Sweeter Success

Thanks to Caden, who helped me cook last night, we have had some improvement in the cooking department. We had delicious homemade waffles with strawberries and Greek yogurt for dinner before the Spencer's left for caregroup. (Travis missed the party since he was at school.) Then, after dinner, Caden helped me stir the lime curd we are making for Hayley's baby shower. Then, he helped me roll the tart crust into balls before pressing them into mini muffin tins with my nifty little tool from Pampered Chef. I think I prefer this method of mini tarts instead of the tart pans that I am used to using. Although they aren't quite as nice, the prep time is so much less.

Lime Curd
2/3 cup sugar
3 eggs
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
2 T. fresh lime zest
4 T. unsalted butter
Whisk sugar and eggs together until lighter in color and the sugar has
begun to dissolve. Mix in lime juice and zest. Cook over medium heat, while whisking constantly, until butter is incorporated. Continue cooking until mixture begins to thicken. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Cover and refrigerate until mixture is set. Can be made up to 1 week ahead.

This is the recipe I have used since I began cooking seriously at thirteen. It comes from the Williams Sonoma cookbook series, this one from the "Pies and Tarts" book. It is very crumbly, so shape the dough by pressing in wax paper or parchment. This recipe is easy using a food processor.

Pastry Crust
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 Tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, chilled, chopped
2-4 T ice cold water
In a food processor bowl fitted with a blade, mix flour, salt and sugar together until combined. Add butter. Pulse in short bursts until mixture resembles oatmeal size peices. Add water one tablespoon at a time until, pulsing 2-5 times in between tablespoons, until mixture is moist enough to hold together. The dough will be crumbly. Dump mixture onto parchment paper or wax paper and press together into a thick disc. Place in a plastic bag and refrigerate until firm, no less than 1 hour.
Prebake crusts at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes.

Meat Mishaps

So for all of you who think I cook four course meals every night, here's a story you might enjoy of our weekend entrees.

Saturday night: The Plan. I had some nice spicy Italian Sausage from a reputable grocer that was going to nicely complement my husband's love of pasta. We were going to have a delicious spicy ragu. As I sauteed the meat, my sensitive nose was turned off by the smell. I tasted it and it tasted like pork sausage. Knowing my tendency to dislike raw pork, I had the Sous Chef taste it. My husband said: "It's fine". So I proceeded. I finished the meal completing the pasta dish with a nice fresh lemon zest and black pepper and placed our two pasta bowls on the table. We prayed. We tasted. I couldn't stomach it. Then the opinion at the table changed. The Sous Chef recanted and decided it had a decided funny aftertaste. So we picked through the beautiful sauce and ate the pasta and pushed aside the meat.

Sunday morning: I awoke with a start. I realized in my early morning dozing that I had taken out the steak for our Sunday dinner and left it out. Now, in most states this would be okay. But not in Arizona. Even with our "change of seasons" where the monsoons have cooled off our desert surroundings, it is still hot. No amount of A/C can account for a steak left out to thaw. So here we go again. We are going to cook this steak: to WELL-DONE and try it.

Not my finest meat moments.

Oh baby...

Yes, I've noticed that my friends have all decided to have babies before me so I figured I should start trying too.. that is, trying to find reasons to answer that inevitable question: "So..when are you all going to start trying?"

First, my husband reminded me that no matter what, my first role is always being fulfilled as a daughter of God. Then, I also am completely fulfilling God's purpose for me by being a wife. Sometime I am tempted to get focused on what I don't have, or what I think God is not providing for me, as if He is withholding blessing from me, but it is not true. There is no moment in our lives when we are not fulfilling His purposes. We can however stray from them, especially in my case, by complaining (see the Israelites).

On a lighter note, here is an article I found on msn.com on why I need to be childless (at least for now) for all you moms and moms-to-be:

Why You Need at Least One Childless Friend
Of course you love your mom buddies, but it's still a good idea to hang onto the pals you had before kids or to make some new ones whose lives don't revolve around the playground and naptime. Here's why:
-Childless pals link you to your former life. They bring out interests and passions that may have been dormant for a while; you get so used to thinking of yourself as a mom, you forget that you are also an artist, book lover, and runner.
-You need a break from 24-7 kid thinking. It's easy to get so caught up in your baby's world that you don't take time for anything else. Some dishing on adult life (even if it's only Brad and Angelina gossip) can be a wonderful mental break from diaper duty and potty training.
-They offer perspective. Listening to your friend discuss the trials and tribulations
of the dating scene (the grass isn't always greener) may make you appreciate
your life a bit more.
-They admire your baby without giving advice. Childless friends tend to lavish attention on your little one without feeling the need to offer theories on sleep or feeding. Plus, it's just plain fun to watch them enjoy each other.

Fun Jobs

Here's a picture of me and two little "students" I took around the hospital the other day...some of the education I do is fun!

Tucson

Yes, we're back from another vacation. This past weekend, instead of going to Flagstaff for Together '07 (which was cancelled), we joined our friends, the Ross', on a trip down to Tucson. We enjoyed a resort at the summer prices and low summer capacity for two nights of kings beds, cooler pools and shopping. (The boys would add cable tv and Man vs. Wild-- we basically couldn't find them every afternoon because they were watching it again.)

And of course...what vacation would be complete with out eating. (Rachel don't read... we don't want to make you more nauseous :) Here's the Roadfood Report: Apparently the place to go for breakfast in Tucson is a greasy spoon called Jerry Bob's. What a name! and what a great little spot! It was the kind of place full of "specials" written on a whiteboard above the window open to the kitchen. Coffee was served in old brown 70's earthenware mugs and all the tables had some formica or vinyl. We all choose to partake of the diner classic: we all ordered some form of eggs and hashbrowns. The hashbrowns were great--soft but perfectly golden and crispy on the outside and my egg white mushroom and swiss omelet was delicious. It was a great way to meet the locals too. The fire department was parked outside on the sidewalk table and there were old and young alike lined up for tables for a hearty Saturday morning breakfast. It was a true small town feeling-- We even ran into a friend of Becky's. Everyone of course oohed and awwed over the baby-- who could help it? Becky glues a pink bow onto her forehead almost every day-- no one can resist that!

The next day we tried something on the other end of the spectrum-- a white table cloth brunch at a placed called Bluefin where I enjoyed Blueberry Ricotta Pancakes and everyone else enjoyed some form of eggs benedict. The boys had a version called Lobster Eggs Benedict that was delicious.

But probably best of all were the people we shared our meals with. Being around the table with our friends, Matt and Becky as well as Becky's family, reminded us of the Lord's generosity to give us such wonderful friendships. Every one of the Lambros' have a wonderful way of making you feel like family and Matt and Becky model it as well. We are so grateful for their generous spirit and love. Thanks friends!