Carrot Bread with Cream Cheese

I had a few lonely carrots left over in the garden, and I wanted to make something with them in the spirit of not wasteing. It's been a goal to waste the least amount of produce from my garden this year. I'm doing my best to use, give away, or freeze whatever the garden gives me. So' with that in mind I needed to find a home for my carrots. I was going to make carrot muffins, but I forgot muffin pan liners at the store. So here is Carrot Bread!

2 cups grated carrots

1/2 cup walnuts

1cup light brown sugar

11/2 cup flour

1/2 baking powder

2teaspoons cinnamon, 1 teaspoon nutmeg, 1 teaspoon cloves, 1/2 teaspoon ginger, 1/2 teaspoon salt

2 Tablespoon sugar

2/3 veg oil

2teaspoons vanilla

2 large eggs

-mix dry ingredients. Mix wet wet ingredients. Mix both together. Stir in carrots and walnuts. put in a greased bread pan.

Cream cheese topping: Mix 1/3 cup sugar, 1 package cream cheese, 1 egg.

Top bread with half the cream cheese mixture(I made a small cheese cake with the left over mixture)

Bake at 350 for 55 min

cool in pan 10 min

Chicken and Andouille Gumbo

I made this recently, while it was 100+ degrees outside, but really it was deserving of a cold rainy day. I was suprised at how easy it was.

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 Tablespoon oil

1 link andouille sausage finely chopped

3 medium celery stalks cut into 1/2 inch chunks

1 medium onion cut into 1/2 inch chunks

1 green bellpepper cut into 1/2 inch chunks

12 ounces okra sliced crosswise in 1/2 inch chunks(I couldn't find fresh, so I used frozen)

8 cups chicken broth

2lbs skinless chicken breast cut in 1/4ths

1 can(28ounces) plum tomatoes coarsley chopped with juice(2 cups, add water if needed)

2 dried bay leaves

1 Tablespoon worcestershire sauce

1. Heat a large skillet over meduim heat. Toast flour, stirring with a wooden spoon, for 3 minutes. cook until it has a toasted aroma and is the color of peanut butter. transfer to a large bowl and let cool.

2. Heat oil in large pot. Cook sausage for 1 min. Raise heat to high. add onion, celery, and bellpepper. cook for 3 min stirring occasionally. add okra cook for another 3 min.

3.meanwhile whisk broth into flour; add to pot. stir in chicken, tomatoes, and bay leaves; bring to boil. reduce heat to meduim and simmer 1 hour.

4. romove from heat; cover to keep warm. Transfer chicken to a plate, let cool 5 min. Remove bones, shred and add back to pot. Discard bay leaves. Stir in worchestershire sauce.