Delicious Dinner

So this weekend I finally made this pumpkin casserole. I've had the recipe saved in my google reader for some time. I found it over at Closet Cooking. I like this guy's blog. Go check it out.
Pumpkin Casserole

Pumpkin Casserole
Ingredients:
4 cups pumpkin puree
4 tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup pecans (chopped)
1/4 cup flour
3 tablespoons butter (softened)

Directions:
1. Mix the pumpkin puree, maple syrup, milk, egg, vanilla and salt and mash.
2. Mix the brown sugar, pecans, flour and butter.
3. Pour the pumpkin mixture into a baking dish (or dishes) and top with the pecan mixture.
4. Bake in a preheated 350F until golden brown on top, about 30 minutes.

I also made a chicken in my crockpot to go with it. I found this recipe over at A Year of CrockPotting.

--1 whole chicken, skinned (mine was around 4 pounds)
--3 tsp kosher salt
--1 tsp paprika
--1 tsp Italian seasoning
--1 tsp seasoning salt
--1/2 tsp black pepper
--4 whole garlic cloves peeled
--1/2 yellow onion, cut into thirds

The Directions.

I used my white (I think it's 5 or 6 quarts) crockpot (smartpot).

I skinned the chicken because the crockpot lady did (and I thought we didn't really need the added fat). Get rid of the neck and other stuff from the cavity and rinse. I used my Pampered Chef kitchen shears and it made the job go fairly quickly. I gave up on skinning the wings though....completely lost cause!

In a bowl, combine all of dried spices. Rub the spice mixture all over the bird, inside and out. Put the bird breast-side down into the crockpot (sadly enough I had to call my mother in law to make sure I had the right side pegged as the breast...just in case you don't know, it's wings up, rounded side down).

I shoved the peeled garlic cloves onion inside the bird.

Do not add water.

Cover and cook on high for 4-5 hours, or on low for 8. I opted for the high setting. The meat is done when it is fully cooked and has reached desired tenderness. The longer you cook it, the more tender the meat.

Ok, both of these dishes were EXCELLENT!!! A complete hit with the whole family. Score!!! We'll definitely make this dish again. Now I'm off to use the chicken carcass to make broth.