Peas and Carrots (and blueberries, and pizza)

Although this meal, Pastina with Peas and Carrots, may not be exactly figure friendly, it is certainly Sophie friendly.  And we have always really liked it.  Anything with mascarpone cheese is something I have a hard time resisting.

My camera has been through it.  So just click on the link to see what it's supposed to look like.  I had to show the cheese...mmm! Now, with the leftover mascarpone cheese, spread it on a croissant or toast and sprinkle a little powdered sugar on it for breakfast...good gravy!  It will make you want to hop on a plane to Italy!

When I was teaching, I would watch the Food Network every Christmas break and summer--the t.v. would at least be tuned into it all day whether I was watching or not.  Giada is one of my favorites because I love Italian (and any Mediterranean food in general).  So this year since I've stayed at home I've been able to catch her show (a little) more often.  This was a meal she made for some kids, but it looked really good to me, so Daniel and I have had it many times.  And now Sophie gets to enjoy it!

Pastina with Peas and Carrots 

Pizza (homemade dough with fresh mozzarella and tomato sauce)

 Blueberries at the pool 

Sophie is going to be an eater.  Or at least it looks that way.  :)  

Bachelorette weekend, Salad and Friends

I said I would blog about the meals in Savannah, so here they are.  Well, this is just one meal--the meal that my brother-in-law Damon created for us.  It was A-MA-ZING!  He's so talented!  The "tablescape" to use a Sandra Lee (not a fan) term was all Sebrell, my sister.  She's also crazy talented, which I guess is why she's so successful at her event planning business.  They live on the Moon River on the Isle of Hope in Savannah and have the perfect yard for entertaining by the marsh.

The meal began with fried green tomatoes on a bed of mixed greens with a remoulade.

Next was the main course: filet mignon, shrimp and grits with green beans (I think the beans were cooked in a brown butter).  Melt-in-your-mouth-good.  That's all I can say.  Well, I guess I can say, GOOD GRAVY!

Our dessert was a cupcake by Gigi's Cupcakes in Savannah while we sat in the hot tub after dinner.  Our flavors were chocolate, margarita, wedding cake and strawberry.  I had the wedding cake, which was really a white chocolate and it was divine!

So that's Savannah.  Now for salad.  This was our dinner tonight.  I wasn't really thinking when I planned this I guess because I only planned a salad.  So I cut up some strawberries to go along with it and I added some veggies from our farm bag and it was very good and filling.

The salad is from Down by the Water, which is the Junior League of Columbia's cookbook.  I make this salad all of the time.  The dressing is so yummy.  Tonight I only made 1/4 of the dressing and I did add a few other things to the salad.  The recipe is at the bottom.


In closing (and I'm doing an "in closing" because my mom said she feels like I end my blogs on a cliff) I wanted to show a sweet picture of Sophie.  I keep trying to get a picture of her standing alone, which she has done, but I can never get to the camera before she plops back down again.  I almost had it here, but she was on her way down by the time I got it.  Her expression is so funny.

I went running tonight with my friend Kelly.  We were talking about perspective and how important it is to get a reality check on our own perspective sometimes.  Whether it's realizing how very blessed you are (or as Daniel and I are...just look at this sweetness trying to stand alone) or being able to tell your story and have it not hurt anymore; perspective is huge.  God's perspective is everything.  We can't see it all of the time of course, but if only we could.  One day we will.   I love having friends to talk to and to help me think about things in a new perspective.  I also love my sweet husband and my sweet baby more than anything on this earth!

Sweet and Sour Dressing
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce or to taste
salt and pepper to taste


Salad
1 package ramen noodles (discard spice packet)
1 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup butter (I only use a couple of tablespoons)
1 bunch broccoli, coarsely chopped
1 head romaine lettuce, torn into bite size pieces
4 green onions, chopped

Sukiyaki Stir-fry

We actually ate dinner by 6:15 tonight!  Daniel got home at 6:00 and I had supper ready.  That doesn't happen too often!  Right now I'm listening to Daniel sing to Sophie in the bathtub.  So sweet!  Bath time is her favorite time of day.      

We got bok choy in our vegetable share bag last week, so I'm finally using it (and the spring onions).  We love this meal and have it every so often.  It tasted extra yummy thanks to the organic veggies I think.   Sophie had a little brown rice, banana, green beans, peas and yogurt for supper.  Her new loves for any meal are cheesy scrambled eggs, cherries, strawberries, frozen peas, bagels, bananas and cheese toast.  

 Sukiyaki Stir-fry

Two Meals

I really have more than two meals to blog, but I've been out of town and just all over the place and you know how that goes.  So this first meal was from last Thursday.  I would definitely call this the Hughes Signature Meal.  Sweet Potato Black Bean Burritos from Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites.  We had this first with Robert and Betsy down at the lake and I immediately went out and bought the cookbook.  The recipes in this cookbook are not low-fat as in using low-fat products (mayo, salad dressing, etc).  No, these recipes are just naturally low-fat and really flavorful.

Daniel calls this a "Power Meal."  Ever since he had it the Wednesday before he ran his first marathon, (The Eugene Oregon Marathon and he ran it really fast!) he is convinced that this recipe will give you any and all the strength you need for whatever you are going to do tomorrow or the next day or the next day.  It's very yummy and very healthy!

Ok, I spent the weekend in Savannah for my younger sister Mary Glenn's bachelorette party.  We all stayed at my older sister Sebrell's house on the Moon River and Friday night we had the most delicious dinner that my brother-in-law cooked.  He's fantastic and I did take pictures, but not with my camera.  I'll post when I get them.  It was such a great weekend--lots of good food, lazy day on the beach, great company!

Now for the next meal.  This was tonight's.  Eggplant Steak Lasagna Stacks  This came from my Rachael Ray Yum-O Family Cookbook.  I bought this cookbook because last year in my classroom we would have "Cooking School" on Fridays and we used a lot of the recipes from here.  They are very kid-friendly (at least to make...I probably wouldn't have eaten eggplant for anything when I was a child).

 

Spinach-Cheese (and sausage) Bake, fruit, All-Bran muffins

Ok, I realize that this is probably within the "Breakfast for Dinner" category, but I didn't really think it through very well when I planned it (which was a while back because I was taking this meal to someone tonight, so I made extra for us to have too).  BUT. This meal has ALL 5 food groups.

This recipe is from Cooking Light and so it doesn't call for sausage.  I only just recently started adding the sausage, which probably makes it not so "light" anymore.  

Spinach-Cheese Bake recipe

All Bran Muffins:
2 cups All Bran
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup oil or applesauce
1 egg
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
Combine the milk and All Bran in a bowl and let sit for 5 minutes until cereal become soft.  Combine flour, baking soda, salt and sugar in a bowl.  Add egg and oil to cereal and mix well.  Stir in flour mixture.  You can add fruit.
Bake 350 for 20-25 minutes.

Pancakes!

Sunday night is waffles/pancakes night at our house.  Tonight it was blueberry pancakes.  The only time we don't do it is if we go to Stax or Daniel's parents' house for lunch after church.  Then we will just have cereal or something.  But usually it's pancakes or waffles.

This recipe was my grandfather's (Thomas Calvin Everett, Jr. 1905-1990) creation.  We always had them when we went to visit them in Darlington and we usually had them on Sunday mornings at home in Florence.  I do remember a few Sunday nights enjoying a hot waffle while Mary Glenn and I watched The Magical World of Disney and my parents and Baba watched Murder, She Wrote.  Sometimes we watched Murder, She Wrote too.  Jessica Fletcher.  Very talented crime solver.

Here is the recipe and below are variations:

2 cups self-rising flour
4 eggs
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup oil
You need 3 bowls--one for the flour, one for the yolk mixture and one for the egg whites.
Separate eggs.  Beat yolks and add milk and oil.  Whip egg whites until the form soft peaks.  Add yolk mixture to flour and then fold in egg whites.  You can use this same recipe for both pancakes and waffles (regular or Belgian).  Makes 6-8 Belgian sized waffles.

Variations I've done (add these to the batter):
--Add fruit (blueberries, bananas, strawberries)
--Make healthy by substituting applesauce for oil (it turns out fine) and adding cinnamon
--Add chocolate chips
--Add bacon
--Add chocolate chips AND bacon and top with warm maple syrup
--Make savory by adding sauteed veggies (onions, peppers, spinach, cheese, squash, zucchini) and top with salsa and sour cream.
--add ricotta and lemon zest

When Daniel and I make this, I do 3/4 of the recipe rather than half because (and people who have seen me eat waffles can attest to this) I eat at least two Belgian-sized waffles or 6 good-sized pancakes.  They are like the "Hot Doughnuts Now" for me and I can just inhale them!

Out To Eat.

Well, Thursday night we used our Living Social Deal and ate at Brioso.  The excellent fresh pasta makes up for the not-so-superb customer service there.  I had the Zucca, which is butternut squash ravioli with a creamy, tomato-mascarpone sauce.  There is a hint of sweetness from the squash and it's so smooth.  Daniel had linguini with Zucchini e Gamberi sauce, which is shrimp, zucchini and roma tomatoes in a white wine sauce.  He said it was very good too--I didn't taste his.

Last night we celebrated Daniel's birthday with a night out downtown.  We ate at Nantucket.  Um, yum!   Daniel had a 7 oz. filet with whipped potatoes.  I had company crab cakes with creamed corn risotto and wilted spinach.  Bananas Foster cheesecake and Creme Brulee for dessert.  And then stayed at the Westin...ahh.

Downtown was so crowded last night and this morning with Artisphere and the Saturday Market going on.  Some people hate that, but I LOVE it!  It wasn't like can't-move-crowded.  Just lots of people loving our artsy and fun downtown.  This morning we saw a painting by Jeannie Maddox  that to look at here just looks like a photograph, but it was an oil painting that was HUGE (48"x84") and so refreshing looking and we loved it and it was $28,000.  So we just admired it.  All of her pieces made me want to go swimming.  This one is called Phil.

  

33!

First of all, I have to throw in a little cuteness.

This was Sophie while I made dinner tonight.  She makes her way around the kitchen while I cook if I have to get started before Daniel gets home.  And speaking of Daniel...notice the number!  Daniel turned 33 today!  We aren't celebrating for real until the weekend, so this was an ordinary meal.  The dessert wasn't ordinary though, because you just can't have a completely ordinary meal on your birthday.

Tonight we had Corn Fritters with Lime Aioli, Minty Roasted Potatoes, and a green salad.

The first time I made corn fritters was when Daniel's brother David and his wife Rebecca were over for dinner.  I think I made up the recipe.  They. tasted. like. dirt.  They were so gross and everyone was like, "These are really good," as they choked them down.  Well, not anymore!  Now they are yummy little savory pancakes!  I love to make them really crispy on the outside by putting a little canola oil on the skillet before I drop them in.  I've never used the aioli before, but tonight I decided to since I'm blogging about it and all and it was NOT a great addition to the meal.

The potatoes are THE VERY BEST POTATOES YOU WILL EVER EAT.  That is no exaggeration.  I first made them on Christmas Eve and I have since made them every chance I can.  They are super easy and very flavorful.

I do a vegetable share with a friend and each week we split up a bag of vegetables that are delivered to us from a local farm.  This week we had all kinds of salad greens.  So this salad has arugula, spinach, swiss chard and black seeded head lettuce.  To that I added strawberries, blueberries and chopped almonds.  Fruit on salad is so yummy, but I have to credit my friend Kelly who suggested this salad minus the arugula.  The arugula wasn't great in it.  I usually just make it with spinach.  The dressing was just juice from one lemon, a little olive oil and agave nectar to sweeten it.

And now for dessert.  Since it was Daniel's birthday and I am NOT a baker, I picked up two pieces of cake from Brick Street Cafe.  Daniel chose the Sweet Potato Cake (left) and I chose the Patty Cake (right).  They are just two not-so-little pieces of heaven right here on our plates.  Yum!

Now, to go catch up on The Office that I missed last night while blogging.  (Daniel just asked me how long this blog post was going to be.  Hee hee!)

Here are the recipes for the fritters and potatoes:
  
Corn Fritters

8 new potatoes, scrubbed and patted dry
1/4 cup olive oil
Coarse (kosher) salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh mint leaves
1.  Preheat the oven to 350.
2.  Prick the potatoes with the tines of a fork and arrange them on a baking sheet.  Bake for 1 1/2 hours.
3.  Cut the potatoes into quarters and place them in a serving bowl.  While they are still hot, toss them with the oil, coarse salt, pepper, and garlic.
4.  Gently toss in the mint.  Serve hot or at room temperature.
Makes 4 portions

Yay for entering the blog world!

I really like reading blogs.  I don't "follow" many because I didn't realize you were supposed to until recently.  And until last night when I started designing this blog I didn't realize that people pay money, real money, to make their blogs look cute.  Well sorry people, this is a template design, a.k.a. free design.  I did pick colors and fonts.  

I was thinking last night about lunch at school for some reason.  I taught first grade for eight years and pretty much every day I felt really happy to make it to lunch.  I loved my job, but before lunch is the really intense teaching time and after lunch was usually a little lighter.  Also, lunch was that 5-10 minute window of adult talk during the day.  We ate in the cafeteria with our kids of course, but we had a "teacher table."  So in between taps on the shoulder to inform us that so-and-so was showing his food, we would inevitably talk about food.  The food we brought, the food we had last night, the food we're eating tonight, the fact that we're just in a rut with cooking, etc.  Sometimes we would exclaim like it was the best idea ever, "We need to do a recipe exchange!"  It never happened of course.  But I do think about what people have for dinner each night.  I wonder if I would like it or if they would like what I'm making.  I generally like what I make and so does my husband Daniel.  He says he likes it even when it's a disaster.  Sophie is our almost one year old daughter and she occasionally likes what I make.  Yogurt is still top on her list.

So that's where the idea for this blog came.  It won't be as long-winded as tonight (maybe...Daniel would say, "Yeah right!").  I'm just going to tell what we had for dinner tonight...the good, the bad, the healthy, the terribly unhealthy.  If I can, I'll post the recipes so if you see something you like, you can try it too!

So (drum roll...) this is the food we ate tonight: Classic Ragu Bolognese

Note: I have a Cool Pix camera (so basically that means everything will look mediocre).

Here's the recipe and how it looks in Bon Appetit

I have cooked just about everything in "The Italy Issue" of Bon Appetit.  I'll cook them all again probably and post them here because they were all amazing.  This was delicious!

I forgot to buy veal, so that's my only alteration of the recipe.  I did use fresh pasta, which I've done a lot recently and it truly makes all the difference.  I figure if you make one good pasta dish a week then you can spend $4 on pasta instead of $0.89.

For dessert (and I ALWAYS have dessert), we had chocolate chip cookies and ice cream.  I usually just have ice cream, but every now and then I get the urge to make cookies too.

I forgot to take a picture before I finished.  It was good.  The recipe for the cookies is from The New Basics Cookbook by Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins.  They are supposed to be really thin. (The cookies, not the authors.  Maybe they're thin too, I don't know.)

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
8 tablespoons (1stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
6 tablespoons light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels 
1.  Preheat oven to 375.  Lightly grease baking sheets.
2.  Stir the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a small bowl.
3.  Combine the butter, both sugars, and vanilla in a mixing bowl, and beat until light.  Beat in the egg.  Slowly add the flour mixture, beating until smooth.  Then stir in the chocolate morsels.
4.  Drop the batter by rounded dessert spoonfuls, 3 inches apart, onto the prepared baking sheets.  Bake 5 minutes.  Remove the baking sheets from the oven, rap them twice on the counter or stove top, and return them to the oven.  Bake until the cookies are dry on top and golden, about 4 minutes.  Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool.
2 dozen cookies

Well, that's it for Tuesday, May 10, 2011.  I can't believe I just missed most of the 3 hours of The Office on TBS to start a blog.