cold toes|hot oven

How is it already Saturday and I'm still working on this post I started LAST Sunday. Blog fail.

We were having a true to Fall weekend here in SLO; drizzly, overcast, cool, and windy. Living on the Central Coast, we don't see many days like this, so it's nice to take the opportunity to cozy up and slow down. I curled up in one of my favorite "snuggly" blankets with a steaming cup of tea and relished the scent of pumpkin wafting through our Cali cottage. I baked up SIX dozen amazing pumpkin cookies- and let me tell you, they were amazing. And.They.Are.All.Gone. Yep. AND, I may or may not have licked the bowl I mixed the icing in, it was that good. Try them, you'll understand. And the icing was definitely the icing on the cake, pun intended. I melted some butter and brown sugar on the stove, then mixed in a bit of milk, vanilla, and confectioners sugar until it formed a delicious brown butter glaze. Sorry thighs.

1 cup unsalted butter (I always sub "Apples and Prunes" baby food instead)
1 cup sugar
1 cup cooked, pureed pumpkin (fresh or canned)
1 egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups unbleached allpurpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice, more if you'd like a more spicy cookie!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter (or baby food) and sugar until fluffy. Add pumpkin, egg and vanilla and mix well. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and pie spice. Stir into butter mixture until well blended. Drop by teaspoonful onto baking sheet (I used my SilPat and they came out perect), about 2 inches apart. Bake about 15 minutes, or until golden. Cool. *note: these are pretty cake-like cookies, so making them small keeps them from turning too muffin-like.

Oh, and I can't forget the best part...the icing:

1 1/2 Tablespoons butter (don't try to make this healthy...not worth it)
2 Tablespoons milk
1/4 C packed light brown sugar
5/8 Tsp pure vanilla (one quarter + one eighth)
1/2 C of confectioner's sugar

Melt butter and brown sugar together in small saucepan. Remove from heat and add milk, vanilla, and confectioner's sugar; mix well. Dip the COOLED cookies upside down into the icing and allow to set before serving. Don't forget the MOST IMPORTANT STEP: licking the bowl. You won't regret it.

This kind of weather has me welcoming extra time in the kitchen; standing over the stove with my legs agaist the warmth of the oven door...ahhh, heavenly. I decided to try one of our favorite restaurant dishes out at home with some healthy renovations (hey, I have to make up for those cookies somehow) and I think I found a new favorite. When we moved here, we both swore we didn't like "Indian" food- and yes, to us, anything curried was considered in that category. At our first experience dining at Novo (now our FAVORITE), we were talked into trying the Thai green curry. AND, we fell in love. Something about the perfect combination of coconut milk, lime, and cilantro had me head over heels. If you'd like to take a reduced-guilt version out for a spin, I HIGHLY recommend this easy recipe!

1 large onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
jalapeno pepper to taste, seeded and minced
3 tablespoons curry powder, preferably Madras
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 12-ounce can evaporated skim milk
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Sea Salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste

Saute onion and bell pepper in a large heavy saucepan over medium heat; cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, jalapeno pepper, curry powder, garlic; cook, stirring, until aromatic, about 2 minutes more. Reduce heat to low and add evaporated skim milk and coconut milk. Bring to a simmer, stirring to prevent scorching. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add shrimp and cook, uncovered, until the shrimp are pink and curled, 10 to 12 minutes.

Combine lime juice and cornstarch in a small bowl; stir until smooth. Add to the shrimp mixture and cook, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir in cilantro and season with salt and pepper. Serve over brown basmati rice. Enjoy!!

"So, when are you going to start sharing these goodies with ME, Mom?"