7/25/17

And here we are on Monday again, to where the details of last Tuesday dinner have started to escape me, but the happy memories of good times and food remain.

We had a nice group of people together for dinner, 11 adults, 1 tweenager, 2 toddlers and 2 babies.

For dinner we had something like a pork stew, Dad didn’t have a specific name for it although he and Mom apparently have been eating it for a while.  When he first was describing the dish to me I had a flashback to the terror of a dish that still haunts my memories (Chicken Marengo in case you are wondering).  I was pleasantly surprised to find that this dish did not resemble it at all.  The pork was braised in tomatoes and peppers and was tender and rich.  There was extra of the sauce to pour over white rice. Along with corn and bread.

The excitement for dinner came at dessert with the fire show.  Not to be confused with the Samoan fire dancing (which sparked lively conversation), we had Bananas Foster and home made Vanilla Ice cream.

We talked about horses (we will be having a new one join our farm soon!), some nerdy talk of which I was bummed to miss most of as an emergency potty break was needed by the toddler.  We talked about the summer reading program and my girls got some great new books.  The babies I think are starting to form plots against the rest of us to get more food, and certainly had the giggles sitting next to each other in their high chairs (or thrones and I think they viewed them).

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Turkey turf war

I’ve posted a couple times about how wildlife seems attracted to our farm. Tonight I heard a lot of commotion around the turkey pen. Indeed a small flock of wild toms had strutted into the realm of my domestic turkeys.

Luckily the bouncers came and broke the party up before shots were fired (by my husband).  I didn’t really want to confront a bunch of irritated wild turkeys

 

7/18/17

So yet another week has flown by on me, with out posting about Tuesdays’ dinner. Anyone else feel like summer is over and you totally missed it?
Prior to dinner my kids and my cousin’s son were having a blast playing with hundreds of water balloons, buckets, sprinklers, and hoses. Needless to say, they were all burnt to a crisp at dinner 😦 I hadn’t realized how long they were out playing or I would have added more sunblock to the situation. Such is life though when the first week of summer didn’t show up until mid-July.

My dad chose dinner this week (we didn’t realize Aydin would be there for dinner this week otherwise he would have gotten his birthday dinner! He will get a makeup dinner for sure!) He has been wanting Cassata cake (basically a cannoli in cake form), and to go with the cake we had Seafood lasagna roll-ups with a white sauce, white bread, salad, and green beans.

We also had a new face at the table, one of our frequent flyers brought her mom to dinner and it was wonderful to meet her!

If I am counting correctly there were 9 adults, 2 tweens, 2 toddlers and a baby in attendance.

I showed off the new soap scents I am working on and got some opinions on the best presenations.

We talked about the picky and light eaters that were at the table (you know who you are).

A while ago you may remember my oldest daughters Disney Princess cook book made its way to a chef meeting, which has now evolved into a full on themed dinner for the residents (I am super excited about this, even though I am not involved :))

We talked about potential new furry family members (of all sizes), and up coming events.

The kids ran around crazy as usual and we sang Happy Birthday to Aydin (even if he didn’t like the cake).

And now that it’s Monday, I look forward to doing it all over again!

That’s not farming

A wonderful reminder that even the “simple life” can be ke ktallu devestating. But as she said in the post, being their for your neighbor, tats farming.

Ruminants and Ruminations

I went back on anxiety medication 12 days ago. To be specific, I started taking Lexapro, which was the med that I took when I was dealing with a bad bout of anxiety in middle school. So, when I got the prescription to begin taking the stuff again for the first time in 10 years, it was like catching up with an old friend that I hadn’t seen in, well, 10 years.

It’s been 12 days of learning and adjusting. First of all, I learned that I have to take it right away in the morning because I now have far more energy than I am used to having. It’s a completely different experience compared to the last med I was on, Paxil, where I could sleep 10 hours a night and it still wasn’t enough (granted, this was in college).

I even do the dishes without being prompted now…

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Some days…

Some days you just know it’s going to be a special day. Like today when I came in from doing chores (in the barn I flooded by leaving the water on ALL night, bonus the trough is sparkling clean) to find the a toddler with a messy diaper. Upon taking said child into her room to abolish the mess I find the two year old requesting more “coffee” in her bed (the mug was from last nights mug cake).
It should be interesting to see how the rest of the day goes!

On a side note, while I let water rush into the barn for an extra 45 minutes this morning I did gets some cool soap glamour shots!

Honey Roasted Pretzels

Tomorrow instead of a regular Tuesday Dinner, my parents are instead opening the doors early in the afternoon and everyone is bringing a dish (or two) to pass and munch on.  The main feature will be one of our turkeys from last year on the grill (it’s a 27-pound turkey!)

Bringing a dish to pass is always difficult for me because I want to plan around what everyone else is bringing so I don’t make the extra dessert when there are no savory sides or bring potato salad only to find three other variations.

I strongly considered Rice Krispy treats… and I may still make them, but a stroke of nostalgia hit me while walking through the chip aisle at the grocery store this morning and I grabbed a bag of pretzels.

This microwave snack is a quick treat, that I used to make all the time, weekly, daily, whatever was needed to get my fix.  It has been a couple years since I dusted off this recipe, but considering I have a jar of gorgeous local honey from my Beecapades, I thought this would be perfect.  And I was right.

Although my Aunt’s original recipe calls for corn syrup, I substituted all honey and the vanilla.  If you choose to use the corn syrup, do not add the vanilla.

I’m interested to see if she remembers this one 🙂

Microwave Honey Roasted Pretzels

Recipe courtesy of Aunt Connie

Ingredients

10 oz mini pretzels (shape of your choice)

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 TBSP butter

2 Tbsp honey (or 1 Tbsp honey + 1 Tbsp corn syrup*)

1/8 tsp vanilla (*omit if using corn syrup)

1/8 tsp baking soda

Directions:

Place pretzels into a  2 or 3-quart microwave safe bowl.  Set aside.

In a large microwave-safe measuring cup combine, brown sugar, honey, butter, and vanilla.  Microwave mixture for 45-60 seconds until mixture boils hard, stirring once (at about 30 seconds).  continue to microwave 60 more seconds.  Stir in the baking soda until well combined and drizzles over pretzels in a thin stream.  Gently stir to coat pretzels evenly.

Microwave pretzels on 50% power (or defrost) for 3-4 minutes, stirring twice.  Pour pretzels out onto a lightly buttered piece of wax paper and spread evenly.  Break into pieces once cooled and store if a tightly sealed container.

Makes 9 cups.