He has graduated...

...from the infant seat to convertible seat! It was long over-due; I was trying to stretch the usage of the infant seat as long as possible because it's so much more convenient. Well, the time has come... Elie now has one just like his big brother's!

Big Kisses!

I made these rice krispy treats for Asher's Valentines. I got this idea from my first grade teacher. To this day, I remember how impressed and excited I was to get a rice krispy treat disguised as a giant kiss from her and have wanted to make them ever since (yes, a couple decades later I have finally gotten around to it!)

I made the rice krispy treats according to package directions except for a couple modifications which were: doubling the butter, browning it before adding the marsh mellows, and adding a teaspoon of sea salt.

I then buttered a funnel and used that as my giant kiss mold. Wrap each one in saran wrap, stick a strip of paper with a valentine's message alongside and finish it off by wrapping it in foil. EASY!

Chocolate and Olive Oil Mousse

"Tia Bebe", sent me the recipe for this chocolate mousse raving how silky and smooth it was. Finally, I thought Valentine's would be a perfect occasion. And boy was she right. It is heavenly! The brandy in the recipe can be substituted for any liqueur or flavoring such as amaretto, Bailey's, orange blossom water, you name it.

Time: 30 minutes plus 24 hours’ refrigeration

11 ounces bittersweet (60 percent cacao) chocolate
8 large eggs, separated
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons brandy.

1. In a double boiler, melt chocolate over low heat. Cool slightly. Beat egg yolks with 1/2 cup sugar until light. Whisk in olive oil, brandy and melted chocolate.

2. Using an electric mixer, whisk egg whites until soft peaks form. Add remaining 1/4 cup sugar, whisking until stiff but not dry.

3. Fold whites into chocolate mixture so that no white streaks remain. Spoon into an 8- or 10-cup serving bowl or divide among 8 or 10 dessert cups or glasses. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 hours before serving.

Yield: 8 to 10 servings.

Elie playing games with Max

Asherisms

• A while back Asher had his eye on a container of chocolates sitting on the counter. After some convincing on his part, I finally gave him one. After his first bite he says, "Mmmm, that is NOT yucky!"
• Last week we were driving down the road and spotted a tractor plowing snow. I pointed it out to Asher saying, "Look Asher, it's a snowplow tractor. What color is it?" He answers, "Ummm, I think it's kind of brownish."

Some videos

Handsome

Asher's first dentist appointment!

He did great at his very first dentist appointment. I had my turn first so that Asher could see what was going to happen. When his turn was up he hopped right in the chair and opened his mouth wide!






All done... clean and sparkly!

Tilapia cooked in parchment with tomato olive spread

Roasted Tomato and Olive Spread

This is a very versatile spread that is great on sandwiches, with crackers, mixed in with rice, or add it to a vinaigrette. I even layered some in tilapia cooked in parchment paper. I like to make extra to freeze in ice cube trays so I always have it on hand.

• 1 head of garlic, cloves separated but peeling is not neccessary-it's easier to remove peels after roasting
• 1 pint of cherry tomatoes
• 1 cup mixture of green and kalamata olives, pitted
• 1 teaspoon herbs de provence
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seed
• 1 tsp salt
• olive oil, enough to coat

Preheat oven to 350. In a roasting pan, toss all ingredients and roast for about 1 hour or until tomatoes collapse. Once cooled, slip the garlic out of their skins and put all ingredients in a food processor, pulsing until desired consistency.


Tilapia cooked in parchment with roasted tomato olive spread

I used the recipe above for this dish. I love cooking in parchment because it's easy, looks special, and all the flavors fuse together working their own magic.

• four 20 by 15 inch pieces of parchment paper
• four 6- to-8 ounce skinless flounder, tilapia or orange roughy fillets seasoned with salt
  
• 1/2 cup cooked brown or wild rice
• 1 cup fresh spinach, tightly packed
  
• 1/4 roasted tomato and olive spread (you can always use tapenade with sundried tomatoes)
  
• 1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into bits
• 1/2 cup vegetable or chicken broth
  
• 1/2 dry white wine

Place a quarter of the rice on one half of the top piece of parchment, pour 1/4 of the broth and wine over the rice, and top it with one fourth of spinach, one fourth of the roasted olive tomato mixture, top with one filet and a quarter of the butter cut into thin slices to distribute evenly over the fish. Fold the other half of the parchment over the fillet, beginning with a folded corner twist and fold the edges together forming a half-heart-shaped packet, and seal the end tightly by twisting it. Make 3 more packets with the remaining parchment and ingredients in the same manner. (Alternatively, the fish mixture can be wrapped in sheets of foil, oiling only the inside.) Bake the packets on a baking sheet in the middle of a preheated 450°F. oven for 10-15 minutes (peek inside one of them to check) and cut them open before serving.

Little Buddies!

Elie and his buddy Dylan hanging out at playgroup

Busted!

They make a great team!

Little Man

He's gotten really good at standing!

Snowed In

Last week like most of the country, we got hit with a pretty big blizzard. As long as we don't have to go anywhere, I love the occasional cozy snow day. We kept plenty busy playing out in the backyard, and then warming back up inside with hot cocoa and making place mats with foam stickers.



Asher decorating his place mat with lady bugs and leaves.
We made this delicious hot cocoa adapted from Food Network's Alton Brown. It's very easy, fast and tastes better than any store-bought hot cocoa mix.

Ingredients

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 cup cocoa (Dutch-process preferred)
• 2 1/2 cups powdered milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 pinch cayenne, or more to taste
• Hot water

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and incorporate evenly. In a small pot, heat 4 to 6 cups of water.

Fill your mug half full with the mixture and pour in hot water (I prefer using milk). Stir to combine. Seal the rest in an airtight container, keeps indefinitely in the pantry. This also works great with warm milk.

Our Trip to Cali... Sans Enfants!

Moises and I took our first trip together without the kidlets (since having them)! My mom and step-dad flew in to stay with them for the week; it was a win-win situation. The boys had a blast all week with Babi and Bampa going to museums, ice cream outings and watching all the cartoons to their little hearts content! Meanwhile, Moises and I enjoyed peace and quiet, waking up when we wanted and having dinner as late as we wanted. But all the while, we couldn't help but call them 4-5 times a day just to hear their little voices and check in. We knew everything was under control but we did miss them! We found ourselves cracking inside jokes about them non-stop!
Here are some pics of our trip. We stayed a night in San Diego, Los Angeles, Big Sur and then three nights in Palo Alto. And don't mind some of the pics of random objects... I just got a new SLR camera and am getting myself acquainted to this whole new whole of picture taking!







...and here goes my random photos of objects!