At the Table

I'm falling in love with my kitchen again.
Springtime in Oklahoma was filled with deadly tornadoes, leaving most of us raw and emotional and out of sorts. I was no exception. Our business had some slow weeks, so money was extra tight. Cooking was at a minimum- PBJ's would have to suffice, kids. Although, we also ate out too much. How do we eat out more when we have less money? How is that possible?
Maybe it was Whole30, maybe it was time, certainly it was God's grace, but our family is working on areas where we have lacked discipline.
We're getting back to the table, where a lot of life plays out: Lego's and drawings and homework and Bible study and, oh yes, eating. And talking. And cups of coffee. And jokes. And stories.

Last night, as we ate another round of tacos, my husband told me that, with the exception of our two very favorite local restaurants, there isn't anything that he eats outside of the home that is better than what I make. That's some high flattery, but I ate it up. With a spoon. Then asked for seconds.
I hope he really feels that way. I hope my oldest means it when he says that my food is #1, everywhere else is #2. I hope my kids always remember family dinners as special and important, no matter what we ate. I hope they have more memories of my chicken nuggets than those from Chick-fil-A.

After reading Shauna Niequist's delectable memoir, Bread and Wine, I am more in love with my kitchen, my table, my cooking and my home, than ever before. If you read this book and fail to be motivated to throw open your door and welcome people into your home, your life, and your story, then I will be shocked. Space doesn't matter, what you serve doesn't matter. All that matters is that you do it. When we let go of perfection and allow people into our messes, that's when the magic happens. That's when memories are made.

I realize this cooking blog has been more narrative than usual as of late. Hopefully I'll have new recipes to share soon. Or maybe I'll just keep making the things I love the most for the people I love the most, and inviting new people in all the time.
Yes, maybe that.

A Different Kind of Fast

Right in the middle of this captivating series, I'm taking a media break.

As a gift to myself and my children (especially my children), I'm taking Monday-Saturday off of the computer completely. We've got pools to swim in, Lego creations to make (tall, tall sky scrapers, for me), closets to de-clutter, library books to read, and summer fun to be had.

Whole30 will continue, but you will have to survive your week without hearing about my sweet potato hash brown eating. Be strong, friends.

See you on Day 18!!!

Planning to Make

As we enter what is simply the greatest time of year, I am looking forward to long hours spent in my favorite room of the house...the kitchen, of course.  Besides the heartier fare that the cold weather necessitates (Chicken Pot Pie, anyone?), I am looking forward to baking Christmas cookies, giving in to the kids' daily request for hot chocolate, and working soup into our menu as often as I can.

For snuggly breakfasts:
Perfect Hot Chocolate
Granola
Pumpkin Pie Muffins

For warming our bellies: 
Cornbread Muffins to accompany our favorite Beef Stew
Mom's Tortilla Soup
Roasted Tomato Soup

For gifts: 
Ina's Jam Thumbprint Cookies
Chocolate-Peppermint Thumbprints

What are you craving this Christmas season?

The Snack Lunch (with justification...not that it's necessary)

Here in Oklahoma, we've reached that glorious part of the summer where we simply must survive the triple digit days.  Cooking?  Like, with heat?  Please, let there be another way.  All my kids want to do (and all I have the motivation for) is play in the backyard pool.  Eating?  Overrated.  

Enter the "snack lunch."  Nothing earth-shattering, but certainly sanity-saving.  And I get bonus points because they think it's super cool.  

And here's how I justify serving glorified snacks and calling it a meal-

Homemade croutons and slices of cheese- a deconstructed grilled cheese.

Pretzels and peanut butter- the pretzels are Newman's Own High Protein Organic Pretzels.  They're good enough to buy in bulk off Amazon (which I did).  

Strawberries- they right any multitude of wrongs.

If all else fails, there's the Whole Foods Vitamin.  

Quick, easy, stress-free.  They can get back to the pool and I can get back to my magazine and iced coffee.  Win win.

The Big Three

My sweet middle child turned 3 yesterday, and we celebrated with family on Saturday. We had pizza, root beer, and cupcakes- all his requests.

The frosting on the cupcakes was destroyed when I added the red food coloring, making it look bloody, pinkish, and overall unappetizing. The birthday boy spilled root beer on his shirt every.time.he.took.a.drink, and sported the goose egg he managed to get on Valentine's Day (while he was pretending to be a dog).

It took him about 3 tries to blow out his single candle, and when his daddy got this picture, I had just seen spit fly onto the cupcakes.

That's why I'm thankful for The Nester's reminder that "It doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful."

Dinner at Eight

I'm linking up my Valentine's Day dinner with Rebekah and Andi. Their Dinner at Eight project is all about being more intentional in our marriages. With 3 little ones and absolutely no budge in the budget, date nights are very few and far between for us. This project is all about making a special dinner at home, for just the two of you.

We're not big on Valentine's Day around here. I don't require or really desire chocolates or flowers or jewelry. But I'm all for celebrating and giving thanks for the love that God bestows on us, and lavishing one another with that love. So for my Valentine, I made his favorite meal and pulled out a few special touches. It was lovely. (Even with the mess A made with about 4 different boxes of puzzles, and with S's goose egg on his forehead.)

Things I don't do

I've tried to pare down my blog reading in the past few months. I try to only read blogs that inspire me, encourage me, etc. Hayley's blog is one of those. Her October series became the catalyst for an ebook that will literally change your closet, ladies. (I know it has mine!)

Her post today was refreshing and honest; my favorite combination both in people and in the blogosphere. It inspired me to share some things that I don't do, as a mom, a wife, a keeper of the home, etc.

I don't...

*present my kids with vegetables at every meal. Sometimes I push it, and try and make them eat something green or orange or red, but mostly...I don't.

*sweep my kitchen floor every day. Once A starts finding crumbs and things under the table which are literally unrecognizable, I'll finally whip out the broom.

*have a grocery budget, or really a budget of any kind. I pay our bills, I buy our food, I pray we last until the next pay period.

*say no to my kids having snacks throughout the day. Unless it's like 10 minutes before a meal, if they want something, I usually let them eat.

*clean up the crumbs after the boys have eaten on the couch. I wipe them into the floor and vacuum it at a later day (usually much later, when I know I have company coming). Alternatively, I pick up crumbs and throw them into the fireplace, instead of the trash can.

*ever seem to plan for lunches when I'm meal planning. My husband and I eat so many "breakfast burritos" for lunch because I just never plan ahead and am always stumped. If we don't have leftovers (and we very rarely do), we're just lost.

*say "no" to dessert, ever. For myself, anyway.

*buy organic anything. Not even the "dirty dozen."

So there's a bit of a honesty from one domestic goddess to another. (Not that anyone thought I had it all together, anyway...)

The Witching Hour

My friend Katherine, whose blog will inspire you, asked a blog-post worthy question:

"When do you do your dinner cooking? A friend of mine once referred to that 5:00 hour as "suicide hour". That's when I'm waiting on Russ to get home (by 6/6:30) and it is 50/50 as to whether the kids will be playing contentedly or hanging on my legs to be held. So- said friend recommended I do my dinner prep at nap time, so as to avoid the "suicide hour" stress. Also to decrease any resentment toward Russ for not being in a home-by-5:00 job.Enough about me- when do you fix dinners? Do you freeze much ahead of time? You seem like a "cook it all fresh" kind of girl. Discuss."

I hear you. Oh, how I hear you. I've never heard it referred to as "suicide hour," only "witching hour," but perhaps your friend's description is more accurate. I have one night a week that I know my husband will be home at a decent hour. Not only decent, remarkable. (We're talking 1:45 or 2!!!) On those nights, I might try something new or make something that requires a lot time and attention, like Stew. Every other night, I never know if he'll even be home before 7. So I do a lot of cooking with whiny children running around like crazy and/or pulling on my pant legs.

Some strategies:

*Don't be too high and mighty to just plop those kids in front of the TV while you cook.

*If you're trying to eat all together as a family, and therefore pushing back dinner time until 6:30 or 7 (like we do around here), don't be afraid of a small late afternoon snack to sustain them.

*For the littlest ones, put all the Tupperware in one low cabinet and let the kid go to town.

*As for prepping ahead, I do sometimes. Stir-fry ingredients can be chopped, measured, etc. and stashed away until supper. Pasta and rice can be cooked ahead of time and reheated (especially handy if you make brown rice, which takes close to an hour to cook).

Dredging stations can be made and set aside until needed. (Like for Parmesan Chicken)

*I've mentioned my love of garlic and onion powders before. Not only do they serve as one less thing to be picked out of food, it also saves time- no chopping required.

*Implement a leftovers night. We called it "clean out the refrigerator" night when I was growing up. It was always a random smorgasbord of food, and I still love it.

*I rely pretty heavily on "steam-in-the-bag" veggies as a side dish. Green beans are our favorite. 5 minutes or so in the microwave, no pots to babysit, no thinking required.

Who else has suggestions? Feel free to leave them in the comments section!

Thanksgiving

I'm hosting Thanksgiving for the second time. My sister is taking over the turkey duties, because I can barely stomach dealing with a whole chicken (you can totally tell where its' head was, people!). She's also in charge of making Grannie's dressing and gravy and the rolls because A) Grannie is in California as she has been the last few Thanksgivings and my sister knows how to make the dressing, and B) I was in charge of rolls last year and I failed and had to run to Wal-mart on the way to Sister's and then made the mistake of buying frozen yeast rolls that had to defrost and rise and...yeah, I messed up.

I'm making the other sides and dessert.

I have yet to discover the secret to perfect mashed potatoes. The last Thanksgiving I hosted, I made Pioneer Woman's, but I felt they left something to be desired.

Broccoli Rice Casserole is my favorite side, and my mom made it every year. This year, I'm going out on a limb and forgoing the cream of mushroom soup, cheese-whiz, and instant rice for real ingredients! Eureka!

Vanilla Sugar Cookies

Pumpkin Pie

What are you making? What HAS to be on your plate?

Picky-Eater #1

When my eldest picky eater turned 3, he refused to eat anything green. He even turned down mint-chocolate chip ice cream, solely on principle.

For the past month or so, his eating habits have changed even more dramatically. Every day it seems like another food is on the "disgusting" list.

*Peanut butter. Out

*Cheese. Out

*Hot dogs. Out

*Cinnamon toast. Out

"Mom, this tastes like money."

"This tastes like suction cups." (what?)

"I can't eat this, it tastes like throw up."

It was getting bad, folks. So I did want any sane mother, on the verge of losing her sanity, would do- I resorted to good old fashioned bribery.

Since Friday, N and I have been working with the following deal- if he eats one bite of everything I make him, for one whole week, he can choose whatever he wants for dessert and I'll make it this weekend.

So how's it going? Beautifully. The boy has eaten the following previously "detested" foods:

*Chili- and he loved it so much, he requested it for breakfast the next day. I declined, but I'm making it later this week, when the cool front comes through.

*Eggs- which he tolerated, but did not enjoy.

*Lasagna- which he loved, and requested for breakfast today. I declined, and served him cold cereal.

And last night, in a moment that will be forever etched in my brain, the boy ate not one bite, but two bites of his green beans. By choice.

Proudest parenting moment ever.

Thank you, bribery.

10 on 10 - October

Today I'm linking up with Rebekah for 10 on 10!

making coffee is so much sweeter now that i have everything laid out nicely

i have big plans for those ugly bananas

homework time

never a distraction during homework time ;)

the simple act of making bats made me the coolest mom ever...for today

yummy lunch- spinach and feta breakfast burritos

not such a fan of the apple i shared

afternoon snack..want the recipe?

the best use i can think of for those bananas

he made his own!

the best way to end our mondays- pizza with pawpa

Sausage Biscuit Things

My aunt and uncle were visiting from California a couple of weeks ago. Over lunch at one of our favorite places, my uncle mentioned that they had tried out a recipe from my blog. I got excited, because they're quite the foodies, and I couldn't wait to hear what they tried and how they liked it. Much to my dismay, they were disappointed in their choice- Chocolate Triscuits.

I assured them that I have many other (better) recipes and that the Chocolate Triscuits were just something I threw together once when the crackers were beyond stale. I haven't made them since.

Since that conversation, I've been thinking of writing a post in which I share the things I make over and over again- the tried and true recipes that are always successful and always eaten without grumbling or complaining (once I've shared the new recipes, I'll make one post that lists them all).

So here's the first "recipe" that falls into that category. It's N's favorite (and he named it).

Sausage Biscuit Things

1 package crescent rolls

1/2 pound breakfast sausage

In a large skillet over medium heat, cook the sausage until no longer pink. Set aside to cool slightly. Preheat oven to 350. Separate crescent rolls along creases, leaving them in 4 rectangles. Press the seams together. Spread sausage evenly down the middle of each rectangle (lengthwise). Roll up (pressing seams back together if they come apart) lengthwise and then slice each rectangle into 5 or 6 even pieces. Place on a cookie sheet. Bake 13-15 minutes, until lightly browned.

I often make myself one, stuffed with sausage, a scrambled egg, and shredded cheese.

Food Goals

Do you ever make food goals? I realize I'm a food-obsessed gal, but I can't be the only one who thinks about food constantly, peruses cookbooks for fun, constantly tries new recipes (or at least plans to), etc. Right?

I'm also a list maker, especially around my birthday. It's coming up in a few weeks, and I've been compiling a list in my head of "food things" I want to accomplish.

Strange?

Probably. But here they are-

Eat French Onion Soup. I've never had it, and I find that odd, considering that it's smothered with cheese and topped with bread.

Make and eat French Toast. I've eaten it once. I've never made it. Crazy, no? And I'm somewhat obsessed with the idea of it. I probably have 10 recipes that I've ripped out of magazines over the past few years.

Make and eat a Croque Monsieur. I think this is the last french food goal. Again, how have I never eaten this sandwich?

Make a new dessert every month. I have a huge binder filled mostly with dessert recipes, most of which I've never tried (I tend to make the same things over and over again). I want to remedy that, because there's something satisfying about trying something new and not just continuing to wonder about it. Even if it ends up not being that great and I get rid of the recipe, it's still satisfying.

Make a 7-layer cake. This is on my list of things to do before I'm 30. I'm turning 29 this year, so...the clock's ticking.

Project Food Blog

So, loyal readers, I once again have a task for you.

I am participating in a competition for food bloggers. I consider myself a highly-amateur food blogger at best, but I liked the idea of winning $10,000 and paying off some credit card debt.

There are 10 challenges over the course of the next 12 weeks and I'm already intimidated by the sound of some of them! But this first one should be pretty easy. All I have to do is write a post about my food blog. What sets it apart? What makes it special? Well, I say this should be pretty easy, but do I really know what makes this blog different?

I'm hoping that you will help me out with some feedback.

Why do you check my blog?

What do you like about it?

What types of recipes do you enjoy seeing here? (Are there any favorites that you've tried?)

How is this blog different than other food blogs you read?

Any other feedback you can give me would be so helpful.

If you would leave me a comment between now and next Friday, I'd really appreciate it. I'll write up my post after that and then judging begins on September 20th. I have to make it past the first round to continue on, and I'll let you know how to vote for me!

Thanks in advance for your help!

Mindless Meals

I'm asking for your help.

We've been eating out WAY too much lately, as a result of my total lack of desire to cook. Triple digit temperatures, exhaustion by the end of the day, stir-crazy, cabin-fevered kiddos...whatever it is, cooking is the last thing I want to do at the end of the day.

But we had to break the cycle. Our boys both had a bit of stomach trouble as a result of the endless corn dogs, pizzas, and sausage biscuits. (Does that officially make me the worst mom ever?)

So last night's grocery trip included a few of my "mindless meals" that I'm pretty sure I will at least have the energy to concoct. Spaghetti, Spanish Rice, Buitoni Tortellini. I even grabbed tons of fresh veggies to have on hand because most nights even making a salad takes too much effort. But I need more meals in my arsenal.

Can you help? Any mindless meals you're willing to share with me? My family thanks you!

Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

My mom, sister, cousins, aunts and I laid out a pretty great spread for my Grannie's 80th birthday party over the weekend (if I do say so myself). We took a lot of help from Sam's, as life doesn't seem to slow down even when you're planning a party and need to feed 75-100 people.

skewers of cherry tomatoes, black olives, cubed salami, and mozzerella dressed in Italian dressing

from Sam's

What I did make by hand were oatmeal raisin cookies and, let me tell you, these were delicious little bundles of goodness (if I do so say so myself).

I've already posted the oatmeal raisin cookies from Joy of Cooking, but this recipe tops it!

It's from the...um...lid of the Quaker Oats can. Don't judge. They know what they're doing.

Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

makes about 4 dozen

This is worth pointing out-the cookies pictured above were cooked from the freezer, meaning that I made the dough early in the week, rolled them into cookies, froze them in a single layer on a cookie sheet (for about an hour), then placed them in plastic bags and kept them in the freezer until the day before I needed them. When I baked them, I just had to add a couple minutes of cooking time. They stayed nice and thick and chewy. I made them again last week but just made the dough and baked them, all in the same day. The resulting cookies spread much more and were thinner. So, if you like your cookies on the thin side, follow the recipe exactly as below. If you like a thicker cookie (like I do), make your dough in advance, freeze them, and bake them from frozen!

1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter, softened

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt (optional)

3 cups quick or old-fashioned oats, uncooked

1 cup raisins

Heat oven to 350. Beat together butter and sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla, mix well. In separate bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Combine with butter mixture. Mix well. Stir in oats and raisins, mix well. Drop by rounded tablespoons on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes, until golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheet then remove to wire rack.