Things I'm Not Good At

You know, there are plenty of things I'm good at in life.  I can cook a delicious meal and bake a scrumptious dessert to go with it.  I've got a nice voice and have thus been the wedding singer at many a wedding.  I have a head full of lots of useless trivia.  I once gave birth with only a tiny half of a push.  But there are plenty of things that I suck at.  Here are a few things that are not my strong points:

1. Baby gates.  It seriously took 35 years and the birth of three children to figure out how to use this basic one.  I'm a smart person, but this somehow defeated me for many years.  

2. Dumplings.  There really isn't a recipe for these, and I just can't make them like my mom.

3. Taking it easy.  So yeah, I may have had a pretty decent surgery two weeks ago.  I've got some enormous incisions to heal.  And yes, I should definitely be using my spare time to relax.  But as it turns out, I suck at that.  I have all of this free time that I'm not used to.  We had someone come out to clean the house, since my activity level is restricted, so that's taken care of (and we might as well add housekeeping to the list of things I suck at, anyway).  I most definitely can't work out.  What's a girl to do??

Apparently, tackle a painting project that I've been putting off.

Months ago, I bought a gallon of paint for the girls bathroom during a good Sherwin Williams sale.  I figured that when the urge to paint hit me (as it does every few months), I'd be ready.

The urge hit a few days ago.  I told myself that this was probably an okay activity.  It's not like I'm trying to sneak in any cardio, right?  How much work is it to brush and roll?  It's fine, right??  I'll do it slowly, a little bit over several days.

I started out strong.  The first day, I just did a little bit of cutting in around one side of the bathroom.  The next day, I did a little more.  Then the third day hit, and I could no longer stand the project as a "work in progress."  Full steam ahead.

In hindsight, this was not my best decision.  Up and down on and off the ladder turned out to be less than comfortable.  I'm thankful for a husband who understands my particular brand of crazy, and helped me finish up the parts that required climbing.  By day three, I wisely stuck to painting only those areas that I could reach while standing upright, on the ground.

In any case, their sweet little bathroom is now a pretty purple, and I have two happy little girls.  And one less thing on my silly to-do list.

This week, I promise there will be lots less home improvement and lots more Netflix.

Exceptional Eats: Sparkling Cranberry Brie Bites

Holy wow, are these things good.

I made them as my one pre-dinner snack on Thanksgiving.  Since people were drifting in at different times, some coming from one celebration to the next, some arriving utterly starving, I wanted to have a little snack available for those who needed one.

I found this recipe on Pinterest, and when I saw the pin, I knew I had to attempt these.  Aren't they just so pretty?

I'm quite sure the Martha would be totally amazed at my mad skillz if she saw these.

Turns out, they are also delicious.

Neither J nor I had ever actually eaten a fresh cranberry.  So when I brought them home from the store, I was  anxious (and scared!) to try one.  I made J eat one first.  And even though he made a scrunched up, unhappy face and declared that they tasted like something you're not supposed to eat, I tried one as well.  Turns out, he was right.  Fresh cranberries are not good.

But then, following the recipe, I sweetened them up.  And suddenly they tasted magical.

Pairing them up with crackers and Brie made for a delightful little appetizer.  (I also put the leftover sugared cranberries out in a silver bowl, and I seriously couldn't stop eating them.  Like candy, I tell you.)

Try these.  For real.

Sparkling Cranberry Brie Bites
makes about 16

Sugared Cranberries:
2 cups fresh cranberries
1 cup good maple syrup
1 cup granulated sugar

Rinse cranberries and place in a medium bowl.  Heat syrup in small sauce pan just until warm.  Pour over cranberries when syrup is warm, not hot, or cranberries may pop.  Cool, cover, and let soak in the refrigerator overnight.

Drain cranberries in a colander.  Place sugar in a large bowl or baking dish.  Add cranberries in two batches and roll around until lightly coated in sugar.  Place on a baking sheet until dry, about one hour.

16 crackers
8 oz. Brie cheese
cranberry chutney or relish
fresh mint for garnish

Assemble crackers with one slice of Brie, a light layer of cranberry relish, and three or four sugared cranberries.  Garnish with fresh mint.

Adventures in Baby Food

You all know how I try to be the less crafty, more law abiding, better looking version of Martha Stewart, right?  Well, in true Martha form, I decided to give homemade baby food a whirl.

I put my trusty assistant in his seat on the counter, put some JT on the Pod, and set to work.

SUCCESS.

It really is much easier than I anticipated.  I started simple, with pears and apples (two of the nugget's faves).  Fruits are cut, cored, and steamed.  Steamed fruits are popped in the food processor, pureed, and voila!  Baby food!  Easy peasy.

To be completely truthful, there was one difficulty.  The tricky part was removing the skins after steaming.  Apparently, it's best to steam them with the skins on, as removing the skin beforehand takes mucho nutrients away from baby.  But I powered through and peeled away all remnants of skin. 

I bought a baby food cookbook to guide me.  It is divided up into sections based on baby's age, and the recipes get more complex as baby gets older.  I've gotta say, some of the later recipes look so good that I want to make them for myself!  Roasted red pepper and goat cheese spread?  Yes, please!  The book is great for the early stuff, too.  You can buy it here. 

I like the idea of making Gabe's food, as I can buy organic, and know everything that is going into his mouth.  (Funny that I should care about the food that goes into his mouth, when I clearly have no problem with him ingesting copious amounts of pet hair each and every day- but hey, my kid probably won't be sickly, as he's already been exposed to all kinds of germs.).

Excited to try more recipes, and hoping that this endeavor turns out to be healthy for Gabe and cost-effective for my wallet!

Another Martha moment, for sure.

30 Day Challenge | Day 2: Something I Ate Today

Not gonna lie...this is not exciting.

Meatless tacos for lunch today.  I'd wait and take a more exciting picture of dinner tonight, but we're having spaghetti.  Also not exciting,



And since I've locked myself into this 30 Day Challenge, I can't pick and choose my posts, and wait for a more gourmet day to show off my culinary talent.

Looks like Martha has bested me today, that's for sure.

Take THAT, Martha

Happy 4th!

Exceptional Eats: Panzanella

I've been meaning to add a food feature to the ole' blog for quite some time.  You see, I love to cook.  I fancy myself a bit of an amateur Martha Stewart- minus the crafty abilities.  I can't even sew on a button, but I am a domestic goddess in every other sense.

The kitchen is my favorite room in the house.  I not only get enjoyment out of feeding my friends and family, but I also find cooking to be relaxing and stress-relieving.  Like any good foodie (yes, J, it's a word!), I am always in search of fabulous new recipes to add to my repertoire.

Seeing as how it's officially summer, and all of you gardeners are about to enjoy the fruits of your labor (ha!), I thought I'd start my new feature by sharing one of my favorite producey recipes.  I cannot take credit for this one- it comes from the Barefoot Contessa herself, Ina Garten.  We LOVE this salad, and so does everyone else** I've ever made it for! 

**This is a test, Laura...are you reading?  ;)

GRILLED PANZANELLA

Ingredients:
Olive oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
salt & pepper
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and sliced 1/2 inch thick
2 large ripe tomatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
10 large basil leaves
3 tablespoons capers, drained
1 red onion, sliced into 1/4 inch rounds
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 french baguette, cut into 1-inch thick slices

Directions:
1. Prepare charcoal or gas grill, or if working indoors, a grill pan.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the garlic, mustard, vinegar, 1/4 cup olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.  Set aside.
3. Place the cucumber, tomato, bell peppers, basil, and capers in a large bowl, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss together.  Set aside.
4. When the grill is ready, brush one side of the onion slices with olive oil.  Place them, olive oil side down, on the grill and cook for 4 minutes.  Brush the other side with olive oil, turn them over, and continue cooking an additional 4 minutes.  Remove the vegetables from the grill and place them on a cutting board.  Separate the onion rings and add them to the cucumber mixture.  
5. Brush the bread slices on both sides with olive oil and toast them on the grill until golden.  Add them to the cucumber mixture.
6. Pour the reserved vinaigrette over the vegetables and toss together.

The original recipe calls for the bell peppers to be grilled in the same manner as the onions, however, I like the flavor and crunch of the peppers raw.  But if you prefer that grilled  flavor, by all means, grill away!  And this vinaigrette...TO DIE FOR.  It would be delicious on any salad.  But the best part of this dish?  Bread- my favorite!- in the salad.  Way better than a crouton.  Pure genius. 

Perfect summer eats.  Enjoy!