Gertie is in Charge

The world really did all it could to try to get me to break up with Halloween this year. Not only did our trick-or-treating time get switched in a way that ticked off eeeeeevvvvvvvverybody (except the soccer moms who didn't want to get their preshussss shoes wet OH YEAH I SAID IT), there was so much costume drama.

SO. MUCH.

The source of about half that costume drama was a certain teenager who happens to live in my house. Let's call her "Alexis" because that's what her name is and she deserves to be called out publicly for said drama. Alexis has had a blissful existence for Mila's first five Halloweens because Alexis has been able to use her little sister as an accessory. Literally, Mila has always been Alexis' accessory for Halloween. Behold.

I told Alexis last year that she shouldn't get too used to this thing where she decides what she's going to be and then styles Mila around her. It was bound to end and THAT IT DID.

Mila had opinions this year. Her first opinion was to be a dragon, which I could have turned into a duo VERY easily. Alexis hated all of my ideas and was a total jerk about it. Which, let me just tell you that my idea for doing "Imagine Dragons" was FREAKING GENIUS. It's unfortunate that my own child doesn't recognize how clever I am.

When Mila then moved onto wanting to do an E.T. theme, Alexis was STILL being a jerk (she wanted to be Gertie and wasn't willing to even discuss other ways of getting the theme done). The girls wouldn't stop fighting about it, so I intervened. I told Alexis she could be a "Disgruntled Teen" for Halloween and LOOK! SHE ALREADY HAS THAT COSTUME! That left Mila open to do whatever she wanted, which seemed fair. Mila has done what Alexis wanted for five years; it was her turn to be in charge.

So I had a little dragon and a Disgruntled Teen and all was well. And then Halloween rolled around. The real Halloween, by the way, not that fake thing that we did on Saturday. Alexis made it all the way to 7:00 pm before a crack settled into her disgruntledness and she was suddenly willing to talk about the E.T. idea.

Mila had it all figured out. Mila was to be Gertie (because LOOK AT HER) and Alexis just needed a red sweatshirt because a stuffed E.T. came home with us from Universal Studios this summer. One striped t-shirt from Target later, we were in business.

The total cost of their group costume was under $20. Which, HUZZAH.

So now Alexis can save her Disgruntled Teen costume for next year and Mila can dress like a miniature Drew Barrymore forever and ever and we're all happy. FOR NOW.

Vegetable Pot Pie

You guys, I think it's official. Summer is over.

I KNOW. It's shocking. But there's a Christmas tree in my family room beside the pile of Halloween candy and Thanksgiving lurks just around the corner. Summer. Is. Done.

::sob::

With the end of summer comes the end of fresh vegetable season, which is another reason to cry. So I'm starting to switch over to frozen veggies, which brings with it the "cold weather recipes." Like Vegetable Pot Pie.

This is one of those recipes that is one notch better than processed crap from the frozen food aisle, but that isn't quite from scratch. Unfortunately, I don't get paid to stay home and cook, so I have to find ways to make eating better fit in with my schedule. This is a decent compromise, in my opinion.

You start with a pre-made frozen pie crust (extra deep!) and pop it into the oven to bake according to the directions on the package. Then you throw some frozen vegetables into the microwave and get them nice and warm.

I use about half of each bag of these. Pro tip: To measure how much of the veggies you'll need, pour them into your frozen crust before popping it into the oven. Fill the crust up, then dump the veggies into your microwave-proof bowl to cook them while you bake your crust. It saves a lot of stress because not all frozen pie crusts are created equal.

My crust was able to hold just shy of three cups of vegetables.

You're going to add a can of cream of whatever soup (I use cream of potato, but that's only because SOMEONE in this house hates mushrooms. That SOMEONE is totally missing out.), a few tablespoons of milk, and a bit of salt and pepper.

You'll dump the veggies into the already cooked pie crust.

And then you're going to cover it with another pie crust, this time the flat one that is in the refrigerated section of the store. Yes, I know I just told you to buy two different kinds of pie crust. It's all in the interest of streamlining the process. (And, yes, I could have made the edge pretty. If I were trying to impress someone, I would, but the cries of "Mooooom, I'm hungry!" tend to override any need to be fancy with the crust edge.)

You'll bake until the top crust is done, and then HOORAY! Not-entirely-processed pot pie!

(BTW, don't ever read the ingredients on a Banquet Pot Pie. TRUST ME.)

If you aren't of the vegetarian persuasion, you can always add chicken or turkey or whatever. Just make sure to precook it so that the entire pie is done as soon as possible.

Vegetable Pot Pie

1 extra-deep frozen pie crust (the ones that are already in the pan)
3 cups frozen vegetables (peas, carrots, potatoes, onions, celery . . . it's all good)
1 can cream of potato soup (Or cream of chicken or cream of celery or cream of mushroom. I'm not here to judge your cream choices.)
2 tablespoons milk
1 refrigerated pie crust
salt and pepper to taste
Optional: Protein of your choice (tofu, Quorn Chik'n, turkey, chicken, etc.)

1. Bake the frozen pie crust according to the instructions on the package.

2. Place the frozen vegetables into a microwave-safe bowl and heat until warm. Mine took about 6 minutes.

3. Stir in the cream of potato soup and milk.

3a. Add a protein, if you so desire.

4. Add salt and pepper according to your tastes.

5. Pour the vegetable mixture into the cooked pie crust and smooth out the top.

6. Place the refrigerated pie crust on top of your Vegetable Pot Pie and crimp the edges. Or just fold them over. Whatever.

7. Bake at 450 degrees until the top crust is golden brown. Actual times will vary, but my oven needed about 20 minutes.

8. Allow the Vegetable Pot Pie to cool for a few minutes before cutting.

9. Enjoy!

2019 Summed Up With One Photo