Randomness

None of the thoughts running through my head are worthy of their own post.  Heck, they're probably not even worthy of a combined post but I feel like I owe you something.  I mean it has been 2 whole days and all.  I wouldn't want people to start talking.

1)  Our timing for selling our house was terrible.  Besides the obvious, no one wants to buy a house a month before Christmas, it also really puts a cramp in the holiday festivities.  We haven't been able to put up our tree or any decorations yet because I don't want that to dissuade any possible buyers.  Our tree is large and in charge and takes up a lot of space.  I don't want it to make our family room look small.  I have no idea when I'm going to do it or what I'm going to do.  Heck, one of my preset radio stations is playing all Christmas, all the time and I haven't even been able to push that button in fear of hearing the dreaded festivus tunes.

2)  I love my son.  Really, I do.  Like more than cake!  But the clingy, mommy-only phase must come to a stop.  There's only so much whining, crying, and throwing himself at me I can handle.  Wes declared himself a "placeholder" tonight and sadly, that's not far from the truth at this point.  As flattering as it may seem, it's not so easy to cook dinner, get ready, or go to work with a 16-month old on your hip.  Trust me buddy, I'm not going anywhere.

3)  Colin amazes me every day with what comes out of his mouth.  Some of his recent thoughts:  

"The next time we go to the beach, I want to ride in the airplane with Buff again so we can say "hi" to Granny."  (You may recall my Granny passed away this summer.)

---

"How come last year we couldn't have our Christmas party at school because it snowed but it's supposed to snow today and we get to have it?"  - The forecast just called for flurries today, thus school was not going to be cancelled.

---

"Mommy?  Can I have eat this bracelet I made today for my dessert?" (Fruit Loops)

"No, Colin, I don't think that's a good idea considering you've had your grimy hands all over it all day."

"No I haven't," as he continues to rub all over it.  "Well I've been nibbling at this one all day."  He shows me a specific one that literally had 1 millimeter gone.

"I don't think so but you can have one of the cookies you and Buff made yesterday."

"Ok!"  He proceeds to discard the bracelet by launching it on the counter.

---

Me: "How old do you think you'll be when you're as tall as Daddy?"

Colin:  "One hundred."

Me:  "Really?"

Colin:  "Have you been one hundred yet?"

Me:  "No!"

Colin:  "Do you want to be one hundred?"

Me:  "I guess so."

Colin:  "How come you and Daddy are the same number (age) but you haven't grown as tall as him?"

Me:  blank stare

4)  Speaking of being old, I have a niece turning 13 this weekend.  I can remember when she was a baby.  Where has the time gone?!  She's an amazing basketball player, a great student, and has a wonderful heart.  I hope she thinks I'm cool enough to come to her party!

That's her shooting the ball in the black.  She's also now as tall as I am.

5)  I'm officially off-duty in the toy buying department for my boys.  I just don't get it.  Batman, bad guys, caves?  How about dolls, makeup, and dress up?  I might know a few things about that.  Thank goodness Wes is still a big kid at heart.  Without him, I'd be lost!  

6)  I need some good Christmas cookie inspiration.  Anyone have a good, tried and true recipe I could take to a cookie exchange?  I don't want just a chocolate chip cookie, I want something a little different.  Suggestions?

Enough mindless chatter.  Oh and I'm now officially addicted to Pinterest.  Feel free to follow my newest obsession here.  

Weekly Recipe: Quick Fluffy Yeast Rolls

It is possible to overcome your fears.  I inherited my mom's fear of baking with yeast but I was determined to not let it win.  My determination finally paid off!  Maybe we just hadn't found the right recipe or the right teacher.  I'm pretty sure I found them both with Tina's Quick Fluffy Dinner Rolls!

I have had this recipe bookmarked for nearly a year now and I'm just now getting around to conquering my fear.  What was I waiting for?  Tina has spelled out every step in the perfect kind of detail I needed.  She answered all the questions I've always had running through my mind as I've made other recipes in the past.  She even provides a YouTube video that shows how to properly roll the dough without touching it too much.  I'm here to tell you, if you follow her easy steps, this recipe is almost fool-proof!  I shouldn't make that claim until my mother tries it but it certainly turned out perfectly for me!

Quick & Fluffy Yeast Rolls
recipe:  Mommy's Kitchen

3/4 - cup milk
4 - tablespoons butter
3/4 - cup hot water
4 - tablespoon sugar
1 - teaspoon salt
4 - 4 1/2 - cup flour
1 - heaping tablespoon instant yeast

1. Pour your milk into a microwave safe container. Add your butter to the milk and put it in the microwave for 1 1/2 minutes.
2. While the milk warms preheat your oven to 170 degrees. Turn on the tap to get your water nice and hot. Temperature is important to making these rolls rise quickly. Put your hand in the water to test it. You want it to be just on the edge of unpleasant.
3. Put your milk/butter and hot water in the bottom of your Kitchen Aid Mixer. Add the sugar and salt. Then add 2 cups of flour...let it mix for 1 minute.
4. Add the yeast. Turn the mixer on and add the rest of the flour 1 cup at a time.
5. You have enough flour when the dough scrapes the side of the bowl clean. Mix on medium speed for 5 minutes.
6. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 5 minutes. You need the plastic wrap to trap the heat.
7. Take a stick of butter and coat the inside of a 9x13 pan.
8. Spray your counter, or a cutting board with cooking spray. Lay your dough on top of it.
9. Take a sharp knife, spray it with cooking spray and cut your dough into 12 pieces. Make them as equal as you can.
10. Gently round them into balls, and put them in your buttered 9x13 pan.
11. Put the pan into your warm 170 degree oven. Let them rise for about 20 minutes or until they have risen about 1 inch above the rim of the pan.
12. Leave your pan in the oven and turn the heat up to 350 degrees. Bake for 15 minutes (I baked mine an additional 7 minutes and they still weren't brown!  They were done, just not brown). This time includes the time it takes the oven to increase in temperature. Bake until golden brown.
13. Brush with a little softened butter and serve warm.

Total Time: about 1 hour 10 minutes

Linking up to Tastetastic Thursday, Remodelholic, Lady Behind the Curtain, This Chick Cooks, and It's a Keeper.

The Thanksgiving That Never Was

Before you get all sad and weepy, I assure you my Thanksgiving was just fine.  No matter where I am, I have plenty to be thankful for.  The fact that we were all safe and healthy (relatively), is more than I could ever ask for.

On to the story.  Sawyer woke up at about 1 a.m. Thanksgiving morning.  I went in to quickly soothe him (we've recently reverted back to the cry-it-out method after some bad habits had started to develop).  I rubbed his back and noticed he was a bit warm but I didn't think too much about it.

Not 5 minutes after I left his room, he started crying again.  This time Wes went it.  Well Wes being the more phobic one of us, immediately felt his warm body and brought him in our room for me to feel him.  I played along and agreed he felt warm.  Wes was having no part of "warm," he was "on fire" and he began pacing nervously.  I rolled over - such a caring mother - and attempted to go back to sleep. 

I then hear Wes in the bathroom running water.  I deduce that he is getting a cold rag for Sawyer - just what you want when you're trying to go back to sleep!  Sawyer cries.  Surprise!  Feeling compelled to do something, I go and rifle through the drawer of random medicine.  I find a Tylenol equivalent and read the label.  "Children under 2; consult your physician."  Super.

At this point, the only thing I could think to do is let Sawyer sleep on me.  That may or may not have worked if Wes would have stopped rubbing his back every 3 minutes or so.  I know he was just a concerned parent but again, who wants to be rubbed when you're trying to go to sleep?!  After a few minutes of realizing this was going nowhere fast, I took Sawyer back to his bed.  He slept until 6:30 a.m.

Somewhere in the midst of all this, I mentioned to Wes that Sawyer and I might not be able to go with him and Colin to his parents' house.  He said, "We'll see."

Long story short, Sawyer and I opted to stay at home and let Colin and Wes make the trek by themselves.  I was going to have to come back that night anyway to go to work on Friday, so this actually seemed to simplify things a bit.  I told Colin we wouldn't be going, thinking he might be a little sad.  Wrong.  He said, "Ok" and went about his packing (that he had been working on for 3 days).

Sawyer and I enjoyed a great day of doing nothing.  I shouldn't say nothing.  While he took a marathon nap, I got to work in the kitchen making the one thing I knew I'd miss most about not going to Wes' family's meal - yeast rolls!  It should be noted that I have a love-hate relationship with yeast.  However, something came over me and I decided that I would win and I would be successful in making rolls.  You know, sometimes a positive attitude is all you need.

I couldn't stop on my yeasting frenzy.  I also decided to make Sweet Potato Cinnamon Rolls.  I was a baking fool and I loved every minute of it!  Additional posts to come with my delightful carb overload.

A local health food grocery store was having a Thanksgiving buffet and me and about 100 others decided that sounded just fine.  Take a look at this spread.  I was in heaven.  It was healthy...er and it had things I wasn't using to having on Thanksgiving - caramelized Brussels sprouts anyone?  Squash gratin?  Yum!

To round out my great meal, my yeast rolls were some of the best I've ever made.  Success!  And the cinnamon rolls weren't too shabby either.  And yes, I may have eaten both.  If ever there's a day for a free pass, this has to be the day.

I'm also happy to report that Sawyer is on the mend.  It looks like those pesky eye-teeth are to blame.  He was doing all sorts of crazy things with his tongue and I felt around in there and felt 2 little shards of glass breaking through on the top row.  Poor little guy.  I'll just have to make a post-Thanksgiving meal for him to enjoy (:

Weekly Recipe: Orange Chicken

Last week I posted a recipe for Braised Cabbage and I promised I'd share the Asian dish I served alongside it.  As promised, here's the Orange Chicken dish that I was hesitant to make but I was so glad I did.  I wasn't a fan of the corn starch and the frying but a little splurge every now and then is okay even for me!  This dish was fantastic!  It was very reminiscent of a dish you might find at P.F. Chang's or a similar Asian restaurant.  Even though it certainly wasn't fat free, I still took comfort in knowing there wasn't a ton of sodium added to it and I knew all of the ingredients (including the organic, non-cat, chicken!).  Give it a try, I don't think you'll be disappointed with this one!

Orange Chicken

adapted from Annie's Eats

For the marinade and sauce:

• ¾ cup low-sodium chicken broth
• ¾ cup freshly squeezed orange juice 
• 1½ tsp. finely grated orange zest
• 6 Tbs. white vinegar
• ¼ cup soy sauce
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tbs. fresh ginger, grated
• ¼-½  tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1½ lbs. boneless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 Tbs. plus 2 tsp. cornstarch
• 2 Tbs. cold water

For the Coating and Frying:

• 3 large egg whites
• 1 cup cornstarch
• ½ tsp. baking soda
• ¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
• 3 cups peanut or canola oil

To make the marinade and sauce, combine the chicken broth, orange juice, orange zest, vinegar, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger and cayenne pepper in a large saucepan and whisk to blend well.

Measure out ¾ cup of the mixture and transfer it to a large zipper lock plastic bag.  Add the chicken pieces to the bag, pressing out the excess air and sealing well.  Refrigerate 30-60 minutes, but no longer (the acid from the orange juice and vinegar will make the chicken mushy if it's left too long).

Place the saucepan with the remaining mixture on the stove and heat over medium-high heat.  Bring to a simmer.  In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and water until smooth.  Add the mixture to the saucepan with the sauce.  Continue simmering until the sauce is thick and translucent, about 1 minute.  Remove from the heat and stir in the strips of orange peel, if using.

To make the coating, place the egg whites in a pie plate or shallow bowl and whisk until frothy.  In a second pie plate combine the cornstarch, baking soda and cayenne pepper.  Whisk to blend.  Drain the chicken from  the marinade in a large strainer and pat dry with paper towels.  Place half of the chicken pieces in the egg whites and turn to coat.  Transfer the pieces to the cornstarch mixture and coat thoroughly, shaking off the excess.  Transfer to a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken pieces.

To fry the chicken, heat the oil in a 11- or 12-inch round Dutch oven or large sauce pan until the oil reaches 350˚ F.  Carefully place half of the chicken pieces in the oil and fry until golden brown, about 4-5 minutes, turning the pieces halfway through cooking.  Remove from the oil with a skimmer or slotted spoon and transfer to a paper towel-lined baking sheet.  Return the oil to 350˚ F and repeat with the remaining chicken pieces.

When all the chicken has been fried, reheat the sauce if necessary, and toss with the chicken in a large bowl.  Serve over rice.

The Secret Recipe Club: Citrus-Spice Seared Salmon over Parmesan Cheese Grits

It's that time of the month again.  No, not that time, the Secret Recipe Club time!  Amanda is a genius for coming up with this club.  I love getting my assignment and then I love seeing who got me.  Then I ask, "I wonder why they chose that recipe?  Of all the recipes on my blog, why that one?  For the first 2 months, my secret admirers chose the same recipe!  What are the odds?  I swear I have more recipes than Marion Cunningham's Parker Brownies!

This month I was excited to be assigned Wendy from Weekend Gourmet!  I was already a follower of Wendy, so I was excited to get to try one of her recipes I had already bookmarked.  Wendy has the best giveaways too!  I won one of the best, the Whoopsies! whoopie pies.  She also just got back from NYC and seriously hit up every single place that is on my list for our next visit - Levain and Shake Shack in one day?!  I wish she could have carried me in her purse (:

Decision time.  With all the current hype in the blog world for Biscoff spread, these Triple Threat Biscoff Blondies definitely tempted me.  Or how about the Margarita Fettucini with Turkey Tenderloins?  I'm saving that one for my Thanksgiving leftovers!  In the end, I settled on her Citrus-Spice Seared Salmon over Parm-Goat Cheese Grits.  Say that 3 times fast!

What can I say?  The combination of the marinade and then the rub gave the salmon an incredible amount of flavor!  I think either would be great on their own accord but together, it's just packed with flavor.  All 4 members of my family give this one a thumbs way up, especially little Sawyer who couldn't get enough of that pink goodness!

The modifications I made were minimal.  I didn't have goat cheese, so I used a Asiago/Parmesan blend for the grits.  Even though I've made grits dozens of times before with various types of cheeses, I have to say this flavor ranks up there with my favorites.  I also have my own tried and true formula for grits that I have been threatened to stray from.

I clearly made a great choice with this recipe.  Wendy, thanks for helping me prepare a great meal for my family.  I already have another one of your recipes lined up to make next week!

Citrus-Spice Seared Salmon over Parmesan Cheese Grits
adapted from Weekend Gourmet

For the Salmon

Marinade:
1/3 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (from 1 large orange)
1 large lime, juiced
1 T. olive oil
2 T. soy sauce
1/4 tsp pepper

Rub:
3 T. brown sugar
1 1/2 T. chili powder
2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp allspice
zest of one lime

4 - 5oz pieces of salmon, skin on

For marinade:
In a small bowl, whisk all ingredients together.  Place salmon fillets in a large zip top bag and pour marinade over to coat.  Refrigerate for 2-4 hours. (I only marinated mine for 30 minutes and it still absorbed quite a bit of the flavor.)  While the fish marinates, make the rub by combining all ingredients in small bowl.

After the salmon has marinated, remove from fridge and apply a generous coating of the rub to the flesh side of the fish.  Heat a large grill pan or non-stick pan with 1 T. olive oil over medium-high heat.  Make sure it is hot enough before you proceed - you want to get a good sear on the salmon.  Reduce the heat to medium and add the fillets, spice side down.  Allow the rub to caramelize about 3 minutes before flipping.  Continue cooking 5-7 minutes, or until the fish flakes easily with a fork in the thickest part. 

Parmesan Cheese Grits

1 cup water
1 cup skim milk
1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
3/4 cup instant grits
dash of salt
1/2 cup Asiago/Parmesan cheese blend

Bring water, milk, and broth to a boil.  Gradually whisk in grits and salt. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.  Remove lid and whisk in cheese.  Turn off heat but allow the pan to continue cooking on the burner for another 2-3 minutes to thicken up.

Ain't nothing going on but the rent

If you don't get that song reference, I'll assume you weren't old enough to listen to music in the mid-90's.  If you do, they don't make 'em like they used to. 

Since it's Friday, I'm in weekend mode and therefore can't think of anything else.  You know, once you become a mother your multi-tasking gene gets kicked into overdrive and you learn that you have to complete the task at hand, lest you'll end up on 15 different tangents, all while wondering what it was you were originally doing.

So as to not distract my little mind from the blissful, serene, obedient children, and otherwise perfect weekend it's creating, I'll share with you 7 things about myself that you've always wanted to know!  You can thank Renee at Attack of the Hungry Monster for passing along the "Tell Me About Yourself" award. 

7 glorious things that you'll probably wish you never knew:

1)  I am the queen of returns.  My husband jokes (firmly believes) that I but things just so I can return them.  I can't help it.  Maybe I'm a hasty buyer but I think it's the little gnomes that come out of the Target shelves and talk to your sub-conscience as you're shopping.  What?  You don't think they exist?  Have you ever left Target with only the $5 razor you went in for?  I rest my case.

2)  I don't remove my makeup before I go to bed.  Nope.  Never have.  I would try to give you a reason but I have none.  I'm just lazy and I covet my sleep.  I don't want anything to come between me and my sweet, sweet pillow!  Yes, my white pillowcase is hardly white but he's just as soft as ever.  I have done the whole nightly routine thing a time or two but I saw no visable differences the next morning (i.e. Heidi Klum was not staring back at me in the mirror), so I opted to stick to my old ways. 

3)  I tell my mom everything.  Well maybe not everything but there are very few things she doesn't know about me.  It's always been that way and I assume it always will.  She is my best friend and I'm not afraid or ashamed to admit it.  When I was a teenager and everyone else had their angst towards their mother, I was happily hand-in-hand with mine.  I talk to her several times a day and I wouldn't have it any other way! 

4)  I haven't seen a movie in nearly 4 years.  That's not an invitation to a pity party, rather a testament of my feelings towards movies.  I'm generally not a fan.  I don't like to sit still that long and I usually forget them 1 day after watching them, so I think they're a waste of my time.  In high school, a girlfriend and I would use a highly scientific method to select movies.  Brace yourself, this will tell you a lot about my scholastic fortitude.  If there was a hot guy and we hadn't already seen it, that was the movie for us!  Hall Pass anyone?  T.E.R.R.I.B.L.E movie and to boot?  Only mediocre guys.  Waste.

5)  I am extremely cold-natured but I have sweaty hands and feet.  TMI?  Perhaps but I'm just working on the whole "opening up" thing.  It's true though, my sister would never hold my hand in church when we had to "all join hands" she would refuse.  Of course that's only if she would even sit by me on that given Sunday.  I loved my sister and she only liked me.  I was only allowed to sit by her if she was in a good mood.  Later in my sorority days, I had a friend who would only hold my wrist for fear of facing the sweaty palms.  Thank goodness Wes doesn't mind my flaw.  I'm sure this is some medical condition indicating some hormonal level being out of whack but I prefer to just keep sweatin' it out.

6)  I played was a member of the girls basketball team in the 7th grade.  I only dressed for the "B-Team" games.  I did get some minutes but they were mainly spent dribbling the ball around the perimeter of the 3-point line.  I wore glasses (big glasses!) then and I was afraid someone would bump into me and either hurt me or break my glasses, so I was a bit timid.  Well that and I was about a foot shorter than most of the players and weighed probably 20 pounds less than the smallest person.  I did have good ball handling skills (thanks, Dad) but that's where my talent ended.  My most memorable moment was not a favorable one.  After a teammate inbounds the ball to me, I promptly took off running toward the basket.  The only problem was, it was the wrong basket!  I should have known since there were no defenders in sight but I was too busy trying to keep my stomach contained to the inside of my body.  To this day I wonder if anyone was yelling at me or if they were just in shock.  I'd like to think I'd be able to hear a few dozen (b-team games were popular) people screaming at me but maybe I was too focused.


7)  I was overcome with emotion and inspiration after reading this yesterday.  I love doing things for other people but sometimes I need a little reminder that I should do it more often.  This post not only had me in tears by the end, it had me ready to take on the world, one random act at a time.  I decided not to wait until my birthday (what she had done) to get started.  I used my lunch break yesterday to get a gas card.  I drove to my mom's house, parked down the street a little so she couldn't see me, sneaked up her driveway and into her garage, and put the gas card, with a note that read, "I don't know what I'd do without you" on her windshield wiper.  She transports my children a lot and I thought that was the least I could do.  I can't wait to come up with more ideas for non-suspecting recipients! 

If you've stayed this far, you're either very nosey or really want to get to know me.  Either way, I applaud your efforts and thank you.  Hopefully it was all you ever hoped for and more.

Now I'd love to hear from you.  I'm supposed to pass this on to 15 other bloggers but I'd love to read any of your 7 things.

Pumpkin Snack Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

I have a new favorite combination - pumpkin and whole wheat flour.  Somehow the wholesome, nuttiness of the wheat is a perfect match for the sweet and creaminess of the pumpkin.  I just love pairing the 2 together whenever I get a chance.  Somehow it makes me feel slightly less guilty about eating sweets knowing that there are wholesome grains in it!

Thanks to this Pumpkin Snack Cake, I've also found that I prefer butter to oil when baking with pumpkin.  I realize most people would choose butter over oil, given the choice, but this cake really exemplified that for me.  It lends an extra richness to the cake that I just don't think oil provides.

With those 2 nuggets of information, I present to you one heck of a great cake!  I have made many iterations similar to this one but for whatever reason, this one ranks among the best.  It's the perfect sweetness, texture, and flavor.  Colin and I ate the entire pan of this, with the exception of 3 pieces that we gave away.  Delicious!

Pumpkin Snack Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
adapted from First Look Then Cook (originally from Cooking Light)

Cake:

• 10.1  ounces white/wheat blend flour (about 2 1/4 cups)
• 2 1/2  teaspoons  baking powder
• 2  teaspoons  ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 3/4 cup  packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1/4  cup  butter, softened
• 1  teaspoon  vanilla extract
• 2  large eggs
• 1  (15-ounce) can pumpkin puree (or butternut squash)
• Cooking spray

Frosting:

• 1/2 teaspoon  vanilla extract
• 1/2 (8-ounce) package 1/3-less-fat cream cheese
• 1  cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.

To prepare cake, weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk.

Combine both sugars, 1/4 cup butter, and 1 teaspoon vanilla in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well combined. Add eggs, 1 at a time, to sugar mixture; beat well after each addition. Add pumpkin; mix well. Fold in flour mixture. Spread batter into a 13 x 9-inch baking pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack.

To prepare the frosting, beat cream cheese and vanilla with a mixer at medium speed until combined. Gradually add the powdered sugar and cinnamon, beating until well combined. Spread frosting evenly over top of cake.

Linking up to the Improv Challenge, hosted by Kristen at Frugal Antics of a Harried Housewife.  A big thanks to Kristen for taking over this group!  

;

Open House

One thing you need to know about me is that I'm a very private person.  It's not always intentional, sometimes I just think people don't care to know everything about me.  I realize there's a huge gap between being open and telling your life story but I still continue to struggle. 

I say all of that to say that I've been keeping something from you.  No, I'm not pregnant, nor am I going to be a contestant on Top Chef.  We've put our house on the market!  

I'm only a few weeks late in sharing that bit of news but I guess there was a part of me that hoped we'd sell it in a matter of days and then I would tell you about it.  So we haven't sold it but we have had quite a few lookers.  That first week was full of let downs.  We had showing after showing, with not a single offer.  I realize that's how this process probably goes but it's all new to me and remember, I'm impatient!

We had our first open house this weekend and our Realtor said we had about 10 people.  I even made them homemade chocolate chip cookies and had water bottles out for the taking.  Wes made fun of me and said that was surely to seal the deal.  Hey, whatever works!  At least they know the oven works (:

Now we just sit and wait.  Did I mention I'm impatient?  Wes has told me countless times to think about something else but really, what else is there?!  I know he's right; I'm going to end up with ulcers if I don't give it a rest.  So, if you would, say a little prayer for us that we find the perfect buyer who wants to create a houseful of memories just as we have over the last 9 years (oh and that I won't get ulcers from worrying!). 

Maybe one of you knows someone or is looking yourself to buy a home in Kentucky.  We live on a quiet cul-de-sac, have great neighbors, recently finished our basement (copied from an episode of Divine Design on HGTV), and are in a great school district.  Spread the word, if you know someone who might be interested, feel free to shoot me an email (de5181 (at) aol.com)! 

Here are a few pictures from our listing.

Weekly Recipe: Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

Holy deliciousness, Batman!  These are some yummy cookies.  If you don't believe me, just look here, here, here, and here!  Same great cookie, same great taste.  With the slight alteration to incorporate some whole grains, I kept this one pretty much as written.  If these other fabulous cooks didn't see the need to make any changes, why should I?

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
adapted from Annie's Eats, originally from dlyn  

Yield: about 3-4 dozen cookies

Ingredients:
For the cookies:
3¾ cups 50/50 white/wheat blended flour
1½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
¾ cup pumpkin puree
1 large egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract

For the coating:
1/3 cup granulated sugar
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
Dash of allspice


Directions:
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  Whisk to blend and set aside.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugars on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.  Blend in the pumpkin puree.  Beat in the egg and vanilla until incorporated.  With the mixer on low speed add in the dry ingredients and mix just until incorporated.  Cover and chill the dough for at least 1 hour (I made mine in batches over the course of 24 hours).

Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.  Combine the sugar and spices for the coating in a bowl and mix to blend.  Scoop the dough (about 2½ tablespoons) and roll into a ball.  Coat the dough ball in the sugar-spice mixture and place on the prepared baking sheet.  Repeat with the remaining dough to fill the sheets, spacing the dough balls 2-3 inches apart.  Dip the bottom of a flat, heavy-bottomed drinking glass in water, then in the sugar-spice mixture, and use the bottom to flatten the dough balls slightly.  Recoat the bottom of the glass in the sugar-spice mixture as needed.

Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes, or until just set and baked through.  Let cool on the baking sheets about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  Repeat with the remaining dough.  Store in an airtight container.  Mine kept soft for at least 5 days before I finally froze the rest.  They're just as good thawed too!

I'm joining in on the fun over at Mom's Crazy Cooking with her weekly challenges.  This week is your best PUMPKIN recipe.  Head on over and join in the fun.  The party is happening all week!

Sneak Peek

For whatever reason, ever since Colin has been born, I have always scheduled our family pictures in the summertime.  I can't say it was really a conscience decision, it just seemed like the thing to do in the summer.  I guess subconsciously I was thinking that the bright sunshine led to better pictures, thus the other seasons were out of the question.

This year both Wes and I had the revelation to have our pictures taken in the fall.  The thought of the beautiful foliage and snuggly sweaters sounded like a good change.  And since we were making all of these changes, we decided to try a new photographer as well.  I have loved every one of the photographers we've had in the past (here and here) but sometimes you just want a different approach.

Through the powers at be on the cult Facebook, I was lucky enough to come across Liz Thomas.  Liz is such an amazing photographer.  From the moment I met her, I knew she was passionate about photography.  She is artistic, personable, and having 3 boys of her own, great with kids.  She guided us a little, while also letting us just be ourselves.  She suggested things for us to do, which was much appreciated since my mind has a tendency to go blank when put on the spot like that.  She was super patient with Sawyer, who decided to have a I'm-not-leaving-this-wagon meltdown, and even managed to snap her first ever family picture in the said wagon!  Simply put, she's amazing and if you live in the area, I'd highly recommend her!

These beautiful pasture pictures didn't come without a price.  I was the first one to fall victim to one of the many cow pies.  Not to be outdone, Sawyer decided to stick his fingers in one - thankfully not the thumb-sucking hand!  Finally, to get in on the action, Colin stepped in one with only minutes left in our session.  Luckily, we didn't take any 'pie' home with us!

Here's a sneak peek of her beautiful work.  How am I going to choose?!

Weekly Recipe: Sweet & Spicy Baked Acorn Squash

Well if I didn't lose you on yesterday's post, I may lose some of you today.  I hope not though because this recipe is not to be missed.  It's from the Southern-butter-lovin' lady herself, Paula Deen.  As the name I've given her implies, this recipe does feature butter but as we all know, butter makes everything taste better - deep fried butter anyone?!

However, if you are new to acorn squash, this is a great recipe to serve as your introduction.  It's sweet, ooey-gooey, and could easily serve as a dessert to any meal!  Sawyer and I loved it but Wes and Colin couldn't seem to get past the look of it.  Don't let the looks deceive you, it's mighty tasty.

Sweet & Spicy Baked Acorn Squash
adapted from Paula Deen Magazine, Sept/Oct 2011 edition

2 medium acorn squash (about 4 lbs total)

1/4 cup butter

1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

¼ cup maple syrup

½ tsp salt

½ tsp vanilla extract

¼ tsp ground ginger

1/3 cup coarsely chopped pecans, toasted

Preheat oven to 350. 

Using the tip of a sharp knife, pierce squash several times on all sides.  Place squash directly on middle oven rack, and bake for 40-45 minutes or just until tender.  Remove from oven and let stand until cool enough to handle.  (I preset my oven to start baking these beauties before I got home, so they'd be ready to go once I got there.)

Spray a rimmed baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.  Cut each squash in half lengthwise; remove and discard seeds and stringy fiber.  Cut each half into 2 wedges, and place on prepared baking sheet.

In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.  Add brown sugar, maple syrup, salt, vanilla, and ginger; cook, stirring constantly, just until sugar dissolves.  Remove from heat, and stir in pecans.

Spoon pecan mixture over squash wedges, and bake for 12-15 minutes or until tender.

Linking up with It's a Keeper Thursday and A Little Nosh's Tastetastic Thursday.

Weekly Recipe: Braised Cabbage

If I have a handful of readers for this one, I'll be surprised.  Remember what I suggested here, don't knock it until you try it!  Who knows, this could be a favorite with your children.  You never know what their taste buds will find appealing. 

I needed a recipe that would use up the last half of cabbage from our CSA.  This recipe seemed to fit the bill.  This paired really well with an Asian-inspired dish (post to come).  If you're looking for a simple way to use up some extra cabbage, this recipe is a winner.
 

Braised Cabbage
adapted from Never Enough Thyme

1/2 head of cabbage, thinly sliced
1/2 of a medium onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 of a medium green pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp bacon grease (or an extra tsp of olive oil)
1 cup chicken broth
dash of sesame oil, optional
salt & pepper to taste

Heat olive oil and bacon grease in large skillet.  Add the onions and green peppers and saute for 3-4 minutes.  Add the chicken broth, cabbage, and dash of sesame oil, if using, and bring a boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the cabbage is wilted - about 5 minutes.  Remove lid and continue to cook another 15-20 minutes until cabbage is tender.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Recipe Week: Grilled Stuffed Burritos

Somehow I have gotten way behind in my recipe posts.  I guess I've fallen off my 'one new recipe a week' wagon and have been making more new things.  It's a curse, what can I say?  I don't hear my family complaining though.  So in an attempt to catch up a bit, I'm going to be posting recipes for a while.  Hopefully you will find one or two that you will want to try and share with your family (or yourself!).

First up is a crowd pleaser, Grilled Stuffed Burritos.  No, you don't drive your car to the nearest Taco Bell and go through the drive-thru, this recipe is easy enough to make at home with little to no effort on your part.  I tweaked the original recipe a bit to cut down on the sodium (taco seasoning is loaded with it) and I also used queso fresco to try to make it a bit more authentic.  I also gave away my George Foreman many years ago, so I was relegated to use a grill pan.  It worked just fine.

The only complaint I have is that I'm not a skilled burrito wrapper.  Perhaps I need to pay closer attention to the masters the next time I'm at Chipotle or Qdoba.  They've got mad skills.  If you don't believe me, just try to do it yourself.  You'll see.

Grilled Stuffed Burritos
adapted from Semi Homemade Mom

2/3 lb ground bison (or beef)
1/3 package of reduced-sodium taco seasoning
1/2 cup water
1 can refried black beans
1 package of Spanish rice (look for low sodium - I used one from our local health food store)
1/4 cup salsa, plus additional for garnishing
1 1/2 cups crumbled queso fresco (or similar Mexican cheese)
6 burrito-size whole wheat tortilla shells
avocado, for garnishing
sour cream, for garnishing

Prepare Spanish rice according to package directions; set aside.

Brown ground bison (beef) in a skillet and drain.  Add taco seasoning and water to bison and simmer over medium-low heat until liquid has absorbed.  Stir in the refried beans and salsa (I found the beans stirred in a lot easier after I heated them in the microwave for a bit to loosen them up). 

Preheat grill pan over medium heat.  Warm tortillas in microwave for about 20 seconds.  Place about 1/4 a cup of filling in the center of each tortilla, then top with a heaping spoonful of rice and a handful of cheese.  Wrap, burrito-style, and place, seam side down, in your lightly oiled grill pan.  Cook for about 3 minutes per side, or until grill marks appear.  Top with your favorite garnishments.

Linking up to This Chick Cooks and Remodelholic this week.

Weekly Reader

Wes and I agree on a lot of things relating to parenthood.  I'm not sure I would have realized that as much had it not been for my mom pointing it out.  She's right, it certainly makes things easier when you're on the same page (ha!).

One thing we both felt strongly about was reading to our children from an early age.  Wes is an avid reader and I pretty much despise it.  I didn't want to pass that on to my children, so I made a point of immersing them in books from day one. 

From the time he was old enough to hold his head up, Colin has loved books.  Whether it was the delicious taste of the corners, the rippable pages, or the colorful pictues, he would eagerly climb in our laps for storytime.

It wasn't long before he had memorized half of his library of books (and that's a lot of books for those inquiring minds).  He would correct us if we missed a word (no skipping pages with this one!) and help us if our minds started to wander.  When my mom doesn't have her reading glasses, he helps her with the words she can't see. 

Little brother has followed in his big brother's footsteps.  Now Colin not only enjoys being read to, he has taken the driver's seat and reads to Sawyer.  It's incredibly precious how he asks permission to read to him.  He is such a sweet and thoughtful child that he somehow senses just when I need his help the most.  As I'm in the thoroughs of cooking dinner and Sawyer is pitifully handing me "Tubby" and grunting as if to say, "Please read this to me," Colin somehow takes the reigns and asks both his brother and I, "Bubby, do you want me to read 'Tubby' to you?"

He is a precious little boy with such a strong desire to learn.  He's in an accelerated reading program at his school and although he successfully read the first book, his instructor sent a note home saying it appeared as if he had memorized it.  Yep, he probably had.  We've moved on to flashcards now and he's doing well with those.

The images like these just melt my heart and make me overcome with pride and joy! 

**Disclaimer:  The pictures might be blurry but the moment was far too precious to not be recorded!