Dare to Share #132

It's Friday night, and you know what that means... 

It is time to Dare to Share... 

Have you been enjoying all the fall activities of October?   Tonight I went to a corn maze with my daughter's scout troop, and had a lot of fun. We have also been busy decorating for Halloween, and making fall treats. Here is some of what we have been up to this week.  

Last weekend I made one of my family's favorite fall treats,  Caramel Apple Crisp Pie. You might want to make two, this pie does not last long in our house. 

On Monday I wrote a sponsored post for Wendy's about their JR Frosty Coupon Books and and how they support the Dave Thomas Adoption Foundation.  They are a win/win.  You get to enjoy a yummy Frosty and help a great cause at the same time. 

I am pretty excited about my Feathered Owl Wall Hanging..  We are decorating with a lot of black this year, and this  is quick, easy and inexpensive craft that looks fits in great with our theme this year. 

Have you seen the Dare to Share Features of the Day this week?  I love this Tulle Halloween Wreath by Overstuffed.  It would go great with my theme this year, and I love the look of tulle. 

If you love chocolate and peanut butter, you will love this Peanut Butter, Chocolate and Twinkie Smooth by Crafts a la Mode.

If you are looking for a warm dinner idea on a chilly night, you might like this Crockpot Potato Soup by 3GLOL. 

My co-host Kim from Kandy Kreations also had some fun posts to share this week.  How cute are these Free Halloween Tin Can Printables. 

Now it is time for this week's party.  You are welcome to link up anything that you would like to share.  If you are chose as the Dare to Share Feature of the Day, you post will be promoted on the blog, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and G+.  

Link up and HAVE FUN! 

   

    An InLinkz Link-up

   

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Crockpot Potato Soup - Feature of the Day

I had a little help picking today's Feature of the Day today.  I asked Kara which post did she think I should feature, and she chose Crockpot Potato Soup by 3GLOL (Three Generations Living Out Loud). I was happy to see her choice was for a meal that we can make on busy winter nights.  With our activities, there are nights when we need to pull out the crock pot. because there is not a lot of time to cook dinner.  Be sure to stop over to 3GLOL to get this yummy recipe that is good for dinner, game day or family get togethers.  Thank you so much Bobbi for linking up to this week's Dare to Share!  

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Feathered Black Owl

I found this felt Owl table mat  in the Dollar Spot area at Target for only $1. I am a little confused as to why it already had a ribbon hanger, if it was designed for the table.  I am glad that it had the ribbon though, because I planned on hanging it up. 

While the felt owl was cute, I felt it needed some embellishing. I already had google eyes, and felt in my craft stash.  I also picked up a bag of black feathers at the craft store.   I then pulled out my glue gun, and attached some of the longer feather to the wings.  

I also added feathers to the tail area, and the ears.  Once the glue had cooled, I trimmed all of the extra glue strands. The last step was to add a  dark grey felt beak, and google eyes.. I tried the beak with yellow felt, but I felt it was much to bright on the black. 

Once he was done,  I was not sure where to hang my feathered friend.  I tried it on a white inside door, and on the dark red front door.   I think it stands out much better against the white.  I was also a little concerned with the owl being out in the elements. The wind was blowing quite a bit today, and even though we have a covered porch, I would not want the owl's feathers to get wet. 

Which door background do you like do you like best? 

  

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Peanut Butter, Chocolate and Twinkie Smoothie

If you love sweet stuff, than you will love this Peanut Butter, Chocolate, and Twinkie smoothie by Crafts a la Mode.  While it may not be good for your diet, it sure does look yummy.  Besides it has peanut butter and Greek yogurt so you can even justify it as a healthy treat. ;)  Be sure to stop over to Crafts a la Mode to get the recipe. Thank you so much Linda for linking up your yummy smoothie to this week's Dare to Share!

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Buy a Wendy's Jr. Frosty Book and Help a Great Cause

I am so excited that the Wendy's® JR. Frosty coupon books are now available through October 31st.  Not only can you get 5 coupons for a FREE JR. Frosty for a $1, but it also helps out a great cause. Ninety cents to every $1 coupon booklet sold will benefit the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption®. Each year the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption® raises over $9 million to connect children waiting in foster care with a family to call their own, and to ensure every child finds a forever home.  

This cause is close to my heart, as I have four nieces and a nephew who were adopted. Three of them were adopted through the foster care system. When their parents were unable to take care of them, my mom and step dad became their foster parents . After a year or two, they were permanently adopted. The girls have thrived after the adoption, and living in a forever home while growing up. One recently got a scholarship, and is currently in a college that she loves.  The other two are honor students who are very involved in school. 

Many other children could thrive as well with the purchase of the coupon book.They would be great to hand out at Halloween, or give as a gift.  There are 100,000 children in foster care who are still waiting to be adopted.   Thanks to Wendy's® consumers, and the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption®, over 4,000 children have found adoptive families.  This year, Wendy's® aims to give $10 million to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption®.  

"Visit your local Wendy’s® to purchase a Jr. Frosty™ Halloween Coupon Book* for $1, which benefits the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption®!

*Coupon book may contain coupons for 5 or 10 free Jr. Frosty™ treats. Prices and participation may vary. Ninety cents to every $1 coupon booklet sold between 9/15/14 and 10/31/14 will benefit the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption®. Coupons valid from 11/1/14 through 2/1/15. ©2014 Oldemark LLC”

     I was selected for this opportunity as a member of  Clever Girls Collective and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

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A Halloween Tulle Wreath - Feature of the Day

Having a dancer in the house, I have always loved the look of tulle.  It is inexpensive, and easy to work with. We have made more than one tutu around here.   Lara from Overstuffed  shared this pretty black crow tulle wreath to this week's party, but also has a really cool black and orange striped wreath in the same post. Be sure to stop over to her blog to see how you can make a tulle wreath of your own.   Thank you so much Lara for linking up your great craft to Dare to Share.

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Caramel Apple Crisp Pie

(This post contains an affiliate link.) 

This weekend, I made one of our favorite fall desserts. This recipe may look a little familiar, I have made something similar before. when I made Apple Crisp Pizza.  The basics of this recipe are the same, but I used a graham cracker pie crust instead of a pizza crust. 

To make this pie you will need: 

3 medium apples 

2/3 cup sugar 

1 tsp cinnamon 

For the apple crisp you will need: 

1/2 cup flour 

1/3 cup brown sugar 

1/3 cup rolled oats 

1 tsp  cinnamon 

1/4 cup butter, softened 

For the topping: 

caramel apple topping 

Mix the  sugar, flour and cinnamon from the first list in a bowl.  Place your sliced apples in the sugar mixture, and coat them by stirring well.  I use this Apple/Peeler/Slicer to prepare my apples. I love it, and use it every year. 

Layer the sugar coated apples in the pie crust. 

Mix together the flour, brown sugar, rolled oats, another tsp of cinnamon, and softened butter to make the crisp, and spoon it on top of the apples. 

Bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for 35 mins.  

Once it comes out of the oven, you will want to add the caramel while it is warm. Depending on how much you like caramel you can either drizzle it on, or spread it over the entire pie. As you can see in the picture, I did the latter.   My family loves this pie, and requests it every year.  I made it this afternoon and it is already almost entirely gone.  Enjoy! 

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Dare to Share #131

It is the first Friday of October already. How can that be?! 

Even though the year is flying by, we can still have a party..

so come join that fun, it is time to Dare to Share!  

This week was pretty busy. It was homecoming week, and the kids had fun dressing up for spirit week at their schools.  I was busy making seasonal treats.  

Earlier in the week, I shared a recipe for Super Easy Pumpkin Cookies, and did a review of the Bake It Fun Non Stick Silicon Baking Mat.. 

I also made the family Apple Banana Bread with the fresh apples that we recently picked. 

This weekend I have plans on finishing several craft projects and making another recipe or two.  

One thing that I love about this time of year, is all the fun  Halloween crafts.  I also LOVE candy.   So how could I not feature of a craft made from candy.    This DIY Candy Corn Wreath is made by Carrie Elle.

It has been eight years since we have hosted a Halloween party.  When we have one again, I definitely want to try to make Spooky Potions and Lotions like The Crafty Lumberjacks

This Easy DIY Fall Wreath by Luv A Bargain is very colorful and will be pretty in your decor all the way until Thanksgiving! 

My co-host Kim from Kandy Kreations shared how she made her own Denver Bronco Decorative plate.  If you are not a Bronco fan, you might still be able to use her technique to make a plate for your own favorite team.  

Now it is time for this week's party.  You can link up anything that you would like to share.  If you are chosen as a Dare to Share Feature of the day, your post will be promoted on the blog, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and G+

Now link up and HAVE FUN! 

   

    An InLinkz Link-up

   

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Easy DIY Fall Wreath - Feature of the Day

A wreath like this at the store would easily cost $30 or more.  What if I told your that Luv a Bargain's 11 year old daughter made it in less than 15 minutes. I love all the fall colors and it really is a lot easier to make than you might think.  I see a trip to the craft store this weekend.   Thank you so much Sherri (and your daughter)  for linking up this great craft to Dare to Share!

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Apple Banana Bread

Recently my youngest daughter and I got the chance to go apple picking. We live in a state that is known for it's apples, and we have three apple orchards within 20 minutes of our house. We have gone to the same orchard for the last 11 years, and it has become a family tradition.  

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Another tradition in our house is making banana bread.  My family loves it, and we try to have it often.  When we have other fruits in the house, we will sometimes try some new combinations.  Since we had a big bowl of apples, I thought it would be nice to try a new version..  Apple Banana Bread 

In each of the recipes I use the same basic banana bread recipe 

 1 3/4 cup flour 

    2/3 cup sugar

 2 tsp baking powder 

1/2 tsp baking soda 

1/4 tsp salt 

2-3 ripe bananas 

1/2 cup softened margarine

2 Tbsp milk 

2 Eggs 

I mix all of the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl first, and then add the wet ingredients. This time I added a fresh apple cut into small pieces.  

Mix the batter well, and then put in a loaf pan (or mini loaf and cupcake pan) sprayed with cooking spray.    Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 55-60 minutes. 

Yum! The bread came out this gorgeous light brown color. I allowed it to cool for a little bit, and then cut a few slices.  This loaf will be gone by tomorrow.  Banana bread does not last long in our house.  

A little bit of butter on a warm piece of bread tastes so good!   

If you like this recipe, you will might like some of our other versions of this bread. 

Blueberry Banana Bread

Chocolate Strawberry Muffins

Strawberry Bread

Fruit Lovers Muffins

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How to Make Spooky Bottles - Feature of the Day

Are you having a Halloween party this year?   Decorating for a Halloween party can be a lot of fun, because you can really use your imagination.  One way to create a spooky feel is to add some potion and lotion bottles like the Crafty Lumberjacks.  They shared what they did to recycled jars and bottles to make them look really old and scary.  Stop on over and see what they did.   Thanks so much guys for linking up your great crafts to Dare to Share!

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DIY Candy Corn Wreath

October starts this week, which means for many, the month of candy!  I love candy, so I am pretty excited about it.   One way to use that Halloween candy is to turn it into a fun decoration like this DIY Candy Corn Wreath by Carrie Elle.  It is not that hard to make, unless you eat all the candy instead of crafting with it.  (which I know I would do!)  Thank you so much Carrie for linking up your super cute wreath to Dare to Share!

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Easy Pumpkin Cookies and Bake It Fun Mat Review

                       

Disclosure:  I was sent a Bake It Fun Mat to review.  All opinions in this review are 100% mine. 

I love baking this time of year with all of the flavors of fall like pumpkin and apple.  I heard about this easy pumpkin cookie recipe a few years ago while at a church event.  I was amazed at how super simple it was, and knew I needed to try it at home. 

When I say this recipe is easy, I really mean it... all you need is a box of yellow cake mix, and a  small can of pumpkin.  You could also use a spice cake instead of the yellow cake, I am just not a huge spice cake fan. 

Add the can of pumpkin to the cake mix, and blend thoroughly. 

 

Now that the batter was ready, it was time to bring out my Bake It Fun non-stick silicone baking mat. I had not tried one before, so I was excited to see what it would do.  

After washing the mat before use as the instructions stated, I laid the mat on a large baking tray. The mat was just slightly bigger than the tray I had planned to use, so I switched to one without high sides. Right away I noticed that were several fun features on this mat.  There were 12 circles evenly spaced for proper cookie placement.  I tend to put my cookies a bit too close, and have had them melt together many times in the past. 

Another feature I noticed was the rulers on all four sides of the mat.  If you did not want to use  the pre-measured circles, you can still place your batter 2 inches apart just by following the rulers. 

I decided to try the pre-measured circles.  I scooped out some of the pumpkin batter and placed it  onto the mat.  I tend to make my cookies a bit on the big side. .  I really need to get a cookie scoop for my even measuring.  I baked them in a preheated 350 degree oven, for 12-15 minutes. Since my cookies were a big larger and thicker, they needed the few extra minutes. When it was time to remove the finish cookies, I was very happy to see that they came right off the mat with no sticking at all. 

Once I took them out of the oven, I coated them with some cinnamon sugar. These cookies also taste good rolled in powdered sugar as well.  

Some more facts you may want to know about the Bake It Fun Non Stick Silicone Baking Mat: 

It is oven, microwave, and freezer safe (-40F to 450F) 

Cooking time may be slightly shorter 

100% BPA free 

fiberglass coated with best food grade silicone

 certified FDA and LFGB approved 

easy to wash and store

there are online recipes at BakeItFun.com

I really like the Bake It Fun mat, and plan on using it again and again, especially now with the holiday baking season coming up before we know it.    

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

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