Thanksgiving is all about the food, and despite how much we eat for our main course, we always leave a little room for dessert. After all, that’s why sweat pants were invented.

My dinner would not be complete without a slice of warm, sweet pumpkin pie topped with fresh whipped cream. Mmmmm, but not everyone cares for this spicy squash pie. So today, I have compiled after dinner treats that will appeal to everyone in the crowd.

Pumpkin pie for the traditionalists, Kahlua Pecan pie for the chocoholics, and Apple Rhubarb Crisp for those who like their desserts a little tart. One thing they all have in common, they should be served with either fresh whip cream, or vanilla ice cream. Can thinking about these make you fat?

If you’re heading out to spend Thanksgiving weekend at the cabin, you can make these recipes ahead of time and warm them just before serving.

One additional note, the Pumpkin and Kahlua Pecan Pie recipes both won the Perfect Pie award, at Warkworth’s Perfect Pie Contest, and are from the Simply Pies, Savoury and Sweet, cookbook.

Making the actual pie crust can be overwhelming, but How to Make Pie Pastry, a previous blog entry will walk you through it.

Here’s to a Happy Thanksgiving and some good eating.

Cheers,

Julie

Pumpkin Pie (Ora Campbell)

1 unbaked pie shell, 9 in.

Filling:

1 1/2 cup cooked pumpkin (canned)

1 cup brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ginger

2 eggs, slightly beaten

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/4 cup cereal cream

Preheat oven to 375F

Combine pumpkin, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, eggs, salt and cream. Add filling to prepared pie shell.

Bake for 20 minutes then reduce heat to 350F. and bake until filling is set, about 30 minutes.

Kahlua Pecan Pie (Norma McCleary’s)

1 unbaked pie shell, 9 in.

1/4 cup butter

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

3 eggs

1/2 cup kahlua

1/2 cup dark corn syrup

3/4 cup evaporated milk

1 cup pecans, chopped or whole

1/2 cup heavy cream, whipped

pecan halves, garnish

Filling:

Cream together butter, sugar, vanilla and flour. Mix well.

Beat eggs, one at a time. Stir in Kahlua, corn syrup, evaporated milk and 1 cup pecans. Mix well and pour into uncooked pie shell.

Bake for 10 minutes at 400F. Reduce heat to 325F and bake until firm (about 40 minutes). Chill.

Serve with whipped cream and pecan halves. Serves 8 - 10 people, but this recipe is very rich, a little goes a long way.

Apple Rhubarb Crisp

Topping

3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1/2 cup old-fashion oats
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
6 tbsp (3/4 stick) salted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts

Filling
4 large Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about
4 cups) you can sub for other apples i.e. Granny Smiths
3 large stalks of rhubarb, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 3 cups)
3 tbsp sugar
2 tsp all purpose flour
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

For topping
Mix first 5 ingredients in medium bowl. Rub in butter until mixture begins to clump together. Mix in nuts. (Can be made 1 day in ahead. Chill.)

For filling
Preheat oven to 400°F. Combine apples, rhubarb, sugar, flour and vanilla extract in large bowl and toss to coat. Transfer apple mixture to 8×8x2-inch glass baking dish.

Sprinkle topping evenly over fruit. Bake until fruit is tender when pierced with knife and topping is crisp, cover with foil part way through baking to prevent topping from browning too quickly, about 45 minutes. Cool 20 minutes. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Finding a real estate agent is kinda like dating. You don’t always find the right one the first time around.

We recently started looking at some recreation property in a popular ski area. We made a list of the properties we wanted to see, contacted a local agent, and spent several hours together viewing the listings. At the end of the day, both my husband and I were frustrated. Largely because the properties we looked at were better online than in person, but also because we couldn’t get a clear understanding of what was suppose to happen next.

We weren’t really jazzed about working with this particular agent, but were unsure of how to proceed.

Brian Velve, a top selling Vancouver real estate agent with Remax, recommends trying a different approach.

He suggests when looking at any kind of recreation property, check to see which agent has the majority of listings in the price range we’re interested in. In addition to knowing the properties, they are more likely to attract listings that fall within our budget- thereby increasing our chances of success. We might even get first crack at a place before it gets listed.

The next step, I call this the dating step, is to make an appointment with the agent to view their listings. This gives us an opportunity to get to know each other better. Ideally, the agent will be business like, knowledgeable, and eager to work with us. Although tiring, it’s a good idea to meet with several agents before deciding on one. Remember the saying, “Before you meet your handsome prince you have to kiss a lot of toads?”

But what if there’s a break up?

Brian normally has buyers sign a “Buyers Agreement” that states he is working on their behalf. But if we find the “relationship” is just not working out, we can end it.

It is important to fire your agent.

This is definitely the hard part. While it doesn’t matter how I do it, on the phone, over the Internet or in person, it is really important I fire the agent. If I don’t, and we end up buying a property with our new agent that our old agent showed us, then they will have a right to claim commission - not a nice thing to do to either agents.

While breaking up is hard to do, from a client’s perspective, agents really appreciate being told it’s over. Even though it’s not good news for them, it will save everyone time and energy in the end, especially if we happen to run into them again - sorta like running into an old boyfriend, it’s awkward.

Here’s to finding that prince or princess.

Cheers,

Julie

The rain is pouring down against the steamy cabin window. Inside the darkening kitchen, Ben and I are busy cleaning and chopping carrots, and making sauce for the cauliflower, our contribution for tonight’s Thanksgiving dinner with our fellow cottagers.

Our neighbours are busy putting last minute touches on their potluck dishes too. As 4 p.m. approaches, I feel a heightened sense of urgency, ‘The food’s not going to be ready in time,’ I think to myself, while the kids keep asking me, “Can we go now, mommy?”

We are all excited. This is our last get together of the season, and it promises to be a doozy. Finally, after slapping on some lipstick and running a comb through my hair, we leave our warm cabin, our arms filled with dishes, bun baskets, paper plates, cutlery, and of course - libations.

We are greeted at the door by a pile of wet shoes, boots and umbrellas. Inside the spacious cabin there are tables set up everywhere. Two for food, and the rest for sitting. Setting our dishes beside the others, I take a quick look around. “We are in for some good eating tonight. Everything looks delicious,” I say to nobody in particular, as I start unwrapping the tin foil from the other bowls and plates.

At the anointed hour, we gather. Trying to sample everything and while not heaping my plate to full proves to be a challenge. While pot lucks can be scary, this one is NOT. I sample one great casserole after another.

Below are the recipes for two dishes that were obvious favourites, unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get all the recipes I wanted. So Jan, if you are reading this and have the turnip casserole, please send it to me. I must confess I didn’t try the desserts, but the apple and rhubarb crisp looked pretty good too.

Thanksgiving Winners:

Lisa’s Barley Casserole

• 2 Tbsp Butter

• 1/2 cup chopped celery

• 1 large onion chopped

• 1/2 pound of mushrooms (or one tin )

• 1 cup pearl barley

• 1 can chicken or beef consume

• 3/4 cup of water

Preparation

Slice the mushroom caps and chop the stems. Heat the butter in a skillet and add the chopped onion. Cook for 3 or 4 minutes and add the mushrooms. Cook another 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the barley and brown it lightly, mixing it well with the onions and mushrooms. Season to taste with salt and pepper and pour into a buttered casserole. Add enough boiling broth to cover the mixture and come 1/2″ above it. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour. This recipe will make enough for 6 people so you may want to double it. It’s also great for vegetarians, just use vegetable consume instead.

Cauliflower with Cheese Sauce

• 3 lb cauliflower (2 small heads), cut into 1 1/2- to 2-inch florets

• 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter

• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

• 1 1/2 cups whole milk

• 6 oz sharp Cheddar, coarsely grated (2 cups)

• 3 Kraft single cheese slices

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Preparation

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Butter a 9 x 13 baking dish.

Cook cauliflower in a 5- to 6-quart pot of boiling salted water until just tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain cauliflower well in a colander and transfer to baking dish.

While cauliflower cooks, melt 2 tablespoons butter in a 3- to 4-quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat and whisk in flour. Cook roux, whisking, 3 minutes. Add milk in a slow stream, whisking, and bring to a boil, whisking frequently. Reduce heat and simmer sauce, whisking occasionally, 8 minutes. Remove from heat and add cheeses, salt, and pepper, whisking until cheese is melted. Pour cheese sauce over cauliflower and stir gently to combine. (I like to add 2 Tbsp of horseradish to the cream sauce for some added zip)

Warm in oven until ready to serve.

So there you have it, some of the evenings winners. The carrots with ginger, that I featured in last Thursday’s blog was not a hit, but it is still one of my favourites.

Cheers,

Julie

It’s 9 a.m. on Saturday morning when Lori Mcfarlane heads off down Horne Lake Cave Road, with a friend’s dog, Angel. Part lab, part dalmation, she and Lori are in search of a bear munching on berries, Lori saw earlier that morning.

They haven’t gone too far when Lori gets an uneasy feeling there is something behind her. She turns around and sees a cougar, crouched low to the ground, advancing towards them. Lori levels herself and tells the cat, “You Get!” The cougar, ignoring her warning continues to advance. Again she says, “You Get!” Angel, sensing danger, twists her body around behind Lori’s leg

Never takes it’s eyes off the dog, the mountain lion keeps coming. Lori notices it’s a rather young cat and appears very thin. Despite the drama taking place around her, Lori pulls out her disposable camera and manages to get three shots of the animal as it advances.

There is no doubt in Lori’s mind, the cougar is stalking the dog. The cat is close enough now, Lori could touch it with her boot. Suddenly, it hunches up, it’s muscles are ready to pounce. Lori quickly unzips her jacket, throws it wide open and screams as loud as she can. This sudden action startles the cougar who screams too, jumps up into the air, and immediately disappears.

The mountain lion is spotted again later that morning further down the lake chasing a neighbors cat along the shore. The conservation authorities are contacted, but the cougar appears to have escaped.

Does a starving cougar lurking near my cabin make me nervous? Yes. This past weekend as we were closing up the cabin, I gotta admit, I was much more aware of my surroundings, especially with the children and our dog.

According to the British Columbia’s Ministry of Environment’s website, cougars are attracted to small children. They are not sure if it is because of their high-pitched voices, small size, or erratic movements that make them difficult to identify as being human.  I personally think it’s because they are easier to attack and will provide less resistance than a 195 pound male.

Lori said the cougar’s scream sounded just like a baby’s.  When asked if she was nervous about the attack, she said she wasn’t, because the animal was so focused on the dog.  These large cat’s are attracted to pets, so it is a good idea to have them on a leash.  Never leave food scraps laying around for your pet as it could attract other animals or prey for the cougar.

It’s also recommended when you are out walking to carry a large stick, if you have children, keep them very close by and under control.  Dog’s will sense a cougar before we will.

If you encounter one, stay calm and talk to it in a confident voice.  Try to make yourself appear as large as possible, and never turn your back on the cat.  Stand your ground, or back away slowly, but do not turn your back on the animal.  If you would like more information on these large cats go to www.gov.bc.ca/wld/documents/cougsf.htm.

I’m kinda glad this incident happened at the end of the season, but it is a good reminder that we share our cabin with some  neighbors, who would be only to happy to have us for their own “happy hour.”

Here’s to safe keeping.

Cheers,

Julie