Corn and Cheese Chowder

The past weekend I decided to make Corn and Cheese Chowder. After watching Ree Drummond make it look uber easy on the Pioneer Woman, I thought it would be the perfect supper on a cold night.

So I chopped up my onion, bacon and peppers, and got them sauteing. Then added the corn.

After adding the flour, I added the chicken broth and milk (I never have half and half in my fridge.)

At this point you let the chowder simmer and thicken for 15 minutes.  My chowder never really thickened.  But I thought the cheese would help that out.  It didn't. My chowder was more like a corn soup. :(

I'm hoping that chowder, like gumbo, tastes better the next day.  Hopefully it will thicken and the flavors will meld.  

I'm not sure where I went wrong - I don't think the half and half would have made THAT big of a difference in thickening the chowder.  I also think I should have cooked and crisped the bacon separately then added it to the chowder - I've learned I'm not a fan of chewy bacon.

It was still a warm, filling dinner that was quick and easy to put together.

UPDATE:

After reheating and having for lunch today, the chowder was thicker.  It still seemed flat tasting tho.  I hadn't added any salt because it has bacon in it, but i decided to add a little.  It made a HUGE difference! 

Halloween Lanterns

I love Fall!  As soon as the weather gets cool, I am ready to decorate!

While looking at Pinterest to find ways to use my extra canning jars, I found this neat idea to make Halloween Lanterns. It also gave me a chance to cut vinyl with my Cricut.

I found a great site to order vinyl from - Expressions Vinyl.  They also have videos on how to "weed" and transfer vinyl so it was perfect for a beginner.

I used Martha Stewart's new glass paints to paint my 3 jars.  I baked them in the oven to set the paint.

I began by creating my Halloween design in Cricut Craft Room and cutting them out of Black Outdoor Vinyl.

I used transfer tape to apply the deigns to my jars -  This was so easy!

After removing the transfer tape, I had 3 beautiful Halloween Lanterns!

I used battery tea lights inside the jars so I could leave the lids on.  I may make handles to hang them on my porch for Halloween night!