Je ne suis pas la Bonne Maman

Oh, the time of summer fruits is fast coming upon us! Already, we’ve been enjoying some very delicious strawberries. They’ve been so cheap that I found it hard not to buy them by the cartful. I mean, they do spoil super fast around here, and that drives me nuts. But, say! If I made some jam, well, it would make perfect sense to buy a couple of extra quarts, right?

Of course!

I totally got down to business on my little micro-batch (4 pints, which was perfect because I actually only had 3 pint canning jars in the cupboard.) I went with the Strawberry-Vanilla version from this book, since I also had vanilla beans in the pantry. Why not?

A short while later, we have this:

And it may look like a jar of delicious strawberry jam…

…mais non. It’s sauce; it never did properly set up. [Sad trombone.]

But! It’s a very tasty sauce, so that’s a plus. The kids love it on waffles, and I like to stir it into yogurt for a treat (’cause I’m crazy like that!) The vanilla adds a strange candle-like bouquet to it, which is odd but not off-putting.

So: not a total failure, but I won’t be starting my line of preserves anytime soon. I still like looking at my very own canned goods in my pantry, though. Grandma would be so proud, or else thoroughly unimpressed…no, I’m going with proud!

No Big Deal

One of my more unfortunate tendencies is to treat every little thing like it’s major. Creatures of habit can be that way, and I’m nothing if not routine-driven. On the one hand, I’ve come to accept that I need to take a minute to really spin things around in my mind for a while before committing to an answer. I’m okay with that. But I’m not okay with constantly leading with a “no” (just ask my kids if you didn’t know this about me, but I’m pretty sure you know it, too), or completely blowing things out of proportion when it comes to timing.

For example:

Last week was the AWANA Grand Prix at church. I bought some cupcakes to add to the dessert table, and was really thrilled with myself for dropping them off early in the day so that I could check it off of my list of obligations. Really, anything I can do to reduce the noise level in my head is a good thing, and I already told you that the last few weeks have left me feeling a little out of control. (Not that I have control issues. Surely not.) Anyway, as the afternoon went on, I thought about making some cookies or something. Ooh, but would there be time? And then I spied the lovely jar that had been sitting on my counter for a whole week (after I spied it in the pantry and decided that there was no way I was wasting such a sweet gift…and then promoted it to the counter to wile away a few more days.)

Really, how long does it take to add butter and eggs to pre-mixed dry ingredients? And then to drop and bake the cookies?

Not long at all, as it turns out. They were delicious, by the way, and we were all sad that there was only one left when we got home. I’m kind of becoming a fan of small batch baking; it’s so much more manageable! Anyway, I’m trying very hard to adopt more of a new “just do it” attitude, and pop-ups like this won’t be such a shock to those who live here.

Here’s hoping.

Guess I’ll Just Go On Anyway

When one of the kids gets sick — which was Monday afternoon’s special surprise — I find it hard to re-group. At the almost eight year point, I’ve finally stopped completely freaking out every single time, which is saying something. (Just ask my husband.) Sure, I still blow a gasket, but only in my head.

Well, sort of. I should probably say that I don’t immediately blow a gasket anywhere but inside my head. Still a significant improvement; I used to do everything but run hot laps around the living room. The second kid broke me of that to a certain extent. She got sick a lot more often, and I just couldn’t keep up with the number of breakdowns required by her frequent mystery fevers.

Here’s a couple of things I managed to accomplish today:

• prepped the Children’s Church materials for Sunday
• made my first but definitely not last pot of congee, which is probably the most awesome sick day food ever. Why didn’t I know about this when I was pregnant?!
• baked bread and made a nice pot of vegetable soup for dinner

The soup is from this book, which I highly recommend — both the soup and the book. I will tell you that I chose the moment for snapping a picture of this soup deliberately. Once you blend it, well, it’s not pretty. Not at all. In fact, the first time I made it, I was pretty sure that I wouldn’t even like it, let alone the kids. Everyone LOVES this soup! It’s really tasty and feels like you’re doing something healthy for your body. Of course, I like to mess that up a little by sprinkling some feta on top before serving it, but that’s just me.

Oh, and there was laundry. Blessedly little, considering.

Really, this is just a way for me to remind myself that I didn’t do nothing today. It only felt that way, but I’m okay with that.

‘Round Here

Today most definitely had Wednesday written all over it.

Yesterday, I had a mad taste for chocolate cake, so today I whipped up my favorite one. Mind you, when I say “favorite”, that doesn’t mean I make it often. I think I’ve made it twice before.

“Don’t worry if it sinks in the middle: indeed, it will do so because it’s such a dense and damp cake, ” it says. Indeed. It looks like the pan is actually swallowing the cake.

“...put in a baking sheet in case of sticky drips later,” it says. Yes. “Drips.” It was more of a pile. A pile which fell off the pan and onto the floor and into an open drawer below the oven. Awesome.

(It was delicious, though, I must say.)

All madness aside, this is quite the tasty cake — almost more of a bread pudding in its consistency — and there’s a very helpful note in the version of the recipe link which mentions bailing out some of the batter if it’s too close to the top. That is to say: if your loaf pan isn’t the right size after all [ahem!], and you don’t want it to go all volcanic on you in the oven.

While that was all going on, I was treated to a pampering manicure:

Anything goes on Momma/Bridgie Wednesdays! [Joey's thoughtful question: Do your hands feel disgusting? You know, since it's two inches thick? I declined to comment.]

At least there was granola, which I’ll share later. I only dumped a couple of servings on the floor while trying to pour it from pan to jar.

Let’s hear it for Wednesday!

Sweet

Today began with a promise kept.

Joey has been dying to try this coconut toffee since we watched Aarti making it on Food Network before Christmas. I, knowing full well that it wasn’t something we needed around the house at that particular moment, put him off til his next day off from school.

That day was today, and boy did he remember it.

Also knowing full well that I’d be in no mood for it later in the day, and also seeing by the recipe that it was totally easy to make, we got out the ingredients and set to cooking it up right after breakfast. Very simple, very sweet, and quite delish. (We had ours with cups of Citrus Lavender Sage tea, also very delish.) Sometimes it pays to just get in there and do it, already.

Mostly, I’m just happy that I didn’t “forget”. That would’ve been a lousy way to cap off the day.

All Candy Cane, All the Time

Can there really be such a thing as too much of a good thing? I think I’m testing that thoroughly with the liberal use of peppermint in my gifts this year.

The first time I came across Peppermint Popcorn Bark, I wasn’t so sure. And then it kept popping up on Pinterest. And then it started to sound good — REALLY good. Lo and behold, it is a tasty treat, and super easy to boot.

And who doesn’t like a sweet chunk o’ marshmallow in their cocoa?

Vanilla or peppermint? ‘Cause I got both! Here is the recipe for my favorite tried and true vanilla marshmallows. (I make the half-batch.) For the peppermint, I made another half-batch of marshmallows, but instead of using 1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract, I substituted 1/4 tsp. vanilla plus 1/4 tsp of peppermint extract (inspired by this recipe.) I think the tiny bit of vanilla keeps it from getting toothpaste-y.

Now the festive food making is almost done. There are a few more gifts to be wrapped, a little soup to cook, worship by candlelight, and a wild day of fun and family– hopefully followed by a few relaxing days of just about nothing. Sounds good to me!

Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas, and joy in the coming year.

 

 

 

 

 

Loving the Village

I really love making and giving gifts; you would think that this would be the total best time of year for a person like me, and yet….

Sometimes things get out of hand. Say, for instance, when you’re trying to assemble teacher gift. This is definitely an area where I find myself really wanting to do more, and yet wishing I could do less. I find the whole exchange very awkward, mostly because I’ve sat at table with too many teachers who complain about the crummy gifts they receive from their students. And hey, who hasn’t complained about a sub-par gift at some point in their life? But it does make me a little self-conscious. Still, there are practical aspects, such as a limited budget and a legion of teachers. So many teachers! But they are wonderful and have really been a blessing to my kids this year, so no one gets left behind.

The homeroom teachers (and the directors of my girl’s preschool) received Happy, Healthy New Year jars, filled with a tissue pack; lip balm; hand cream; Burt’s Bees throat drops; and tea. I made the purse packs for the tissues and found the rest at ye olde Target.

For the art and music teachers, I made ornaments:

(for the art teacher)

(Well, you probably figured this one out.)

Just as I was putting the finishing touches on the wrapping of said gifts — all wrapping/packaging materials which I dug out of my abundant supplies, thankyouverymuch — I realized that the P.E. teachers had been totally left out in the cold. Aw, man! Then I thought about baking a couple of kinds of scones and making little breakfast bags for them. And then I remembered that I had the supplies for these tasty treats in the pantry:

We have a winner! They are festive, delicious, and don’t require me to make a much larger mess out of my kitchen tonight. Joy to the world!

Now if I could just get my act together and finish up the stuff I wanted to make for the neighbors and a few other beloved local citizens, I’ll be golden. Then again, I might end up settling for preserving my sanity and taking the bronze in this event. Time will tell.

31 Days: Trickery

It’s sad that, at my age, I still need to trick myself into doing chores. See, I really really hate doing the dishes. I try very hard to clean as I go and all that, but –

Okay, actually, I guess I don’t try all that hard, or I’d be cleaning as I go all the time. That’s pretty much one of those Yoda “there is no try” kind of situations. So, in theory, I believe in cleaning as I go, but it rarely works out that way. Hence, dishes begin to pile up super quickly. You miss one meal’s worth of dishes, and the counter’s covered.

In order to compel myself to get in there and get the job done, I’ve found two excellent tools:

1. Keep some music in the kitchen, and turn it UP.
2. Put on an apron.

Easy. Clearly, neither one of these tips is rocket science, but they have made a big difference in my routine. The minute I slip the apron over my head, I know it’s time to Work. Also, I know I can work without soaking myself at the sink ten minutes before I’m due to pick up the kids; one more excuse gone. Then, if I can just make myself walk to the back and turn on the iPod, I’m more than happy to stay put for at least a few tunes. The little things really do add up!

Right now, the dishwasher is waiting to be emptied and I have two loaves of bread rising on the table. (The dough has been in the fridge for over a week, so time was getting to be of the essence, there.) Seeing as how I have no desire to have anything at all to do with the kitchen today, an apron will definitely be in order.

31 Days: Make It Work

 

I can cook a nice meal or I can do the grocery shopping, but I can’t seem to bear doing both in the same day. Therefore, shopping day requires a different — much more thrown together — plan. This week featured a humdinger of a good salad: romaine topped with leftover pork chops, thinly sliced apple, and balsamic vinaigrette. The grown-ups added granola [surprisingly delicious on a salad!] and feta cheese. Since I’m still going for the gold, though, I did whip up a white bean and artichoke spread to top the ciabatta toasts; that filled things out nicely.

We started the morning off with a power outage, but it went up from there. The high point was going to the mall and finally buying seasonally appropriate shoes for the girl. Turns out she is long overdue, but it’s hard to remember when it’s hot every other day, and Crocs are pretty forgiving. That’s what I’m telling myself, at least.

31 Days: More Better

The one good thing about trying to make every day more productive is that I find myself feeling like it’s actually possible to get more done. Usually, on even the most non-productive Saturday, I am through by the time five o’clock rolls around. Through. This week, though, I managed to actually cook dinner — despite the fact that the grill ran out of gas as I was heating it up to cook the pork chops, which would normally be a total deal-breaker — AND make a dessert for the fellowship after church on Sunday.

Two things of note, there: I opted to try a new recipe instead of something tried and true, and I didn’t wait until Sunday afternoon to do it.

Another important note:

These brownies are completely delicious, and not at all complicated. The delicious part is not even 1% surprising, considering that  you can’t go wrong with Smitten Kitchen, but when I see homemade anything and swirling involved, well, I’m pretty sure it’s going to end badly. Not so! [But I would totally make these the day before and let them get good and cold before cutting them. It made a huge difference, at least for me.]