Granola!

Hey ladies!
I just found this granola recipe that I've been dying to try, and I thought I'd post it here in case any of you want to try it too. I like that it uses honey instead of sugar, and all the other ingredients sound right up my alley as well! :) I'm hoping to make it over the weekend-- we'll see! Tristan's on day 3 of croup, so I'm hoping by the weekend I'll have a little more time freed up. :)

PS: Shelley, I also have another "favorite" granola recipe that I use. I'll try to get it posted here as well!


Simple Granola
adapted from More With Less

Preheat oven to 250.

Combine in large mixing bowl:

2 c. whole wheat flour
6 c. rolled oats
1 c. coconut
1 c. wheat germ (or 2/3 c. whole wheat flour, if you keep forgetting to buy wheat germ like I do!)
8 oz. slivered almonds
12 oz. dried fruit (I like craisins, dried blueberries, and dried cherries.)

Blend together separately:

1/2 c. water
1 c. oil
1 c. honey
2 t. vanilla
1 T. salt

Add blended liquid to dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.

Spread out on rimmed cookie sheet and bake 1 1/2 - 2 hours, stirring halfway through, until golden (for chewy; longer if that’s your preference.)

Store in covered containers.

Hey Ladies all:
I'm putting together a recipe book for Cha since she occasionally calls me with questions like, "how long do you cook a chicken?"
So if you guys have favorites that you'd like to share with her, post them here and I'll copy them off for her. (I'm hoping for at least two from each of you?) Shelley, these are great. Feel free to post as many as you'd like.
I understand that she's coming out here in Feb (she hasn't told us this yet...) so I'd like to have the book done by then.
Thanks in advance for your help with this. I love you all- Mom/Kitty

Granola and Climber Girl

Hi Ladies!  Thanks for all of the kind birthday wishes you sent to Noah.  He had a great day.  

I have been on a granola kick lately and wondered if anyone of you has a favorite granola recipe.  

Anyway, here are a couple of recipes.  The first is for the stuffed sandwich from Christmas and the second is a soup recipe that is really yummy though the boys don't like it b/c it has spinach and mushrooms.  (Kitty, this is the soup we had at Rhonda's house on Halloween.)  Both of these recipes are easy and freezeable, so I'll sometimes make a double batch and stick one in the freezer for a busy night.

Btw, Natalie started climbing out of her crib and we've had to modify her bed into a toddler bed, which has been challenging!!  She is such a crazy climber.  In the first attached picture she has climbed onto the sink of her new play kitchen and did a headstand and then called for me to look at her...  (And I thought, "Oh, a girl--won't it be nice finally to have some quiet play around here!" That was a nice delusion while it lasted. :)

From Joel: the other pics are pretty much self-explanatory.  Nattie Kate also likes to be a bumble bee from time to time (and apparently needs eye protection for those winter flights).  Noah recently used some of his own money to buy a suit for going with me to court, etc.  He went with me all day today to a real estate deal and county commission appearance (I liked this pic of him on the phone).  And then there's our adorable red.

Stuffed French Bread

1 loaf french bread split in half lengthwise

1 stick low-fat yogurt spread or butter

1/2 cup nonfat cream cheese 

1/2 cup yellow onion diced

1 tablespoon dreid parsley

1 tablespoon poppy seeds

1 cup sausage, cooked and crumbled ( can use turkey or chicken sausage)

sliced deli ham or Canadian bacon

sliced Swiss cheese

In a large bowl, cream together spread, cream cheese, onion, parsley, and poppy seeds with mixer.  Blend in the sausage into the cream cheese mixture.  Spread the mixture evenly on the bread halves.  Layer the Canadian bacon or ham on the bottom half of the loaf and top with the Swiss cheese slices,. Place top half of the bread over the toppings and wrap tightly in foil.  

Preheat oven to 400 or grill to med heat.  Bake the bread in foil for 15 min.  ( I don't think 15 minutes is enough to get the cheese melted!)

Three Cheese and Spinach Soup

1/4 cup low fat yogurt spread or butter

5 tablespoons flour

1 cup button mushrooms, sliced

1 scallion, chopped

2 cups chicken broth

2 cups nonfat milk

1 cup nonfat cream cheese

1 cup (4 oz) shredded Swiss cheese

4 teaspoons ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 10 oz box frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained ( or fresh spinach)

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Melt spread in a large soup pot over med.  heat. Add flour and whisk until golden, 2-3 minutes.  Add the mushrooms and scallions and saute until tender, about 3 minutes.  Whisk in the chicken broth and milk and stir until thickened, 5-10 min.  Add cream cheese, Swiss cheese, nutmeg, salt, and pepper and stir until the cheese is melted.  Add the spinach and stir.  Simmer the soup for 10-15 minutes, sitrring gently.   Garnish with Parmesan cheese.  

Remember When?

Remember when we were all nursing babies at the same time? I wonder if that will ever happen again? I love you ladies and am so glad to be in this stage of motherhood with you three.

Incredible Salsa!

Hello Ladies! It's been a long time since a recipe was posted, so here's another one to start us off. This is really easy and so delicious. I just threw everything into a food processor (mine is really small, so I did it in batches and then mixed it together in a bowl) or you can chop everything.

1 can diced plain tomatoes
1 onion
cilantro (optional for all you haters out there)--use as much as you like
garlic cloves--at least 2
1 jalapeno--I seeded mine to reduce heat
squeeze of lime juice
taco seasoning--I added a generous sprinkle from the packet
vinegar--optional, I didn't remember to use this

That's all. Throw everything in a processor and coarsely chop it and then pour it into a bowl. My friend said this is better if refrigerated for 1 day, flavor becomes more intense. However, ours did not have time to refrigerate: it was devoured in one meal by four adults...and Luke who really loved it, much to my amazement!
I look forward to hearing what you ladies think of this. Please try it, it's really good!

Good books..

So, I've been reading a BUNCH while I've been off of school during my longish evenings alone. I've read a TON of Jodi--maybe 3 or 4 of hers (Change of Heart, Mercy, 19 Minutes, Perfect Match). I think I've read a total of 10 of her books now. Crazy. I think Perfect Match was one of her best; it could also be that it's the most recent of her books that I've read. Who knows. :)

In order to break up the typical Jodi-courtroom-fiction, I've also found Sara Strohmeyer. She's a fun, easy, read (not christian, at least not all the time), but they are officially the first books to ever make me laugh out loud. She has Sweet Love, The Cindarella Pact, and The Sleeping Beauty Proposal, and while the names are sort of cheesy, they're actually quite funny and good. I highly recommend all 3. I still have The Secret Lives of Fortunate Wives to read and finish, hopefully before school starts this coming Monday.

And, in order to exercise my mind just a bit between the fluffy, funny Sara Strohmeyer books, I found a really good book: The Splendor of Silence, by Indu Sundaresan. It's a book that is more history than I normally read, but I literally could not put it down. Set in the 1940's (around the time of India's struggle for freedom from the British), it's a four-day whirlwind of love, romance, struggles, and history, set in the under the hot sun in the dry desert of southeastern India. It was a lovely book.

We had a wonderful time seeing all of you guys, by the way! (Cha, we missed you so much..). Joel and Shelley, we have a sleepsuit from my mom that she gave to me to give to you but I forgot... Maybe I'll mail it or something.

Sarah, thanks for the towel and picture book--what a great idea!, and Shelley, thanks for the puzzle and the truck. Caleb LOVES both. I think nixing the adult gift exchange was a great idea. We came home with enough junk as it is. And, really, the boys felt blessed (or overloaded, I'm not sure!). Caleb looked at the christmas tree this morning and said, "Presents on blanket?" (the tree skirt). Nope, buddy, gotta wait another 12 interminable months. :) (interminable? sp?)

It was lovely to see all of you. I love you all. Happy New Year.

kak

PS I know that I hold the title of "Throw away QUEEN", but I am having a really hard time goinng through the kid's toys and getting rid of things. What do you guys suggest? How do you recommend getting rid of toys? I keep thinking, "They play with this! They just played with it yesterday!" (granted, it had been 2 mos before that, but...) :)