Friday night begins when I get home from school on Thursday afternoon...
I make my own pizza sauce - deep, rich, amazing, simmers for 4 hours...
and I make my own pizza dough - rises for 3 hours.
There is something so fulfilling about getting to 'almost' the end of the week and making something that clearly we can buy. But it tastes so gooooood I never ever would!
And while the dough rises and the sauce simmers I think of how one more day of teaching and then we can breathe. (and eat)
Scott take my sauce and my dough and makes what we call "pizza bread" - custom breads that we all love. I adore mine stuffed with bell peppers, spinach, mushrooms. Anna loves "test of courage" (he takes chicken we've cooked during the week and it soaks overnight in a sort of sweet & really hot sauce he invented) and Abigail loves sausage. We all love broccoli.
And that is how our weekend (always and forever) begins.
We have the most amazing bagel store near our house
Whenever we have kids (including teens) over for brunch - besides all of the yummy brunch type food (bacon, quiche, french toast) I love to have out these little boxes of cereal - so fun!
I served apple crisp tea.
And a new recipe - I love to make a yummy, seasonal hot beverage: this was the pumpkin spice latte and you've GOT to make one! Fall in a cup!
1. Mix together 2 heaping tablespoons of canned pumpkin, 1 tablespoon of brown sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice.
2. Into each large mug put the mixed pumpkin mix (above) I like to heat the mugs first with boiling water and then dump the water out. Heating the mugs makes all the difference.
3. Fill the mug halfway with coffee.
4. Fill to the top with hot milk, whisk.
5. Top with whipped cream and a sprinkle of nutmeg.
Dinner planning can be daunting sometimes. I know deep down that if I don't plan our food ahead of time nothing goes well. Scott is a great cook! He can 'wing it' by stopping at the grocery store, picking up a few things, and come home to make a fabulous, flavorful dinner. I can't do that. Never have been able to. I need a plan, a recipe right in front of me.
There are several ways I've planned in the past. When I was home full time I had more opportunities to go to the store so I didn't need to worry as much. But now that I'm teaching again and life is full with these growing daughters of mine I plan out all of the dinners for the week: Monday through Friday. (usually on the weekend we have a bit of a different plan going on)
Keep in mind that all of our dinners need to be allergy safe for Abigail, so we eat DAIRY free, SOY free, PEANUT free, TREE NUT free, FISH free, SHELLFISH free in our home.
Most of the recipes in any cookbook or online aren't tailored to meet our allergy needs so when I read recipe I 'keep it':
if I think it can be altered (if it calls for milk, I use Hemp milk)
if I can make it for us and then make a substitute for Abigail (I don't like to cook with her allergy safe 'cheese' so sometimes if a recipe is heavy on cheese I'll make it for us and make a separate mini one for Abigail with her 'cheese'
Having allergy safe dinners might seem overwhelming (it did to me 10 years ago) but now I automatically read a recipe and see if I can adjust it so we can all eat the same thing or if I should make it and then make a whole separate one safe for her. And a lot of recipes just 'don't work' for us because of allergies so I ditch those and move on. I'm so used to it now that it's simple as can be!
So back to how I plan dinners! This is not rocket science. It's a simple plan that works for me. Here's what I do to make sure we have dinner in our home:
I read cookbooks for fun. I love all kinds. I used the internet too but I like a cookbook in my hand most of all. I like to read cookbooks when I'm not planning meals. I just like skimming through them. It's not a task, it's just one kind of book I like to read. My favorite ones are seasonal (gooseberry patch, susan branch, etc)
I put a little sticky flag on a recipe that might work for us as I go along
I stack these up in a little pile on the dining room table right next to where I keep my planner ready to go
Now it's dinner planning/gotta grocery shop time - and all of the 'work' is already done! I simple open up a few of the cookbooks (or printed online recipes) I have right there and plan them in my planner, write out the ingredients, and done!
Some home/family 'chores' are just no fun at all. I find that when I take time to make something pretty, and do a bit of the 'work' ahead of time, it makes making that list and planning those meals so much easier and more enjoyable.
If you don't like planning out all of your meals one of the biggest tips I can give you is to 'read' cookbooks (or if you're an online recipe person, search online and bookmark or print out) ahead of time. Ahead of when you actually need to be planning. Trust me, it is so much more enjoyable that way! And it can actually be fun and exciting to finally cook those meals you read about!
This year it's Music Man. She got the part of Amaryllis! Have you seen the 1962 movie with Robert Preston and Shirley Jones? I love old classics. If you do too, see Music Man, I promise you'll love it.
I haven't been taking rehearsal pictures but I will soon! Here's a little clip of my Dad working with her today. Trying to get her to be sticky sweet in her part.
Being in my Dad's show is an amazing opportunity. To be in a show, well that's so much fun. Singing, dancing, learning... it's all good. But having that special time with your Grandfather? It's priceless!
I have to admit, I don't like 'sharing' her for a few hours each morning so I've set up relaxing "time with me" routines in the afternoon as much as we can. Right after lunch the three of us head to the family room. I bring a cuppa tea and we read. Each our own book. We sink into our 'same spots' and relax. I love it! Having 'readers' is actually a mommy dream come true for me and I count my lucky stars that I have that special afternoon time with my girls each day.
Abigail is reading this...
Anna is reading this...
And I am finishing this today. (It's kinda silly to read this in the summer when every day feels wonderful but it's like studying for that busy school year)
Anna has a joke waiting for Abigail each day when she comes in from musical theater.
And this week are playing a lot of My Little Pony.
This week for dinner we loved an Italian chili
and crispy on the bottom, skillet cornbread!
I've had time to try new recipes. I'd rather be baking than anything. Many days there are 'must dos' that I ignore because I just have to bake. I have to substitute ingredients many times for Abigail's allergies. And this is one of the best recipes that worked well with the switches. Most of my chocolate chip cookies are flat because I can't use butter but this oatmeal chocolate chip recipe came out so good!
Do you keep a few glasses in the freezer? Warm cookies, ice cold milk is Anna's dream.
We were going to keep the tub in the bathroom renovation (and get it refinished) but decided the day before the dumpster left to get a new one.
The dumpster left yesterday and as it pulled away I kinda felt a mix of sad and panic. I LOVED having it and cleaning everything out. Guess how many strollers we had in the attic? SEVEN! Yup! SEVEN!
I love summer. I love that my focus is my family. And food (working on gaining weight... I'll get to that post soon). And fun.
The best part of summer is being with my girls. And having time.
I love to bake all year long. But during a rushed school year I often don't like extra help in the kitchen. I could be better at that (and do plan on having Anna in the kitchen with me more during the school year) but I love how the summer we spend so much time together.
This week Abigail and I made cinnamon muffins with a yummy glaze (so they tasted like a cinnamon roll)
She did a great job!
We had an iced tea party in the afternoon.
Yesterday Anna made lunch for all of us. I love her enthusiasm in the kitchen!
Her club sandwiches were AMAZING!
We've got recipes marked and plans for Anna to make lunch 3 times a week. I love my daughters home with me!
When summer was approaching I made a list of things in our house that needed some attention. Closets too stuffed, clothes to go through, things like that. And then when the girls had their last day on Monday I put that list aside and decided that being with them and making memories was the most important thing in the summer.
I love day trips with them. I love vacation too of course. But I love days at home that just happen. Long hours of reading. Lots of good food and the feeling of summer. We cleaned up a bit of our book piles on that first day of summer so that they are ready to go.
I cleaned up my recipes cabinet too. I love reading cookbooks and planning good food for my family to eat.
Here's a bit of what has been in our house the past few days.
Lots of fresh ingredients. Lots and lots of leafy greens. And the crockpot is so great in the summer. Set it and enjoy the rest of the day.
I love sweet potatoes roasted in the oven but I love them in crockpot in the summer.
Blueberries and strawberries these days... practically free. Buy one, get two free!
I eat a lot of green and drink a ton of green lately. More on my health and my journey with food when I get the chance (or the courage)
Reading and tea, the perfect mix. Yes, I drink tea in the summer.
I'm reading the new Steven Curtis Chapman book. I read Mary Beth Chapmans' book "Choosing to See" and loved it. Scott and I have seen Steven Curtis Chapman in concert many many many times over the years. And his story of adoption certainly played a part in our lives. We are involved in his ministry, "Show Hope" and was so excited when he wrote this book !
Joyce Meyer, always reading one of hers.
And the recipes in Susan Branches Girlfriends book look so good. I'm making a list!
Anna's books this week. She wants to relax and be little again I think. Sounds good to me!
and her knitting not too far away... it's summer!
Abigail's reading...
Yes, it's going to be a wonderful summer. With food and books all set, we are ready!!!
