Tonight's menu

Girls went blueberry picking the other day and we all went to farmers market this morning. This is what we're having for dinner tonight:

London broil with lime ginger marinade.
Roasted corn soup
Grilled sweet potato salad
Peach blueberry galettte

Yum!

Aunt Diane's Eggplant Olive Dip

Thanks to Aunt Diane for making it all those years, to Carolyn for writing it down on her website. Posting here for Kathy B!

Eggplant Olive Dip

Good to spread on small rye breads or crackers. Also nice as a side dish or tossed with pasta.

1 large eggplant, peeled and cubed
1 cup stuffed olives (approx. 25 olives)
1 small can tomato paste
¾ cup fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 med. onion, diced
1/3 cup green pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 olive oil
¼ cup water
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
½ tsp. sugar
1 tsp. oregano
½ tsp. black pepper

Heat the oil in a fry pan big enough to hold the entire dish. Add eggplant, mushrooms, onions, and green pepper and cook for 10 minutes. Add everything else but olives. Simmer 20 minutes. Add olives. Cook 15 minutes more.

16 ww points for the entire recipe.

More recipes

I needed to go grocery shopping yesterday, but the girls were sick (better now), so I went today and was in a cooking mood. Here's a few things I made, will make or am making right now:

Orange marinated chicken from Simply Recipes.

Feta Salsa from Smitten Kitchen.

Rene requested tilapia with mango salsa, so I am making this from Allrecipes.

Jamie Oliver's Italian Bread and Cabbage Soup, found here at Posie Gets Cozy. Read Alicia's writeup at Posie Gets Cozy if you aren't an anchovy person.

And, making the quick, yummy no knead bread again.

Despite the girls being sick, we did get the Christmas card picture taken. I need to do a bit more shopping, almost done!

Faster no-knead bread

I am not a bread maker (maker, baker, whatevah). I have a bread making machine that I've used from time to time, but I don't think that counts. The idea of really making bread always seemed a bit time consuming and intimidating. I've read articles over the last year or two about the no-knead bread craze. I never thought about making it. Then recently in The New York Times, I read about the faster no-knead bread in Mark Bittman's Minimalist column.

And here we are on a day off from school and I thought, what the heck. I had my doubts. My assistant was Miss Lauren. She did the mixing, and although the recipe said the dough would be "shaggy", parts looked downright unmixed. Then I realized the pot I had was not as big as the recipe required. But we carried on.

I took it out of oven, sliced a slice and WOW, it was great! I mean really good! I mean great! Nice crunchy crust and soft tasty bread inside.

Now, a day later, and it's still good. The bottom of the bread was a little tough, but I'm guessing since I didn't have the right pot to bake it in I did not achieve absolute bread making perfection. But I came close. For a first time breadmaker (with a four year old doing most of the work), I'd say that's not bad.

Next I'll try the whole wheat version.

The only problem is I need more yummy carbs like a need a hole in the head.

Recipes I have made and enjoyed

Yes, I'm finally posting something on this blog again. I'm sure there is much rejoicing an relief by my faithful reader Josh. Happy cooking, Josh!

Apple gingerbread. Yum. From MayaMade.
Rosemary Lemon White Bean Dip from Bitten. We like this on nice toasty bread with cucumbers. Would make a good dip, too.
Pumpkin Cream Cheese from Pinch My Salt via The Kitchn.
Crockpot Chicken Salsa from Workitmom. Very easy and tasty.
My new favorite way to make rice from Angry Chicken. I agree, life changing. And the leftover rice reheats really well.
Pasta with Feta, Broccoli and Sausage from The Kitchn. We used Aidell's spinach feta sausage.
Haven't made this recently, but when I'm in the mood for fish tacos, this is the recipe I found and love from Laura Gunn Studio.

Oh, the places you'll go when you do a google search!

Haikku to my blog

oh my poor sad blog
did you think i forgot you?
i hang my head, shamed.

Counting crows

Got this email from Rene:

So I come home for lunch, and am sitting down at the kitchen table, eating some of that leftover chicken.

Daisy is out on the deck. Something catches my eye....its 2 incoming crows flying at 60 miles an hour flying in to steal my chicken. They slam into the kitchen window, and immediately drop dead on the deck.

They fall on either side of daisy, both quite dead. Daisy yelps in mortal fear, and leaps backwards, keeps glancing around fully expecting to see more dead birds being hurled at her.

Baby names

Lauren decided that when she grows up she would like to have two baby girls. She wants to name them Claritan and Fessa.

Jake

Congratulations Rene!

Well, it's been a pretty tough week for Rene (and us), especially with us losing Jake, but I'm happy to report that Rene became a US citizen today! Hooray! He went for the interview in the morning and they told him to stick around for the swearing in ceremony in the afternoon. I felt bad that we couldn't be there, but glad that this is all behind him.

Congratulations, Rene!

Farewell, sweet Jake

It's been an emotional day. The girls and I are in NY visiting my parents. Rene is in Augusta, leaving for Atlanta tomorrow. The folks at the kennel where Jake was staying called this morning and said Jake had a minor seizure. Late in the day, Jake was having a few seizures. Rene and the nice man at the kennel got Jake to the animal hospital, and sadly, we had to put him down. Jake was 12 1/2.

I haven't told the girls yet, but they know he's sick. Tomorrow is our big day in the city and I want them to enjoy it.

Jake was a sweet, sweet dog. He loved to eat (and eat!) and play. He loved to swim in the ocean and the lake. He was sweet to our girls from the moment they came home.

Jake has been with Rene from when he lived in Calgary. Moved with him to the San Francisco area and then of course moved with us to Georgia.

Farewell, sweet Windy River Jake of Riverbend.

Getting ready for the masters

The girls were in two performances of the Roar of Love on Friday, and they did a wonderful job. It is quite a production! I think they were both very excited to be a part of it. This is the first year we've been here that the show was not immediately before Masters week.

The Roar of Love is over, the azaleas are blooming, folks are putting fresh pinestraw in their garden beds, and the prisoners are out cleaning the sides of the road. It's springtime in Augusta. And I must get my house ready to vacate and rent for the masters.

Erin the pony and Lauren the cherub

Once again, Erin is in the ballet the Roar of Love, and this year Lauren joins her! Last year Erin was a firefly. The year before she was a cherub. Click on a photo to see it larger. Use your browser back button to return to blog.

Be prepared.

Lauren had a great birthday with her party at Monkey Joes. Her only requirement was that Monkey Joe did not visit us. Lauren doesn't like costumed characters. We figured this out at Disneyland last year. This was the first time we had a party outside of our home. And while it was a noisy crazy two hours, it was contained. It also allowed us to invite all of Lauren's classmates and other friends and some siblings as well. A great time was had by all.

The afternoon brought present opening, playing, and then Erin had her piano festival at Augusta State University. As my neighbor said, there's nothing festive about it. We went, she went in a room with a judge, and played her two songs, Ode to Joy and Mary's Little Lamb. I couldn't go in, but I think she did fine.

We returned home to tornado watches posted for our area, which turned into a tornado warning at dinner time. We reviewed our plan of going into the pantry if we needed to. We did not need to, but we did lose power for a while. We got to use our emergency crank radio (after we found it, that is). We listened to the weather forecast and A Prairie Home Companion. The radio has a light, siren and a cell phone charger (which we need to get).

In other news, I have lost my voice.

Happy Birthday Lauren!

4 years old! I can't believe it. Happy, happy day!

Crazy busy March

Here's what's keeping us busy in March:

Girl Scout cookies! Yesterday was the first day I did not have cases of cookies in our dining room.

Ballet! Rehearsals have started for the Roar of Love! This year Erin will be a pony and Lauren will be a cherub.

Piano! We've decided to cut back on some of our activities. Although Erin likes piano and is doing well, it's taking up too much time to devote the practice we need to. We decided to take a break from piano after Saturday's piano festival.

Birthday! Getting ready for Lauren's 4th birthday party on Saturday!

Masters! Are we rented? Maybe, maybe not. Hopefully next week we'll know for sure. In the meantime, I'm trying to clean and declutter when I can.

Citizenship! Our plan was that if our house was rented for Masters Rene would join the Girls and I in New York. But on Friday we got a letter that his citizenship interview is in Atlanta that week. There is a chance he could be sworn in and get his citizenship that very day! This has been a long time coming. Rene is now studying up on his civics, although he probably knows more on this subject than most people I know.

Yard is complete

Well almost. They need to roll the sod today or tomorrow, but then we're done! We're so happy with the results. We feel like we have a yard we can manage. It still is large and a lot of work, but it's cleaned up and we feel like planting and can easily see what needs to be done. Here are some pics.

The shrubs in the back can grow to 15-20 feet tall and should grow 4 -5 feet a year, which should help to block the house in the back. Note that these pictures are all pre-bloom season. Will post pictures when everything is blooming.

Click on a picture to see it larger. Use the browser back button to return.

When your dog eats an entire package of sugar free chocolate chips...

Don't panic! Called the vet and she said to expect tummy distress from Daisy, but actually Daisy did pretty well. Note these cookies were sealed in plastic, in a sealed cardboard box, inside a larger cardboard box. Of course it might have helped that Daisy is a large dog, but still I was predicting a messier outcome. Most of the girl scout cookies should be out of the house by this weekend.

I guess this incident, combined with the gingerbread house incident, proves that Daisy has a tough gut.

Erinisms and Laurenisms

From Erin recently:

Clouds are like nature's sunglasses. (How very Jack Handy of her.)

"Lauren, your artwork is abstract. That's just another way of saying it's scribble scrabble."

Lauren reciting the pledge of allegiance (that she hears at Erin's brownie meetings):

I pledge allegiance
to the flag
of the United States
of brownies
and to the ocean of America,
for brownies and girl scouts forever.

Inside mess, outside mess

The inside mess is due to GIRL SCOUT COOKIES! And lots of them. 864 boxes to be exact. As cookie mom, I get to pick them up and store them. And they are here!





The mess outside is due to the ongoing yard work. Today they are putting down sod. I took this picture two days ago from my bedroom window.