gingerbread

In keeping with holiday tradition and because the kids wouldn't stop hounding me... we (finally) made gingerbread houses.

We managed to get 4 small houses out of one batch of gingerbread, thank goodness, a few wreaths and one evergreen tree too.

A couple of regular houses, one A-frame and a modern design that looks a lot like a church built in the 70's- everyone was happy armed with handfuls of sugar plums and candy canes ready to decorate. I think I might have gone a little overboard on the amount of candy, but you don't want to perhaps impede the serious builder with a lack of proper sugary & colorful ingredients.

M's house has star shaped windows...as you can see, the Dots (candy) are so irresistible, one has already been snatched and gobbled off the front entryway.

Apparently, a fancy yard means more than a really elaborately detailed house, or maybe it's just easier to pick M&M's off a flat surface a little later on. I think that's how you know you're not a kid anymore- eating candy off a gingerbread house sounds kind of like drinking water out of the gutter...

time for the Beehive Bazaar!

Tomorrow is the opening night of the Beehive Bazaar- 9pm for all you late nighters who are all about handmade goods(don't forget $4 for opening night admission), Friday and Saturday all day too.
Don't miss the best mix of handmade goods in Utah, excellent one-of-a-kind Christmas shopping opportunities await everyone on your list- and don't forget to pick up a little something for yourself.
Sneak peek participating artists and crafters here. See you there.

basil

I got the last of the basil harvested just in time, the temperatures dropped this past weekend and there's about two inches of snow on the ground right now. Feels like Christmas, not the week of Halloween.  These leaves look a little hammered, but they'll taste just fine.

I made 3 batches of pesto until I ran out of olive oil. I freeze them in ice cube trays or small plastic storage containers (like the one in the picture)- to use throughout the winter months.
With the last pile of basil leaves ready to go, I  realized I was out of olive oil. Not in the mood to run to the store or borrow anything else from our new neighbors (until they borrow something back from us, we are up 2 eggs) I searched the cupboards for possible substitutes and found a bottle of walnut oil. I did a little research and found this recipe:

Walnut Oil Pesto:
3 cups basil leaves
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
3 TBSP grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup walnut oil
salt, to taste
Blend all ingredients in the blender or food processor.

Here is the pesto recipe I usually use:
Pesto Sauce:
1 c. fresh basil leaves
2 garlic cloves
coarse or rock salt, just a sprinkle
2 tbsp pine nuts (giant bags available at costo)
1/2 c. olive oil
4 tbsp fresh grated parmesan cheese
2 tbsp pecorino cheese or more parmesan
Place basil, garlic, salt, and pine nuts in a blender or food processor until finely chopped. add olive oil with motor running, the add cheese. blend one more time until ingredients are mixed well.

Basically the same, excepting the pine nuts when you use walnut oil instead of olive oil, this might be a good pesto option these days as the price of pine nuts soars so high even Costco has stopped carrying them.
Just a note in case you're entertaining or trying to impress your diners- the walnut oil pesto browned noticeably quicker than the traditional recipe. Otherwise, the taste is basically the same.

This bowl full of lunch may not look very delicious- but it is. It's is my favorite way to eat pesto these days- with spaghetti squash instead of pasta, then mix in whatever else you have handy- some protein (salmon, tuna, ham, soy beans...) and more vegetables (tomatoes, green beans, peas...). Delicious.
I've finally arrived at the year when all of the kids are in school all day... a mom milestone... this means I can catch up on the Sunday New York Times (that takes me all week to get through) over lunch.

school lunch

First grade is tough- little ones need to adjust to the long day of sitting still and listening, not wandering about doing exactly what they want, when they want to do it.
Tough stuff.
C started 1st grade on Tuesday and his mood has been deteriorating all week. This is very hard for me, the Mom, to watch the little fella stress out about going to school the next day, crying himself to sleep. Trying to get to the bottom of the problem and find out what exactly was making him so sad, I quizzed him on the possible problems- the kids, curriculum, teacher, having to sit still so long, shiny happy faces, too hot or too cold, lunchtime, recess...
Roughly all of it, was his reply, but then he shared that lunch makes his tummy hurt, before and after he's actually eaten. Recess- not much better either, he imparted.
At this point his 10 year old sister M, who had been listening to the who conversation chimed in, "Eating lunch in the school cafeteria is freaky- those kids are crazy." She paused, perhaps for emphasis, and then continued to add details after reading the skeptical look on all our faces- the crowd was growing, Q (14 yr. old) had now joined the conversation.
"No really Mom," M pleaded and then began to demonstrate, "the kids get their corn dogs, peel off the corn coating and then wiggle the cornless dog around on the stick." She made a dorky face as she illustrated the event and those involved, "all the boys laugh- they think it's SO funny!"
Then Q chimed in, "It's true! I've see it, you should see them squeeze the grease out of the grilled cheese sandwiches!" another demonstation followed.
I begin to get the picture, it comes back into focus- all my days spent in school cafeterias when I was a kid. Oh dear, I recall the madness. The noise, sights and smells- hundreds of kids, lots of food, spotty supervision.
Who doesn't remember scavenged containers filled with ketchup, mustard, juice, milk and grilled cheese sandwich grease... hurriedly mixed together with corn dog sticks then passed around on a dare, potato chip bags exploding all around you, naked hot dogs on sticks-
My tummy is started to hurt too.

one snazzy bowl

I almost impulse bought this bowl today- 5 seconds after first seeing it...
Now, I think I might dream about it tonight and order a few tomorrow. So great- and available at Scandinavian Design Center, with a bunch of other really cool stuff.

Mancebo on tip-toe

Here are the winners of Stage 4 Tour of Utah- on the podium (l to r) Tanner, Lill, Leipheimer, Mancebo, Boswell. The stage was a criterium, a one mile course up and down Main Street in Park City. Lots of climbing- over and over and over again for the patient/exhausted/hard-working riders, good observing for us cycling fans.

Dinner was wood-fired pizza at Cafe Galleria in Midway on the way back home. Oh how I love pizza piled with non-traditional pizza toppings (this pizza was topped with pesto, chicken, zucchini, arugula, pine nuts and maybe a few other delicious tidbits I can't think of now...).

Round it out with some dessert at the newly opened "Fill'er Up Coffee Station" also in Midway. Yummy baked goods, ice cream, coffee, tea and (sandwiches are coming soon... like for Swiss Days on Labor Day weekend.) The atmosphere on the patio is delightful, meander through the hollyhocks to find a hidden table and enjoy your treat.

dinnertime

It's spring break, we escaped the snow in the north to enjoy some snow in the south... weird. Anywho, who cares when it's wood-fired pizza time. This special concoction I made up all by myself. The sauce isn't really a sauce. I mixed olive oil with crushed garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper- then brushed it on the crust. Then topped it with bacon, caramelized onions, spinach, mangoes and a sprinkling of parmesan cheese. The dough is just a basic pizza dough recipe, pulled as thin as you can get it.
Then out to the wood-fired oven...

I'm not going to lie to you- in my experience, everything cooked in a wood-fired pizza oven is delicious, don't even get me started on the desert possibilities...
Just don't walk away and burn your meal.
This pizza oven is in Escalante Utah, at the Slot Canyons Bed and Breakfast. It is my brother's creation, and is available for dinner reservations, if your in the area... and folks, it's definitely worth a trip to the area ( for lots of reasons not even related to amazing pizza).

F, 12- mastering the peel, C,5 warming his hands. The pizza cooks in minutes, you've got to stay on your toes, no slacking.

We slacked...
We stopped watching the pizza for a minute to play Row Row Row Your Boat with the peel as an oar and overcooked the crust a bit, but it was still way delicious and we polished off every drop. The mangoes weren't as sweet as I had imagined they would be- a pizza combining the right amount of sweet and salty, and the right textures is culinary genius.
We stuffed ourselves on this one and about 10 more sassy pizza combinations. Then we rounded it out with some cookie dough delights cooked in the wood-fired oven in ramekins, topped with vanilla ice cream. Dee-lightful.

chompers

This craft is killing me. (In case it's unclear, this dental display is made out of mini marshmallows and cardstock) My kindergartener came home with this set of chompers today and I can't get enough of it. I think I'll put it on the mantle- it will put a smile on my face every time I walk by. I wonder how long it will last...

Happy Good Friday, and if I don't see ya, Happy Easter too.

Easter treats

I like to think about treats (safer to just think...) these days, (OK, all days)..., when I came across some Chocolate Bird Nests with the Cadbury Mini Eggs- a very important, favorite candy around these parts at Easter time, (only more perfect if they were made with dark chocolate).
Now, believe me, there are some crazy looking edible nests out there. This recipe/egg combo, with crunchy chow mein noodles looks the most like a "nest" and not a pile of poo with eggs balancing on top, like nests made with Rice Crispies or smashed up Frosted Mini-Wheats. And really friends, who needs jelly beans in a nest? Please, not chocolate= not interested.
I think try and round up my young ones this week and give this recipe a try.

Chocolate Birds Nests

5 oz. crunchy chow mein noodles, 1 small can ( I wonder how Fiber One cereal would work, might try that instead)
1 cup chocolate chips (1/2 a bag)
1 tsp. vegetable shortening
1 bag Cadbury Mini-Eggs, a few for the nests, the rest for snacking or jelly beans (if you're crazy... or that's the only egg shaped candy you have on hand)

-Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Melt the chocolate and shortening together in a microwave or a double boiler, stirring until melted.
-Allow to cool slightly, but do not let it set up. Stir in the chow mein noodles ( or cereal) until evenly coated.
-Drop the coated noodles onto the baking sheet with a large spoon. For 5 large nests, form into a circle about the size of an adult palm or half that amount for 10 small nests.
-Use your fingers to sculpt the noodles into a round shape and to form an indentation in the middle of the nest.
-Place eggs in the nest while chocolate is still wet. Place nests in the refrigerator to harden.

an admission of guilt- fangs or fur?

I must admit, I will be seeing New Moon tonight at midnight- a little extra activity tacked onto book group tonight. But at least I'm not waiting in line overnight to be one of the first to sample a burger, shake and fries at the new In n' Out Burger in Orem. I mean Really!? The things some people will do...

weekend wrap-up

We spent the fall break weekend in Escalante with my family. My brother Adam's project is a wood fired pizza kitchen, soon-to-be restaurant as part of the Slot Canyons Inn. Adam was out of town at a wedding, but we gave the oven a test run- and fell in love. Steve O was in heaven and getting the hang of the peel after just a pizza or two.
Two nights in a row we fired up the oven and made pizza until our tummies ached. On night #2 we branched out and made little chocolate cakes in ramekins. The cake was best when pulled out of the oven early (about 5 minutes) left undercooked in the middle, with a scoop of ice cream on the top.
We are heading back down for Thanksgiving and doing some research on cooking a turkey (let's face it- everything for Thanksgiving dinner) in some wood fired oven bliss (and then building one in our own backyard).
This pizza was one of our favorites. The simplest dough recipe made the best crust. I ain't lying when I say pizza cooked in a wood fired oven is heavenly.
The pizza pictured here has a whole wheat crust, honey mustard sauce thinly spread on the bottom, caramelized onions, bacon, toasted pecans, parmesan reggiano cheese and apple slices on the top. Just thinking about it is making my mouth water.

We took an afternoon and went to Devil's Rock Garden- out on the Hole-in-the-Rock road. Gorgeous fall day, I took lots of lovely pictures. Kids and cousins ran amuck. The desert was perfect- about 70 degrees, not a cloud in the sky. More pictures here.

a twist on chicken pesto pizza

It's the best time of year for food snobs like myself- garden eating time. Everything in the garden is nearly ready to eat- a great meal is just a few steps away. We made this pizza a few days ago with fresh pesto (we make a batch just about every day and put it on everything) chicken, olives, regular parmesan, parmesan reggiano cheese, (we were all out of mozzerella to perhaps mix in, so we just went light on the cheese in general) pine nuts, tomatoes, and some yellow and green beans thrown on top- just for fun.

Yesterday we ate lunch and dinner entirely out of the garden: spaghetti squash, yellow pear, grape and yellow cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, a bell pepper and pesto sauce- all chopped up and mixed together. (I forgot to pause for a photo). Yum- delicious.

Here is a re-publication of my pesto recipe and the fastest, easiest pizza dough ever too. Bon Apetite

pizza dough:
1 pkg. active dry yeast
1 c. warm water
2 1/2 c. flour, white or wheat
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt

dissolve yeast in warm water and stir in remaining ingredients. beat vigorously 20 strokes, or use a mixer. let rest only 5 minutes.

pesto sauce:
1 c. fresh basil leaves ( I would recommend planting basil in your garden, or keeping a plant in your kitchen. it is such a wonderful addition to so many foods)
2 garlic cloves
coarse or rock salt, just a sprinkle
2 tbsp pine nuts (giant bags available at costo)
1/2 c. olive oil
4 tbsp fresh grated parmesan cheese
2 tbsp pecorino cheese or more parmesan
place basil, garlic, salt, and pine nuts in a blender or food processor until finely chopped. add olive oil with motor running, the add cheese. blend one more time until ingredients are mixed well.

pizza:
shredded chicken
sliced mushrooms
olives
mozzerella cheese
parmesan and romano cheese
pine nuts
or whatever else sounds good on a a pizza!

roll out dough on parchment paper or pizza pan. spoon on pesto sauce, generously.
cover up the pesto with chicken, mushrooms, and olives, come on now, don't be shy or skimp now...
add shredded mozzerella, then about 1/3 as much parmesan and romano, once again don't skimp.
sprinkle with a handful of pine nuts.
bake on a pizza stone with parchment paper at 425 for 15-20 minutes.
-if you don't have a pizza stone just use a pizza pan or cookie sheet, but a pizza stone really makes the crust turn out yummy. i would recommend having a pizza stone in any kitchen. i cook frozen pizza on it as well, on those super busy or babysitter nights.
i transfer pizza & parchment to the hot stone in the oven by cookie sheet, and back out of the oven the same way.
enjoy!

makin' good on a promise

I made chocolate peanut butter balls for the Beehive Bazaar this past weekend- (which was a huge success- thank you everyone who came and supported local handmade arts and crafts!). The kids were so mad when I packaged them all up and shuttled each and every delectable nugget out the door. I promised to make another batch on Sunday- and after my 4 hour nap (trying to catch up on months of too little sleep)- I followed through. Oh, the Peanut Butter Ball- basically a homemade Reese's Peanut Butter Cup (our family's favorite candy). These morsels would probably rank in my top 3 favorite treats of all time- #1 would have to be a cake or cupcake made by Stephanie (which can be purchase at Dear Lizzie in Alpine), #2 of course, homemade chocolate chip cookies and #3 these babies right here. Here is the recipe if you'd like to try them for yourself.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls

1 cup crunchy Peanut Butter
1/4 cup butter softened
2 cups Rice Krispies
1 cup confectioners sugar
1 pkg. (14oz.) chocolate candy coating or 1 pkg. semi-sweet chocolate chips

In a large bowl, combine peanut butter and butter. Add Rice Krispies and sugar, mix until evenly combined. Portion cereal mixture, using a rounded measuring teaspoon. Roll into balls and set aside (hint- if you wet your hands slightly when rolling the balls, your hands won't get coated with the mixture, also the balls will hold a nice round shape). On top of a double boiler, melt the chocolate. Dip each peanut butter ball in coating, roll around and set to dry on waxed paper. Refrigerate until firm. About 90 calories per ball... so don't eat just one!

I went for a walk last night (in the rain with my dog and the podcast of This American Life) after I put the kids into bed. When I got home, this note was waiting for me.

a little upsetting

I know, I know... I should have seen it coming, but- it caught me off guard this year and I could do nothing about it because I was on vacation.
My garden froze.
My huge patch of basil I planned to make into pesto and freeze for the winter is a crispy- then wilty when it thawed out- brown pile of crap. I didn't even get a chance to dig up a plant or two to take inside for the winter.
Luckily all of the tomatoes that were ready to eat were picked in time, I'll be sad when they have been gobbled up in the next few days. sigh... I'm really going to miss summer garden fresh eating.
The geraniums are still good, I think I'll go out and dig some of those up to bring inside and brighten things up during the winter months- make myself feel a bit better.

in the jardin

Here is how the garden is looking just over a month after planting. We've been mandating weeding time from the kids each morning and so this is probably the most successfully tended/weeded garden we've ever had. It's in a tucked away corner of the yard, easy to forget about if you want to- but we're on top of it this year. We didn't plant a garden last summer (2 months in Europe) so I think we're all extra excited to get our hands dirty and have some fresh veggies in time.
Morning weeding after working out is one of my favorite times of the day (thanks in part to the umbrella), it's a good time to get a little personal chit-chat time with the kids too- they usually wander out after a bowl of cereal, generally willing to help out and get their hands dirty.
I have vivid memories weeding as a child- mostly positive. Except the one time I came face to face with a big fat tomato worm at very close range... I think that might be one of the reasons I despised tomatoes for so long.

Ahhh... the basil, (and dill and cilantro behind that, then the onions, peppers and bush beans in the back...). I've been babying these plants because there is nothing in the world better than fresh basil when it comes to summer cooking. Pesto is perhaps my kids favorite food flavor. They get very upset when I try to pass off store bought pesto in the winter. Every fall- forced by the impending frost, I spend a day in the kitchen using every last sprig of basil I can find from my garden and madly make batch after batch of pesto. I freeze it in ice cube trays, so handy to pop out 3 or 4 cubes at a time, for delicious fresh summer flavor all winter. As well as a pasta sauce, pesto is so delicious as a rub for salmon or mahi mahi (any fish or chicken really) on the BBQ.

Pesto Sauce:
1 cup fresh basil leaves, tightly packed
2 cloves garlic
Coarse or rock salt
2 tablespoons pine nuts (get a giant bag at Costco)
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons freshly grated pecorino cheese, or 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan

Place basil, garlic, salt and pine nuts in a blender or food processor. Whirl until finely chopped.
With motor running, add oil in a thin stream. Scrape down sides to make sure all solids are well mixed. Continue to blend until you attain a smooth sauce.
Add cheeses and give the machine one short burst to blend ingredients well.
Makes about 2 cups.



We were so happy to find this tiny praying mantis wandering about the garden this morning, it was about an inch long and doing all the funny little praying mantis moves- the head tilt, boxing hands, and praying, of course. I wish I could have gotten a perfectly focused shot but I was too impatient and the subject wasn't really very cooperative.


Flowers in one of the pots on my front porch, I couldn't help but snap off a bunch of close up flower shots this morning. This is one of my favorite pics. I love the dark pink flowers, I can't remember what the are called, some kind of verbena perhaps?

some goods from the Beehive Bazaar

As you may have noticed- I'm all about the mosaic these days. I can't seem to settle on just one picture so I keep using this website that makes mosaics, that aren't too small to really see the pictures unlike the tiny mosaics flickr makes. Here are all the goods I picked up at the Bazaar last weekend. I fell in love with many groovy items for sale by all the amazing Utah artists that participated. I'm not going to map and label every item here, but they are all labeled by artist on my flickr page, so you can look there if you really have to know who made what.

Paradise

Yes, this is the actual Paradise Bakery sugar cookie recipe, and the cookies taste exactly the same delicious.

Paradise Bakery sugar cookie

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup powdered sugar
2 cups shortening
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg, beaten
4 1/3 cups cake flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
Plain or colored sugar, for decorating

Heat oven to 375 degrees.
In a medium bowl, cream together sugars and shortening using an electric mixer. Mix on slow speed 30 seconds, then scrape down the bowl with a spatula. Increase speed to medium and mix for 3 minutes.
Slowly add vanilla and beaten egg while mixing.
In a separate bowl, combine cake flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Gradually add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture, mixing on slow speed until just blended. Do not overmix.
Scoop with an ice cream scoop and roll in sugar. Place on baking sheet. Flatten slightly with palm of hand.
Bake 9 to 10 minutes. Cookies are done when small cracks appear and are pale golden. Ideally, do not let edges brown.
Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Dangerously delicious. I shouldn't have this recipe. Not because I came about it illegally- it was in the Salt Lake Tribune last week, but because I longer need to drive 40 minutes to get my fix. The cake flour is key, make sure you have some on hand.

felt treats are the only treats I need to have around

What is it about felt food that is so stinkin' hilarious?
I love this flickr group. Thanks Hailey for passing it along today. I didn't make this felt cake pinktoque did (instead, I made a real cake this weekend- chocolate with dark chocolate butter cream frosting... yummy).
Although, I would like to try my hand at felt food soon, and trick visiting neighbor kids. I have some candles that look like cupcakes in my kitchen. Every now and again a new small friend will come over and all of the sudden relate how hungry they are or just try and take a bite when no one is looking. Hey, what can I say?- I would probably have done the same as a child and... perhaps even now.

delicioso

This may not look like a delicious snack... but it is. I would have never thought to combine cheese (havarti) and jam on bread- in this case wheat, and the heel of the loaf- because I'm the Mom and that's my motherly duty. I tried this snack in Denmark and now I'm hooked. Any kind of jam will do fine, this was raspberry. Yum

a night out

Wow, I finally left the house other than to go to the grocery story or to drop kids off at one lesson or another. It felt good to get out into the freezing cold world again, and work on my social skills for an evening, although I am definitely not anywhere near done hibernating.
My ladies took me out for my birthday- we went up to Park City, meandered around the Sundance Film Festival, dined at El Chubasco, and made fellow diners jealous when we revealed, then enjoyed my scrumptious 'Stephanie-made' chocolate cake.
We were way too disorganized to get into any films, oh well... I think we'll try and make it to a screening or two of the winning films on Monday, the day after the festival finishes, a local bonus. Thanks ladies for all the fabulous gifts, you guys always treat me right!