I May Have Done Something Right....

The holidays are a baker's time to shine--it's our time to do it up big and show off and wow everyone's pants off and then sit back and grin. We plan for a month or two ahead of time and stockpile supplies and bake at night and hid our concoctions until the moment arrives and *POOF!!* there are goodies and candies and confections and yule logs and pies and you totally didn't know we could do all this.  Bakers are like little elves only we have social security numbers and can reach the gas pedal in the car while steering....well, most of us can.




Every year, that's my deal. I revel in that sort of thing.  I start baking the day after Thanksgiving. I use every available piece of tupperware available to me. I fill the freezer with so much stuff, we don't have room for real food.



I show off.  And I get to live out that principle my mother taught me to go no where during the holidays empty handed. It's about hospitality and generosity and good will.



I didn't do that this year.



Instead, we moved to a new house. And I spent enormous amounts of time cleaning the place and trying to figure out the best way to make my little family feel at home. And my in-laws came from the Old Country (Pennsylvania) and they really helped the kids feel like this was home and warmed our home with their love. This was the first time they could hold their new grandson and nothing beats the love grandparents exude.

paparazzi

After all that, we finally managed to shop for Christmas and put up the tree and join in on the feeling that everyone else seemed to already be enjoying-like coming late to a really good party. Holiday specials on tv and hot chocolate and kids in footie pj's and Christmas music and the church choir at Mass....

I don't know why...

And I did bake. I just didn't squirrel away goodies. I didn't stay up late at night isolated in my kitchen. I DID however, stay up late at night and rock babies and sing songs and tickle children and tell them stories of my childhood. I spent time with my family. I was in the moment with them.  And I don't think a big pile of goodies for my husband's associates or the neighbors can really replace that. (In fact, the neighbors brought US stuff instead!)






So we made cookies for Santa and goodies for class parties and cinnamon rolls for Christmas breakfast and I cooked some glorious meals but I also got down on the floor and played with my kids and went on a date with my man. And smiled. And laughed. And felt like a real human being.





Yule log that.

We have the saddest tree

school party treats

Here are a few pics of the last month. I pray the New Year brings you joy and happiness and many fabulous meals with people you love.

her future's so bright...

dreaming of a white Christmas

she took a bite out of each of them

this was supposed to be
for Thing 2's dress up....

she loves these...
I was worried they came with
a pole

legomaniacs

my mom said it looked like
King Tut's face but, Honey,
it sure as hell didn't
taste like it...

that's right-I wrapped a turkey
in bacon....

seafood stuffed mushrooms

crepes for dinner...why not?
we never got out of our pj's
that day

quiet wonder. perfection.

hand made gifts are
the kindest

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Alla Checca: Using Up Those Gorgeous Tomatoes

So....last summer I was really really industrious and I was all about preparing for the following year so I proposed saving your seeds. And then this spring, I really got a jump on things by planting those seeds so I could have a patio full of beautiful tomato plants. Ready to see the bounty of my hard work?

it's almost overwhelming, huh?

When you have finished laughing, we'll get on with the rest of the post, ok?  Actually, I kind of feel like that scene at the end of 28 Days with the guy who can't keep the plant alive or take proper care of the dog and is getting desperate....

*this was the best clip I could find *

My brain sounds something like this: I have 3 kids and a dog and run a household on many levels and can't seem to grow a decent tomato to save my life.  *cue crying like above*


Enter wonderful parents with mad skills for growing things and keeping children and dogs alive.  So then I had a box full of gorgeous home-grown tomatoes that looked like this:

hells yeah, Mom and Dad

To say that these beauties are utterly delicious is a major understatement. However, to say that we could use them up just making salsa and sandwiches before they turned was rather unlikely as well and I was NOT about to waste a single one.

Hence search engine to compensate for mommy brain....uncooked sauce? Sure!

This recipe is (1) soooo easy (2) time flexible and (3) really pretty--try it for company or a stay-in date for instance.

Basically, if you can cut things and boil pasta, you can make this.  Which pretty much covers how much brain power I have to devote to making dinner at this stage in the game anyways.

Stage 1:

Dice 5 tomatoes, removing the seeds

Chop 1/2 cup of fresh basil (one plant I did manage to grow properly this summer)

Stir together in a non-metal bowl along with 

1/2 cup olive oil

1 tsp salt

1 tbs minced garlic

pretty

yes, it sits on your counter
all day--no one will die,
I promise

Stir this all together and cover with plastic wrap. This is now going to sit, on your counter at room temperature for at least 2 hours and up to 10 hours. See? easy. 

Stage 2: 

Boil one pound of pasta-shape and size of your choice. Drain off water and pour the tomatoes over the hot pasta and toss--along with some parmesan cheese. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.

pasta and sauce

pasta

pasta, sauce and cheese

Stage 3: 

Eat.  Possibly with a bit of crusty garlic bread. This will serve four generous portions by the way so if you are feeding more people, just  double as needed. 

See what I'm saying here? Easy. Simple. Good. 

And no mothers were stressed in the making of this dinner.

Chorizo Black Bean Pockets: Easy Betty Says It's Too Hot To Work

Last week, my little crew escaped to the Old Country (aka Pennsylvania) for a week to be spoiled rotten by the grandparents. Considering that the Dev's and I haven't been alone together for over two years and I hadn't had a moment to really get ready for Baby Boy, a week without Thing 1 and Thing 2 was a gift, plain and simple. Your mother in law may drive you crazy, showing up at your house all the time, taking the kids blah blah blah. You bless that woman right now. You don't know what a gift you have having family near you.

Needless to say, after we (kind of) adjusted to the quiet in the house (and the fact that we could eat candy for dinner and watch movies really loudly at night with no fear of waking the sleeping dragons), we transitioned beds and cribs and moved around bedrooms and painted stuff and scrubbed carpets and washed baby clothes. And after a baseless meltdown about the state of my body, the hospital bag is also packed and ready to go. So while I have no idea who is going to watch the girls while I'm actually at the hospital birthing their brother, everything else is ready for this child to actually enter the world (knock on wood).

I don't need to tell you it's blistering hot outside--yes, it's summer and it should be hot; but this is like "I'm sorry, I repent" hot out. And as I'm nearing the final stages of this pregnancy--this long and difficult pregnancy--I've reached that point where I don't leave the house unless absolutely necessary. If not because the cashier at my local grocery store can't keep her annoying comments about my appearance to herself, then because the heat index is in triple digits by 9 am.

And since I'm avoiding said grocery store, I need to get a little more creative with dinner around here. This is what I came up with tonight:

You'll need:
2  8-oz cans crescent rolls (shut up, they were on sale and I had a coupon)
1 pound chorizo sausage (I used mild for the sake of the children)
1 large or 2 small tomatoes, diced
1 cup cooked or 1 can rinsed and drained black beans
8 oz shredded cheddar

Preheat your oven to 375 and prepare a baking sheet. While your oven heats, use a skillet to cook the chorizo (remove the casing) with the black beans, adding in the tomatoes once everything else is cooked through. Cut the heat and taste your filling to see if it needs something more. If you like spicy, add in some hot peppers or some chili powder.  Mexican sausage is pretty flavorful though so you may not even need salt and pepper.






On the sheet pan, separate out the first can of crescent rolls so you have 8 triangles.









Now top them with a heaping tablespoon of the filling and top with the shredded cheese. Leave the edges clear.










Using the second can of rolls, top the triangles and seal the edges with a fork. You may need to stretch out the top piece a little to cover the filling but since it's not a super-wet filling, you shouldn't have to worry about them exploding open.

 Now you have 8 triangles....and also about half the filling left-freeze it for later or use up 4 cans instead of 2 and feed the neighbor kids that just got out of your pool.

Pop the pockets into the oven for 12-15 minutes and bake until golden brown. I served these with a little salsa and sour cream for dinner. Fruit salad on the side and you have a full meal. Easy peasy. Dinner in less than half and hour.

The filling on these could be anything really. Leftover chicken with some spinach and feta? Mozzarella, pepperoni and mushrooms with a marinara dipping sauce? A little ground beef with diced carrots and peas? Look around in the your fridge or pantry and use up that stuff that's just sitting around.  If you add cheese to it, I guarantee you can slip in some veggies without the kids caring.

Easy Betty Strikes Again: Corn with Bacon and Mushrooms

It's summer time and the livin' is easy.....well, it should be because I'm really really lazy right now. That said, all the recipes that are being posted right now for easy sides and dinner ideas are catching my attention as much as the articles on how to wrangle 3 kids.



This particular recipe was a no-brainer for us because the ingredients are staple items in this house ("fat and fungus" is it's own food group around here).  Throw in the corn and suddenly I believe it's healthy.



I actually made this as part of Mr. Devlin's Father's Day meal. The Dev's is a notorious meat and potato man, eating veggies only to show he can be a good role model when little eyes are upon him. But it's not like I was going to put him to the brussel sprout test on his special day (that's what Monday's are for).



Naturally, after scanning the recipe, I pretty much did what I wanted with it. Having some bacon already cooked off for a batch of bacon cheddar scones, I could easily skip that step of cooking it in a skillet but that also meant I wouldn't have the necessary fat required to saute the mushrooms in. Also not a real problem for me because I save my bacon fat.  I told you-fat and fungus are taken seriously in this house.



Ok, so basically, all you need is:

bacon--cooked or not is up to you but you'll want about 6 pieces for 4+ servings, chopped
chopped onion, shallots or chives-- I have chives so that's what I used (about 1 heaping tablespoon) but if you are using onion or shallots-about 1/4 cups, chopped fine
mushrooms--button, bella, porcini, oyster, shiitake--entirely up to you but you'll want about 3 cups, sliced or chopped
corn kernels--1 1/2 cups-2 cups frozen or maybe you want to shave off some from some leftover ears if you have some laying around
salt and pepper--totally to your taste



Saute the bacon, adding fat if you need it. If you don't have enough to saute mushrooms in, add a pat or two of butter. Now toss in the mushrooms and onions, stirring now and then as they soften and absorb all the bacony goodness. Adjust your heat as well-medium is a good place to be. When the mushrooms have a bit of browning and softening going on and the onions are somewhat softened, toss in the corn and season to your taste. This is really all there is to the recipe.



I served this as a side to steak and potatoes but I'd easily whip up a bit of this to put over scrambled eggs or hash browns in the morning as well.

Summer Food: Basic Baked Beans

Yeah yeah, I know-you could pick up a few cans of this stuff for nothing at the store and save yourself the hassle....but do you really think that hunk of blubber in the can really passes for pork? Wouldn't you rather know what really goes into this summertime classic?--you know, just in case the zombie apocalypse makes getting to the store difficult.

Besides that, I know I have mommy readers who are WIC mommies and now have a stockpile of monthly bean rations in the pantry with no idea what to do with them next. Seriously, how much bean salad and soup can you really eat?

beans-soaked, rinsed,
simmered and drained
They lose some of their
color at this point.

This is a one-bag recipe, using one pound of dried small red beans (yes, that's what they are called).  You can also use pinto beans but I prefer the red beans (not kidneys).



This will give you enough for at least 10 servings-in other words, enough to take to the next family picnic or Sunday school cookout without breaking the bank....and somebody always brings a pot of beans so why can't it be you this time?



Soak your bag of red beans over night in cool water in a large bowl. 8 hours later or in the morning, drain off that water and rinse off the beans in fresh cool water.  Place the beans in a large pot and cover with more cool water and bring to a boil. Lower the heat once the water boils so the beans can simmer until they are soft enough to smoosh (* technical term). Drain off the water at this point.



Now, you can cook your beans in the oven or in a crock pot at this point. I like the crock pot because then I really don't have to think about them and it's nigh on impossible to burn them but if your party is in a couple of hours and you need to get this show on the road, then pick out a large casserole dish with a lid and preheat your oven to 350.



You will need the following staples to make some classic baked beans (*note: all measurements are approximate since it's based on preference)

1 medium onion, chopped fine
1 1/2 cups  brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
ketchup
yellow mustard (less of this than of the ketchup-just a decent squirt)
salt and pepper
I also like a dash of bbq sauce in mine as well.

You can also add in a package of sausages, chopped hotdogs, mini weenies or crumbled bacon. The last time I made this, I added a package of stadium brats and we had a full meal in one pot.




In the crock pot, put on high for 3-4 hours. In the oven, one or two, stirring either occasionally. Taste the beans to see if the flavors need to be adjusted. For instance, I felt mine needed closer to 2 cups of brown sugar in the end and less mustard.

just beginning to cook

And now you know a classic summer dish and a great way to get your kids to eat beans...go ahead-teach them "the song."