Christmas and looking ahead

Another Dec survived! 


Ok so I know we have a few more days but really doesn't Christmas feel like the end of December to everyone? That extra week is just a formality because as soon as you open those gifts, if you are anything like me, you start thinking about de-Christmas-izing your house and plans for New Year's Eve and of course all the big things you are going to do in the next year.


2010... This is going to be a biggie for me personally. My son will turn 14, just one year away from legal (with an adult) driving. My sweet sweet baby girl will turn TEN! And the biggest of the bigs is that we will be buying a house and moving... hopefully for the last time ever! 


I want to set down roots and plant things that I will see grow. I want a place that my kids can call home, and this apartment is not going to work for that.  The first week of Jan we are going to contact our realtor and lender and see where we stand and get this ball rolling along. :)


But more of that in the weeks to come...


I hope you had a great holiday no matter what you celebrate. I'm sure most of you have seen them so I'll just put a link to the pictures in case you missed them. Enjoy your last few days of 2009, make them count. 


Christmas Kids 2009

Making pasta is kinda hard

I did it on my own with no helpful tips or anyone to tell me how wrong I was doing it. And I don't (yet) have  pasta machine so they are ugly, I know, but the taste was AWESOME.


Homemade Spinach Ravioli with Alfredo Sauce





I would like to practice more with pasta... having actual counter space in my kitchen would be a great start. Feel free to share any pasta tips or links to pasta machines you love. ;)

Peanut Buttery Goodness

Buckeyes are a gift from the dessert gods... they are simply AMAZING! 


There would be holiday mutiny if I did not make them so that's what I did today. I thought I'd give you a little pictorial. Here is the recipe I use... Buckeyes


Get your ingredients ready:



Here is your pb dough:



Roll your little balls and place them on wax paper then stab them right in the head:



You have to freeze your pb balls then melt your chocolate



Dip your frozen balls into the chocolate, chill to set then ENJOY!



And we had "rat-patootie" for dinner. My kids refuse to use the real name thanks to Disney's Ratatouille movie. lol

Dinner: Partial FAIL

Tonight we had falafel and tabbouleh, both from mixes I found in the greek grocery.


The falafel was fine, the tabbouleh not so much..  no, not so much at ALL. A photo...

So it's almost Christmas, and then almost 2010... where does the time go? Not just "wow that year flew by" but 2010, holy crap!!!  I swear as a kid I thought we were going to be living like The Jetsons by the year 2010 but here I sit with no jet pack or flying family car.  


I'm getting the last of our holiday stuff tomorrow and I dread the stores but I will survive and of course bring back any crazy stories.

Holiday Greetings

My sweet girl at our homeschool holiday party.

New blog home

Just in time for the new year... seems fitting.

I've imported all my old posts but since I'm no longer really a fiber goddess and I don't blog about knitting I figured it was finally time for a change. Enjoy the new digs and make yourself comfy. :)

Calling all cooks...

That hummus was HORRIBLE... maybe the garlic?

If was just off, flat... not right.

Do you have a hummus recipe that you love? Please Share

Well that's a new twist

Cooking when you can't smell or taste (except for super strong odor/flavor) is really hard.

so I made hummus today and I have NO idea what it taste like. lol But here is the process with a basic recipe that can be turned into any flavor you prefer.

I started with dry beans and an over night soak then cooking the chick peas. Once you have that done you can start. Or you can just buy canned, whatever works.

2 c chick peas (garbanzo beans)
3 cloves garlic, minched
3 T lemon juice
1/4 c water
3 T tahini
1/2 - 1 t cumin
1/2 t paprika

Step 1: Place cooked chick peas in your food processor with garlic lemon juice and water process for about a minute, until smooth. If too thick, add more water.

Step 2: Add spices


Step 3: Add tahini


Step 4: Adjust to your taste and Viola!

GERMS!

gah, we've been under attack this past week. The evil head cold has kicked my butt so the cooking thing has pretty much not happened. It's been all easy meals and clean out the fridge nights.

This is a great easy meal, so easy the kids or your husband could do it. ;) I kid, I kid. lol But it's really easy peasy. this is a great option if you are off pasta/carbs.

Spaghetti Squash

cut in half lengthwise, scrape seeds, bake cut side down for 30-45 min @ 350. Scrape threads, add sauce and fresh parm. cheese and enjoy.

So fresh you wanna smack it

Today's dinner that is... Fresh corn chowder.



Kid requests for next time... less corn, puree more of the soup and less jalapeno (they are heat wussies I only used one). But they ate without real complaints because they knew this was waiting...



http://allrecipes.com/recipe/banana-trifle/Detail.aspx

Today was made of yuck

I am a southern girl... I was born in the south and I've always lived here. I do not enjoy cold, windy, rainy days... at ALL! But that is what I got today and I had to go out in it multiple times.

My daughter, Teagan, is not feeling well so she couldn't go with me and had to stay home with the 13yo. Here she is later in the day hamming up the pitiful while

drinking her tea.

A head cold never looked so cute.

As far as food, it was basically meat free fast food.
Total crap comfort food otherwise known as Cincinnati Chili




Here is how I ended the day

homemade hot chocolate. yes my oversized mug says Princess... you gotta problem with that?