So McGee,

What’s happening? Anything new?

The other post had so many comments that I figure it’s as good a time as any to take out a clean sheet of pixels, as it were.

Vegan Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

I made these great cookies about a week and a half ago. They were a huge hit everywhere I took them. I’m going to make them again today but I lost the recipe. Just thought I’d share the link and the recipe here for my own future reference and for anyone else who might like something delish that is egg and dairy free.

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

Submitted by Isa on www.theppk.com

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies Submitted by Isa prep time: 15 minutes | cooking time: 32 minutes | makes 4 dozen cookies These are soft out of the oven, but as they cool they are nice and chewy. They are a serious crowd pleaser, for crowds with taste buds.Note: I use flax seeds because they make the texture a little chewier, but I’ve made them without and they’re still good! Equipment: baking sheets 2 mixing bowls Ingredients 2 cups flour 1 1/3 cups rolled oats 1 teaspoon baking soda 3/4 teaspoon salt 1 tsp cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 1 2/3 cups sugar 2/3 cup canola oil 2 tablespoons molasses 1 cup canned pumpkin, or cooked pureed pumpkin 1 teaspoon vanilla optional: 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds 1 cup walnuts, finely chopped 1/2 cup raisins Directions Preheat oven to 350. Have ready 2 greased baking sheets. Mix together flour, oats, baking soda, salt and spices. In a seperate bowl, mix together sugar, oil, molasses, pumpkin and vanilla (and flax seeds if using) until very well combined. Add dry ingredients to wet in 3 batches, folding to combine. Fold in walnuts and raisins. Drop by tablespoons onto greased cookie sheets. They don’t spread very much so they can be placed only an inch apart. Flatten the tops of the cookies with a fork or with your fingers, to press into cookie shape. Bake for 16 minutes at 350. If you are using two sheets of cookies on 2 levels of your oven, rotate the sheets halfway through for even baking. You’ll have enough batter for 4 trays. Remove from oven and get cookies onto a wire rack to cool. These taste best when they’ve had some time to cool and set. They taste even better the next day! Note from Mrs. Nicklebee: These are extremely sticky. Let them cool adequately before handling them.

The Migraine Prodrome

I already did my obligatory NaBloPoMo post for today but I have something else to say.

My sister had a period of about a month where she had a headache. She was miserable! She went to the ER a couple of times, had a spinal tap once, an MRI, a CT and saw a neurologist. After the spinal tap made her headache MUCH worse, she also had a blood patch.

“Here, Yellerrrrrr! Come back, Yellerrrrrr …

Best doggone dog in the West.”

Guess what we watched tonight.

A few years ago, Aunt Knockknees got the boys a dog omnibus - The Greatest Dog Stories Ever. Until then, I did not know there was a sequel to Old Yeller. Savage Sam is the son of Old Yeller, but, unlike Old Yeller, Savage Sam requires blood pressure medication to read.

Tonight, after I baked another batch of Gingersnaps, we sat down and watched Savage Sam. I didn’t even know this movie existed until recently. I’d have to reread the book but it seems like there was a big chunk missing.

I kept Dub on Benadryl today based on previous incidences of hives. He slept all morning and part of the afternoon. Apparently he didn’t sleep well last night! Hopefully we’ve headed the hives off at the pass this time.

Yes, I did mention that I made more Gingersnaps. I thought I’d mention it because there was a big difference in the ones we made today compared to the ones we made the other day.

For one thing, I remembered not to mix in that last 1/4 C of impure, adulterated white sugar. The finished product was definitely sugar coated! It was a bit much and I don’t think I’ll roll them in the sugar again.

For another thing, I used vegetable oil instead of Soy Garden. I said I was going to use Soy Garden but thought the oil would be less fattening. Fattening schmattening! The cookies turned out puffy, not flat and cookie-like. They looked attractive, just not Gingersnappy. The higher fat of the shortening worked better. I’m sure the Soy Garden would be good, too.

Once again I saved out three(they’re really small) for each person and stuck the other several dozen into freezer bags for later use. I am so proud of us! We have a stockpile of cookies in the freezer and have only had one per person since we started stashing them there Sunday. It’s quite a milestone. We Nicklebees traditionally do not save cookies, and that’s all I’ll say about that, though I should think the extra poundage speaks volumes!

Another baking day

The day is almost over and I thought I had already posted today!!

For all of the work I did today, I sure don’t have much to show for it! It seems like I washed dishes from dawn ’til dusk.

My nieces have requested another pumpkin roll for dessert on Thanksgiving. I made one last year and it looked horrid. I went ahead and tried the actual pumpkin roll recipe, substituting EnerG Egg Replacer for the 3 eggs {8-0) just to see if it would work. It went tolerably well. If I can’t get the pumpkin muffin recipe to work better than this, I’ll use this. It’s awfully dense without the eggs but it holds together and rolls up great.

I made the vegan buttercream to go with today’s roll, just to have a filling. Man is that stuff rich! I didn’t have very much but I wanted to eat it all with a spoon. I’m glad I didn’t because excessive sugar makes me feel all palpatationy and stuff. Yuck.

This is neither here nor there but I’d like to say how blessed I feel to see my boys getting along with one another on a regular basis. Everybody has their moments. When I was their age, I hated my sister and treated her accordingly more often than not. I’m very glad these boys generally tend to respect each other. I hope each one will recognize the blessings they have in the other two.

As our family prepares for the holidays, my heart goes out to the family of Jodi Parrack after Jodi’s murder.  They will no doubt have a difficult holiday season this year. Their lives will never be the same. I don’t understand why people kill other people, especially children.

Constantine Mouns 11 year old Girl.

Officials Rule 11-Year-Old’s Death a Homicide, Urge Parents to Stay Alert