Dog Scarves

I recently saw online that you can buy these little handmade dog scarves. Since it is getting cold quickly now, we have started thinking about how much long fur Louie has and how Buck (we are thinking of renaming him Hank) does not. I don't want  Buck to be too cold this fall and mess up his potty training. So, I thought I should start practicing crocheting some dog scarfs in my spare time. It seems silly that it only covers their neck, but they sure look cute and are really easy to make if you want to save some money.

I think Buck is going to need a sweater to go with that scarf sometime and I might try to find a crochet pattern for that. Louie really likes having a buddy that is his size to play with. It seems ever since we got Buck, it has helped Louie to learn how to play with toys and get exercise playing chase.

 

Fall Apple Crisp

Apples are now in season which means I can make one of my favorite recipes for autumn. My husband and I went up to our college campus to pick some organic locally grown apples for this treat at 50 cents a pound. You can find many different recipes for apple crisp, but this one is my favorite... it's my mom's recipe.

Apple Mixture:

6 Large baking apples, such as Granny Smith
1/4 cup apple juice or spiced cider apple juice
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. salt

Topping Mixture:
3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup rolled oats or old fashion oats
1/4cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into pieces

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, lightly butter a 9x9 or 8x8 baking dish.

Apple Mixture: Peel, core, and slice the apples. Place the apples in a large bowl and add apple juice, sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and salt. Mix together and transfer to the prepared baking dish. Scatter the crisp topping evenly over the fruit.

Crisp topping: Stir flour, oats, sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Using a pastry blender or two forks, blend in the butter until it is pea-size pieces. Scatter over apple mixture.

Bake for 40 minutes. Served warm with ice cream or whipped cream.

Dandelions

"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you've imagined."

-Henry David Thoreau

This week I saw a field with the largest Dandelions I have ever seen. I think this goes perfect with this quote. I have it hanging up so that I can remind myself everyday that I'm working towards something.