My Late Christmas Post and a My Kitchen Monday Combo

I hope you all had a wonderful CHRISTmas celebrating Christ's birth and enjoying God's wonderful blessings. This year as I have said before we were home and did not do any family travels. I made a dinner on Christmas Eve for just the two of us, Top Sirloin Steak (since I am getting so good at it :P), mashed potatoes and veggies. We watched Christmas movies during the day and added a trip to the gym together in the morning. On Christmas day we went to a Dim Sum restaurant for lunch with church friends and dinner at a friends house. Dim Sum for the first time was interesting...many interesting dishes that I have no idea what they are until they told me what it was. I am not sure if it would be something I would want to do all the time but it was a nice first experience (For those who don't know Dim Sum is kind of like Chinese tapas, most dishes are like dumplings, rice dough balls with egg filling, things made out of rice like big rice noodles filled with shrimp, etc.) I mostly ate what I could tell what it was and some veggies ☺ For the dinner I made a delisious fresh raspberry pie to take to the potluck and that is what I am sharing with you today.  This year was pretty "chill." We did a lot of relaxing and enjoying our days off. I believe I may be getting a piano for Christmas... just need to do some more shopping around for a good price and good quality of sound (if you have any suggestions on piano buying let me know!). I am so excited to someday soon get a piano and I can start taking some lessons again!
We don't have any for sure plans on what we are doing for New Years.

Raspberry Pie
http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/fresh-raspberry-pie-5

My Top Must See Christmas Movies

As Christmas is approaching (tomorrow) I've been trying to watch all my favorite Christmas movies. I've almost watched all of them from my list...I better hurry I only have one more day. Do any of you have any favorite Christmas movies I should add? Charlie Brown, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Rudolph, and Frosty the Snowman were all included in my TV watching Christmas routine as a child but I think these movies below would be my top 10.

My Top 10
1. It's A Wonderful Life
2. Christmas in Connecticut
3. The Christmas Story
4. White Christmas
5. While you were Sleeping
6. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

7. Little Women

8. Miracle on 34th Street (with Natalie Wood)
9. Elf
10. Meet Me In St. Louis (this movie is not full of Christmas but it does have a little and I always seem to watch it around Christmas. "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas..."

Family Pictures

While we were back home for Thanksgiving my family had our pictures taken by Emily Davidson Photography. It was cold and a little windy but we braved the weather and got some nice shots of the entire family. We got the photos back so quick and are ready to be developed soon to hang on my wall. Here are a few of my family!

My Kitchen Monday: Persimmon Salsa

So last week was my first week using the Fresh 20 recipes. I started out on Monday using parsnips. Unfortunately I found out that I do not like parsnips, but that was one of the points of why I wanted to try the Fresh 20 was to try new things. Another side item that we tried was the Persimmon Salsa. I have never tried persimmon before so it was a little bit challenging knowing what makes a good persimmon. The salsa was actually quite good except by the 2nd day after making it the fruit was pretty mushy so I would suggest only making enough for the day or the next but after that it is done! Persimmon is a mild, sweet fruit and I think I would be willing to make the salsa again, but it is hard to beat a good mango salsa (the persimmon salsa can be substituted with orange slices.)
The salsa had persimmons, roasted aneheim chiles, onion, lime, salt, and cilantro.
We also were able to try a new posole recipe that was good and stuffed cabbage with a chunky tomato sauce that I tweaked to make my own which was REALLY good!
Overall, I am really liking this fresh 20 schedule of meals, it makes cooking more fun!

My Kitchen Monday: Side Dish--Roasted Grapes and Parsnips

     My husband and I got back from visiting my side of the family for Thanksgiving (and immediate family Christmas gift exchange) late last night. We were there for a week and got to spend lots of quality time with my family. Time back home always reminds me how thankful I am that God gave me such a loving family. We came back with full bellies and good memories. We not only ate a lot and shopped on Black Friday but also got family pictures taken! We already got the pictures back from the photographer and they turned out so nice! They will soon be ready to be hung on the wall :)
     Now it's back to the real world...but I've been getting excited for Christmas now that Thanksgiving is over and it is December. On the way home I was thinking about how I was going to decorate our apartment. I got the rest of my Nativity from my parents for Christmas so I think that is what sparked my excitement to get my house ready for Christmas. I want it to be festive since this is the first time we will be home for Christmas since the year we moved to California 3 years ago. It will be a little lonely without a full table full of family but I am excited to finally set up a tree again and make a Christmas dinner for my husband and I. Once I get things in order and festive I will try to post some pictures of our house! I have a few days work tho before I can get things all in order since I have some unpacking, laundry and meal preparation to do.
     Today was the first year I bought a cyber Monday deal. I was looking into buying a subscription to "The Fresh 20" or "eMeals" for meal planning and grocery shopping. By chance I thought I would look into "The Fresh 20" and buying just a 3 month subscription today. To my surprise Fresh 20 was having a 50% off deal today for a year subscription. It is usually $54 for one year but I bought it for $27 (3 month subscription regular price still, $18)! So, now it will take a little less effort to plan dinners and hopefully will have leftovers for lunches. I also hope that it will create healthy meals and no waste. It will also get me out of my comfort zone because some of the recipes calls for items I am not used to eating, but am willing to try. For example, today the side is "roasted grapes and parsnips." I have never had parsnips before...or grapes that have been roasted for that matter. It will be interesting to try. The recipe calls for onion, garlic, parsnips, grapes, chicken broth and bit of maple syrup. All items on the fresh 20 recipes are supposed to be fresh and not processed or have preservatives which is how we like to eat anyways. Hopefully this will be a really good side dish! It's good to try new things...I think parsnips are like carrots???

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing you all a very Happy Thanksgiving! Eat lots of turkey, mashed potatoes, and pie! Hope you all enjoy spending sweet time with your families and to take this time to remember all that God has provided us this year and all that we need to give thanks to God for. May He bless you in the next few weeks as we prepare to remember Christ our Savior's birth.

My Kitchen Monday: Marinated Top Sirloin

Finally!!! Thanks to my friend Jenny's marinade recipe and the nice guy at my butcher shop for taking a little extra time to tenderize my sirloin steak, I've finally met my goal of making a tender, medium cooked steak. I could hardly wait for my husband to come home and try it. He asked "Where did you get it?" (As if i bought it from a store), what?!?! LOL! I looked at him and said "No! I made it myself!!!" I think he was a little surprised because recently my steak attempts have not been this tender, I usually don't cut it into thin slices, and the flavor was different since I marinaded it. Both of us were amazed how tender it was even after rewarming for leftovers. So I think I've figured out 4 important rules to do to get a good steak:

1. Tenderize your meat! They used a handheld tool that I think I should get for my kitchen because it looks so easy and quick to tenderize your beef, especially since I don't buy my meat every time from that market. You can find a similar tool that they used here.

2. Marinade your meat for at least 20 min if not longer

3. Don't over cook the meat (I seared mine first then put it in the oven to finish) checking it often. 

4. I read that it makes your meat more tender if you cut it against the grain, so I tried that too!

 

SF Batkid

Today is eventful in the city. Make a Wish Foundation is making a 5 year old's wish come true to transform San Francisco into Gotham City from Batman. They have set up a few locations where he will "save the day." Including a damsel in distress rescue, stopping a bank robbery, rescuing the Giant's mascot Lou Seal from a kidnapping, and getting a key to the city. The SF Chronicle even had the front page say "Gotham City Chronicle." I went over to Union Square to see if I could catch a glimpse of what was going on, that is where Batkid had his lunch and Lou Seal got kidnapped. I caught a glimpse from a distance of the Lamborghini Batmobile and Batman with Batkid in the window of one of the upper floors of Macy's. There were tons of people and a flash mob. So many people are supporting this wish and it is kind of cool to see! Here are a few pictures of today's events. If you google "sf batkid" you find more on this little boy who is battling leukemia and his SF adventure.

Photo Credit

My Kitchen Monday:Pot roast with potatoes and dill

So I know it is not Monday but I didn't get a chance to add my post yesterday. I had the day off for Veteran's Day and decided to make something nice for dinner since I had more time during the day to prepare it. I spent the whole day cleaning house, washing dishes, washing/folding/putting away laundry, and preparing dinner. I've been wanting to make a pot roast for sometime and finally yesterday I made it!
I found a recipe in a book I bought a while ago and decided to try it. By the picture it looked yummy! I bought all my ingredients and added an extra hour to my baking time since it didn't seem to be as tender as I wanted after 3 hours of baking went by. I am assuming it is because I had the butcher take off the slab of fat on both sides. He weighed the brisket before and told me it was over 3lbs and I told him to give me a pound and a half but with not so much fat...he ended up taking ALL of the fat off and that same piece of meat measured 1.8 lbs. I was amazed how much that fat weighed! I know that fat gives lots of flavor but my husband likes to eat healthy so I try to make meals as healthy as I can and in doing so I try to buy lean meats.
Unfortunately, because I was not that specific on how much of the fat to leave on the meat it was not very tender. The sauce was tasty and the veggies were great but the meat was not like a roast where the meat just falls of and melts in your mouth. So, again I was disappointed with my cooking beef...maybe I just need to stay away from it and always buy beef when we go out for dinner? But, I'm not willing to give up completely. Next round I am leaving more fat and we'll see what happens!  In the end another sucess out of making the roast was that I got to use one of my new Mexican dishes that my husband bought me last May, which is great because it was the first time in using that particular dish.  Maybe I'll have to take a pot roast lesson from my mom when I am back home ;)
4-5 White round potatoes, washed and cut into large chunks
2 1/2 Tbl flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 1/2 lb rolled brisket
2Tbl vegetable oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 celery stalked, diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 tsp dill seed
1 tsp dried thyme
1 1/2 c red wine
1 cup beef stock
2 Tbl chopped fresh dill to serve

Next post will be featuring my birthday weekend which includes a nice dinner with my hubby, a surprise party, and a 9 mile walk across the new bridge! Pictures to come.

Happy Halloween!

Hope you all have a happy and safe Halloween tonight!
I was 3rd place in my work's Halloween Costume Contest. The first 2 winners tied for 1st place. I got "most creative" prize, but everyone who got a place got a $5 Starbucks gift card.

My kitchen Monday: Winter butternut squash soup

I almost didn't make it!  I only have a few minutes left of this Monday, its been kind of crazy with the extra time for my commute and having a few friends over for an accountability prayer time at my place. The weather has been chilly here lately so I decided that for this week's post I would make a butternut squash soup. I added chicken broth, thyme, cumin, onion and garlic to some purée. It turned out just as I had hoped, can't wait to eat it for lunch tomorrow! Oh, and BART is now going back in service tomorrow on a temporary labor agreement but I think I am going to still try to use the bus in the morning...but at least there will be less traffic! It's getting pretty late and it's time for bed so Goodnight!!!

Another strike

So, my answer to my question from my last post is No, it hasn't stopped yet. The BART union went on strike at 12am this morning. No agreement has been made and negotiations are still going on. I took the bus this morning, it was a little off schedule but I still got to work earlier than I thought I would. I was only about 10 min late!
I am hoping by Monday negotiations will have come to an end and an agreement will be made by Monday.

Will this ever end?!?!

The train service that I use each day to get to work was on strike a few months ago. The govenor called a 60 day "cooling off" period in order for service to continue for the thousands of users who use BART and also for the unions and BART to come to some sort of agreement. Well, that 60 day period wore off  and they are again wrestling with each other to find an agreement. In my opinion the union is asking TOO much and are crazy but, what can I do? Late at the end of each day at 11:59pm they would announce if they will be going on strike. Since they are still negotiating, people have been getting pretty upset having to wait up late or wake up early in order to know if they have to leave for an earlier commute using the ferry, get a ride, or take the bus. It is quite frustrating! They decided that people needed to know earlier than at midnight to know so they moved it last night to 10pm. We don't know when this agreement will come to an end or if and when they will go on strike again. To make matters worse the bus system also threatened to go on strike because their contracts had also ended around the same time that BART's ended. It was decided that they would wait to make a contract decision until a further date, probably due to this whole BART issue. They too threated to strike yesterday and I started to dream about how I may not have to go to work today since there would be no bus or train service!!! It was sounding a little too good to be true haha! even though I wouldn't get paid for the day. But, as I waited for the bus yesterday after work since BART was delayed for an unrelated issue they announced that the bus systems would not go on strike at least for the next 7 days as they too are trying to negotiate a new contract for their workers and BART union workers must be somewhat happy with how things are going because they have not gone on strike yet.
I actually prefer to take the bus. It does cost a little more, it takes a little longer, and it is about 20-25 min walk to get to the station from my work place but, it is much cleaner and quieter. It also drops me off right in front of my house...who could complain about that?
So, I am hoping that all these people can come to some sort of agreement and things can go back to normal around here. It's a little weird now that I think about it...I am so reliant on these buses and trains to get me to work when back home I used to just rely on my car to get me from place to place. I guess that is what working in a big city looks like ☺.

A Clean House = A Happy Family

My husband was gone for the weekend to run in a race with his dad in Mexico. He left Thursday night and got back last night. He ran a half marathon and his dad ran a full marathon. I am always so happy to see my husband when he gets back from a trip, especially if it's more than one night. This time in particular I was wanting him home because there was a mini-earthquake Sunday night (3.1) around 9:30pm and the first thing I thought was that I wished he was home with me. It is kinda scary because you never know if it will keep going or if there will be another one. I am thankful this time was just a couple small bumps and a big sound like thunder.

Since my husband was gone all weekend I wanted to do some fall cleaning, go through some cupboards and organize things. I was pretty excited to have the time and surprise my husband with a super clean house after his long trip. It is not always SUPER messy but it does get cluttered and at times I am really not proud of how it looks. Dishes and laundry gets backed up and things get out of place. I spent all day Saturday and Sunday cleaning and organizing, and doing loads of laundry all day Saturday. Our laundry was kinda backed up and I washed all of our blankets in storage etc. so it took quite a bit of time to get it all done. 

Since I am proud of my hard work I thought I would post a few pictures. It still needs a bit more work here and there, maybe organizing some of the clutter that is still out and decorating it more...but it is a work in progress!

Our Bedroom

Bathroom

Kitchen

Dining Room

Living Room

Yea for Fall!

Sunflowers are lovely flowers

New Goodies!

I received a few new goodies in the mail this week. I bought a new calendar for this next coming year and a citrus fruit print. I saw the print on a blog and thought it would look cute in our kitchen or dining room. 
Lately, I have been trying to clean up our house and declutter. I find it hard sometimes to keep up with my housework when I usually only have nights to work on it. So, I am gradually going to try to make our house more of a home by adding some details  to give me more incentive to keep it looking nice and clean. Hopefully in the next few months I will add curtains to block the glare on the tv, rugs so our furniture does not make scratches on our wood floors, and sew some new accent pillows for the bedroom and sofa. I also will be trying to organize cluttered closets and cupboards.
I found these 2 items online at Rifle Paper Co. (I got the calendar on sale!) 

Random weekend highlights and My Kitchen Monday: Agua de Jamica

This weekend was again fairly relaxing. Nothing too interesting happening here on the west coast. We had lunch with some friends to say farewell to a couple from church who are moving to Chile to be missionaries. They will be missed!

My husband had to work on Saturday for a few hours to finalize some things before the quarter end on Monday morning. Inside I was kinda bummed since the weekends are the times that we get to spend more time together but it reminded me how blessed I am to have a hard-working, motivated,  and determined husband. I am very thankful!

While my husband was working I finally decided to make hibiscus "water" from my recipe book, "Pati's Mexican Table." I have had the dried flowers for weeks and just couldn't find the time to make the concentrate. It really only takes about 20 minutes to make but I finally found extra time to make it! You can find the recipe here. Definitely give this recipe a try!

Fall is here!

I love fall time! Last Sunday was the first day of Autumn. I've been able to tell becasue it seems a bit colder in the mornings, even though during the day the weather is pretty nice and warm. I love this time of the season when the air is crisp and cool, leaves start turning red, yellow and orange, and I can get out my light sweaters and leather boots. It is always kinda chilly where I live but fall does seem a little different. Maybe because I know it's fall and we are supposed to be having those temperatures? I've been in the mood for all things pumpkin lately...pumpkin bread, pumpkin pancakes...etc. I even thought about making pumpkin frozen yogurt! So, last night I brought out my HARVEST decor and decorated my house with little, painted, wooden pumpkins, my pumpkin wreath and my Harvest sign. I also bought some sort of dark red flower/weed bouquet, (not sure what they are) but I thought it was a great bouquet for my table.

I've also been drinking hot tea in the morning after my walk to work from the train station. I found this Tazo hot tea at the store, baked cinnamon apple! It's a perfect flavor for mornings and it makes me excited it's fall :)

What have you been doing to get ready for fall?

My Kitchen Monday: Simple Hummus

Hope you all had a restful weekend. My husband and I pretty much did nothing all Saturday, I should have been cleaning my house but it was nice to just relax. It was raining quite a bit so it seemed like a good day to just vedge out on the couch.

For this week's My Kitchen Monday I made a plain Hummus dip. I bought some hummus from my local market that was really good made with eggplant, garbanzo beans and other yummy spices. The dip has a super strong flavor but it is amazing! I thought I would try to first make a simple hummus with some garbanzo beans that have been in my pantry for quite a while.

I first brined a bag of garbanzo beans overnight.  I then boiled the beans until they were soft. The temperature of your stove must be on medium heat because if the heat is too high the beans will break open. After the beans are soft, I used my blender to blend the beans until they were smooth. Squeeze of half a lemon, a garlic clove, about a tsp of cumin, and a bit of olive oil into the beans and mix well...I am not sure of the measurements exactly, I just did it by taste. Just for a FYI: I learned from my book called "The Science of Good Cooking" (by the same authors from the TV show America's Test Kitchen), that brining the beans before boiling them helps keep the whole bean intact rather than the skin breaking or the bean exploding so it is always a good idea to add salt to your soaking water.  Overall I think it was a pretty good but I think next time I will try something a bit more exotic in flavor so it is not as plain.

My Kitchen Monday: Pumpkin Pancakes

It is Monday again which means it's time to post a new recipe! I should be posting something Mexican since today is their Independence Day! I think it's common to have pozole, tamales, chile nogadas, or chile relleno? I have made pozole from a Pati's Mexican Table recipe in the past but I didn't think about making it until this morning. Instead I made a nice brunch on Saturday morning to help get us ready for fall. I like making a nice breakfast for us on Saturday mornings because it is the only day I don't have to wake up early and rush around to get ready for work or church. I made Pumpkin Pancakes! I was really excited to make these pancakes but I was a little disappointed with the recipe (I got the recipe here). The taste of the pancakes were amazing, but it was difficult to not have the middle uncooked because of the pumpkin puree. They also were not very fluffy and I like a fluffy pancake. I did not make the maple whipped cream, I just served them with syrup and pecans.  I halved the recipe and still had too many left over, I think I ended up making 13 mini pancakes! I think I am going to keep trying to find a good, fluffy, pumpkin pancake recipe for this upcoming fall season, but overall the flavor of the pancakes were very good.

Back

I have thought about buying a posture corrector for quite some time. My back feels sore and tired daily especially at my desk at work and once I get home. My husband tries to help me by rolling my shoulders back or pushing my shoulder blades in but it is now just the way my body is if I don't actually think about correcting myself. I know it sounds silly but it does take effort to correct my shoulders and shoulder blades and hold them there. I even get tired if I hold them like that too long. My should blades actually hit the back of the chair before my back does, that is how bad it has gotten!
 I've been to the doctor about it and the chiropracter a few times but their responses are never a guarantee that it will fix my problem or they said just to think about it all the time and roll my shoulders back. This does not really work well because the problem is it's now a habit so I don't think about it...ever. I am not sure how it started, some people say that it is laziness or embarassment of chest size or height growth while I was young. Any of those things could have played a part in my posture, I really don't know. Whatever the reason that started this needs to be reversed because I don't want to be one of those elderly women with a hunchback and can barely lift my upper body. As I think about it more and look at myself in the mirror my shoulder blades now stick out and my shoulders roll in, it is not a pretty sight especially since when I slouch my tummy looks like it is sticking out which I am fairly thin so it shouldn't look like that. I have finally decided to buy a posture corrector, actually my husband thinks I should buy 2 and try both types to see which one helps more. They are not extremely expensive so I think I am going to try and see if it helps. I will wear them probably on weekends and on week nights, not sure if I would want to wear them at work. I hope that I have not made this posture and upper body form permanent!

Here are a few of my options I have found online on amazon.com, there are not very many choices that have good ratings so I hope to find a good one that works. Wish me luck!

amazon.com

Appreciation

It's nice to be appreciated for what I do each day! I sometimes feel like my job has no real impact on families, at least the way I would like to impact them. I see myself either working with ESL students or working with families to reach goals and to help them have better lives by educating them on nutrition, parenting, parent involvment, and learning more about child development. Yesterday I received this sweet thank you note from a client. I know this mother has gone through a lot so it is nice that she took the time to send it to me.

Last weekend

Beautiful Sunset

This weekend was pretty busy for us. On Saturday alone we had two parties that we went to. We first headed southeast for my husband's work family picnic. We then headed over to Santa Cruz for a friend's 30th birthday BBQ. We had a lot of fun eating and playing soccer and bocce. It was really hot at the work picnic but the beach was semi cool. By the time the sun started going down the fog started to roll in so we started our bond fire to warm up. Definitely not "jump in the ocean" type weather. But I seem to forget sometimes how close we are to the beach and how we should take advantage of it more often when it's warm! Just need to be sure to always bring a sweater or jacket!

While the sun was shining!

My Kitchen Monday: Kohlrouladen

For this week's My Kitchen Monday I chose to make something from my German heritage. I made a recipe from my mom's kitchen. My mom used to make this often as I grew up, it is her rendition of a German dish called Kohlrouladen which as I read from google are cabbage rolls. My mom makes cabbage with meatballs and puts it over mashed potatoes - Which seems  easier to make than rolling meat and other ingredients up in cabbage leaves. So how do you make this yummy dish do you ask? Well... First you make meatballs and fry them until cooked, you can do this with ground beef, salt, pepper, egg, and breadcrumbs. I did not have breadcrumbs so I made it the Mexican way that I learned from Pati's Mexican Cooking and made it with my short grain brown rice- set aside. Then you cut thin slices of cabbage and cook them in a frying pan  with a little bit of oil or spray oil, bay leaf, a few allspice, and chicken broth. Cook until almost tender, then add the meatballs and let simmer to soak up the flavors and the cabbage is fully cooked. As you make the cabbage and meatballs, prepare potatoes to be mashed and add your favorite ingredients. I usually just add a little bit of butter, salt, pepper, milk, and garlic powder but I know my mom usually adds some dill and maybe a few other spices...and you are done! Serve the cabbage on the potatoes.

Labor Day

I hope you all had a wonderful, relaxing weekend. My husband and I were looking for things to do close to home. Saturday we didn't do too much, we relaxed at home the majority of the day. Sunday we went to a Brazilian Festival in the afternoon that we found on  http://sf.funcheap.com/ We listened to Brazilian music and watched traditional dancing as we ate some very rich chocolate truffles!

On Monday we woke up fairly early to beat the heat to run at Lands End. We have been to Lands End before but never hiked the whole trail. We mixed my love for hiking and my husband's love for running together and jogged the trail. Before we began our run we parked our car a bit from the trail head and decided to take a "short cut" down the side of the steep hill. We had some laughs as I hung from a branch like a monkey, it was pretty slippery, and we both thought maybe we should have just walked to the beginning instead of almost sliding all the way down the hill!

The views are great and you can take the trail from the Presidio to the Cliff House, which is probably a few miles one way.

A quick pic at one of the vista points

Golden Gate Bridge, right before the sun came out and the fog cleared

My Kitchen Monday: Bruschetta

Next weekend we are going to a friend's birthday BBQ on the beach. I decided I would try out the side I was going to bring to the party to make sure it tastes good. I am bringing bruschetta and since I've never made it before I thought I should do a test run. I found a recipe online from The Pioneer Woman. It went over well at my house, the only thing I would add is some sort of cheese, maybe a thin slice of mozzarella. I also did not use as much butter for the bread to make it a bit more healthy, 8 Tbl seemed like a lot to me! You can find the recipe here: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2012/01/bruschetta/

My Kitchen Monday:Lentil Dal Soup

After missing my Mexican Food Mondays here and there, I've decided to share new recipes that I use in my kitchen during the week. Usually those times where I have missed a post I did try a new recipe but I was not able to post because it was not Mexican food. It was a New Year's resolution for me to become a better cook and make a new recipe each week. The problem is I do not make a new Mexican Recipe each week so my "Mexican Food Monday" posts are just not working for my cooking schedule!

My husband and I have really been spoiled trying a lot of new tasty food varieties from all over the world and so I try to bring in some of those yummy food finds in my own kitchen...or something similar. I am not looking to make this blog into a food blog, but this "new recipe per week" has really helped me with my cooking skills. I enjoy making a nice dinner for my husband and trying new foods but I think I am a better baker than I am a cook. I really struggle with making meat not overcooked so as I work on this goal I am going to share my cooking experiences by posting one new recipe that I've tried on Mondays.

So for my first post of "My Kitchen Monday" was inspired by a soup that we had at an Indian food restaurant. As I understand Lentil Dal Soup is a common soup made in India. I never remember having lentils as a child but I decided to try making a simple lentil soup after I got married and found that I like lentils. I searched on the internet for an Indian Lentil Soup and while it may be a common soup in India I saw that many people make it differently which effects the flavor of the soup. This soup didn't taste like the one in the restaurant but is still a recipe I would repeat. You can check out this recipe here.

Soccer Finals

Most of the team before the game

This post is late but I wanted to show off my husband's soccer team. Saturday the 10th his league won this season's finals!!! Everyone was very excited and proud. I love watching my husband play soccer. I never was really into sports growing up with all girls in my family, sports were really not an interest of mine. I played volleyball in middle school and l was in gymnastics and liked it but I don't really have a competitive personality. I have more of an artsy personality, playing musical instruments, art, and doing handmade crafts like knitting, crocheting and sewing. But, as I watch my husband play I see how determined and movtivated he is as he runs for a ball, he is definitely not a lazy player! He is a pretty fast runner, has a lot of endurance, and has good footwork. I'm pretty impressed, haha! We go out to the field sometimes on the weekend and I toss the balls to him to practice passing and ball taps and after he shoots the ball I throw them back to him. I can definitely see the fun in soccer and I enjoy watching the game. It is such a joy to watch him play. So, I just wanted to say "good job team!" ☺


First place

Sporting his new winners jersey



A little less organized picture but here is part of the team with their huge trophy



Happy Anniversary to Us ☺

Six years ago when I arrived in Mexico I had no idea that I was going to meet the man that would sweep me off my feet. We met and I felt something that I had never felt before. He made me smile and laugh and I loved the way he looked at me. As I waved to him goodbye, I thought I would never see that man again since there was going to be over 1,600 miles between us. As time went by, each day, I could not wait to hear his voice or see his face. My feelings became more than just a crush and I realized that HE was the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.

The next thing I know he proposed. My heart skipped a beat and without a doubt in my mind I said “Yes!” We could not wait to say “I do” so only three months past and we were celebrating with family and friends on our wedding day. Our dreams had finally come true! We moved and set out on a new adventure together.

Since that day, there has been bumps and twists in our road but I still have not lost that feeling I felt when we first met.  Now here we are, four years of marriage, celebrating all that we have done and all that is yet to come. I still without a doubt say “I do” to whatever life throws at us, as long as it’s with him. I truely feel blessed that God chose me to be my husband's wife and I love waking up to his sweet face each morning.

 

I love you, Toño! Happy Anniversary sweetie!

Mexican Food Monday: Tres Leches cake

For today's Mexican Food Monday I made a traditional Mexican cake called Pastel de Tres Leches. It is made with an egg based cake where you beat the egg whites and yokes separately and then add them carefully together including flour and vanilla. The sauce is where the cake got it's name "three milks cake" because it has evaporated, sweetened condensed and whole milk ( I used skim because that is what I had available). You poke holes in the baked, cooled cake and add the sauce mixture and the cake literally sucks the milks up like a sponge. Then you let it sit for at least 2 hours. This is like the Tiramisu of Italy for Mexico.

I've only had this cake 2 times in my life. Once in college at a Spanish language department party and once after I got married at a Mexican Festival in Lincoln. The first try I really didn't like it. It just seemed like soggy cake but I had it again later and the cake seemed so moist and delicious. This cake did have a bit of a soggy texture which is normal but it still was very good and held a cake form.  It wasn't too soggy but it did lack a bit of soft cake texture that I like in a cake, but usually homemade cakes are not as moist as bought boxed cakes because they usually don't have as much fat. I told my husband that Pati has never let me down and I was right. This cake did turn out well and it was yummy. I really did enjoy adding fruit to the top which was optional in the recipe. All I had was blueberries but I think some raspberries or strawberries would have made it really good also!
I was extremely pleased when my husband took a bite and said "Mmm this is really good!" because I was really worried it wasn't going to turn out that great. I didn't think my egg whites got as stiff after beating them for longer than it said in the recipe. I kept beating them with my hand mixer but no change to the texture! I decided after about 15 min of extra beating after adding the sugar that my soft peaks were just going to have to do...and this made me decide I really need a Kitchen Aide mixer!!! It really put a smile to my face because those eggs really made my arm tired haha! I would definitely make this cake again and I think my next desert to try making is flan, I bought 2 molds because I know my husband like flan so hopefully I will have a chance to make it soon...maybe for our anniversary this week???
 

 

I again used my Patis Mexican Table cookbook for the recipe but you can also find the recipe on her blog. You can find it here: http://www.patismexicantable.com/2010/02/tres_leches_cake/
The only thing I see that is a bit different is that in her cookbook it says to set the oven at 350 degrees rather than 360 as in her blog.

Another interview with Corrie Ten Boom

Here is another interview that I found on youtube. It goes through her whole story and is very interesting. It is about an hour long and the interviewer talks a little weird so be prepared.

Corrie ten Boom and Forgiveness

As I mentioned before I listen to Revive Our Hearts often at work to pass the time when there isn't much to do. Their current series is on "Healing from Bitterness" with Yvonne Welch. Yvonne had been talking about the bitterness that she had during the early years in her marriage and about not forgiving was negatively affecting her emotionally, spiritually, and physically. She was talking about forgiveness and gave an example from the story of Corrie ten Boom. I was curious to know more about Corrie's story, I've always been interested in the history of WWII due to my mom's family being from Germany. I looked her up and read that this woman helped hide Jews in Holland during the Holocaust until she was thrown into a concentration camp. She then from there was released and started to travel as a missionary to tell non-believers about God and His forgiveness. Corrie also wrote a few books, one that was made into a movie called "The Hiding Place." I have never heard of her before but she had such an interesting and inspirational life and is seen as a great example of an evangelical Christian. Her preaching on forgiveness was tested first hand when she met one of the concentration camp's guard face to face at a church she was speaking at. Here is an excerpt I found from her book "The Hiding Place":

"It was in a church in Munich that I saw him, a balding heavy-set man in a gray overcoat, a brown felt hat clutched between his hands. People were filing out of the basement room where I had just spoken. It was 1947 and I had come from Holland to defeated Germany with the message that God forgives. ...
And that's when I saw him, working his way forward against the others. One moment I saw the overcoat and the brown hat; the next, a blue uniform and a visored cap with its skull and crossbones. It came back with a rush: the huge room with its harsh overhead lights, the pathetic pile of dresses and shoes in the center of the floor, the shame of walking naked past this man. I could see my sister's frail form ahead of me, ribs sharp beneath the parchment skin. Betsie, how thin you were!
Betsie and I had been arrested for concealing Jews in our home during the Nazi occupation of Holland; this man had been a guard at Ravensbruck concentration camp where we were sent. ...
"You mentioned Ravensbruck in your talk," he was saying. "I was a guard in there." No, he did not remember me.

"I had to do it — I knew that. The message that God forgives has a prior condition: that we forgive those who have injured us."

"But since that time," he went on, "I have become a Christian. I know that God has forgiven me for the cruel things I did there, but I would like to hear it from your lips as well. Fraulein, ..." his hand came out, ... "will you forgive me?"
And I stood there — I whose sins had every day to be forgiven — and could not. Betsie had died in that place — could he erase her slow terrible death simply for the asking?
It could not have been many seconds that he stood there, hand held out, but to me it seemed hours as I wrestled with the most difficult thing I had ever had to do.
For I had to do it — I knew that. The message that God forgives has a prior condition: that we forgive those who have injured us. "If you do not forgive men their trespasses," Jesus says, "neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses." ...
And still I stood there with the coldness clutching my heart. But forgiveness is not an emotion — I knew that too. Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart. "Jesus, help me!" I prayed silently. "I can lift my hand, I can do that much. You supply the feeling."
And so woodenly, mechanically, I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me. And as I did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, sprang into our joined hands. And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes.
"I forgive you, brother!" I cried. "With all my heart!"
For a long moment we grasped each other's hands, the former guard and the former prisoner. I had never known God's love so intensely as I did then. "
from: "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom and John and Elizabeth Sherrill, 1971

I believe that forgiveness is a big issue in a lot of our lives. Our human sinful heart has a tendency to keep record of wrongs which causes us to become bitter and resentful. God reveals to us when we have sinned and we have to get over ourselves and forgive as God has forgiven us, just as Corrie ten Boom did with this man (Matthew 6:14). Unforgiveness can corrupt our heart and the devil feeds off of that sin. I also believe that after finding the freedom after forgiving someone, it reveals our own sin that we must repent and ask for forgiveness ourselves.
One of my focuses this year has been on meekness  (which will be another post for another day). Our culture has taught us to be prideful, to be the "winner", and "take care of numero uno" before thinking of others. But, our lack of meekness puts us in a habit that makes us fall farther away from living like Christ. I cannot imagine being in the situation that Corrie was in but God has really used her as an example. In this interview I found on youtube from 1974 you can see how she seems calm and gentle... meek. This forgiveness has given her peace and freedom from resentment and bitterness.

Mexican Food Monday: Mango Salsa

For today's Mexican Food Monday I made grilled chicken with mango salsa. I didn't use a recipe this time, I just eyeballed it. My husband and I eat a lot of chicken breast so I am always looking for something to spice it up. Here is what I put in the salsa but you are welcome to add more or less of any of the ingredients, some people even put cucumber in a mango salsa:

2 diced Manila Mangos (small yellow mangos) or any type of mango

3 diced Roma Tomatoes

1/2 finely chopped onion (I've used red onion in the past but I used yellow onion today)

3/4 minced jalapeño pepper (if you like extra spicy add 1 full pepper)

1 squeezed lime

chopped cilantro

salt and pepper to taste

DIY Laundry Soap

It has been almost a year since I have bought laundry soap. Around this time last year I used a recipe to make a liquid laundry soap from http://www.theblissfullycontentlife.org/2011/05/homemade-laundry-soap.html. The bill came out to be around $15 + tax to make. Obviously this is very cheap, much less than buying store bought soap and you know exactly what is in it! I saw no real difference in the clothes itself but everything always did come out clean. The thing I did notice is that the washer we use at our apartment is a front loader washer and has a bit of a musty, weird smell when I open the door to throw my load in and also when I take the wet clothes out. I noticed this since I moved in and when I used either store bought Tide soap or later my homemade soap my clean, dry clothes had no fresh scent. It seems to be a common problem after hearing from my mom who has talked to a few family friends who also have had that same smell problem. I looked at some online forums to see if others have had the same problem and it seems that it is very common and that many are unhappy with their front load washers (good to know fact for when we need to buy our own washer someday!). I heard my friend from back home was using a homemade powder soap for her front load washer so, I asked her for the recipe to give it a try. Unfortunately, I am not sure where she got the recipe so I am not able to give that person their proper credit. The powder soap recipe has a few more ingredients than the liquid soap and one ingredient in particular is a bit pricy (around $6 for a small and $11 for a full size container) so it is not as cheap to make as the liquid soap but, I am hoping it will fix my smell problem! My bill total came out to be around $35 plus tax. My friend (who is a family of 4) says it lasts her about 9 months and cleans their clothes well. I made the soap today and it is a little easier and takes a bit less time than the liquid recipe since you don't have to heat and dissolve the soap (btw the liquid soap is also very easy and fairly quick to make if you would rather go with a liquid soap). The only thing that took a bit of time was grating the 2 bars of soap since the grater I have has really small holes. So I am hoping this powder will last me at least 9 months which will be a GREAT savings and it was a fun DIY project!

Here are all the ingredients needed to make the laundry soap (6 total) excuse my Angel Soft toilet paper in the background haha!

This is after I mixed up all of the ingredients

I am going to use the little tub that the OxiClean came in and keep refilling it once it gets low. Handy right? I am glad I didn't buy a small container! OxiClean comes with this little scoop but I think I am going to use the little top from  Downy Unstoppables because I measured out how much I need per load and the top has a line perfect for measuring a scoop of soap for a normal size load.

Powder Laundry Soap Recipe:
76oz Borax (one box)
55 oz Arm and Hammer washing soda
4lbs baking soda
3lbs OxiClean (any variety will do)
2-3 containers of Downy Unstoppables scent booster beads (or Gain, other)
(My friend uses 2 full size containers but I bought 2 "try me size" small containers to see how strong it is, I can always add more. Right now it looks like there is enough)
2 bars of Zote soap, finely grated (or 3-4 Fels Naptha)!
You only need 2-3 Tbl per load

So let me know if you also are going to try this recipe also! I haven't started using it yet since I still have a little liquid soap left from my previous recipe. I probably will start next month! Thanks to Hannah my friend who passed this recipe on to me :)!!!

Our Top Two Guilty Pleasures

My husband and I have always had a special place in our tummies for ice cream. For us "there is always room for ice cream!" We try to eat healthy throughout the week but one thing we just can't get off of our weekly diet is ice cream, frozen yogurt, or gelato. It is kinda our thing. We ate ice cream the first time we were out together site seeing when I studied in Mexico, we had it every time we saw each other during our long distance relationship, and we were even eating ice cream when Antonio purposed! We like to try new places and compare, we have become ice cream experts. We definitely have some reeaallllly good places around here! Recently as I mentioned in a previous post I found a new flavor of ice cream at our market.  It's kind of expensive for a small pint but it's still less than us going to get ice cream at an ice cream shop. So here is our new guilty pleasure "lemon cookie!!!"

Our other guilty pleasure was found once me moved to this apartment. My husband loves gummies. These gummies are locally made, I believe, and are organic and vegetarian...which is kinda weird to think about for a candy but that's what it says :) They are pretty yummy and we usually end up buying some at least once a week. 

Anyone else have a guilty pleasure?