And most importantly we taught Addy to ride her bike without training wheels!!
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Saturday = Project Day
It's been a busy day and it's only 1:45. The girls are napping and I'm making chimichurri.
Earlier today Addy and I pressed grapes to make grape juice. Tomorrow we'll make it in to jelly. Chad sanded and re-stained our gnome and the picnic table.
And most importantly we taught Addy to ride her bike without training wheels!!
And most importantly we taught Addy to ride her bike without training wheels!!
Friday, September 9, 2011
Rolling in Dough
It's peach season! Probably getting close to the end of it too. But they've been delish this year. Last weekend Terra and I had a peach pie bake off! It was fun to get together and share food that we had both worked hard on with our families. Terra won with her yummy peach pie with a crumble topping!
I made a fairly traditional pie with an all butter crust. It was pretty yummy and flaky. The girls had a good time rolling out the extra dough. Then we sprinkled it with cinnamon sugar and baked it along with the pie. Yummy, crispy cinnamony buttery goodness.
Since my pie was not the winning recipe I will share a different recipe with you.
We made dinner "to go" for a friend who came by for a play date this week and she reported back that her family loved the rolls we made. I adapted this from the recipe for oatmeal bread in the Oster User Manual and Bread Recipes pamphlet that came with my bread maker.
Whole Wheat Oatmeal Rolls
1 1/4 cups water
3 T. honey
2 T. butter
3/4 cup oats
1 3/4 tsp. salt
3 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 T. oat bran
2 T. dry milk
2 tsp yeast
I did it on dough setting in the bread maker. We threw the ingredients into the bread maker before we went out to Paul Derda for playground time and lunch. The dough sat for a few hours before Addy and I shaped them after nap. I let them rise in the oven for about 30 minutes after we had shaped them. I brushed them with egg and sprinkled with sesame seeds then baked at 350 for 25 mins. This makes about 16 rolls. You can also shape all of your rolls onto two pans. Freeze one pan and bake the other. Once the rolls are frozen, pop them off the pan and put them in a freezer safe bag. Then they are ready for another day. Just take out the number that you need, place them on a pan a couple of hours before you want to bake them. They will defrost quickly.
I made a fairly traditional pie with an all butter crust. It was pretty yummy and flaky. The girls had a good time rolling out the extra dough. Then we sprinkled it with cinnamon sugar and baked it along with the pie. Yummy, crispy cinnamony buttery goodness.
Since my pie was not the winning recipe I will share a different recipe with you.
We made dinner "to go" for a friend who came by for a play date this week and she reported back that her family loved the rolls we made. I adapted this from the recipe for oatmeal bread in the Oster User Manual and Bread Recipes pamphlet that came with my bread maker.
Whole Wheat Oatmeal Rolls
1 1/4 cups water
3 T. honey
2 T. butter
3/4 cup oats
1 3/4 tsp. salt
3 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 T. oat bran
2 T. dry milk
2 tsp yeast
I did it on dough setting in the bread maker. We threw the ingredients into the bread maker before we went out to Paul Derda for playground time and lunch. The dough sat for a few hours before Addy and I shaped them after nap. I let them rise in the oven for about 30 minutes after we had shaped them. I brushed them with egg and sprinkled with sesame seeds then baked at 350 for 25 mins. This makes about 16 rolls. You can also shape all of your rolls onto two pans. Freeze one pan and bake the other. Once the rolls are frozen, pop them off the pan and put them in a freezer safe bag. Then they are ready for another day. Just take out the number that you need, place them on a pan a couple of hours before you want to bake them. They will defrost quickly.
Monday, August 29, 2011
Addy's Fruit Parfaits
Saturday morning we walked over to the "Purple Park" by the Mamie Doud Library. Healthy Learning Paths was hosting the 2011 Children's Wellness Adventure. Addy especially enjoyed the bike rodeo. Elena enjoyed the hula hoops and I enjoyed the back massage I got at the Chiropractor's booth.
Other booths included the Kiwansis, Rotary, CASA, a family mental health practioner, Higgy's Ice Cream (one of our new favs). Each booth had something for the kids to do and lots of information for the adults too. The event was listed for $5 a family but when I registered I was told I didn't have to pay. The girls each got t-shirts and some nice healthy breakfast type snacks.
Maybe next year Terra and I will have a Green Bee booth!
At one of the booths Addy got to make a yogurt parfait. Here is the recipe in her words:
You get bananas and granola. And then some blueberries, raspberries, and peaches and some strawberries and then you cut them. Put some chopped fruit in a cup. Then you put the yogurt on first and then the granola. Then you put some more chopped fruit on top of the yogurt and granola.
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| Addy rides through a obstacle course, following street signs. Broomfield Police Officer was on hand to guide and teach. |
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| Elena tries hula hooping. She heard it is good exercise, but she needs her Bammer to show her how it's done. |
Maybe next year Terra and I will have a Green Bee booth!
At one of the booths Addy got to make a yogurt parfait. Here is the recipe in her words:
You get bananas and granola. And then some blueberries, raspberries, and peaches and some strawberries and then you cut them. Put some chopped fruit in a cup. Then you put the yogurt on first and then the granola. Then you put some more chopped fruit on top of the yogurt and granola.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Sweet things
We have been having a good week hosting Molly's sister Kelly. She is walking across the United States and has stopped here to visit and gear up for the trek across the Rockies. We picked her up from Boulder on Tuesday.
Wednesday, seeking adventure and an escape from the heat we headed to Hammond's Candy Factory in Denver. It was only a 15 minute drive from here and the free tour included and nice size free sample. Addy has been asking how lollipops are made so it was a timely trip to answer her questions. We were able to watch hot sugar being poured onto the cooling tables and workers wrapping candy on to the sticks for lollipops. They make beautiful hard candy as well as their own caramels and chocolates. I liked the Mitchell Candy which is a handmade marshmallow wrapped in caramel.
As a regular practice we try not to eat much candy. Lately I have been enjoying homemade granola as a healthy yet sweet snack. Both girls can help with the mixing and pouring parts of this recipe. This recipe came from my mom but I change it every time based on what I have on hand.
3 1/2 cups oatmeal
1/2 wheat germ
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1 T cinnamon
1 tsp turmeric
1/4 cup cooking oil
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
Mix dry ingredients together in a 9x13 in metal pan. Drizzle with oil and honey. Bake at 375
for 45 minutes. Stir every 15 minutes until toasty and golden brown. Stir in dried fruit while still warm. Allow to cool completely before storing in an airtight container. We enjoy it over plain yogurt with fresh fruit.
Wednesday, seeking adventure and an escape from the heat we headed to Hammond's Candy Factory in Denver. It was only a 15 minute drive from here and the free tour included and nice size free sample. Addy has been asking how lollipops are made so it was a timely trip to answer her questions. We were able to watch hot sugar being poured onto the cooling tables and workers wrapping candy on to the sticks for lollipops. They make beautiful hard candy as well as their own caramels and chocolates. I liked the Mitchell Candy which is a handmade marshmallow wrapped in caramel.
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| I think we could have been happy with our samples but we did a little shopping too. |
As a regular practice we try not to eat much candy. Lately I have been enjoying homemade granola as a healthy yet sweet snack. Both girls can help with the mixing and pouring parts of this recipe. This recipe came from my mom but I change it every time based on what I have on hand.
3 1/2 cups oatmeal
1/2 wheat germ
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1 T cinnamon
1 tsp turmeric
1/4 cup cooking oil
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
Mix dry ingredients together in a 9x13 in metal pan. Drizzle with oil and honey. Bake at 375
for 45 minutes. Stir every 15 minutes until toasty and golden brown. Stir in dried fruit while still warm. Allow to cool completely before storing in an airtight container. We enjoy it over plain yogurt with fresh fruit.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Earthquakes
We didn't feel the earthquake Monday night. But it was one of those this to shall pass nights, where I'm exhausted but morning can't come soon enough. The girls went to bed just fine and I stayed up watching a little Intervention on A&E. Around 9:30 I shut everything off and went to bed. At 1:30 I awoke to the voice of the BBC playing on the computer, that I had turned off. Do you think the earthquake shook it on? Then at three o'clock I'm poked awake out of a deep sleep by Addy asking me the time. I snap at her and she goes back to bed. I stay awake feeling guilty for snapping at her. By four I'm asleep again but she's back poking me and wondering if it is time to get up. I let her get in bed with me, then I lay awake pondering how I can get her to stop this nonsense. At 5 Elena wakes up to nurse. I didn't even try to fall asleep again.
Not our best night. Naps were pretty sweet though.
I did figure out away to help Addy though. She now has two clocks beside her bed. One that sings her to sleep and turns yellow when we set it for daytime. It is analog and hard for her to read at this point. The other little clock is digital and I've taught her that if the first number is a 5 she may get up and quietly get in bed with us. If the first number is a 6 she can get up, also at 6 her analog clock turns yellow. Any other number she should be asleep and not get out of bed. This morning she lasted until 5:30 before getting in bed with me.
Not our best night. Naps were pretty sweet though.
I did figure out away to help Addy though. She now has two clocks beside her bed. One that sings her to sleep and turns yellow when we set it for daytime. It is analog and hard for her to read at this point. The other little clock is digital and I've taught her that if the first number is a 5 she may get up and quietly get in bed with us. If the first number is a 6 she can get up, also at 6 her analog clock turns yellow. Any other number she should be asleep and not get out of bed. This morning she lasted until 5:30 before getting in bed with me.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Playing Peek a boo vs. Blogging
I was going to blog . . . but playing peek-a-boo with a warm snuggling baby won.
A quick visual of what I did manage to get done before the snuggle woke up.
On the menu for the night: skirt steak with chimichurri, sauteed corn, fresh bread, and lots of baby kisses.
A quick visual of what I did manage to get done before the snuggle woke up.
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| Mise en place for Chimichurri |
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| Roasted corn, sliced off the cob, sauteed with butter and sweet onion. |
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| cilantro, parsley, tomatillo, tomato and Serrano pepper to add to sauteed corn |
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Would you like some Chimichurri?
We've spent all of July in North Carolina at my parents beautiful new house. We've done lots of hiking swimming and adventuring.
We've also made some pretty great food. Friday afternoon Mom and Dad took off to Asheville to pick Marie up from the airport, leaving Ben, his friends Chris and Dana, me and the girls here to hang out and play with the expectation that we would also cook dinner.
We made the best steak dinner I've had in a while. Fresh green beans, baked potatoes, rolls, NY strip steak, chimichurri and some pretty darn tasty wines.
Addy found eight potatoes, washed them, poked them with a fork and then arranged them in the cold oven. Think of all the skills she was building; counting, one to one correspondence, fine motor skills, spacial relationships, verbal skills and a sense of responsibility.
And now for the best part of the meal--the chimichurri. Chimichurri is a green sauce from Argentina. It can be used as a marinade or dipping sauce. We used it as a dipping sauce for the meat and bread.
Ben had had this with a friend earilier in the week and came up with this recipe based on that experience and a little googling.
1 bunch parsley
1 bunch cilantro
1 handful fresh oregano
8 cloves garlic
1 wedge lemon
1/2 onion
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
1 tsp black pepper
5/8 tsp
Roughly chop herbs and add to blender or food processor with peeled garlic, chopped onion, salt and pepper. Squeeze lemon over all and blend while adding oil and vinegar. Chill for about an hour before serving. Serves 6-8.
We've also made some pretty great food. Friday afternoon Mom and Dad took off to Asheville to pick Marie up from the airport, leaving Ben, his friends Chris and Dana, me and the girls here to hang out and play with the expectation that we would also cook dinner.
We made the best steak dinner I've had in a while. Fresh green beans, baked potatoes, rolls, NY strip steak, chimichurri and some pretty darn tasty wines.
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| Yummy ciabatta rolls arranged by Addy to warm in the oven just before serving. |
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| Uncle Ben mans the grill. He rubbed these with salt, papper and oil before grilling to medium rare. We let them rest about 10 minutes before serving. |
Ben had had this with a friend earilier in the week and came up with this recipe based on that experience and a little googling.
1 bunch parsley
1 bunch cilantro
1 handful fresh oregano
8 cloves garlic
1 wedge lemon
1/2 onion
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
1 tsp black pepper
5/8 tsp
Roughly chop herbs and add to blender or food processor with peeled garlic, chopped onion, salt and pepper. Squeeze lemon over all and blend while adding oil and vinegar. Chill for about an hour before serving. Serves 6-8.
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| Getting ready for the blender dance. |
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| Helping Uncle Ben put the chimichuri in a bowl for the fridge. |
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| Two words: Yum! Yum! |
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| Chris and Dana, friends, meal collaborators and photographers, seen here with the wine: A red with Susana in its name and a white by Quattro Mani. Both very good. |
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