Tree Birthday Dinner

Walnut shells

Tonight enjoyed a little remembrance, even some looking forward with a holiday we generally overlook. As the kids get older we find ourselves more interested in understanding. Naomi has a bug, and due to her request for nothing but fruit, it was all pretty well timed.

Anyway, Tu B'shevat is all about celebrating the trees and all they give us, so lots of fruits and nuts and 'wine' (sparkling juice).

I'd like to offer a huge thanks to Tali at Matzosoup for this amazing activity book created just to highlight trees. There are some really terrific activities & Naomi was loving them, from origami flowers to stained glass in the sky...there's more for tomorrow.

Our meal:

almonds, oranges, pomegranate, dates, grapes...

Satyama's Cauliflower Curry from the Moosewood Cookbook Challenge

grapes, pineapple, pears, yogurt, maple syrup and cinnamon dessert.

Delayed Creative

Just wanted to share these little dollhouse dolls I needle felted months ago. They're meant to look like Ma & Pa Ingalls. I gave them to the girls yesterday, and probably should have given to them at birthdays, or holidays, or for some occasion but I never thought they were finished because they had no faces. Well, it suddenly occurred to me that they didn't need them to be enjoyed and since the pressure of getting faces just right was too much pressure keeping me from finishing up, they've been deemed complete. Amish don't put faces on their dolls, and Steiner would probably think them more open to imagination, so my decision is justified...

But the girls seem to love them anyhow. Although they're not really pose-able, they are pretty compatible with their dollhouse and I think I'll have to work on making the rest of the family. They're about 4 inches tall.

And, on the Moosewood front, we have had 2 meals this week. One was especially delicious and pretty simple, the Arabian Squash-Cheese Casserole. It was a little bit eggy, a little bit cheesy, a little bit spicy, and the girls didn't even complain that much. Leviah had 3 servings. The other was  a Vegetable Almond Medley--I wouldn't call it bad, but I don't think I'll add it to my regular cooking schedule, just a little underwhelming.

Oh & the fireplace looks like this (before):

Monday's Rhythm and New Eating

Here I'll attempt to give you an outline of our days until I get through the week (not all today, or even this week, probably).

Monday's are actually such a smooth transition from the weekend now that we have this pattern & Naomi has it memorized already--it's amazing how little minds adjust so quickly and settle so comfortably into a schedule that suits them.

Monday:
8am Wake up. We eat, clean up after our meal and take it easy.
9am Focus Activity. For Mondays that means baking time, today we made Sesame Crackers from the Moosewood Cookbook.
10am Play/Snack/Outside. During this time I have music going through the house and it's usually an active time of dancing, hopping, swinging, chasing, and sometimes sitting with a good toy.
11am Circle Time. Circle time is fun for both of the girls & me. It goes like this:

1. We sing the Shema and learn another prayer in Hebrew and English
2. We have a new fingerplay each week. Today we started with 5 little kittens from this book.
3. We recite and memorize a traditional nursery rhyme from this book and add stickers to the one we're        working on--the girls LOVE this book & if you can find it for under $20, i'd buy it! Naomi easily memorizes each poem within a few days and is so proud to recite them for whoever will listen!

11:30am Seasonal Craft or lunch. Here there is some leeway. Depending on Leviah's attitude, we sometimes do lunch first then she goes down for her nap and Naomi do the craft/activity together. This often leads right into time where we work on our curriculum. Our Seasonal activity today was to fill our Bio Set sprouter so we could have some fresh, local health food to add to our diet. Mung bean, radish, and broccoli sprouts.
We wrap up these activities right around 12:30 or 1pm, which leaves Naomi a good time for rest, or downtime and enough free afternoon time to accomplish other things, like errands, dance or music class, etc.

Separate from school, Drew and I streamed Food Matters the other night and what a load of information about how to keep our bodies nourished. I was expecting something more like Food, Inc, but it's totally different and more related to healthcare and what we can do to improve our own health by nourishing our bodies properly. Shocking and sort-of obvious information that filled us with new ideas on how to better our own habits. So, with the new year we are doing just that. Lots more fresh and raw foods like wheat grass, spirulina, broccoli--thank goodness for our new greenhouse...oh & did you notice the Moosewood recipe? the challenge is back on!!

Moosewood Cookbook Challenge: Stuffed Squash

Just when you thought I'd forgot this challenge...lo n' behold.

So, the cookbook likes to stuff things into squashes. Or maybe I'm just drawn to these recipes...or maybe stuffing squash is more common than I'd known. Either way, we stuffed some butternut squash (& because we had some, acorn as well). In hopes that cool weather will present itself at the appearance of such vegetation on our tables, I keep craving these delicious buggers. & because they're such pretty cuisine I couldn't help but take advantage of a little photo opportunity. (& i've been wanting to do a b&w with Natural Suburbia...)

As to the recipe. Not great. Officially will not make again. Cottage cheese & squash just don't go together. It was against my better judgement but it occurred to me that the adding of apples would make it all come out right. Not so. Skip this one--skip it good. Everyone ate without complaint, but it was just odd & left us seriously craving an actual dinner. Perhaps if I'd followed the recipe for the elaborate 'thanksgiving' version appetites would have been satiated, but this was--at best--an intriguing side dish.

"...is this....cottage cheese?"

Hands on Color Wheel and Stuffed Zucchini

Inspired by this post to retry making playdough (we've done it before but with less than perfect consistency), I  had a revelation. When it came time to mix colors I thought it'd be a good opportunity to present Naomi with the Color Wheel.

So, I divided the dough into 6 pieces & made little divets in each. Using blue in 3, yellow in 3 and red in 3 overlapping between the colors (so, red & blue in one, yellow & blue in one & red & yellow in one). Then we kneaded them together. I asked Naomi ahead of time what she thought would happen, then as she mixed she realized what colors were being made--she loved it! Hands on learning...

Last night for dinner I made the Turkish Style Stuffed Zucchini for my Moosewood Challenge.

It was actually quite good. I substituted parmesean for the swiss it called for, but other than that--great. Paired with fresh tomato salad it was a great summer dinner. Naomi said she could eat it every day of the week & Leviah did this:

Another Way to Make Venison Taste Good (sorry Moosewood).

Last night we had a delicious Moosewood recipe, Cauliflower Cheese Pie**. This recipe appealed to me for its' inclusion of cheese & cauliflower--the latter of which I don't use enough in my cooking. Well, even if we hadn't thrown in a pound of ground venison, this dish would have been terrific. (I say 'we', but Drew was assigned the recipe & he did a fine job). So, why add the meat? well, it was tasty, but with company over it didn't stand alone as the main course & having no other ideas as to what to pair it with, we just mixed.

Anyway, it was local, grass fed & free-range meat, so--of the highest quality! &, this is a definite will-do again, which is great because deer meat can be tricky to cook with.

Also, the brownies I made the other day are still lingering, but they are SO good. sososososo. They got better & fudgier with time.

**if they're already available online... ;)

Fourth of July Fatigue

First: Happy Fourth! Hope you're all having fun watching parades (no matter how stingy on candy throwing they might be) & fireworks (even if you're struggling to figure out which night the show is like we are).
The following pictures have everything to do with the 4th and little to do with what's being written...

Whew. There has been little relaxation around here. The girls are all twisted around and what an important thing regularity is for a 1.5 year old. Poor Leviah is like a crazy person--I'm sure she feels uprooted and unsure. We've been running around for almost 2 weeks and while we've accomplished a TON, as a mother I'm feeling really irresponsible. Naomi is actually thriving on the activity in many ways, but in others I think we're all feeling emotionally drained & discombobbled.

What have we been up to? well, there will be more on that here shortly. This week especially the line between farm & home has been criss-crossed--someday, when the distance is smaller and babies can nap through many of the daily chores this criss cross will be our dream come true. For right now, we are in a transitional place that is far from comfortable. Several projects this week will be dedicated solely to establishing a rhythm for our family that helps us keep up beat. ;)

There's some relief in knowing that that day will come & in seeing what progress has actually been made. That strip of land is taking a very loose shape. Some outline of our 'vision' is already visible & it is encouraging. Alas, MUCH is to be done, but there are so many ideas we can't WAIT to share with everyone.

Right now we're considering our orchard. We want: Peaches, Plums, Cherries, Figs, Pecans, Pears, Apples, Pomegranates, Persimmons and more as we come to it. Any varieties you've all had experience with? We want to get fairly local & completely GMO free plants. Suggestions welcome!

My Moosewood challenge is going a little slower, due to all this running around, but I did whip up the Fudge Brownies (I added the optional instant coffee) the other night & no more boxes for me. These are SO good. I love boxed brownie mixes--a downfall of mine, but with this recipe I don't need them! I just need a good stock pile of unsweetened chocolate squares on hand for whenever the chocolate craving sets in...

A Winner, Dinner & Pine Knolls Shore

We're home for the beach & settling back down. We were at Pine Knoll Shores in NC & it was delightful. The aquarium is right there, the beach is quiet & the Hampton Inn was actually terrific!

At Pine Knoll Shores we recommend:

Amos Mosquito's Restaurant, a little more expensive than we normally do as a family, but it was a great atmosphere & delicious food.

The Shark Shack, a little less formal, but delicious grouper!

NC Aquarium, can't go wrong. The girls loved it--again.

A Coffee Affair--great cup a joe.

Shells as shovels, free & fun.

Fort Macon, what a great historical learning experience!

Here are some pics from the trip:

sand exploration.

freedom.

someone else's gorilla.

fort macon

Leviah takes Fort Macon.

Dinner: Tabouli & Pita Bread from Moosewood. We already made the bulghur based Tabouli twice, if that says anything. It is great & perfect for hot summer days. & the pita was a success as well. Sorry, no pics of these--they were devoured too quickly!

Sorry for the delay in announcing the winner! Blame the beach... ;)

The winner:

Krishenka said...

Looks like the peacock bag is popular and can see why so lovely. 

Congratulations!

Thanks all for entering! Thank you Gracey May! & everyone--don't forget to shop Gracey May's lovely Etsy shop in the future! (remember, she does custom orders!!)

Zucchini Feta Pancakes--Moosewood Challenge #2

Seems like I'm only blogging about food recently! My first savory recipe from the Moosewood Cookbook was quite simple. I'm trying to use the recipes that require locally ready crops, so here's a plan for that excess Zucchini you probably all have! Plus, if you shred & freeze it, this will be great come winter, too.

Pros: Simple & easy ingredients. Feta was probably the most uncommonly found in the average fridge, but yum...feta. Always glad to have it on hand here.

these are hand-whipped whites! whew...

Suggestions/Alterations: Next time I'll hold the feta out & just sprinkle it on top. Also, make sure you eat these buggers hot & that they're crispy--much tastier this way. & I'm not sure they'd stand alone as a main dish. We went anti-moosewood and accompanied with some beef sausages, which was a great pairing--almost brinner like dinner.

Not putting the recipe! Get the book! ;)

& don't forget the giveaway!

A Use for Stale Bread

I love pudding. It's something I've always known I like, but it's more of a love. All sorts, chocolate especially, but from tapioca to banana to flan and creme brulee. Just, yum. I maybe like it more than--get this: ice cream.

I also love great (simple) recipes. & more over, great recipe books that are a delight just to flip through & not on account of their beautiful photography, but on the rustic charm that adorns each page. Simple drawings & hand written directions make ANY recipe one worth taking a second look at. Plus, with no picture there's always the thrill of seeing the final result & the curiosity of knowing whether it has turned out as it should. Obviously I have a cookbook in mind...

Having just re-seen Julie & Julia, I almost feel obligated to commit to this far-less involved & much simpler & more Lacey-style version of cooking in 1 year. Plus, there's got to be like 1/8th as many recipes as Julia Child's anthology...so. I have no more excuses. There will be list making & ingredient having until every last recipe has been tried. Should be good. This book is chock-full of wholesome goodness, down-home style, veggie needing concoctions that will broaden our favorite recipe list--no doubt. So, 1 recipe a week. That's the goal, & a dessert. We'll see--I may up the anty.

The bread-pudding was great. I used fresh blueberries instead of apples or dried fruit & would recommend cooking it until you are positive it is thoroughly cooked. Ours was a bit soggy, but much better with whipped cream (& cold, i'm a cold pudding type) & hot with ice cream would have been a treat... I'm going to share this one, but because I believe EVERYONE should have a copy anyway, just go order it if you want them all (& I think you do).

Mollie Katzen's Moosewood Cookbook Old-Fashioned Bread Pudding:

10 minutes to prepare

35 minutes to bake

Yield: 6 to 8 servings

 4 cups coarsely crumbled bread, 3 eggs (large), 3 cups milk, 3tbsp honey, 

2tbsp brown sugar, 1/2 tsp. salt, 2 tsp. vanilla extract, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, juice from 1/2 lemon

1.5cup freshly grated apple and/or 1/2 cup chopped dried fruit (we did blueberries), 

1/2 cup chopped nuts(optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Have ready a 9x13-inch baking pan.

2. Spread the bread & fruit in the pan.

3. Beat together remaining ingredients. Pour this custard over the bread.

4. Bake about 35 minutes, or until firm but not dry. Serve warm or at room temperature.

& for those interested in the farm life.