on the coach

do you ever sit on the coach and find yourself crying or wanting to - at commercials mainly which may prompt thoughts of how much I love my children, my family, how I don't want them to grow up and leave (I do of course but dread the pain of missing them), I miss my sisters, my mom...I am at this point tonight.  Who am I talking to right now and asking this question - laughing at myself - because really I am just writing to me ;)
Just felt like writing - Allen is at "man night" and I am here - on this coach - crying - crying all the overdue tears and stresses of the day.  Feels good to let it out with my rooibos bourbon vanilla tea and chocolate chip orange scone - and I thought I was not  going to write about food in this entry - but really tears and comfort food go together - it had to be mentioned.  So - I don't usually like orange and chocolate together - orange flavored anything really - but this is REALLY good and it works. My friend Joyce made them - I have not yet made them - but now I will.  Will write the recipe out when I do.
Oh gosh - here comes another commercial - a boy with his backpack on, saying goodbye to his mom...here come the tears again.

Ode to Levain Bakery in NYC

 Us eating Sesame Street Style NYC

New York City - one of my favorite cities - makes me feel alive.  2 weeks ago my mother in law and sister in law took off for 5 days of so much fun.  One of our stops was Levain Bakery in the upper west side of the city.   My friend told me "if you like cookies, you must go here"  So off we went - our pilgrimage to yet another bakery.  The thick cookies were right up my alley!  Dougnut Plant was pretty darn amazing too.

Dougnut Plant - We ordered 6-7 between the three of us 

So here it is, a rainy day, a day for baking.  I tried to get some levain-thickness in my cookies - and this is what I came up with.  They are pretty good!  I used cinnamon chips and oatmeal.  Still want them thicker though.

Oatmeal Walnut Cookies - attempt at Levain Bakery cookies ;)

 

1 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

2 eggs, room temperature

*cream together until thickened and fluffy

*add

2 1/2 cups unbleached flour

1 cup oatmeal

1/2-3/4 cup whole wheat flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

pinch of salt

2 tsp vanilla

1 tbsp cornstarch

*blend in mixer

*add

2 cups walnuts

1 bag of cinnamon chips

*mix again and referigerate for 1/2 hour

Bake at 385F for 10-12 minutes, ping pong shape balls

breaded chicken and broccoli

din din dinner

breaded chicken with bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. finished with sautéed mushrooms and wine and topped with fontina cheese - bubbly, melty.
Steamed broccoli with olive and sea salt

Corn and Shrimp

Roasted Shrimp and Fresh Corn with an olive oil, butter, lemon, wine and garlic sauce poured all over the top - fresh parsley never hurts...best part was ... well it was all good but I did love getting all the extra sauce on my toasty bread.  YUM.
I had some figs and decided to roast them as well - drizzled a bit of coconut oil and brown sugar and let them do their thing for about 20 min... really good actually.

we ate with fresh berries and whip cream again.
good night.

what did you have for dinner?

so this may have been a previous post but was reminded by a friend to just do it!
whenever my sisters and I would talk on the phone (especially xenia and I) our first questions were "what did you have for dinner?"  i laugh as I think about it because it is just i guess sort of a funny question to those around me.  but not for us.  I love to hear about meals.  It also gives me good ideas when I am in a rut.
so i am going to do this on my blog - nothing long or drawn out - this blog hardly gets my attention as it is -  maybe pictures, no pictures...who knows - not me.  Part of the fun is recording the many odd and quirky meals we end up eating to the pretty darn good ones. The best meals sometimes come from having very little at all and trying to make something yummy - sometimes not though.
drumrolll...........tonight's dinner - allen was at a meeting and this is what I came up with.

Chicken Salad Melt (mayo, lemon, celery, scallions, salt and pepper) on whole wheat bread/american cheese melty atop.  Strawberries and blackberries and whip cream.

Done!

Buttermilk

For some reason, I always want buttermilk in my refrigerator.  Probably because it is an ingredient in so many things that I love - chocolate cake and pancakes.  So I will keep it stocked and try and find new ways to use it.  I just tried blue cheese dressing - need a better recipe, too liquidy. and then i use it in place of milk in many recipes, like Trader Joe's corn bread (the best box cornbread ever!)  I have memories of me and lizabet making a pan of it in our single days and then eating the whole dish before we went out on the town.  I love her so much.
I love the sound of butter in milk though - Definitely not to drink - yuck! but to make everything more tender and yummy.
So here I make oatmeal pancakes - delicious

recipe (williams-sonoma entertaining):
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup cake flour
1/2 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
3 tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 large eggs
2 1/2 cups buttermilk
5 tbsp unsalted butter, melted, plus more for cooking
*fresh strawberries and salty pecans for topping*

Whisk together flour, oats, sugar baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, and 5 tbsp melted utter until well combined.  Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients and whisk until combined.  Let the batter rest at room temperature for 10 minutes.
Cook pancakes a few minutes on each side and serve with lots of butter, maple syrup, strawberries and salty roasted pecans ;)
Here's to BUTtERmiLK!!!!

A butter knife

you know you are having a hard day when it all comes down to letting your 2 year old play with a knife and cut carpet and then savagely (embarrassingly) try and yell at her monkey with a knife (NO i do not yell at my kids with a knife)  Ok fine, you can play with a butter knife.  What was i thinking!!!  I guess I wasn't doing much of sane thinking at this moment.

There are days when I have nothing else in me to be an adult and teach/discipline my kids - thank the good Lord that He steps in.  I love the verse "He gently guides those that are with the young."

Macadamia nuts - rustic style

oh what fun to crack macadamia nuts with a brick and a rock - who knew! and kept the wee ones busy for a long, long time. we found these at the ojai farmers market - sold by "papa bono" they call him.  if you ever need to feel like you are gathering and eating your food rustic style - using a rock to get into it - or just need to let some aggression out - DO THIS!

Yeast and Butter - oh the smell

I loved this day - we StAyED home - and had time to do things like bake bread.  I have always wanted to bake bread and this recipe seemed doable with hudson and p. olive running around AND I had all the ingredients.  So I did it!  The recipe comes from smitten kitchen http://smittenkitchen.com/2011/03/sally-lunn-bread-honeyed-brown-butter-spread/

It came out perfect - hot and that buttery yeast smell - and a deep yellow which i am guessing is from my chickens orange yolky eggs.  We sliced into it, put salty butter on it and ate until we were through almost the whole loaf.  I was disciplined enough to save a bit for Friday farm to feast - to share the love of this loaf ;)

After eating a few slices, I decided to go all out and soft boil an egg (it came out hard ;( ) and make a beautiful plate with strawberries, bread and this egg.

Valentines Cookies

 Years ago my best friend from high school, serena, would come over and we would bake and decorate sugar cookies - i think it started with halloween and then valentines.  We did this for a couple years.  Our friendship began with food and still remains around food ;)  "My mom just made a pot of beans, do you want to come over?"  It was back in 1990, Agoura Hills.  We were friends instantly.
It has been 5 years since we have seen each other and what brings us together again are cookies!  We spent the day baking and decorating with Grace.  So fun.  It felt like no time had passed.

Next cookie day?  St. Patricks?

xox

These cookies are my favorite sugar cookie recipe - cut them thick - they make a lot!

Sugar Cookies

2 1/4 shortening

2 cups white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

6 eggs

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

*blend with an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment 

*fold in the following and handle like bread dough

7 cups unbleached flour

3 tsp baking powder

2-3tsp salt

*chill for 20 minutes and roll out.  Bake at 375 for 6-8 minutes.  Decorate with your favorite frostings, etc.   We mix powdered sugar with milk and add a bit of light corn syrup.....

sick in bed

not only has it been so long since i have blogged, but so long since i am this sick - quarantined to my bed.  watching cooking shows without an appetite, longing for chicken soup, someone to take care of me, no responsibilities, hoping for healing...soon!  I am struggling with my little friend productivity right now.  huh, i am not doing anything in bed...i can get things done, like blog.  I tried to knit but got stuck AGAIN and can't knit. this won't be very long but good to put my ideas down of my next entry.
My sweet elizabeth took pictures of my banana bread - would love to get that up, a week long entry of "what we ate for dinner this week"  I always love to know what people come up with for dinner.  the one question my sister xenia and i always talk about ;)
would love to get my farm to feast cooking days on here - but have yet to get the time, pictures uploaded, recipes written....got to be an easier way than what my mind is stuck on now.
here is to chicken soup in bed, yes - buttered toast and to feeling better.