52 Meals, 52 Countries, 52 Weeks - Japan

I'm a bit behind when it comes to blogging right now since my laptop cord decided to die on me. Finding time on my husband's computer when he's not using it and I actually have time is not an easy task. Despite the fact that I haven't been updating, I have been recording our kitchen adventures. Which brings me to...

Japan! This was Tiernan's first country of choice, and I have to say there were no complaints from me. I love everything about Japan - the people, the scenery, the way of life. Just take away the dolphin slaughtering and you have a perfect place. ;)

For our meal we could have made sushi, but that's a regular occurrence around here, so we went with some Udon Noodle Soup, a Wakame Salad and some Pockys for dessert. Originally I wanted to make an adzuki bean dessert, but my local ethnic food store was completely out of them. Soooo, we opted for one of the kids' favourites - Pockys! Unfortunately you can't get any of the fun flavours here in Belleville, but a Pocky is a Pocky. Dinner was definitely a success with all three kids devouring every bit of it. Tiernan loved it all the same, Rhianna loved the salad best and Avery loved the soup best. Those three are always so different from each other. :) I find the flavouring in Japanese food makes me feel awake and alive!

In Japan you typically sit on the floor with your feet tucked under you, in front of a low table. We don't have any such table, so we sat around a games table with the legs down. Haha, not exactly authentic, but it still did the trick. We were very careful when it came to the Japanese dinner rules - like never leaving your chops sticks sitting inside your bowl, and never using them to point at anyone or anything. To eat the soup we read that we were to eat the noodles and mushrooms (etc) with the chopsticks (slurping welcomed!) and then drink the broth. Feet are to be resting under you, and never pointing out at anyone else. With our dinner we served loose leaf green tea and I think this might have been the kids' favourite part. We made sure to follow the Japanese tea customs as well. For instance, you should never ask for a drink. If you would like some tea and no one has served you any, you can fill up everyone else's cups before topping up your own. It is polite to top up anyone's cup if they have room for more tea. If you don't want any more to drink, you simply leave your cup full. It took some getting used to, but by the end of dinner the kids were all serving the whole table. Fun! The only Japanese words we learned for this was "itadakimasu" which they say before eating which means "I receive" and "gochisousamadeshita" at the end of dinner meaning "It was a feast".

Wakame Salad

10 oz dried wakame

4 tbsp rice vinegar

2 tbsp sesame oil

4 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp ginger, grated

1 tsp sugar

2 large cloves garlic, minced

3 green onions, slived

1 tbsp white sesame seeds

1/2 tbsp black sesame seeds

Place the seaweed in a large bowl and cover with water. Soak for 5-6 minutes until it's tender and tripled in size. Drain.

Meanwhile, combine the vinegar, sesame oil, ginger, sugar, garlic and green onions. Stir until the sugar dissolves.

Toss the seaweed with the dressing and let it sit at least 10 minutes allowing the tastes to mingle.

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Udon Noodle Soup

1 package of dried mixed mushrooms

4 slices of ginger

3 cloves garlic, minced

1400 ml of water

2 tsp sugar

1 tsp salt

4 tbsp soy sauce

4 tbsp sherry

4 single serve packs of udon noodles

2 chopped green onions

Mix the mushrooms, ginger, garlic and water in a pot. Bring it to a boil and simmer for about 10-15 minutes until the mushrooms are rehydrated. Add the sugar, soy sauce and sherry and simmer another minute or two.

In the meantime, cook the udon noodles in a separate pot of boiling for 5 minutes. Drain well.

Divide the noodles among the individual bowls. Ladle some of broth into the bowls to cover the noodles. Top with some green onion and serve.

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Pocky! :)

We now have two countries coloured in on our Asian map! Such fun!

Back to school and some yummy grub!

Farewell, Summer 2011. You've been good to us (if not a tad bit too warm .. hehe), and we appreciate all you did for us.

The kids headed back to school this morning a ball of nerves and excitement. Avery started grade 7, and when I remember how I was in grade seven, I start to panic a little. Ha! He has the same teacher he had last year and is super pumped about it. Last year he was in a split class, so all of the kids in his sixth grade class are in the same class again this year. Pretty cool for him. This evening he came out to run a couple of errands with me, and it was just the two of us. I caught myself just standing there watching him at times. His maturity level is astounding to me. He offers me help without being asked, he has conversations with me that make me realize he sees things from a more grown up view point. He's spent a lot of time lately talking about his plans for the future - where he wants to go to University, what he wants to study, what kind of life he wants to lead. My Cheeky Charlie is growing up! Sniff, sniff.

Tiernan started grade five today. Five! Even Avery is having a hard time wrapping his head around his little brother being in grade five. Tiernan has a supply teacher right now because his teacher was held up in Africa where she's been building schools over the summer. He enjoyed his supply teacher, loves that most of his closest friends are in his class this year, and can't wait to hear the stories his teacher is sure to bring back with her. He's in a grade 5/6 split which I think will be really good for him because he's a smart cookie, that one. :) I was a bit worried he wouldn't enjoy this year because he had a fantastic teacher last year and really wished he could stay in her class forever, but so far so good. I have my fingers crossed that it will continue being a good year.

Rhianna, like Avery, has the same teacher she had last year. This is a good thing! A very good thing! She has the absolute best teacher my kids have ever had (and they've had some pretty darn good teachers!). At the end of grade 2 (she's in grade 3 now!), he pulled me aside to ask if it was okay for her to be in his class for a second year in a row because he doesn't normally do that and I practically yelled "YES"! He helps her feel excited and happy with school. He's taught her so much - above and beyond the typical school things. I have no doubt in my mind that this will be as great for her as last year was.

Our back to school dinner was deeee-licious! I actually didn't expect it to be because it was sort of an easy meal, but ohhhh my. YUM. I even saved some leftovers for myself. I never do that. Ever! (Okay, only potato dishes... which this is... and lasagna.) I made a potato casserole with cheese and mushrooms (which doesn't look like much, but is so good!), a two cheese salad with homemade croutons, some tofu marinated in Kobe Tamari Garlic sauce and some leftover lemon poppy seed bread that we made in the bread maker yesterday. Mmm mm mmmmm!

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Potato Casserole with Cheese and Mushrooms

3 large baking potatoes, peeled and sliced thinly

1 tsp salt

3 tbsp olive oil

2 cups sliced mushrooms

3/4 cup parmesan cheese

1 onion, thinly sliced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 cups shredded mozzarella (or more)

Preheat the oven to 350.

Toss the sliced potatoes with half of the olive oil and half of the salt.

In a separate bowl, toss the mushrooms with the parmesan cheese, onion, garlic, thyme and black pepper and remaining salt.

Grease a casserole dish and layer 1/3 of the potatoes over the bottom of the dish. Top with half of the mushroom mixture and 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat with potatoes, mushroom mixture and mozzarella. Top with the last of the potatoes, the last of the mozzarella cheese and the remaining parmesan cheese. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil.

Bake for 40-45 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

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Two Cheese Salad with Croutons

3 thick slices of Texas bread

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp garlic powder

2 tbsp olive oil

1 large romaine lettuce, ripped into bite sized pieces

1 ripe avacado, cut into small pieces

2 tbsp juice from a lemon

freshly ground black pepper, to taste

lots of feta cheese

lots of parmesan cheese

balsamic vinegar

olive oil

Preheat oven to 400.

Cut the bread into cubes, and put them on a baking sheet. Drizzle them with olive oil, and sprinkle them with paprika and garlic powder. Bake 7-8 minutes until crisp.

Toss the avocado with the lemon juice and black pepper. Toss it together with the romaine lettuce, feta cheese, parmesan cheese, and croutons.

Make some basic balsamic vinegar dressing using the ratio of 3 parts olive oil to 1 part balsamic vinegar. Mix well and drizzle over the salad.

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And for a bit of cuteness... awww. These two are best buddies!

One of these days things will slow down.

August 2011 is officially nearing it's end. It has felt like a lifetime, and yet, a quick moment at the same time. It never ceases to amaze me how that can happen. Throughout the month, in my complete exhaustion, I felt it would never end. Closing Night for Oz felt like months or years away. Rhianna's dance camp that lasted every night of the first two weeks of August felt like it happened 3 months ago. But, when Closing Night was finally upon us, I was sad. Why did it have to come and go so quickly? Why did the journey have to be over so soon? I felt like I hadn't had the chance to truly enjoy it yet. The last show was incredible. Tiernan really grew into his characters as the weeks passed, and we were blown away. The whole cast was even more amazing than Opening Night and I found myself getting more than a little weepy on multiple occasions. At the end, when the entire room stood up at the very start of the final bow, I had to choke back real tears. As we waited around the back of the theatre for all the munchkins, we parents agreed that it felt like a minute, and a year. We all agreed that we were looking forward to the week of down time before school starts up again, but that it was sad to say farewell to Oz, and all the people who helped make it such a magical experience.

I waited a bit anxiously for my boy to come out for the last time. Would he feel sad and disappointed that it was over? But the minute I saw him trip up the stairs (literally!) from the dressing room and I saw the sparkle in his eyes, my heart was at ease again. He was so completely happy. He came out of there hooting and hollering, saying that this experience he had just lived through was incredible! He ran into the green room to say goodbye to the professional actors and the wonderful behind the scenes crew. He danced up and down the streets with such a lightness about him. He felt on top of the world! I am so proud of this Tiernan-guy of mine. ♥

My poor blog has been quite ignored this summer. I feel so neglectful. I'm sure things will become much more regular once our September routine rolls around. I worked Friday straight through to Tuesday, so Kyle was left to make dinner for us on Saturday and Sunday. My folks took it upon themselves to make a delicious veggie lasagna and a crazy fresh garden salad with apple crisp for dessert for Monday. Saturday was closing night, so it was an easy dinner of caesar salad and grilled cheese with smoked maple tempeh bacon. Sunday my husband made a very yummy Fiorentina Baked Pasta from 101 Vegetarian Dishes that I had been dying to try. He had it ready for when I got home (talk about role reversal!) and I appreciated it so much! That night we had our Date Night In with some sinful Mushroom Canapes (which started out from Simply Appetizers, but I changed a fair bit) and more episodes of LOST. We are so predictable! :) Tonight I made a Pesto Pasta Bake from Half Baked Gourmet Pasta that was unbelievably good! So good I ate two helpings.

Fiorentina Baked Pasta

1 tbsp olive oil

1 lb mushrooms, sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

salt and pepper, to taste

10 oz spinach and cheese dip (we used a simple recipe - to follow)

1 cup milk

3 oz parmesan cheese, grated

10 oz orzo pasta

Heat oven to 350.

Heat oil in a wok and add the mushrooms. Cook for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook another minute. Season with salt and pepper, and place in a shallow ovenproof dish sprayed with cooking spray.

Mix spinach dip, milk, half the parmesan cheese and the pasta in a bowl. Stir and season with pepper. Pour over the mushrooms in the container. Top with the remaining parmesan cheese.

Bake 45 minutes until pasta is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed.

Spinach Dip

(leaves lots left over for snacking)

10 oz package of chopped frozen spinach, thawed

16 oz sour cream

1 cup mayonnaise

1 package of Knorr vegetable soup mix

Mix it all together, and chill for a few hours.

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Mushroom Canapes

30 cremini mushrooms, finely chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

2-3 garlic cloves

1/2 cup mayonnaise

3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

white pepper, to taste

1/2 cup asiago cheese, grated

butter crackers (we used Ritz)

Saute the mushrooms in oil until tender and liquid has cooked off. Put them in a bowl and combine with the rest of the ingredients. Mix well and serve warm.

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Pesto Pasta Bake

1 large bag of rigatoni (900 g)

1 batch of Jill's super fabulous yummy pesto sauce

1 1/2 cups whipping cream

salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 ball of fresh mozzarella, diced in small cubes (important to use the good stuff!)

2 cups parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 350.

First make a batch of pesto.

Cook rigatoni according to package directions, until al dente. Drain well and place pasta in a large lasagna pan.

In a separate bowl, mix together the pesto, whipping cream, salt, and pepper until well combine. Pour over the pasta and stir well. Top with the fresh mozza and parmesan cheeses.

Bake 10-15 minutes until brown and bubbling. I broiled mine for a couple of minutes to brown.

An epic fail becomes an epic win!

This weekend had been full of rich, delicious, delightful food. MMmmm.

I was supposed to make some pumpkin chocolate chip muffins (adapted a bit from Vegan with a Vengeance) on Friday night, but as I went to measure out my cane sugar I was 1/4 cup short. That was enough to make me decide I should wait and make them the next day. Haha. So after getting our three paper routes done (last day for one of those routes!) and taking a little nap (love!), I whipped them up so they were cool enough to enjoy when we got back from our library and work (mine) visits.

Dinner last night was so amazingly good. I made the Lentil Mushroom Sliders from Chez Cayenne with only a couple of small changes, along with a Mediterranean Pepper Salad that I found on Eat Me, Delicious that I only tweaked slightly, and some yam fries. Can you say yum? Yeah, I thought so.

Since it was date night in, I decided to use up the leftover canned pumpkin I had from the muffins and made a Chocolate Pumpkin Pudding Cake from Vegan Dad that I'd been meaning to try for months now. The kids gobbled up all the leftovers for dessert after dinner tonight. Haha.

Tonight I started out making a pasta I found in a Vegetarian Times magazine, but it was an epic fail, so I completely morphed it into something incredibly satisfying. The kids couldn't get enough of it, and Tiernan named it Pasta Sauciola. :) We had the pasta with a piece of whole wheat toast and some leafy greens.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

1 3/4 cups flour

1 1/4 cups sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp ground allspice

1/8 tsp ground cloves

1 cup pureed pumpkin (fresh or from a can)

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 tbsp molasses

1 cup mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375. Lightly spray a dozen muffin cups (it made 18 for me) with cooking spray.

Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice and cloves. In a separate bowl, mix together the pumpkin, milk, vegetable oil and molasses. Mix the two together and combine it well. Add the chocolate chips.

Fill muffin cups two thirds full. Bake for 18-20 minutes.

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Lentil Mushroom Sliders

2 tbsps olive oil

1 cup onion, finely diced

4 oz cremini mushrooms, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup green lentils, washed

2 cups vegetable broth, divided

1/2 cup quinoa

1/3 cup walnuts

2/3 cup rolled oats

2 tbsp ground flax seed

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp sage

1/2 tsp oregano

1/4 tsp thyme

1/4 tsp salt

Heat oil in a saucepan. Add the onion and cook 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook another 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute another 30 seconds. Stir in the lentils and one cup of vegetable broth. Bring to a low boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes until the liquid is absorbed and the lentils are tender.

In a small saucepan, heat the second cup of vegetable broth with the quinoa. Bring to a low boil, reduce heat, cover and cook 15 minutes until quinoa soaks up the broth.

Pulse the walnuts in a food processor until they become powdery (works best with frozen walnuts). Transfer to a medium sized bowl and add the oats, flax seed, soy sauce, spices and salt. When the quinoa has been cooked, add that to the bowl as well.

When the lentils are cooked, pulse gently in a food processor leaving it quite chunky. Add to the bowl with the rest of the ingredients.

Form the mixture into small slider sized patties and cook on an indoor grill.

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Mediterranean Pepper Salad

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup cold water

1 tsp salt

2 tsp sugar

1/2 red onion, diced finely

3 bell peppers, diced (I used orange, red and green)

3 roma tomatoes, diced

3 baby cucumbers, diced

1/4 lb feta cheese

salt and pepper, to taste

In a glass measuring cup, mix together the vinegar, cold water, salt and sugar. Leave it out for a bit until the salt and sugar dissolves. Cut up the red onion and put it in the dressing to soften and sweeten.

Chop up the rest of the veggies, and put them in a bowl. Add the feta cheese. Remove the onions from the dressing and add to the bowl. Now add 1/4 - 1/2 cup of dressing over the vegetables. Season with salt and pepper.

It can be served immediately, or chilled for a while to let the flavours mingle.

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Chocolate Pumpkin Pudding Cake

1 cup flour

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup cane sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp allspice

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 cup pureed cooked pumpkin

2 tbsp milk

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1/2 cup chocolate chips

1/2 cup cane sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1 1/2 cups boiling water

1 tbsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Get a few cups of water boiling.

In one bowl, mix together the flour, brown sugar, cane sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and ginger.

In a separate bowl, combine the pumpkin, milk, oil. Mix the two bowls together. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Place in an 8x8 pan sprayed with cooking oil.

Mix together the brown sugar, cane sugar and cocoa powder. Pour it over the top of the pan. Pour 1 1/2 cups boiling water over the top, but do not stir. Add the vanilla.

Cook for 40-45 minutes until the top is cracked and firm. Let it cool for a bit before serving.

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Pasta Sauciola

450g spaghetti, split in two thirds

cooking spray

4 cups vegetable broth

1 1/2 cups water

1 large can tomato paste

1 tsp red chilies

1/8 tsp saffron threads

1 tsp basil

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp olive oil

4 oz cremini mushrooms

5 cloves garlic, minced

1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

5 cups spinach, roughly chopped

4 oz cream cheese

2 cups mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350.

Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray and add the spaghetti noodles. Spray top lightly with cooking spray. Cook the spaghetti noodles for 5-7 minutes, shaking the tray a couple of times to toast evenly.

In a medium sized saucepan, bring water, vegetable broth, tomato paste, chilies, saffron, basil, oregano, salt, and pepper to a boil. Turn the heat to low and simmer, keeping it warm.

In a large pot, heat the olive oil. Add the mushrooms and cook for 5-7 minutes, until browned. Add the garlic and stir another 30 seconds. Add 3 cups of broth, and cook until the liquid has absorbed. Add the rest of the broth mixture, the chickpeas and the spinach. Cover, and cook until most of the liquid has absorbed, and the spaghetti is cooked. Add some more broth if needed. Add the cream cheese and mozzarella cheese, and stir until thoroughly melted.

Date Night In with a Cashew and Mushroom Pate.

It feels like I'm never cooking new blog-able food anymore! It's kind of sad. It's been so terribly hot here lately that cooking meals that require the oven or effort sounds painful. Since I last updated we had caesar salad one day, taco salad another day, and then tonight... my husband made crepes! Oh, how I love crepe night. I worked my first full shift on my own today. I opened and closed the store and I have to say I really kind of enjoyed it. I missed my family, but it was fun to organize books, tidy books and leaf through (mostly cook)books. I'm a list person... I make soooo many lists. I have so many notebooks for various different things. One is for shopping lists, one is for menu planning, one is for recipes, one is for budgeting, one is for trip planning, one is for to do lists... you get the idea. I love lists. Working in a bookstore is like bliss for me! The paperwork, the filing of books... I can't get enough of it!

At any rate, it was strange to be gone all day from my kids. I called home at one slow point and it was so nice when I got to hear all the kids emphatically yell "Hi Mummy!" through the phone. Awww, I love them so. It was also really nice to have Kyle making dinner for me for a change. I didn't have to do anything! But of course, I did decide to make our date night food. :) We're cuddling up to watch some Lost and the movie 'Charlie Saint Cloud' while chowing down on some Cashew and Mushroom Pate that I found in my June 2008 issue of Vegetarian Times magazine.

I'm so lucky, I get two men to share my date night with. :)

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Cashew and Mushroom Pate

1/2 cup cashews

1 1/2 tbsp margarine

4 cups mushrooms, sliced

1/4 cup chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp curry powder

1/4 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp salt

2 tsp sherry

2 tsp chunky peanut butter

Preheat oven to 350.

Roast the cashews on a baking sheet for 7-10 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally.

In a wok, melt the margarine, and add the mushrooms, garlic, onion and spices. Cook for 10-12 minutes until the mushrooms are golden and the liquid has evaporated. Add the sherry and cook for another 1-2 minutes.

Add the mushroom mixture, peanut butter and cashews to a food processor and mix until smooth. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours.

Mushroom Fettucine & Spinach Salad

I have been cooking with a lot of sherry lately, and I have to say that I just love the flavour it adds to certain dishes. I buy actual sherry vs. the cooking sherry, so it's a bonus since we can also drink it. ;)

Tonight I made a Rachael Ray pasta dish (with sherry!) and a spinach salad that I got from my friend Jill's blog (who got it from a friend of ours, Amanda).

Mushroom Tetrazzini

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp butter

1 lb white mushrooms, thinly sliced

1 tsp dried thyme (or 2 tbsp fresh thyme)

salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

5-6 large garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup sherry

1 cup cream

1/2 freshly grated nutmeg

1 cup parmesan cheese

1 cup peas (I used some I got at the farmer's market - yum!)

1 box fettucine noodles

Cook the pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, melt the butter and oil together and add the mushrooms and thyme. Cook for 10-12 minutes until the mushroom are golden. Add the garlic and season with salt and pepper. Add the sherry and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the cream and nutmeg. Add 1/2 cup of starchy water from the cooking pasta and the peas. Bring to a boil and simmer for a few minutes until the peas are cooked. Stir in the parmesan and noodles and toss to coat.

Spinach Salad

4-5 cups of spinach

1/2 cup sliced dried apricots

1/2 cup craisins

1/2 cup slivered almonds

1/2 cup feta cheese (but we didn't have any so I used mozza)

dressing:

3 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp honey

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tbsp poppy seeds

salt and pepper, to taste

Blend the lemon juice, honey, olive oil, poppy seeds and salt and pepper in a food processor. Pour over the rest of the ingredients and toss to mix.

Date nights, appetizers, breakfast for supper, birthday lunches and decorating cupcakes!

This weekend, like most weekends, has been busy. It's been worth it, though. I live for weekends! Having our whole family together... exploring, visiting, playing, or just doing nothing.

Friday night found Rhianna and I on our own since Kyle took the boys to Goodsell Collectibles to play some Friday Night Magic. Originally Rhi and I were just going to hang out at home, but then I read (on Facebook - what did we ever do without Facebook??) that the Kelly's Irish Dancers were performing at the Waterfront and Ethnic Festival. Awesome! We got there as quickly as we could and headed over to the pavillion just in time. We bumped into Tiernan's teacher from the past year which was a nice surprise - I adore her! The kids dancing were incredible. I love, love, love Irish dancing. I also love Celtic music... it's so comforting for me. Rhianna really wanted to join this dance school on top of the dancing she's already doing with Angela Maracle Studios, but the lessons clash with her Acro class so it's a no-go for now. Maybe next year. She took some Irish dancing when she was super small and was complimented back then for her toe points so I'd like to see how she'd do now. :)

After the Irish dancers finished we wandered around the rest of the festival together. I had told the kids there would be no rides this year because the wrist bands are way too much money when you have three kids. Buuuuuuuttttt.... since Rhianna and I were on a date and it was her birthday weekend.... ;) I bought her enough tickets to go on two rides. We fleeted from ride to ride, measuring to see which ones she was tall enough for this year. She was happy to find out she was tall enough to go on almost all of the rides of her own (except for that darn hang-glider that she has so desperately wanted to go on for two years now! She is *so* close, too.). She chose Zero Gravity (as seen in this picture.. that's her with the yellow shirt and striped skirt) and a Cobra roller coaster. Seeing that smile on her face was so worthwhile! She gave me many hugs and thank yous and told her this birthday weekend was the best ever. Awww. She bought herself some mini donuts and I treated her to a game where she was guaranteed prize. After we got home we cuddled together with a glass of rootbeer, a big blanket and some game shows. It was a perfect date night!

Saturday was mostly a get things done sort of day. We've been having some issues with tiny little ants coming into the house so we needed to deep clean our kitchen (where they were coming in). As per the advice of a friend, we moved all of the food out of our kitchen and it's now in boxes in our basement. Convenient? No. But necessary? Yes. Luckily they hadn't spoiled any of our food! We found a few on the outside of our clover honey, but that's all they touched in our pantry. Under the pantry, though... we found a red sucker... in a package... half eaten by the ants! There was probably a good 20 or so ants stuck in the package! It was so gross. Since clearing that out, along with the rest of our food, we've had far fewer ants in the house. I have my fingers crossed that this is going to work. After our de-ant-ing, we cleaned the house, bathed the dog and then I settled in to watch 'The Blue Butterfly' with the kids while Kyle took a much needed nap.

For dinner I made waffles, mango smoothies and chocolate waffles. The kids were delighted! What kids don't love breakfast for dinner? :) I got the recipe for the waffles from The Garden of Vegan years back, and we like them so much we don't really try other recipes. I did, however, decide to try a new recipe that I found in my September 2010 edition of Vegetarian Times magazine. Dessert waffles! I found them a bit too sweet - I can't handle anything that's too chocolatey (weird, I know!). The kids sure enjoyed them, though! The boys pretty much wolfed them down the minute they hit their plates. How the heck are we going to feed them as they continue to grow? Ahhh!

Nummy Yummy Waffles

1 cup rolled oats

1/2 cup flour

1 1/4 cups soy milk

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp maple syrup

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking powder

Grind the oat flakes in a food processor until coarse. Add remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. Spoon into a well oiled, hot waffle iron. Repeat until the batter is gone.

Mango Smoothies

(enough to feed my family of five)

1 bag frozen mangoes

milk - read for amounts

4 tbsp yogurt

2 tbsp honey

3 tbsp flax seed

Empty the bag of frozen mangoes into a blender. Add milk until you reach the 750 ml mark. Add the yogurt, honey and flax seed. Blend until smooth. If it's still to thick, add a bit more milk. Continue until the desired consistency is reached.

Double Chocolate Waffles

chocolate sauce:

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 cup maple syrup

2 tbsp unsweetened soy milk

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

waffles:

1 1/3 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

2/3 cup unsweetened soy milk

1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

5 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

3 tbsp vegan chocolate chips

1/3 cup dark brown sugar

1/4 cup canola oil

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

icing sugar, for dusting

To make the sauce, whisk together the cocoa powder, maple syrup, soy milk and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat until smooth. Lower heat, but keep warm.

Whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. Whisk together the soy milk and apple cider vinegar in a glass measuring cup. Let it stand for 10 minutes.

Combine cocoa powder and chocolate chips in a bowl. Whisk in a 1/4 cup of boiling water into the mixture, and blend until smooth. Whisk soy milk mixture into the chocolate mixture. Whisk in brown sugar, oil and vanilla. Whisk in the flour mixture.

Cook on a pre-heated, well oiled waffle iron. Once they are cooked, top with a tbsp of the chocolate sauce and dust it with icing sugar.

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Saturday night also brought us an unexpected date night in. Our internet connection has been terrible and sketchy lately. We're going to have to call Bell to come out and make a house call because I'm pretty sure our router is on its last limbs. Oh well, looking on the bright side is always a good idea - Kyle couldn't do any of his contract work OR his podcast. Instead we feasted on some spinach and artichoke cups that I got from my 3 in 1 Vegetarian cookbook (and altered slightly) and watched many episodes of Lost together. So addicted! Kyle really liked the appetizer that I made, but I was a bit iffy. I loved the inside of it, but would have preferred it without the wonton shells. I just ate them by dipping some pretzels in and leaving the shells. Ha!

Spinach-Artichoke Party Cups

non-stick cooking spray

24 3-inch wonton wrappers

1 jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

5 oz baby spinach, wilted in a pan

1 cup grated monterey jack cheese

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/2 cup mayonnaise

2 cloves garlic, minced

Preheat oven to 300. Spray the cups of a mini muffin tin lightly with cooking spray. Press 1 wonton wrapper into each mini cup, and lightly spray with oil. Cook for about 9 minutes, or until lightly golden brown. Remove the shells from the pan and place on a rack to cool.

Combine the artichoke hearts, spinach, cheeses, mayo, and garlic in a medium bowl and mix well.

Fill each wonton cup with the cheese mixture. Place the filled cups onto a baking sheet. Bake about 7 minutes until heated through. Serve immediately.

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Today my beautiful Rhianna turned eight years old! I still remember very vividly when Avery turned eight and I couldn't believe I had a child who was already eight years old. And now here I am with my baby at eight! How did this happen? She's an incredible little girl, though. She never ceases to amaze me with her determination and capabilities. Everyone who meets her falls in love with her. The more you get to know her - the more you'll fall in love! Her smile lights up the world. Her laugh makes my heart sing. I don't even know what life was like before her. I love that little girl so much!

We headed out to visit my parents and hold her family birthday out there. Rhianna had requested a barbeque for her birthday and seeing as we don't have one, we opted to use theirs. :) Lunch was delicious, the cupcakes she requested were a hit (and perfect for a BBQ!) and she felt like the princess she should feel like on her birthday. She got some great gifts, and we had fun testing out her new karaoke machine!

Lunch at Rhianna's request consisted of portobello mushroom burgers (altered from the July/August 2009 edition of Vegetarian Times), BBQd potatoes (a la Kyle - baked in the microwave until soft, sliced in half, butter spread on, and sprinkled with Montreal steak spice and seasoning salt and then BBQd), corn on the cob and fruit salad with all of Rhianna's favourite fruits.

Smoky Portobello Burgers

9 small portobello mushrooms, stems removed

olive oil

1/4 cup light brown sugar

5 tbsp sweet paprika

2 tbsp freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp coarse sea salt

3 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp celery seed

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

2 medium vidalia onions, thinly sliced

1/2 tsp rosemary

1/2 tsp thyme

1/2 cup prepared bbq sauce

1 cup shredded smoked cheddar cheese

hamburger buns

Toss mushrooms in a bowl with some olive oil (enough to coat) and the brown sugar, paprika, black pepper, sea salt, garlic powder, celery seed and cayenne pepper. Let it sit for a while.

Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan and add the onions, rosemary and thyme. Cook, slowly, for 30 minutes until onions have caramelized and are golden, soft and sweet. Remove from heat.

Heat the BBQ and coat the grill with oil. Cook the mushrooms, stem side down, and brush the tops with BBQ sauce. Cook 3 minutes until tender. Flip and grill another 3 minutes. Add the smoked cheese to the centre of each mushroom and cook for another 30 seconds.

Toast the buns on the BBQ, put some barbeque sauce on the bottom bun, add a mushroom, some caramelized onions and the top bun. Enjoy!

A delicious fruit salad of Rhianna's favourites - watermelon, canteloupe, honeydew melon, Bing cherries and purple grapes. :)

These are the cupcakes that I whipped as per Rhianna's request! Corn on the cob! :) How perfect are these for a BBQ birthday? They looked so cute and were so simple to make - bonus! :)

A few more photos because I just can't help myself...

Candles all lit - eight little candles, and a number 8 for good luck!

I hope all your wishes come true, baby girl. Now and always.

A few of my recipes from the past couple of weeks.

As promised earlier, a post with food in it! I didn't take many pictures from our dinners, but here are the ones that I did take.


There's no real recipe for this one, but I had a picture, so I thought I would share. :) I made this pasta sauce, but added a can of chickpeas to the pot. I cooked up the pasta of choice, mixed it together with the sauce, and covered it with a blanket of mozzarella cheese. Then I cooked it until the cheese began to brown a bit. This is Kyle's favourite.

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These are the muffins I make for Summer Solstice every year. The white of the cake symbolizes the light of the long days and the chocolate chips symbolize the little bits of dark night that are sneaking in ever so slowly. The kids just love them. I got the recipe from the book Circle Round: Raising Children in Goddess Traditions. I get many of our Pagan ideas from that book. I think it's my favourite book of all time.

Summer Solstice Muffins

1/2 cup butter, softened in the summer sun

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups all purpose flour

pinch of salt

2 tsp baking powder

1 cup milk

1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.

Cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat the eggs in, one at a time. Add the vanilla. Mix the flour, salt and baking powder together, making sure to mix well. Add half of the flour mixture, and half of the milk. Mix well. Add the remaining flour and milk and continue to mix well. Add the chocolate chips.

Bake in cupcake cups for 25 minutes.

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These? They were sinful! We had them for Date Night In this week and we both ate too many. These are not exactly low in fat and calories, but so so so so good. YUM. I got them from my Vegetarian 3 in 1, but altered them a tad bit.

Creamy Mushroom Cups

2 tbsp butter

6 oz cremini mushrooms, chopped

1/4 tsp salt

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp dry sherry

1/4 cup whipping cream

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

6 frozen filo party shells

chopped fresh parsley

Cook the filo according to package directions.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the mushrooms and salt and cook for 3-5 minutes until tender. Add the garlic and cook another 30 seconds. Add the sherry and stir to blend. Stir in the whipping cream, and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened a bit. Add the parmesan cheese, stir and cook until melted.

Fill the filo pastry with the mushroom mixture. Sprinkle the top with some chopped fresh parsley and serve immediately.

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Slow cooked curried veggies are pretty regular in this house during the busy days. It needs a full day to sit and cook, and I love it for that. The vegetables tend to lose their bright colours in the slow cooker, but it's still delicious. I usually serve over a bed of basmati rice and a side of Naan bread.

Slow Cooker Curried Veggies

3 carrots, sliced

1/2 green or red bell pepper, chopped

2 zucchinis, chopped

a couple of handfuls of green beans, trimmed and halved

1 cup frozen peas

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 can diced tomatoes

1 1/2 cups vegetable stock

1 can coconut milk, well mixed

3 tbsp curry powder

Put the veggies, chickpeas and canned tomatoes into the crockpot.

Combine the stock, coconut milk and curry powder until well mixed. Add it to the crockpot and stir it up.

Cover and cook for 10 hours on low.

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This was my first time making this pasta from Vegetarian 3 in 1 (altered a little). It was a huge hit in our house, though I would have liked a bit more punch to it. I served it with a simple cucumber salad and Harvest Herb Bread (recipe to follow).

Pasta with Spinach and Ricotta

12 oz box of tri colour fusili pasta

1 tbsp olive oil

10 oz baby spinach

5 cloves garlic, minced

300g ricotta cheese

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1/2 cup cooking water from the pasta

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Cook the pasta according to package details.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet (I used a wok). Add the spinach and garlic and cook about 5 minutes until the spinach has wilted. Stir in the ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and water. Stir to combine. Season with the salt and pepper.

Add the cooked pasta to the skillet and stir to combine. Serve immediately.

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I made this bread from How it all Vegan, but then I de-veganized it by using regular old cow's milk. I also changed it a bit (surprise!). It was crazy yummy. Nohing like fresh (quick) bread.

Harvest Herb Bread

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp marjoram

1/4 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp basil

1/2 tsp thyme

egg replacer to equal 1 egg

2 tbsp sugar

4 tbsp vegetable oil

3/4 cup milk with 1 tsp vinegar added

Preheat oven to 375.

Mix together all of the dry ingredients while the milk and vinegar sit to sour. Add the oil and milk and mix until "just mixed". Pour it into a lightly oiled loaf pan.

Bake for 20-30 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

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I know I missed more than that, but it's a start. Trying to get back to my normally scheduled blogging now. ;)