in the moment > chocolate chocolate chip cookies...

Mom (after washing lucy up): "Lucy, did you get into the cookie dough again"?

Lucy (chocolate covering her face with an attempted wipe): "Nooo..."

I'm pretty sure she will get her batter fix this Christmas.

in the moment > jello jigglers was a pretty big deal

 

Over a month later, and she is still talking about it...

in the moment > some day soon when I feel like crud, she will be there for me

I know this looks scary, but she gets it.  Crazy as it sounds, she listens best in the kitchen.  It's all she wants - for me to get her stool out.  She amazes me everyday with her knowledge and passion of cooking.  Whether it's listing off the ingredients correctly, to pulling out the correct pans/utensils, or even correcting me on order of operation.  She's 2.75 years old, and she gets it.  I can only hope it continues - and that she someday becomes Master Chef Junior of course :)

(btw - she scrambled these eggs from start to finish.  I was by her side the whole time except to take this single photo.  For her first time at the stove, she killed it)

move me > cracking eggs for breakfast

She has been doing this for some time now...but we realized we didn't have on video (oh the horror)... so yes, both phones were out - i think we got it this time :) Have a great weekend! Hopefully you too have an excellent egg cracker for your weekend brunch!

order up > chicken a la king...with a little help

This time of year is really tough with Patrick working so much.  We missed him at Thanksgiving and wanted to make it up to him by making my all time favorite meal.  This was "the meal" asked specifically on all my birthdays growing up.  So this time, for him, Lucy and I got to it in the kitchen.  A feel good meal for dad :)  Ice cube trays not included...

A few things changed since 1989... Fresh mushrooms are used (closer to 1-2 cups) and more color is added with one green pepper and 1/2 a yellow pepper.  Feel free to add hot sauce on top of final product for some kick.  This just may be the easiest recipe ever....and it will always bring me back to the dinner table growing up.  Maybe it's not about the taste per say, as it is more about the memories.  Glad to make it for my Patrick.  

It's nights like this that make me happy.  Family time is the best time.

order up > taco salad! with a let's do this clean up

 Thanks to the Pioneer Woman, I came across a slew of easy recipes to try and all of them tasted great! I actually said after the beef stew that I truly feel like a "mom".  I hated beef stew growing up, and here I was making it for my own family.  Lucky for me, everyone liked it...even Lucy.

But my favorite was the taco salad.  I ended up making it for the family, then again the following weekend when my brother's family came to visit.  I highly recommend it, not only for the ease of preparation, but for the yummy taste!!  So here is my finished product - visit the Pioneer Woman's blog for full recipe and how to.  

(I swear I don't remember my brother not liking his corn touching other foods...This was a slight issue until his wifey told him to shut his eyes and eat it)!  Thanks Casey! The grilled corn was the best part!!

But.....To my dismay, I looked in the mirror later that evening and saw (da, da, daaaa)! Oil Spots all over my shirt!  Not only was it just a shirt, but it was a shirt I received in the mail that very day and Had to wear! Now ruined.  So I did what most people would do and washed it praying the oil comes out. I dried it too.  And the stains stuck.  You can see the stains better here in black and white (kinda):

So I Googled it - and found that even after washing and drying dish soap would get it out...So I tried it.  Rubbed dish soap on the shirt, then threw it in the washer once again.  To my surprise, it worked!!!!

So if you happen to fall upon an awesome recipe that may squirt oil...don't fret! Use dish soap! Maybe wear an art smock too?!

outing > new belgium brewerey - fort collins, co

The best part of this tour was that Lucy got to join!  We had a great time ending it with this wicked slide!

 This is us - ready to eat this....

 Just looking at this photo makes my mouth water - it was the best sausage & sauerkraut waffle - "the braffle"

I will search High and Low for you Waffle Lab at any sighting of a food truck!

Cheers!

my lucy > open wide!

order up > lemon chicken w/ capers &... tomatoes!

It's time for Tomatoes! The neighbors' tomato plants are giving them more tomatoes than they know what to do with.  Lucky us...they gave us a bunch! Maybe this will be another "Reason # - Neighbors acknowledge one another"....  Besides Lucy just eating them straight up, I decided to make Lemon chicken and of course, add tomatoes. Yummmmy........

 The best part about this is the actual recipe.  I love that all my mom's recipes are typed from her typewriter... Someday these will be worth something I swear.  I couldn't remember what we used to pair it with growing up.  I used bowtie pasta.  Angel hair would be good too.  My mom always omitted the wine...I did not, as a nice glass (entire bottle) paired perfectly with my meal :) I figured she wouldn't mind if I went ahead and shared her recipe.  Mom, you are really the only one reading this anyways :)  And as for the rest of the tomatoes, well we enjoyed them in BLT's and Tacos in the nights following.

...and dessert:

homemade banana ice cream with homemade whip cream...... (frozen bananas in blender - whip cream is blended heavy cream w/ a tsp of sugar).  One Happy Family!

holiday > lucy's first fireworks

We had a great 4th - With Sara in town from Kuwait and Patrick off work, we packed in all the excitement we could in one day.  Breakfast in Pleasanton - corn dogs, fried pickles, pig racing and a whole lotta 4H at the Alameda County Fair - swimming at the pool - a visit to the Moore's for a CA style holiday - and a giant hike up the hill to overlook all the distant fireworks in the nearby neighborhoods and cities.  Lucy held on strong until 10:30pm with a total of maybe 45 minutes of naptime all day.  She is such a trooper!

order up > chicken potpourri

After complaining this week to my new mommie group of how I feel that I am cooking too much, and what feels like every night (they gave me encouraging words of leftovers) - I came across this goodie. I had a fridge full of leftovers - potatoes, asparagus, and other veggies.  I also had a can of chicken in the pantry that I have been staring at for quite some time now.  Took the ole Campbell's recipe 'chicken pot pie' and made it my own.  Leftover pot pie.  Yummmm! So easy, so quick, so good! I didn't spend the whole evening washing dishes either! Too bad, after a busy day...Lucy missed it.  She slept right through > > >

in the moment > late night tiropita

I know I know, two posts in a row stolen from instagram...I'm wiped! For the good news, our good friend Andy is in town for the weekend - With his tech savvy ways I hope to learn some new techniques for me to blog with (video, gifs, htmls, etc.)  So stay tuned for a little improvement! Until then, get excited for my first whole Greek meal in the making!

order up > crunchy smashed potatoes

I thought I'd document another followed recipe tonight.  Another category, like grilled cheese, that never seems to turn out for me. Whatever I do, they never taste 'great!'.  So I grabbed the camera and followed The Pioneer Woman's recipe for her Crash Hot Potatoes.  This looked easy enough for me to not fail at.  

See her recipe on the link above.  What I did basically:

 1) Boil some water - add the potatoes - cooked until tender

 2) Place on oiled up tray (my tray isn't very pretty for photos)...

3) Mash with potato masher (this was weird, mine did not mash as clean and pretty as the Pioneer Woman)

 4) Photos not shown of the potatoes sliding all over breaking apart - I fit them back like a puzzle for sake of the photos.

 5) Pop 'em in the oven at 450 for 25 minutes (oil, salt, and thyme added)

 6) hmmmm... mine don't look as savory as hers - this is when I began to doubt myself (out came the butter, sour cream, and more salt)

 7) To my surprise...!!!... They were even more delicious than I could have ever imagined! No need for my backup plan of butter & sour cream garnished with potato! We had the potatoes with teriyaki chicken and pineapple.  Yummmmmy!!!!

Lucy got some for herself too!

So maybe they don't look identical to the pictures on the blog, maybe they don't come clean off the pan in a nice patty (mine sure didn't), but maybe they end up just as good! Maybe I'm getting better at this cooking thing that I really don't enjoy.  It sure makes it more fun when I document - just wait, there will be failures... but in the mean time - try this one out - it's De-Lish!

order up > omg grilled cheese

 Let me preface by saying I have never made a grilled cheese sandwich (that I can remember).  I've tried, and failed miserably.  Nowadays, it is one of the only 3 things my husband makes during the year.  I jump for joy everytime he says he will make his ooey-gooey oh so cheesey, avocado, & tomato grilled cheese. 

I met a small group of girls in the past couple of weeks that I now go on weekly park visits with.  I learned of one of their blogs, Rainbow Delicious that is all about grocery lists and meals for the week.  I was so impressed that I decided to try one of the simpler recipes.  That's when I found the Blueberry Brie Grilled Cheese Sandwich!!  Patrick was off today, so I thought it would be a nice treat for all of us...

Boy was it ever! I can't believe I made this beautiful creation! 'Oh my god' was overly repeated, echoing from the kitchen.  Hence the omg grilled cheese we have now named it.  Here are my debut pics - giving me courage that maybe I can cook/create, document, and share future recipes/crafts.

Click the above links for the recipes > I did use sourdough bread.  And just like Emily said - Honey is key!

Patrick loved it! Lucy liked it too!

Enjoy!!