Baby "G"

My sweet baby nephew "G".

The "P" Family

Thanks to my cousin for asking me to take her family pictures this year.

I love, love, love this picture of my cousin and her husband. :)

You might recognize Baby "P" from this shoot.

Whole Wheat Waffles

My husband went out with a friend tonight so I asked Dolphin what he wanted for dinner. He asked for breakfast dinner. Perfect time to experiment, I thought. I pulled out my grandma's cookbook and turned to my favorite waffle recipe. Then I tweaked it, and they turned out great. I hope you enjoy them too. (Sorry no pics, we ate them too fast!)

Whole Wheat Waffles

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 tablespoon organic sugar, or sucanat

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1 tablespoon aluminum-free baking powder

2 organic eggs

1 1/2 cups almond milk (or milk of your choice)

1/3 cup virgin coconut oil, melted

Mix all together in a bowl. Cook in waffle iron until done.

I was surprised by how well they turned out. They will be a new family favorite.

Chickpea Quinoa Pilaf

I was looking for something easy and nutritious to make for dinner last night and got side-tracked looking through a newsletter from the local health and nutrition store. I found a recipe for Chickpea Quinoa Pilaf. It sounded good (and easy, and nutritious) so I gave it a try. My husband and I loved it. The kids liked picking out the chickpeas. :)

We started dinner out with this salad:

Romaine Lettuce, torn

Carrots, sliced in discs

Avovado, diced

Mix in bowl and top with favorite dressing. I like to drizzle a little balsamic vinegar and add a bit of agave. Yum!

We ate the Pilaf with steamed broccoli.

This recipe originally comes from Veganomicon but I made a few changes. Here it is the way I prepared it.

Chickpea Quinoa Pilaf

2 tablespoons virgin coconut oil

1 small yellow onion, chopped finely (about 1 cup)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

ground black pepper, to taste

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 cup quinoa, rinsed well

1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

2 cups vegetable broth

In a small stockpot over medium heat, saute the onions in coconut oil for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for 2 more minutes. Add the tomato paste, cumin, black pepper, and salt. Saute for another minute. Add the quinoa and saute for 2 miutes. Add the chickpeas and broth and bring to a boil. Once the mixture is boiling, lower the heat to very low, cover, and cook for about 18-22 minutes, or until the quinoa has absorbed all the water; stir occasionally. Fluff with a fork and serve.

Big Rabbit's Bad Mood

Several days ago the kids and I walked to the library.

One of the books we brought home was this one:

"Big Rabbit's Bad Mood" by Ramona Badescu

I actually laughed out loud while reading it to my son.

You should check it out.

Mmm, Mmm, Good

Every two months I get together with my mom, sisters, cousin, and aunt for Sister Saturday. I was in charge this month. Since my sister had a baby in January we decided to celebrate! We made a time capsule for baby G to open when he turns 18. I realized that I should have given everybody better instructions. I was very vague in the invitation. Oops! It turned out great anyway.

For lunch we had a delicious strawberry spinach salad with candied almonds and a strawberry/poppy seed dressing. I didn't think anything could replace my favorite dressing: Brianna's Poppy Seed dressing, but this did. I also made some asparagus soup. So yummy! I was planning on having crostini's as well, but burned them in the oven. My super sister ran to the store for another baguette and we had it untoasted. (Safer that way when I am involved!!)

For desert I made these cupcakes. Oh, my. It was a party in my mouth when I bit into them!

If you have never been to bakerella.com, you should spend a bit of time there. My goodnesss, she has some great recipes! If only I could come up with the recipes that she does on my own. Until then, I will borrow them.

Okay, back to the subject...

These cupcakes are sooooo good. What are they you say? Get ready, the title is a mouthful...

Double Chocolate Zucchini Cupcakes filled with Chocolate Ganache and Topped with Creamy Goat Cheese Frosting

Double Chocolate Cupcakes

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup cocoa, natural unsweetened (I used the cocoa in my cupboard - something I picked up at the grocery store on sale)

1 tsp baking powder

1 1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

1 1/4 cups sugar

2 eggs, room temperature

1/4 cup oil

1 tsp vanilla

1/3 cup whole milk, room temperature

1 cup shredded zucchini

3/5 oz. Valrhona semi-sweet chocolate bar, chopped in chunks (Ghiradelli's semi-sweet baking bar worked great for me!)

1. Preheat oven to 350* F

2. Line cupcake trays with 18 baking cups.

3. Stir together flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt with a wire whisk. Set aside.

4. Cream butter with a mixer in a large bowl. Add sugar, eggs, oil and vanilla one at a time, mixing well with each addition.

5. Add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture in three additions, alternating with the milk in two additions (flour, milk, flour, milk, flour).

6. Stir in the zucchini and chocolate chunks until combined.

7. Fill baking cups 2/3 full and place in oven immediately.

8. Bake for 15-18 minutes

Creamy Goat Cheese Frosting

5 oz. Ile de France goat cheese (I bought a log at Costco and was able to make two batches from it)

3 oz. cream cheese, room temperature

3 cups confectioner's sugar, room temperature

1/2 tsp vanilla

1. Sift sugar and set aside.

2. Beat the goat cheese, cream cheese and vanilla in large mixing bowl until creamy.

3. Gradually add the sugar, mixing and scraping down the sides of the mixing bowl in between additions.

Chocolate Ganache

2 oz. Valrhona semi-sweet chocolate bar, chopped in chunks

1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

3/4 cup confectioner's sugar

1. Place chocolate and whipping cream in the microwave. Heat in 30 second intervals, stirring in between until melted. Blend thoroughly.

2. Add sugar and stir until thoroughly combined.

3. Pour ganache into a small plastic squeeze bottle.

To assemble:

Insert opening of squeeze bottle halfway into cupcake center and squeeze ganache until you see it start to surface. (I didn't have a squeeze bottle so I used a decorating bag and tip.)

Then, spread creamy goat cheese frosting on top with a knife or small offset spatula.

Use any leftover semi-sweet chocolate pieces to sprinkle on top of cupcakes.

She has a recipe for red velvet cake that I may have to try soon. I don't really like it, but my in-laws are big fans of the cake and are always looking for a good recipe.

The Beach

My Honey and I went to Venice Beach for the weekend...

the kids stayed home.

Sorry kids!

Maybe next time.

More Cali Pics HERE.

Me and my Honey.

(Don't look too close, we had been in the car all day.)

Will You Be Mine?

My son had his preschool Valentine party today. I saw these robots here and thought they would be fun to make. Dolphin signed his name on the back and drew all of the mouths on. He also made sure that I didn't burn my fingers with the glue gun.

We were pretty pleased with how they turned out.

He's Gone

My husband and I sold our puppy last night. You might think we're mean, but "he's in a better place." The kids are not heartbroken. They were excited to finally have the easels they were given for Christmas brought upstairs. They spent the whole day "creating".

Patterns are Totally Overrated

I drive my husband crazy. I get all of these hair-brained ideas of things I can create because I've "seen it somewhere". I get home and try to figure out how to make it, thinking it will take no time at all because it looks so simple. I do this frequently enough that my husband now asks, "Wouldn't it be easier to follow a pattern?" This question usually comes after I've sat at the dining room table trying to sketch out my own pattern (I can't draw), have cut and recut the pieces several times to get them just right (I tend to cut the fabric the wrong direction resulting in me sewing the pieces back together and praying that it won't look too silly), and have unpicked stitches (okay my husband usually does the unstitching for me), the whole process taking several hours MORE than I had planned on.

Yes, it probably would be easier to follow a pattern and sometimes I do: quilts (for the most part), aprons (unless I think a little tweak would make it better), etc. But where is the fun in that?

I decided to make my niece a doll that I had seen on the internet somewhere. "That can't be that hard to make!" I drew up a pattern, realized the legs and arms were WAY too small and made new arms and legs. Then I had to figure out the order of sewing it together. My skills in dishwasher loading (I'm an expert at it - ask anyone that knows me well) came in really handy at that point. I did it the first time without a hitch. Sewing the face on was an experiment. I don't do embroidery, so I just sort of made up a stitch.

Isn't she cute? I hope H likes it as much as I do.

My sister (H's mom) calls her the "Voodoo Doll".

Hmmmmmm....