angry chicken

waffle brunch

We had my brother over last weekend for brunch and made a waffle bar-

I made a few different types of waffles. He brought the fake moustaches.

In that special way my brother experiences life, he made the best waffle sandwich ever using two different types of waffles, sausage, chocolate sauce, maple syrup, strawberries and whipped cream. The girls were ecstatic.

I love using these waffle recipes. Everything I have made from King Arthur's site and the cookbook I have has been rock solid. The whole grain cookbook has taught me so much. Like using orange juice to help balance the tannic flavors, and other really interesting hints. I keep going back to it.

And now I want to do this all again for Mother's Day! I need to make a chocolate waffle, pronto.

breakfast

I read once, long ago (I don't remember where) that there was no point in having a blog if you can't show what you had for breakfast. This was before Instagram. But I think it's true for both. So here's my breakfast. I have even blogged about this particular breakfast before (recipe here.) I make these often and I feel they warrant another mention. I call them Dutch Babies, which sounds like I am eating a small human from the Netherlands, but that's what we always called them growing up. I feel like I am cheating when I make these because they are so easy. I usually have it with maple syrup, jam, and lemon. And powdered sugar. Pete and I split half. So far the girls aren't interested, which is a good thing, because we only have one cast iron pan.

• Thank you so much for even more book suggestions in the comments of the last post. I hope to include them in the list too. (She said optimistically.)

• This book list reminded me of these music suggestions in an awesome list complied by you all, from a bit back.

• I get mad at linen. I always sew with it but try a bunch of tailored details and then it's hard to execute and gets off grain and hangs weird, so I am making some linen pieces and letting them be what they want to be—simple with few seams and darts. I'm just going to let the Hobbit out with these projects. I made a simple pair of elastic waist cropped pants that turned out great. And who wants to pay $89 for these?

• I would like to make some lime curd very soon. I got some at Cost Plus and know I can do better. I always make lemon curd, it's time to shake it up. I have been meaning to try grapefruit, too.

• Grammie has her last chemo appointment this week. What a long haul. She has soldiered on with humor, grace, bravery, and sass. She is a true inspiration to me. I think a dessert for her containing coconut is in order.

 

lime coconut muffins (really, they are cupcakes.)

I had some coconut milk left over, but not much so it found its way into muffins. I liked these much more than everyone else in the house, but the kids don't really dig lime/coconut anything, so I wasn't surprised. I used this basic recipe, which I love. I used coconut milk instead of regular milk and then made a thin glaze with a whole lot of lime juice and rind. I didn't have any. They are so good. They have become glazed cupcakes in my mind, no longer muffins. This photo makes them look sad and washed out (the instagram doesn't always work for me on the blog) but they didn't look like this in real life,  were very pretty. And they kept well.

• The other morning I laughed so hard at the podcast interview on By the Way, In Conversation wth Jeff Garlin with Lena Dunham that I got an eye twitch. (thanks for the tip in the comments last post!)

• My knitting is going, I am 2/3rds done with the first sleeve of the sweater for the 8-year old, but got distracted with Easter and sewing a gingham skirt, which ended up having 3 different waistband treatments before I settled for a basic straight in front/gathered in back. I hacked into this thing so much, it was really a process. I liked it so much I kept altering it and almost wrecking it. Which reminds me of my brother telling me, when I asked him where all his beloved Star Wars figures went from his youth, that as a boy he set them on fire because he loved them so much and wanted to see what they looked like melted. And then he was sad.

• I'm not reading any fiction right now, and I need to start something, pronto. If you have a compelling but not too depressing or sad suggestion, please share.

delivered cappuccinos and alec baldwin

I have been listening to podcasts in my early morning walks around the house with my back thing. One of my favorites (along with This American Life—any episode from any time) is Alec Baldwin's Here's the Thing. This interview with Paula Pell is so dang funny and interesting to me. Everyone he interviews is fascinating. I think Brian Williams just sounds like the niceset guy ever. There's also this video thing Jerry Seinfeld has Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. Which is just what it sounds like. My brother told me about it. The one with Alec Balwid is really funny. It's the only one I've seen, actually. I'm saving them. But come on Jerry, where's the funny women? They drink coffee!

And why is there not a delivery espresso truck in existence? I think this is a great idea. Like for right now, at 6:31 am. They could drive up and make it to order. I know the average sale price wouldn't be enough to offset the gas. But I can still dream. Maybe it could be like an ice cream truck. It could just cruise around playing some cool early morning music. (Christopher Cross.) I could have a standing order, like 3 times a week they could come by between 6-8am. I could have a tab. And it's Portland, so it wouldn't be from a truck, it would be from a bike. Wait. Does this exist? I think it might. If it gets weird, it probably already exists here. I need to do some research. But now that I think of it, there would need to be plumbing, right? And electrical. Would a Vanagon work for this? Man. I know some people can make their espresso drinks at home, but a hardcore 5oz dry cappuccino requires tools I just don't have.

homemade creamsicle buttermints

We made buttermints from scratch today using the recipe here.

I got the idea for this from Mariko who showed some she made on instagram. She's usually behind my craziest food making urges— items that are totally silly, and fun to make. I was going to use the recipe I found at Land O' Lakes, but used the one I linked to instead, which ended up being the one from the book Mariko used, I believe. These are not mint flavored, but flavored with orange and vanilla. The orange extract I got at New Seasons, it's all natural, which is great. The vanilla extract I make and have a lot of it so I use it in everything. These taste exactly like the frosting on the orange hostess cupcakes that I love, minus the creep chemical aftertaste.

These are a light yelow. I think more of an orange color would be better. I realize they look a lot like gnocchi, but I assure you, they are candy. That white stuff is powdered sugar. That's my 5 year old with the knife. They are so pleasing to make. It's like playdough, only softer and you can flavor and dye it any color. Endless possibilities! It's really just a buttercream frosting with a lot of powdered sugar. So simple. And so not needed in our house. I pop a few of these and chase it with mini-pretzels and a slug of coffee.

food meant to look like eggs but are not eggs

I'm trying to collect images of faux-egg edibles when I can. I didn't buy these, but I think I should. They look both delicious and nasty. And, I'd like to make these egg shaped cakes with the lemon curd filling. My grandmother would be so proud if I did. I'm sad to say my ability to eat more than one Cadbury creme egg a year is gone, but I can still eat multiples of the caramel ones.

But wait, Happy St. Patrick's Day! We also celebrated Pi Day last week with 3 different types of pie. We didn't go to Pie Spot, I was worried it would be insane, but I highly recommend going. Last time I was there I almost cried a little the mini pies (pie holes) were so good.

whole grain flour blend in a huge jar

For a long time I used to buy all the little bags of various flours at Bob's Red Mill and keep them in the  freezer and then add them to whatever I am baking. The thing is, they make a mess (because I tear them open like a deranged squirrel) and for one recipe I might pull out 5 flours and it was just making me crazy, so a few years ago, after receiving a few HUGE glass jars from my grandparents' belongings, I got smart, and filled it with a whole grain flour blend I make every so often. I keep it in the fridge, so when I need it, 5-6 flours are in one spot, already mixed and ready to go.

This comes with some limitations I've gotten used to. Because I don't ever write down what's in there, or how much, I can't exactly reproduce it. Also, I use this blend in almost everything I bake, which isn't always a perfect choice, but I'm just not that picky, and for the most part it's really good. Fancy light cakes and biscuits/scones don't work well with this blend. But for almost everything else I bake, it's lovely.

I use 1/2 the amount of required flour with the homemade blend and 1/2 with unbleached white. Then I usually have to add a bit more liquid. It's really forgiving in muffins, cookies, brownies, gingerbread, pancakes, waffles, cornbreads and quickbreads. Anything chcocolate is great, just nothing that needs to be light and airy.

In my mix right now is (from what I rememeber and the amounts might be different):

• 1 part Whole Wheat Flour
• 1/4 part Buckwheat Flour (this makes the batter turn a bit blue, which you can't see in this photo)
• 1 part Oat Flour
• 1 part Teff Flour
• 1/4 part Rye Flour

I like the muffin recipes from King Arthur and Smitten Kitchen, I don't always add the fruit I just use them as a base.

raspberry-marzipan tart

I made another dessert from the December Martha, this time a raspberry-marzipan tart. It was very good. I made no changes, except I did cook it about 12 minutes longer and used a slightly small pan, so it was taller. I actually chilled it overnight and then served it room temperature Christmas evening. It was a huge hit and I was told it tasted "fancy-bakery good".

Speaking of Martha-ish stuff, I may be the last one to know that Everyday Food is no longer. December was the last issue. It looks like there will be supplements in some of the Martha magazines and a strong online presence, but no more monthly digests. Bummer. The first 5 years were golden, in my book—I have them all. I collected them sporadically after that, but I still go through the first few years often. They are Pete's favorite to cook from and for my 10 and 8 year-old they are perfect for learning to cook. The one-page short ingredient list with photos couldn't be more appealing to them. And they are so easy for them to hold and read from. I try to have them take turns, once a week, picking an entree, side dish, and dessert to make for the family, with help, but they need help less and less. It's pretty wonderful. They don't always eat what they make but they always give it a real try if they have made it themselves.

Unrelated-

• I'm about 1/3rd into that sweater and am thrilled to be so far. It's a great project for me right now.
• I have started sewing a costume (we are studying the war of 1812) for my middle child
• I am adding movies to my Netflix so I don't forget what I was interested in watching last year. I am using this list over here.

custom wrapping paper

This is sort of spoiler for my brother, but I'm not sure how often he reads my blog so I'm showing it. Last night I was doing some wrapping and remembered all the science fiction book covers I spotted on flickr a bit back (long story) and as an life-ling science fiction fan, I knew he'd dig this custom paper. I printed out some images onto plain printer paper and there you go. The gifts I wrapped are small enough that one sheet fit perfect—I sure wasn't going to make a trip to the copy shop for over-sized sheets, but if I muster up the energy to do that one day, that would look cool, too. I love wrapping paper from photographs.

Life has been full of hard stuff lately, culminated by this horrible shooting back east and this awful local shooting at a mall here in town. Our family has been dealing with some very challenging health issues (not me) around here and there's a long road ahead—I'm just very sad and tired. Baking cookies has really helped. And wrapping gifts. And talking to friends. I also made this butterkuchen from the December Martha and it is really really good. And for all the sadness out there, this tonglen meditation I link to in this post really helps me, for others' pain and my own.

gift factory—seasoned salts

Making flavored salts has been on my list since I got some matcha salt from mariko years ago. I love it to death. It's so good on eggs, I almost cry a little every time I eat it.

So, I had these jars (a lot of them, for a possible new skincare product, long story) and wanted to use a few of them for gift containers so I can be less self-conscious about how many I have in the garage. This became a thing—trying to figure out what to put in the jars for holiday gift-giving. I didn't want to give sugar scrub this year so the seasoned salts won. I made 4 different kinds, combos that were quick and easy to make that didn't involve drying lemon rind or roasted garlic. They are also tasty and versatile. I used fine sea salt. I was going to use flake sea salt, but wasn't sure if everyone would like the chunkier salt texture. The flavors I made:

• Chipotle & Cinnamon salt
• Coriander Salt
• Cumin Salt
• Matcha Salt

For the cumin and coriander salt I toasted whole seeds and ground them. For the other two, I just mixed it in with the salt as is. I used 1 cup salt and about 8 teaspoons total spice/tea, which seems to work great, but I think this ratio is pretty forgiving. I have been using them all on soups, stews, tofu, toast, pasta, rice, fish and eggs. The chiptole & cinnamon would be great in a chocolate bark. Look out!

Here are some reference links I used-

• very pretty jars of seasoned salt in Country Living with recipes
• clear and simple seasoned salt recipes from She Knows
• how to make matcha salt (thanks for this markio!)

gift factory—hot cocoa mix in a jar

The girls wanted to make their own gifts for friends and family this year all by themselves, so we have been having little gift factory parties. I try to do this with just one child at a time, so they get some one-on-one time and we can more easily thwart disaster.

The middle child wanted to give "something in a jar" and she got hot cocoa mix last year that had both mini-chocolate chips and mini-marshmallows and hasn't stopped talking about it since, so the answer was obvious. She made a master batch of hot cocoa mix:

• 1 cup sugar
• 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa

scooped it into each jar, about half-full, and then topped it off with mini-chocolate chips and mini marshmallows. I tried to get her to add cinnamon or peppermint oil, but she is a purist. To make the actual hot cocoa, I think it's easier to add the whole amount in the jar to almost boiling milk and stir like crazy. The amount above makes 8 cups, but depending how big your jars are, it can vary. I think these jars would make 2 cups of hot cocoa, depending on how sweet you want it.

The circle punch I happen to have fit the lids perfect. Crafty-stars aligned.

I love making things in jars. For more inspiration/ideas I searched "in a jar" in pinterest. It's almost too much. Sometimes I don't even go to pinterest just because I feel too excited/overwhelmed. Like a cat with catnip, minus the napping schedule.

We are now approaching the time of year when I am making gifts I can't show lest I spoil the surprise, and when I am sewing costumes for the Nutcracker the girls are in, so I am fitting this in with everything else, which always seems ill-advised. This year it's a party girl dress. I have already told them it's not ours to keep, so I'm sure I will be sewing a keeper soon.

kugelhopf!

This recipe for a chocolate kugelhopf is in the newest issue of Martha (December 2012) All the desserts in this section are inspired by a recent trip Martha took to Belgium. The dark and moody photos in the magazine are stunning. I love desserts that use yeast. It's all very exciting to me.

I made this over the long weekend. It has been a while since a used a dough like this. It's pretty rich and wet, but it all came out beautifully. I didn't deviate from the recipe at all, except I omitted the raisins, because really, there would have been a revolt in my house if I had put them in. I also didn't use bittersweet chocolate, but semi-sweet, because that's what I had.

It's wonderful toasted with jam, or just butter. Of course, it's great plain with strong coffee. There is someone in the house that eats it toasted with peanut butter. It's a keeper and so impressive to make—very rewarding. When it came out of the oven and was sitting on the counter, I felt like I had an exciting house guest. I guess one that I would eat?

In other excitement, we have been having a ton of fun making cards/gift tags with these fabulous stamp sets by Yellow Owl Workshop. Here are all the holiday items they have, which are outstanding.

Indian stew (under the puff pastry)

This is that Indian stew I made that was under the puff pastry a bit back. Or something very similar. We eat this or some variation of it a whole lot. This time I was out of puff pastry, so it's topless. I make it with whatever we have but I always start the same way (I don't always eat it out of a cracked bow that is over 13 years old, but it adds a rustic charm, so there you go):

• 1 onion, diced
• chopped garlic
• 1 teaspoon Garam Masala
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric

I saute all this in a saucepan with a bit of oil for a few minutes and then add a can of diced tomatoes, and veggies—in this case carrots, a diced potato, peas and diced tofu (the tofu I add at the beginning with the onion to brown)

I bring it all to a simmer and cook, until it seems done, about 20 minutes, a bit longer if I use a potato.Then I add about 1/2 cup plain yogurt at the end. And sometimes chopped cilantro. Again, I use whatever—zucchini, garbanzo beans, sweet potato, cauliflower, you name it. This is pretty lightly spiced for the kids, which they appreciate.

If I'm adding puff pastry, I drape it over the pan and pop it in the oven for about 30 minutes. I think around 400 degrees, but you can check your puff pasty directions.

Also food related-

For Thanksgiving I'm making a salad I made last year (or two years ago) that is simple and so delicious— Fennel-and-Endive Salad with Pomegranate Seeds and Walnuts.

 

puff pastry introduction

Until recently, I had never cooked with puff pastry. I was talking to Melissa about this. I'm not sure why, it just wasn't a thing I ever thought to cook with. This is my third dish using puff pastry, all have been savory so far. I made a simple pizza-like dish. And then I made this indian stew in a cast iron pan and topped it with a sheet and baked it for 30 minutes. Wow!! So delicious. And so fancy. I'm looking at this next. I have no desire to make the puff pastry from scratch, yet. But who knows. I thought about crackers once, too.

The newly turned 8-year old got an instamax mini film camera for her birthday from her uncle and we are freaking out over all the accessories at MochiThings. Like these stickers that are cut perfectly to fit over the plain white film border. Cute attack!

berry long cake and musings about stuff

This is the Berry Long Cake with Ginger Crumb, from the Vintage Cakes book. (The recipe is here, scroll down) I have a backlog of desserts I have made from this book to show. This is that wonderful combination of not-too-sweet-berry-good-for-breakfast-type of dessert I love. My changes— I added less berries, because mine were frozen and I didn't want them to make the whole cake too wet, and added about 10 minutes to the cooking time. Delicious.

We have a child in the house turning 8 today. Big stuff! Her Dad took her ice skating, which is awesome. I take them roller skating, and he does the ice skating, so it works out. I love the idea of ice skating, but feel like my shins are going to explode when I actually do it.

I have been sewing a lot, but weird/funny things like 8 pairs of stretch pants in jewel tones for a dance recital. I did sew a skirt for myself inspired my this beauty at Boden and am knitting hat #2 of the season. And I bought yarn for the sweater—I am that much closer to starting it. But then I went to the needlework shop today and decided to start some cross-stitch ornaments (in my mind) and so now that the 8 pairs of jazz pants are done, I got busier (in my mind). And there's our first b-day slumber party part coming up this weekend, and also I got called for jury duty next week, which is a special challenge as a homeschooler (that excuse was denied, I'm tempted to take them with me) so there you go.

soul cakes ( sort of )

I made some Soul Cakes for All Souls' Day today. I love symbolic food in a big way and I am intrigued by the history of Soul Cakes. I grew up hearing the Peter Paul and Mary version of A' Soalin'. You can listen to it here—so beautiful, it gives me chills.

These Soul Cakes are not very authentic. They are spiced scones, shaped round, and instead of currants they have mini chocolate chips. This is because the children that live here who go souling like this flavor better. There are lot of recipes online.

About that song (From Wikpedia):

In 1963, the American folk group Peter, Paul and Mary recorded a version of this traditional song, titled "A' Soalin," whose verses include the following:

Soul, soul, a soul cake!
I pray thee, good missus, a soul cake!
One for Peter, two for Paul,
Three for Him what made us all!
Soul cake, soul cake, please good missus, a soul cake.
An apple, a pear, a plum, or a cherry, any good thing to make us all merry.
One for Peter, two for Paul, and three for Him who made us all.

easy homemade chocolate candy (bark)

When Pete and I have a sweet tooth, usually right before bed, we end up standing in the kitchen trying to manage the perfect handful of chocolate chips and roasted almonds. It's an awkward balance and feels pretty lame and desperate. So, my 5-year old and I made some bark to rectify this and it was so easy and so good, I am now kind of scared.

I have made bark before, but usually white chocolate with peppermint pieces for gifts during christmas. I like it fine but am not tempted by it, which is good. I also make a ton of chocolate fudge and again, I like it, but it's not my thing, so I don't get all crazy about it.

This is my thing.

• For this batch I melted 1/2 a bag of Trader Joe's semi-sweet chocolate chips. I love this brand more than I can say and wouldn't make it with anything else. They are cheap and I don't need to worry about tempering the chocolate and I always have them in the pantry and I just love the flavor of this chocolate.

• Then I added a large handful of salted, roasted, almonds.

• I poured/spread it in a 9" round greased cake pan then I finished it with a light sprinkle of fleur de sel and cinnamon/sugar sprinkle on top.

• I chilled it 30 minutes, banged it out and broke it into chunks. I keep the chunks in a glass container in the fridge. The salt is so good. I'm also going to try a chocolate bark with crystallized ginger, or chipotle powder, espresso powder, you know—all the flavors I love in fancy chocolate bars. Dangerous stuff I tell you!

and here I am on TV talking about how I don't use shampoo.

 

Over-sharing again!!

You can watch me discuss baking soda, apple cider vinegar, and no more dandruff right here. I was interviewed by the funny and friendly Jenny Hansson, our local KOIN channel 6 reporter, and it aired two nights ago.

Thanks for recording it Grammie!

If you want more information, here's a very clear easy-to-read post on exactly how to use baking soda instead of shampoo. I didn't write this, but have linked to it before, and it covers everything.

And just so you know, I do use hairspray (homemade, the recipe is in my apothecary class and in emailorder #11) and do dye my hair (henna for the all over color and bleach for the occasional streak.)

cookbooks in a vaction rental and an ATC swap!

I didn't take this book home of course, but read it several times when we were in Sunriver. It was outstanding. I love looking at cookbooks in vacation houses or rentals. Not like we are in a ton of rented vacation homes, but you know. It feels different than the piles of cookbooks at a thrift shop, because these were put there for a reason, they have been collected and used. They might not be an A-list cookbook, but they still have been kept. I love the emphasis on International here.The cover is pretty great. I also have a soft spot for self published group cookbooks, so I did buy one at the High Desert Museum, put together by its members. Also in this house there was a cookbook based on episodes of I Love Lucy. The Vitameatavegamin was appropriately boozey. Classic.

Unrelated ATC excitement!

Remember long ago when wise craft and house on hill road did that kids ATC swap? Well, I didn't know it, but it has been carried on and now is organized by bright eyes + blue eyes. We are signing up now! Ages 4-12! I can't image the work that goes into organizing this, so thank you for doing it, ellie and abby. And outside of the USA kids are especially encouraged to join-up, too!

lazy daisy oatmeal cake

This is the first cake I made from Vintage Cakes. I didn't sample this one at the tasting/book signing, but was so intrigued by the description in the book I made it first thing. All the recipes in this book are historical with a clever and delicious spin. This is a pretty simple oatmeal cake, with the tasty addition of coconut milk. The shredded coconut frosting is poured on top after it's baked and then it's broiled. Thrilling! It was the most exciting thing I had done that week. It was so good (understatement) and even better the next day for breakfast. A winner for sure.

• My Sadie turned 10 yesterday! Unreal. She and my brother share a birthday. He is such a good sport, always coming to a party with a gaggle of girls on his special day, too. He's the master of gift giving—the glow-in-the-dark silly string and Magic 8 Ball were the hit of the Old-timey Prairie themed party.

• I'm excited to try the Juniper pants and Anise Jacket by Colette Patterns. The pants are so elegant and the jacket is classic. I'm tempted to lengthen the jacket for myself, and see if I can increase the rise on the pants making them a little higher waisted. I have one more Halloween costume to finish first. I am up to my eyes in crushed stretch velvet. 3 words that should probably never be used all together

friday cake - cinnamon vanilla with mocha frosting

We call this cake Friday Cake* but we don't always make it on a Friday. It's been a favorite for years because the kids can make it in a bowl with a wooden spoon, or even mix it in the pan. It's meant to eat right away, a few days old and it's not as good. It's a dense cake, not light and fluffy, but is perfect for customizing and when you need a simple cake, fast. I think we have made just about every flavor we can think of. We don't always frost it. For a coffee cake, I add chocolate chips and cinnamon and a quick crumb topping. For a chocolate cake version I swap out 1/4 cup of the flour for unsweetened powder. I've added spices and nuts, swirled in jam, added lemon or orange zest—all that.

I printed recipe cards for this years ago that went with mailorder #3 and that's what we still use as the basis for this. I love it that all three girls can make it on their own. It's almost as magical as an easy-bake oven! But much better tasting. And becasue it makes a small 8" x 8" cake, it's easy to let them decide whatever they want to do. Usually there are sprinkles involved. It's small and easy to eat with no big commitment. It's just a Friday Cake.

The cake:

• 1 1/4 cups flour (I swap in up to a 1/2 cup of random whole grain flours)
• 1 cup sugar (we often mix half brown sugar half white)
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 cup sour cream or plain yogurt
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup butter, melted (or oil)

• Mix it all directly in the greased  8"X 8" pan or in a bowl. It will be dry and sticky. Smooth it as best you can. Bake at 375° for 25-30 minutes. Check after 25 minutes, you know your oven better than I do.

To finish:

Your favorite glaze, frosting, or dusting of powdered sugar. I like to pour over hot caramel or fudge sauce. Or soft whipped cream on the side. Or bare naked. That's good too.

*I have an old blog post for a Friday cake, and while it is a real winner, it just happened to be made on a Friday, but is not what we mean when we say Friday Cake. I'm laughing that I have two different Friday Cake posts.

Pake (that's a pie inside a cake)

This pake was made for a recent event by mariko and when she told me she was bringing pake I thought it was a typo for cake, but no—it's a pie in a cake. It was very tasty and brought up several turducken references. I think she used a recipe similar to this one, but it basically was a small cherry pie cooked in chocolate cake mix and frosted with a whipped cream cream cheese frosting.

So wrong, yet so very right. Cutting into it was absolutely thrilling, I have never seen so many iphones in action so fast.

pudding cake of honey, cinnamon, & plums

This is the first thing I have made from Ripe, and it was really good. I made this a few weeks ago. I baked it about 15 minutes longer than it called for, but besides that I kept to the recipe. I even had golden syrup, thanks to Cost Plus. We ate it with stiff whiped cream the girls made by shaking it up in a jar. It was almost butter actually, but I'm not complaining.

Unrelated:

• I am really in love with this dress from Suno. With these shoes.

• The Rhinestone Cowboy aprons are due soon for Tie One On—August 1st. Bedazzle it!

summertime vanilla lemonade

The girls asked if they could make lemonade and I said yes. We hadn't before, which I realized was weird. We always have lemons. And sugar. And two of them like to drink it. It was really fun! It actually kept them busy for a long time. I let them cut the lemons (with a small serrated knife) and juice away. They made the simple syrup in the microwave and then we added about a tablespoon of homemade vanilla extract, which was soooooo good. We used this recipe and just added the vanilla to taste. It makes it taste like a cream soda. Outstanding.

Sadie asked if we could have a lemonade stand and I was smirking at what we'd put on our sign "artisanal hand-crafted organic lemonade with fair-trade Madagascar vanilla beans steeped for 6 months—locally made and brewed in Portland, OR." Portlandia skit fodder. I'd have to figure out a way to make it bike-powered. Maybe a lemonade stand by bike? On bikes we built ourselves.

We grew up making lemonade with a scoop of Country Time and water from the hose, right? And that's how you make a profit, baby!

baked goods at an ice cream shop

The lines at the NW 23rd Salt & Straw have been pretty insane since they opened. We keep trying to go and keep leaving before we can get in. And then we talk about how it would be funny to buy a bunch of bad ice cream bars and try to sell them to all the people waiting in line. Salt & Straw makes pretty fancy ice cream, but ice cream isn't my favorite dessert, so it hasn't been a huge bummer for me. But then, a very trusted source told me that the NW location has baked goods that are outstanding. I was intrigued.

When we noticed last week in the middle of the day that there was no line out the door, we dashed in and were so overwhelmed with ice cream and topping choices (artisanal, super-fancy, flavors here) that in a panic we option for just baked goods and a double shot of espresso. It just wasn't ice cream time for any of us, but no one in my family will say no to a baked item. Ever. There were so many choices, all baked in house. The simple cinnamon sugar doughnut was perfect and the sweet (and slightly salty) orange filled donut almost made me cry a little bit. Now my plan is to only go when they open, early in the morning, and get coffee and the baked items. They sell pints of ice cream so I can always take some home.

I'm excited by the amazing sounding toppings. I like toppings and sauces more than ice cream and the idea of one of their toppings on some cake or a fruit dessert sounds so good, I wonder if I can just buy the toppings to take home? Or ask them to put a topping on a baked item I order. That might be a little weird, but I bet it would be so tasty! Actually that would be so wrong and funny—if I ordered a donut with a topping. I am totally doing that next time I go in. "Can you please just pour it in the hole. . ."

4th of july and a special relationship with a dessert

We had a lovely 4th of July with family at my Aunt and Uncle's annual archery contest up in Sandy, near Mt. Hood. I was not shooting my best, but the food was delicious. The patriotic dessert table was a highlight as was holding newborn babies, bringing home 2 dozen fresh eggs, and falling in love with a pygmy goat.

I made this red white and blue trifle. I bonded with it and now am thinking about endless variations. Even though I am a huge tiramisu fan (or maybe because of that?) anything with ladyfingers. It feels so magical—layering ingredients, chilling, and voilà, it becomes a cake! It reminds me of the thrill I get making zebra cake.

I gave a lot of thought (too much, some might say) as to what I should bring to this event. I always bring a side dish and a dessert, usually a buckle, pie, or cake. They travel welI and are always popular. But, I was itching to do something different. I also wanted it to be red, white and blue. And it had to travel. There were issues. I decided putting the finished trifle (while still in the pan) into a cold cooler was key. It's a long drive.

The benefits of the trifle were many—it was super fast to make the night before and required no baking. Serving it was easy. It sliced into tidy pieces because it was still cold, so it never looked pre-chewed the way some desserts look when sitting out too long being hacked into for hours. It also used up a lot of hoarded berries making room for berry hoarding this year.

I stuck to the recipe. A spring form pan is crucial. I used a mix of frozen berries that I had and didn't worry about making one layer red and one blue. It was all good.

I did use purchased mascarpone but next time I will make it myself from this wonderful book because (A) I can. (B) I had to buy heavy cream for this, so why not just buy a bit more? 'Cause that's all mascarpone is — cream and vinegar and some time. And the almost $5 for 7 oz. was irritating.

As much as I loved the clean and simple flavors of this dessert, after eating it, I felt a strong urge to add chocolate. If fact, the next day chased a piece with chocolate chips and it was even better. At least in my mouth it was. I love berries and semi-sweet chocolate, so I think a chocolate ganache drizzle between layers would be lovey, or maybe chocolate ganache served on the side to drizzle on top. That would be perfect. So there's a choice to chocolate-it-up, or not.

Let's pretend I am hitting a bullseye here.

Ripe.

I received this breathtaking book from a dear friend for my birthday, Ripe: A Cook in the Orchard, by Nigel Slater and can't stop looking at it. It's a tome. Organized by type of fruit, it has both savory and sweet dishes and the photography is stunning. I haven't made anything from it yet, but intend to. It's just so nice to look at and read I almost forget I can cook from it.

So, in that funny way of things converging at the same time, a friend of mine last night at dinner was talking about her love of toast as a food group (I concur!) and then asked if I had seen the movie Toast, made from a memoir. No, I have not, but it sounds good, I said. And then she mentioned that it's a biography of Nigel Slater and I said I didn't know who that was because see, my brain is a sieve, and now I see that I do know who he is—he wrote this amazing book I have been poring over. Ha! And now I plan to read Toast and see the movie and check out all his other books, too. Perfect summer research.

berry maple syrup

This challah french toast with raspberry maple syrup was made for father's day. This is a father's day size portion.

We make it so often, it's not really all that special, but it is that special. It's hard to make something new when we love this so much. What tipped the scale for us years ago was when, having an abundance of frozen berries on hand (I am a berry hoarder), I thew a handful of berries in the maple syrup when I was heating it up. And then angels started to sing. I actually get sad thinking about all the years we didn't eat french toast, or pancakes, with berry maple syrup. Maybe everyone already does this? But I didn't for years. I'd add jam or berries on top, but never mashed up berries warmed with the maple syrup.

To make:

While I am making the french toast, I throw frozen berries in a glass pitcher, add maple syrup, and then heat it up in a little pot of boiling water, or even easier— for 2 minutes in the microwave. I give it a good mash and that's it. Any left over is kept in the fridge to add to yogurt, granola, and whatever seems it would be good with. So simple. I have made it with pretty much every berry, but I think raspberries are my favorite.

 

Unrelated:

I keep looking at these photos from Where Children Sleep: Portraits from Around the World. So fascinating.

celebratory desserts

For my 40th we had a shindig and it was pretty wonderful. Desserts were brought and consumed with much enthusiasm. I need to take a moment to document these wonderful offerings—mostly for myself so I don't have to dig around and pester people later trying to remember where these recipes came from.

• The Black Forest Trifle was outstanding and was also enjoyed with coffee for breakfast the next morning. The recipe is here. 

• The Lemon Rhubarb Bundt cake was stellar in every way. It's from Rustic Fruit Desserts. Both of these were made by Melissa, who has identical dessert tastes as mine. This has served us well on many occasions. She kindly snapped this photo.

• I made a yellow cake with orange rind and studded with chocolate and frosted it with espresso chocolate buttercream frosting. For this I used a standard yellow cake recipe, added the rind of one orange and some chocolate bits to the batter. To the chocolate frosting I added 2 teaspoons of instant espresso powder. It's shown here with the "40" sign.

• Ooey-Gooey Browines (not shown) were made and brought by my mother-in-law and have been a favorite of ours for years. They are always a winner.

• Homemade Twix bars (not shown) from Emily were devoured at lightning speed. I even saw some of the adults swipe half-eaten abandoned ones off of kids' plates. They were that good. She links to the recipe in this post.

Unrealted to desserts:

Nick Waterhouse was on heavy roation and I can't say enough how much I am loving his newest album.

cabbage and tofu salad with peanut-lime magic sauce

This is one of my new favorite salads this summer. I have made it 3 times in the last 6 weeks. I need to stop or I will burn out on it.

It came about from laziness and my inability to go to the store. I had a bag of pre-chopped cabbage slaw, which I usually don't buy, but how wonderful it is! I just dumped it in the bowl and didn't have to deal with the extra cabbage I always have when I buy a whole head. Then I fried some tofu and made my magic sauce. I blogged about magic sauce a bit back, this version I made a bit thicker, with equal portions of peanut butter and salsa, quite a bit of honey, lime juice, crushed garlic, and hot sauce. I made about one cup of sauce for the whole bag of slaw.

After eating tofu for what seems like forever, only recently have I been happy with frying it at home. I got smart and cut it into big slabs, so there is way less turning of tiny pieces. Then I heat up oil, more than I think I need, and let them brown on medium high, which always takes longer than I think. About 7 minutes per side. They crisp up so nice. Then I cut the slabs into smaller pieces. I have been buying this high protein, extra firm, sprouted tofu packed in water. It's organic and non-gmo creepy. And it's cheap. I have bought it at both New Seasons and Trader Joe's.

I fold the sauce, slaw, and cut up tofu together in a bowl and then let it sit overnight to breakdown. It seems like a huge amount when you make it, but it really deflates and makes about 4 generous lunch portions. I like it both cold and room temperature.

Thanks for all the thoughtful birthday wishes! I had a great one. 40 is pretty awesome so far.

fennel apple salad with other stuff in it

There was a ton of amazing homemade food at the wedding in the woods we just got back from and one of the salads was an apple fennel slaw. I think I blogged about a similar slaw last year, but here it is again in a different form. I made this variation with what I had and then added some more to it.

The basic slaw is:

• sliced fennel, apple and a ton of lemon juice (the mandoline slicer is key)

To this I added:

• a drizzle of olive oil, grated Parmesan, salt, pepper, blueberries, avocado and butter lettuce

It's delicious.

unrelated:

• I am loving the beauty and cleverness of these magnets made from gemstones over at Leif.

• I am reading A Visit from the Goon Squad and I really like it so far. The non-linear form requires a lot of attention and I am laughing at how hard this is for me at times. wait, what? which character is talking? who is she? what year is it? I thought they were dead?

what a pretty salad

With a lovely green goddess dressing From Little Bird here in Portland where we had a great dinner a few weeks back. Since eating this salad I have been buying more butter lettuce. And I don't feel bad about eating an entire head all myself. The self-titled salad at Grüner is also a favorite of mine.

baking time & links

About once a week or so, I let the two big girls bake by themselves if I can keep the almost five year old preoccupied. I let them make whatever they want to and and decorate it however they want to. This is a very festive cake for no reason. They used this recipe I link to in this old post and mixed it all by hand (no butter, just oil for easy mixing) but only used half the batter to fit an 8" x 8" pan. I try to help, but not help, if you know what I mean. Which is getting easier and is great for them.

These vintage candle holders are so sweet and I love the way they actually didn't put the candles in them.

Unrelated-

• Here's a huge cat

• A pretty dress by Suno

• Forest animal stamps, over at Cutetape

 

 

 

orzo & shrimp & cooking from back issues

I love going back through my first few years of Everyday Food. I know I've mentioned this before. I pull out all the ones I have for whatever month we are in and then try to make a few recipes from each. I also try to stick to the recipes as close as I can. Not amy-fy them by adding cumin or whatever. The issues are really meat heavy which isn't great for me personally, but have great sides/salads and desserts. This helps narrow the choices. Plus we love seafood. Also, husband loves to cook from them—they are very easy to follow. The girls like to help. Unless it stinks or is gross. Like the shrimp, in this case. But, here's the thing, they only ate the shrimp after all. So there.

We made this recipe from the well-worn issue #32, MAY 2006, It's baked shrimp with tomatoes and feta and the orzo and green beans. We made the following changes:

• For the baked shrimp and tomatoes, Pete used 2 cans diced tomotoes and did it all on the stovetop, he didn't bake it at all. Also, he used fresh shrimp. We didn't have any mint. The feta is key, and we used a good one.

• The orzo and green beans had twice as much lemon juice and about 1/3 cup grated Parmesan.

It was all very very tasty. The kids didn't like the orzo (it was the lemon) but buttered plain, it would be a winner I think. I just felt like pretending they would eat it as is, so I didn't give them that option. They loved the shrimp, especially if it didn't have too much "red stuff". Us adults loved everything a whole lot. Orzo! I don't think I've eaten this since 1992. Back when it was all pasta 24/7. Remember that?

shrub! (the drinking kind)

We were out last week at Pok Pok Noi, without the small people, and were actually able to sit at the bar and eat there. We ordered a drinking vinegar, pomegranate, and it was so good. I couldn't stop thinking about it. The food was great, too, of course, but I couldn't stop thinking about these drinking vinegars. I did a little research and yes, they are super easy to make— and so I made one. Here's a good link to what the heck these are.

The syrup recipe is 1 part fruit, 1 part sugar, and 1 part vinegar. In this case it was:

• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups frozen blackcap raspberries that we picked last summer
• 2 cups apple cider vinegar

There are so many recipes for shrub syrup, most use heat, but I used this cold batch recipe and the middle child helped me make it. You pour the sugar over the berries, mash it up, wait a few days, mash again, strain, add the vinegar, and then you have your finished syrup. I had read the sugar dissolves without heat eventually, and I was dubious, but it really did. The finished syrup is not grainy at all. You can make it with any fruit, Pok Pok even serves a celery one.

To make the drinking vinegar we were served (which was non-alcoholic) I used 1 part syrup to 4 parts soda water and a lot of ice. The cocktail kids know all about this stuff already, of course, because it's stellar as a mixer undiluted in drinks.

Ours turned out great. Not as sweet as the one we had at Pok Pok, but that's easy to adjust and I like it a bit more tart. The taste is hard to describe. Or maybe it's not. It tastes like super fresh sweet berries and vinegar. Why that tastes good is hard to describe. Grammie loves it and so does Pete. The girls won't get near it, it smells really strong. I have to also mention it has kind of a medical taste, you now? At least it does for me. It think it's because I had been drinking diluted apple cider vinegar for digestive health reasons before trying this, so I associate vinegar with that. I think I would wonder if I had made it correctly if I had not tried it at Pok Pok first.

This was a crazy internet loop to research. Making these shrubs at home seems to have been all the rage last summer, and all the recipes I found linked back to Pok Pok (which I need to clarify is a super popular thai food restaurant with several locations here in Portland that gets written up nationally all the time) which now sells their own concentrate, Pok Pok Som. So, I'm pretty late to the shrub party, but they still let me in! A happy coincidence—domestically, this drink was made popular during colonial times. Perfect for our theme right now! I have images of ordering a shrub in a colonial dress and mop cap at the super cool scene that is Pok Pok. Wait, did I just write my own Portlandia skit?

egg & olive tapenade sandwich

Over the holidays I went out by myself and perused some yarn shops, without my children, and found myself wandering over to Lovejoy Bakers. I went there when they first opened, and then about a year later, but it's not really in a part of town I am in a whole lot, so I kind of forget about it. And it's not a super easy place to sit with more than 2 people, and I usually have more than 2 people with me. But, I was alone, and could wait in line and perch on a tiny stool and be just fine, so I did.

I got the Russian Teacake cookie, which is my all time favorite cookie. I don't like to actually make them because I eat them all, so it's thrilling when I find a bakery that has them so I can just eat one and move on with my life. I'm not sure if they have them all year around, but they did in December. The real surprise on this visit was the very simple and ridiculous good egg, butter, and olive tapenade sandwich they serve on their slightly toasted ciabata roll. I ordered it randomly, it just sort of leapt out at me. The menu is kind of insane over there, so good it's hard to even know where to start. I should go back and make myself order a different item each time.

So, I ate this amazing sandwich and eavesdropped on all the great conversations and then forgot about it until this morning when I had a ciabatta roll looking at me on the counter and remembered that I had olive tampenade spread from trader joes in the refrigerator. I toasted up the roll, spread it with butter, added one scrambled egg, about a tablespoon of tapenade, a good amount of pepper and it was perfect breakfast.

I just wanted to share this becasue it was so easy and so good. Tapenade is one of those things I think you either love or not, it's hard to be neutral about it. I love it.

wild rice salad

After endless weeks of homemade soup I made a wild rice salad and it was such a nice change. I always mean to use wild rice, but always forget to. And I have tried to use radicchio more, but it's often too bitter for me. This salad was a definite winner (with us adult eaters).  Here's what I put in it:

• About 5 cups cooked wild rice. To cook this I boiled rice in a lot of water for about 22 minutes, strained it, returned it to the pot off the heat with the lid on, and let it sit while I get everything else ready.
• chopped green onions (about 4)
• finely chopped radicchio (about half a small head. finely chopped is key, here.)
• chopped parsley (about a 1/2 cup)
• 1-2 grated carrots
• a little bit of crumbled blue cheese (not necessary, but I like the tang.)

In the dressing was:

• 4 TBL olive oil
• 2 TBL red wine vinegar
• 1 TBL brown spicy mustard
• 1 TBL honey
• salt and pepper

Then I garnished it with my salad/soup/baking sprinkle. This is a mix of nuts and dried fruit I pre-chop in the food processor. I keep it in a jar in the fridge and add it to seemingly everything I eat. It's a bit different every time, but in this mix was:

• walnuts
• almonds
• pumpkin seeds
• dried cranberries

I add the sprinkle right before serving so the nuts stay crunchy. This salad is great cold but I like it better room-temp, even slightly warmed. The girls wouldn't even taste it. But 2 out of 3 of them did eat the curried soup I made today, so that's something.

unrelated to rice or salad:

I have been taking a modern dance class for about 2 months now and just added a modern/jazz class. This has been so amazing, humbling, and just incredibly awesome. I have been doing yoga pretty seriously for about 2+ years now and without that, I would have never been able to even sniff at these classes. But, I am totally hanging! I danced a tiny bit in high school and a tiny bit in college, but never seriously. I wasn't able to ever get started again after college, although I always missed it. I also felt like I'd never be in good enough shape to try it again without seriously injuring myself.

I had been doing yoga almost exclusively in my basement, with yogatoday.com and so being around live humans in a dance studio is so great and a huge change for me. And then there's the whole mirror thing, which I had forgotten about, there being none in my basement. There's a wide range of experience in these classes, some super experienced dancers and some very new ones. Some of the most amazing dancers are older than me, and being two months away from being 40, this is pretty dang inspiring. I am just feeling a huge wave of gratitude my body can move in this way. That's all.

Homemade BB cream

my homemade BB cream

I will cut to the chase for my preferring-to-not-read-long-blog-post friends. Here's what I mixed together to make my own BB cream. I didn't buy anything new— it's made from my favorite items I already had at home.

• moisturizer
• sunscreen
• liquid foundation (which had previously gone unused because it was way too light)
• a darker mineral foundation powder than I normally wear (to correct the too light liquid foundation, I was so glad I saved it.)
• silicone-free primer

So, what's a BB Cream? (Or, you may be saying, duh, I have been using one for like, a long time, and where have you been?)

Here's a description of what BB creams are. They are pretty much all face products mixed into one tinted cream. I have been using my homemade one for about two weeks and except for some separating (which doesn't really bother me, because it still smooths on fine) I like it a whole lot. I did use a sample of a real BB cream for about a week so I could see what I was trying to copy and mine seems just as good and matches my skin better. I didn't add any serums or any age-defying products to this, mostly because I like to use these products at night on clean bare skin, like the oil I sell (ahem.) I use this as an all-in-one make-up product, not a treatment.

Now the back story and a bunch of words:

It started off pretty innocently. I just asked a fellow make-up loving friend if she had used a BB cream. I had only just heard of them. Or noticed them, I guess. I was thinking about green eyeshadow or something else last year when I know I first heard about them, but then I forgot. But when I noticed an entire page dedicated to them on the Sephora site, I thought I better ask around.  Up until recently they were only available overseas—which is of course why my good friend had them already and had been using one for about 2 years. Because she's all about the hard to get items. And her skin always looks amazing.

So, I trekked off to Sephora to try one, one that seemed from the description a little less synthetic/chemical/ nasty than most, and found one I really liked by Boscia. There is only one color and it would be perfect for me in the summer, but I think it might be ever so slightly dark for me in the winter. Awesomely, Delia lost a front tooth while we were there trying on make-up and was treated like a princess and was given her own sample container for her tooth.

My homemade BB cream with the lid off

Using this sample had me very excited. An all-in-one? I was more than excited, actually, because it really did make my skin look more even and smooth, but not too done.  But I stressed about all the ingredients. Also I have so many products that I like and trust and have been using for years, it seemed too hard to give them up for one super-product. I then fell asleep (I was in bed) and woke up thinking "I can make my own."

Even before my slippers were on I realized, if I had thought of making my own BB cream, surely it's on youtube already. And I was right.

After watching a few videos of how to make your own BB cream, which were fascinating, kind of gross, but also informative, I tried it. And I really really like mine—better than the Bosica one, but I still like that one, too. I'm still using the generous sample I got. But it makes me look a bit tan, which I am not used to.

I have been a product mixer before. Especially in the summer. I do a quick mix on the back of my hand of all of these different combinations, as needed.

• moisturizer + mineral foundation = liquid foundation (coverage can be customized depending on how much mineral foundation powder I add)
• sunscreen + mineral foundation + moisturizer = tinted suncreen
• moisturizer + sunscreen = sunscreen which is easier to apply with some moisture (the natural ones can be hard to get on)

To make my own BB cream I just added more products. This was thrilling. To avoid making an icky mess (I am a bit of a neat freak about certain things, make-up being one of them), I mixed it all up in a little plastic baggy and then cut off a corner and squeezed it carefully into a sample container. I only mixed a small amount, which still has lasted 2 weeks, so I can fine tune it.

I thought about adding a serum, but I have heard it's difficult to have it mix in right, which makes sense, and serums (and straight oils) are too expensive and tricky to have the batch not work out. The best part of this homemade mix is using up the bits I had of items that were almost empty or not used for whatever reason. I made mine pretty light and wet, but it's easily thickened with mineral foundation powder. Which to me is a must in this, to give it some body and control the color better. The cream is really easy to layer and I have really liked using this under my eyes and even on my eyelids as a concealer and a base for eyeshadow.

A bit about mineral powder—I LOVE to use Alima products, they are so pure, I never stress about them in any way. I use their overshadows and foundations and blushes, and the sample of the foundations are the perfect size (and are only $1.50!) for adding to a BB cream mix. I use the full sizes, because I already have them, but I needed a darker one to correct my too light batch and the sample size was perfect.

Okay, then. I think I have exhausted this topic.

And just so you all know, I didn't get any of these items I link to for free. I'd tell you if I did. It's just me buying what I like and writing about it.

 

they wanted to learn about fruit

We were studying Einstein and fruit last month. For themes we tend to gravitate toward people and their historical context and then a non-human item, often unrelated, but sometimes not. There was Sacagawea and bridges a few months back and then Einstein and fruit and now we are on to Darwin and butterflies. They chose these themes and the mash-up is pretty funny. I often give a list of suggestions for the people (usually because I have a good biography stashed) and then the other topic gets announced. Or more often yelled with vigor.

So, after reading books about fruit trees, pollination, and all that, we all went to our nearby Asian market and picked out fruits, most of which were new to us. I wrote these all down and have the list somewhere. I was so happy I could do a quick search on everything we bought and see how to peel, cut, and eat it, because I had no clue for much of it and some of the skins and bits are not edible and will cause hives, or something else unpleasant.

The girls loved doing this. We had a big fruit tasting event, tried everything, they cut into them, smelled them, drew pictures of them and of course tasted them (they all did, even my most reluctant new foods eater, you know, in the name of science) and then we voted on the favorites. I took every last bit left over and saved it it the freezer for smoothies. This last shot is of the $10 dragon fruit. I am tempted to do this with veggies. And then fancy cheese.

 

paper craft fun times & random bits

 

A few kids' birthdays ago I printed these out and gave them away as party favors. I printed several different kinds—some of old cars and paper dolls. They all came from the agence eureka's paper craft set over here on flickr. I have linked to them before, and I just can't stop because they have provided us years worth of paper fun.

During a recent playdate there was a natural break and I took out the ones from the party that were never used and they were such a huge hit. I found them by accident, squirrelled away in a drawer. We use scotch tape for making all of these.

This one kills me and was the one my middle child went for. And it is so her.

Some random items-

• We just finished up a search and rescue dog theme, which culminated in us going to the Rose City Dog show last weekend which was crazy fun. We are now on to a double theme of Einstein and Fruit. We have been doing more double themes lately. The last one was Sacagawea and Bridges. I love the mash up of these themes and it works out really well with the multiple interests and makes for a pretty funny library run.

• Is anyone using a good "learn to type" program for their kids? I'm thinking on the computer. Sadie is typing like crazy with her electric typewriter and I'm guessing she would dig a lesson/program but have done no research. It's on my list.

• There is a new apron theme posted over at Tie One On.

• I made a lovely ginger pear sweet potato soup very similar to this. I didn't use the crystalized or powdered ginger, just fresh. In my bowl at the table I added chipotle powder for heat. The kids are coming around. One likes it! The adults love it.

 

 

 

 

 

edible vocabulary

 

I saw these cookie cutters and added them to my Pinterest board (titled Happiness) last spring. I bought the set at Williams Sonoma and promptly tucked the whole kit away and forgot I had it. But then, I remembered! Just last week! So we made some cookies. Everyone got to pick a vocabulary word. These were just everyday fun cookies, not for a birthday or holiday. Just 'cause.

Names were used as well.

How was I supposed to not be immature with these? There are so many things we could have written. We did a really good job controlling ourselves. These are very different cookies than what I would have made before having kids.

And—they were delicious! The recipe that comes with them is perfect. They need to to be chilled twice, and I wouldn't skip this step. I use meringue powder thinned with water to paint on the cookie where I wanted the glitter. Worked like a charm.

 

farro with leeks & mushrooms (and some thoughts about collars)

I made a big batch of farro last week determined to use it up. I really like having cooked brown rice, quinoa, and millet on hand to toss with veggies, etc, but have yet to cook with farro. I had eaten it, but never made it at home.

To cook the farro, I did what I always do with grains. I dump a bunch of the grain in a whole lot of water and bring to a boil for about 20 minutes and then start checking for chewiness. For brown rice it's about 23 minutes and for this farro, I think it was about 27-30 minutes. Then I drain it, throw it back in the pot and cover it off the heat for about 15 minutes.

I then added to the warm farro 2 sauteed leeks and a handful of mushrooms. I added a little balsamic vinegar and olive oil and then tossed in some dried cranberries and cow's milk feta. We ate this as is, and then later on top of greens, or rolled in a wrap. The children were not remotely interested. I have not tried giving them plain cooked farro and butter, which will probably work for them. Maybe. I think it would work for 2 of them.

The time has gone slow since the madness of the holidays and I am very grateful. I am still knitting, a hat this time, and still reading The Marriage Plot, so that hasn't changed. 

• I am revisiting an earlier obsession with dickeys. The false blouse/collar kind. This means looking at vintage/thrifted blouses a bit differently, with a pair of scissors in mind, to make my own dickeys. The dickey. Such an unfortunate term, I know, but what a clever idea! I love little collars under sweaters and stuffing in sleeves and bodices under a fitted sweater or dress is such a drag not to mention hot.

• This has led to a new interest in crew neck sweaters, which I had written off years ago (because of breastfeeding? I have not had a crew neck sweater in over 9 years, I know that) but now I am seeing them as the perfect top for said dickeys. Which has me looking at the after-holiday sales (which I usually try to ignore) more closely. And also has me cursing this trend of the super loose dolman sleeve boxy sweater which seems to be lasting a long time. At least it's helping me save my money.

happy 2012!

I sure hope everyone had a lovely holiday. We did. We made a few batches of this caramel corn (thanks hillary, for mentioning it) and it's really, really good. I didn't use microwave popcorn, just made it with 1/2 cup unpopped kernels on the stove top.

I have been reading and knitting quite a bit, which has been great. My serger is back, freshly oiled and with new blades. I just finished a wonderful dress and leggings for my middle child I will show very soon. I'm fascinated by this list of book club picks. I'm not in a book group right now, but I like to pretend I am. And then I like to have enlightening and exciting discussions about these books. With myself. Out loud.

pumpkin pancakes

I made these delicious pumpkin pancakes last week and got a little weird about them.In a good way. The girls thought they were pretty good. Pete loved them. We had extra left over, so I ate them two mornings in a row and they were even better the next day. I used this recipe and didn't change a thing. I did make a 1/2 batch. My middle child is a food shredder and also is easily grossed out. So, eating with her can be a challenge because she will shred her food while eating it, picking it apart in an animalistic way, and then say it's kind of gross. Well, yes, I say, you have made it quite  gross. It's funny, but at times, not funny and just plain gross. She, after digging at them, found these pancakes a bit gross, but I assure you, if you don't tear out their innards and eat them like a human, they are very good.

I sure hope everyone has a good Thanksgiving. We are headed to Grammie's and we are taking stuffing (this is all Pete) and I am making this shredded brussel sprout salad (so easy and simple) and this cake for one of the many desserts that will be there.

The weekend after Thanksgiving, I plan to make an advent calendar, which I have never done and always wanted to do. I have it all planned out. It's super easy and I am using simple items I already have. Nothing lowers my stress like gluing stuff to other stuff—so that's what I am gonna do.

jammy jam jam

The nice folks at Blue Chair Fruit Company out of Oakland sent me some jam samples. This is a big deal. Really big. I love jam so much. I actually don't make jam very often. I have made my share of marmalade, but jam I do like to buy. I get so hoardy over my fresh berries and freeze them and use them all year, it pains me to heat them up and cook them down, which is great news because then I get to buy and try different types of jam. So it all works out. These 3 flavors were all winners in the house.

We were sent Rosemary Damson Plum (the rosemary is quite strong and this is my favorite), Peacotum, and Olallieberry Jam (which is a local blackberry variety). The flavors this company offers are so interesting and tasty sounding—I am dying to try the Meyer Lemon-Blood Orange Marmalade with Rose Geranium. I see they have a book, which looks very cool, and a (help me) Jam Club. I want to use one of these jams on this cake I made a bit back that required fancy jam. That would be so good.

We had a jam sample party here and used what I consider to be the ideal jam vehicle—rye toast. The Peacotum was the girls' favorite. It was quite delicate. I loved them all. The Rosemary Plum was really unique.

Does anyone have their book and have you made any jams from it? Now I'm going to make more toast. And then I want to make this Easy Jam Tart. Hello.

thrilling and delicious

This is a Dutch Baby.

I have never made one of these at home before, but I am a huge fan of them at restaurants. I make crepes often and tried the little pancake/popovers once (disaster, they all stuck) but never a Dutch Baby until this week and it was so exciting and delicious and easy, I am worried.

Here's what I did: (There are so many recipes out there, I don't know where I jotted this one down from.)

Pre-heat your oven to 425 degrees and put in 2 TBL butter in a cast iron pan, mine was about 10". Stick the pan into the oven to get the butter melty and the pan hot. While that is heating up mix 4 eggs, 1/2 cup flour and 1/2 cup milk. Pour this mixture into the pan on top of the melted butter set the timer for 20 minutes. Mine here was at 25 minutes because I like them crispy.

We had ours with lemon juice, maple syrup, and powdered sugar.

Amazing!

apple cake a bit lighter

This apple cake was made a few weeks ago (half was frozen and was just now eaten) and it was delicious. Perfect for teatime and for breakfast. It's not too sweet and lovely with powdered sugar, but my favorite is with the Lavender-Fleurde Sel Caramel Sauce which I try to always have on hand because I am sort of addicted to it.

The cake recipe is derived from this recipe over at Martha's site, but I've changed it so much that I am typing it again. It has less fat, less sugar, fewer apples, and different flours than the original.

• 3/4 cups apple sauce
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups white whole wheat flour
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin spice mix
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cups sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 2 apples, cored and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine vegetable oil, applesauce, sugar, and eggs. Mix in dry ingredients and then add apples and vanilla. Pour batter into a greased and floured 12-cup Bundt pan, and start checking for doneness after 1 hour.

Unrelated-

• We have officially started Birthday Party season here. Sadie just turned 9 and has a remote control tarantula and a whoppee cushion to prove it. (Thank you Uncle Adam.)

• And Pete and I saw 50/50 last night. It was so good. And I cried. I laughed too, but bring your Kleenex.

 

great salad two ways

I had been meaning to make this super simple absolutely delicious salad in one of Nigella's books for years now and finally just did. It's so tasty. Just shredding carrots, peanuts and a light dressing. So good. 

Then the next day I tossed in quinoa and edamame, a bit more dressing and loved it as well. The second day peanuts weren't as crunchy but it was still very good. This salad is a winner.

• I have really been enjoying Hurray for the Riff Raff's cd, Young Blood Blues a whole lot. (Via Amy Sly.)
• I have quite a few sewing projects I have finished and need to show, many of which involved stretch fabric, which means there's a good story there.
• I am digging this outfit/hair/look quite a bit, over at Built By Wendy.

 

I give a fig.

Fig, baked chèvre and almond salad

Figs with honey on plain yogurt

I bought some figs last week and although I had great plans for baking them in dessert items, I ended up just eating them uncooked on various food stuffs. Before I knew it, they were gone. Simple seemed better for these. As it turns out, I am the only fig eater in the house—except a fig newton cookie will get eaten by everyone.

Random notes-

• If you are in SF or the Bay Area, don't miss the workshop, Printin' in the Kitchen. Christine Schmidt is teaching. She is the genius behind Yellow Owl Workshop, and my love for her book, Print Workshop and her shop are no secret. The details of her workshop and sign-ups are here—it's coming up! Saturday, October 1st.

• I am in love with this skirt. So simple, and I love the length and the color. But I wish it wasn't poly. And the cats would surely shred it.

salad with tuna and green beans

A few weeks ago we were at the coast and I took the new Everday Food summer issue. Do you know the one I mean? It's a big one. Like a full-sized magazine, which threw me off. I love the small format, but it was fun seeing this big size. I made a salad from it, shown above—and some cookies, the black bottom short bread ones, that are also in the magazine. They both were awesome and were perfect to make at the beach because they don't require a ton of special ingredients or speciality items. You can see I did hard cook the eggs longer than they did. My family doesn't go for the soft-style hard cooked eggs.

I'm not going to talk about the weather here. I know the rest of the country is way too hot, so I just will say we on par with Alaska, or slightly cooler, and leave it at that. We saw Fleet Foxes last weekend, outside, and it was a great show. And I am getting older. Outdoors shows are very different than they were in the 90s. Everyone was holding up and iphone and I saw someone in the crowd jammin' hard to the music playing airflute. Granted, there was a real flute playing during the song, but still. This would have never happened in 1996.