Gonna Make You Sweat

Yeah, I think that'll be the understatement of the century once my prize package is delivered.  I went blog hopping recently and discovered this giveaway on Graham Crakas (love the name) blog.  I had been wanting to torture myself, er tone myself, and told myself if I won that I'd commit to doing to the routine at least every other day.  If you haven't clicked over to see what I was the lucky winner of, here she is:

I can hear you all crying in pain for me, or is that laughter I hear.  Whatever the case may be, I'm fully aware I'm about to have an old-fashion butt whoopin' by the meanest trainer in the world.  I can hardly wait for her to yell at me while I sweat my brains out.  Oh Jillian, bring the pain sister, I'm ready.  Oh no I'm not!  I have until the delivery man rings my bell to prepare.  Wish me luck, I'm SO going to need it.  I would say I'll report back with my progress but I need to make sure I'm still alive before I make any such promises.  

Thanks Graham Crackas for bestowing this terrific challenge on me.  I'm going to personally hold you in check to make sure you uphold your end of the bargain Little Missy!

Weekly Recipe Roundup 3

The kitchen (and chef) got a bit of a break with our trip to Boston but it's open now and has made up for lost time. All of the recipes from this week are worth mentioning. The majority were from the April edition of Cooking Light magazine and one was from another blogger friend. In no particular order:

Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta - I had this one tagged as one to try and decided since I had almost all the ingredients, I'd try it this week. As I was beginning to prepare it, I worried that it didn't sound like it had enough oomph but then I remembered where I had found this recipe - The Review Lady. I didn't give it another thought after this because I trust her opinion and we share similar tastes. As I added the entire CUP of whipping cream, I wondered why I had ever doubted this recipe. How could it not be good with that much delicious cream?! Right on, this dish made you want to go back for seconds. Simple yet delicious is how I would describe it. The only alteration I made was the addition of chopped spinach. I just warmed the spinach in the skillet after removing the mushrooms.

Wes joked that the dish was good but we'd never see it again. I said well if you'll just request it, we can have it whenever you want. I just get caught up in trying new things and tend to forget about our favorites.

Italian Tomato Tart - I'm a huge breakfast lover so anytime I get the opportunity to sneak breakfast for dinner, I jump on it. While I love quiche, I find myself feeling somewhat guilty for the non-homemade crust and added calories. This tart is the perfect marriage for a less guilty, but just as tasty, quiche. The brown rice crust actually holds it's shape - something I was concerned about. I would advise to coat your baking dish with butter or olive oil though to make removal a little easier. I cooked my own brown rice instead of using the frozen kind the recipe called for (I didn't even know such a product existed, truthfully). I used a total of 3 eggs instead of the 1/2 cup egg substitute. I also forgot to stop and get prosciutto but I had bacon on hand and just subbed that in (after I cooked it). Serve it with a green salad or fruit salad and you've got a nice, low-fat, spring meal.

Southwestern Corn and Shrimp Chowder - Quick, easy, and delicious - what more could you want. The only issue I had with this recipe was the quantity. It only yielded 4 small bowls of chowder but it was so good, we would have liked seconds! I never pay much attention to the cooking time printed at the top of the recipe but I did happen to notice this one said 15 minutes. I doubted it but shouldn't have because that's really all the time it took. Now with the addition of the quesadillas the recipe mentions at the end, the cook time gets bumped up a little just because you run out of hands. I added thin slices of squash and zucchini to them to boost the nutrients up a little. Yum, I need to remember this one!

Peppery Monterey Jack Pasta Salad - Another quick and easy springtime meal. After reading several of the comments on CL I was surprised to find the anici de pepe pasta at my grocery. The pasta is quite interesting. It has the consistency of couscous but with a pasta flavor. It's a fun pasta for your taste buds! I agree with another commenter that the salami gets lost. I used about 3 times as much as the recipe called for and I still never tasted the first bite. Perhaps it did lend some salt to the dish though. I omitted the capers and used shredded Monterey Jack instead of cubes. The breadsticks were somewhat disappointing to me but perhaps that's because I knew they came out of a can. The recipe made a ton - like 7 to 10 depending on portion size - (I did add an extra shake of pasta because the number of servings the recipe said were 4). You could pair this with a simple bowl of soup, as we did.

Chow!

Blog Love

I just wanted to share a couple of sites that I've come across recently that I thought might be of interest.  If you're like me, you could spend all day going from blog to blog to blog.  Seriously, it's scary how 2 hours can disappear right before your eyes.  Here are some cool ones I've come across as of late:

Momtog - This is a site for mom photographers to get tips to improve their photography skills.  She has some great tips and although a good deal are still over my beginner head, I've still gotten a lot of ideas and inspiration from her.  She recently offered a one-on-one help session that I'd love to do someday.  Look at her work, it's super fantastic!

Twig and Thistle - Melanie Mauer posted a link to a DIY project from their site and I immediately fell in love.  I was taken with all their fun and relatively easy (at least easy looking) projects.  I can't wait to try this fun fabric garland, or this Easter basket for next year, or these super easy yet super yummy turtles!

Kentucky Food Bloggers - A friend alerted me to this one and while it's in the start-up phase, it has potential.  Hopefully more KY cooks will join her in her search for KY bloggers.  In the meantime, she has some pretty good recipes herself.

Rue La La - Another friend turned me on to this site and I have to say after 1 short week, I'm already addicted.  I'm proud to say I haven't bought anything yet but that doesn't mean I haven't been tempted!  It's an invitation only (silly I think) online boutique of sorts.  They have a constantly changing array of boutique-type shops offering deep discounts on selected products.  The shops can range from Henkel knives, to Puma, to high-end clothing shops that I've never heard of, and everything in between.  The shops are only open for a very short time and once the items are gone, that's it.  They open weekdays at 11 and some things sell out within minutes!  If you're interested in receiving an invite, leave me a comment with your email and I'll be glad to "invite" you to hang with the cool kids (:

I've also discovered a ton of new personal blogs that I've enjoyed reading.  I love finding blogs of other mom's with children near Colin's age.  It's so fun to read of the various stages and either reminisce of those days or know what I have to look forward to.  And of course I will never stop with the endless cooking blogs.  I don't know where these people find the time to not only cook and bake daily but to also photograph and blog about the dish.  Maybe when I'm retired!

That's all for now.  I'll let you know as my discovery continues.

Baby Cakes

Yum!  I just devoured a cupcake from a new bakery here in Lexington and I just had to share my thoughts with you.  Most of you are probably unaware that Lexington has it's very first bakery dedicated to cupcakes!  This has been an up and coming trend around the US, starting in the bigger cities of LA and NYC.  I don't know about you but I'm a big cupcake fan (I only wish they were a touch bigger) because you get a bite of cake and icing in every bite.  That is the perfect marriage after all.  So who, what, when, where, right?  It's called BabyCakes and it's on Patchen Drive, off Richmond Road, right behind Rite Aid/Waffle House. 

Somehow I came across her blog awhile ago and have been following her ever since.  She has a heartfelt story of how the business came to be, making the experience that much more sweet (no pun intended).  She opened her doors about a month ago and according to her, business has been great!  I'm so relieved because I wanted her to succeed so much and you just never know when you start a new business what's going to transpire.  She graciously showed me the inner-workings of the business and of course as soon as I left I thought of 100 more questions I should have asked.  Oh well, there's always next time!

On to the good stuff.  Today's flavors were primarily chocolate varieties but there was the one shining star, the piece de resistance if you will, the illustrious RED VELVET.  I have seriously been craving red velvet anything since my birthday last year.  I have no idea why because the taste isn't that much different than vanilla with a touch of chocolate, but once it's in my head there's no getting it out until I satisfy my craving.  So needless to say, I jumped on the red velvet for myself.  I opted for the Bourbon Chocolate with Bourbon Buttercream for Wes, knowing that I'd be getting to try a bite of his as well.

I tried his icing first and could taste the bourbon that I watched her pour in the icing (yes, it was that fresh).  He offered a bite of the cake as well and I didn't want to be rude, right?  Surprisingly, the bourbon flavor carried over into the cake as well.  I say surprisingly because often cooking liquor cooks the flavor right out.  The bourbon was flavor wasn't overwhelming, it was just enough to give you a taste.

My red velvet, none of which did I offer him a bite of (selfish, I know), was really good.  It was so moist - to the point there was no crumbling when you took a bite.  After taking the first bite I was sad that some of the cake stuck to the wrapper.  Oh don't you worry, I managed to lick off every crumb of delicious goodness.  The icing was perfect (and I'm an icing snob) - just sweet enough.  And the best part?  I detected NO Crisco!  

I can't wait to go back and try every flavor she makes.  The shop is small but super cute, especially when you consider she and her family did it all themselves! She's used chalkboard paint on the walls to display her daily flavors - brilliant.  There was a flavor left over from Saturday that I'm dying to try - Orange Chiffon something.  

Oh and she takes large orders too.  Maybe for your next birthday party or company function?  Try it, you'll like it (:

Bucket Head

Where does he get these ideas?  Wes and I were bent in half laughing at him.  He just saw this bucket on his shelf and decided to pick it up and wear it as a hat.  He's in the buff because we were beginning out nightly routine and this was pre-pj's.  He was so thrilled with his new found "hat" that he wore it the whole time we read books.  

He's a jokester - at least for us.  He will barely take his thumb out of his mouth for anyone else (takes after his daddy) but for us he has no inhibitions.  Oh well, at least we get to enjoy it!

This was him running through his room with reckless abandon!

This picture is all about the belly!

Beautiful Weekend

Wow!  What a beautiful start to the weekend we had.  Being inside for a minute made me feel guilty for not taking advantage of the great weather.  We took full advantage and hung out outside Friday night.  Colin got to play with the bubbles Grams got him for Easter.  His attention span is so short that he quickly moved on to pots of dirt and flowers.  He could have played out there all night.  He was not pleased when it was time to come in for night-night. 

We started Saturday at our local Farmer's Market.  Colin loved seeing the kids, dogs, musicians, and just being outdoors.  From there we headed to Elise's first t-ball game.  Veteran's Park was hopping with baseball enthusiasts (and some that probably weren't too enthused).  Elise's team didn't win but I think she had a good time.  Colin sure did!  He literally did not put his rear to the bleachers one time in the hour we were there.  He enjoyed climbing on the bleachers, holding on to the fence, and the best part was hanging out by the dugout.  He looked so precious and it made me think about the not-too-distant-future when he'll be the one out on that field.  Wes joked and told Colin that I'd be crying.  Yep, probably will.  Colin was SO exhausted from his eventful day, he took a FOUR hour nap!

Here are some pictures documenting our outdoor fun.

Colin and Daddy picking flowers from the tree.

Colin on the move with his flowers.

Laying out the flowers for Momma.

Checking out Momma's flowers.

Crawling out of Momma's flowers.

Breakfast in Boston

Unfortunately, we only had time for 2 breakfasts while in Boston.  That's unfortunate because 1) that's my favorite meal of the day and 2) there were some really good sounding restaurants that I would have liked to have tried.  Oh well, there's always next time!

The first stop was the well-known, highly touted Charlie's Sandwich Shop.  I had read that their pancakes had won numerous "best of" awards for the city and most seemed to agree with the notoriety.  I was welcomed with the stereotypical northerner personality when the lady behind the counter not-so-politely told me I had to wait outside.  Okay, sorry lady, I'm a visitor and had no idea.  Like Ten Tables, this place was small and narrow.  It consisted of a counter that seated about 10 and 3 big tables that each seated about 4-6.  It's a family owned and operated business that's been around for eons.  We sat at the counter and enjoyed looking at photos of celebrities who had dined there at one time or another.  

I ordered the infamous pancakes with the addition of fresh raspberries.  I'm quite the pancake connoisseur and I can't say I've ever seen raspberries as a filling before.  Additional choices were blueberries, cranberries, banana, and chocolate chip.  I wanted one of each but was told that would be an additional charge and at $8.95 already, I wasn't willing to pay any more.  The pancakes, although large and beautiful with the raspberries, were disappointing.  Without the raspberries, they would have been completely tasteless and heavy.  Thankfully, they added a heaping handful of raspberries to each cake, ensuring a berry blast in each bite.  

Wes opted for the "award winning" turkey hash.  He has just recently become a fan of this dish but has always had it with corned beef.  He said the turkey just didn't provide the flavor or salt that this dish is known for.  His portion was large and came with scrambled eggs that he said seemingly melted in his mouth.  I watched the guy make them and the only thing he added to them was a splash of whole milk.  Maybe the extra fat from the milk kicks up the taste.  Perhaps I'll use a little of Colin's milk and give it a try.

We both got full from the meal but neither were itching to go back.  The restaurant was very convenient to our hotel though and was certainly worth our time to try.  I would have always wondered about those legendary pancakes had I not given them a try.

Our second breakfast fared much better.  Again, right around the corner from us, Masa, proved to be a winner.  With a Saturday and Sunday pre-fixe brunch menu at a price point of $7.95 per person, it was off to a good start.  Like 90% of the restaurants in Boston, it was quite small.  We were literally waiting in line for them to open the doors at 10:30am.  Thankfully we were at the front of the line because everyone else had reservations and there were only 2 available tables left.  

Each table was given a complimentary basket of sweet corn bread, along with 3 condiments for toppings.  The first was an apricot jalapeno jelly.  That was followed by a molasses whipped butter.  And finally there was a cranberry chipotle jam.  The cornbread was deadly on it's own but that butter was out of this world.  The jam and jelly were both tasty too and had just a little hint of heat.  The heat actually translated into more of a spice and gave it a good little bite.

The starter course was your choice of a plantain empanada with cinnamon cream cheese, house-made granola with fresh fruit and either yogurt or milk, or simply fresh fruit.  I opted for the empanada and easily could have made this my meal.  It was a palm-sized half moon of what appeared to be sweet potato dough, wrapped around a fat piece of plantain.  This was fantastic! The dough was perfect and the cinnamon cream cheese was divine.  

Wes ordered the granola with yogurt and fresh fruit.  The granola was good (I've had better) and was tossed with peanuts, instead of the traditional almonds.  The fruit tasted somewhat fresh - as fresh as you can expect from an out of season northeastern town.

For the main course, there were 4 selections:  scrambled eggs with chorizo, chocolate chip pancakes, huevos rancheros, and eggs benedict.  I had to see if the pancakes could redeem themselves.  Yep, much better but the mango butter served alongside was really the star.  The cakes were sweet enough on their own that I didn't even need to add the Vermont maple syrup.  Too bad because real maple syrup is a rarity in most restaurants.

Wes is more of a meat and potatoes kind of guy and that translates into eggs and meat for breakfast.  He got the scrambled eggs with chorizo and farmers cheese, hash browns, and multi-grain toast.  His eggs were served with a little dollop of fresh, homemade salsa.  I thought his eggs to be too buttery but he seemed to like them seeing as how he cleaned his plate.

In addition to the cornbread and the 2-course meal, coffee and tea are complimentary.  For the price, this meal was a steal.  We were completely satisfied afterwards and felt the need to walk an extra hour to work off some of the calories.  

Considering the crowd, we aren't the only ones who found this little gem.  They had a sign out from that said they had been voted Best New Restaurant by Zagat in maybe 2006?  I think that was based on their dinner menu, which I'd love to try next time.   

Ten Tables, Reviewed

This is the first of many mini (some not so mini) reviews from our Boston trip.  Since I had 4 months to plan, that gave me 4 months to do my research, and research I did!  I'm thrilled to report that every one of the restaurants I chose turned out to be a winner.  That's a rarity when you're taking advice from complete strangers and when you have somewhat higher expectations.

The first stop was to Ten Tables in Jamaica Plain.  We had to take a cab there because it was practically in another city and even I thought it was too far to walk.  The ride there was a touch sketchy but I just prayed the people on Chowhound and the other various sites knew what they were talking about.  

I had been advised to request the chef's table for 2 and I was so pleased that I did.  While the food was exceptional, the experience made the dinner shine.  Being a cook myself, I was mesmerized by the tiny, yet uber efficient kitchen in which these TWO chefs were able to cook.  I told Wes that I felt guilty for every complaining that my kitchen was too small because these two men were quite comfortable in their 4x4 space.  It was so fun to watch them prepare various dishes and try to guess what they were making.  All the various ingredients had been prepped earlier in the day (we were told the staff comes in at 11:30 just to get prepared for a 5:30 opening).  There were countless little plastic containers with chopped veggies, spices, sauces, etc, all sitting on their shelves neat and orderly.  It was a well-oiled machine that seemed to run like clockwork.  I could have sat there all night just watching.  We were practically in the kitchen - my dream come true!  

For dinner, we both opted for the Chef's Whim Tasting Menu.  We had no idea what to expect, as neither of us even really looked at the menu.  The first course was not something I would have chosen, but I'm glad I had the opportunity to try it.  We were served the pate of the day, a rabbit, duck, and tarragon blend and another pork pate.  This was accompanied with a grainy mustard, 2 marinated pearl onions, a carrot marmalade (yum), caramelized fennel, and 4 slices of grilled bread.  The pate was a little salty for my palate but Wes really enjoyed it.  It actually reminded me of ham salad.

The next course was our first entree course.  It was Organic Scottish Salmon with warm potato salad, cucumbers with creme fraiche, and topped with a little roe.  The salmon was perfectly cooked and flaked with the just the touch of the fork.  The warm potato salad was the highlight of the entree and possibly the entire meal.  Sometimes simple is best and this was one of those times.  They took fingerling potatoes, sliced them horizontally and tossed them with a dijon mustard aioli.  That with the cool cucumber and creme fraiche salad on top made for a great pair.  All the components worked so well together.  It made you want to get a small bite of each on your fork before you put it in your mouth.  My mouth is watering thinking about this dish.

The 3rd course was another entree (sized proportionality for the tasting menu), the Braised Short Ribs.  Again, not something I would have chosen from the menu but I'm certainly glad it was served.  It was served in a red wine and orange au jus, with 2 hunks of carrots and 2 potatoes.  The meat was ridiculously tender and although it still had some fat in betwixt the layers, it just added to the overall flavor of the meat.  

We were then served a palate cleansing citrus sorbet with some sort of garnishment that is escaping me right now.  From there we moved to our final course, dessert.  It was a warm apricot cake with a crystallized ginger compote, served atop a pool of citrus creme anglaise. 

We left here fat and happy, as Wes likes to say.  We really couldn't have asked for a better start to our culinary adventure through Boston.  And I apologize for the lack of photos but every time I thought about taking a picture it was an inappropriate time.  I meant to at least take one of the outside of the place but alas, our taxi was waiting.  Suffice to say it's small since it literally only has ten tables.

Pooped

Sometimes things don't go as planned.  Take for instance Easter afternoon.  Colin usually takes his afternoon siesta anywhere from 11:30 to 1pm.  Well imagine how tired little booger was at 3:30 when he hadn't had a nap all day.  He was too busy playing with Gumbaw (Grandpa) and his 2 nieces as they hunted for eggs and basically ran around the backyard for 2 hours.  On the way home, he could barely keep his eyes open.  I tried to talk to him but bless his heart, he couldn't fight the eyelids any longer.  After being moved from my arms, to my bed, to Wes' shoulder, he finally landed on the couch in Wes' office.  Keep in mind, he only sleeps in his crib, so this was a real treat.  My initial thought was that if I was holding him he'd take a shorter nap, thus keeping on schedule somewhat.  Well you know what they say about the best laid plans...  He finally woke up at 7pm and was raring to go.  He ate dinner, ran buck wild, and was in the best mood.  Surprisingly, he did go back down for night-night at 9:30ish.  I could have easily beat him by an hour but he wasn't having that.  

All that just so I can share a precious picture with you.  My big boy laying on the couch like a grown man!

The Best Cake Ever!

I hope you're sitting down for this one because you're in for a real shocker! First, I begrudgingly accepted my mother's gracious offer to bake Wes' birthday cake this year. Gasp! What? Are you feeling okay? I know, all of those thoughts are surely swimming in your little heads right now. Yes, it was the day before our big excursion and I just didn't see a way to pull it off. Plus, I had just made a birthday cake for a coworker the weekend before.

Never fear, I still did all the research and selected what I hoped would be the perfect cake for Wes. Wes is a simple man, one who prefers plain vanilla ice cream, plain chocolate cake, plain pancakes, and well, you get the point. His favorite is chocolate but seeing as how I'm not a huge fan, I searched for a compromise (insert the second shocker). Lordy begordy, did I find a winner! I can't even remember the way I stumbled upon this lovely delight but the details are irrelevant. This is seriously quite possible THE BEST cake I've ever put in my mouth - and lord knows that's been a lot. I think Erin says the icing recipe originated in a cookbook called Baked but since I don't own the cookbook, I can't verify that. Nonetheless, you can find both the cake and the icing recipe here. Seriously, put down whatever you're doing and either copy this recipe for a later date, go to the site and drool, or better yet, go make it NOW! This is some good cake.

I was reminded just how good the cake was about 30 minutes ago when I devoured a second slice that had been frozen from last week. You see I couldn't let good cake go to others, I mean to waste, so I wrapped up 2 pieces to take home and freeze for later. It was just as good the second time around. I apologize for this less that stellar photo but if I had smell-o-vision you'd forgive me because the smells wafting from your computer would more than make up for my photography woes.

Are you still sitting there? Why? Didn't I tell you to go make this cake!

UPDATE: Wes pointed out that I failed to mention the few modifications my mom made. I usually have a one stick maximum when it comes to butter and seeing as how the icing called for 2, I had to suggest changing that. I believe she said she only used 1 stick and then much less powdered sugar as well (I want to say 3 cups?). I can get her precise alterations if you're interested. Just let me know.

The Surprise

I'm so proud of myself, I was able to completely shock and surprise Wes for his birthday (well the day after anyways). I posted about the upcoming surprise last week but little did he know what was in store for him. We went to Boston! He didn't know our final destination until we arrived in the Charlotte airport and saw Boston, MA on the sign. I'm not sure how I managed to keep this from him for so long (nearly 4 LONG months) but I did and it just made the surprise that much better. The look on his face Thursday morning was absolutely priceless!

So here's how it went down. I got a free companion flight for extending my T-Mobile contract and immediately contemplated what to do with it. Then I got the idea to take Wes somewhere for his birthday. I knew it had to be somewhere relatively close and also somewhere we could go for just a long weekend since my mom would have to keep Colin. Boston has been on our list of places to go so it just made sense. I actually thought he'd guess it right away because this is a place we seem to talk about a lot and I just knew he'd immediately think of it. Nope, he actually thought we were going to Charleston, SC.

During the last 4 months I've done a lot of undercover work. I called his office to tell him he wouldn't be at work Thursday or Friday. I also had to rearrange the birthday festivities at his work because they were planning a cake for him on Thursday. I've made several new bloggy friends who live in Boston, as I was trying to get first-hand restaurant recommendations. I tried, to no avail, to get Celtics tickets (this was probably the most disappointing thing). And I packed his suitcase in it's entirety without him knowing - that took some work! I tried to discreetly pick out his outfit for Thursday and I thought I had gotten away with it until he told me later that he suspected something was up when I selected not only his shirt but also his pants for the day. I was literally running up and down the stairs that morning trying to shove things in bags and take the bags out to the car while he was in the shower and then while he was putting his shoes on. Seriously, I had worked up a sweat and it wasn't even 8am! After he put on his coat and shoes, he came in the kitchen to get his lunch and keys. I said, "You won't be needing either of those today. Mom is going to to take us to our destination and you have to be blindfolded as we go." He's such a good sport, he just smiled and waited for the blindfold. Several passersby stared at him, since I made him ride in the front seat (no, not because I'm mean but I thought Colin would be incessant with the comments about why Daddy had his eyes covered up). Mom actually slipped on the way to the airport and mentioned something about the plane. Wes later told me he thought she was kidding. Once at the airport, I asked the man at the counter to not say our final destination out loud. He obliged and the rest of the workers just smiled. We were off and Wes did a good job just enjoying the moment and not trying to berate me with questions.

We had great weather the first two days and then we had flashbacks of the KY weather that we all know and love - cold, wet and rainy. We ate well (more posts on that to come), we shopped, and we did a lot of sightseeing. I think we both enjoyed the Red Sox tour the most. I was surprised that I enjoyed it but our tour guide, a 78-year old man, made the experience what it was. He was funny, told great stories, and was very knowledgeable of the stadium and the team. Our hotel, Jury's, was boutiquish and very well kept. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone travelling to Boston.

Coming home was bittersweet. We hated to leave our action packed weekend but we were anxious to get home to our boy. I ran to him like Jason did with Ty 10 times on the Bachelor, except I refrained from rolling around on the ground like a total moron! I'm pretty sure he still has no concept of time and has no idea how long we were gone. He was glad to see us but it wasn't an overwhelming oh-my-gosh-I've-missed-you-so-much type of feeling. I just wanted to squeeze and kiss on him all day. He, of course, had other plans once we got back to my parents house and saw the Easter eggs! Three hours later we finally got to come home!

Big Boy

Look at my "little" Colin sitting at the table like a big boy!  He got tired of being ostracize away from the table.  The signs were oh so subtle - throwing the fork after each bite, pulling daddy's arm, trying to grab his plate off the table, and constantly trying to climb up in the other chairs.  I woke up night before last thinking that we could just pull his chair with the seat up to the table and he'd still feel like a big boy (I have my best thoughts in the middle of the night).  It worked!  Now if we can just get those teeth to hurry up and finish coming in so his appetite will return.  Poor guy, first a fever, then a runny nose, and now stomach issues, all because of some silly teeth!  Does anyone have any suggestions - remedies or even just how to deal?

Weekly Recipe Roundup

As I was compiling this week's recipes worth mentioning, I noticed that all but one were side dishes. Sides are generally an after thought and usually take a backseat to the main entree. Although I rarely cook the same main dish twice, I feel like I get stuck in a rut with side dishes. Determined to turn that around, I turned to the Whole Foods website. I think I initially got on there looking for a side dish utilizing some type of grain, but I veered totally away from that and found several others that I will be repeating.

Corn Pudding - This was probably my favorite of the bunch, possibly because I didn't have to make it, Wes did! Things always taste better when someone else prepares them, don't you think? I loved the addition of cheese to counteract the sweetness in the pudding. The cheese seemingly floated to the top, creating a lovely crust. The recipe says this will sever 8-10 but we must love corn pudding because I only got about 7 servings.

Stovetop Simmered Maple Beans - While this side wasn't my favorite, it's still worth mentioning because with some adjustments I think it could be really good. I opted for the crock pot form of cooking, instead of the stovetop. I'm sure the stovetop would produce a less dried out bean but when time is an issue, the crock pot works just fine. The beans have to be soaked overnight and cooked before proceeding. So be sure to plan ahead with this one! If you go the crock pot route, I'd advise cooking on low for no more than 6 hours. I think I'd even check them after about 4. We cooked ours closer to 8 hours and they were drier than I would have preferred. I'd be interested to see if the stovetop method yielded any sauce. The crock pot did not. I definitely do prefer this method to the canned variety for the sodium content alone!

Skillet Lima Beans - Oh good grief, I can hear you all know, "Ew, we don't like lima beans. Who eats lima beans?" I do okay and if you'd just give them a try, you might be surprised too. This recipe grabbed my attention because I feel like we have the same green sides over and over. This uses frozen lima beans that you cook and then roast in the oven. The end result is a bean that is slightly dry, yet tasty, that you could almost pop in your mouth as a snack. I think you'd be surprised with this one.

Baked Risotto Casserole with Artichokes

Although this could be just a side, I served this as my main course on a veggie plate. The fact that this risotto is cooked in the oven, and doesn't require constant stirring and babysitting on the stovetop, caught my attention. I'm a sucker for a good, creamy risotto and this one fit the bill. I actually would go out on a limb and say it was creamier than most of the stovetop risottos I've made. After having this oven variety, remind me again why anyone would be crazy enough to waste an hour stirring?

I did have to modify the recipe slightly because I wasn't willing to pay the exhorbatant price for dried porcini mushrooms. I opted for fresh ones and thought they were just fine. The artichokes steal the show in this one anyways, so the mushrooms are pretty trivial.

On to the only recipe that wasn't a side and wasn't from Whole Foods. My friend, Cara, posted this Chicken Pot Pie recipe a week or so ago and I flagged it for Wes' birthday week of meals. His birthday week of meals started tonight and started with a bang! I made my own pastry dough and this was a huge hit. We LOVED it and were both literally licking the bowl. I prepared them in individual bowls so we (I) wouldn't be fighting over the crust. This one was easier and tasted better than the 10-hour one (that's a slight exaggeration) I made about a month ago. Thanks, Cara, this one is a keeper! I just noticed that Cara said she doubled the sauce. Although I did noticed there wasn't much sauce, I did not double it and it came out fine. That might have to do with my individual cooking dishes though. Oh and enjoy the picture of the birthday boy about to chow down on his dinner. Being a blogger's wife has it's advantages and disadvantages. One of the disadvantages is having to wait to eat until the blogger takes 15 pictures of the food. So tonight he was feeling a little saucy and decided he wanted to be in the picture as well. Bless his heart for putting up with my latest addiction!

Sauteed Kale with Shallots - This doesn't really need a recipe, I just wanted to

post it for another green option. Kale is a very mild green. Unlike some of it's counterparts, it cooks very quickly and doesn't have a strong flavor. We have grown to really love it and I'd venture to say it's Wes' favorite green veggie. To make it, I saute 1 large diced shallot in some olive oil. After that has time to sweat and slightly brown, I add in 1 minced garlic clove. Then I add the chopped kale in bunches, stirring until each addition wilts down. I finish it off with a couple dashes of white balsamic vinegar.

The Results Are In...

and the winners are:

Random Integer Generator

Timestamp: 2009-04-03 00:30:55 UTC

Here are your random numbers:

9
 
silverhartgirl  said...

I am a follower

March 31, 2009 9:41 PM

24 

MaddyRu  said...

We go to the beach ALL the time and when we can't do that we like to go to the pool. Water activity family I guess!

April 2, 2009 1:30 PM

1 

Anonymous said...

I wanna win, I wanna win!! You know Sidney's a big Yoplait fan - both the "Dori" (aka, Dora) yogurt, and the Yo-Gos!! Hmm...what we like to do to stay active. Jason and I are all about the elliptical and then chasing Sidney around :)

Love,
Brooke

Congratulations to the 3 winners! I'll be contacting each of you tonight. If you don't hear from me, please leave me a comment to claim your prize. If I'm unable to connect with you by Monday, April 6th, I will choose another winner. Thanks everyone for participating!!