Call me Betty. Betty Crocker, that is!

Call me Betty. Or, Betty Crocker :)

As many past roommates know, I don't cook... or cook very often. If it can't be done in the microwave, or boiled on the stove very quickly, it's just not for me to eat by my own efforts.

Well, to celebrate my new couches, and that I finally have enough supplies in my kitchen TO cook something, I thought I would invite people over for dinner on Sunday! 

This meant I had to spend time thinking about what to make, finding recipes, making a grocery list, buying the food, and then the actual cooking process! Oh my word - so much work! But, it was a success!

And, I just had to celebrate 

and post this for my posterity :)

I was introduced to "Dinner in a Pumpkin" last year by my home teacher, Kaleb. I thought it was the coolest Fall tradition ever, so I have adopted it as my own as well. That was on the menu. Then, just in case my attempts at this failed, I decided to make a pumpkin chili and cornbread! I also made a chocolate pudding pie. (not pictured, but I did take a picture of another dessert I made!)

Because of time constraints, I made the chili on Saturday as well as the cornbread because I knew I could just reheat them before dinner the next day. It was the perfect cooking weather  (overcast, cold, rainy... the kind of weather where you dread going outside). So, I got in the mood by turning a DVR'd "Ellen" on in the background and faced the challenge in the kitchen.  Ellen made me laugh and not think about how much I don't enjoy cooking!

Gutting a pumpkin is not my most favorite thing to do, but I succeeded. I followed the directions to the "T", but the rice and cabbage never cooked in the end and the pumpkin bottom started to burn in the stove so I took it out on time. Now that I think about it, the same thing happened last year when the rice didn't cook. Maybe next year I'll remember and put in rice that's already been cooked! 

 

The chili and the cornbread got good reviews (and I have to say I will def make both again!)... and people didn't say anything negative about the extra "crunch" when they ate the dinner in the pumpkin with the uncooked rice! (I had warned them ahead of time as well :)

But, the evening was a success and now I can rest my desire to cook for another couple of months... or maybe a year! :)

 

 

 Cornbread... so yummy!

 Dinner in a pumpkin & pumpkin chili

This is the yummy dessert I made (but not for the dinner)

Chocolate cake with marshmallows & cherry pie filling

Definitely will make again!