This week in photos

Happy Friday Everyone!

It's been a busy week in our family and my camera was a bit neglected.  But, I have a few photos from the house mostly where we've been planted this week.

Blackberry Cordial in the making... the recipe is from Lola Zabeth's beautiful site.

We spent a lot of time outdoors this week and I seem to have taken oodles of photos of my one big lavender plant.  We have four more coming up!  I have plans for these plants... Em and Ro love the scent so I've been collecting and drying little bits at a time.

One of six hummingbirds that we see on a regular basis.  I had the wrong lens on my camera, so I apologize for the ultra zoomed in blurryness.

Needing quiet time to meditate and think things through, I turn to embroidery.  Though I am still a beginning beginner, I find it relaxing to craft and clear my mind with a bit of thread.  This car is from Jenny Hart's book Sublime Stitching and was requested by Ro for his quilt.

Em and Ro love crafting with wood.  These are cut up paint stir sticks from Home Depot... do you know how many nifty crafts people are making with these?  I've been having fun on Pinterest looking at all the creative uses people have come up with for these simple pieces.  We started with the idea on RuffledBlog of making a table runner... but now we're not so sure.  Stay tuned!

Next week is the last full week of summer vacation for my boys, so I expect you'll see more beach photos and maybe a back-to-school craft or two.  I hope you all have a lovely weekend!
-Hettie

A beachy day

Point Dume State Beach is right next to Zuma Beach and much less crowded for I don't know what reason.

 A cloudy morning meant the beach was mostly ours.  Squawking seagulls waited for me to leave my blanket so they could try to forage in my bag for goodies, but I kept everything out of sight so their visit was quick.

I crocheted the morning away while Em and Ro ran back and forth from me to the water.  A sip of water here, a munching of popcorn there, and all was calm with the day.

I love that the boys had moments to talk and laugh to themselves.  Judging by the frequent laughter, they were joking about something very silly.  As they get older, I hope these moments continue to happen and that their brotherly relationship grows stronger.

As the snacks ran out in the early afternoon, the clouds left and the heat turned up.  The running back and forth turned to walking  s  l  o  w  l  y, so I knew it was time to head back through the canyon to shake off the sand and plan for another day of fun.

Beachy days are the best.

Recipe: Grilled chicken and strawberry salad with BBQ baked potato

Temperatures are topping the 100 degree mark here this week so all of our dinner making moves outdoors.  One small thing is made indoors and can be done early in the day before it gets too hot to use the stove.  Or, you can just buy that one thing pre-made and keep your indoor kitchen cool.  The preparation may seem long, but it's really not... I just wrote every step out so you can see how everything is ready-to-go at the same time.

Grilled Chicken and Strawberry Salad with BBQ Baked Potato
(serves 2 adults and 2 children)

Ingredients:
For the grilled chicken

• 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 2 tsp. coarse sea salt or other coarse salt
• 1 tsp. black pepper
• 1 tsp. granulated garlic
• 1 tsp. granulated onion
• 1 tsp. granulated sugar
• 1 tsp. sweet paprika

For the BBQ Baked Potatoes

• 3-4 8 ounce Idaho baking potatoes
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1-2 Tbsp. coarse sea salt or other coarse salt
• Unsalted butter, sour cream or toppings of your choice

For the Strawberry Salad

• 2 heads romaine lettuce
• 1 pound ripe strawberries
• 1/2 cup candied walnuts (pre-made or make ahead)
• If making, need 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, 1 Tbsp. brown sugar, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 cup sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded
• Balsamic vinaigrette 

Directions:  The first two steps can be done earlier in the day if you have time.

Make the candied walnuts.  Toast walnuts on stove top on low flame for three minutes, stirring constantly.  Add butter, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon and stir for 2-3 more minutes.  Lay on napkin or paper towel to cool.  Set aside.

Shred cheddar, chop lettuce and slice strawberries.  Set aside separately in the fridge to keep cool.

About 1 hour before dinner, make BBQ Baked Potatoes.  I wrote about these two summers ago and they have become a staple for us.  When you turn the potatoes at the halfway mark (about 25 minutes), you can start on the chicken.

Making the grilled chicken.  Combine olive oil and lemon in a small bowl.  Combine salt, pepper, garlic, onion, sugar and paprika in another small bowl.  Wash chicken and pat dry.  Take everything out to the BBQ.

Brush oil/lemon on top of chicken breasts.  Sprinkle seasonings on top and place, face-down on BBQ.  Repeat for the other side of chicken quickly without burning yourself.  Close lid and let cook for 8-9 minutes depending on size of chicken breasts.  Turn and let cook until done and then bring in the house to cool. The potatoes are almost ready, so you can turn your BBQ off and leave them there for a few minutes.

• On dinner plates, place chopped romaine, candied walnuts, and sliced strawberries
• Bring potatoes in from BBQ, slice open and place on the side of plate (see photo up top).  Add toppings as you prefer but honestly, these only need a pat of butter.  The salt from the outside is deliciously crunchy and will find its' way in to the potato adding a smoky salt punch.
• Slice cooled chicken and put on top of salad.  Sprinkle white cheddar over chicken and salad.
• Lightly dress with balsamic vinaigrette and serve.

We had additional strawberries on the side, but honestly, the meal was the perfect size for each of us.

I hope you love this meal as much as we do.
Happy Grilling!
Hettie

PYO Berries

At the beginning of summer, Em and Ro came up with a list of 60+ things they had to do this summer.  Some of them are easy to do at home:  learning to set the table, making ice cream, make popsicle stick creations, paint t-shirts, etc.  Some of them are field trip type of activities:  stargazing at the park, hiking at Tree People, catching fireflies, picking berries at a farm...

Yesterday, we ticked off "picking berries at a farm".  It was a beautifully overcast day, perfect for being out in the berry fields.  We quickly ate breakfast and made our way to Somis where the Underwood Family Farm is... just a few miles West of the San Fernando Valley.  We said hi to the sleepy goats and made our way to the back of the blueberry fields.

The bushes are netted to prevent the birds from eating the berries, but there were plenty to be had.  We passed just one other momma with her munchkins so we had the rows and rows of blueberry bushes pretty much to ourselves.  I loved the quiet way Em and Ro weaved in between the bushes commenting to each other that this bush was the best so far.  No, it's this bush, really.  No, this one!

After blueberry satisfaction was had, we made our way to the raspberries.  "Wow Mom, it's like we're in another world here... I can't hear anything above the buzzing of the bees!!  Incredible!",  Em exclaimed.  And it was.  Ro talked low and slow to each bee he passed "enjoy the raspberries little bees... here's a pretty flower for you."  (Can you spot the bees in the below photo?  It will enlarge if you click on it.)

Despite being close to the highway, it was quiet and relaxing.  Em and Ro contemplated each berry they picked.  The rich perfume of flowers and ripe fruit kept us grinning throughout the morning experience.  Eventually, we had enough berries and made our way back towards the farm market to buy our pickings.

I can't wait to go back in a month or so for the blackberries and to grab a jar of the local farm honey.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend!
Hettie

Recipe: Vanilla Ice Cream with Shaved Chocolate

While it is happily cooling down a bit here in Los Angeles, it's still hot.  We often spend our afternoons indoors crafting and making things in the kitchen to pass the heat of the day away.  Sometimes recipes come out of it, like this day, and I hope you love it as much as we do!

Vanilla Ice Cream with Shaved ChocolateRecipe Makes 1 quart of heavenly frozen fare

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups organic whole milk

1 1/2 cups organic heavy cream

2 large fresh, cold eggs (see note 1)

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 Tablespoon Vanilla (see note 2)

A smidge of sea salt - you know, what you can grab with your thumb and finger

3/4 cup dark chocolate, shaved

Ice cream maker of your choice.

Note 1:  This is an uncooked ice cream.  If you are squeamish about consuming raw eggs, you can buy pasteurized eggs such as Safest Choice Pasteurized Eggs, you can pasteurize them yourself, or you can use them as is.  The eggs should be very fresh and very cold.  I used fresh organic eggs from my grocer and did not pasteurize them.

Note 2:  If you have Tahitian Vanilla, I would recommend using it as the aroma and flavor is amazing.  If you have Madagascar Vanilla Bean Paste, I would also recommend using that as the taste is wonderful and the little bean specks are fun.  If you have neither, use what you have as long as it is real vanilla.  I've made this with Tahitian Vanilla and Madagascar Vanilla Bean Paste because I had them on hand (and I'm not paid to say that, FYI).

Directions:

• Using a bread knife if you have one, shave the chocolate slowly into fine pieces.  Measure and set aside.  Lick fingers.
• In a large bowl, whisk the eggs until they are light and fluffy-- about 3 minutes.  Add vanilla and sugar slowly to combine.
• Add salt, heavy cream, and whole milk, and blend again.  Cover and let chill in the fridge for at least an hour. 
• Make the ice cream according to your ice cream maker instructions.  In the last 5 minutes, add shaved chocolate.  Transfer to a container and freeze to harden.  

If you want to eat it immediately, the ice cream will be soft and delicious.  The photos above and below are after the ice cream chilled for an hour in my freezer.  I used one of my loaf pans because it is much easier to scoop from.  As Ro said, "It smells yummy Momma!"  

If you want to make Mint Ice Cream with Shaved Chocolate, decrease the vanilla to one teaspoon and add one teaspoon of peppermint extract.  Happy Making!

Hettie

Summering

Eeking out the last days of summer! 

I'm not quite ready to trade the suntan lotion for school supplies, but I am trying making the most of this short summer.  We hope you are enjoying your Summering as much as we are!

Still Summering

I've been a quiet blogger this summer, I know.  With both Em and Ro out of school for three months, we've been field tripping and crafting our way through the days.  Recently, while cleaning in the craft room (code for frantically searching for something), I came across this list.

Em started the list with Ro chiming in every once in a while while running back and forth from Lego creating.  It's such a sweet list (with more on the back) that he wrote out the weekend that their summer vacation began.  We've ticked off quite a bit of the list but not everything... and not everything I  had hoped to do.  So, sweet readers, I hope you understand when I say "back soon, we are still summering".  As soon as Em and Ro are done in the bathtub, we will be off on another adventure.  I have just two weeks of summer left to savor with my sweeties!  So, back soon!
Love,
Hettie