PEAR POMEGRANATE POPSICLES

As summer approaches I really get into popsicle making.  I find this is a great way to get C monster to eat more fruit.  The flavour of the week for popsicle is pear pomegranate.

It's very easy just mix in with emersion blender or regular blender 1/2 cup pure no sugar added pomegranate juice with 2 cups packed no sugar added canned pears.

I make my own canned pears to avoid the BPA in the can liners; if you do not want to use store bought pears just measure out about 4 cup pears and cook them until soft. You can boil them in a little pear juice or water. You can bake them in the oven. Use your imagination.

Once the mixture is complete just pour them into your favourite popsicle mould freeze overnight and enjoy!

Home-Made Yogurt

One of the thing I've been doing in the Excalibur dehydrator is home-made yogurt. It's pretty simple, tasty (when I don't make a mistake), easy to make with limited ingredients, and I know what's in it.

I start with a pot and 1L of milk (usually one bag of whole milk), and most of the time I add some milk powder (1/4 cup or more, optional), which results in firmer yogurt. Whisk thoroughly, then heat:


Heat that up to 180ºF and either let it start cooling immediately or hold it at that temperature for a little while, say twenty minutes. Some recipes seem to feel this helps convert the milk proteins to make them suitable for yogurt, although I don't find it makes a huge difference.

Let it cool down to 115ºF. Take a ladle-full out, mix in one of these:

• a package of yogurt bacterial culture


• a few tablespoons of commercial yogurt with active culture


• a few tablespoons of your previous batch of homemade yogurt

I usually start with the bacterial culture, do three or four batches in a row using one batch of yogurt to start the next, and then go back to the commercial culture. Some recipes recommend that you avoid using your own culture too many times in a row in case you end up accidentally culturing something else along the way, something that you don't want to be eating in quantity. I'm not convinced that's totally necessary, but commercial cultures aren't terribly expensive, so I don't mind going this route.

Whisk the mixture thoroughly, then return it to the pot and whisk the mixture into the milk thoroughly, then distribute into jars:


This is a reasonable time to add a little sugar, honey, maple, vanilla, if you like. Don't go overboard, you can always add more sweetener later if you like. Put the jars in the dehydrator at 115ºF for four hours to let the culture do its work:


Check on them, if they don't seem firm enough, or you decide you want a very tangy yogurt, you can let it sit another couple of hours in the dehydrator. It won't be at its firmest yet, and there may be some whey at the top. That's ok:


Cap and chill the cans in the fridge, for a while, perhaps overnight. It'll firm up further, as well as cool down:


At this point it's at it's firmest, and is "set" yogurt. If you want to mix in some additional sweetener here you can. If there's whey, you can pour it off or stir it in. If you mix it at this stage it becomes "stirred" yogurt, which many people prefer:


If you want, you can put your yogurt in a cheesecloth or coffee filter overnight to drain some of the whey out, at which point it will become Greek-style yogurt.

Finally, eat, or feed to your children:

Cheese Crisps

I was in a crazy baking mood today: I made muffins, bread, cookies and crackers.  Well everything turned out great but the crackers were fantastic - So I just had to share the recipe with you...

Cheese Crisps

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, at room temperature 

2 cup cheese, sharp cheddar or swiss 

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 tsp salt

3 tbsp hemp seeds

2 tbsp ground flax meal

Directions

Cream together butter and cheese. Add remainder ingredients and mix well. Form into 1 inch balls. Place on cookie sheet and flatten with a fork.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 12 to 15 minutes, or until pale gold around edges.

For a change add herbs such as rosemary or sage.  Or minced vegetables.
Enjoy.

C opens a baby gate

I Can do it

C Monster learned how to open one of the baby gates yesterday - in our defense we installed one part in the wrong spot now that it is fixed I think he can't open it anymore; but I will have to keep a close eye in him.  It's the gate at the top of the basement stairs.

C Monster has also fully mastered opening the screen doors - they must be kept locked at all times now.  I try to make sure he does not see me use the little lock leaver.

Art

Yesterday C Monster painted in the afternoon.  Now that the hot weather is here it's time to switch our days out in the morning and in in the afternoons.  The paint used was home made I really like this recepie.  We made it on May 8th and store it in the fridge - so far it's still good. 

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups water

1 cup white flour

1/4 cup white sugar

1 1/2 tbsp salt

food colouring

Directions

Combine first 4 ingredients in a sauce pan - stir very  very well

cook on medium heat for approximately 7 mins - constantly stirring

pour in little jars and add food coloring to tint

store in refrigerator

Oh so Hot

Summer is here so it seems - I finally caved in today and turned on the AC. Yesterday the cats were cooping in various ways some enjoying the hot sun and others trying to find the coolest spot - the sink.

Looking Forward To

Friday - and friends coming to the house

Bread Machine Question

I was recently asked by a reader: "I just got a bread machine and would love to know what your favorite recipes are"

I only have a few recipes that made it to my recipe box for bread.  I had previously shared one on the blog for Cranberry Raisin Loaf.  Another one that I am particularly fond of is my Harvest Bread; it's a simple whole wheat bread that also taste very yummy.

Harvest Bread

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups milk

2 large eggs 

3 tbsp butter

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/3 cup whole wheat flour

2/3 cup wheat germ

1/4 cup brown sugar, or sucanat or panella 

1 tsp kosher salt

1 1/4 tsp bread machine yeast

Directions:
select 2 pound loaf size
whole wheat cycle
place all ingredients in order listed in bread machine

Another favorite bread machine recipe is my Everyday Pizza Dough.

Everyday Pizza Dough

 

Ingrediants

  1 1/3 cups Water
  1 tsp Honey
  2 tsp Kosher Salt
  2 tbsp olive oil
  2 cups whole wheat flour
  2 cups all-purpose flour
  1 tbsp flax seeds
  1 tbsp hemp seeds,  
  1 tsp teff seeds
  1 tsp amaranth seeds
  1 tbsp wheat germ
  2 1/4 tsp bread machine yeast

Direction

Place all ingredients in order listed in bread pan fitted with kneading paddle. Select your machines dough setting and press start. When cycle is finish divide dough in 2 and make your favorite pizza.

We had a few cookbooks over the years and the only one we kept is "Best Bread Machine Recipes" by Better Homes and Gardens.  

 

When it comes to making bread these are some rules I found that almost always work when trying to muck arround with a recipe.

 

• you can always switch out one sugar for another; as long as you keep the same quantity.  For exempple if a recipe calls for a TBSP of sugar you can use a TBSP of honey or sucanate or panella or anything other sugar.
• you can almost always subsitite up to half of the white flour for whole wheat, spelt, kamut or rye flour. Before doing this make sure their is not alread some of these flours in the bread if so you should never have more then 1/2 of the total flour being other then white - unless you add gluten flour.
• you can add up to 1 cup of nuts and seeds (that do not absorbe liquide) to a 2 pound loaf 
• you can add up to 1/4 cup off seeds that absorbe liquide to a 2 pound loaf

Now the rules above will not always work sometimes you will screw up.  I recommend if you are going to change a recipe after the machine has been going for a bit check on your bread you should be able to tell if it's too dry or wet.

How to make glue...

How To Make Glue

When I was a kid we pretty much never bought glue my mom or memere would make it for us,  they used to just mix a bit of water with flour and that was it.  I wanted to find a recipe that I could make ahead of time and store.

Today I whiped up a batch; here is the recipe.

1/2 cup white flour
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 cup water


Mix all the ingredients until smooth with a whisk; then heat on low siring until desired consistency is reached.  Pour into an airtight container. 

This will make white glue that will dry transparent.  For the little ones that have a hard time understanding where the glue is you can add a few tablespoons of sparkles or some food coloring to make a more fun version of glue.  The sparkles or color help the little ones understand where the glue is on the page; also when they decide to use the glue as paint all is not lost you still have a work of art.

I will let you know if it goes bad before we go threw all of it...

Now That we Have Glue

C Monster spent parts of the day working on a mobile.  I collect various pieces from the recycling and we painted them green this morning.  Using the last bits of our store bought paint - so I guess I will be trying some paint recipes soon.  After they were dried C Monster and Grandma used the sparkly glue to attaches various ornamentation.  Once everything is dry we will turn it into a mobile for his room.

Looking Forward To

To my parents arriving - I think I said this before but I am really looking forward to it.

Peanut Butter 4 All - Part 2

About a week ago I went on a Nut Butter kick and a new household favorite waffle recipe came out of it.

I love making waffles I find they are easier to make then pancakes and you can freeze the extras and just pop them in the toaster like a Eggo to heat them.  Best of all C Monster will eat pretty much no matter what I hide in them.  Such a sneaky mom I am.

The original recipe was from Global Gourmet and was called Peanut Butter Waffles. As always I changed it up a bit here is the recipe I came up with:

Almond Butter Waffles


Ingredients:
 1 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
 2 tbsp. baking powder
 1 tbsp. panella or brown sugar
 1/4 tsp. salt
 2 large eggs
 4 tablespoons canola oil
 2/3 cup almond butter
 1-3/4 cups milk
 2 banana, diced
 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

Directions:
1. Heat the waffle iron according to manufacturer's instructions. In a large bowl, combine the flours, baking powder, sugar, and salt.
2. In a separate bowl, using a whisk or with an electric mixer on low speed, beat the eggs, oil, almond butter, and milk until foamy, about 1 minute. Pour the peanut butter-milk mixture into the dry ingredients, stirring just until moistened and smooth. Fold in the diced banana.
3. cook as per your waffle iron's directions
4. Enjoy with real maple syrup

Looking Forward Too

Crossing all the items off my to do list... (it's getting long :-)

Peanut Butter 4 All

Over the last few weeks I tried a bunch of new recepies but the 2 that stand out the most are Peanut Butter Waffles and Peanut Butter Cupcakes.

Peanut Butter Cupcakes

I made these for the moms group that I hosted last Friday - they were a hit with both moms, kids and dads. These are not crazy healthy but the nut butter, flax seeds and whole wheat flour put them a notch above your average cupcake.  I topped them with a Peanut Butter Icing and a banana chip.

Peanut Butter Cupcakes

Ingredients:
 3/4 cup cow or soy milk
 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
 1/3 cup canola oil
 2/3 cup + 2 tbsp panela (or sugar)
 2 tsp ground flax
 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
 1 tsp baking powder
 1/2 tsp baking soda
 1/4 tsp salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F, line muffin pan with papers or spray pan
Mix milk with vinegar let sit for a few minutes
combine all ingredients very well
bake for 23 to 26 minutes
frost with Peanut Butter Frosting and top with a banana chip
for something a little different add some chocolate chips or banana to the batter.

Peanut Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:
 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp butter , at room temperature  

 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
 1 1/4  cup icing sugar
 1 to 2 tbsp milk

Directions:
With electric beater mix all ingredients except milk, add milk little by little until frosting is smooth and creamy.

I decided to ice the cupcakes in a basket weave - this is simpler then one might think.  All you need is a pipping bag and a flat icing tip of any kind.  I used one with little ridges.  Here is a visual step by step.

Stay tuned for part 2 - and the waffle recipe....

Looking Forward To

Eating food from my garden - yum

A little late but here is Friday...

Peanut Butter is it good or bad?

At our last visit with our homeopath she suggested to curb back the amount of peanut butter C Monster consumes because it is linked to cancer. Weather it is my homeopath or my doctor that says to do something we always question and try to do our own research.

Their is a fungus that grows on peanuts that has been linked to cancer. Not all peanuts have this fungus it seems to be that this fungus thrives in humid climate.

Some links with good information:
http://www.bodybuildingweb.net/blog/peanut-butter-causes-cancer/
http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/id/QAA115491
http://www.scienceinafrica.co.za/2001/august/peanut.htm
http://www.ehso.com/ehshome/aflatoxin.php

All that being said C Monster loves peanut butter and is very picky so anything that is somewhat healthy that he is willing to eat he gets; so I decided I needed more information on the peanut butter we buy for him so I sent the company (MaraNatha) we get out Peanut butter from this letter:

"Hello,

As a concerned mother of a 2 year old that loves your peanut butter I wanted to receive a bit more information about the product.

Could you please inform me as to were the peanuts used to make your butter are grown?

Thank you"

Once I get an answer back from them I will update you on the peanut butter situation; as it stands for now C Monster will keep eating peanut butter, until I have a bit more information to make a fully informed choice as to what to do.

Blender

Our Kitchen Aid Blender died today; it's the second time in 4 years since we have had this blender that the exact same part dies...

Trying to figure out if we are going to fix it again or buy a new one?

Chips Chips Chips

I went on a chip kick today, I think it's because grandmama was visiting so I had free hands to do as I pleased; since she was entertaining the C Monster.

I made Kale Chips for the second time; other then the fact that I over salted them they were great. The first time we made well we threw them out... I used a recipe found via tastespotting for a guide - by Savour Fare I did not change much up:

Kale Chips

1 bunch kale
1 tablespoon oilve oil
1 1/2 teaspoon red wine vinegar
sea salt to taste

Preheat oven to 350.

Wash and dry the kale; remove the central vein and slice the kale leaf in half length-wise.

In a large bowl, combine oil, vinegar and salt. Toss the kale the in the mixture until well coated then spread leafs on baking sheets, lined with parchment paper.

Bake until crisp, 10 to 15 minutes. Check at 10 minutes then almost every minute after mine where ready in 13 minutes, the first time we made these they burnt and were gross.

After finishing the Kale Chips I wanted to try some sweet potato chips. I used the cooking guidelines for the beet chips I made a few days back, but other then that I made it up as I was going along:

Sweet potato chips

2 large sweet potatoes cut in thin slices lengthwise using a mandolin
olive oil
kosher salt

Preheat oven to 250. Spread potatoes slices on cookie sheets lined with parchement paper. Bake for 60 to 80 minutes. Check them at 60 minutes then every 5 minutes after that until they are crisp - once again you do not want to burn them.

Place chips in a large bowl drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt - toss then serve.

A note to ones that are new making chips, all baked vegetable chips tend to go soft again after a day or so; if you do not finish them all the same day you made them - just toss in the oven at 250 for a few minutes before you eat them and they should crisp up again.

Looking Forward To

Going to the maple syrup farm tomorrow...

Lots of Creative Cooking and a bit of Gardening

Paper Maché Part I

This morning C Monster and I had some fun ripping up a bunch of paper ( the paper is one month worth of junk mail - I think it is sad that it only took one month to accumulate this much unwanted mail). Sometime in the next few days we will use these strips of paper to make some paper maché car garages and tunnels for C Monster to play with.

Cassava Peanut Butter Cookies

So we have had a box of Cassava Crackers for over a year now and wont eat them because well we don't like them. I decided to get creative and try to make something out of them - I remembered making crumb cookies almost a year ago when we had enough bread crumbs to leave a trail from here to Florida. ( I am in Canada) I figured I could alter it some and make cookies with the Cassava Crackers - and guess what it worked. These are not my favorite PB cookies (well my favorite recipie for PB cookies comes from a pastry chef so what do you expect) but I would give them a strong 3.5 out of 5 stars and C Monster seems to love them.

The recipe used for inspiration was Bread Crumb Cookie by Thrifty Fun. Below is the new ingredient list the basic direction to make the cookies stayed the same.

• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
  
• 1/4 cup unbleached flour
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/3 cup raw cocoa nibs
  
• 1 1/4 cups panela (or brown sugar)
  
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 2/3 cup canola oil
  
• 2 cups cassava cracker crumbs (place crackers in food processor)
• 2/3 cups peanut butter
• 1/3 cup quick cook oats

Beets; Beets; Beets

In our food box this week we had some beets; while reading TasteSpotting I stumbled on a beet chip recipe that I wanted to try. C Monster refuses to eat beets - I though maybe if they were a little more fun he might try them. I was right he gobble a handful up before bedtime.

The recipe calls for simple syrup and I also had a jar of this left over from making candied grapefruit peels - so it was perfect.

After I was done all the beets I collected the remaining simple syrup now turned red from the beets and made some lemonade with it. (Some very pink lemonade).

1 1/2 cup simple syrup - or to taste
1 cup lemon juice
3 to 4 cups cold water (to dilute)

Mix all ingredients in a large pitcher; serve chilled.



Garden Prep

This week has been so nice with everyday above 15. Today was no exception so C Monster and I went out back in the afternoon for a few hours he played and I did some work. Then he helped me with some work on prepping the yard for a vegetable garden. This year we are expanding with an additional row along our neighbors fence here we will plant soy beans and lettuce.

I am so excited my soy bean seeds arrived today. We ordered them from West Coast Seeds; soy bean seeds seem to be hard to find despite the fact that is started from seedling they will grow wonderfully in Canada (at least that is what I am told) - On the agenda for tomorrow with C Monster is planting the seeds in seedling pots. It's the first time I ordered anything from West Coast Seeds; I am sure they are fine but will let you know in a few weeks when they sprout.

Looking Forward To

To Saturday morning and working on my LLLC Leader application.

Seedlings, Supper and Terrible Twos

Seedlings

This afternoon C Monster and I planted most of our seedlings for the vegetable garden. I say most because I am recycling plastic containers, toilet paper rolls and other various containers for planters - and well ran out of planters. I bought a bag of potting soil and dragged it into the kitchen were we worked together at filing all the containers - C Monster quite enjoyed playing with dirt in the house. I did the actual seed planting because C Monster was way to excited and I am pretty sure if I would have let him handle the seeds they would of all ended up on the ground.

We planted chard, kale, onions, broccoli, cauliflower and beans. The seedlings are going to be placed on the window box in our master bedroom; until they sprout I am going to keep them in plastic bags - this causes a greenhouse effect.

Supper

Tonight for supper I think I outdid myself we had homemade soda bread; lemonade and soup. The soda bread was crazy good. As always I followed a recipe but modified the ingredients - Irish Soda Bread with Dates by Phoebe Bites.

All-purpose flour, 2 cups, plus 2 tablespoons
Whole Wheat Bread Flour, 2 cups
Granulated sugar, 1/4 cup
Baking soda, 1 teaspoon
Salt, 1 1/2 teaspoons
Unsalted butter, 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick), cold, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
Whole milk, 1 3/4 cup
Apple Cider Vinegar, 1 teaspoon
Egg, 1 extra-large
Zest of 3 Blood oranges
Cranberries dried, 1 cup
Flax seeds, 1/4 cup
Pumpkin Seeds, 1/2 cup

Terrible Twos

I try really hard to only use positive discipline - try not to say no. Today well I was not that good at it; I caught myself over and over saying no out of frustration as C Monster was driving me crazy with his shenanigans.

1. Tackles E Monster not once not twice but 5 times during their play date
2. Dumps his snack on the floor 2 seconds after I give it to him
3. Discovers if he shakes is sippy cup that contained smoothie it will splash all over the place
4. Spits at E Monster
   
5. Throws is edamame all over the kitchen
6. Throws one of the planters for my seedlings up in the air when it's full of dirt
7. Bit me
8. Pinched my nipple when I told him he could not nurse
   
9. Kicked me in the face while nursing (twice) - this is why I told him he could not nurse
10. Dumped his soup in his juice then asked for more juice
11. Raspberry style spit in my face

Despite all of those crazy annoying things C Monster did today he also:

1. Kissed me good morning
   
2. Helped me pot my seedlings
3. Ran around the house wearing a crown for most of the day
4. Helped clean up the potting mess
5. Let E Monster play with his favorite toy all morning
6. Said mine and mmm to the bread I baked
7. Sat on the potty
8. Is asking for help when needing instead of screaming in frustration
9. Kinda let me brush his teeth (only after a fight)
10. Kissed E Monster all better every time he tackled her without me asking him to
    
11. Gave me a great big hug ans kiss goodnight
    

Geoff hurry up and finish the book on discipline you are reading....

Breakfast /No Nap / Exercise / Smells Like...

Breakfast

Geoff had been asking for scones the last few weeks - "so you know the good little wife I am " - I made scones this morning. It was the first time I tried this recipe and man was it a score; definitely a keeper; C Monster even ate a little bit of a scone - and he eats noting. I found the recipe on Epicurious - Cranberry-Orange Scones; as always I modified the ingredients as follow:

1 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 1/2 whole wheat pastry flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 tablespoon grated blood orange peel
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
3/4 cup dried cranberries
1 blood orange peeled, seeded, sectioned and diced
1 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

No Nap For You

The last past few weeks have been trying on us and C Monster at bedtime; he has been going down at around 9:30 - 10pm. Because he is going down so late he is also waking up extra late around 8 - 9 am just encouraging the vicious cycle. So we decided to take advantage of the great weather to drag him outside just after lunch and keep him fully distracted and awake. That does mean it has to be with Geoff and not me because if I am around he will want to nurse and well as any nursing mother knows it will knock him out. So far so good as I write this it's almost 4pm and C Monster and Geoff have been out all afternoon in the plus 10 degree pre-spring day. All I have to say is wish us luck for tonight; because man does mama ever need her evenings with papa back.

Exercise

Well the time has come; breastfeeding alone is no longer a suitable exercise regime. Breastfeeding will burn anywhere between 200 to 600 calories a day depending on how often your child nurses. I think C Monster is starting to cut back on his milk consumption and well my waist band is noticing it. To counteract this; today while the boys were out I dug out the basement and found; cleaned and set up our exercise machine. We are pretty fortunate almost 5 years ago now my father in law got us a "gym quality" elliptical trainer; however it has been sitting in the basement gathering dust for over 3 years. Well I did 5 minutes on it today and burned 60 calories. I want to start off easy 5 minutes a day for a week then slowly bring it up to 20 minutes a day. Here is hoping for my pants sake that I stick with it.

Smells Like Home

As I am writting this the aroma in my home is magnificent - all day their have been maple baked beans simmering in the oven...

Moms Lunch / Cat Nap / 10 Years Ago

Moms Lunch

Every Friday a bunch of us get together for lunch and chaos. I don't know why but each time it's my time to host I swear everyone shows up (don't get me wrong I love having everyone over) - it's just we have one of the smallest houses - so well it get cramped. Everyone has a good time - that is all that matters.

I have to say I love Fridays; it's great for C Monster to have a group of friends to play with on a regular basis - I think it's doubly important because he is at home with and not at daycare; so without days like this he would not get tones of group interaction with other kids.

Thanks everyone for coming over we had a great time. - Total bodies in my house from 11am to 1pm was 20.

Recipes

What was on the menu for lunch?
Broccoli Soup ; Mango Pomegranate Guacamole and Carrot Muffins.

Did not change anything in the Soup or the Guacamole. For the Carrot Muffins I added 1/4 milk and used 1/2 and 1/2 white and whole wheat pastry flours.

I have to say I loved the guacamole; however if you go in thinking you are getting guac you will be disappointed - it's a fantastic amazing avocado dip. The sweet of the mango goes great with the fattiness of the avocado and the pomegranate bit are like little burst of joy in your mouth. I really enjoyed this one will definitely be an addition to my recipe collection.

The muffins are hands down the best carrot muffins I have made so far. I had been looking for a good recipe for a bit; well I found it.

Cat Nap

I could not stop myself my babies are so cute together.

10 Years Ago

Here is a rare glimpse into my past. It got out of the bag that when we originally moved to the neighborhood I looked nothing like I do today. So here is a small pictorial glance at who I was when I first met Geoff.






No I don't smoke anymore I quite probably 8 or 9 years ago. Yes that is PVC I am wearing - despite the fact that today the eco-mom in me wont bring anything in the house made of PVC. We all have past; mine is a bit colorful...

For those of you wondering when these shots were taken probably from 2000 to 2002, we moved in our current home in 2002 if memory serves me right.

tiger, cupcakes, tea and bye bye race track

TIGER

Every Thursday we go to Sports Ball, today was no different. I have to say the C Monster impresses me every time with his athletic skills. At the end of each class the coach gives each kid a sticker - C Monster got a sticker of Tiger. He can now say "Tiger" thanks to this and frequently made sure Tiger was still on his hand all day long. See this is were coach had put the sticker on his little hand. Around supper time Tiger fell off and we could not find him C Monster had a fit. Suprisingly to me all I had to do to calm him down is tell him "Tiger missed his family and had to return to the jungle" to witch he replied "Tiger bye bye Ricky" Ricky is his coach.

CUPCAKES

They are completed 30 vanilla cupcakes all cooling waiting to be iced tomorrow. I make this great recipe that does not call for eggs that way if C Monster wants to help I don't need to worry about him eating the batter - because well he always does. The recipe is an adaptation of the "Golden Vanilla Cupcakes" found in Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World.

1 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup canola oil
3/4 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

bake at 350 for 22 minutes

Make sure to tune in tomorrow I will try to post a picture of them all iced up and decorated - you don't want to miss it.

TEA

Tea is because well as I am typing this I am enjoying a fantastic tea from The Tea Emporium called Sencha Kiwi Garden.

BYE BYE RACE TRACK

About a week ago I made this super cool race track for C Monster on the living room floor using green painters tape and markers. I wanted to see if he would enjoy following roads with his little cars before investing in a play mat. Also well I just needed something to distract him one day. the reason why this is called BYE BYE RACE TRACK is that we pealed it off the floor today, I was scared if we left it there too long the tape would not come off properly.

Finger Paint

Most commercial brands of finger paint are expensive and who knows what goes in them. Instead as an alternative you can make some at home.

I tried this recipe today:

1/2 cup cornstarch
3 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 1/2 cups cold water
food coloring

Directions

In a medium pan, mix all the ingredients together to make the finger paint. Cook over low heat 10 to 15 minutes. Keep stirring the finger paint mixture until it is smooth and thick. After the finger paint has thickened take the pan off the stove and let the mixture cool.

After cooling, divide the finger paint into storage containers depending on how many colors you would like. Add a few drops of food coloring to each container. Seal and shake to mix in color. Cover tightly when storing.

Normally I would caution against using food coloring in a recipe as many food dyes are controversial when it come to your health; however I think making your own paint and knowing what goes into it outweighs this concern.

HAVE FUN PAINTING - I KNOW WE WILL BE

Whats for supper

Summery Bean and Zucchini Salad

½ pound fresh green beans

1 zucchini

¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil

½ cup fresh mint leaves*

¼ cup white wine vinegar

½ tsp salt

1 clove garlic

¼ tsp ground black pepper

1 cup toasted walnuts*

1 cup chopped red onion

1 cup feta cheese* (crumbled)

Wash beans and trim ends then cut into thirds. Parboil by dropping into salted boiling water for 2 - 5 minutes. Drain and plunge into ice water for 5 minutes, then drain well and chill. Meanwhile, cut zucchini into ¼” semi-circles, fry or grill until crisp tender. Allow to cool. In food processor, combine oil, mint leaves, vinegar, salt, garlic and pepper and process 20 seconds then set aside.

Place beans and zucchini in a serving bowl and top with toasted walnuts, red onion and feta. Pour dressing over salad and toss. Best if made 2 hours ahead of time or the day before to develop flavors.

*Don’t have mint, walnuts or feta? Any herb, nut and cheese combination would work – Try: pine nuts, basil and parmesan; or almonds, parsley and a shaved hard cheese.

Recipe from Front Door Organics

Cheddar Crackers

Christophe has been eating cheddar crackers lately; like 'goldfish', but duck-shaped, and organic. I thought I'd do a quick search and see if I could find a good recipe for cheese crackers that we could make. A little digging turned up 'Cheddar Goldfishbear Crackers' on 52 Weeks of Baking.

I modified the recipe slightly for my own circumstances. I used 1/3rd whole wheat flour to increase the whole-grain side, and swapped out some of the cheddar for mozarella and asiago, as Christophe doesn't always like cheddar cheese. I also used organic ingredients except for the pepper and salt.

I did briefly try to put these through the pasta machine, but the dough was too moist and sticky, so I rolled it by hand. In so doing, I ended up with some different thicknesses, and discovered that the thinner ones came out a lot like goldfish crackers, where the thicker ones puffed up a little and became like crispy cheese puff crackers, which I also liked.

Ingredients

• 1 cup flour; I used:


• 1/3 cup stone ground organic hard wheat wholegrain flour
• 2/3 cups unbleached organic all-purpose flour


• 1/4 cup cold salted organic butter, cubed
  
• 8 oz cheese (I used a mix of organic cheeses: asiago, cheddar, mozzarella), grated or cubed
  
• 1/2 tsp salt
• fresh ground pepper
• 3-4 tsp water, ideally icy-cold
  

Instructions
The dough goes together as pie crust does:

1. Assemble the flour, butter, salt and cheese and seasoning in a food processor.
2. Pulse until the dough assembles crumbs, or coarse meal.
3. Add water one teaspoon at a time, or use an atomizer to distribute well. Pulse between each addition, and stop when the dough can be pressed together in a coherent ball.
4. Chill for at least twenty minutes (or up to a day), 'til the dough/butter stiffens somewhat. Prevent the dough from drying out by wrapping in plastic or a lightly damp cloth.
5. Before removing the dough from the refrigerator, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
   
6. Roll the dough thinly, about 1/8th inch for crackers, or 1/4" for something more like 'cheese puffs'.
7. Cut. Squares, fish, cookie cutter, pizza cutter, knife -- the possibilities are endless.
8. Lay cut crackers on a cookie sheet. The dough is fatty, so you shouldn't need to grease it, but feel free to grease it or use parchment paper. They shouldn't be touching, but they don't spread much, so the distance doesn't matter terribly.
9. Bake 15-20 minutes. Cool. Eat.
   

Tasty Tuesdays - Yorkshire Pudding

Yorkshire Puddings is a great way to pretend to show off your massively talented baking skills, because most people think they are extra hard to make but in reality these are some of the easiest bread product out there to make.

Yield: 12
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 35 minutes

Ingredients:
● 4 eggs
● 1 cup all-purpose flour
● 1 cup whole wheat flour
● 2 cups milk

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk until well blended. Whisk in the flour one cup at a time until frothy and well blended. Set aside.
3. Spray muffin pan with oil. Divide batter equally between the 12 muffin cups.
4. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven. Serve immediately.

Tasty Tuesdays - Oven baked potato wedges

We had more bread crumbs that I knew what to do with, so I searched for easy recipes that would use them up. This is a variation of a recipe I found on allRecipes.com.
The recipe was a hit so it is now part of my YummySoup recipe book.

Ingredients:

● 4 tbsp olive oil
● 5 large russet potatoes, peeled and cut into wedges
● 1 cup seasoned bread crumbs

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray baking sheet with oil.

2. Toss potato wedges in oil, and roll in bread crumbs. Place wedges on prepared baking sheet.

3. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and turn wedges; cook for 10 to 15 minutes, or until tender.

Tasty Tuesdays - Mustard Oil Dressing

As most of you know we make all our own food at the Wiseman house; that means no store bought dressings my Mustard Oil Dressing is an easy tasty dressing that anyone can quickly whip up. The mustard serves as an emulsifier so that the oil and vinegar do not separate.

Ingredients:

● 1 1/2 tbsp dijon mustard
● 3/4 cup olive oil
● 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
● 1/2 tsp salt
● 1 tsp black pepper
● 1 pinch garlic powder
● 1 pinch onion powder


Directions:

In a jar with a lid, combine all ingredients. Cover and shake until
thoroughly combined. Chill until ready to serve.