Saturday, November 28, 2015

Thanksgiving Menu

I know, I am late. . . . . . however, my to do list was long and yesterday was too nice to stay inside.

This year's menu:

Hummus
Pickles and Olives
Homemade Challah
Knishes from the Butcherie (Beef Knishes and Kasha Knishes)
Pigs in a Blanket
Canned Cranberry Sauce
Cranberry Orange Relish
Pickled Cranberries
Turkey
Gravy
Tuscan Beans with Sage from Moosewood
Stuffing
Sweet Potato with Marshmallow
Cauliflower and Carrots
Stir Fried Veggies
Green Beans with Crispy Shallots from Kosher By Design



And dessert:
Fruit
Apple Pie from the Pie and Pastry Bible
Pumpkin Pie from the Pie and Pastry Bible
Candied Cranberry Chocolate Tart from Bon Appetite 1999
Mae's Chocolate Pie
Maple Brownie with White Chocolate Chips
Chocolate Brownies
Rugelach
Pumpkin Bread

Friday, November 6, 2015

Two Thumbs Up!

Last night I made two dishes that I had not made in at least 13 years.  I made a wonton dish and a scallion pancake dish, both from the Vegetarian Times Asian and Fast Cookbook.  Please don't tell my kids they ate mushrooms!  Made Alton Brown's classic rice recipe too, which was fabulous.

Mushroom and Black Bean Wontons
1/3 cup water chestnuts
4 oz. firm tofu
8 oz chopped mushrooms
3/4 cup chopped scallions
2 T black bean sauce with garlic
Wonton wrappers
1 T canola oil
Hoisin sauce

In a food processor, put the water chestnuts, tofu, mushrooms and scallions.  Blend til chunky.  Put in a bowl and add the black bean sauce.

Assemble the wontons!  Put a small bowl of water on the counter, and wet all four sides of the wonton wrapper.  Put 1 teaspoon of filling in and form a triangle.  Wrap all wontons.

In a nonstick skillet, heat oil and add 8 wontons (they should not touch each other).  Cook three minutes and flip.  Cook an additional 3 minutes.  Continue til all wontons are cooked.  You can keep them warm in a warm oven.

Scallion Pancake
1 1/2 c flour
1 t salt
1/2 cup + 1 T hot water
1/2 cup chopped scallions
1 1/2 t sesame oil
1 T canola oil

Place flour and salt in food processor.  While running, add water until dough almost forms a ball and then add scallions.  Process until a ball forms.  Knead by hand on a flour board for 1 minute.  Let rise for 10 minutes.

Roll dough on a floured surface into an 8 inch square.  Brush with sesame oil.  Starting at the end closest to you, roll the dough into a right jelly roll.  Slice into three equal parts.  Roll each one on a floured board into a 6 inch oval.

Heat 1 t. of the oil in a non stick skillet over medium heat.  Place one oval in the skillet.  Lower heat to medium- low.  Heat for 4 minutes.  Flip and heat for four minutes.  Cut into triangles.



Thursday, November 5, 2015

A Day in the Life

Back when my kids were younger, Adam and I were constantly juggling. . . . pick up and drop off, and dinner time and bedtime.  The best nights at home were when we all ate dinner, we cleaned up (I cleaned up the kids and he cleaned up the kitchen) and we were both home for bedtime and then we got our alone time. . . . . . at 8 PM.

Fast forward a few years, and now we have an 8th grader and a 4th grader. . . .  My new routine is waking up at 4:45 AM so that I can walk a mile on the treadmill before my day really gets started.  This new routine is proving to me that I can squeeze in a few minutes for exercise every day, and I feel good about it!

Then I take a shower, and start getting everyone else up, one by one - first Adam, then the 4th grader and then the 8th grader.  After I am dressed, and everyone else is on auto pilot getting dressed (I hope), I make everyone a lunch to bring to school or work.  We all sit down to breakfast together, and then I am the first to leave. . . . and I get to work . . . . and use our treadmill desk to check my email and get myself organized for the day.

If I am lucky, at lunch I can take a walk . . . . and this week has been beautiful!  Not sure I will be doing this in 20 degree weather in January.

Then we all start coming home (depending on the day), and hopefully by 6:30 PM we are sitting down to a homemade healthy dinner.  And then any unfinished homework is done, and the 4th grader showers and gets ready for her 8:30 PM bedtime.  My 8th grader goes to bed at 9:30 PM.

And if I am lucky, I can go to the gym (I won a one month membership to a fancy gym) and either swim or use the elliptical, and then come home. . . . and if Adam and I are lucky we get 30 minutes of alone time, before I fall asleep.

Even though Adam and I get our chunks of alone time at strange times, I realize that in a few short years, our oldest will be in college and your youngest will be in high school.  The diaper days are behind us, and these current years are the years we drive them around to their activities.  However, I can see from neighbors and friends that the kids grow up, and leave the nest. . . . and then a new schedule starts.