{just chill-axin}

{I am unashamed to say that it is 11am on a Wednesday morning and I am sitting in bed eating warm banana bread with a freshly applied face mask! Yeah baby! I have been so tired lately..growing a little human is a lot of work! I cleaned the house like a maniac last night so all I really have to do is put away a few loads of laundry and thaw some chili for dinner tonight! I also completely forgot about Fall Fashion Week! Boo! So my Wednesday post will be up shortly after I shower and pull myself together :) First here are the recipes I made last week and promised to share...Craft Bonanza Part 2!}

{First up...caramel buttons!}

{They are REALLY easy and so yummy! Perfect for dropping in your morning coffee! Hubby love them! I found this recipe on Elsie's blog "A Beautiful Mess" She has been doing a 12 days of Tricks and Treats to lead up to her store opening. There are a bunch more diy projects from this feature that i am working on and am SO excited about! ok so here is the super brief version of how to do this...melt sugar in a skillet over medium heat.

At first you don't want to stir it at all, until it starts to melt once it has begun melting stir it up and let it finish melting. Once fulling liquefied, add a hunk of butter to make it creamy and stop the cooking.

Pour in a little vanilla and cinnamon to taste. you could also use nutmeg, cloves or whatever else you like. I want to try dipping them in chocolate too! Then plop them on a pan lined with parchment paper.

I used wax paper and wished I hadn't! Stick them in the fridge to harden all the way and your done! I also decided to roast a pumpkin and make soup! Its really easy, requires very few ingredients and tastes great! I made a big bowl of it and froze it for easy dinners.

First chop open your pumpkin and scoop out the seeds. You want to cut out the stem and the little nubbin on the bottom. Scrap out as much of the stringy stuff as you can but it will peel off after you roast it anyway so it's not a big deal. [Sidenote: Roast your pumpkin seeds for a tasty treat! Just rinse them clean, spread on a pan, toss in olive oil and salt and ta-da! You have roast pumpkin seeds!]

Anyway as I was saying...chop up your poor pumpkin...

Once it is fully cleaned place it on a pan and oil that puppy up! I just use olive oil on the inside and out. It keeps the inside moist, because otherwise it can dry out. Roast away at 400 degrees until soft. You check just check with a fork every so often. Then cut out the soft inside and discard the skin. Chop into pieces and blend with a little chicken stock to help emulsify everything. Dump it all in a pot and add more chicken stock. Then simmer and season with whatever spices you like. I kept it simple with salt and pepper.}
Be back soon with "wedding weekend" and "Fall Week: Wednesday"!
ali <3