"Beer me" that pumpkin butter, please!

Finally... a rejuvenating weekend!  Not that the last two weren't exciting and full of adventures, but this one featured the perfect balance of work and play without any travel at all.  Some shopping, dining, walking, chatting over a beloved salted caramel hot chocolate, and a healthy dose of lounging with two real sleep in mornings.  As much as I live for Thursday night TV, I missed it in favor of a movie, so it was nice to have something good to watch this weekend at my leisure.  How good were the shows this week?  Outsourced is growing on me, and 30 Rock and Community were hilarious as usual.  The Office has totally rebounded from last season's slightly lackluster year, in my opinion.   Not to give anything away if you're still behind, but some hilarious stills.  "Beer me, Jim."

As for the rest of the weekend?

Well, even better when you factor in back to back Penguins games... that they won!  A two game winning streak and the resurgence of both Fleury and Malkin?  I'll take it!  Add in some quiet time on Sunday night with heavenly smelling candles and comfy sweatpants, and this girl is very happy.  (Though, admittedly, now a little nostalgic for that setup.)

And last, but certainly not least, I'm super ecstatic about the quaint but mind-blowingly delicious breakfast I had yesterday, courtesy of the newest addition to my pantry -- pecan pumpkin butter!  The Williams and Sonoma store in Ross Park Mall was giving out samples of recipes made with the pumpkin butter, and you know I wasn't going to be denied.  After all, pumpkin seems to be my Kryptonite these days.

What exactly is pumpkin butter?  Simply put, it's pumpkin pie in a jar.  Cooked and pureed pumpkin mixed with sugar and spices.  The result is a slightly sweet spiced pumpkin spread with the consistency of, duh, butter.  Room temperature butter, to clarify :)  I had some on toast before church yesterday.  Uh, where has this been all my life?  Probably exactly where I got it but was too distracted to notice before Saturday.  Shame, shame on me.

You've just gotta try this stuff (it would make a great hostess gift or stocking stuffer, too).  I have great plans for my new pumpkin butter.  It could be served with morning yogurt, mixed with oatmeal or vanilla ice cream, or even tossed with some pasta or gnocchi.  To make a memorable snack, try mixing one jar of the butter with a block of softened cream cheese and some crumbled bacon and chopped green onions.  To die for!  Or there's always the stand-by of a spoonful right out of the jar after a hardcore gym session :)

One Year Ago: A baker's best friend