Ree Drummond!

On October 29th, Ree Drummond's new book "The Pioneer Woman Cooks a Year of Holidays" was released.  My daughter and I were lucky enough to be able to meet the wonderful Pioneer Woman in the flesh at her book signing that night.

First and foremost, I cannot tell you how exciting it was to meet Ree Drummond.  She is just as sweet and kind in person as she seems on the Foodnetwork.  She is one person who impressed me as being very genuine.  She started her book signing at Barnes and Noble with speaking about her life on the ranch.  Unfortunately, I had an appointment and was unable to see her speaking.  Her start time was 6:00pm and I did not show up until about 6:45.  By that point she had finished speaking and had started signing books.  If I had purchased the book earlier, I would have received a wrist band and would have been able to take advantage of the preferred seating inside the room.  Since I knew I would not be able to attend on time, I took a chance and just showed up.  As it turned out, I ended up at the end of the line for the last row of seats.  I applaud Barnes and Noble for keeping everything orderly as they directed each row of seats up to Ree for signature.  The Barnes and Noble staff assured us that even if they were closing, that Ree Drummond wanted to make sure she had the chance to meet everyone.  Store closed at 10pm, we finally reached Ree at 10:15pm.  Even with a 3 hour wait, it was sooooo worth it!  The Delightful Ms. Ree spent time with each and every person that came to see her; she held every baby, took pictures and signed the new book or any other of her cookbooks.  She even signed my daughter’s tablet! We met some very nice people while we waited so it ended up to be an evening enjoyed by all. 

Now about the book; it is just stunning.  All the pictures of the ranch life and Ree's family, which she takes herself, are just breathtaking. This is the third book that Ree has released and it does not disappoint.  This book, just like her other books, is easy to follow with clear pictures of various steps in the cooking process.  I love the way she puts her thoughts to the pages of each section of the book.  The colors are bright and the book will be easy to pick out from my bookshelf.   There are 140 of  Ree's recipes which are simple and elegant.  They are great for someone who is just starting to learn how to cook or for the experienced cook and entertainer.   No fussy, special ingredients are necessary; they are all accessible in your local grocery store.   Even though the recipes are sectioned into various holidays, they are really great for anytime during the year.  This book can be left out as a coffee table book for all to enjoy.

Thank you Ree for a wonderful evening and one of the most beautiful cookbooks I have ever seen.

Apple Picking in Autumn

Photo Courtesy of Samantha Meyers

Autumn, what are the season's favorites that come to mind?  Beautiful colors on the trees. Ahh it’s just breathtaking.   Then there is the brisk air which is refreshing after the warm humid weather of summer.  The last bounty of the summer harvest; tomatoes, squash and delicate basil are enjoyed before they have all but fallen back to sleep until Mother Nature wakes again in the spring. Most of all, there is the fun and frolic of apple picking.

My daughter enjoys apple picking with her friends.  This year, she wanted to invite a small group of friends and have them back at the house for a party afterwards to enjoy their fruity treasures.

She gathered about four of her closest friends from school; most had never been apple picking before.  They piled into our van and I drove them to the local orchard for their apple mission. They are old enough that I can just let them loose on the poor souls of the orchard, this way they were be able to enjoy their independence without adults hovering over them.  I was surprised that they were finished in about an hour.  A romp in the orchard was an activity enjoyed by all.

Since DD wanted to have all her girls back at the house for a bite.  I decided I was going to make it easy on myself and make a Chili/Salad Bar.  Everything was done the night before, chopping, cutting and salad dressing making. Yes, DD and I made four homemade salad dressings.  If you decide to do a salad bar but salad dressing making is not for you, just use good quality bottled dressings. The next day all I had to do was put the ingredients for the chili in the slow cooker in the morning, turn it on and just walk away.  When we got back, the aroma of chili spices permeated all through the house.  Now all that was left was to put out the salad and all the toppings and let the eating commence.  All the “fix'ins” were great for the chili, the salad, if they wanted to make a taco salad or on their own.

I cannot take all the credit for the idea.  It was an inspiration from the Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond that sparked this wonderful idea.  I think I will be doing this from now on.  It was easy to prepare and to execute.  I was able to sit back and relax while the girls had a great time picking different toppings and going back for more.  Any leftovers from the salad bar were “re-purposed” for during the week's dinner and lunches.  Maybe next time, I’ll expand and include desert.  Ice Cream sundae bar, who knows?
The picture below shows the spread that we all enjoyed.  

Salad/Chili Bar