Lovin' From the Oven

Pumpkin Pie French Toast

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It’s November!! I went to Target and was so excited when I saw that they already had three rows of Christmas items out. Is it too early for Christmas? Never.

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But since I can’t do Christmas recipes year round (I’d look like a lunatic!), I’ve decided to celebrate each holiday while we’re in it. What do I think of when I think of November? Pumpkin. Lots and lots of pumpkin. Pumpkin pie, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin lattes, pumpkin bundt cake…

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For this month, I’ll be doing a week’s worth of pumpkin recipes. That’s right… seven whole pumpkin recipes coming at ya. Here’s number one!

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I decided to use a french sliced bread for this recipe, but you can use what you have on hand. The thicker the bread, the better. I also like using french bread because I can make more manageable portions of food to eat. I’m not forced to eat huge brioche slices of bread– Two pieces and I’m comfortable, not stuffed.

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You can have pumpkin for every meal if you wanted to. I would if my DB didn’t hate it so much.

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I don’t understand how anyone can hate pumpkin. Just look at it! It warms my belly just thinking of it.

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Add a generous dollop of whipped cream, some syrup, and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

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Now you can call it breakfast.

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Recipe adapted from Closet Cooking

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Pumpkin Pie French Toast

Ingredients

  • 2 eggs
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 8 slices of bread
  • 2 tablespoons butter

Directions

  1. Mix all the ingredients together except for the bread and butter in a low flat bowl for easy dipping.
  2. Melt a little bit of the butter in a pan over medium heat.
  3. Evenly soak the bread into the egg mixture on both sides and grill in a pan until lightly golden brown, about 2-3 minutes per side. Add more butter as needed before grilling your next piece.
https://lovintheoven.com/pumpkin-pie-french-toast/

Fiesta Quinoa Bake

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Oops, I haven’t blogged in a week. I’ve been busy reading 50 Shades of Grey and seeing what the hype was all about. After I read that, my book club that I review for decided to send me Diary of a Submissive and the first two books of the Crossfire series. Hmm… is my book club trying to tell me something?

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I do the majority of my reading on the airplane and usually finish a book or two on a trip. Yes, I brought all these books with me on the plane while working. Yes, there were quite a few nosy passengers that just had to know what I was reading. No shame here! As I showed them the cover and gave them a brief rundown, the passengers immediately regretted asking me that question and paced away awkwardly. Hah! That’ll teach ’em.

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Usually when I finish my books, I give them to my mom to read. I had Diary of a Submissive in my hand and quickly shoved it into my bag when my mom asked what books I had for her when we met up. Our conversation went something like this:

Me: “Oh… it’s nothing. This book isn’t for your eyes. It’s not your type of book. I just finished reading it for my book club. It’s kind of like the whole 50 Shades of Grey, but in real life.”
Mom: “50 Shades of Grey? I loved that book!”
Me: “Wait….. what? You read 50 Shades of Grey?!”
Mom: “Yes, I read all three of them in a week. The story is so good!”

Needless to say, I handed over Diary of a Submissive to my mother.

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Parents can be so surprising at times. You think you know them, and then they go and throw you a curveball. But in all seriousness, I love that I can share things like that with my mom. I love that I’ve reached a certain age where I have so much more appreciation and understanding in my life for everything that my parents do, have done, and will do.

They may have been the “bad guys” when I was little, but looking back on it now, I realize I have the greatest parents in the world. Everything they did was to benefit their children and our family, and I couldn’t have asked for a better upraising.

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Whoa, things got a bit sentimental there. I promise I don’t do that often. I just wanted to kick off November with something that I’m thankful for. Speaking of November, I’ll be doing a week of strictly pumpkin recipes next week! Come back for some Thanksgiving recipes.

Now to the quinoa. It kind of became a fad out of nowhere and it took me a while to jump on the bandwagon. I bought a bag from Target on a whim and found a recipe to make with it. I brought this dish along for a picnic and although it’s fairly simple, people loved it. Not only that, the dish itself looks beautiful with all the bright colors from the vegetables. Recipe from Everyday Vegan Girl.

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Fiesta Quinoa Bake

Ingredients

  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 sweet pepper (any color), diced
  • 1 cup quinoa
  • 1 cup black beans
  • 1 cup corn
  • 1 can diced fire roasted tomatoes
  • 2 cups vegetable broth
  • 1 tsp chili powder
  • 1/4 cup cilantro (optional)

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 375℉.
  2. In a pan over medium heat, cook the onions, garlic and pepper for 5-7 minutes.
  3. Mix the rest of the ingredients with the sautéed vegetables and pour into an oven safe dish. (I used a 9x9 dish and it overflowed a bit, so use one bigger!)
  4. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour. Garnish with cilantro.
https://lovintheoven.com/fiesta-quinoa-bake/

Crockpot Honey Chicken

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On my flight the other day, I had two active military men sitting in main cabin. One was in full uniform and the other was wearing a military t-shirt. We got everyone boarded pretty quickly, and we still had four open seats in first class.

One of the men sitting in first class asked us if we could move the two military men from main cabin to first class and he’d pay for their upgrade fee to thank them for their service. I just about died from the sweetness. There are still good people out in the world!

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When we went to go tell the military men that another passenger wanted to upgrade them to first class, you can tell by their immediate reaction that they were shocked. We even had to repeat it twice before it really hit them. They were so grateful and thankful for the random act of kindness that it made me really appreciate the goodness in the world. As cheesy as that may sound, I will admit I even got a little teary eyed when it happened.
Ah yes, another crockpot recipe for me. Can I be a lazier cook? I blame it on my in-the-middle-of-the-day work schedule. I normally don’t get off work until 6PM, meaning that leaves about five minutes for me to make and get dinner ready from the time I get home. Crockpots make my life so. much. easier. I get to cook while being away from home! Low maintenance, carefree recipes are my achilles heel. This recipe comes from Table for Two Blog and tastes great over white rice.
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Crockpot Honey Chicken

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. boneless chicken breasts
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 cup of honey
  • 1/2 cup of low sodium soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup ketchup
  • 2 tbsp. vegetable oil
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup diced onion
  • 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
  • Cornstarch

Directions

  1. Place the chicken breasts into the bottom of the crockpot. Sprinkle salt and pepper on top.
  2. In a separate bowl, mix together the honey, soy sauce, ketchup, oil, garlic, onion, and red pepper flakes. Evenly pour over the chicken in the crockpot.
  3. Cook on low for 3-4 hours or high for 1 1/2-2 1/2 hours. When done, remove chicken and cut into chunks. Before putting the chicken back, whisk the cornstarch with some water and whisk it into the sauce to thicken it up. Put the chicken back in and evenly coat with the sauce.
https://lovintheoven.com/crockpot-honey-chicken/

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