Lilly Bug as a Baby Longhorn
Our Little Lilly Bug is Turning One
Monthly Archives: August 2010
Lilly Bug is Turning One!
Filed under Family Stuff
When Life Comes Full Circle
My Baby Graduates from High School
My Baby & Bama Boy
My Baby & Jonah Bear
Now it’s babies that bring us full circle again. Watching my child give birth to her own babies brings back all of those memories of diapers, formula, sleepless nights, the smell of baby lotion and sweet baby kisses. It takes me back to that first day of school, baking cookies together, playing at the park, and dressing up like a little devil or a dinosaur or a spider for Halloween. She’s all grown up now, and she’s a wonderful mother to two sweet, funny kids. Together, she and Bama Boy have built their own family, and it’s our time to be grandparents. Now I know the sadness my parents felt when we didn’t come to visit as often as we could have. And I know the joy my parents felt when they watched the grandkids do something for the first time. And I feel that powerful love a grandparent feels for the babies of their babies. The Complete Package bought me a framed needlepoint that says it all – When A Baby is Born, So is a Grandmother. It’s true. Watching your children with their own children makes you feel complete. It reminds you of the sacrifices your parents made for you, and you in turn made for your own child. It makes you feel like your life has come full circle.
My Baby in 1983 and Lilly Bug in 2009
Filed under Family Stuff
I Love Dessert, or How I Solved My Lime Curd Dilemma
If you read my post on Mason jars, you’ll know I have a thing for spring hinge canning jars. They’re cute, cool, and look great no matter what you put in them. They’re also very practical and functional. They keep my kosher salt from getting clumpy when the south Texas humidity kicks into high gear. We like to call it “air you can wear” down here. Anyway, I picked up some lime curd at the Williams-Sonoma outlet store a few weeks ago and was then at a loss as to how to use it. I confess, it wasn’t really the lime curd I was after, but the cute spring hinge jars it came in. Finding one of these little beauties for $2.97 was more than I could resist. So I bought two.
I really enjoy the flavor of citrus. I love a good lemon bar. I appreciate a good margarita made with fresh citrus. I’m a nut for oranges, and ice cold ruby red grapefruit juice is a great thirst quencher in the dead of summer. I think it’s a texture thing. What do you do with lime curd? I thought about baking a cake and using it as a filling, but it’s just me and The Complete Package at home, and that’s a lot of cake. Finally, I had a thought (yes, I know…it’s a rare and wonderful thing, smartass). I bought one of those no-bake cheesecake mixes with the graham cracker crust package in the box, and in 10 minutes, I had my dessert. It couldn’t have been easier to make, and it was quite tasty. TCP even said so!
Here’s what you do:
Mix up the graham cracker crust packet as directed;
Divide evenly and press into individual ramekins.
Mix up the cheesecake filling packet as directed;
Stir in 3 tablespoons of sour cream and blend well;
Divide evenly and pour into ramekins; chill until set.
Put a quart-size Ziploc bag into a glass and fold the top
over the outside of the glass; spoon in 1 ½ cups lime curd;
Close the bag and zip it shut; snip off one corner of the bag;
Pipe a nice decorative swirl onto the top of each ramekin.
Top with whipped cream immediately before serving.
Easy… quick… delicious. One jar down and one to go.
Key Lime Cheesecake Tarts
Filed under Food & Recipes
Hot Fun in the Summer Time
I think the extraordinary summer heat in South Texas has finally baked Ziggy’s brain. For the most part, he seems to be normal. He still snores when he naps. He still farts after he eats. He still tries to lick my feet as if they’re covered in melted cheese. He still snuggles up next to me on the sofa. Yup, he seems pretty normal except for one thing. He L-O-V-E-S to go outside during the hottest part of the day and lay on the concrete patio. What is he thinking?!?
Ziggy - Bake at 450F for 15-20 minutes
Why Is There A Camera In My Face, Mommy?
Did Someone Say Ice Cream?
Filed under Family Stuff
Things I Love, Volume 2: Mason Jars
The Pioneer Woman’s story on Mason jars this week struck a chord with me (www.thepioneerwoman.com). I love mason jars. I grew up in a home where canning took place every summer as our favorite fruits and vegetables came into season. My mother loved to garden, and we always had the freshest summer foods on our table. She had her own miniature orchard with peach, apple and plum trees, as well. And for a while, even grew Concord grapes on a trellis that ran the length of our back fence. Mom is what you’d call a renaissance woman. She’s a very clever and resourceful girl. I have fond memories of her making her own wine with all that fruit, too. When we picked too much to consume, she would freeze or can it for later. We’d have “canning days” where we’d wash, peel, snap, shuck and slice everything we could get our hands on until it was all packed away for later. My mother made every kind of pickle known to man as well as pickled jalapenos, okra and beets. She packed tomatoes in jars whole, crushed and cooked into spaghetti sauce and salsa. We had peaches, applesauce, apple pie filling, and more. You name it; she canned it.
Of all the things she canned, my favorite was jelly day. On jelly day, Mom would bring out the big soup pot and load it with the fruit of the day. Once she had that going, she would start a loaf or two of homemade bread. She makes really good bread. She had the five of us washing and sterilizing jars while everything bubbled and baked. Just as the bread came out of the oven, the jelly would be cooked down and ready for jars. If you’ve ever made your own jelly, you know you have to skim all the foam off the surface of the fruit before you spoon it into the jars. Mom would use a big metal spoon and carefully scrape the foam into a bowl. Once she was done, my sisters and I would butter up some warm bread and slather on the jelly foam. Oh, hallelujah for sweet and fluffy jelly foam! As a child, I had two favorite kitchen pleasures – licking the beaters and making jelly foam sandwiches on warm fresh bread. Have mercy.
Thanks to Mom, I have a deeply rooted love of canning jars. I have an entire cabinet in my kitchen full of them – all shapes and sizes. It pains me deeply to put any jar in the recycling bin. It really does. I can’t let them go. They’re like family pets or small children. They should be treasured. I use them for storing leftovers, collecting change from my pockets, storing rice and grains in my pantry and everything in between. I’ve been known to drop votive candles into smaller jars and use them when the power goes out. Did you know you can also wrap wire around the top of small jelly jars, drop in a lighted votive candle and hang them from trees or light fixtures for parties? It’s simple and lovely.
Those old-school jars with the spring hinge lids are the ones I love the best. I recently found lime curd on the clearance rack at the Williams Sonoma outlet for $2.97 a jar. I bought two. It’s not that I’m a big fan of lime curd; I just had to have the jars it came in. I’ll eventually use the lime curd, but the jars are the real treasure here. I love to use them around the house. I keep a large one in my spice cabinet filled with kosher salt. I love that my old measuring spoon set fits perfectly in the hinge on the side (very convenient). I also keep one in the laundry room to hold colorful clothespins. I love keeping things in clear glass jars. It’s a functional and homey way to decorate any shelf. You never have to wonder where something is. I’m thinking that one of my new lime curd jars will be used as my button jar in the sewing room. I may fill the other one with dark chocolate peanut M&M’s. I will fill them, display them, and love them proudly.
Things I Love - Canning Jars with Spring Hinge Lids
Filed under Family Stuff, Things I Love
Things I Love, Volume 1: Antique Transferware Cups & Saucers
I love browsing through antique shops. I get it from my mother. We’ve been known to spend hours or even days poking through antique shops when she comes to visit. One of the things I’m most drawn to in any antique shop is transferware dishes. I specifically love cups and saucers.
I Have a Thing for Transferware Cups & Saucers
Countryside by Enoch Wedgewood (Tunstall) Ltd., England
Light Blue Willow Demitasse Set
Black Royal Mail Fine Staffordshire Ironstone, England
Brown Peacock Pattern - Also English?
Tonquin by Myott, Staffordshire, England
Furnivals Quail - Made in England 1913
Furnivals Quail Blue Demitasse Set, 1913
Filed under Things I Love
Elliptical Trainer: Thy Name is Satan
I have an elliptical machine and believe it or not, you’ll never find laundry hanging on it (even though that seems to be the most popular use for one). No, I actually use mine for exercise. The Complete Package and I bought one last year in an effort to improve ourselves. For a while, I was spending one hour a day, five days a week on it, and I’ll be honest – I felt great. My butt got smaller, my legs were firmer, and my nagging knee pain was gradually disappearing. My blood pressure even fell 20 points. Yup, for a while there, my elliptical was my new best friend. Things were definitely good between us. I felt like we had the right stuff. Each morning as I grabbed my Gatorade and my I-Pod and laced up my Asics, I had a song in my heart. You know this one by Melissa Manchester, don’t you?
And I think we can make it
One more time
If we try
One more time for all the old times
I think we can make it
I think we can make it
Oh, wouldn’t you give your heart to a friend?
Think of me as your friend…
Yep, my elliptical and me…we had a good thing going. But then all hell broke loose. That’s right. H-E-double-hockey-sticks. As in “hell hath no fury.” As in “there’s gonna be hell to pay.” As in “Oh, hell no!” That’s right…summer struck South Texas with a vengeance, and my elliptical is in the garage.
Our Elliptical Trainer - Too Hot to Handle
Some of you may also be thinking, “just drag that sucker into the house where there’s air conditioning.” To which I say, “I KNOW! That’s what I was thinking!” But that’s where The Complete Package and I disagreed. I was thinking “just put it anywhere near a ceiling fan.” He was thinking “I’m not tripping over that thing and breaking a foot.” And he’s right. There’s really no practical place to put it inside the house without tripping all over it. Yes, I suppose I could have put up a fight. I could have drawn a line in the carpet and refused to back down, but then I remembered Mom always said, “Girls, learn to pick your battles!” And I always listen to my Mom. That’s why I’m her favorite. Anyway, that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it. It’s Mom’s fault.
So now I’ll be looking for something else to do… or wearing different pants… or putting down the coffee shortbread cookies… or waiting for fall. There’s always the Stairmaster…
Stairmaster - Kickin' It Old School
Filed under Miscellaneous Thoughts
Homemade Tortilla Soup
I love simple foods – meals made with a few quality ingredients while they’re in season that taste wonderful together. Nothing fancy, just good simple food. This recipe starts with a rotisserie chicken from your deli. It’s easy, it can be ready in an hour, and you’ll find yourself wanting it again and again. It’s good for whatever ails you. Don’t let the length of the recipe put you off. It’s broken it into steps so it’s easier to follow.
Homemade Tortilla Soup - It's a Good Thing
First, start the soup base in a stock pot:
One rotisserie chicken, small (plain, not flavored)
Two 32-ounce cartons of chicken broth
1 tablespoon of powdered chicken bullion
1 large clove of garlic, peeled but left whole
Salt and black pepper to taste (added at the end)
Put the first 4 ingredients into your pot; cover and cook over medium heat for 30 minutes. Remove the garlic clove and toss it. Remove the chicken and allow it to cool for 10 minutes, then pull the meat off, removing the skin and bones. Chop into bite-size pieces and return it to the pot. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Start a pan of steamed rice:
1 cup white rice, uncooked (I love Texmati basmati rice)
2 teaspoons of canola oil
1 3/4 cups of water
1 teaspoon of salt
Heat the canola oil in a medium pan. When the oil is hot, add the rice and toast it, stirring often, for 3-4 minutes. Add the water and salt, stir to combine, then cover tightly with a piece of aluminum foil, put a lid on and make sure it’s snug, then turn the heat down to medium low. Cook for 25 minutes, and don’t peek. I mean it. Let your rice cook in peace.
While that’s warming up, toss together a bowl of pico de gallo:
One large ripe tomato, chopped
One small yellow onion, minced
2 jalapenos, seeded and minced
One teaspoon of garlic salt
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
Juice squeezed from one fresh lime
Toss all of this into a bowl, mixing well. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside.
Once that’s done, make your tortilla strips:
10-12 yellow corn tortillas, cut into narrow strips about 1″ long
Pam or other cooking spray
1/2 teaspoon of salt
On a cookie sheet, spread your tortilla strips out into a single layer so they will toast evenly; spray lightly with cooking spray and sprinkle with salt. Bake at 400F for 20 minutes, tossing them half-way through, until they are lightly browned and crispy. Could you cheat and use tortilla chips from a bag? Sure, but it won’t taste good, and they’ll turn to mush almost instantly. I don’t recommend it.
Prep your final toppings:
One avocado, peeled and chopped into chunks
8 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, grated
Fresh cilantro, chopped
One lime, cut into quarters
Okay, so now for the good part. To serve, get a large soup bowl for each person and layer the ingredients in the following order:
1/2 cup of steamed rice
1 1/2 – 2 cups of chicken soup base with chopped chicken
tortilla strips (as many as you like)
grated Monterey jack cheese (don’t be stingy)
pico de gallo (at least a couple of spoons full)
avocado chunks and cilantro, to your taste
finish with a squeeze of lime juice over the top
Dig in immediately! Tortilla soup waits for no one. Eat it right away while the broth is still steaming hot and the tortilla strips are still crunchy. If you have leftovers, you can combine the rice and soup stock in one container. Store the pico de gallo, grated cheese and other fresh ingredients in their own separate containers. Most importantly, sit back and enjoy the fruits of your labor. As they say, “soup is good food.”
Filed under Food & Recipes
Hanalei Bay, Kauai – My Hawaiian Vacation Dream Come True
The Complete Package (my beloved) and I went to Hawaii this year on vacation. It’s been on my travel bucket list, and I’m happy we finally made it. There are many lovely islands to choose from in Hawaii. Each island offers travelers something different. We were looking for solitude, lush scenery and little or no crowds. For that reason, we chose Kauai, and more specifically the town of Hanalei on Kauai’s north shore. Have you ever seen the Dr. Beach list of top beaches worldwide that gets released every year? Well in 2009, Hanalei Bay was rated the best beach in the world by Dr. Beach. He’s right. This place is beautiful – 2 miles of stunning, wide beach lining a beautiful crescent-shaped bay.
If you’ve read my travel post about HomeAway.com, you’ll know that I’m partial to renting vacation homes over hotel rooms, especially when the prices are comparable. I found the NamiNori house in 2009 while searching for possible vacations. When we decided to go to Yellowstone instead, I bookmarked it for later. In early 2010, we were ready for a beach vacation, and this house came back up. It had everything we were looking for, including a fabulous location adjacent to Hanalei’s historic pier. Although we found the house on HomeAway, the owners have since launched a new website, which is much slicker and has better photos. If you’d like to see NamiNori House for yourself, open this link in a new tab: www.naminorihouse.com. I’ll warn you…once you look, you may dream of going there yourself.
Sunrise Over Hanalei Bay - From the Pier
Clooney Sitting on Hanalei Beach While Filming
Wings Over Kauai View of NaPali Coast
Secret Beach with a View of Kilauea Lighthouse
Haena Beach on the North Shore of Kauai
Siblings Celebrating the Sunset over Hanalei Bay
Filed under Travel Tales
Mom’s Coffee Shortbread Cookies
My mother makes the most extraordinary coffee shortbread cookies. It’s a unique recipe I’ve never found anywhere else. I love that they are made from simple ingredients and are easy to make. These are perfect with a cup of coffee or hot chocolate, and even better when they’re dunked. And if you want to get fancy, you can drizzle them or dip them in dark chocolate.
Mom's Crispy Coffee Shortbread Cookies
Here’s the recipe:
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup brown sugar, packed
2-3 tablespoons instant coffee, crushed to dust
2 cups all-purpose flour
3-4 tablespoons sugar, for dusting
In a large bowl, beat butter with a mixer until creamy. Add the brown sugar and coffee dust (I like to crush the coffee granules with the back of a spoon until it’s powdered); beat until well blended. Stir in the flour and mix well. The dough will seem pretty crumbly, not creamy like a chocolate chip cookie dough, and that’s good. Using a spatula or your hands, press the dough into a ball and then roll into a log. Wrap in plastic wrap and put it in the fridge to firm up.
To bake, pre-heat the oven to 300F. Once the dough is firm, you have two choices. To make them like my mother does, cut the dough into pieces and roll into ping-pong sized balls. Place them on an ungreased cookie sheet. Dip a glass into sugar and use it to flatten each dough ball to 1/4″ thick (it helps on the first one to dampen the bottom of the glass first; after that the butter from the cookie dough will help the sugar to stick to the glass). If you want to make them like I do, slice the log into rounds 1/4″ thick, arrange on ungreased cookie sheets so they’re 1″ apart, and sprinkle them liberally with sugar. Either way, the goal is to make the cookies fairly thin so they crisp up when they’re done. Bake at 300F for 20 minutes, turning the tray around after 10 minutes. Cool completely; the cookies will crisp up as they cool. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Then break out the coffee pot or that box of hot cocoa mix and start dunking.
Filed under Food & Recipes
Inside NanaBread's Head 