I'm Back!!

Whew!!! It's been a long, strange, exhausting past few months for me. Please excuse my blogging absence!

What's new with me? Well- here's a very abbreviated recap on all three fronts of my blog:

Angelbabies:
Same old thing here. Big. Huge.  Angelbabies. Someone just turned 5!!!!

AND she's now getting ready for Kindergarten!!! (I'm not ready, although I know in my heart she will be a rock star-the thought of her being anywhere besides with me or family for 6+ hours a day /5 days a week makes my heart ache a little).
I am so very grateful for my sweet little loves, and more than anything right now I am SO looking forward to the week+ that we"ll be spending at the beach pretty soon- I don't think I've ever looked forward to a vacation as much as this one!

Paint:
My blog has taken a backseat to school- and so has my art:( Thankfully I am in a Masters of Clinical Art Therapy program which involves creating art, so at least I have had the opportunity to be a little  productive in that sense:)  Here are my two latest pieces:

I am calling the collection my "alter pieces". I had this vision of one years ago (when I was first in my grad program and pregnant with Z ) and I was finally able to make the vision a reality.

I cut the wood myself!!! and they are mixed media (paint, collage, photography, graphite), narrative pieces that are hinged so they have an outside and an inside- my plan is for them to be wall mountable so viewers can open and close them.

The one on the right is based on me and D's journey together...

The inside is our current life- and my experience as a mother... (not quite done with this one yet)

I finished the other one recently for my sweet sister A who is moving far, far away....
this piece has a flower to represent the AMAZING growth she's about to experience on the outside...

and a scene from the top of of the road where we grew up on the inside so she'll always have a piece of home with her...

the scene is based off of this photograph of our street (my parents still live here now- this scene in particular is pretty close to heaven for me:)

Cookies:
I have actually baked the last 3 days in a row- (this is the first time in months!) but I have some AMAZING recipes to share with y'all in the upcoming weeks....PB cup banana bread, and THE BEST raspberry almond creamcheese coffee cake to name a couple....

but today I'd like to share a What's For Dinner post with you because I have been DREAMING about these open faced sandwiches since I laid eyes on the spread in the latest House Beautiful (YES- great design, AND pretty darn good recipes)!

Check these out!!
What you'll need: ricotta cheese 9about 1 cup for 4 slices of bread) , lemon zest (from 1 lemon), olive oil (about 1 tblsp.), salt and pepper- (stir them up good)

Then slice up some good rustic bread (4 slices for the above amount)- spread the ricotta mixture on top- and top with sliced avocado, red onions, heirloom tomatoes, sesame seeds- and drizzle with sesame oil, a squirt of lime/lemon and a little more salt and pepper. TOTALLY DIVINE!!!

I will be back soon- PROMISE;)

Long Time No Post

Where did the end of January/beginning of February go??

Seriously?

The past week or so here- we have been celebrating, you see- there are 3 birthdays in the beginning of the month in our family (Pop, Donell and Mister Moses)- which means a whole lotta parties...last one being Saturday at noon.

For party #2 (last night) I made this delicious chocolate bundt cake from Shutterbean- so scrumptious! (The only thing I did differently was use fat free greek yogurt rather than sour cream)



and I topped it with this super tasty icing idea that I had...Donell LOVES Breyers vanilla bean ice cream- so I thought I'd whip up some vanilla bean icing:) I DID NOT use a recipe- so try to follow along as best you can!

I started of with about 3 tablespoons of softened butter (not melted, but VERY soft)

then I added the powdered sugar and milk, whisking the heck out of it between additions, I added more sugar when I wanted it to be stiffer- and then milk to thin it out. In total I probably added about 1.5 cups of sugar, and 4 Tablespoons of milk.

again, whisked it like crazy with to get all the lumps out...

then came the vanilla bean- I sliced 1/2 a bean in half length wise

and scraped it out with the back of my knife into the icing

whisked it altogether to get this lovely speckled concoction- added a touch more milk so I could drizzle it- and voila!

DELICIOUS

Birthday Boys 2 and 3 (picture by the fabulous Simon)

You may have read in last years post- that my water broke while out to dinner for D's birthday- so Mos was born the 7th, and D the 8th. Aquarians all around me!

This pic is form celebration #1-My Dad's birthday is the 4th- he was also blowing out a candle simultaneously, but not in the picture:)

Another thing I wanted to share is my most recent salad love-

this recipe is from a super-healthy-eating friend, who got the recipe from Terry Walters, author of Clean Food, and Clean Start, here's what you do....

combine a bunch of torn raw kale (I prefer the green or lacinato variety), 1 avocado, juice from 1 lemon and 1 lime, a drizzle of olive oil, lots of pepper and sea salt

You then "massage" the oil and avacado into the kale

(today I added pepper crusted parm, and little spiced corn flatbreads for my tasty lunch-yummy!)

Why I love this salad:

#1- Its super simple

#2- Its super healthy

#3- It goes with anything (more veggies, quinoa, tofu, etc.)

#4- It lasts in the fridge for a day or 2 as is- kale is super sturdy- even when dressed!

On the painting front:

I have made the big decision to get some add space on a fabulous blog- I just began the process, but once it's up and posted I'll send you there to check it out!

So with this decision, comes the refreshing of my Etsy shop storefront....check it out! Lots of new paintings, new pictures, new prices- the whole bit!

and I recently finished this massive (24" x 48") painting...here it is in progress....

and the finished piece:

What do you think?

A Quick Snack

I'm sure that popsicles for a snack is probably the furthest thing from most of your minds right now- considering it's JANUARY....unless of course you are under the age of 12- then it is a year round treat. BUT- I thought I'd share this anyway....
I picked up this grrrreat popsicle mold around the holidays for the kids.

We had another one, purchased years ago for cheap at Target- needless to say it didn't hold up.
There have been times that I have also seriously considered purchasing this bad boy- instant popsicles anyone???

But I decided it wasn't really worth the price.

The one I opted for is totally fabulous! Star shaped pops, sturdy plastic handles, fits in my freezer nicely-we couldn't be happier.
 

The possibilities are endless- the recent favorite is a frozen smoothie pop (the one in the picture is blended honey Greek yogurt (apx. 3/4 of a cup), 1/2 cup OJ, 1 ripe banana, 1 cup frozen mango chunks, 1/2 cup frozen pineapple chunks) DELICIOUS and nutritious.
 
We had a Tupperware brand pop mold as kids, my Mom would make frozen jello and frozen pudding pops which were always great, and even just frozen juice works too! YUM!!

OMGeezy (long post- read it to the end- it's chock full of goodness)

This recipe- I HAVE to share.

I saw the original in October 2011 issue of Living.  They are called Pretzel-Shortbread bars (pg. 86). The ingredients are simple and things I had on hand:
butter, flour, pretzels, eggs, baking powder, sugar
and I had this brainstorm to add one other ingredient that I thought just might put this salty sweet treat over the top- NUTELLA
Check it out:
This is a double batch that I put in a 13"x9" pan ( the original recipe calls for a 4.5"x13" shortbread pan-which I do not have).  My regular baking dish worked out just fine.  I started by spraying the pan and putting a piece on wax paper on the bottom and up the sides a bit.

Then I pulverized 31/2 cups of pretzels in the food processor-creating a powder with a few small chunks.

I put 1 cup of the mixture in a bowl with 1 cup of flour, and 1 tsp. baking powder

in a mixer bowl I put 2 sticks (1 cup) room temperature butter, 1 cup sugar, and 2 egg yolks and mixed them for a full 5 minutes-until they were light and fluffy

then I added the pretzel/flour mixture

then I put another 3 cups of pretzels in the food processor-(you're going for larger chunks this time)

I mixed in 1 cup of the pretzel chunks and pressed the mixture into my prepared pan

then I spread about 1 cup of Nutella on top of the pressed dough and sprinkled the remaining pretzel chunks on top of that (and pressed them down a bit)

then I baked them at 325 for 26 min.s

they are DIVINE (it was my dinner tonight)
and because I made a double batch- we could use some help eating them- so if you're in the area and need a sweet treat, stop on over- we have plenty;)
on a home decor note- I've been doing some reorganizing of furniture since my recent dining room redo- so, I moved the file cabinet into the living room as a makeshift side table on the right side of the couch- the round side table into the dining room to hold the plant next to the windows, the owl table and chairs from the kitchen into the book room as a new little art studio for the kids, trampoline down into the playroom, and rattan bookroom chair into the dining room (TMI I know,- especially if you've never been in my house)

The point of this explanation is that I recovered a couple pillows for the chair that is now in the dining room today- with that fabulous fabric I talked about here.  It looks great- and was a very quick project.  The room has a very loungey, living room type of feel to it now.

Once we have a light fixture in place we need to have a serious dinner party!! at which I might just serve the bext pizza I've ever made...I meant to post this solo last week- but never got  around to it- so now I'm turning this post into an epic one- with two recipes-so I hope you're still reading, because this one, is lust-worthy.
I had a pizza party a couple weeks back and decided to make an apple pizza pie (something I've done before but never this successfully) It was so good I had leftover dough and made it again 2 days later..
Here's the main idea- I always use this insanley good homemade dough recipe (I use 1/2 white whole wheat and 1/2 white flour for the dough)
The sauce for this pie is this:
D made a special 30 minute trip to get 3 jars of this stuff- it's that good.

then I added sliced apple, sliced brie, a drizzle of EVOO, a little fresh parm, salt and pepper- and cooked it

when it came out I topped it with a spinach salad- dressed with a homemade dressing (EVOO, vinegar, honey, dijon mustard, fresh garlic, salt and pepper)
My mouth is watering, even though my belly is full of Nutella pretzel bars- it is SO GOOD.

Make it, would you? and invite me over for dinner?!

What's For Dinner?: Panzanella Salad Yumminess

If you've been reading this blog regularly you would know that in the past- I have posted a fair amount of recipes...and it's been a while:(  The summer heat has gotten the best of me- and I'm afraid I have not been cooking/baking as much as usual- and my brain (and belly) is missing some good hearty dinners and sweet treats:)

So today- I felt a burst of inspiration- I think it was the raging thunderstorms that put a wonderful coolness in the air that did it.  Anyhow- I've been wanting to make this for what seems like years...and I'm SOOOO glad I did.  Super simple- super fresh, pretty healthy, and perfect for summer- check it out. It's going into my weekly dinner rotation.

We got delicious tomatoes from the farm this week- so I figured I'd take advantage of the fresh produce in the house

I started off with 1/2 of a baguette leftover from the weekend- in all the recipes I've seen it says that slightly stale bread works best.  I sauteed it in a couple Tbls. of EVOO and sprinkled it with sea salt until it was nice and brown and crispy.

Then came the veggies-
I used 3 tomatoes, 1/2 an English cucumber, 1/2 onion, 2 cloves of garlic, and an orange pepper.

oh- and lots of fresh basil (and some s&p)

I chopped everything to about this size:

Then I made a quick dressing (my apologies for the lack of picture- I remembered once I'd dumped it onto the salad:) 

My apologies also for the lack of direction and precise measurements- I'm a quick dressing kinda gal- just throw some stuff together- whisk it up- it's usually delicious- the measurements below are an approximation:) any vinaigrette would do!  Then you toss everything together- and let it sit for a bit, give the bread a chance to soak up the tomato juices and dressing....

Oh was it delicious.  The bread is crispy and chewy and the dressing pulls everything together so tasty- I wish I had another bowl right now;)

Panzanella Salad

1/2 loaf day old bread
2 Tbls olive oil
1 teaspoon sea salt3 ripe, fresh tomatoes
1/2 english cucumber
1 bell pepper
1/2 red onion
2 cloves garlic

Dressing

3 Tblsp olive oil
2 Tblsp rice wine vinegar
1 tsp. dijon mustard
1/2 tsp honey
salt and pepper

The Best Muffins EVER

I think I've at least mentioned these babies before- they are the BOMB- and quick to whip up! Give them a whirl and let me know what you think! I literally make them @ least 1x per week:)
I did a recent pantry clean out and put all of my dry ingredients into these lovely glass containers we used for a candy bar @ our wedding. (one of my new years goals was to keep clean spaces clean- this is progress toward that goal!) These guys have been sitting on a shelf in our basement for 7+ years- I thought it was  a good use for them and my pantry looks so much neater!!!)
Back to the muffs- this recipe is adapted from my Mom's banana bread recipe and is super versatile.  You can do various omissions/substitutions and they always come out great! I have been editing and revising over the past year in an attempt at getting them healthier and more breakfast friendly- here's the latest version:


You will need: flour (I like whole wheat pastry combined with white whole wheat), oat bran, sugar, bananas, yogurt, grapeseed oil (more on that later), egg, vanilla,  baking soda and powder, sea salt, and cocoa (not pictured).

First I blend the bananas (2- the softer the better), with the sugar- which seems to help it mash up.

I mix it till it's fairly lump-free

Then I add in the other wet ingredients- oil, 1 egg, yogurt (any kind is fine- I use plain typically, sour cream would work too), vanilla.

Back to the oil- I have recently switched from "vegetable" or canola oil to grapeseed oil.  This switch was prompted by my recent attendance at a dinner demo by the lovely Terry Walters- author of Clean Food/Clean Start (I've mentioned Clean Food before on the blog in regards to kombu added to cooking grains.)  This is a way that I am moving toward less processed foods- and a quick and easy fix.  I get the grapeseed oil @ Trader Joe's- it's similar in price to olive oil and is a nice light oil perfect for baked goods...

Once that's combined I add in the dry ingredients- flour,oat bran, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, salt. 

Disperse it evenly into a greased (with grapeseed oil again) muffin tin- and pop it into a 325 degree oven for 16 min (check the doneness with a toothpick)

Perfecto!

Oooohhh- and totally divine with a touch of nice salty, melty butter.....

Banana Bran Muffins

2 ripe bananas

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup yogurt

1 tsp. vanilla

1 egg

1/2 cup grape seed oil

11/4 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cup oat bran

1/2 tsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/3 cup cocoa

optional (nuts, coconut, chocolate chips, dried fruit)

Combine bananas and sugar- blend until free of lumps.  Add in yogurt, egg, vanilla, oil- precess until combined.  Add in flour, oat bran, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cocoa powder- blend until combined. Divide evenly among 12 muffin cups- bake at 325 degrees- 16 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

On another note:

I am presently posting on location- visiting a good friend and her lovely babes in PA.  I'm very grateful for her central AC and pool in this heat wave we seem to be having:)

I will be back tomorrow with a trip recap- as well as and BLOG ANNIVERSARY GIVEAWAY!!!!! Stay tuned!