Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

On Sunday evenings, when I'm planning my week, I almost always look at the weather forecast before I do anything else.  The weather determines my daughter's activity options and inspires what I'll make for meals.  The beginning of this week started with highs near 80 but today rain came in and we had cool fall temps below 60 and all I could think to make was soup.  Well, and pie.  A steamy, hot apple pie.

Sadly, I can't share with you the apple pie recipe, but doesn't it look pretty?  My sister swore me to secrecy and made me promise I would stop giving out our family's recipe.  So sorry! But if you ever want me to make you one, I will.

Here's the soup recipe I found years ago in an old Betty Crocker slow cooker cookbook.  It makes my house smell so good and gets everyone in the mood for a comforting dinner.

Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soap

adapted from a Betty Crocker recipe

1lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs (5 thighs), cut into 1-inch pieces

1/2 cup uncooked wild rice

1/4 cup chopped onions

2 cans condensed cream of potato soup (10 3/4 oz each)

1 can (14 oz) chicken broth w/ roasted garlic 

2 cups frozen sliced carrots 

1 cup half-and-half

Place chicken in a slow cooker.  Mix wild rice, onions, soup, broth, and carrots; pour over chicken.  (if you can't find broth with roasted garlic just add 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder to regular broth).  

Cover and cook on low heat for 6 - 7 hours or until chicken is no longer pink in the center.

Stir in half-and-half.  Cover and cook on high heat 15 - 30 minutes or until hot. 

Note:  Sometimes my slow cooker cooks a little hot and soups become thicker than I like, with the broth evaporating.  If this happens to you reduce the crockpot to warm setting and add a bit more broth.

Warm and Hearty Oatmeal

This was our first really cold morning of the season. The wind is howling and when I took Maggie to preschool it was only 39 degrees.  What's hot and filling, but quick and easy? Oatmeal! Cooking Light's "Rise and Shine Oatmeal" is creamy, a bit sweet and filled with lots of good stuff.

Rise and Shine Oatmeal
Cooking Light 2009 Annual Recipes.  Page 323

• 2 cups low-fat milk
• 2 cups regular oats
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 6 tablespoons sliced almonds, toasted (I buy the kind that come in a bag already toasted)
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar

Bring milk to a boil over medium heat.  Stir in oats; cook for 5 minutes.  Remove from heat; stir in raisins, honey, salt, vanilla, and cinnamon.  Serve with almonds and sugar.  **I added the sugar and just a handful of almonds before serving.

Apple Bites, Pumpkin Bites and Sweet Acorn Squash

I've already discovered some new favorites for fall and IT'S ONLY MID-SEPTEMBER! I hope the whole season continues with sweet new treats, decorating ideas and 'gourd education.'

Gourds: Decorations and Dinner
These look like pumpkins don't they?  They make great decorations for the autumn season, but they're actually acorn squash found at my local farmer's market. And the longer they sit out as table decor the sweeter they'll become.  When you're ready to cook just halve the squash and remove seeds, fill with butter, brown sugar, and spices of choice.  Roast at 350' for 45 minutes or so.

White/Yellow is Celebration Winter Squash; All White is White Ghost Heirloom; The green is Sweet Dumpling, the sweetest.  

Caramel Apples Bites
How cute are these?  My neighbor brought them over for Ladies Night at my house and everyone oohed and awed.  So simple to make.  Using a mellon scoop, create mini apple balls and soak them in lemon water.  Melt caramels (or make your own) and after putting the stick in the apple balls dip them in caramel.  Serve, or you can also add nuts and candies.

Pumpkin Pie Bites
I love finger foods, especially desserts you can pick up and pop in your mouth.  And pie is by far my favorite dessert. So these little guys are pretty much perfect.  You can find the recipe and instructions on Bakerella.

 

Fall Decorations for Odd Pieces

I adore this odd, metal tower antique thing-y that was handed down to me but I struggle with what to do with it.  It often gets transitioned from room to room and currently resides on my covered porch, just off the kitchen.  I decided to use it for candles for the fall and my mom suggested I add a few pumpkins.  I really like the result.  It's classy and cozy -- great for a long girl chats on the porch with hot apple cider and blankets.

Autumn Is My Spring

As soon as the weather forecast shows highs below 80 I become a giddy girl.  Fall is my spring. It's my new year's.  It's my...well, let's just say I was made for fall.  I know many people say they like fall but I loooove this time of year unlike I love anything else.  

On this glorious third straight day of mid-70s temps and sunny skies my little girl and I bounced out of bed and opened the windows.  We baked Pumpkin Spiced Muffins, put on warm clothes and got busy planting our autumn window boxes (photos shown).  Okay, birds weren't singing and there were a few tantrums along the way but for the most part it was a good celebratory morning of the season. If all goes well (and assuming before-mentioned toddler has a good long nap) we'll go to a local orchard to stock up on any Jonathan apples they've picked and make chili for dinner.  Rugged husband and black dog will be bird hunting this weekend while I shop for fall decor -- win, win.

I'll be filing all my favorite new fall decor ideas, recipes, and entertaining tips on Pinterest so follow my fall boards there and let's get to celebrating this glorious time of year!

Long Table Tablescapes

I love having a party and sitting everyone at one long table.  I think it creates a really fun and interesting dining experience.

In early October I hosted a small shower for a friend at my house.  To create a family-style brunch I put three folding tables next to each other and covered them with burlap.  Every guest, including the small children, had a place at the table marked with a box of cookies displaying their name.  The food was set around the table and passed.  Everyone sat there chatting long after the meal was over and enjoying the intimate company.

Here are photos of my simple long table tablescape and some other's I love.

My Table for a Fall Brunch

The shower colors were brown, orange, blue and green.  Dark brown burlap with cream dishes and napkins set the table.  The napkin rings were tissue paper poms in blue and green, and the pumpkins and bright flowers added the orange.

Onesies, hats, mittens and blankets in the shower colors hung on a clothesline.

 More Long Tables

The place tags also served as the favors for the shower.

Small take-out containers contained mini chocolate chip cookies and were tied with a ribbon.

Each guest had their own container with their name on it.

A simple yet sweet item on the menu is seasonal fruit served with a honey-yogurt dip. It's also healthy and a crowd pleaser.

Slice season fruit and place it in individual serving dishes, like a small cocktail glass.

Mix 2 cups vanilla greek yogurt, 1/4 cup honey and a teaspoon cinnamon.  Put a dollop of dip over the fruit and serve.

Easy Potluck Party

It's 8:15pm on a Saturday and I'm sitting in my PJs watching college football, nicely snuggled in for the night.  My house is clean and my daughter's sleeping.  But just an hour ago my house was full with families dining, mingling and celebrating fall.  This is bliss for a lady who likes to entertain.

Easy Potluck Party

My Mom's Group wanted to have a fall party to get our families together so I offered to host a potluck.  We settled on 4:00pm to start since that's after the kids nap times and gets everyone home in time for bedtime.  As the hosts my husband and I provided the main course, a smoked brisket, and a dessert, pumpkin cupcakes (recipe below).  Everyone else brought a side, dessert or drink.  This is the easiest kind of party and the variety of dishes easily provides conversation topics.  Since our kids are too young for organized crafts or games, we simply blew up some balloons and put them on the floor. They were a big hit with the wee ones.  

Since our house was already decorated for fall and Halloween, we didn't do much to get ready for the party.  I just sat out plates, cups and flatware and cleared counter space for everyone's yummy dishes.  Then we relaxed and enjoyed visiting with our friends. 

When all the guests were gone we just had to put away leftovers and take out the trash.  It's like getting two Saturday nights in one -- we hosted a party and had the rest of the evening to relax at home.  I love easy potluck parties!

I love this caddy.  It's perfect for displaying cups, straws, napkins, or cutlery.
Keep a couple sharpies in a caddy so you always have a way to mark cups.

Little signs throughout directed guests to the playroom or the powder rooms.

For additional outside seating provide a basket of picnic blankets.

Bells on the door are fun and let me know when a new guest has arrived.

Yum! Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting and Caramel

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting and Caramel
When hosting a party for large groups I'm all about keeping it simple.  Baking or cooking anything too complicated would only stress me out.  These cupcakes are very easy and only partly homemade.

Start with Martha Stewart's Pumpkin Cupcakes (makes 24).  After the cupcakes have completely cooled pipe cream cheese frosting on to cakes and drizzle with caramel sauce. 

Pumpkin Cupcakes by Martha Stewart
2 Cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon all spice
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 can pumpkin puree

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together, brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, and eggs. Add dry ingredients, and whisk until smooth. Whisk in pumpkin puree.
3. Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about halfway. Bake until tops spring back when touched, and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes, rotating pans once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.

More Fall Decor Inspiration from Main Street, USA

We spent the weekend with my husband's family in rural Missouri. While the boys were duck hunting my sister-in-law and I went on a hunting trip of our own...shopping. She introduced me to the most charming home decor store on Main Street in the small town of Troy, MO. All About Home is traditional furnishings mixed with beautiful seasonal decorations and good ole customer service. It's one of those rare places where the shop owner takes you to her storage rooms to rummage through her glorious stash of great finds. It's got that friendly small town, hometown feel where you could just hangout all day. I love places like this. Shop Keeper, Lori Atkins, is the sweetest! And very current on the latest trends and fabrics in traditional home decor. Tell her what you're looking for and if it's not in the shop she'll try to find it at market or in her next antiquing trip.

Don't you just love finding places like this? I feel so few exist anymore and they are such a treat.

Since it's all about fall right now, here are few inspiring decor ideas I picked up at All About Home.

Tall, long-stemmed vases filled with leaves and miniature pumpkins

How Simple! Gourds atop candle sticks.  

Wrap garland of leaves around a chandelier.
If you have a roof or overhang at your front porch, buy a simple candle chandelier, like this one, and hang above your front entrance.  Use battery powered fake candles instead of real one and decorate with garland.  Very festive!

Gourds stacked inside a metal bird cage.

Miniature pumpkins poured into a lantern.
Add a very tall candle to this and place the pumpkins arounds it for an orange glow.

Trick or Treat sign.  This one came home with me.
I'm going to put it on a black bench on my front porch for Halloween with  a witches hat and pumpkins.