Thanskgiving

Is anyone else completely wiped from the holiday weekend? This week has been a little rough getting back into the swing of things after our long weekend. We spent Thanksgiving with Michael's family and had such a fun time! We packed in a lot of activity, and a lot of eating. Thursday, instead of doing the usual Thanksgiving traditions, Michael's parents took us hiking to Crowders Mountain. It felt so great to be in the mountains again! Down here in the South the leaves are still falling, so it was a gorgeous hike and we had such a relaxing day taking it easy. While the rest of the family was celebrating with in-laws, the four of us ate our Thanksgiving dinner at McCormick and Schmick's, which was quite delicious and took zero time in the kitchen. It was the most relaxing Thanksgiving ever.

Friday was our day with the whole family, so that's when the big meal commenced! There was turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, cornbread casserole, and Michael's famous mashed potatoes. And when our full bellies allowed us, we topped it off with apple pie, Tarheel pie, and pumpkin cheesecake. All of it was amazing!

The rest of the weekend we played with our niece and nephews, celebrated birthdays, and soaked up our time with family. I'm so thankful for long holiday weekends! Especially Thanksgiving, because when it's over it's CHRISTMAS SEASON!

Lately

I saw this idea on Annie's blog Turning Pages last week, and thought I'd try it out (AKA I'm totally copying her). Here's what I've been up to lately.

Listening... to Taylor Swift's new album Red. Seriously love it. Particularly songs "I knew you were trouble" and "The Last Time." Also, Christmas music. Yep, it's started!

Watching... Homeland!! SO GOOD. And of course Modern Family, Parks & Rec, and The Office.

Eating... Cheeseburger Pie for dinner last night and lunch today. Mmm mm good. Also apple crisp pie and apple muffins.

Drinking... spiked apple cider. Yes, I'm kind of on an apple kick!

Pining... after Young House Love's new book. I'm dying to browse through all those DIY projects!

Traveling... Claytor Lake in Virginia for a girls weekend a few weeks ago, Charlottesville, VA to go apple picking, Greenville, SC for my grandpa's 80th birthday party, and soon we're off to Charlotte, NC for Thanksgiving!

Wearing... lots of scarves and sweaters, gray skinnies, and Essie's "She's Pampered" on my fingernails (which is more of a deep red than the website shows).

Needing... new running shoes. I really need to go get an evaluation done at a running store to find out the best shoe for me. I have never done this, and since I've been running consistently lately, I think it's time!

Inspired...  by this amazing glitter garland. I can't wait to do something similar for my Christmas decor, once I get it all out after Thanksgiving.

Feeling... thankful and excited about my new promotion at work. It kind of just fell into my lap and I'm so grateful to be trying something new and to have more responsibility. Plus, a raise ain't bad either! I'll be starting after Thanksgiving, and I can't wait.

Enjoying... adulthood. I feel like I'm finally where I'm supposed to be and I'm loving this stage of life. I'm content and happy where I am, and that's a glorious feeling.


* image via Fine Art by Di, who happens to be my mother-in-law!

Apple Crisp Pie

Of course when you go to an apple orchard and come home with two large bags of apples, you must make lots of apple desserts! Every year for Thanksgiving (and sometimes Christmas too), my sister makes a traditional apple pie with a flaky crust topping, and it's amazing. But I was craving a crispy crumbly topping instead, so I tried this recipe from Jen at Beantown Baker. It was just what I was hoping for! It is packed with apples, sugar, and spices, and the crumble topping is perfection. Mine had more liquid than the one pictured Jen made. And I probably would use a deep dish pie pan if you had one. I didn't, so I used a 9-inch pan and that worked fine!

This pie was incredible. You should totally make it if you've got a bunch of apples lying around. And if you don't, just go buy some at the grocery store because this pie is calling your name.

Apple Crisp Pie

Filling:
6 c apple chunks (I used 3 Pink Ladies and 3 Fujis)
1/2 c brown sugar
2 tbsp flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp lemon juice

Topping:
1 1/4 c four
1/2 c brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 c butter, melted

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Prepare dry filling ingredients in a large bowl, set aside. Core, peel, and slice apples (I used an apple/peeler/corer/slicer which made this normally long process a dream!). Transfer into large bowl with dry ingredients. Top off with vanilla and lemon juice. Toss to coat apples well. Set aside for 10-15 minutes while you prep the dough.

Fit your pie crust into a pie plate (I used a store bought crust). Fill pie crust with prepared apple filling.

In a medium bowl, combine the dry topping ingredients. Pour cooled melted butter into bowl. Toss and cut until small to medium sized chunks form. Break up large chunks as needed. Using a spoon, sprinkle crumb topping over entire pie.

Cover pie loosely with foil. Bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 375 and continue baking for an additional 35 minutes. Remove foil for a few minutes at the end to get the topping more crispy if you prefer. Cool and enjoy!

source: Beantown Baker guest post on Nutmeg Nanny