Bite-Sized Pumpkin Pies

November 24, 2025November 24, 2025 RefreshHer1 Comment

Last week we sat down with the half of our family that lives near us to have an early dinner that resembled Thanksgiving. I served Turkey breast, Individual Sweet Potato Casseroles, green beans, Frozen Cranberry Fruit Salad and Hawaiian rolls. We all looked forward to the turkey breast and sides, but also the Pumpkin Pie. One author said,

“But see, in our open clearings, how golden the melons lie; Enrich them with sweets and spices, and give us the pumpkin pie!”
~Margaret Junkin Preston

Rather than making one big pie, I made mini ones. How small were they? Well, I made them in mini muffin tins. I loved them because you get pie crust all the way around the filling! They were the perfect little bite of dessert! Well, we may have had more than “one bite,” but you get my drift! They were so easy to make!

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Delicious Frozen Peanut Butter Pie Recipe for Any Gathering

September 29, 2025September 29, 2025 RefreshHer2 Comments

How thankful I am to be a part of my church – Boones Creek Bible Church. It’s a church filled with believers who love the Lord, His Word and have a burden for the lost. It’s not perfect, of course, and that is also true of the members (this one included!). But it’s the Gospel that keeps us united and has kept the doors open for all these years.

Yesterday we had the blessing of celebrating the church’s 69th anniversary – all of His grace. It was a sweet joy to hear the testimony of Jerry Partin, the son of the man who had a huge part in starting the church. He happens to be Willie Partin’s father. If you’ve attended camp at all at The Wilds, you know Willie. He was also in our service yesterday. He preached the message. Hebrews 12 was his text – It was a powerful reminder to keep our eyes on Christ and persevere. Oh, how easy it is for me to get my eyes on people and become disappointed, or to look at my struggles and get “weary and discouraged in my soul!” It’s only by looking at our Savior and knowing that He is greater and better that I can press on! I pray that truth encourages you, too!

We had a church dinner afterwards, of course, and it was delicious, and a sweet time of fellowship. I took a few dishes, two of which are favorites.

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baking · hospitality · Hostess Goals · Pie · Uncategorized

A Quiet Respite Served with Christian Hospitality

September 15, 2025September 13, 2025 RefreshHerLeave a comment

Happy Monday, friends! We were on the road this past weekend with D and D ministries. It was a joy to speak at a church staff training and encourage the folk regarding their ministries where they serve. I had the blessing of speaking to the women in a split session. Dale preached three times on Saturday and three times on Sunday. I guess you could say we jumped into the fall schedule with both feet! It was a blessing!

We stayed overnight in the home of Church members, and we were served so sweetly. Our gracious hosts served in such a way that made it seem easy. Yet it’s humbling to be the guest because I know how much work goes into that. I always pray for our hosts the week before we go, knowing the load that they carry.

The gracious people who housed us worked ahead before we got there. I could see it in every detail.

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cakes · Celebrations

Chocolate Cake From Scratch – Easy and Delicious!

September 8, 2025September 7, 2025 RefreshHerLeave a comment

Birthdays and cake just go together! I think it would be a sad celebration without one! When my girls asked me to make a cake for our family vacation and family celebration, I looked at lots of options, then landed on our long-time favorite – Triple Chocolate Cake. I think deciding which cake to make was harder than actually making it! First on the list was making sure I had all the ingredients on hand. That didn’t mean a run to the store because I am enjoying the blessing of occasionally having my Kroger grocery order delivered. I was able to get a rate for being a Kroger Boost member $35 for the year. That allows me to have groceries delivered the next day at no charge. For the most part it’s been wonderful. Why?

It keeps me home.
If I forget something, it allows me to add things to my order up to about two hours prior to my delivery time.
For the most part, I’ve gotten everything I’ve ordered.

However, a happy accident happened when the Devil’s Food Cake Mix didn’t show up in my delivery. I was planning to make the cake layers for the Triple Chocolate Cake on that day. Since I didn’t want to undo the blessing of the delivery, I went looking for a cook chocolate cake recipe that I could make from scratch instead. The happy accident was that the recipe I baked made the Triple Chocolate cake recipe so much better that I’ll never use that box mix again!

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dessert · Uncategorized

Lemon Pudding Cakes Recipe: Perfect for Any Occasion

August 4, 2025August 3, 2025 RefreshHerLeave a comment

We had the sweet blessing this weekend of enjoying dinner at our daughter and son-in-law’s when they were hosting some of our precious missionaries. I love fellowship with my girls and their husbands in their homes. They are both terrific homemakers, cooks and bakers, and it’s a joy to watch them serve their families and others with their gifts.

When Alli invited us to join them for dinner, I asked what I could bring to contribute to the meal. She said she hadn’t planned anything for dessert, if I would like to make something sweet. I was happy about that!

She told me she was making baked chicken thighs, mashed potatoes, asparagus, carrots and rolls. Since it was going to be a filling menu, I wanted to bring something that tasted a little light. Suddenly, a recipe came to mind that I hadn’t made in a good while – Lemon Pudding Cakes.

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