It’s Fall, So Are You Doing These 5 Things To Prepare?

Featured photo by Roshonda – B Creative

Yes, Yes, Yes – It’s Officially October, time for pumpkins, Halloween and time changes! Are you ready to FALL back? Soon we’ll be gaining an hour and sipping everything from Spiced Apple Cider to Pumpkin something. I mean they come out with some new way to put pumpkin in your drink and food every year, right? Ah-hum..”Hence the Pic below”

Yes, this reallyyyyy does exist! – Read it here! (After you’ve read this post that is, wink =)

It seems like Starbucks jumped the gun by offering PSL (Pumpkin Spiced Latte’s) on August 27th!!!! Okay, Starbucks??? We see you!! However, to get a PSL during that time seemed a little off-season (literally) I mean, we were still suffering through the heat of the summer and the sound of a PSL didn’t feel like fall to me. While Starbucks broke the trending record that day, I personally like to drink “Pumpkin Spiced” anything during the “actual” time for it. (I know, I can be a weirdo about certain things, but I digress)

Anywho, while we “truly” prepare for fall which also includes the cutting of a delicious turkey and bringing down the Christmas tree…..Okay, I’m pushing it but this year has already pushed itself out the door already!! One more blink of an eye and we’ll be in……..2020!! Okayyyyy, hold your horses Ro!, sorry = ( didn’t mean to take ya that fast, so, let’s back up and enjoy this blissful fall and all the pumpkin things it brings, deal?

Now that we’re officially two weeks and some change into fall, there’s a lot of switch-a-roo’s that’ll be going on; such as switching out short sleeves for long sleeves and sandals for boots! So, let’s get into the 5 things that you need to be doing NOW in order to be TRULY, FALL READY!

1. longer sleeves – oh YES!, OH no?

Photo by rawpixel.com from Pexels

Yesss now’s the time to put up all the summer wear (if you haven’t already, most people start early) in which I’m a very late bloomer when it comes to this. I hate covering up! I’ll milk the short sleeves and sandals until my arms and feet can’t take it anymore and I absolutely hate big, overly huge coats. Just give me a scarf, gloves, hat and a very light jacket and I’m good. But now’s the time to pull out those long johns (does anybody say that anymore?) and long sleeves. It’s also the time to purchase a scarf, hat, gloves, and earmuffs. If you’re like me, I have to buy a pair every year.

2. Replace the batteries in the Smoke Detectors!

Photo Credit: Bing

This is the time of year where smoke alarms are not in the best of use, especially around the holidays. Unchecked batteries won’t’ be much help to a smoke detector or even a carbon monoxide detector if something should happen (God Forbid!) but it’s best to get them checked out every season. Have you heard any beeping noises lately? Check it out and make sure your batteries are good and give it a quick push of the button just to make sure it’s working. Better safe than sorry, eh…

3. Any plans for the New Year?

Photo by rawpixel.com from Pexels

I know we’re a couple of months away and NO ONE wants to think about this now but hey, Fall’s the PERFECT time to plan out what goals you want to accomplish in the upcoming year. “Did you complete the goals you started out with this year?”” Where were your pitfalls?” “What is it that you need to do to make sure you stick to it next time around.” “Did you set the bar too high to reach?” Right now is the time to think about what you want to do going forward. Short steady goals ensure you complete them on time.

4. The Best time of year to work out!

Photo by Luis Quintero from Pexels

I believe the fall/winter is the bestest time to workout. It’s not too hot to go outside for a walk or run and since its fall/almost winter. It’s also the best time to work on your skincare and nutrition routine. I always say, you know what people do in the winter when you see them in the summer. You’ll know if they’ve been taking care of their skin, body and etc. While you’re in hibernation, use this time to work on that health, skin and summer body…now’s the time. (I’m definitely going to be getting some workout time in ; )

5. TRY SOMETHING NEW for a change!

Photo Credit: Bing

Let’s face it, fall is the time of year where all types of parties are going on. From Halloween all the way to Christmas, someone’s going to be throwing a party or there’s going to be some type of event going on, I mean “Tis the Season?” literally! So, while you’re scheduling your party plans, whether to throw one yourself or attend one. Add, doing something NEW to the list! Maybe a new recipe (if you need a little pumpkin inspiration, for the whole month of October 2017 I cooked up a different “pumpkin” inspired recipe! – Just put pumpkin in the search engine to check them all out and let me know if you do one!), hair-do (Gosh knows I do this one regularly) or whatever you want to try!

Why wait until the new year to make a resolution or try something new for yourself. Time is of the essence and as we all know, it waits on NO ONE! At least not the last time I checked, that is. So join me in saying YES! before 2020! You’re worth it and hey, you only live once right? I mean it’s okay to have a little fun, in retrospect that is…lol.

So there you have it, That’s my FAB 5 things you should be doing to prepare for the Fall or I guess I should say, that you should be doing NOW that fall is already here…

What about you? Do you have any other suggestions for fall preparation? Let me know in the comments!

Advertisement

You Scream, We Scream! – We All Want Pumpkin Ice-Cream!

photo above courtesy of vegkitchen

If you’re like me and I believe maybe 80% of you are, I absolutely love sweets especially CHOCOLATE! I mean, don’t get me wrong I’ve gotten a lot better but I always have to have something sweet after dinner, a cookie – brownie – honey bun or even a piece of candy was all I needed to top of the evening meal, dinner is not dinner unless there’s dessert right after or if you’re like some people, dessert comes first!

Eat DessertAs stated, I’ve gotten a lot better with my “sweet” choices as now I try to opt for more “healthier” options and that’s been going well, but I do have cheat days and that’s when I let my hair down to have a piece of cake or some chocolate, and while cheat days are on Sundays, I’ve found myself craving for sweets during the week, me and my body have been having some serious talks, as it wants to move back to “old habits” lane. A place in which I totally let myself go and eat whatever my heart desires, but that place comes at a hefty price, especially when my health is involved. So, when that taste of wanting something not so good for me rears its ugly head, I have found other alternatives that help keep those cravings at bay and one of those things is pumpkin ice cream.

Because I’m a big fan of sweetsville, ice cream is another one of my all-time favorite treats but just because I can’t have the real thing when I want, doesn’t mean I can’t “healtherize” (if there’s such a word) an old favorite. Let me tell you, I honestly didn’t know how this was going to turn out, I mean as I’ve told you before – I’m no Rachel Ray nor Martha Stewart for that matter so I’m not that great at making things from scratch, which is why I settle for recipes that only require 4-5 ingredients as this girl can get pretty messy, literally….if the recipe calls for more than that. Hey, I know my limits….

But needless to say, this ice cream turned out better than I expected and yes, they do have pumpkin ice cream in the stores but do you really know what’s in them? I mean most of them contain a lot of ingredients that I myself can’t even pronounce however; this recipe was very simple and only required very few ingredients all of which you can easily recognize, spell and pronounce and I don’t know about you, but I like to know what’s in my food.

So, if you have a craving for ice-cream and want something that’s going to be not only healthy but lactose free and taste good? Then this recipe is for you.

The Ingredients you’ll need are here:

Pumpkin Ice Cream3
6 Ingredients & You’re headed to Yummyville!

Here are the Recipe Details:

1 can pumpkin puree

1 large banana

3/4 cup coconut milk

2 tablespoons maple syrup, raw honey or a few drops of stevia

1/2 teaspoon vanilla, optional

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon – or more if you’d like.

Optional Note: I added, 1 tsp of coconut sugar – I love my ice-cream to be sweet.

 Directions are as Follows:

  1. Fill an ice cube tray evenly with the pumpkin puree and cover tightly with plastic wrap.
  2. Place banana in a Ziploc bag and place the banana and the ice cube tray in the freezer overnight.
  3. Remove the cubes and banana from the freezer and let sit for 5 minutes.
  4. Remove from ice tray and plastic bag and place everything in high power blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
  5. Enjoy right away or place in freezer for a couple of hours to create a harder ice cream.

Now, for my Before and After Pics ~

Pumpkin Ice Cream
Everything all blended together Nicely. So Creamy!

 

Pumpkin Ice Cream2
After sitting in the freezer for over 8 hours – Here it Is!

Now you can eat it as is but if you like to live on the wild side, then you can push the envelope a little, just as I did.

Pumpkin Ice Cream4
Let me introduce you to – Pumpkin Banana Split!!!

Pumpkin Ice Cream5
Another picture, just in case you were drooling over the first one…lol.

Okay, so I have to say – I didn’t necessarily follow the directions above as I just blended everything together and put it in a bowl to let it refrigerate – had a picture of it but it didn’t turn out very well. However; I will say – I fixed this the night before and left it in the freezer for over 8 hours. It was extremely hard when I got it out, too hard to put a scoop through so I had to let it sit in some hot water (the bowl that is) until it thawed a little. But afterwards it was sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo (okay, so you get it), it was extremely good….no joke and to top off the night – It was kid approved!!, as my son and daughter loved it and they can be picky eaters.

To make the pumpkin split, I cut up half a banana, some strawberries, threw in some walnuts, semi-sweet chocolate chips, whip cream and a cherry on top. Out of all the recipes, this one tops the list as my favorite, I will definitely be fixing this again – even after fall! As a matter of fact, I’m going to eat some more after boot camp today….it’ll be my guilty pleasure for putting my body through combat..lol.

If you would like to make this recipe – you can find it at Renewing All Things (4 Ingredient Fast Pumpkin Ice-Cream).  Well this is the last recipe for the month, I do hope that you enjoyed every post and hopefully it gave you new ideas as to what to do with a can of pumpkin. As you can see, it not only has many benefits to your body but even better ones for your taste buds! as well.

This is the LAST CALL! Have You Entered The Giveaway??

To kick off the pumpkin festivities I thought I would do a giveaway – I love to receive things and I know you might too. I’m giving away a $25.00 gift card, here’s what you have to do and how to enter:

Follow @justsuminspiration2u on Instagram

Post a picture of you with one of the 5 recipes featured this month with the caption: “Pumpkins Up! @justsuminspiration2u is doing a giveaway! Enter for a chance to win at justsuminspiration.com.”

That’s It! That’s all you have to do – Remember, you have to make one of the recipes, follow me on Instagram, post your picture of you and the recipe of choice and include the italicized statement with your post. Good Luck!!

The Winner will be announced November 3, 2017 at 1:00pm on the Justsuminspiration blog, Facebook and Instagram pages. Winners will be selected randomly from the list of entries submitted.

See ya in the next Post!!-1

Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud, Love Hard & Inspire Often!

If you missed the other recipe posts, you can view them here:

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

There’s a Pumpkin in my Oatmeal!

Let’s Fall In Love, with Pumpkin Soup!!

I’ll have Pumpkin Mac & Cheese Please!, How about You?

 

Yes, I’ll Have Pumpkin Mac & Cheese Please! – How About You?

Photo above courtesy of Yellow Bliss Road

Macaroni and Cheese has always been one of my favorite southern comfort foods, I am a big fan of cheese and when you mix that with some pasta, let’s just say….it’s a match made in heaven. While I can’t have mac and cheese on a regular like I would like due to me having to keep a close watch on the carbs, I was very happy when I found this recipe in which incorporated pumpkin in the recipe and with all of pumpkins great benefits, this recipe was proving to not only be good for the body but decrease sugar levels as well.

So I was very excited to be able to fix this recipe but mostly I couldn’t wait to taste it – I mean, I have to be real with you – it’s not every day that you hear about people putting pumpkin in the ooey, gooey mac and cheese so I was a little skeptical at first, I’m a person that falls in love with food based on the taste, not the look – so I knew if the taste wasn’t great then this recipe was going to go down in smokes as there was no plan B!

Plan-A-Plan-B

But to my surprise, this recipe was not only easy (my favorite word) but exceeded my taste expectations as well. If you need a quick, wholesome and nutritious meal to fix or dinner tonight or any night this week, then grab your pens and paper and follow me below as I share the ingredients and cooking instructions to this cheesy surprise!

The Ingredients you’ll need are here:

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese
8 Ingredients are all you need!!

And the Recipe goes a little something like this:

1 package (16 oz) elbow macaroni
1/4 cup butter (unsalted)
1/4 cup Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (8 oz)

Directions are as Follows:

  1. Heat oven to 350°F. Cook and drain macaroni as directed on package, using minimum cook time.
  2. Meanwhile, in 2-quart saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Stir in flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly with whisk. Remove from heat; stir in milk. Heat to simmering; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly, until thickened. Stir in salt, pepper, nutmeg, mustard and pumpkin. Add 1 3/4 cups of the cheese. Cook, stirring occasionally, until cheese is melted.
  3. Add macaroni to cheese sauce and stir until coated. Pour into greased 3-quart casserole. Top with remaining 1/4 cup cheese.
  4. Bake uncovered 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Optional: If you choose to use bread crumbs, as I did. You’ll melt a tablespoon of unsalted butter in a small pan until all melted then you’ll add in a 1/2 cup of bread crumbs and stir them around in the butter until they are coated, like below..

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese3

Now, for my Before and After Pics ~

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese1
Step #2 – All ingredients mixed in

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese2
Everything is mixed & Looking Good!

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese4
Step #3 Macaroni added, making this look even more delicious!

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese5
 Before: Moved to Oiled pan with Breadcrumbs

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese6
After: Baked for 20min, Umm, So Good!

Now, Let’s Dress this Yummy Goodness Up!!

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese8
Pumpkin Mac-Cheese7

 

I completed this Cheesy dish with a side of Spinach salad and a piece of boneless, skinless baked chicken thigh and topped it off with a glass of Key Lime Sparkling water and VIOLA! dinner is served!!!  This dish was so good, you could taste the pumpkin a little, it was cheesy and surely a better alternative than using powdered cheese, I really loved how healthy this dish was, It was truly a very good “guilty” pleasure.

As you can see, a little pumpkin can go a long way…I would suggest adding it in a couple of your meals for an extra added boost of nutrition. This recipe was provided by Betty Croker and if you want to make it for yourself or your family, just go here

Now I have to say, my son and daughter didn’t care for this so well, so if you have children, it may be a less non-desired taste for them but there are many ways you can boost this recipe up, by simply adding more cheese and maybe some bacon as your topping. You also don’t have to use a whole can or cup of pumpkin – you can reduce that to a smaller portion of a 1/2 cup or less. I hope you enjoy this nice twist to a very common southern classic. You might even want to plate up some tonight!

Thursday is the last recipe for the month – I’ll be ending the great pumpkin series with a little dessert, so stay tuned!

Did you hear about the giveaway??

To kick off the pumpkin festivities I thought I would do a giveaway – I love to receive things and I know you might too. I’m giving away a $25.00 gift card, here’s what you have to do and how to enter:

Follow @justsuminspiration2u on Instagram

Post a picture of you with one of the 5 recipes featured this month with the caption: “Pumpkins Up! @justsuminspiration2u is doing a giveaway! Enter for a chance to win at justsuminspiration.com.”

That’s It! That’s all you have to do – Remember, you have to make one of the recipes, follow me on Instagram, post your picture of you and the recipe of choice and include the italicized statement with your post. Good Luck!!

The Winner will be announced November 3, 2017 at 1:00pm on the Justsuminspiration blog, Facebook and Instagram pages. Winners will be selected randomly from the list of entries submitted.

See ya in the next Post!!-1

Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud, Love Hard & Inspire Often!

If you missed the other recipe posts, you can view them here:

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

There’s a Pumpkin in my Oatmeal!

Let’s Fall In Love, with Pumpkin Soup!!

Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice, It’s Time for the Great Pumpkin!

Let’s All Fall In Love, With Pumpkin Soup!!

photo above courtesy of simplyrecipes.com

If you can tell from the other recipe posts I have done already, I love the word “simple” and this pumpkin soup didn’t disappoint as it fell in line with my other three favorite words: Good, Delicious and Quick!

I was done with this recipe so fast until it surprised me, I mean it literally took me no more than 5-10 minutes to complete, just in time to pop in a movie before 8pm. Now that’s my type of cooking!

YESS
My Face when something actually works! – Photo courtesy of Bing

If you’re like me after having a long day at work, coming home to find something quick to cook can be a chore but when you have simple recipes such as this one, that long day in the office doesn’t seem quite stressful as this recipe will make cooking for the night a breeze. This soup can be made for a party of one or a family of six. All you’ll need are these simple ingredients:

Pumpkin Soup
7 Ingredients are all you need! – You can use a real pumpkin but it was late, I was tired so I opted for the 100% pumpkin puree in the can.

This Super Easy Breezy Pumpkin Soup recipe goes as follows:

1 medium onion, grated on a box grater

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 (29-oz.) can pure pumpkin

2 (14.5-oz.) cans chicken broth (or 4 cups)

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

3/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, 3 minutes or until soft.

Stir in the pure pumpkin, chicken broth, cream, pumpkin pie spice, and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, 3 minutes or until soup simmers.

Put into bowls and top as desired. Store leftover soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Below are my before and after pics:

Pumpkin Soup3
BEFORE: All ingredients mixed together – I did transfer this over to a bigger pot.

Pumpkin Soup2
AFTER #1: Topped with Heavy Cream.

Pumpkin Soup4
AFTER #2: Topped with Croutons & Sour Cream

I apologize for the different picture contrast variations, my phone was dying out – so I used my daughters phone for the last pic. While I used croutons and sour cream to top off this delicious soup, you can use pumpkin seeds, bacon or whatever you choose – it’s going to be good no matter what you put on top. This recipe was taken from Good Housekeeping in which you can view here

The soup is good for 3 days so you’ll be able to take some for lunch the next day and maybe share some with your friends and show off your amazing cooking skills!!

Next week, I’ll be cooking up the last two pumpkin recipes of the month – Something cheesy for dinner and a favorite treat in which everyone loves – ICE CREAM! So stay tuned as the YUMMY continues!

Did you hear about the giveaway??

To kick off the pumpkin festivities I thought I would do a giveaway – I love to receive things and I know you might too. I’m giving away a $25.00 gift card, here’s what you have to do and how to enter:

Follow @justsuminspiration2u on Instagram

Post a picture of you with one of the 5 recipes featured this month with the caption: “Pumpkins Up! @justsuminspiration2u is doing a giveaway! Enter for a chance to win at justsuminspiration.com.”

That’s It! That’s all you have to do – Remember, you have to make one of the recipes, follow me on Instagram, post your picture of you and the recipe of choice and include the italicized statement with your post. Good Luck!!

The Winner will be announced November 3, 2017 at 1:00pm on the Justsuminspiration blog, Facebook and Instagram pages. Winners will be selected randomly from the list of entries submitted.

See ya in the next Post!!-1

Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud, Love Hard & Inspire Often!

 

If you missed the other recipe posts, you can view them here:

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

There’s a Pumpkin in my Oatmeal!

Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice, It’s Time for the Great Pumpkin!

 

There’s a Pumpkin In My Oatmeal!!

Let me just start off by saying, I would have never thought to put pumpkin in my oatmeal but then again, I love trying new things so I can’t actually say I wouldn’t have thought of it, I  just would have never thought to pick up a can from the grocery store.

Who would have known that the great pumpkin, would not only be beneficial to your face – in which takes my mind back to an old Oprah Winfrey show episode in which she gave away some pumpkin face cream from bath and body works in her “favorite things giveaway” show. Needless to say, BBW sold out of the product once she made mention of it, which is not a surprise, because what Ms. O likes, everyone likes…

While BBW has not had that product since (I mean they have other pumpkin inspired scents, just not that particular one) I think people really sleep on how beneficial and wonderful pumpkin really is, I mean they serve all sorts of purposes and not just for trick or treating or to make our porches look great on the outside, but they’re also good for our insides (body) as well. Check this out:

health-benefits-of-pumpkin-kaddoo-and-pumpkin-seeds

So, that’s why I wanted this month to be all about the pumpkin – because something that good needs to be eaten everyday. Speaking of which, you all would be so proud to know that this next recipe turned out exactly like I had hoped it would…my pumpkin oatmeal was not only on point but amazingly delicious.

I was soooo excited because I didn’t want to write another “failed recipe” post….this is a cause for celebration, so…..

happy dance 3

(Excuse me, while I do my happy dance….lol)

Yes, I was really excited because if you knew my cooking skills?, then you’ll understand my dance =) so if it worked for me, it’ll be a breeze for you. To make this very simple, yet wholesome recipe – below are the ingredients you’ll need.

Pumpkin Oatmeal3
Simple Right? The Cranberries and Walnuts are optional

The Pumpkin Oatmeal recipes goes as follows:

1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats (I used half a cup – carb watch!)

3/4 cup of milk (I used almond but it’s your preference)

1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree

1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1 teaspoon cinnamon sugar

Directions:

Mix together oats and milk in a bowl. Cook on high for 1 to 2 minutes in the microwave. Once completed, you can stir in more milk if needed to achieve the desired consistency you want and cook for another 30 sec. Stir in pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon sugar (I used regular cinnamon and two stevia packets). Heat again for about 1 min and VIOLA! your breakfast is done! Below are pics of my before and after.

Pumpkin Oatmeal1
Before – Looks good Huh!

Pumpkin Oatmeal
After – Trust Me, It smells as good as it looks!

I added banana’s, walnuts, cranberries and drizzled it with a tablespoon of sugar-free maple syrup. When I tell you this breakfast had me full all day, it really did. I usually have to have a healthy snack prior to lunch but no snacks were needed that day.

I got this recipe from two sources in which you can see below:

5 Breakfast Boosters for Flawless Skin

All recipes – Pumpkin Oatmeal

I took a little something from each and just made it my own. So the next time you’re in the mood for something wholesome and yummy in the morning – this recipe is one that will not only fulfill your taste-buds but add a whole lot of goodness to your body as well.

To kick off the pumpkin festivities I thought I would do a giveaway – I love to receive things and I know you might too. I’m giving away a $25.00 gift card, here’s what you have to do and how to enter:

Follow @justsuminspiration2u on Instagram

Post a picture of you with one of the 5 recipes featured this month with the caption: “Pumpkins Up! @justsuminspiration2u is doing a giveaway! Enter for a chance to win at justsuminspiration.com.”

That’s It! That’s all you have to do – Remember, you have to make one of the recipes, follow me on Instagram, post your picture of you and the recipe of choice and include the italicized statement with your post. Good Luck!!

The Winner will be announced November 3, 2017 at 1:00pm on the Justsuminspiration blog, Facebook and Instagram pages. Winners will be selected randomly from the list of entries submitted.

See ya in the next Post!!-1

Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud, Love Hard & Inspire Often!

P.S. If you missed the blog post displaying all the yum we’re cooking up this month, click on the link below to catch up!

Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice, It’s Time for the Great Pumpkin!