Too much is never a bad thing...

The other night I baked a Spaghetti Squash to accompany our Sheepshead Fish and Roasted Broccoli dinner.

If you have ever baked a spaghetti squash you know how far one can go.

We had so much left over and I did not want to waste it, so after cleaning up the dishes, I did what I do best GOOGLE!

I found a Sante Fe Spaghetti Squash Casserole.

It sounded good, so I gave it a try last night.

I substituted a few ingredients and added a little bit of shredded cheese to the top (Did this for the husband, he was already upset that Meat was NOT involved in his dinner)

I did hear a scream from the other room, "Smells good in there!"

That always makes me smile, and also makes me think "Hope it tastes as good as it smells!"

I thought it turned out great and I do recommend this recipe for leftover spaghetti squash.

Two lessons here:

1. Try spaghetti squash, it is an awesome pasta substitute and is a Veggie!

2. Don't throw away leftovers, there is always something you can do with them!

Onion and Green Pepper

The ingredients

The Mix

Spaghetti Squash Mixed In

Adding the toppings

Out of the Oven and Half-Eaten

My portion, a little blurry

I found this recipe here

1 medium spaghetti squash
olive oil spray
1/2 cup red onion, diced
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup red or green bell pepper, chopped
1 (14-oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (4 oz.) can chopped green chilies
2/3 cup sweet corn
2/3 cup thawed chopped spinach
1 tsp chili powder, or curry, to taste
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, minced
2 Tbs fresh lime juice
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup bread crumbs (or tortilla chip crumbs)
1/2 cup pine nuts or pecans, if desired

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2. Halve and roast the squash in a 375 degree oven for 50 minutes until fork tender. Cool. Scrape out the squash halves with a fork (in strands) and place the squash in a bowl.

3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

4. Spray a large skillet with the olive oil spray and sauté the onion, chili and red pepper over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the drained beans, green chilies, corn, chopped spinach, and chili powder; heat through 1 minute. Remove from heat and add the cooked squash, cilantro, lime juice, and sea salt. Spoon the squash mixture into a casserole or baking dish sprayed with olive oil cooking spray.

5. Top with bread crumbs and pine nuts.

6. Bake at 350 degrees for twenty to thirty minutes – until the casserole is heated through and bubbling around the edges.

7. Serve with Spanish rice.

Note:: This dish is easily converted to gluten-free: substitute the bread crumbs with gluten-free bread crumbs or corn tortilla chip crumbs.

Servings: 4

My changes:
I used a green pepper, used Walnuts instead of Pecans, and Added cheese for the melt flavor with the Tortilla chips!

Also note it says serves four, more like 15 in my casserole dish! Not sure how we are going to eat this by Thanksgiving.

Happy Dinner,
KHAK

Warrior of Symmetry

My parents recently moved their Florida home to the good 'ol state of South Carolina.

There are many things to discuss regarding this move, but there is one topic in particular.

You see, my Mom is super creative and uses her talents to be a glorified "volunteer decorator".

She could make a living out of it, but chooses to keep it her hobby.

In expressing her love for interior design: she often finds herself a Warrior of Symmetry.

What do I mean by this?

Well, every thing has a companion.

Every lamp has a husband.

Every Vase has a girlfriend.

I mean seriously, I felt like I was in "crazy land" as looked at all the things unpacked.

You see, my Mom saw me taking pictures the other day.

I should have just told her I was taking them for her homeowner's insurance, but I cannot tell a lie.

So I admitted that I was going to blog about this.

At least I told her in advance, right?

Well, she was not happy. And said "you are not going to tell all your friends about this!"

My response, "yes, I am. and I have pictures to prove it.

My Mom's house is a museum.

If you, your husband, or children are not trained don't even bother coming over, because you will break something.

I'm only kidding, but we WILL have to train you once you arrive.

Kidding, again!

Here's my proof that she believes in pairs and is the Warrior of Symmetry.

Please excuse the mess, but really.

This is crazy!











Even two cans of COFFEE! They needed it for all of the unpacking.

She is going to be so mad at me for this!

Are you a Warrior of Symmetry?

Mom, please forgive me. I love you.
KHAK

Made by KHAK

I have been thinking a lot about Christmas gifts and how I am going to pull this off.

You see, this is my all-time favorite time of year!

And I don't want to ruin it!

What I mean is, I don't want to stress out about the funds being low this holiday season.

I love giving, I am a giving person, but I can't be if I don't have any money, right?

Wrong!

I came to my senses last night and came up with a pretty good idea.

I'm thinking if my gifts are homemade, I can give to everyone I want to and still not spend much cash.

Please don't think I'm being cheap, but I have to get creative this year!

What do you all think, are you in interested in a gift "made by KHAK"?

This is not limited to food, drink, and crafts!

Sorry no clothes, I'm not that good!
KHAK

What can you go without?

Ok, so last year about this time our refrigerator decided to take a temporary nap.

We were without a refrigerator for three weeks while waiting for the new one to come in.

Did I mention that it was during the holiday season?

Thank goodness it fell between my Thanksgiving Dinner with Friends and our Roaring 20's New Year's Eve party.

We thankfully had weeks in between to fix this mess.

Our kitchen was a disaster on my birthday and I spent my birthday night putting the kitchen back together.

The plus side of things: I got a DISHWASHER and a new stove, and a new microwave that all match!

Ok ok, so I probably made out in this whole debacle.

However, I said that I would never take having a refrigerator for granted.

We had to throw everything away. I mean everything. Except the freezer stuff that we could put in the big freezer temporarily.

Also, we learned later that it was a $20 part that needed to be fixed on the old fridge, so now we have an "extra" fixed fridge in the shed, which is great for entertaining might I add.

"Beer goes outside, boys!"

I love being able to say that now!

Ok, so now another year has past.

And of course something else had to break.

Isn't sort of your fate, to be fixing and breaking things around the holidays.

Having unexpected repairs is like rule #9 of what we call the adult life, right?

Always expect, the unexpected.

That's my philosophy and I'm sticking to it.

Last night our hot water heater broke and slightly flooded our bedroom.

Not really flooded, but water managed to soak the rugs and even run into the linen closet in our bedroom.

Bad news: we have hardwood floors.

Really bad news: I am OCD and had to clean it all up last night at 10pm.

I cannot possibly go to bed with towels and crap everywhere.

We went to Lowe's with 20 minutes to spare of them closing.

Picked out a new water heater and loaded it up.

This morning it was being fixed and should be completed by the time I get home tonight.

Thank goodness for a handy husband.

I had no idea the lingo the Lowe's employee was telling us last night.

I appreciated his eye contact, but "really I have no idea what you are saying so no disrespect if you ignore me as the wife"

This was my thought as he "Craig" was his name, was telling us about copper coils, etc, etc.

When we got home from Lowe's, the hot water heater was placed in my LIVING ROOM!

Hello, if you have ever seen my living room, it is tiny and has no room for such a large item.

Then I attempted to wash my face with freezing cold water.

That was torture.

And I highly suggest this tactic if you are sleepy and need to stay awake.

The water was so cold on my face, I was in permanent shock.

So dear Mr. Frigidaire, I love you so.

You keep my food cold and I love you for that.

I also love my hot water heater.

No, I am not cheating on you, but if I had to choose.

I'm not sure how you would feel.

A hot shower is pretty much irreplaceable.

Food can wait!

Thanks for understanding,
KHAK

granny

When it comes to sleep time, I have always chosen comfort over style.

This may upset my significant other, but obviously he will get over it.

He likes to call my bedtime undergarments, "granny panties".

It's an ongoing joke and we still laugh about it.

This week however, I had to set the record straight.

I read an article that stated that the MAD MEN craze, has brought back the "granny panties" and they are granny panties no more!

They are sleek, stylish, and hip now.

I told the husband that I was ahead of the curve and he should be so proud.

What do you think?

Sexy and Chic or Ugly and Horrendous?



All, I know is that they don't ride up while you're sleeping and they are in the same place you put them when you wake up!

I want to hear your thoughts,
KHAK

It's a festive dinner

I have been fighting the Christmas Music urge, but can no longer fight the spirit.

What spirit?

The Holiday Spirit!

I am so excited about the Holiday Season this year.

The Fall vegetables and smells were extra perfect this year, so I guess I am now ready for the next season.

I just put on my Christmas Playlist while typing and my first official song of the season is none other than Mariah Carey's "All I want for Christmas"

I could listen to this song on repeat for at least three hours.

Being in the festive mood tonight I decided to roast a butternut squash and bake apples.

We bought about 300 apples at Costco a few weeks ago and I am trying to figure out different ways to consume them.

We really only bought a dozen, but my my 12 apples can go a long way.

I feel like I eat one and three more appear.

Morgan wants to say hello!

She always get stickers on her head!



Starting with the butternut squash.

I bought this last week and have been waiting for the perfect moment to cook this.

Why oh why did I wait?

How yummy.

I did not even get a plate, I simply ate them right off the baking sheet.

So fantastic.

A mix between a sweet potato and Heaven.

Yup, I said it.

100% scrumptious.

To prepare, all I did was cut it up into slices, gut the inside seeds out, put on a baking sheet, and cook for 30 minutes at 400 degrees!


So easy.

While those cooked, I prepared the apples.

Cored and sliced 3 apples, then added other ingredients.
1/4 c. sugar blended with 1/4 tsp. cinnamon (more, if needed)
2 tbsp. lemon juice
(1/4 stick) melted butter

I used a bit too much butter, because the original recipe calls for 6 apples.

Mix all ingredients.

Then cook for about 30 minutes at 425 degrees, stirring the juices every 8-10 minutes.

Easy. Easy.

I am pretty sure if you are friends with Paula Deen you agree that you can never have too much Butta'!



I am loving this playlist.

I have already heard Michael Buble' "Grown-Up Christmas List" and Christina Aguilera is belting it out now to "Merry Christmas Baby"

I am such a nerd, but man I sure have missed this music since January 1.

The house now smells absolutley amazing and I am smiling.

The dogs got a few bites too so they are happy too.

Happy Dogs, Happy House!
KHAK