Car Dilema

So, if you haven't been fortunate enough to experience a ride in the "Burb" or Ol'Betsy as I like to call her, you might be counting your blessings. It is the commuter catch all, 4 kids ranging in ages from 7 weeks to 12 years, although we rightfully cannot displace any of the messiness towards the newborn, but going back and forth from places on a daily basis has definitely taken it's toll on the vehicle we use to tow our family around.

I would have to say the turning point in the "Burb" was our road trip to Montana, which by the way was one of our best road trips EVER, but pulling a 6000lb trailer over 2000 miles and our family around seemed to sap what little life Ol'Besty had in her. It was also on that trip almost a year ago when we realized out newly repaired windshield had a leak in it, which to date we haven't made the time to go repair. Why, is a whole other story. Now Ol'Betsy rides like a cart on rails, you feel every minute bump, rock or crack in the road, her doors creak and moan and the side steps do show every 170,000 miles she has been driven. Her best speed, where there is little vibration or hum, is between 65 and 70 mph. Not to mention she gets a whopping 9 or 10 miles to the gallon. Filling her up has gone from $70 to a full tank to well over $100 in the two years of ownership. 

Why you ask do we hang on to her for dear life? You know I honestly don't know. We could very easily go out tomorrow and trade her in, but that would mean several things. First off, the quandary of what type of vehicle to replace her with. Then there is the inherent cost of owning a new vehicle. The endless money pit, the immediate deprecation after driving it off the lot - 30% or more, the monthly payment in addition to the gas bill and insurance. The latter I do not mind at all. The first well, does annoy me a little. I do enjoy the idea of having only one car payment and don't like being overly excessive in vehicles. After the excitement of owning a new vehicle wears off will we be back to our old habits of an occasional stop at some fast food drive thru, only to have Elliott throwing his highly nutritious meal all over the back of the vehicle? I don't know. Do I want to know? Not really. So here are some of the positives of Ol'Besty, she's fully paid off. I do not want to own a minivan- one of the three vehicle choices for a family our size. She can be obliterated by the two year old and I will not freak out. Plus, I do believe her humming keeps the baby asleep - it's almost sounds like being in the womb. So for now, unless we have an immediate change of heart, Ol'Betsy is here with us for better or worse. HA HA. 

My Babies!!!

Since the arrival of Erik it has been no stop GO, GO, GO here at the Honeycutt household, it is amazing some days we make it out of the house everyone dressed and ready for the day in time. I tell ya running out of the house at 7:20 in the morning with a groggy two year old and a new born is not as easy as it sounds! Amazingly we have gotten quite good at it. 

Malia is such a great big sister and the biggest helper when it comes to both Erik and Elliott. Elliott has had some funny or not so funny mornings depending on my mood getting out the door. There was the morning he thought he was going to his Dama's house (grandma's) and he had to bring his sleeper and blanket - ok no problem we can swing that! There was the morning where he wanted to be in Erik's carseat and no matter what I told him it wasn't good enough and there was the the morning where he decided to run all over the house saying NO, (he didn't want to leave) and when we finally got him out to the truck he was jumping into the third row of the Burb. Malia and I spent about 5 minutes climbing all over the burb trying to get him into his carseat. Nothing like your early morning workout! Well, enough about the morning routine. 

Malia is in the Highest Honors club at her school for her academic success in Port Susan! We are so proud of her, she has come such a long way academically - the last year or so has been so challenging for her. She has also become the biggest book worm! The series of books she loves to read right now is by Erin Hunter. She will read a book or two every few days. We are so proud of her! If you haven't had a chance to sit and chat with Malia in sometime she has the most amazing sense of humor... She has me laughing over things I normally wouldn't see humor in. I love my bebe!

Speaking of great successes, we went to Rolando's first parent teacher conference this last Friday, we are so lucky to be in the school district we are in. His teacher, Ms. Crimin says she is so thankful to have such an amazing student in her class. He didn't skip a single beat transferring from Sand Lake to Cederhome Elementary. He has also made the honor roll and is on his way to becoming the classes Math Man! He loves his math! Rolo is the really the sweetest boy any mom could ever ask for. He is extremely thoughtful and thankful, always saying please, thank you or just asking how your day went. He knows how to put a smile on my face!

My Big E, our newest nickname for Elliott, he is just such a ham now days. He is such a little man, he loves tinkering around with tools - his and his dads both. I tell ya, he is all boy inside and out! The little rough and tumble turt will be outside knee deep in mud (we still have our organic backyard) and loving every single bit of it. He has adjusted so well to having little Erik in his life - the first few weeks, I didn't think he was ever going to come around to actually acknowledging his little brother. Now we have to peel him away from Erik, he loves to kiss his feet and his toes! It is the sweetest moment to watch. 

Speaking of Erik - he has grown so fast! I swear the little stinker is nearing 13lbs or so. All the milestones seem to be zipping right past up one after another. I feel like a robot checking them off, but it is so neat to watch him grow. You almost forget how fast they grow up, but just looking at Elliott, Rolando and Malia, reminds me to enjoy each milestone as they pass. So here they are he is sleeping through the night, he can hold his head up for a few minutes now, turning to look for voices he hears and he has also rolled over one way several times from back to belly, but not from belly to back yet, all the smiling and cooing he does. I LOVE HIS DIMPLE and that little chin! I swear I'll blink and he won't be a baby anymore.

Back at 100%

Well, I think I am 99.9% sure I am back at 100% since having baby... lol... When you come to that realization after giving birth it is such an uplifting feeling. Yesterday, I felt as if I was on top of the world and I knew today was going to be amazing. You know what it? It was!

We woke up without power this morning, but thankfully we have a gas stove - so pancakes it was for breakfast. Elliott LOVES pancakes the size of his head, and Steve or Daddy O makes the BEST pancakes ever. We sort of took our time getting into our rhythm this morning, without power it was next to near impossible to jolt ourselves awake with coffee. Although, right when we were going to make a cup of tea - it's almost as if the God's knew it would not suffice! WALAA! We had power again - so there we were the early birds awake at 7:30am, Steve, Elliott and I having our pancakes and cups of joe. (Elliott has baby coffee - a splash of coffee, creamer and almost a full cup of milk).

As we were getting ready for the rest of the day and we decided to venture out into our garage - the last time we spent a significant amount of time in that space was right before Christmas getting the decorations out, the time before that was back in September - when I tried fruitfully to clean before Jefe and Sally came over to help us paint (I didn't get very far and Steve kept telling me to stop) and the time before that had to have been when we moved. SO needless to say we had a lot of organizing to do! Steve in all his genius - had the garage whipped into shape in no time flat. He had everything organized so quickly and neatly we almost wondered why we hadn't done it sooner! We have a goodwill pile, craigslist pile, garage sale pile, recycle pile and dump pile. Piles galore, but ever so neatly done! It was so amazing seeing our garage, tools in their proper location on the shelves, garden equipment in their rightful homes, all the tools for the lawn hanging on the wall - WOW, I really could go on and on about the garage being clean. 

While all the organizing goodness was taking place I whipped up some Company Casserole and some chocolate chip cookies! YUMMY! With our bellies full and goodies to snack on after dinner we were able to settle down and finish watching NASCAR - I have just recently become a fan of Dale Jr. It was a great race and Dale is running in the top five... ROCKSTAR status! 

After the race Steve and his endless amount of energy went and hung some more curtain rods. Malia and Rolo cleaned their rooms - to spotless perfection! WOHOO! We were extremely productive today. It feels so good to have our on going projects being completed. I believe spring is in the air and we are ready for it! Also, little Erik slept almost all day long in his swing - only getting up to nurse! He must be going through a growth spurt!

What Doesn't Kill You Will Only Make You Stronger.

Well, it has been well over a year since we (I) last posted. We have been extremely blessed in this last year. Our prayers have been answered in more ways than one. Can you believe it will be 5 years since Steve met Malia and Rolando? We cannot believe time has passed that quickly. The most amazing news came our way Christmas Eve. We were on our way to the Children's Mass at St. Thomas Moore, when we had a message from Lori Colbert our amazing lawyer, she told us the babies father had agreed to everything we had submitted to the courts and we should have custody of the kids after a few formalities were taken care of! Our prayers from Steve's amazing family, my amazing family and ours as parents had been answered. It may have taken some time, as we know God is busy tending to those who need him the most, and What Doesn't Kill You Will Only Make You Stronger.
Wow, did it ever test us though. We learned so much as a couple, as parents, how to be a supportive cohesive team, how to function when it seemed we were taking 5 steps back to every one step forward. All would not have been possible without the loving support of our friends, our family and each other. It is feels so refreshing to have a chapter in your life completely closed with no loose ends. It means so much to Steve and I, we can finally be together as a family. Elliott loves his brother and sister so much, it was extremely painful this last August to say goodbye to the babies when they left for AK. Elliott was so confused running though the house yelling "ROLO", "LIA". Now we talk to him with so much anticipation and excitement, he knows something big is going to be happening here really soon!
Speaking of "BIG" things happening, this May we found out we're expecting again! So, now here we are at 32 almost 33 weeks along in the pregnancy and our little Erik is creating quite the fuss. He like his BIG brother Elliott has decided he wants out a little earlier than both our doctor and we would like. If we can at least hang on till the beginning of February, that way we know for sure his little lungs will function on their own, we will be the happiest parents alive.
So, we also have an amazing new house and zip code. Our location is now Stanwood, WA. Stannnn a whoo? We are in a little slice of heaven, I swear we are on the tip of the banana belt here. It could be raining in Lynnwood and WOHOO! We have sunshine pouring through our windows. It is a little crazy to think 35 miles would make that big of a difference. Stanwood also has one of the highest rated school districts in the state! We can't wait for M and R's big arrival, it means school functions, getting to know people in our community and actually taking the time to get out and met some other parents our age.
I know more has taken place in this last year, we have so many things to be thankful for, but sleep calls!

Puttanesca... Need I say more?

A good pasta sauce, this one stands out from the crowd. I remember making this sauce for my other parentals - Ron and Sheri - one lazy Sunday. Football was on for the boys, and baby Elliott was spending some time with Grandma Sheri. The intensity of the flavors coming together, perceived by everyone in the other room came as a shock, I believe. I had finished sauteing the onions and the garlic had just been added. It produced this sweet yet pungent aroma which filled our home, in a good way of course. Especially if you LOVE garlic. Well, it was a great meal loved and enjoyed with amazing company. It is a staple in our house, for sure, the ingredients always on hand. We love it with penne or rigatoni.

Puttanesca Sauce - By far my favorite pasta sauce!

1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 c finely chopped onion - 1 small one
6 cloves minced garlic
2 (28oz) cans diced tomatoes
1 cup tightly packed chopped Kalamata Olives
2 tbls Tomato Paste
2 tbls Capers
2 tbls minced Anchovy Fillets - trust me NO ONE even knows they are there! hehe
1/2 t crushed basil
1/2 t dried crushed red pepper flakes
salt to taste

Heat a large stock pot heat oil over med - hi heat. Add Onion and saute until soft and caramelized about 10 min. Add garlic and cook an additional 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and the remaining ingredients and simmer until the sauce has thickened and slightly reduced about 40 min.

Quick, flavorful meals...

I was looking through all my recipes and there are really no sections. If anything our recipes seem to revolve around time, anything that takes more than an hour in the kitchen is something we save for the weekend. Garlic Chicken is one of those quick and easy meals, no thought process and wow the flavors pack a punch!

Garlic Roast Chicken with Rosemary and Lemon
Preheat oven to 450*
2 1/2 lbs boneless skinless Chicken Breasts cut into large chunks (we typically cut them in half)
6 cloves of garlic (smashed with side of knife)
3 tbls Fresh Rosemary
3 tbls Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 lemon zested and juiced (reserve lemon juice)
1 tbls Grill Seasoning (we love Spicy Montreal Blend)
1/2 cup dry white wine or low sodium Chicken Broth <- love the chicken broth
Arrange chicken in 9x13 baking dish, add garlic, rosemary, oil, lemon zest, seasoning, stir around and evenly coat chicken. Roast for 20min. Leave pan in oven and add wine/broth and lemon juice. Close oven door and turn oven off. Let stand 5min. Viola! Dinner is done!

This is a family favorite, if I remember right it came from a restaurant on Elliott Bay here in WA... Trust me it is one the best ways to make taco's. Even if you are using your favorite store bought salsa, remember FRESH salsa in the deli section is always better than some Frit* L*y... You get the point I am trying to make right? It is the same reason I love ORGANIC, you can actually taste and smell the freshness.

Fish Tacos with two Salsas

Tomato Salsa
1 cup chopped seeded Tomato (about two med)
1/2 cup chopped seeded Yellow or Orange tomato (1 med) <-I can never find them so I use all red! LOL
1/4 cup finely chopped Red Onion
1 tbls chopped Parsley (flat leaf)
1 tbls fresh Lime Juice
1/2 t minced Habanero pepper <- I DO NOT LIKE THIS PEPPER can substitute. - My fingers felt like they were on FIRE for two days straight after using them!
1/2 t Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 teaspoon Salt

Mango Salsa <- OUR FAVORITE!!
1 cup chopped peeled Mango
1/2 cup chopped seeded peeled cucumber
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
2 tbls minced Jalapeno Pepper
1 tbls fresh Lime Juice
1 t Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/8 t Salt

Fish
2 tbls Lime Juice
2 t Olive Oil
1/4 t ground Cumin
2 Garlic cloves minced
4 (6oz) Halibut fillets
1/4 teaspoon Salt
Cooking Spray

Remaining ingredients
4 10in Flour Tortillas
1 cup shredded red cabbage
1/4 cup reduced fat sour cream
Lime Wedges

To prepare tomato salsa combine all tomato salsa ingredients in a small bowl, cover and chill at least 1 hour.

To prepare mango salsa combine all mango salsa ingredients together in a small bowl and chill at least 1 hour.

To prepare Halibut - combine all ingredients in a zip lock bag including the halibut. Marinate at lease 15 min. Turn once if needed. Remove fish from bag, discard marinade. Place fish on grill with coated cooking spray <- I recommend placing the fish in foil and then grilling. Halibut tends to cook fast in my opinion and flakes away, would hate to see it all end up at the bottom of the grill. Grill 4 min each side or until done. Flake fish into large chunks and set in bowl. Warm tortillas up in microwave or on the grill. Arrange tacos how you see fit!

Heart warming....

The nice thing about this soup it comes together rather quickly, the best part it is HEALTHY! This actually came from a Cooking Light Magazine last fall, I believe. I loved experimenting with food while I was pregnant, although I do have to say don't spring Spaghetti Squash as a pasta meal on a MEAT and POTATO loving man. This recipe is easy and it warms your belly! Enjoy

Pasta Fagioli Soup

This is an awesome lunch in the winter, it comes together really fast and freezes well.
12 oz Chicken Sausage - recommend something spicy/santa fe, Halved lengthwise and sliced
3 cups low sodium Chicken Broth
1/2 cup small uncooked seashell Pasta - or any small pasta
2 cups coarsely chopped Zucchini (about 2 small)
1 14.5 oz can of stewed tomatoes undrained
1 teaspoon dried Basil
1 teaspoon dried Oregano
1 15 oz can Kidney Beans, rinsed and drained
1/3 cup (1 1/2 oz) shredded asiago cheese * optional

Heat in a large sauce pan over high heat. Add sausage cook 2 minutes stirring constantly. Add broth and pasta, bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 4 minutes. Add zucchini and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes. Stir in Basil, Oregano and beans. Cover and simmer for another 3 min or until pasta and zucchini are tender. Sprinkle with cheese when done!




Chicken Picata

This is one of MY favorite chicken recipes in the whole world, I believe we snagged this one from Giada... Although not as healthy with all the butter going in. Still much the same, you could use more Olive Oil or even not use all the butter recommended. It is so good especially with Cheesy Orzo pasta...

4 skinless boneless Chicken Breasts halved crosswise
1/2 t Salt
1/2 t fresh ground black pepper
1/2 c flour for dredging
4 tbls unsalted butter - divided in half
2 tbls Extra virgin Olive Oil
1/2 c low salt chicken broth - have measured out
1/3 c fresh lemon juice - have squeezed before hand
1/4 c drained capers - have measured out
2 tbls fresh parsley * optional

Sprinkle Chicken w salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken in the flour and coat lightly.
In a large saute pan melt 2 tbls of butter with the 2 tbls of oil over med-hi heat. Add the chicken and cook until brown on each side about 3 min each side. Using tongs transfer chicken to a plate. Add the broth, lemon juice and capers to same pan. Bring the broth mixture to a boil over med-hi heat scrapping up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Return chicken to pan and simmer to cook through about 5-6 min. transfer chicken to a serving dish. Whisk in remaining butter to sauce in pan. Pour sauce over chicken and serve.

Elliott cuddling his monkey, the evening after he ate mass quantities with his cousin Oliver!

Elliott loving food at the Cabin in Chelan!

Roger, Me Tiger NOW!

It was such a gorgeous summer here in the NW. Here we are at the cabin in Chelan! Steve and his goofy faces...

Pictures... Finally

To Share or not to SHARE!!! NOT

Today, I thought, just maybe I will be generous...

1. I thought I might share a recipe.
2. I made the Chocolate Chip cookies.
3. Came to the realization - No one can ever know the recipe.
4. MUH HAHAHAHA!

Evil I know... Call it what you want.

Cobblers... To love

I love cobblers... Preferably Apple or Blackberry... I have two recipes I use quite frequently, depending on mood. The Apple Cobbler is great hot or cold. I prefer my cobblers plain, not dressed up with Ice Cream. I think it ruins the cobblers topping. Who am I to judge, though. I may be one in a million who thinks like this.
The Blackberry Cobbler is a sick love affair. Its like an accident you just can't keep your eyes off of, you become the gawker. Only it is filling your mouth and belly. hehe... With the blackberry I cannot contain myself, who waits an hour to let it cool?! Are you kidding me? Yeah, not happening, not in my household. Steve often wonders how we manage to maintain our weight. LOL. I honestly have no clue, genetics?
In every recipe I use unsalted butter, you have the ability to control the amount of salt going in and it's fresher tasting.

Apple Cobbler
Filling:
6 Pink lady Apples or Braeburn Apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1in pcs
1/2 cup Sugar
2 t Lemon Juice
I Vanilla bean (the contents of) or 1 t Vanilla Extract
1 1/2 t Ground Cinnamon
1/2 t Ground Nutmeg
1/4 t Salt

Topping:
1/2 cup Unsalted Butter
1 cup firmly packed Dark Brown Sugar
1/4 t Salt
1 cup All Purpose Flour
1/3 cup Quaker Oatmeal

Preheat oven to 350*. Mix the apples, sugar, lemon, vanilla bean or extract, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in a baking dish, mix well and set aside, I have an apple shaped one. Don't know the size but it fits rather nicely. I'll get back to you on that.
For the topping melt butter over low-med heat, remove from heat and stir in dark brown sugar, and salt. Add the flour and oatmeal and don't over mix - should still see some flour. Crumble the mixture over the apples. We live in a very humid area so it looks like a pliable cookie dough. Bake for about 55 min or until top is golden brown. Trust me, using a vanilla bean and fresh nutmeg is well worth it weight in gold. I love Pink Lady's they are not too sweet, but provide just the right amount of tartness. MacIntosh might work well too.

This recipe I received from my girlfriend Glory Rae - The most gracious host cooked for us on HER birthday. Got to love her, she is an amazing friend. One of those you thank to the ends of the earth for having in your life. She never forgets a birthday, to call or to write. Life is never too busy. I only wish we lived closer to one another! Well, she surprised me by mailing me this recipe.
As I was saying earlier, GR made us this dessert on her birthday. I kid you not, she substituted blueberries and strawberries or was it raspberries? I don't remember, I could not have enough of this dessert, she actually sent Steve, Elliott and I packing with the rest of it on our drive back into Anchorage, our 45 min drive back, there was none left. Now I have made this recipe in a two ways - equal parts blueberries, raspberries and blackberries and just as the recipe states with BLACKBERRIES. The results are consistently fabulous. This is a great dish to bring to a dinner part - understatedly elegant, to a BBQ great dish to top off with and to just eat all by yourself (I got it adjusted to make personal size cobblers in 8oz ramekins) Guilty pleasure by far.
She got this recipe courtesy Cuisine At Home. http://www.cuisineathome.com

Summer Blackberry Cobbler:
Toss together:
8 cups Blackberries
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup instant tapioca
Juice of half a lime
Pinch of salt

Combine; knead in:
1 cup All Purpose Flour
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
3/4 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Pecan halves
1/2 t Baking powder
1/4 t salt
1/2 cup cold unsalted butter

Blend in top:
1 egg

Preheat oven to 375*
Toss berries with sugar, tapioca, lime juice, and salt in a bowl. Spoon into a 2qt baking dish.
Combine flour, coconut, sugar, pecans, baking powder, and salt in second bowl. Using your fingertips, knead in the butter until incorporated. Mixture should look like coarse sand.
Blend in the egg, then arrange topping over the berries in clumps covering them evenly. Bake the cobbler for 45-50 minutes, or until topping is golden and crisp, and filling is thick and bubbly. Cool on rack for at least 1 hour before serving.

Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.. Food is always on the mind

I love thinking about what kind of meals we are going to have, especially during winter, our winter palate is so much stronger than summer. I love knowing it will be raining, the idea of curling up on the couch with a blanket and a sleepy baby, smelling a casserole, pot roast or crock pot working and having very little effort or time involved in making a meal. All this makes winters long dark days see more appealing. The scents wafting throughout our house, making our bellies rumble, tempting us to open the crock pot just to sneak a taste...
Alright already, getting hungry... Shopping at the grocery store is a fun pastime for me, my all time favorite grocery store is Central Market, just walking though the store entices my imagination. Fun foods like spaghetti squash - although if your husband LOVES meat - you might not want to just spring it on him, butternut squash, acorn squash and pumpkins are in full swing there now. Hehe... Growing up I have fond memories of Mum and Dad meal planning, we had just started lunch and Dad was asking Mum, what was for dinner that night... Food is a family affair!
Well, the best way to start your day off right is a nice breakfast, warm and filling. Not some cold dry cereal being reconstituted by your organic milk, I am talking about some fun light waffles, some raspberry-blueberry homemade syrup, double-rising blueberry pancakes or the ultimate turkey strata. All of the recipes can be done start to finish in 45min. The Strata can be made the night before and thrown in the oven the morning of.
My babes loves Waffles - These are as close to perfection as you can get, light and crispy - not the dense ones you get from the boxed stuff.

The BEST Waffle Recipe EVER for a Belgium waffle maker!

1 3/4 cup Flour
2 t. Baking Powder
1/2 t Salt
1 tbls Sugar
3 Eggs - separated (whites in another bowl)
7 tbls Oil
1 1/2 Milk
1 t Vanilla

Sift all dry ingredients together in a med bowl. Whisk all wet ingredients together - except egg whites. Create a little well in the dry ingredients, add the wet and mix thoroughly. Now with your egg whites, we are going to beat them! Beat them into shape that is, beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. By incorporating all the air into the egg whites we are in turn going to have light waffles. When your stiff peaks have formed, gently plop the egg whites into the batter, now DO NOT stir furiously, gently - slowly fold in the egg whites, with a large swooping motion, singing a song if you wish, maybe Row, row, row your boat... LMAO. Your batter will look frothy, this exactly what we want. Now fill your waffle iron with all its frothy goodness and ENJOY.

Berry Syrup - by far my favorite... I am a dipper when it comes to syrup, I don't smother my pancakes or waffles. I used to syrup proof my waffles and pancakes with peanut butter as a kid. I know WEIRD. WHATEVA... hehe. Steve smothers his pancakes and waffles with syrup. I still don't, BUT this is the only time I will go overboard and drench my waffles, or pancakes... these are the perfect berries so to say. They melt in your mouth and only improve on the above recipe and the soon to be down below pancake recipe.

Fresh Syrup
1 cup fresh or frozen Blueberries
1 cup fresh or frozen Raspberries
1/4 cup sugar
A tbls Butter, give or take
A little salt
Lemon juice
Cook all ingredients over low-med heat for 3-5 min. Adjust the sweetness and tartness with sugar and lemon. I am having a love affair with blackberries, so I highly recommend substituting at any time.

Pancakes.... SCHUMMY!

1 1/4 cup Flour
1 tbls Sugar
1 1/2 t Baking Powder
1 t Salt
2 Eggs
1 cup Milk plus 2 teaspoons lemon juice(let stand for a few minutes) or Buttermilk
1/2 cup Plain yogurt or Sour Cream
1 t Baking Soda
1 tbls Melted Butter

Sift together Flour, Sugar, Baking Powder and salt. In a separate med size bowl whisk eggs, add Milk, yogurt or Sour Cream and baking soda. Add the dry to the wet ingredients and whisk together. Stir in the melted butter. Set your skillet to 400 degrees. Drop batter by 1/3 cup on to hot skillet, flip when edges are golden and bubbles have formed on the top. Flip pancakes and continue to cook another 2-3 min. These are the lightest pancakes. Rolando and Elliott enjoy them plain. Malia LOVES a few blueberries tossed in!

Something about Strata, for the pickiest kids, they can't get enough of it. My kids and nephews looked at me a oddly the first time I made this breakfast for them. The all inclusive breakfast is UBER SNAZZY. It freezes well, too, if you have extra. I make this with turkey sausage and egg beaters, hehe, BUT I use half and half as well and sourdough bread sans crusts.

Turkey Sausage Strata
1 1/2 lbs of Turkey Sausage
4 oz of Egg Beaters or the equivalent of 4 eggs
1 t Sage
1/2 t Salt
1/4 t fresh Ground Pepper
6 - 8 pcs Sourdough French Bread, crusts removed
1 1/2 - 2 cups Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese


Spray your 9 x 13 pan with non stick spray. Preheat oven to 350* degrees.
Brown Turkey Sausage in a pan, put aside. Shred about 4-6 oz of extra sharp cheddar cheese.
Cut the crusts of 6-8 slices of sourdough french bread - Enough to line the bottom of your dish. Whisk egg beaters, half and half, sage, salt and pepper in med bowl. Place bread in dish, layer sausage on bread, pour egg mixture on top of sausage and bread and top with cheese. If you are making ahead of time, don't place cheese on yet, do it day of. Bake for 45 min. Remove and let stand for 10-15 min. Serve!

Magnificent Muffins!

It was an early morning yesterday, we had just picked fresh blackberries the night before - their sweet yet tart flavor is one I currently savor. This is my FAVORITE berry, its intense flavor causes my mouth to water, pucker and instantly I am hooked, I want and need more of these berries.
Let me backtrack a little, I don't remember ever having blackberries as a child or ever until last month... Let me reiterate that just a little more. Our, I say ours as if Steven hasn't ever had blackberries - this is a misconception - he was practically raised on berries, SO MY first jaunt with blackberries occurred about a month or so ago, it was our weekly Costco trip... DON'T ASK.
Berries are scrumptious and decidedly delectable, this trip they have BERRIES, berries galore, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and strawberries. I have to have them all. Steven gives me some what of a bewildered look when I go to load the cart with flats of berries. He has no idea what I have been planning. I want berry cobbler, berry salad, berry jam and muffins... Berry everything at this point. Well, I have rambled on for way to long.

Although I have significantly left out the best part of the day - Our nephew and son had the privilege of going into a berry seduced state, they had a few to say the least. It was highly entertaining.

Here is the recipe:

2 cups of All purpose Flour
1 tbls of Baking Powder
1 tsp Table Salt
2 Eggs
3/4 cup Sugar
1 cup Sour Cream
1 tsp Lemon juice - fresh is always better
1 tsp Milk
1 1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
1/2 cup melted butter
1 1/2 cups blackberries

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Please measure your flour accurately - spoon it into your measuring cups and level the top. Whisk all dry ingredients together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
Combine eggs, sugar, sour cream, lemon juice, vanilla extract in bowl. Whisk in the butter until fully combined.
Add the butter mixture to the flour - DO NOT BEAT IN OR OVER MIX - stir in until just combined - there should be some flour clumps - Gently fold in berries. Depending on the state of your berries - you be the judge - firm berries should be cut in half, frozen berries - thawed completely- ripe berries gently oh so gently folded in. Do not mix this to death. If you do you will have bricks for muffins. That will not impress anyone.

Bake for 18 min anymore and they are parched.. Although most ovens vary, rely on your toothpicks to test doneness.