ANOTHER ONE...The 2nd Annual Fall Festival Recipe Exchange hosted by My Friend Amy

I made this fall recipe the other day and it was too good not to share. Again, I got it from somewhere off the internet. You have gotta try this one!!!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

INGREDIENTS

·         3-⅓ cups unbleached all purpose Flour

·         1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

·         1 tbsp Cinnamon

·         2 teaspoons Baking Soda

·         1 teaspoon Baking Powder

·         1-½ teaspoon Salt

·         2-⅔ cups Sugar 

·         ⅔ cups Softened Butter

·         4 whole Eggs

·         1 pound (or 1 30oz can or 2 15oz cans) Mashed Pumpkin

·         ⅔ cups Water

·         1 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (I highly recommend Ghiradelli)

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Sift together dry ingredients and set aside. Cream sugar and butter until well incorporated. Add eggs one at a time and then add the mashed pumpkin. Alternate adding dry ingredients with water. Fold in chocolate chips.

Pour into three large greased bread pans and bake at 325 degrees for 55 to 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out clean.

Makes 3 loaves.


***My personal note ~ you could use a little less sugar and it would be great!!!


This recipe is being submitted as part of the following event:

Hosted by My Friend Amy

My Friend Amy is hosting the 2nd Annual Fall Festival Recipe Exchange where all of us bloggers out there share our favorite fall recipe with everyone else. Sounds divinely yummy! I don't know about you all, but Fall is my absolute favorite time of year! It makes me feel oh-so-hopeful and why not top off that feeling with a fabulous treat for our taste buds from good friends? 

Just visit My Friend Amy's blog and try out some great recipes or participate in the Fall Festival and share one of your own with the rest of us. It's that simple!

Adventure Time!

Went to the Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge today with my mom. It was absolutely perfect weather! I love this time of year! Too bad it can't stay like this all year long...now that would be SA-WEET!!!


Here's a few pics I took today with my new Droid X! :-)

Most of these pictures are from a seven-mile wildlife drive that we took.

There happened to be a fall festival type event going on today. On display were injured birds in rehabilitation. Saw this adorable owl and bald eagle! 

Did I mention it was a PERFECT day!

The 2nd Annual Fall Festival Recipe Exchange hosted by My Friend Amy

Hosted by My Friend Amy

My Friend Amy is hosting the 2nd Annual Fall Festival Recipe Exchange where all of us bloggers out there share our favorite fall recipe with everyone else. Sounds divinely yummy! I don't know about you all, but Fall is my absolute favorite time of year! It makes me feel oh-so-hopeful and why not top off that feeling with a fabulous treat for our taste buds from good friends? 


Just visit My Friend Amy's blog and try out some great recipes or participate in the Fall Festival and share one of your own with the rest of us. It's that simple!


Now for one of my very favorite fall recipes!!! I have no idea where I got this recipe from a few years ago...copied it from somewhere...It is sooooo very yummy!

Hot Buttered Rum Apple Pie

1/2 cup butter or margarine - divided use
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar 
1/4 cup rum 
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1 tablespoon lemon juice 
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
8 cups sliced apples
1/2 cup all-purpose flour 
1/2 cup granulated sugar 
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1 (9-inch) unbaked pie shell

1.  In a large skillet melt 1/4 cup butter and brown sugar. Stir into brown sugar mixture, rum, grated lemon peel, lemon juice, and nutmeg. Add peeled, sliced apples and coat with the spiced brown sugar sauce. Simmer, covered, for 10 minutes, or until the apples are tender. Cool slightly then pour into a 9-inch unbaked pie shell.

2.  In a medium bowl mix together flour and sugar. Cut in 1/4 cup butter until crumbly. Add sliced almonds and sprinkle over the apples.

3.  Bake at 375°F (190°C) for 35 minutes.

Makes 8 servings.

The Movies and Memories Giveaway by Sarah Sundin

Sarah Sundin presents The Movies and Memories Giveaway in honor of book 2 in the Wings of Glory series. A Memory Between Us is available for purchase wherever fine books are sold. From the English countryside to the perilous skies over France, A Memory Between Us takes you on a journey through love, forgiveness, and sacrifice.




To celebrate Sarah is giving one lucky winner A Movie and Memory Prize Package! One grand prize winner will receive:


* Make-your-own-photo book from Mypublisher.com (Capture your own Memories)


* Netflix Subscription (New or Nostalgic Movies delivered right to your house)


* Starbucks gift card (To keep your engine revvin’)


*Gourmet chocolate (A favorite in the 1940’s and now)


* British specialty teas in carved wooden box (Timeless tradition)


* Miniature model of a B-17 Flying Fortress bomber & C-47 cargo plane (Everyone needs a few toy planes)


*Big Band music CD (Break out your dancing shoes)


* WWII authentic poster playing cards (Cards – a perfect game for two)


* Keep Calm and Carry On (Uplifting sayings WWII, a boost for troubled times)


To enter simple click on the icons below (contest runs 9/27 - 10/17!)

Book Review: Cowgirl at Heart by Christine Lynxwiler

Book Description from Goodreads:


Welcome to the Ozarks, the setting of award-winning author Christine Lynxwiler’s latest breath-taking romance, where the lives of a timid dog whisperer and an out-for-revenge reporter collide. Elyse McCord, the biological daughter of a modern-day Bonnie and Clyde, turns into a mighty warrior when a dog’s well-being is at stake. Finding herself in the sights of a pistol-wielding maniac whose been mistreating his dog, she’s suddenly swept to safety by Andrew Stone, a widower bent on hunting down his wife’s killers. Is there any future for an outlaw’s daughter and a Texas ranger’s son?


My Thoughts:


This book is #2 in the McCord Sister Romance Series by Christine Lynxwiler. I picked it up at the store not realizing it was the second in a series. So, be sure and read the first book, The Reluctant Cowgirl (The McCord Sisters, Book 1), prior to reading this one. :-)


I really liked this book. Christine has a very down-to-earth voice in her writing that makes you feel like you are sitting in the same room with the characters. She also adds an element of mystery and suspense to the book which makes the storyline more dimensional rather than just a romance between two people. The main character, Elyse, has some fears she is confronted with throughout the story. I enjoyed reading her struggles and the creative ways that she attempts at conquering and overcoming those fears. By the end of this book, she had made considerable strides in beating the fears that had become obstacles in her life. The author promotes hope that we can overcome the things we struggle with, yet doesn't make you believe it is an overnight quick-fix. We all know nothing is ever really fixed overnight or with the snap of our fingers. I also really liked how the author gave Elyse challenges that were outside the box to face her fears. Sometimes we need to try something new or different in our approach to "fix our issues."


This book has multiple story lines going on throughout. Elyse's storyline is prominent, but the author takes you on journeys with her two sisters as well. Because I started with the second book in the series, one sister's storyline is continued from the first book. I thought that was a really neat idea because often times I read a series and the additional books may make mention of the original characters, but never really "complete" their stories. In this book, the sister's story from the first book is continued and perhaps completed and the sister's story from the third book, Cowgirls Don't Cry (The McCord Sisters, Book 3) is begun. I'll be getting the first and third books in this series to read very soon! A definite recommended read!


You can get your own copy of this book here. Cowgirl at Heart (The McCord Sisters, Book 2)

Teaser Tuesday!

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My Teasers:

"One of the gunmen asserts himself as the leader. He nods toward the four others who have guns at the ready, and they begin walking through the pub, corralling anyone they see and bringing them all to a designated location behind the pool tables."

From ~ Drift by Sharon Carter Rogers

Blog Hop!

Hosted by Ashley's Bookshelf

This Blog Hop is a place just for book bloggers and readers to connect and share their love of books! This weekly blog hop is an awesome opportunity for book bloggers to connect with other book lovers, make new friends, support each other, and generally just share our love of books! It will also give blog readers a chance to find other book blogs to read!


This week's Blog Hop question:


How many words, chapters or pages do you try to read a day?


My answer: At this point, I don't really have a defined number of words, chapters or pages I set as a daily goal for myself. I read when I have the extra time to pick up a book. Most of the time that is when I get in bed at night and think to myself that I have a few minutes to read before I go to sleep. Problem with that is, if the book is very intriguing...I end up staying awake waaaaayyyy too late for my own good! I think however, maybe setting a daily goal might be a good idea for me. I'll have to think about that one. 


Go to Ashley's Bookshelf and find other book bloggers to connect with and explore!