The perfect little black dress of chcolates cakes

I told the girls we could make cake the next time I had to bake something. Of course I knew it would be Crazy Cake. My food philosophies have changed some since I first posted this recipe. So I use all whole wheat flour (my fresh ground mix of grains still turns out very light, can't vouch for the store bought stuff) and just because of a habit I have formed I cut the sugar in half. I automatically cut the sugar in any modern recipe in half. I've found that a couple of spoonfuls of sour cream really goes a long way in this. The cake turns out moist and delish every time I've made it over the years. I've decided I like to keep it simple and the sugar in-take low by just eating a square of it all by it's self, no frosting. It makes for a nice quick and light treat. I can imagine the girls mixing this up all on their own in a few years. I have grandiose goals of making them even more useful in the kitchen, which is why it's so good to bake this up together now.

There are scads of easy ways to dress this little cake up. Try any of these in the cake batter. Mint Extract. Chocolate Chips. Coconut Flakes. Mix up as easy cream cheese frosting (cream cream cheese, honey or maple syrup, butter, vanilla and keep tasting and adding until it tastes good) and drop spoonfuls of it into the batter, for Earthquake Cake, or go a step father and add peanut butter to the cream cheese frosting. I was very sceptical about that the first time I made it, and I must say it's been a HUGE winner at our house.  Cream butter and brown sugar and mix in coconut and chopped nuts. Put it on top of the cooled cake and back in the oven under the boiler. Don't leave it for heaven's sake! Stand right there the whole time, make the little ones watch through the window if they are nagging, and pull it out as soon as it's brown and bubbly. Whipped cream...I actually like it with no sugar. Ice cream. Double the recipe, make it in a 13x9 and take it to your next pot luck gathering. It's cheep and not any harder than a box mix in my book. Or double it and bake it in round cake pans and top with a lovely chocolate butter cream, and fill the between layers with strawberry jam...for those really special times when 'how-much sugar' doesn't matter.  I think I'm out of ideas. Let me know if you think of something else. What ever you do with it, even it 's plain jane like ours right now, it probably won't last long.

Enjoy!c

Making pasta without a pasta maker

One of the efforts I try to make for the health of my family is to bake our bread. Take a look at the ingredient list of any standard loaf of bread at the store and you will see why. The ingredients of bread should look something like this: flour, water, salt. The bread at the store is a fluffy, expensive, food-ish sort of material. This isn't to make you flip out or feel bad about buying bread. I bought a loaf that exactly fits this description two days ago. Prayfully do whatever it right for your family and it's needs, and don't worry about anybody else's standards. I'm just talking about the standards I have for my cooking.
The problem is summer time weather doesn't put me much in the mood to heat up my house with baking. So I've gradually come up with different ways of getting around baking regularly...which is often easier said then done, because one of The Man's first loves is bread. One of my coping skills to beat the summer heat is pasta.

Of course you can find plenty of reasonably price pastas at the store that list just this one word for the ingredients: whole wheat. And I do certainly buy them, to have on hand for what I call Panic Food. But I keep coming back around to my home-made pasta, mainly because I find it more filling and I love the way it tastes.
I hate to invest in kitchen gadgets unless I really deem the worth of the space they take, and if I continue to enjoy my home-made pasta, I may be in the market for a used small pasta maker. But until them I'm making due with what I have, and I've found a couple of different ways to hand shape pasta. One note to the mamas out there, for now, pasta making is strictly a nap time activity for me, when little hands are out of the way and I want to do something quiet. If you have any sort of kitchen aid of food processor that kneads dough making the pasta dough this part of going to be very easy. You can find all sorts of variations in recipes, some use just flour and water, some use milk, some include grated cheese, or herbs, or even mashed potatoes. I would suggest making a plain batch for the first few times, until you have a sense of what the dough should feel like, and then playing with it some.
My pasta recipe is rather loosy-goose, but here it is:

• 3 cups of flour (I like to use whole soft white winter wheat because it's lighter both in color and texture)
• 6 eggs
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil (or more)
• 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon of water

Measure the flour onto your kitchen table (it will be easier to kneed this on your table as opposed to your counter, because of the lower height of the table and how stiff the dough is) or into your food processor. Make a hole in the middle and crack your eggs and poor your oil into this. Use a fork to gently beat the eggs, gradually working flour in from the sides of the dough, or turn your food processor on low. If all the flour won't absorb into the dough, add a little bit of water a little at a time, working it in well before assessing if you need to add more. The dough should be the constancy of a thick play-dough with a lovely glossy coat to it. As you kneed it will absorb more moisture, so be care not to add too much water. Don't worry if you dough is too wet , just add more flour a little at a time. You want to kneed the dough for about ten minutes. Then put it in a plastic bag, and put it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes and up to 3 or 4 days.

A few nights ago I tried my hand at shaping some gnocchi, which is almost more like a dumpling. It was almost the texture of baked bread in the center. These would make great finger food for a baby I think. It is definitely the quickest way I have found to hand shape pasta. Hopefully you can discern each stage of shaping in this photo. The last step to take the cut sections of dough and roll them down the back of a fork, to make ridges on one side.

The last way I have found to hand shape pasta is to make to make a version of orecchiette (which means little ears). This one took time but very little effort, and I think would make a good purposeful play dough project with little people...though maybe a little older than my two year olds, but I am going to let them try. These would be easy to make while watching a movie or listening to something. Pinch off pieces of dough and roll them into pea sizes balls. Then smash the ball between your thumb and the palm of your hand, twisting your thumb as you do. The dough will be stuck to the end of your thumb (probably want to have your nails cut short and certainly clean for this activity). Remove the dough with you other thumb and index finger and pinch it in the center as you do.

After you are done with all the shaping you can drop the pasta into boiling water, freeze it, or let it dry and store it, like the stuff you buy at the store. A friend of our family recounted to us how her Italian mother would have pasta making days once a month or so, and would cover all the beds in the house with clean sheets and lay all the pasta on it to dry. I'm not half to ambious in my pasta making!
If you are interested in making your own pasta at home I hope you find this helpful, and if you know something I don't know about all this (because quite honestly I just wing all this) please do share.
I pray you will enjoy your dinner tonight, whatever it is! Me? We're having burgers with some of that horrible store bought bread, lol. Pasta was last night. *smile* c

Learning

There is always something to learn when you're two years old. The biggest challenge for me is teaching the girls to work along side me, making pizza, doing the dishes, working in the garden. They eat the pizza dough, dump water everywhere, and stomp on my "baby plants". But. But they learn a lot too, and it really pays off. I've been amazed at how it affects their confidence, how proud they are to feel they are a part of things, AND how they are helpful at time already. But I tell you it takes real love and work and dedication. And sometimes I just have to give in and tell they they are all done helping with pizza and it's time to watch a movie. If this is something you have been working towards and thinking about there is more food for thought here and here.
Fridays are homemade pizza nights at our house. You might want to check out this no-kneed pizza dough recipe. I've been using the same idea with a sourdough starter instead of yeast. I pat out the dough on parchment paper on a cookie sheet, and put baking stones to heat on the grill, load all the ingredients up on the dough (we grate all the cheese once for a couple of  Friday nights, to make it easier) and slip them off the cookie sheet onto the baking stones. It takes between 10 and 15 minutes to bake. Some times it needs to be rotated half way through. I never thought making homemade pizza could make such a fun easy family meal. And it doesn't heat up the kitchen *smile*. But whatever you do this weekend, I hope you enjoy it.
Blessings!c

Mama-made-easy: Lentil Salad

I have simple white wedding china, that we use everyday, because the food never clashes with the dishes, and the bright white back drop always makes the dish pop and look even more appetizing. In other words, how food looks is important to me as a cook. It's part of the enjoyment. Well this dish, whose colors resemble a bad 70's polyester, is no looker, but it does have several redeeming factors: every time I describe it my mouth waters, it's main ingredients are very inexpensive, there are lots of way to substitute items for whatever you have on hand, it's packed with protein even though it's meat free, it is perfect to make ahead, and great for large crowds or potlucks, and would be great for picnics. Have I warmed you up to the idea yet?

Lentil Salad with Oranges and Cranberries (or lots of Other Things)

• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 cup long-grain rice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups lentils
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 orange, or grapefruit, or can of mandarin oranges (more than one is good too)
• 1/3 cup dried or fresh cherries, or dried cranberries, or raisins
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• optional: 1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, or mixed salad greens, or spinach or 1 grated carrot

Boil water, rice, and salt in a 1 1/2-quart heavy saucepan, uncovered and undisturbed, until steam holes appear and surface looks dry. Reduce heat to very low and cook, covered and undisturbed, 15 minutes or more. (The length of time it takes to cook will depend on the type of rice you have. You can always cook it according to the directions on the package instead. I found I liked this method though because it gives you a nice dry, chewy rice which gives the salad a lovely texture. I would highly recommend brown rice, and making two cups instead of one. Use the extra covered in milk and cinnamon sugar for breakfast the next morning, and put it in fritatta the for lunch, or make stir fried rice for dinner, or...well you get the idea. It will save you work tomorrow.)

While rice cooks, simmer lentils in water to cover by 2 inches 18 to 20 minutes, or until just tender, then drain.

Finely grate zest from orange (I skip this part unless I happen to have organic oranges and time, which I don't) and cut away remaining peel and pith. Cut sections free from membranes and cut sections into 1/2-inch pieces (or if you are a mama in a hurry, open a can of mandarin oranges, drain and dump it in). Toss warm rice with lentils, vinegar, lemon juice, orange, zest, cranberries (etc), oil, and parsley and season with salt and pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature, or cold the next day.

The Day to Day and How to make Wonderful stove top Popcorn

Mixed Salad greens in the garden.

Checking out the new chick coop ie: The Chicken Palace. 

  My mom planted black raspberries for us last year. We would have a lot more except for the fact that before we could get them trellised the dogs decided they looked like good chew toys, chew off the long thorny stems. Go figure. Really frustrating since you have a wait a whole year after planting to get any berries at all. May next year we'll get a good yield.

Lunch: smoothies, popcorn and Winnie the Pooh. I learned the perfect way to pop corn on the stove for the cookbook, "How to Cook Everything" which incidentally I highly recommend. Anyway. Use two tablespoons of fat for a 1/2 cup of popcorn seed. Heat the fat (bacon dripping or coconut oil give it a lovely flavor) in a covered pan on medium heat with three seeds in it. When they pop put the rest of the seeds in. If you want to make kettle corn, add a tablespoon or so of sugar at this point. It should take around five minutes from here. Shake it every once in a while, and take it off the heat when the popping slows. If your pop corn seed isn't popping well, it's gotten too dry. Put it in the fridge and it will pop better next time. If I had a microwave I would do this.

"Besides Pooh, it's a very difficult thing, planting, unless you know how to do it," he said, and he put the acorn in the hole he had made, and covered it up with earth, and jumped on it."

"I do know," said Pooh, "because Christopher Robin gave me a mastershalum seed and I planted it, and I am going to have mastershalums all over the front door."

"I thought they were called nasturtiums," said Piglet timidly, as he went on jumping.

"No," said Pooh, "not these. These are called mastershalums."

Have a blessed week and go read some "Pooh Winnie BEAR!" as one of my girls says. It puts a smile on my face every time.

Wild Turkey and cooking an old rooster

shYou'll never believe what I did the other day. Don't bother trying to guessing.  Peeled chicken feet. Cricket....cricket...I can hear you stunded silence from here.
It's wild turkey season now and The Man had been after one turkey that kept crossing our land. Several times he ran into the house saying, "Boil some water baby!" He even took off down our road chasing it, but it kept getting away. We were really hoping to get one; you can't get much more free range than wild.

So yesterday afternoon The Man was working at a neighbor's house and here comes the turkey up the driveway. So I get on the phone and call him, but no answer. I decided to keep on trying, and as I'm about to redial I see him coming up the road, and up the drive way right towards The Turkey. I'm montioning to him to stop, and finally he gets the message and I give a quick bird flapping motion and I turn to run into the house for his gun. He hops out of the truck and I meet him in the field and load while and puts in his ear plugs and off he takes, to bring home the bacon...so to speak. And of course he got him.
Since we were going to all the trouble of butchering one we figured we would go ahead and butcher our rooster too, which has long been on our to-do list. We just finished building our new chicken coop (or chicken pook as the girls call it) and we have decided to start free with a new batch of hens instead of integrating birds. So while the water boils we quickly watched a video on butchering chickens.
Now you're going to think this is crazy, and maybe your right. But it just felt good to be doing this work and learning these skills, and to know that these birds had good lives, while they lived, and that God was providing for us. And it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. It's so interesting to watch how the girls took all this in. You might think they would be tramatized by it, but they weren't in the least. When I was a little older than the girls someone gave me chicks for easter. Mama told me from the very beginning that they weren't pets and we were going to eat them. I hated those birds. I was always sure they were trying to bit a hunk out of my sweet little baby flesh thighs. When it came time to butcher my mom was crying and I was patting her on the back and telling her, "It's alright Mom. They aren't pets."

The Man told them that God gave us the birds to eat, and they seemed to think that was just fine. The Concoring Hero held up his conquest, The Turkey, for us to see and one of the girls joyfully pointed and proclaimed, "MEAT!" They were much more worried about me asking them to hold the frog we found in the grass today, lol.

So the chicken went right into the crockpot with some onion skins and bay leaf and carrots peels, and we roasted the turkey for dinner. I've gotten over two gallons of chicken stock so far. I would use a ladle and dip off the broth and add more water whenever it looked golden and lovely. Its some of the nicest looking broth I've ever seen. I was amazed at how dark the leg meat was, as dark as beef. What a blessing all that broth has been for easy spring time meals. And  where, and how, and Why In The World chicken feet? You can read about that here.
Blessings to you all! c

Mama Made Easy: Sponge cake with Lemon curd filling

This is my new favorite cheep, easy, healthy, yummy dessert. Well to be honest I don't think I had an old favorite, lol. Our neighbor came over the other day and said that her duck had laid eggs, but something had eaten two of them one night and now the mother wouldn't touch them, did we want duck eggs? Sure! Just in case you are worried I broke them before using to make sure they were good. I remembered that my Forgotten Skills of Cooking (a fabulous thing to have on your shelf if your trying embrace the whole foods homestead life style) book had some duck egg recipies so I pulled it out. I'm hosting my first large family gathering for Easter (tomorrow) and I figured I would try this out. I have to say I am completely blow away by the results. I plan on making this cake a LOT. The best part is it would be so easy to do on a nap time. I changed the recipe a little, using honey instead of sugar and fresh ground white winter wheat (which is VERY light) instead of white flour. When I don't have duck eggs anymore, which will be very soon, I plan on using 3 large chicken eggs, or 4 very small ones. I've know of Lemon Curd for a long time, but just never tried it. Oh, man have I been missing out! I could sit down and just eat a whole batch of it. It's basically an easy lemon custard. You could also fill the cake with jam or fruit preserves, or flavored whipped cream, pudding, fresh berries or anything else you could think of. For those of us who have an over abundance of spring eggs (our neighbor had 24 dozen last time I checked, and that was after giving them away to everyone he can think of), this is a perfect dish. The lemon curd would be a perfect topping for cottage cheese for a pregnant or nursing mommy trying to get in lots of protein. It would also be nice on toast, scones, or meringues. I would even whip up a quick batch to put on crackers and serve with tea for a last minute drop in guest. Just image how special they would feel *smile*

  *Picture coming after I put the cake together tomorrow*

Duck-Egg Sponge Cake with Lemon Curd Filling
Sponge Cake
3/4 cup all-purpose flour (I used whole white winter wheat)
3 duck eggs
6 tablespoons superfine sugar or honey

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line two cake pans with parchement paper, grease and dust with flour. Separate the white and yolks. Put the whites and sugar (or honey) into and bowl and beat until the whites are stiff. Whisk in the yolks one by one. Then fold in the flour. Divide the mixture between the two baking pans. Bake for 15 minutes (it was 15 in my stove, but the book calls for 20 to 25 minutes). Turn out carefully and let cool on a wire rack.

Lemon Curd
4 table spoons of butter (I just realized I miss-read this and used two, and it's very nice still)
juice of two lemons (and zest if you want it)
1/4 cup honey (that's a guess I just poured and tasted to make sure it wasn't too sour)
2 eggs and one egg yolk
Melt the butter on very low heat. Add the honey and lemon juice and zest. Stir carefully over low heat with a wooden spoon until the mixture covers the back of the spoon. Remove from the heat and pour into a bowl or jar (or just eat it right out of the pot). Cover when cool and refrigerate. Best eaten within two weeks.

Simplifying Breakfast

I try to read through the book "Created to be His Helpmeet" every once in a while. Two copies were given to me by different people as wedding presents,  and now I give out copies to women I think might "enjoy" it. I say "enjoy", because though it is not a difficult read, the book really stands up in your face and challenges you quite a bit. And I like that, though I don't agree with the author in all things. And every time I read the book I seem to walk away with so new challenge or discovery. One part that struck me this time through was, "Always offer your children only once choice for breakfast...Providing the same simple food every morning (except maybe Saturday) causes a child to look forward to getting cereal on that one special morning." And the author went on to describe how to do a weeks worth of simple cooking by morphing one crock pot meal into the next. "It is not a grouchy old husband or bad days that cause the problems of cooking and cleaning for young wives. It is the lack of simple planning."

 I've also been reading the Reformation Acres blog and have been enjoying the inspiration and encouragement in the areas of laundry, cooking and cleaning. And I got to thinking about how much of my energy is directed into making these little decisions like, "What's for Breakfast!!??" while crabby hungry children cling to my legs wailing each and every day. So I started to think and pray about streamlining much of our life in these little areas, and leaving me with more time to enjoy my family. One issue was hampering me though; I'm an epicurean...a foody. I really do love to cook. I love to imaging it up. I love to see it come together. I love all the senses involved. The sizzle of onion in the pan, and watching it turn translucent, and then golden brown. I love to look in the fridge and find inspiration where many would find nothing. I would have been hard pressed not to fall among the leeks and onions crowd of Israelites leaving Egypt...oh and the melons. Don't forget the melons. So I had to come up with something simple...yet interesting. And this is what I have landed on for right now. Oatmeal. Doesn't sound like foodie food to you? Well here's how I'm approaching it. Oatmeal is basically a blank slate, like rice, and I can really dress it up in any way I please. While the blackberries were in I would pick some out of the hedge row and add it to our morning breakfast. I can simply continue through the year dressing up the oatmeal with what ever is in season, moving from berries, to peaches, to pears, to apples, to bananas and almond butter, or dried fruit in the winter. You could even go crazy and add chocolate chips. There are also spices to add, and nuts, or coconut or coconut oil, butter and cream or milk, and nut butters. (I have my first batch of homemade almond butter in the fridge right now. It was very easy, and since I never let it sit at room temperature the oil never separated. You can check out the directions here.) You can also dress up oatmeal with savory additions, like cheese, thyme, chives, bacon, onion, garlic, or even scrambled eggs. It's an interesting combinations, since oatmeal is kind of a sweet grain...I've only tried it once, and I can't decide if I like it or not. Basically what I'm saying is your imagination is the limit to your options, but what you do each morning basically stays the same. Muesli is also a good cold oatmeal breakfast dish if the heat is getting to you.

But I've gone an additional step in simplifying our routine. When I cook the oatmeal I make a double batch. Then the next day I take it out of the fridge and mash it well with a fork (you know how cold oat meal turns into a giant glob) add in any extras for flavoring (like the ideas above) and beat an egg into it all. If I have a lot and the oatmeal doesn't look completely coated then I add another egg. Then I plop down spoonfuls of this mixture into a well heated pan with lots of grease and fry them until they are golden brown on both sides. We eat them with syrup. And if there were ever any left I would save them as finger food snacks for the girls...but it doesn't seem to mater how much I make...there are never any left. They taste like a cross between oatmeal and french toast. It's a great way to reinvent any left over oatmeal, or any sort of left over starchy foods, like bread, mashed potatoes, or rice- but a word of caution, I don't think I would try this with instant oatmeal. I've been working this system for about three weeks now and breakfast is the ONLY meal I've not had any trouble getting the girls to eat, and I haven't gotten tried of it yet either. It really feels like you are eating something completely different the second day, and I guess really you are. So I just wanted to share, in case you might find it helpful too. Now if The Man gets tired of this at some point I will have to come up with a couple of systems to rotate through. We'll see how it goes. I'm saving muffins, pancakes, fresh donuts, waffles, coffee cake and all the other lovely breakfast things out there for Saturdays that I have enough gumption. Now I'm trying to turn my attention to simplifying and organizing my chores and lunch and dinner. Well see how it goes. Blessings!c

Cookbooks for Homesteaders: Preserving the Taste

Years ago my mother and I had a chance to glean in some strawberry fields at the end of the season. The fruit was all either under ripe or VERY much over ripe and it was perfect for making the most lovely strawberry sun preserves. The flavor was just amazing, much like strawberry freezer jam, or spreadable fruit leather. So I searched the internet and found some basic directions for strawberry sun preserves at this site. My batch came our very well. I make it with diced fruit and accidentally left too little juice, but it still came out lovely. I put it in pans in the windshield and front seat of my car (I face the car to the south) on a sunny day, so I don't have to worry about bugs getting in it. Plus it makes the car smell lovely. If you don't have a dehydrator, or if your too cheep to spend money on drying foods (like me!) use your car. Cheep and easy and it doesn't heat up the house. Hopefully I will be putting the car to good use this summer.
I noticed the reference to the cook book Preserving the Taste in the directions for making sun preserves. Its out of print but I ordered a copy (the first version because -again because it cost less and I'm cheep) and got it in the mail just a couple of days ago. And I love it. Its a much lovelier book than the cover makes you think (not that I judge a book by it's cover or anything, *ahem* me?). I don't like the many of the current styles in home preserves:fruit flavored sugar jells. As a family we are trying to move away from sugar in our daily diet, for many reason I may talk about some other time, and the preserves in this book are lower in sugar and really let the flavor shine through. The author Edon Waycott, tells you how to make your own pectin, which I have been interested in for quite a while. It isn't all fruit preserves there are also relishes, pickles, syrups, dried fruits, and herb vinegars. None of them require a pressure canner, which I'm also not very interested in using, because it's another piece of equipment to buy and store, and it steals all the nutrients from your foods too. As a friend of mine said, it makes tasty roughage. If you have been wanting to make preserves where the flavor really shines through then this may be the book for you. I'm hoping to make some of the peach butter...but instead of making it in the oven, I think I'm going to let it set in the car to cook. *smile* I just can't help trying!
I ran across an interesting link with lots of VERY interesting pickles you might enjoy looking at. Now is the time of year for putting up as much as you can. I hope to be elbow deep in it all before long.
Blessings!c

Mama Made Easy: Frittata

I love frittata for a couple of reasons. It's easy. I works for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It's great for reinventing little bits of leftovers, and left over frittata is easy to reinvent. It has a fancy name, but basically it's an omelet.
You start by sauteing whatever you have on hand to put in it. My favorite things to add are breakfast meat, diced onion & potato, mushroom, spinach, yellow squash (I'm not a huge yellow squash fan, but I REALLY like it in frittata), beans (especially seasoned beans left over from beans and rice are really good adding a creaminess and flavor to the dish). I always dig through the fridge looking for leftovers when I make it. All kinds of left overs can make it in, be willing to just throw it in there and try if you think it might be good. Left over pasta, rice, green beans, just whatever you have. I will saute any uncooked meat and any uncooked veggies first. I always add any frozen veggies towards the end if I don't want them droopy and pathetic, and anything that is already cooked very last. I don't like to buy tomatoes out of season, but I love to use sun dried tomatoes with egg dishes. Since I'm cooking for the girls I take the time to rehydrate them in some hot water before I start chopping potatoes, but if it's just me I don't bother. Their sweet acidity adds a great punch to the eggs and tastes so much better than the styrofoam tomatoes at the store. While you are sauteing, beat your eggs with about a tablespoon of milk or water per egg. I would add more if I was stretching it to feed a lot of people, but I never measure. I make the frittata as big as I can so I will have leftovers, but you probably want to do about two eggs per person. If you are inclined you might want to pop it all in the blender or whip them a while to make it more fluffy. I don't go to the trouble, but I'm sure it's good. Add in any spices. Fresh herbs are especially good, if you have them. I usually go with a either an Italian (thyme, basil, oregano, etc) or Mexican (cumin, cilantro, chili powder, etc) flavor theme. Lower the heat on your pan to medium low, and take the pan off the heat. Make sure your sauteed veggies are spread evenly in the pan, and the pour the eggs over, making sure it covers the whole bottom of the pan, and put it back on the heat (this is to let the pan cool down a bit, you want the eggs to cook a little slower so they don't get rubbery). Then grate cheese over the top. Let it cook until the bottom seems to be set, and the edges are cooked, but the middle is runny. Then pop it into the oven under the broiler. It's done when it's puffed up and brown. Serve it in wedges like quiche, and add a salad for dinner, or toast for breakfast. The leftovers are some of my favorite part. Just put some mayo and mustard on bread and pop a wedge of frittata between them and you have a fabulous sandwich. I'll make this a lot when I have a busy day, because cooking once gets me two meals, and I also make it for unexpected dinner guests, as we almost always have eggs and leftovers in the fridge. The girls and I love it. Hope you will too! c

Feeding Babies

My girls can eat! I jotted down what they ate one day, several months back...I think it was around 12 months...when I was especially astounded at how much they ate. These are approximate amounts by the way. I don't measure their food...as if I have the time!

• 1 sippy cup of milk
• 1 1/2 cups of rice, oatmeal, millet breakfast cereal with Brewer's Yeast and an egg yolk
• 1/2 cup of whole wheat pasta noodles
• 1/2 cup of dry cheerios
• 1/2 cup of spinach and chicken (with lemon and olive oil)
• 1 banana
• 1/2 a whole wheat oatmeal apple pancake
• 1 teething biscuit
• 3 large slices of mozzarella cheese
• 3 crackers with wheat germ

That is not how much both of them ate together, but they BOTH ate that much. I can safely say I have eaten no where that much today, lol. People comment a lot on what good eater the girls are. I say it's just like anything else you have to teach them to eat well. I read somewhere that can take as many at 15 "introductions" to a new food before the pallet can acclimate to it, so that gave me the courage to keep trying. I also remembered reading this quote from Living More with Less (a book well worth buying) "Children don't like vegetables? No, I never heard of that in my country! -Taiwanese nutrition student". I think to great extent children can be taught to be good eaters, it isn't genetic. I don't think little Indian kids eat curry just because they are Indian, but because that's what their parents cook. A friend told me that her child would only eat macaroni and cheese and pizza, all I could think was well I guess he would starve at my house, cause we pretty much never have those foods.Also I've developed two personal policy when it comes to food. One, you don't have to eat it but I'm not giving you anything else. One of the girls decided she didn't like peas, but pureed peas were for dinner and she was hungry. She would cry and cry, and then take a bite and cry again because she didn't like it. So I told her she didn't have to eat it and put her down from the table. And same thing again, cried for food, and when I would give her a bite refuse to eat. She wouldn't stop her hissy fit and wouldn't eat so I put her in her bed and told her she could come out when she would act nice (I know, I know I am SO mean). So she stopped crying and I got her back out, but knew she was till hungry, so I offered her another bite, and low and behold she ate the whole thing and was happy about it. She's never given me a problem about peas since, though I can tell they are not her favorite food. It's hard, but it pays off to stick to your guns. I don't purposefully make things I know the girls don't like to eat. I like for eating to be a pleasant experience for all of us. Two, I will only force one bite. The girls had been eating pureed banana for quite a while, and finally where old enough to eat it whole, but one of the girls decided she didn't like that weird looking stuff. I literally had to squeeze her mouth open and shove a bite it, and she fought me all the way down, and as soon as it was in her mouth went, "OH! That's what that is? Oh, that's yummy!
I wanted to share some of my favorite resources for ideas on feeding babies and toddlers:Baby Bjorn Bibs- The Man says he would have paid three times what these sell for. I used an old fashioned bib one time with the girls, and never did it again. The biggest reason was they couldn't shove these into their mouths. But overall they are are great (as you can see, I used them as feed bags on a particularly stressful day) and you just wipe them down or throw them in the dishwasher. This and the book listed below are now my go-to baby shower gifts.
Super Baby Food- Great resource, I would highly recommend getting your own copy. It has great ideas for foods I wouldn't have thought of, for grinding your own rice cereal in a bender (cheaper and healthier) to laying out what food to introduce when. I disagree with the author's in two areas. She recommends an all vegetarian diet, and all her recommendations are noticeably lacking in fat. We all need good fat's in our diet. Our brain is made of fat, and there is a whole spectrum of vitamins that your body cannot absorb without fat in your diet. Good fats to consider adding (depending on age) are coconut oil, olive oil, cod liver oil, and butter. There are lots of good websites with information similar to this book, but sometimes you really need to have a good book reference.
How to Eat- This is by the British TV cook Nigella Lawson. There is lots of good general cooking advice in this book, but at the back there is a section on "Feeding Babies" and it has a lot of good balanced advice about feeding your kids food that tastes good. It was here that I got the idea to add pesto to some of our bland rice or pasta dishes, and the girls love it and so do I. She gave me the courage to starting feeding the girls food with flavor.
Weelicious- This is a great website with lots of idea. I skim this site whenever planning meals for a little inspiration. There are recipes that cater to kids of all ages. One of our favorites here is the white bean basil hummus. We found it works well in place of mayo (if you happen to be out) in tuna salad too.
Please chime in with any ideas or resources you have found useful...if you happen to be feeding babies. Blessings!c

Mama-made-easy: Banana Pancakes

A friend of mine wanted my pancake recipe, so instead of taking the time to just e-mail her, I thought I would post it for you all too. These have been a great hit at our house. I love them because the girls can feed themselves, they freeze great, don't take up a lot of room, and are easy to reheat in the toaster. I haven't tried yet, but I'd be willing to bet you could try sweet potato instead of banana (might need to add a little more milk if it's too thick). Nuts or chocolate chips would be a nice addition, and you could smear the pancakes with nut butter and honey for a more protein packed meal. If you're feeding babies these pancakes, don't substitute something else for the butter. Our brains are made out of fat, and growing children need it in their diet. You can read more on the issue here. If you don't have any butter milk, just add a few table spoons of white vinegar to your measuring cup before you add the milk. I recommend you use King Arthur Premium 100% whole wheat flour, or something equally high quality and find ground. The pancakes come out so light and fluffy with this, that you family probably won't even know they are whole wheat (if you have issues with such a thing). This recipe should make around 30 something pancakes, and of course you can cut it in half, but if your a mama and going to all the trouble...just make a big old batch. So without further ado...

4 cups of whole wheat flour
8 tsp of baking powder
4 tablespoons of sugar
1 teaspoon of nutmeg
2 2/3 cup buttermilk
1 cup mashed banana (ripe is better)
4 tablespoons melted butter
4 eggs
Combine the first five ingredients. Stir well, and add the rest. Heat your pan or griddle until a drop of water dances and evaporates when it hits the surface. Drop spoonfuls of batter onto the skillet cook until brown, and then flip and cook on the other side (but you know all that already, right?) and don't forget them while you do something else...like right a blog post. Cause they will burn.
To improve flavor eat them with your pinkies sticking out. LOVEc

Mama-made-easy: Chicken Broth

Making my own chicken stock is a passion with me. Seriously. Don't know how I could get so worked up over chicken broth? Well in case you haven't noticed I'm passionate about a lot of things, lol! So you are fully warned, I'm going to do my best to persuade you to be passionate about chicken broth too. First of all, if it's made right it has all sorts of wonderful health benefits, and from the food scraps you would have thrown away you can make a food that is almost as nutritious as the meat originally was. The healthier and better quality your chicken is to start with the better it will be for you...you know the old adage "you are what you eat". The second thing that really gets me worked up about chicken broth is that you can make it from food scraps you would have thrown away. Are you hearing me here? You can take trash and turn it into this amazing golden broth. Which brings me to the next reason I'm so crazy about this stuff: it tastes soo much better than the average stuff at the store. In fact in good enough that you could just pop it in a mug and curl up on the couch sipping it, especially if you have a cold. And last of all it adds delicious flavor to anything you cook. You can add it to the water you cook your rice in, to soups, and sauces. I'm constantly finding new ways to use it. Oh wait! I've thought of one more reason to love it. It helps you save money on the grocery bills. Take some of this broth, add some diced garlic, soy sauce, and red pepper flakes. Bring to to a boil and slowly stir in a beaten egg and you have a filling egg drop soup for lunch. How cheep is that? Or add any veggies chopped up with dried beans and just a little bit of meat even. You get the idea? It really helps you provide nutritious meals on a little money.So now hopefully I have converted you to the idea of broth making and your just dying to know how I do it :) You can make broth from fresh chicken (uncooked) or from the bones left over from cooked chicken (though you probably wouldn't want to use chicken that was cook with sauce). If you are using the left over chicken bones it will taste richer if you either use more than one chicken (you can keep the bones in the freezer until you have another one or are ready to make it) or use less water. Brown the bones in the pan before you cover them in broth to bring out more flavor. There are also All you have to do is cover it with water and either put it on the stove on the very lowest setting or in your crock-pot. Then add some veggies and or spices to it. I don't like to spice or salt by broth much so I am free to add flavorings to anything I am cooking with it, and make sure I'm not over salting. I save all my carrot peels, onion and garlic ends and papers, the tops of tomatoes, the stems from fresh herbs, and the hand centers of lettus in a container in the freezer (the only things you WON'T want to use is anything in the cabbage family-broccoli etc- or anything in the potato family). Celery is especially a wonderful addition. I'm not crazy about it fresh, but it lends a truly lovely flavor to broths. Add about a table spoon of vinegar or white wine and that will help break down some of the bone marrow and minerals in the bones and add to the broth's nutritional value, and if you have the time break a few of the bones too. I saw at a leg bone with a pair of kitchen scissors until I can snap it. Don't let the broth come to a boil, and let it simmer as long as you can. I usually leave mine for eight hours. Then let it cool and remove all the "stuff", veggies and bones, and thrown them away. -Funny story, once The Man was helping me in the kitchen and misunderstood my directions and poured the broth down the drain after meticulously picking everything out of it. It didn't help that I was pregnant, nauseous, and really in the mood for chicken soup, lol. I've learned to speed up this process by setting a colander in a larger bowl and poring the broth in and then throwing away everything left in the colander.I take some of the broth and freeze it in large containers (old yogurt containers seem to be a good size for me) and take the rest and freeze it in ice cube trays, which is typically about two tablespoons, so it is easy to add to a little to cooking rice and other dishes. That's it. I hope I've talked you into giving it a try. And with all the roasted turkeys out there after Thanksgiving might just be the perfect time to try your hand at some turkey broth. Blessings!c

Mama-made-easy: Muesli

I've been wanting to share a yummy easy breakfast dish that has served us so well in our busy, hot, summer days.Muesli is basically a soaked oatmeal, which is great since it doesn't heat up my kitchen first thing in the morning. I measure out my oatmeal according to the serving size on the box and add in coconut, cinnamon and dates (I'm not a huge dates fan, but both The Man I really enjoy them in this dish) and then pour about half as much water [correction: I thought that looked funny when I first typed it up...I typically used a little less than the same amount of water] into the bowl as there is oatmeal. You'll have to play with the amount of water you use, and change it to fit your taste. I like mine dryer, where the flakes are kind of individual and not mushy. Then cover it with a towel and leave it out to soak overnight (that's the other trick, remembering to do it before you go to bed). Then in the morning I dish it up into bowls and top it with fresh fruit (berries, peaches, and bananas are all wonderful) give it a squirt of local honey and pour milk over it just like you would box cereal. You can also try topping it with yogurt. It's a great alternative to boxed cereals as it's cheaper, healthier, and more filling. Just a little idea from my busy world to yours. Blessings!c
P.S. Click here for a link to another muesli recipe you might try.

Mama-made-easy Crazy cake

I found "The Everything Book" at our local library when I was a babysitting teenager. I loved the book so much and never forgot it, always wishing I had my own copy. So with some money I was given for the girls (and yes that was an ok way to spend the gift money, if you have clicked on the link, its a book full of things to do with kids) I bought a used copy from Amazon (since it's out of print) and this is a little recipe from the book. It is perfect for those days when I know The Man has worked extra hard and I want to have a little something special for his dinner, just so he knows how much he's appreciated. I've made it several times in the last few months. And a couple of those times I even whipped it up while breast feeding one of the girls. There are a couple of things to love about this cake.

• No preservatives or ingredients who's names you can't pronounce like a box mix might have
• EASY clean up
• Your kids can help...would be a great way to start teaching them to bake
• You probably already have all the ingredients
• Uses no egg or milk for those with food allergies, which also makes it less expensive
• VERY yummy

The recipe doubles well for a larger crowd, in a 13x9 pan. You want to make sure you don't over bake it though. Every oven is different so keep an eye on it. You'll know it's done when you touch the top with your finger and and firm. You know you've timed it right if its still a little fudgy on the bottom.

Directly into an 8-inch square cake pan measure and stir together
1 1/2 cups of flour
1 cup of sugar
3 tablespoons of cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
Then measure the following ingredients directly into the pan:
1 teaspoon of vanilla
6 tablespoons of cooking oil
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 cup of cold water
Make sure you stir it well and catch the corners of the pan so you don't leave any dry powder there. You'll know it's well mixed when all the batter is the same consistency. When that's done tap the pan on the bottom and sides a few times to let some of the air bubbles come up and wipe down the sides so it looks pretty and clean after it's baked.
Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 mins

As good as this cake is, it's REALLY over the top with this Browned Butter frosting. Sounds a little odd I know, but that just makes it better to serve company, since they probably have never had it before. It tastes almost like the toffee in a Heath Bar. These portions are just barely enough to coat the 8 inch square cake, so if you like it thick, increase the quantity. If you make it a couple of times you'll be able to tell the proportions without even measuring, just by how it looks and feels.

Browned Butter Frosting
3 Tablespoons of butter
1 1/2 Cups of confectioners sugar
1 to 2 table spoons of milk, half and half, or evaporated milk
Melt the butter in a sauce pan over medium heat until it foams, bubbles and turns golden brown (if you do it too long and it gets little brown flecks, don't worry it will still taste good). Cool to room temperature. Combine butter sugar and vanilla. Beat to blend. Add 1 tablespoon of milk and beat till smooth. Add more milk a little at a time until the consistency is spreadable.
Enjoy!c

Mum's Day

This will be my first mother's day. How my life has changed in the past few months. Sometimes I just look them in the eye and I can't believe I actually have babies...much less twins. It's amazing to watch them grow. They are SUCH different little people.In celebration of mother's day I have a few little gifts for you. The first is a mother's prayer calendar. What a blessed idea! I'm framing my copy to hang on the wall. It gives you a reminder to pray for something each day of the week. I've been praying these things not just for my children, but also for The Man and I, and that we will have the wisdom to train and instruct our children in these areas. The second is this amazing and simple chocolate creme brulee recipe. Really now, need I say more? We are getting milk from a local family so we had lots of extra cream and I added whole milk to that instead of the half and half...and we had fresh eggs from our neighbor Farmer Mike who seems to have some very busy happy healthy hens. They have the yellowest yokes I've ever seen. This stuff is gooie chocolate glory. I just ate some :) And to top it off it is such a nice easy recipe, but HOW impressive! This is definitely going into the impress a guest, love a husband, cheer up a moma cooking list. Oh and by the way, if you don't have any little ramekins to bake it in just use coffee mugs. You might think about toping it with some fresh strawberries. I was going to do that, but I got so excited I eat the whole thing before i thought of it, lol. (And of course you don't want to waste those egg whites, so then you need make some of these) May God bless all you mamas out there and all of you who are waiting and preparing to be a mama one day! c

Crackers

Knowing that I was making my own cheese I had a sudden fit to make my own crackers too. Crackers are so easy to make. The only part which takes some time is rolling and cutting them. If you've wanted to try making bread, but your intimidated by it, give crackers a try first. One cracker recipe I have tried before, with great success I might add, is here. The olive oil and rosemary give a wonderful flavor.
The recipe below is my most recent attempt at crackers. I have a very bad habit of scanning instead of really reading a recipe, and I was half way though this when I realized that it calls for a food processor, which I don't have. So I mixed the whole thing up with my hands in a sort of squeezing kneading fashion. It worked just find, though I felt like I had been going some sort of hand exercises by the time I was done. I also found that they taste best when they are rolled very very thin. Looking at the heavy dough I was afraid I was making some really time intensive dog biscuits. But these guys amazed me. They have an amazing cheesy flavor! Almost exactly like cheese-its. Obviously they look nothing like them though. I am certainly going to make a batch with some grated cheese and a little chili powder in them. Shew, they would be amazing! Again the cost savings are pretty good here too. It took less than $1 worth of flour, and I already told you how cheep the yogurt was to make. I get real butter every time it's on sale for $2 or less and keep it in the freezer, so that was $0.50 or less. And I bought a pound of sesame seeds ages ago for a couple dollars which I also keep in the freezer. So you're saving money, and eating a food that you know doesn't have crazy chemicals and preservatives in it. Give them a try. Blessings!c

Whole grain crackers (from Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon)
Makes about 5 dozen

2 ½ cups of freshly ground spelt, kamut, whole wheat or rye flour, or a mixture
1 cup of plain yogurt
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
8 tablespoons butter melted
unbleached white flour
Mix flour with yogurt and leave in a warm place for 12 to 24 hours. Place soaked flour, salt, baking power and 4 tablespoons of melted butter in the food processor and process until well blended. Add sesame seeds and pulse once or twice to blend. Roll out to about 1/8 inch on a pastry cloth, using unbleached white flour to prevent sticking. Cut into squares with a knife or rounds with a glass. Place on a buttered cookie sheet, brush with remaining melted butter and bake in a 150-degree oven (or a dehydrator) until they are completely dry and crisp. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

btw- I'm going to try and blog about this soon, but check out this link to learn some about the great health benefits of soaking your grains, like this recipe before baking.

I do it myself!

More and more these days I've been discovering the pure joy of doing things myself. And this is my latest discovery: making yogurt in the crock pot! I've read about yogurt making for over a year now. But I was caught in a tough spot. One, I was completely intimidated by the process; heat the milk to x temperature, let it cool for x amount of time keep it and x constant temperature in the oven for...EVER. Two, I am completely against expensive kitchen appliances which take up room and don't multi task, so that meant a yogurt maker was out of the question. But this recipe looked SO easy, and it WAS. It pretty much makes it's self. I had heard that making your own yogurt saves money, and I was pretty skeptical about that too. But it does! I got a gallon of organic milk for $5, I used half of that for this batch of yogurt, and a small container of organic yogurt as a starter for $1. (I won't have to buy that for the next few batches, I just use some of my own, but at some point I will run out of the yogurt cultures and have to buy another container of yogurt). Out that I figured I got over 30 oz of yogurt, and a half cup of cream cheese. Yup, I made my own cheese. So easy too! The yogurt had a lot of whey in it (you know that watery stuff in your yogurt), and I don't like runny yogurt. So, a took a small bowl, and set a sieve in it. Then I laid a piece of cheese cloth (they call it this for a reason) in the sieve, and I dripped some of the yogurt and all the whey I could find into the cheese cloth and let it drain. After most of the initial water came out I tried up the cheese cloth with a rubber band and hung it on one of the knobs on the kitchen cabinets, and left a bowl below it to catch the whey as it dripped out. The next morning I had cream cheese! And it's pretty tasty too! I found out the whey is incredibly healthy for you, so I put it in a jar in my fridge and used it as part of the water needed when I baked bread. So I used everything! How great is that? I feel like I'm three again and just proudly learned to dress myself, lol. You've got to try it. Oh, and by the way, my yogurt did taste different than store bought. It was less tangy and tart...more mild. I had some with fresh raspberries for breakfast :) Blessings!c