 in the SEC). Here's to hoping they can get it together when they head to Alabama next weekend so we don't end up 2-3 in the conference.

The only fun thing about the game is that Texas A&M set a new record for attendance at a football game for the SEC and the state of Texas with 110,633 people at Kyle Field. And it was a loud one... here and there. It was also the Maroon Out game of the season- a tradition put on by Class Councils- so lots and lots of maroon were in the stands and lots of white towels waving.

On Sunday morning, when I woke up, I threw our meal in the crock pot and we got comfortable to watch some NFL and keep an eye on our fantasy football teams. I found this recipe  on Pinterest and wanted to give it a try. Perfect meal for a football-watching Sunday and plenty of leftovers to eat throughout the week. :)
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Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

Ingredients
2 lbs boneless pork (I used pork tenderloin)
2 medium green apples, sliced
1 large onion, sliced or diced
1 12oz. beer
Dry rub seasonings:
-2 tbsp smoked paprika
-2 tbsp brown sugar
-2 tbsp garlic powder
-2 tbsp ground cumin
-1 tbsp salt
-1 teaspoon black pepper

Directions

The day before you want to make your pulled pork, you've got to season it with a dry rub. In a small bowl, mix together all of the dry rub spices. Coat the pork in rub. Wrap it up in aluminum foil and throw it in the fridge for 12-24 hours.

Dry rub ingredients.

When you're ready to start cooking in your slow cooker, throw in apple and onion slices. Put pork on top and pour beer over top. I always use a crock pot liner when I've got one on hand. It makes clean-up a breeze.

I used Shiner. It's a favorite if Jacob's, so we had some in the fridge.

Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.

When pork is done cooking, use two forks to shred pork- this should be really easy to do if the pork is cooked through. Mix meat together with apples and onions in the bottom of the slow cooker.

Serve on its own or put on a bun. We made sandwiches out of our pulled pork with whole wheat buns. Can you say "yum"? We have a lot of leftovers, so I see a few pulled pork lunches in my future. ;)

Now... time to root my fantasy players on. Until next time... 

Mississippi Roadtrip

It was another fun, yet busy weekend! 

Jacob and I have made an effort to go to at least one away Aggie football game these past few years. Since we've been in the SEC (now the third season), we've been to games at Auburn, Ole Miss, and now Mississippi State. As always, we had a wonderful time and even managed not to kill each other on the 9.5 hour drive ;). We jammed to some mixed CDs, scoped out the potential sites we wanted to see, and on the way home kept a close eye on the NFL games with our fantasy football players. 

On Thursday evening, we packed up and drove to my parent's house with Tucker in tow. My parents, the wonderful people that they are, agreed to keep my four-legged baby for the weekend while Jacob and I drove across the southern states. He absolutely loves playing with my dad's dog, very appropriately named Aggie, and they even got to enjoy racing around the newly redone grassy yard. Mom even managed to snag a picture of them in one of the few moments that they sat still all weekend. 

Aggie (left) and Tucker enjoying a moment of calm in the backyard.

We set out on our road trip early on Friday morning- it was still dark! Which was a feat considering that neither of us really just me are not morning people- at all! We hit the Mississippi - Louisiana state line around 2:30pm. And, of course, when you're on a road trip, it only counts when you take a picture at the state line/state welcome center. 

Almost there!

Cannon on the bank of the Mississippi River.

Braving the chilly and windy weather at the state welcome center to snag a few pictures. It was truly a beautiful day.

We arrived in West Point, a small town close to Starkville where we were staying, around 5:30 or 6:00pm. We got settled, managed to pass out and take a nap, and then headed out to grab dinner in downtown Starkville. Lots of people were out and about and walking around the small town headed towards Bulldog Bash, an annual free music event put on by the Mississippi State University's student alumni association. It was interesting and somewhat strange to see so much maroon and white in another town and it continued to be difficult to tell who was an Aggie fan and who was a Mississippi State fan- everyone was wearing the same colors!

Since the game was way too early on Saturday morning (11am), we left the hotel around 8:30 so we'd have plenty of time to snag a good parking spot and do some campus exploration before the game began. The Mississippi State University campus is beautiful!

Student Union.

Funny, old mascot picture in student union. That is one ugly "dawg."

Can't go wrong with a pre-football game selfie.

We even managed to stop by and see where SEC Network was filming their pre-game show. This is where the cowbell madness really began in our day. So many cowbells.

The stadium was full, loud, and covered in maroon and white. Although the Aggies ended up losing, it really was a fun game. 

Panorama of the stadium.

Coinflip and Mississippi State mascot.

Kick-off.

Picture with field (post game).
We definitely should have snagged this one before the game started. It was hard to muster a smile.

This is what we found when we exited the stadium- a FLEET of golf carts. Apparently it's a thing to bring your own golf cart to campus on game days here. Kind of ridiculous, but that's just me. The Aggies definitely don't have this happening- and our campus is significantly larger than MSU's. Just something I thought was funny/interesting. 

The rest of our Saturday was relatively uneventful- watching lots of college football (including several more upsets #2, #3, & #4) and grabbing dinner. 

The following morning, before we left town we checked out the Waverly Planation that we'd been seeing signs about while in West Point. We didn't know if it'd be open, but wanted to check it out since we were there. We definitely didn't regret it. The mansion that still stood on the property was beautiful and we met a very kind woman and her father who own and had restored the house over the past fifty years. 

Waverly Mansion from the road/entrance. 

View of the front yard from the front balcony on the second floor.

Beautifully restored by the Snow family. You can really tell that they've put their life into this house.

One of the eight ante rooms that were all the same exact size.

Jacob made friends with some kittens that we happened upon.

Mansion even came with their own peacock coop!

The mansion was built in the 1840's and 50's on a 50,000 acre plot of land that produced cotton. The kind owners of the home glossed over some of the less savory facts- like the slave labor employed on the plantation before the Civil War. She also didn't share with us that the mansion is said to be haunted- most frequently by a small girl calling for her mother. Jacob and I both did our fair share of Googling following the tour. Very interesting place full of history. The family was incredibly nice and welcoming. We also ran into another Aggie couple that toured right after us. How random!

After finishing our tour, we hit the road and headed back to Texas! 

Crossing the Mississippi River.

We're already looking forward to our next road trip! Alabama anyone...?

Big thanks to my wonderful parents who watched Tucker while I was gone. As always, he returned home exhausted and has been full of puppy cuddles and naps this evening.

Tucker likes to claim my dad while he's visiting. Poor Aggie puts up with so much. 

Can you tell he's spoiled? Always wanted the best seat in the house.