Did you know...

That this what a beet looks like?

I did not. I have not tried them yet, but it might happen this evening. I am skeptical, but I'm committed to trying them. I did cut them down to this, per instructions in one of my cookbooks.

But I did try some new things this weekend. I attended a vegetarian festival that was just a few blocks from my house. There was everything from vegetarian food samples to pet adoption booths, animal activists and henna tattoos. It was an interesting scene.

There was also a food court with vendors serving all vegetarian food. And I was brave enough to try a veggie dog. I'm not going to say it's the best thing I've ever eaten, but it's probably as good as any other hot dog, just a slightly different texture.

After the vegetarian festival, we headed out to an apple festival. I've got great pictures and plenty to share about that soon but not in this post. The point is that I came home with a pie pumpkin.

I've never cooked with pumpkin — fresh or canned. I'm not a fan of pumpkin pie, but I do like pumpkin bread, though so far I've been content buying it from a bakery. But I felt like the pumpkin was a challenge to make pumpkin muffins from scratch. So I turned to Pioneer Woman for directions on how to puree the pumpkin.

I cut the pumpkin in half, gutted it and roasted it in the oven.

I peeled it, though I'm not sure it was ripe because the skin didn't come off as easily as it should have. But I it pureed in the food processor just fine. I did add a couple of tablespoons of water because it was pretty dry.

And I was able to turn it into pumpkin muffins.

Here's the recipe I used from AllRecipes, though I've discovered I'm completely incapable of following an entire recipe correctly. I left out the cloves because I didn't have any, and then I doubled the nutmeg by accident. I also forgot the chocolate chips (yeah, very unusual for me), so I just sprinkled some on while the muffins were baking.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
    •    3/4 cup white sugar
    •    1/4 cup vegetable oil
    •    2 eggs
    •    3/4 cup canned pumpkin
    •    1/4 cup water
    •    1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
    •    3/4 teaspoon baking powder
    •    1/2 teaspoon baking soda
    •    1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
    •    1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
    •    1/4 teaspoon salt
    •    1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
    •    1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Grease and flour muffin pan or use paper liners.
Mix sugar, oil, eggs. Add pumpkin and water. In separate bowl mix together the baking flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices and salt.. Add wet mixture and stir in chocolate chips.
Fill muffin cups 2/3 full with batter. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes.

Picky eater

I say that I’m a picky eater, but when people ask me what I don’t like, it’s hard to explain it exactly but here’s my attempt.


I don’t like spicy foods and could be just fine without ethnic foods. But I can find something on a menu at a Mexican or Chinese restaurant. The perfect sandwich for me is bread, deli meat and cheese (much to the dismay of employees at sandwich shops). I like sauces and dressings “on the side” like in “When Harry Met Sally.” And I avoid gravy all together.


I eat carrots and broccoli but only raw, not steamed. I love peas from a can but despise frozen ones. I won’t go anywhere near mushrooms and avoid peppers of any color. Tomatoes are fine for salad and in soup but leave them off my sandwich.


I like fresh fruit, but I don’t really liked fruit pies, although cooked apples and apple pies are growing on me. I like yogurt but don’t eat any chunks of fruit in it. I like bananas but never buy them because there is too much pressure to eat them quickly.


I like shrimp, lobster and crab but would rather not eat fish, scallops or oysters. But I do like fried calamari.


I don’t like my food to get mixed together and casseroles and lasagna make me nervous unless I’ve made them myself. I think I'm afraid of biting into a mushroom or some other unidentified vegetable.


Typically, I don’t like chili, but I had some recently that I actually liked. I don’t eat black beans or black-eyed peas. I eat salsa but only dipping a chip and bringing it out without any chunks.


I love breakfast foods, but I only eat my eggs scrambled, never fried, boiled or deviled.


Does that explain it? I know I probably sound crazy, and some of it doesn’t even make sense. I realize that part of my problem is that I’m not willing to try many new things. That's why I think the challenge of the co-op will force me to try new things and maybe discover that things like turnips aren't so bad after all.


What are you picky about?