Morning Starter

I'm veering off of summer today, because I have a headache and just feel like sitting quietly with a relaxing treat, so thought I'd share that with you.

'Tis the season of Pumpkin Spice everything (except that a lot of it includes no pumpkin at all), but especially in the coffee-shop-addicted Pacific Northwest, the Pumpkin Spice Latte and it's variation, the Pumpkin Spice Frappe, are big news when they're first available.  We bought one of the latter from our local shop, but being used to homemade concoctions with more nutrition, we found them to be too sweet.  --Also, of course, too expensive to enjoy very often.

Last year, I shared a homemade version of the hot, pumpkin spice latte.  This is our homemade, whole-foods variation of the cold, blended drink.  I started by using a powdered frappe mix, but when we ran out of that, made it using ingredients we normally have on hand instead, which means I'm more in control of what goes in, anyway.

Confession:  Sometimes this is my breakfast!

Pumpkin-Spinach Spiced Frappe

Yield: two 20-ounce servings 

Add to blender:

• 1 large handful fresh spinach leaves (approx 1 1/2 to 2 cups)
• 1/2 - 3/4 c canned pumpkin
• 18 ice cubes (ours are made by our freezer...18 fills about 2 1/2 cups)
• 2 c liquid (* see options below)
• 1/2 to 3/4 scoop vanilla or chocolate protein powder (This could be optional, but I add this or vanilla yogurt to make the smoothie into more of a balanced snack/small meal.  We use Pure Protein 100 % Whey Protein, Rich Chocolate, because we prefer the whey protein source, and it doesn't have artificial sweetener.  If you leave this out, you may need more sweetener.)
• 2 good shakes of ground cinnamon (~1/4 teaspoon)
• 2 small dashes of ground ginger (~1/8 teaspoon)
• 1 tiny dash of ground cloves
• Sweetener, to taste

This is sometimes our
take-along-on-the-long-ride-to-Grandpa's treat

Blend until smooth, adding more liquid, if necessary, to reach desired consistency.  Of course, adjust the spices to your particular taste, too.

Poor into 2 large cups.  Prince CuddleBunny likes to add a straw.  ;-)  The spinach hides in flavor, but adds a green tinge to the drink, which, overall, tastes pretty much like pumpkin pie in a cup!  Enjoy.



*Liquid combinations I've used to equal 2 cups:

• 3/4 cup cold espresso or coffee, 3/4 cup vanilla almond or soy milk, 1/2 cup canned coconut milk
• 1 1/4 cup vanilla almond or soy milk, 1/4 cup half and half or whipping cream, plus 2 teaspoons instant espresso powder (which is optional, especially for kiddos)
• 1/2 cup vanilla Greek yogurt, 1+ cup soy or almond milk, 1/ 2 cup cold coffee (or milk equivalent for caffeine-free)  

Write31days.com

I'm, honestly, have mixed emotions about using and recommending protein powder, even though I'm pretty picky about which I use.  This article just came to my attention that lists real-food options that will add protein to smoothies, without the use of processed powders, so I thought I'd offer the link.

New Family Fave...SO Easy!

Thanks to Slow Cooker Root Beer Pulled Pork Sandwiches  posted on Six Sisters' Stuff, we have a new addition to the list of favorite meals around here.  The family has requested it be a weekly dinner-- with plenty of leftovers for impromptu meals and snacks at other times.

With prior fails, I am still wary of Crock-Pot recipes.  But recent successes have made me braver at trying new ones.  

No Crock-Pot?  No worries.  See note at the end of this post.

This recipe was just too intriguing --with "Root Beer" in the title (yum!)-- and too easy --with only 3 ingredients and relatively no prep-- to pass up.

I threw 2 pork sirloin tip roasts (from Costco @ $1.99/pound), totaling just over 4 pounds, into my Crock-Pot.  I then poured in 12 ounces of root beer, and turned the crockpot to low for 7 or 8 hours.





After that time, following the directions given by Six Sisters, I removed the pork (for the most part, in pieces, because it was so well cooked and tender), and discarded the root beer.  

I shredded the pork and returned it to the now empty Crock-Pot  then stirred in 18 ounces of our favorite (**no-high-fructose-corn-syrup) barbecue sauce, Stubb's Sweet Heat Bar-B-Q Sauce.   It seemed a little drier than I wanted, so I changed the original recipe here, by adding approximately 1/2 cup of water to the empty bottle to swirl out any remaining sauce, and adding all to the pork mixture.


Inspired by the new Beef Brisket Sandwich at Costco, I served this on a toasted (homemade) bun spread with mayo, plus shredded cabbage and carrot mixture. (Prepared cole slaw, as served on the Beef Brisket Sandwich, would work, too.)  This adds a fresh and crisp element to the sandwich, as well as being a good way to sneak in some healthy veggies.

I am not a huge pork fan, nor a big fan of barbecue sauce. I figured it would be OK for my barbecue-sauce-loving family, even if I chose to make it only for nights I wasn't going to be able to be home for dinner.  As it turns out, I don't have to save this for nights I'm away.  I love it, too!!  --Better yet, it makes for a decent meal to take my dad, and he, who rarely comments about what I serve him, said, "You sure make a dandy burger!"  :-D



*Note:
If you don't have a Crock-Pot, you can still make this recipe.  I had 4 roasts I needed to cook in one day, and wanted some pork mixture to freeze for quick meals when needed by athletes and those who work during dinner hours.  So I put 2 of the roasts in the Crock-Pot  and the remaining 2, with root beer, into my 6-quart porcelain lined cast iron pot, put on the lid, and did the slow cooking in the oven at 275 degrees for the same 7 to 8 hour span.  (Same method I used for Beer-Onion Soup Mix Pot Roast.)  At the 5 to 6-hour point, the roasts looked a little dry on top, so I turned them over.  After cooking, I discarded the root beer, shred the meat, and added the barbecue sauce, as above.

**Note to myself and to others concerned with this issue: 
I made the effort to find a barbecue sauce without high fructose corn syrup, but the root beer I used, and also, the ketchup I've always used to make my homemade barbecue sauce both have high fructose corn syrup.  Time to find new brands for both.