3 Weeks Before Christmas - Peanut Butter Balls & Holiday Check List

Family photo with our tree
we picked out from
Meyer Family Trees, rural Hampton, Iowa

It's the last day of November and it officially feels like the Christmas season.  We picked out and put up our Christmas Tree yesterday and the only gifts I still need to finish are the ones I'm personally making.  Black Friday was very successful for me - But I personally always aim for getting as much, if not all, of my shopping done that day because it is a chance to shop without kids!  Now is the time that I start to make Christmas cookies each week, so I will have a variety of goodies for Christmas plates for all of our holiday gatherings.  So I thought for this week's holiday recipe I had to share my family's favorite Christmas cookie, Peanut Butter Balls.

Peanut Butter Balls are a simple and delicious holiday treat that you can get your whole family involved in.  We eat these so much that I've adapted the recipe based on a whole jar of peanut butter ;)  (Peanut butter is one of the hardest and messiest things to measure so why not just use a whole jar!)  These are always the first Christmas cookie we make and usually the last too, because one batch just doesn't last us all month.  And, if you're looking for some more Christmas Cookie ideas, check out my Iowa Christmas Cookie Exchange for 16 delicious treats from Iowa bloggers.

This week's Holiday Check List includes a lot of items, and I'm hoping to gradually check items off each day.  I need to finish my Christmas sewing projects, I'd really like to start wrapping gifts, and I need to start on everything involved in making our Christmas letter.  To see my complete check list for this week be sure to check it out here.

And, you can get caught up on my previous week's Holiday Check Lists and Holiday Recipes by clicking on the links below:

Horchata Pumpkin Waffles and 1 Week Before Thanksgiving Check List

Pecan Pie and Thanksgiving Week Check List

What is your favorite Christmas cookie?  Do you have a family favorite where one batch is never enough.  Remember to Comment for a Cause!

Thanksgiving Week & 4 Weeks Before Christmas - Pecan Pie & Holiday Check List

It's Thanksgiving Week!  Turkey, green bean casserole, pecan pie, family, Black Friday, shopping.  Those would all be words I'd use to describe this week.  It's a busy week, but a fun one too!  Each Monday during the 2015 Holiday Season I'm sharing a holiday recipe and my weekly check list.

I thought this week it'd be appropriate for me to share my family's  Pecan Pie recipe.  How much more Thanksgiving can you get than Pecan Pie?  Well, maybe turkey, but Pecan Pie is definitely the top dessert.  In fact, I took an unscientific poll on my Corn, Beans, Pigs and Kids Facebook Page and my readers agreed.  Thanksgiving is the universal excuse to indulge in this rich, calorie-filled pie.  Now I've both made and tried different variation of the Pecan Pie - chocolate, whiskey, etc., but nothing beats the original with a lard crust!

Pecan Pie

9" Crust:

1/3 cup Lard

1 cup Flour

1/4 tsp Salt

2-3 T Cold Water

Filling: 

1 cup Corn Syrup

3 Eggs

1 cup Sugar

2 Tbsp Butter, melted

1 tsp Vanilla

1/8 tsp Salt

1 cup Pecans, chopped

Start by making your crust.  Cut the lard with the flour and salt until you get pea-sized dough.  Add 1 Tbsp of cold water at a time until the dough sticks together and you can form a ball with it.  Put the ball of pie dough in plastic wrap and flatten it.  Let it cool down in the refrigerator.

After it has cooled, roll the dough out large enough to fit your pie plate.  I love using my Tupperware Pie Mat to roll my dough on because it gives me an outline of a 9" pie crust on it.  Be sure to sprinkle both the mat and your rolling pin with flour, as well as the top of the dough to prevent sticking.  If your crust is too dry, keep a cup of cold water next to you as your roll out the dough so you can sprinkle water in trouble spots that are starting to crack.

Some of my staple pie making supplies
Pie Ring Shields, Lard, Wooden Rolling Pin, Tupperware Pie Mat

After you get the crust rolled out and laid into your pie plate, make a simple edge design with the top of your crust.  Usually I do the "dent" method using my thumb and bent index finger of my left hand, and dent the dough between the bent index finger of my right hand.  But you can also use a cute little cookie cutter like I did in the above picture to decorate the top of the crust.  I used a little leaf cutter; I thought it was a festive touch!

Next it is time to make the filling.  Mix all the ingredients together besides the pecans.  Once it is all incorporated, stir in the pecans and pour into your unbaked pie crust.

Bake your pie at 400 degrees Farenheit for 15 minutes and then reduce the heat to 350 degrees for an additional 30-35 minutes.  Use a pie ring shield on top of your pie so the top of your crust doesn't burn, or put aluminum foil around the edge of the pie.  The pie is done when the filling looks solid.  Give your pie a little shake in the oven and if the center of the filling moves around a lot in needs some more time.

I hope you enjoy my Pecan Pie recipe as much as my family does!  Now this week isn't all about pie, but really, would that be that bad.  Besides making and prepping food for Thanksgiving this week, I'm also needing to finish making my shopping list for Black Friday and finalize our Christmas travel plans.  Be sure too see my complete check list for Thanksgiving Week and 4 Weeks Before Christmas.

And if you missed last week's Check List and Horchata Pumpkin Waffles Recipe, you better catch up on those items too.

What is your favorite dessert for Thanksgiving?  Are you a pecan pie fan too?  Remember to Comment for a Cause!

Farm Friday - Harvest Recap + New Additions

As the first fall snow fell today, I was thankful that we finished our corn and soybean harvest last Monday and 95% of our field work at the beginning of the week before we got rain for three days and snow today.  What we didn't get done, will and can wait til Spring and I think we are all okay with that.

Combining our soybeans

This fall's harvest went pretty well.  We had average to above average yields for both corn and soybeans, and we were able to work almost daily to get the job done since it was so dry this fall.

A fun thing that the kids and I did this fall was host Flat Aggie during harvest.  Flat Aggie is similar to the Flat Stanley project (which I personally loved doing Flat Stanley as a first grader 25 years ago...) based on the book Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown.  Students send a flat cutout to friends and family to then go on adventures and return after a certain period of time with a story of their travels.  Flat Aggie travels to farms and ranches and this year is being shared with classrooms in Illinois, Kansas, California and Arkansas.

A new addition to this year's harvest for us was that we started bagging corn.  The current market price for corn and soybeans is low, so we wanted to store as much of our grain as possible in order to get a better price for it at a later date.  All of our soybeans and most of our corn is being stored in grain bins that we both own and rent.  But as we ran out of bin space we started bagging the corn.  Think of it as "on farm storage."  These 250' long bags are made of a thick plastic.  From the catch cart, we filled the grain bagger, which inches along as the bag gets filled.  We will have to unload these bags before spring, so we can plant in those areas.  But at least for this winter, the bags have given us some much needed storage space.

Our "on farm storage" - grain bags

And speaking of new additions, we are excited to announce that our family will be growing in May!  We are expecting Baby #4 on May 20th and are very happy and full of love.  The kids are excited and have given the baby the nickname of "Tinker".  Our son LP came up with the name and we asked him where he got the name from and he responded nonchalantly, "My brain."  Oh, of course.  But anyways, the name has stuck, and we are all very excited to welcome Baby Tinker this spring.

Do you have any questions about Fall Harvest or our new "Spring Arrival"?  Remember to Comment for a Cause!

1 Week Before Thanksgiving - Horchata Pumpkin Waffles & Holiday Check List

* This post has been compensated through the AE Dairy Blog Ambassador program.  All views and opinions shared are my own. *

Can you believe that it is the week before Thanksgiving already???  Even if you can't, it is time to get ready for the holiday season!  If you've been following my blog for awhile you probably know that I am a list person.  Lists help me stay organized and give me a sense of accomplishment when I can cross something off of it!  And the holiday season is the perfect time to utilize lists so you don't feel overwhelmed or stressed out.  Throughout the 2015 holiday season I thought I'd share my holiday check lists weekly, as well as a holiday recipe.

AE Dairy's Seasonal Milks,
including their new Horchata milk (4th from left)

This week's recipe is my Horchata Pumpkin Waffles.  I was inspired to create this recipe after trying AE Dairy's new Horchata seasonal milk last month.  Horchata is a traditional Hispanic drink.  AE Dairy's version is their 2% milk flavored with vanilla and cinnamon.  When I took my first sip of the Horchata milk I thought about how it would be a great milk to add to holiday cookies and breakfast pastries and sweets.  I decided to first try it in one of my family's favorite breakfast meals, waffles.  And besides just replacing the milk in my traditional waffle recipe, I decided to add pumpkin, as well as vanilla and cinnamon to bring out the Horchata flavor more.

Horchata Pumpkin Waffles

2 cups Flour

2 Tbsp Sugar

1 Tbsp Baking Powder

1/2 tsp Salt

1 3/4 cups AE Dairy Horchata milk

6 Tbsp Vegetable Oil

2 Eggs

1/2 cup Pumpkin, pureed

2 Tbsp Vanilla

1 Tbsp Ground Cinnamon

Place ingredients in a large mixing bowl and combine until well blended and smooth with a whisk.  Preheat your waffle maker on desired setting (I always go for the medium setting on ours).  Pour 1/2 cup of batter onto the center of the lower grid of your waffle maker.  Close cover and carefully remove after indicator light says it is done, around 1 1/2 minutes.  Repeat with remaining batter.  

Make eight 6 1/2 inch round waffles.

These waffles were a huge hit for our family and made it feel like the holidays!  The combination of the pumpkin and Horchata was the perfect savory and sweet waffle bite.  So if you have a waffle maker laying around your house, get it out and use it!  I'm glad I held onto ours that we got as a wedding gift almost 8 years ago because the kids love waffles and I love making waffles for them.

So now that you are warmed up for the holiday season with a new breakfast recipe, it's time to start checking things off your Thanksgiving and Christmas checklists!  We have one week before Thanksgiving and five weeks before Christmas!  This week I'm getting my Thanksgiving menu groceries (which includes my Overnight Salad and Shrimp Dip!), working on Christmas Wish lists, and organizing our family's holiday travels.  Be sure to check out the complete Holiday Check List!

What do you have planned for your Thanksgiving menu?  Remember to Comment for a Cause!

Wordless Wednesday - My Catch Cart Buddies Through the Years

Fall is always a busy time of year.  We've been thankful to have been able to harvest almost daily since we started on September 22nd.  If things keep up, we should have everything out of the field sometime next week!  I've been wanting to blog but since things have been so busy I just didn't know where to start!  So I thought sharing photos of my catch cart buddies through the years would be a fun way to get back into the blogging groove. :)

Can you tell they are all siblings?  Each first fall for our kids I have taken a photo of them on my tractor's steering wheel while waiting for the combine.  (Everyone needs to get out and stretch a bit during the day, and I know the kids enjoy getting out of their car seats to get a different view.)  Too bad MP was a little too young to sit up on her own (she was 4 months old in her photo), but nonetheless, it is still fun to see each of them during their first fall as my tractor buddies. :)  Remember to Comment for a Cause!

Comments for a Cause - No Kid Hungry campaign

It is November 1st which means it is time to introduce a new Comments for a Cause program!  But before I talk about the new cause, let's wrap up last month's Project Night Night donation.  Throughout the month of October I had 37 comments, equaling a $18.50 donation to help children find comfort at night, no matter where they are.  Thank you for all of the comments!

In November I'm continuing my efforts to help children in need by donating $0.50 for every comment made on my blog to the No Kid Hungry campaign.

If you follow my blog, my passion for our youth and combating hunger is no surprise to you.  This is why I'm excited to contribute to the No Kid Hungry campaign this month.  With core partners like the Food Network and Wal-Mart, and national partners like Tyson (who is the company we sell our hogs too), this campaign has a lot of energy and attention.  According to their website, "The No Kid Hungry campaign connects kids in need with nutritious food and teaches their families how to cook healthy, affordable meals.  The campaign also engages the public to make ending child hunger a national priority."

The statistics on childhood hunger in the United States is amazing and sad.  Even though it might not be visible to the casual eye, one in five children in America live in households that struggle to put food on the table.  When kids are hungry, they have a higher chance of having short and long term illnesses, as well as they can have both behavioral and emotional problems.

As a Mom, I hate to see any kid not have access to basic needs, such as food.  My heart hurts for them and I want to help them.  I think it is the natural, nurturing instinct of all mothers.  As a farmer, I work hard to care for our livestock and land.  I take pride in providing for my family and others.  No Kid Hungry does a great job of bringing my voices, the voices of government officials, business leaders, and other caring citizens together to work on solutions.  If we all work together, and bring more awareness, we can help hungry children nationwide.

So help me share the No Kid Hungry message by commenting on any of my blog posts all month long, bringing awareness of the campaign to your family and friends, and by sharing your own stories of solutions.  Share about some successful combating hunger programs in your community.  What ideas do you have to help alleviate childhood hunger in the United States?  Be sure to Comment for a Cause!

Country Fair Blog Party: November 2015

It is November 1st!  Our family has spent the day harvesting, spending time with family, eating too much candy and treats from trick-or-treating, and hopefully going through the last 24 hours of pink-eye (I guess this is what happens when you start having kids in school...).  To tell you the truth, I'm ready to go to bed, but I have some blogging that needs to get done!  Before I share the link-up for the new Country Fair Blog Party, I'm going to share my three Blue Ribbon winners from October's Country Fair Blog Party:

I always have to pick a new recipe from each month's Country Fair Blog Party for a blue ribbon winner, and October didn't disappoint with the variety of tasty recipes to try.  I really look forward to trying Chasing Saturdays's Payday Chex Mix.  This reminds me of my Sweet & Salty Corn Chip snack I like to make for the tractor, but different.  If you like scotcheroos then you'll like this recipe combination of peanut butter and the classic corn syrup/sugar coating!

My next blue ribbon winner is Oak Hill Homestead's Canning Tips blog post.  For me when it comes to my garden, I think I probably enjoy canning my harvest more than eating it fresh, so Kathi's canning tips caught my eye!  I've been canning since I was a 4-Her, but even I learned some new tips to think about and remind myself.

My final blue ribbon is a touching, heartfelt post that made me smile.  In Nebraska Wheatie's Love in the Shape of a Red Balloon post, Tracy talks about finding a set of balloons in a field while harvesting.  She said how she normally ignores balloons in fields because she actually sees quite a few, but for some reason this time she decided to stop and check them out.  The balloons were memorial balloons of a young man close the age of one of her children.  Through social media she learned more about this man's life but it also made her stop, pray and think of the loved ones who let those balloons go.  I think this post really hit me because my family releases balloons annually for a cousin who passed away from cancer 10 years ago.  We don't put notes on our balloons, but I hope someone stops, thinks and prays for whoever let that balloon away and for whatever reason when they find them.

I can't wait to see what great posts get linked up this month as we have our Country Fair Blog Party.  Country Fairs are all about food, family, friends, farming, animals, arts and crafts, canning, baking and more.  And that is what our our blog hop is all about too.  Feel free to join our Country Fair by linking up to 3 of your posts.  This blog hop is a great opportunity to check out new blogs, and if you blog yourself, have your posts reach a new audience.  Be sure to visit some other party goers and let them know you are stopping by through the Country Fair Blog Party.

Also, be sure to visit my fellow co-hosts:
Jan of Tip Garden
Laurie of Country LINKed and
Nicole of Tales of a Kansas Farm Mom

We're excited to see everything you share this month!  What is your favorite link from this month's Country Fair Blog Party?  Whichever post is mentioned the most in the comments will receive my "Readers Choice" Blue Ribbon next month!  Remember to Comment for a Cause!

An InLinkz Link-up