Homemade Pumpkin Bread

Homemade Pumpkin Bread made from Homemade Pumpkin Bread Mix

This homemade pumpkin bread mix is based and inspired by a recipe I found in a magazine called “THE GOOD OLD DAYS” November/December 2019 Issue.

HOMEMADE PUMPKIN BREAD MIX This moist quick bread is ideal for Thanksgiving or Christmas. Dust with confectioner’s sugar before serving. This mix can be stored or given. Makes: enough for 2 large loaves or 8 mini loaves

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups flour

2 tsps. Baking Soda

2 tsps. cinnamon

2 tsps. grated nutmeg

1/2 tsp. ground cloves

1/4 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 tsp. allspice

Whisk everything in a large mixing bowl.

This following recipe uses the HOMEMADE PUMPKIN BREAD MIX as an ingredient.

HOMEMADE PUMPKIN BREAD Preheat: 350 degrees farheinheit, Baking time: 50-60 minutes, Yields: 2 9x5x3 in loaves or 8 mini loaves

1 HOMEMADE PUMPKIN BREAD MIX

1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin puree

4 large eggs

1 cup salted butter, melted and cooled*

2/3 cup water

2 cups white sugar

1 cup light brown sugar

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farheinheit. Grease 2 9x5x3-inch loaf pans or 8 mini loave pans with cooking (Pam baking) spray or grease and then flour. (With Pam baking spray there is no need to flour as it already contains flour.)

In a medium bowl, place the mix. set aside.

In a large bowl, place the pumpkin puree, eggs, butter, water and both sugars. Using an electric mixer on low speed, gradually add dry mix, mixing just until combined. do not overmix.

Divide the batter evenly between all of the prepared pans. bake for 50-60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. cool in the pans on wire racks for 10 minutes before running a knife around the edge to remove from the pans. This bread freezes well.

*If Salted Butter is not available, use 1 1/2 tsps. salt.

Place bread in clear cellophane bags. Use the enclosed cellophane bag twist ties.

Now you are ready to give gifts.


Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer Craft Glass Ornaments

Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer Ornaments picture taken by Karen Loraine

When I saw a picture of glass ball ornaments of the words Rudolph and the other reindeer names, I had to make these.

Supplies needed for 1 Rudolph ornament:

1 clear glass ball

2 googlie eyes

1 red pom-pom

1 brown or gold pipe cleaner

Shredded brown construction paper (shredded with a regular paper shredder)

Glue (Sobo is a better craft glue. It dries clear and never yellow with age)

paintbrush

paper plate or newspaper

Directions:

1.) Set up your workspace area with the supplies above.

2.) Place some glue on the paper plate or newspaper.

3.) Take the metal pieces of the ornament and stuff the ornament with enough shredded construction paper, but do not overcrowd the paper (we mean it to show). Place the metal pieces back on the ornament.

4.) Dip the paintbrush in the glue and paint the back of each eye. Place both eyes onto the glass ball.

5.) Dip the red pom-pom into the glue and place below (right between) the eyes. This becomes the nose.

6.) Dip the paintbrush back into the glue and paint the metal cover (not the hanger) and the immediate surrounding area with the glue. Find the middle of the pipe cleaner and place it dead center against the metal, touch the glass and the metal at the same time. Wrap the pipe cleaner around the metal piece one time and twist the pipe cleaner in the back. The pipe cleaner is the antlers.

Hope you all enjoy the Holiday season!

TEAL PUMPKIN PROJECT

by, Karen Loraine

Teal pumpkin project

Foodallergy.org is a website that promotes the TEAL PUMPKIN PROJECT, a safer way for parents with children, who have food allergies, to know that a particular house is a safe place for their child to trick-or-treat on Halloween.

For all the rules of the TEAL PUMPKIN PROJECT, go to foodallergy.org.

The Teal pumpkin on your front stoop, seen from the street, signifies that the only items available to the tricker-treaters at your house are non-food items.

The following project will show you one way of painting a pumpkin teal.

Supplies needed:

1 pumpkin, large enough to view from the street

1 paint brush

blue acrylic paint

green acrylic paint

white acrylic paint

1 palette

newspaper

paper towels

1 cup of water

Instructions:

  1. Setup your workspace area to your liking.
  2. Mix 5 parts blue paint and 5 parts green paint to create the teal color. Mix in a little white paint at a time to create the teal shade of your choice.
  3. Use the paintbrush to brush strokes of paint all over the pumpkin except where the pumpkin touches the newspaper.
  4. Let the paint on the pumpkin dry before dabbing wet paint on the areas of thin paint.
  5. Depending on the size of the pumpkin, words could be painted as well. For example: we are allergy friendly or non-food treats here.
  6. Let the pumpkin dry completely.
  7. Set the pumpkin out on the front stoop in a place where the pumpkin could be viewed from the street.
  8. Get ready for trick-or-treaters.

Getting ready for Trick-or-Treaters:

There are many items to choose from that could be handed out at Halloween. Here are just a few ideas of items that could be handed out to all trick-or-treaters:

unsharpened pencils,

erasers,

glow sticks,

glow bracelets,

or little trinket goodie bags.

All of these items could become “treats” for Halloween. What other non-food items could you think of handing out?

Have a happy and safe Halloween!

Introduction

My name is Karen Loraine, owner of craftsasgifts.com. The purpose of Crafts As Gifts is to help promote and encourage new ideas of how to make gifts with what is already at home. This includes: gardening, crafts, and food recipes.

Why do this?

Here are some reasons why this blog is here:

1.) Teach the young and the elderly alike that, whatever your skill sets or expertise may be, gifts could be made in the home and not have to spend money on gas in addition to buying gifts.

2.) Quality control of ingredients and craft supplies will be controlled by the person who makes the homemade gifts. For example: having a garden means that the quality and quantity of herbs, fruits, vegetables and flowers are under your control. What you put in your garden is what comes out of your garden. If you have an organic garden plants that grew from heirloom seeds, then organic heirloom garden plants are going to come out of that garden.

3.) Awareness of just how versatile of the kitchen and garden items is not what it used to be. For example: many know that lavender could be used in some crafts like wreaths, scent homemade carpet fresheners, and homemade air fresheners. However, awareness of the food items the lavender flowers could be used as an ingredient in has gone down (Lavender Cookies).

I hope to connect with crafters and non-crafters alike, regardless of age. This includes the home cook (who does not mind doing the work and save money at the same time), the crafter (who likes to try out new skills) and the gardener (who knows that the plants can be more than just pretty, however, does not realize just how versatile the usage of the plants are.)

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