So, I know I haven't blogged in about a year and a half. The reason being I was taking a break from it for awhile. Trying to "fast" from blogging while the Lord was doing work in our family's life. Giving it all to him. The day that I decided to stop blogging I wrote a big long post on the reason why. . As I am starting to see... God works all the time... it may not be in your time and it may not be what YOU had planned for yourself. But he is molding and shaping you... because he is the potter and you are the clay.
As you all know, Jon swore to protect our country as an airman in the United States Air Force in late May of 2012. I can with certainty say that this was one of the proudest moments as a wife that I had ever had. Since we handed our family over to the military it has been a constant roller coaster of emotions. At first, during Jon's 3 month long deployment for OTS we questioned weather this was the right direction we should be going. We prayed and we prayed. So hard. After discussing it over and over Jon was put to the test at OTS by what I believed to be the LORD and passed with flying colors. Weeks after that our home which realtors said had a nearly impossible chance of renting out for the amount we were asking was leased to tenants that are paying their rent vigilantly and have proven to be reliable (As much as we know. lol). The LORD cared for our marriage consistently throughout Jon's deployment and has continued to prove himself time and time again in every circumstance. We got to Pensacola easily... got a home on base easily... and received a vast amount of awesome friends in the process.
There are times that I weigh out the pros and cons of the military. When I get home sick for my family.... when I think of how much my parents and Jon's parents miss the kids.... when I think of my best friend. I get sad. I wonder..... "will it ever be permanent?" "Will I ever find a friend like my best friend?" And the answer is no. But now we are in a different season of life. And I believe HE is using it to help us grow stronger and closer as a family. Earlier I said I decided to stop blogging a year ago because I truly believed the LORD was going to do something amazing in our lives. That he was about to move mountains... and I can clearly say without a doubt that he has. 4 months after I wrote the post below the Air Force called Jon out of the blue and directly recruited him to become an officer in the Air Force. If this doesn't prove to you that the LORD is there and that HE loves us. I don't know what will. I urge you all to read with a curious heart. Because it simply boggles my mind to read about where we were versus where we are now.
"I'm Here. I'm With You."
It was a Thursday night. Jon had been unusually late coming home from work. He told me he had to meet with co-workers to discuss a new version of something coming out but he said he would be home by 6:30p. It was 8 pm when my husband came through the door. A little miffed I stared at him expecting an explanation as to why he was so late. I knew it was for work... and looking back on this situation I wish my immediate reaction to his return home was sympathetic. He walked up to me while I was finishing the laundry... looked me in the eyes and uttered the words that would change our family drastically. "They're outsourcing my position at work." Thinking back to that moment I can't remember anything. No sounds in the background...not even what was in my hand at the time. All I remember was that I had a huge lump in my throat. The kind you get when your brain goes into panic mode. Immediately my head started reeling with "recovery" solutions if you will.
I hugged Jonathan and told him everything was going to be fine. Even though I didn't believe it myself. When receiving bad news in life, we as humans always look at the worst most negative outcome of the situation. In the first half hour after hearing this, I didn't even think of how God may be using this. That he may be moving in our lives in a way that either A) was beneficial for us or B) was going to bring us closer together as a family. After the first half hour, Jon and I walked around in a little fog. Kind of thinking of ways to run.... to pick up pieces when we were unsure of when things were going to fall apart. Immediately I told Jon that we were both at good standing at Best Buy. We could go back to Best Buy. I then thought of my impending interview with Muddy's Bake Shop. A local bakery that had reached out to me for an interview. It was part time, but for a part time job it paid fairly well and it was a job that I wanted. For those of you that don't know, Muddy's specializes in cupcakes. And we all know how much I adore the cupcake.
Now I was more determined than ever to get this job. Not just for my enjoyment but as a source of income when my husband eventually would lose his job. In our fog we put fresh sheets on our bed and lie down. But oh no.... as a mother and wife..... I was not sleeping. Not yet. I wanted my husband to say he had a plan. I wanted him to be calm and convincing. Because... I know.. I was scared out of my mind. I was scared financially of course... but I was also scared of what would become of our family. Since May I had spend every waking moment with my children and it had been the time of my life. Watching Hannah and Alex grow before my eyes was a constant gift from the Lord and I wasn't giving that up without a fight.
At this point, I started to sob. Uncontrollably sob. For the past hour I had been trying to convince myself and my husband that everything would be ok when I myself was scared out of my mind. Jon grabs my hand and begs me not to cry... that everything will be ok. And I started telling him that I was scared and that I couldn't imagine not being with my children. That it would break my heart for someone else to raise them again. While Jonathan's mom is one of the women I admire and respect most in this world... I wanted to raise my kids. It was all or nothing. If it couldn't be me then I no one could.
While I tried to settle down, and Jon drifted off to sleep... I started hearing the Casting Crowns song in my head... "Praise you in this Storm." And one verse just kept repeating in my head over and over...."I'm with you." I'm with you. I'm with you. Then I realized I was hearing it over and over...."I'm with you." Then I started hearing.... "I love you. I'm with you." For the next hour that I tried to go to sleep... and those horrible thoughts kept creeping into my head I would hear it over and over, "I love you and I'm with you." The Lord was telling me not to be scared, that he was with us. Bible verses and church songs started reeling through my head...
Matthew 11:28 came first.... "Come to me all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest... Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart... and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Then I heard the lyrics to a song sung at highpoint frequently.... "Then if our GOD is for us than who could ever stop us?"
Hebrews 13:5 came next... "... Never will I leave you; Never will I forsake you; So we say with confidence 'The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?"
That night my sleep was so peaceful. My weary head had dreams of Jon losing his job.... but it was peaceful. And I knew GOD was saying something to me. Be at Peace Carolina.
I woke up at 4:30am the next morning. As usual on Monday Wednesday and Friday. However I again had those creeping thoughts... what if what if..... and then I heard it again... clear as a bell.... "I love you. I am with you." Then I heard something else, "I have it all mapped out and it is Good. SO Good."
When I heard that I nearly fell out of bed. I couldn't believe it... I kept thinking to myself.... "is this my mind playing tricks on me?" But I knew.... being a spiritual person... that this was all God. So I prayed one last time... after I had spent the whole night begging him for peace. Lord...... I give this to you. I'm done worrying.... it's all you. And then.... all the sudden.... I didn't hear the phrase I had been hearing all night anymore.... but it still rang in my head.. "I love you. I am with you."
After this, I couldn't sleep obviously. So I decided to get up and write this blog... because it was so unbelievable to me. So incredibly unbelievable. God had only spoken to me one other time..... and it was not really "speaking" persay but a feeling... a hot rush in my head when I asked him what HE wanted me to do regarding staying at home with my children. I knew..... that that was HIS will for me. And THIS is HIS will. I am certain. I decided to blog about this.... because I am almost certain that I will see God move mountains in our lives because of this.... and I wanted to document the situation and witness his outcome. HIS perfect... amazing... good... complete outcome. I am saving it as a draft and posting this when The storm has passed.... because I want all to know that our GOD is mighty to save... and he will deliver us through this. After all is said and done. He is the giver of Life... See you in however long it takes for the LORD's will to be done in our lives readers.
Time Stamped: 9/23/2011 5:55am.
HE is LORD ALMIGHTY.
Carolina.
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Day 24: Labor Day Spinach dip
- 1 package of vegetable soup mix (dry)
- 1 container of sour cream (large)
- 1 cup of mayonnaise
- 1 box of frozen spinach (chopped, thawed and drained)
- 1 small can of tiny shrimp
- 1 small can of crabmeat
- green onions (chopped)*
- cheddar cheese (shredded)*
- 1 round bread loaf (large)
- 1 container of sour cream (large)
- 1 cup of mayonnaise
- 1 box of frozen spinach (chopped, thawed and drained)
- 1 small can of tiny shrimp
- 1 small can of crabmeat
- green onions (chopped)*
- cheddar cheese (shredded)*
- 1 round bread loaf (large)
Friday, September 2, 2011
Day 23: Friday Lasagna Night!
Directions
Fudgy Chocolate Chip Toffee Bars
from Pillsbury
1/2 C butter, melted
2 C graham cracker crumbs (32 squares)
1 8 oz. bag toffee bits
1 roll refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough
1 12oz. bag chocolate chips
1 14oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1 T butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
Grease 13x9 baking dish and heat oven to 350.
Have the roll of cookie dough sitting out for around 10 minutes to soften up.
In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the 1/2 cup of melted butter, 1 1/2 cups of graham cracker crumbs and 3/4 cup of toffee bits. Pour mixture into the greased pan and press evenly until mixture covers bottom of pan. Refrigerate for around 15 minutes.
In a 2 qt saucepan, heat the milk, chocolate chips and the tablespoon of butter over medium heat. Stir frequently until the chips are melted and the mixture is smooth. Remove the mixture from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Spread the mixture over the graham cracker crumb mixture.
In another medium mixing bowl, break up the cookie dough and stir in the remaining 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs until blended. Crumble the mixture evenly over the chocolate layer and the sprinkle the remaining 3/4 cup toffee bits on top.
Bake for about 25-35 minutes or until it's golden brown. Cool completely before cutting, probably around 2 or more hours.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Day 22: S'more cupcakes!!!
I woke up this morning at 6:30am. Honestly the reason why was because yesterday night I was up until midnight. Just so you all know, I am by far too old to be staying up until the wee hours in the morning. Especially since I have 2 young children. I drug all day... until I had a lightbulb moment and decided to get a triple grande latte from Starbucks to give myself a zing. Well... it did give me a zing but I'm still fidgety from it... at 9 o clock at night. Crazy!! 3 Shots of expresso didn't used to effect me this way... or I don't recall it doing so. Any who.... Onto the recipe!!!!
I made cupcakes tonight... surprise surprise right? I love cupcakes. Believe it or not I usually only try at most a bite of my finished product. It's funny when you start making them all the time they lose their charm. I give this cupcake recipe a medium in difficulty just because they take so dang long to make! 3 and a half hours later I was packing them in pyrex containers for Jon to take to work tomorrow. Too long if you ask me!! Also, the recipe called for a cream cheese buttercream icing... and let me reiterate that cream cheese icing in general rather "buttercream" or other wise SUCKS. SUCKS SUCKS SUCKS SUCKS. period. You just don't get that wonderful consistency that you get when you use shortening instead. So... keep that in mind when you see my piping onto the cupcakes. Runny icing is an understatement... But... Jon said they were awesome and that people at his work would eat them.... so there you go. All of my cupcakes either have a problem with the cake moistness (my wreck of a margarita cupcake) or the icing is too runny or doesn't taste right. Perfecting the art has taken longer than expected.
Cake Recipe
Directions
Preheat oven to 360 degrees and line cupcake pans with liners (24).
Mix sugar, brown sugar and oil for 3 minutes until smooth.
I made cupcakes tonight... surprise surprise right? I love cupcakes. Believe it or not I usually only try at most a bite of my finished product. It's funny when you start making them all the time they lose their charm. I give this cupcake recipe a medium in difficulty just because they take so dang long to make! 3 and a half hours later I was packing them in pyrex containers for Jon to take to work tomorrow. Too long if you ask me!! Also, the recipe called for a cream cheese buttercream icing... and let me reiterate that cream cheese icing in general rather "buttercream" or other wise SUCKS. SUCKS SUCKS SUCKS SUCKS. period. You just don't get that wonderful consistency that you get when you use shortening instead. So... keep that in mind when you see my piping onto the cupcakes. Runny icing is an understatement... But... Jon said they were awesome and that people at his work would eat them.... so there you go. All of my cupcakes either have a problem with the cake moistness (my wreck of a margarita cupcake) or the icing is too runny or doesn't taste right. Perfecting the art has taken longer than expected.
Cake Recipe
1 ¾ cup sugar
¼ cup brown sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 cup cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
¾ cup boiling water
Graham cracker crumbs (fine crumbs)
Marshmallow Cream Centers:
4 oz cream cheese
½ cup marshmallow cream
1 ½-2 cups powdered sugar
Graham Cracker Buttercream:
8 oz cream cheese
½ cup butter, softened
4 cups powdered sugar
¾ cup graham cracker crumbs (fine crumbs)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2-3 tablespoons whipping cream or milk
Preheat oven to 360 degrees and line cupcake pans with liners (24).
Mix sugar, brown sugar and oil for 3 minutes until smooth.
3. add sour cream and vanilla extract stir well.
4. Add eggs one at a time and mix only until incorporated.
5. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
6. Add dry ingredients and boiling water to sugar mixture alternating between the two.
7. Spoon ¾ teaspoon of graham cracker crumbs into the bottom of each cupcake liner. Shake pan to spread evenly.
8. Fill liners ¾ full and bake for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
This is what the cupcakes looked like when they were done:
This is what the cupcakes looked like when they were done:
9. Mashmallow Cream Centers: Beat cream cheese, marshmallow cream and powdered sugar. Add more powdered sugar to taste. (This mixture should not be thick like a buttercream, because it will be in the center of your cupcake.)
10. When cupcakes are cooled, cut out a small area from the top of the cake and pipe marshmallow cream into each cupcake.
This is what the cupcakie centers looked like:
mmm!! Now let me show you a picture of the "piping bag" I used... it was simply a sandwich ziplock with the corner cut off:
This is what the cupcakie centers looked like:
11. Graham Cracker Buttercream: Beat cream cheese and butter until light and creamy. Add powdered sugar, vanilla and graham cracker crumbs. At this point, the buttercream will look like cookie dough. Add heavy cream a little bit at a time until buttercream consistency is reached.
12. Pipe onto cooled, marshmallow filled cupcakes.
The Cupcakes looked awesome except for the horrid icing :) Here's a finished pic:
l p
They are ok cupcakes.... but my own homemade recipe was much better. I'm still perfecting my art. But I love cupcakes. It's a passion. :) until next time! xoxo
The Cupcakes looked awesome except for the horrid icing :) Here's a finished pic:
They are ok cupcakes.... but my own homemade recipe was much better. I'm still perfecting my art. But I love cupcakes. It's a passion. :) until next time! xoxo
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Day 21: The stay-at-home-mom mothership.
This past week has been quite busy so far. So much so that I haven't been able to prepare my family an adequate meal much less blog about it. :-/ I have noticed however... that my new found obsession with new recipes and cooking has been detrimental to my waist line. Maybe it's just me... but those pants have been just a bit snugger these past few days. Maybe I'm retaining water.. who knows? But Jon and I have cut out sweets so I've also been having withdrawls if you will. Headaches and hunger pangs that cannot be satiated from anything other than sugar. I'm telling you guys. Sugar addiction is real and I suffer from it. lol. The headaches would go away once I took a sip of diet soda or ate a cookie. This is bad. real bad. What have I done to myself???!! My struggle to stay away from sweets took a nose dive last night when I had a night alone without the kids. I had a piece of cake. *sigh* I'm hopeless.
Getting to the title of this lovely blog entry, last night I went to a parent's meeting for Alex's new preschool. I was new of course so I didn't know a soul except for the director who I had met when Alex, Jon and I had toured the preschool. When I walked in I figured she probably didn't remember me... I mean afterall look at all these women with kids that go here. NO WAY. But she said, "Alex's mom!!" What made Alex stick out I wonder? From my view it would have been my son's boyish good looks... his beautiful smile.... his sweet innocent blue eyes. For her it was probably his inability to be social at first meeting. He is so cautious. And while most people look at that as... he doesn't like me.... he won't ever like me..... I look at it as wisdom. Because when was caution ever bad? He has a very subjective view of everything which I am so proud of. So Miss Bryant... not saying that you remembered me because my son is "anti-social" but if you did.... I don't care. :-P
Any way... these women were so chatty. I felt like I was walking in to a ball room full of gaggling geese. And... while I feel bad for saying this... because I myself can "gaggle" I am definitely like my son and do horribly in new social situations. I think talkative women either sense that I am bad at this social thing or they sense that I am someone that will sit there and listen to them talk. Because every time I am in a new social situation I almost always have a woman sit next to me and engage me in a 30 minute conversation about random anticdotes about her life. Tonight was no exception. In both areas I was introduced. The meeting area where all the mothers were, and the individual classroom Alex will be sharing with 8 other children. Now, keep in mind I have no problem with this whatsoever. I just find it a tad amusing that I attract talkative people. I have more so since I"ve become a mother. It's usually the extreme type A personalities as well. But I will say that some of the closest friends I have like to talk and are very type A and I love every minute of it.
Alex's teacher was very.... type B I guess. She didn't have much to say about anything so I intervened on her umming and hmmming....by asking questions I would like to know about my son's class... what their typical day was like... can I bring treats for his birthday... what temperatures are they kept inside from outside play.... things of that nature. Hey... no one else was.
In running news, I have reached the 3/4's point of my training. 2 miles this morning! I cannot tell you how amazing it felt to run that 2 miles. I felt euphoric as I was driving home. I only have a little more left until I'm "5k ready." I am so so thankful God has given me legs to run and energy to go the distance. :)
Until next time all!! xoxo
Getting to the title of this lovely blog entry, last night I went to a parent's meeting for Alex's new preschool. I was new of course so I didn't know a soul except for the director who I had met when Alex, Jon and I had toured the preschool. When I walked in I figured she probably didn't remember me... I mean afterall look at all these women with kids that go here. NO WAY. But she said, "Alex's mom!!" What made Alex stick out I wonder? From my view it would have been my son's boyish good looks... his beautiful smile.... his sweet innocent blue eyes. For her it was probably his inability to be social at first meeting. He is so cautious. And while most people look at that as... he doesn't like me.... he won't ever like me..... I look at it as wisdom. Because when was caution ever bad? He has a very subjective view of everything which I am so proud of. So Miss Bryant... not saying that you remembered me because my son is "anti-social" but if you did.... I don't care. :-P
Any way... these women were so chatty. I felt like I was walking in to a ball room full of gaggling geese. And... while I feel bad for saying this... because I myself can "gaggle" I am definitely like my son and do horribly in new social situations. I think talkative women either sense that I am bad at this social thing or they sense that I am someone that will sit there and listen to them talk. Because every time I am in a new social situation I almost always have a woman sit next to me and engage me in a 30 minute conversation about random anticdotes about her life. Tonight was no exception. In both areas I was introduced. The meeting area where all the mothers were, and the individual classroom Alex will be sharing with 8 other children. Now, keep in mind I have no problem with this whatsoever. I just find it a tad amusing that I attract talkative people. I have more so since I"ve become a mother. It's usually the extreme type A personalities as well. But I will say that some of the closest friends I have like to talk and are very type A and I love every minute of it.
Alex's teacher was very.... type B I guess. She didn't have much to say about anything so I intervened on her umming and hmmming....by asking questions I would like to know about my son's class... what their typical day was like... can I bring treats for his birthday... what temperatures are they kept inside from outside play.... things of that nature. Hey... no one else was.
In running news, I have reached the 3/4's point of my training. 2 miles this morning! I cannot tell you how amazing it felt to run that 2 miles. I felt euphoric as I was driving home. I only have a little more left until I'm "5k ready." I am so so thankful God has given me legs to run and energy to go the distance. :)
Until next time all!! xoxo
Friday, August 26, 2011
Day 20: Sushi substitute? Absolutely!!!
So... everyone knows that lately I have developed a slight obsession with Pinterest. On this website are copious amounts of crazy yet amazing recipes that I just want to spend all day in the kitchen baking. If only I had unlimited amounts of confectioners sugar, white sugar, flour, brown sugar, and cream cheese I would be one happy woman. Most of the recipes on Pinterest are desserts as stated in my entry before... however I found a keeper of a Salmon recipe. and By keeper... I mean MAN! This dish is amazing. I made it for a few friends that came over last night and it was devine. It was light and the perfect dish to impress. And it was not only beautiful and colorful... but SOOOOOO delicious. I think what made the dish so amazing was the eternal obsession my stomach has with Sushi. But not just California roll sushi but the..... aaaahhhmazzzinggg philadelphia roll cream cheese salmon combination. With an amazing eel sauce and a spicy sriracha sauce on top. My mouth is just watering thinking about it!!
So a disclaimer before I post this recipe. It is medium difficulty.... I'm not going to give it easy because the Salmon requires "stuffing" as you might say, and the marinade involves a LOT of different ingredients. SO. SO. worth it. trust me.
Lets' get this show on the road!! Here's the recipe.
First the Terriyaki Marinade recipe:
So a disclaimer before I post this recipe. It is medium difficulty.... I'm not going to give it easy because the Salmon requires "stuffing" as you might say, and the marinade involves a LOT of different ingredients. SO. SO. worth it. trust me.
Lets' get this show on the road!! Here's the recipe.
First the Terriyaki Marinade recipe:
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup cold water
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 cup water (or pineapple juice)
5 tablespoon packed brown sugar (use only 4 tbsp if using pineapple juice)
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp garlic powder
2 tablespoons honey
1. in a small bowl, combine cornstarch & 1/4 cup cold water. stir until cornstarch is dissolved; set aside
2. in a saucepan, combine 1 cup water, soy sauce, ground ginger, garlic powder, brown sugar & honey; bring to a simmer
3. when liquid is simmering & brown sugar has melted, add the cornstarch/water mixture & simmer until thick enough to coat a back of a spoon (do not overthicken!)
Ok, Now this is not in the recipe but I used the marinade on the plate at the end as a garnish. It looked AMAZING and gave a lot more taste to the dish since I only had time to marinate the fish for half and hour. Here's what the marinade looked like:
Not too impressive looking at first but this stuff is the FIRE! Soo good mmm mmm!!
Next is the Sriracha Sauce. I was afraid that Jon's last minute run to the Kroger to get the ingredients that I needed for the dish wouldn't produce the sauce since I researched the sauce and the results said that "more and more grocery stores were starting to sell the sauce." It's an extremely hot sauce from Thailand that goes on Sushi in Japanese restaurants. I was nervous but Jon found it in the ethnic food isle! I was ecstatic. This sauce is perfect.... so yum!!! You want to dip everything in it. Chicken Nuggets, french fries, fish sticks.... my arm... lol. Everything! It's very simple to make. Here it is.
1 cup butter
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup coca-cola (from bottle is my preference!)
1/2 cup buttermilk
Picture? Sure.
SRIRACHA CREAM SAUCE INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup Sriracha sauce
1 cup mayonnaise
3 tablespoons condensed milk
I let Jon make this because it was so easy to make. :-P J/k my amazing hubby volunteered to help with the dinner preparation so that's why he made it for me. d'awwww. Directions? GO!
SRIRACHA CREAM DIRECTIONS
1. in a medium bowl, combine Sriracha & mayo & whisk well
2. add condensed milk & whisk until fully incorporated; add more condensed milk for a milder taste & more Sriracha for a spicier taste
Ok.... so you have all that made... now comes the hard part. There are several things that they don't tell you in the original recipe... like you MUST use amazing cuts of Salmon to get the taste you want... and by amazing I mean.... 4 cuts of this "amazing" salmon is 16 bucks.... Phew! expensive! But worth it. B) cutting the Salmon "envelopes" is harder than they make it out to be. Use a sharp knife. None of mine were sharp enough but again.... this was an impromptu dinner with less than 24 hours notice.... again. (Thanks Jon. :-P) So cut me a little slack :-P Here is the fillet recipe!!!
STUFFED SALMON W/ SRIRACHA CREAM SAUCE INGREDIENTS
2 salmon filets
teriyaki marinade (recipe below)
sriracha cream sauce (recipe below)
2-3 tbsp cream cheese (room temperature)
green onions (thinly sliced)
sesame seeds
olive oil
Instructions? sure.
STUFFED SALMON W/ SRIRACHA CREAM SAUCE DIRECTIONS
1. in a baking/marinading dish, place salmon filets & add 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup teriyaki marinade. let marinade reach about 1/2 of the sides of filets. marinade in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to overnight
2. preheat oven to 400 degrees. meanwhile, line a baking dish with aluminum foil & lightly brush with olive oil; set aside
Picture of the pans? Sure.
3. on a cutting board, slit the sides of each salmon filets making a long pocket/envelope; do not pierce through the other side!
4. insert about a tablespoon of cream cheese into each pocket; do not overstuff or the cream cheese will seep out during baking
5. in the prepared baking dish, place stuffed salmons & sprinkle a nice amount of sesame seeds. cover the baking dish & salmon filets with another sheet of foil & bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until salmon is cooked all the way through
6. after baking is done, place in a serving dish & drizzle with sriracha cream sauce & garnish with thinly sliced green onions
I know you're DYING to know what this splendid dish looks like.... well I'll show you. We always break out our wedding china for guests so please view my beautiful china :-P also... as an amazing accompaniment I laid the fillet over a bed of Garlic and Olive oil cous cous. Drizzled a little marinade on the sides and on the cous cous and topped with the sriracha sauce and green onions. I can't explain to you.... how much this tasted like my favorite sushi without anything raw... :-P and How simply perfect this was. Here is the end result.
Next, for dessert I made a Coca-Cola cake. I found this recipe also on Pinterest but I had tasted the cake before and I was TOTALLY stoked to make it. I mean this stuff is heaven in a pan I'm telling you! Also, it was a perfect ending to an amazing meal. Here's the mix recipe for the dry ingredients:
preheat oven to 350, and grease up (I used oil spray) a 9×13 (or so) pan.
mix:
2cups flour
2cups sugar
1/2tsp salt
1tsp baking powder
1/2tsp cinnamon
2cups flour
2cups sugar
1/2tsp salt
1tsp baking powder
1/2tsp cinnamon
Then you mix that stuff together! Picture? sure.
Pretty simple. Next you mix the wet ingredients with the exception of the eggs and vanilla extract.. and bring them to a boil. Here are those.
in a saucepan over medium high heat stir this up good until it boils:1 cup butter
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup coca-cola (from bottle is my preference!)
1/2 cup buttermilk
Picture? Sure.
now take off heat and add that to the flour mix & whisk until combined.
Then add:
2 eggs
1tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1tsp vanilla extract
What does that look like? why... I'm glad you asked.
After this, you put it in the pan and bake it for about 30 min. or SO... I say or so because I ended up having to baking for more like 40-45 minutes. But I would set the timer for 30 minutes and judge by tooth pick if it's ready and adjust your time from there. When it's almost done you make the glaze. Here's the recipe:
1/2cup butter
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup coca cola
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup coca cola
once that boils, remove and slowly stir in 4cups of confectioners’ sugar until nice and smooth. Then add in about a cup of chopped pecans, and give it a stir. You want to add the glaze the minute the cake comes out of the oven. Here's what the amazing cake looks like:
Soo good yall. SOOOOOOOOOOOO good!! I hope you guys try it because you won't be disappointed at all :) Have a great day you guys!!! xoxo
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Day 19: I hope I live to be 90.
Man! It has been awhile since I've updated this blog. I've had a busy last few weeks. Our family took a trip to Kingsport TN where most of Jon's extended family resides, to celebrate his great grandmother's 90th birthday. 90 years old! Can you believe it? I sure can't. I hope I live to be 90... even in my 80's I would consider an achievement. I wish I could have found my camera charger where I would have had photos of the event but alas... I STILL cannot find my battery charger for my camera. I've mis-placed it and I still haven't found where. Don't you just hate that?
I felt so sorry for Jon's family this weekend. My children were in absolute horrid moods the entire time. I seriously don't know what got into them. Over the weekend, I kept wondering to myself... "where the heck did this come from?????!!" Alex was in the... I need to cling to my daddy mode most of the time so he was either wailing because Jon was gone... or wailing because Jon went to the bathroom... and so forth. Hannah wasn't really cranky but spit up EVERYWHERE. I apologized to Jon's grandmother the day we left stating that she was amazing to put up with the spit up. lol. I was almost sure Hannah had spit up on every surface in her home. I'm just thankful to the Lord that it was all hard wood flooring. I would have never been able to forgive myself if she had spit up and stained carpet. Because goodness knows their carpet in their rooms are COVERED in their spit up stains. Some stains I can get out with carpet cleaner or bleach, and the others are there forever. Or until we get our carpets professionally cleaned which probably won't happen until our home goes on the market.
To end... we had an amazing time in Kingsport! I got to go on a quality time trip with Tina (Jon's Aunt) and her sweet daughter Caylee to the Hobby Lobby. Where Tina's keys proceeded to be lost. I didn't mind though as I found it entertaining retracing our steps trying to find them. lol! I also got some time to talk to Tina about my new found addiction to running which she and I share. It's great to talk to a more seasoned runner and get tips for running... how the 5k's/half marathon's work and how to build endurance. I really enjoyed talking to someone as enthusiastic about the sport as I am or more! :)
On the way home from Kingsport Jon got the HP Touchpad bug. You know.... the tablet pc that went down to 100 bucks overnight? Yea well Jon was determined to get us each one since they were so cheap. We checked I'm sure about 10 or 12 Best Buys for stock. And in the end we both ended up scoring one on an electronics website that no one knew about that happened to have them in stock. Best Buy was worthless in the end. :) I also discovered the website "Pinterest" on the way home which kept me busy the whole 8 hours on the way home. That website is so AMAZING! So many DIY ideas, craft ideas, kids clothing ideas, and FOOD ideas. I love baking more than anything as you guys know. :) And this website had amazingly delicious looking recipes for EVERYTHING under the sun. Mostly desserts, but there were a few entrees in the mix. Jon said that the reason for that was because every woman is obsessed with sweets... which I think is probably true.
In children news, This morning I was doing the dishes. Trying to get breakfast dishes put in the dishwasher and make Hanni's breakfast before going in to wake her and I put a few banana pieces and some cheerios in the living room on the coffee table for Alex to eat. In case you don't know, in addition to breakfast Alex likes to have a mid morning snack of cheerios and some sort of fruit. So he apparently scarfed up his banana and comes in the kitchen while I'm doing dishes to ask if he can have more. He keeps buzzing around me saying combinations of dada na na ba ba... and I wasn't really paying attention. All the sudden he makes a noise and I look towards him and he utters, in the most perfect english... "Banana!" Yup. you saw right. the WHOLE word. I was in shock. I couldn't believe my 22 month old just said the whole word Banana. I start laughing and pick him up and hug him. He acted as though he didn't know why I was freaking out. lol. I wanted to cry it was just the most perfect sound I had ever heard. My son say a whole word... not na na.... or utterances.... but a whole word.
Hannah has started crawling. Not just army scooting but crawling. She took her first two crawls this morning in Alex's room while we were playing before their naps. It was so great to see that. I really never got to experience that with Alex so it is awesome to be experiencing all the firsts with Hannah. :)
In running news, I have gotten up to a mile .4. So close to the halfway point!!! I can't believe it :) I've started thinking that I want to get a run in 5 days a week instead of 4 but I can't seem to get my butt out of bed in the mornings that I usually don't run. I guess my body knows it hasn't been trained to get up at 5 am on those days. lol. I am still averaging a 12 minute mile. which isn't bad. If I keep this up I should finish my first 5k in around 40 minutes? That's what my goal is.. but I would be content with 45 minutes. :)
Well with that followers I will end! Thanks for reading!! I will post recipes on Thursday that I will have most likely gotten from my new favorite website pinterest. This is the last week that Jon has before he starts working out and cutting sweets from his diet. I actually need to cut the sweets as well. We both have horrible sweet toothes and it seriously needs to get reigned in. I told Jon that he only has to work out Monday and Friday. I hate acting like a mom but I just want him to be healthy. and he has officially been completely sedintary for a full year and a half. It's time for him to start back. I want to have my husband for a really long time. Maybe 90 years? :)
Until next time! xoxo.
I felt so sorry for Jon's family this weekend. My children were in absolute horrid moods the entire time. I seriously don't know what got into them. Over the weekend, I kept wondering to myself... "where the heck did this come from?????!!" Alex was in the... I need to cling to my daddy mode most of the time so he was either wailing because Jon was gone... or wailing because Jon went to the bathroom... and so forth. Hannah wasn't really cranky but spit up EVERYWHERE. I apologized to Jon's grandmother the day we left stating that she was amazing to put up with the spit up. lol. I was almost sure Hannah had spit up on every surface in her home. I'm just thankful to the Lord that it was all hard wood flooring. I would have never been able to forgive myself if she had spit up and stained carpet. Because goodness knows their carpet in their rooms are COVERED in their spit up stains. Some stains I can get out with carpet cleaner or bleach, and the others are there forever. Or until we get our carpets professionally cleaned which probably won't happen until our home goes on the market.
To end... we had an amazing time in Kingsport! I got to go on a quality time trip with Tina (Jon's Aunt) and her sweet daughter Caylee to the Hobby Lobby. Where Tina's keys proceeded to be lost. I didn't mind though as I found it entertaining retracing our steps trying to find them. lol! I also got some time to talk to Tina about my new found addiction to running which she and I share. It's great to talk to a more seasoned runner and get tips for running... how the 5k's/half marathon's work and how to build endurance. I really enjoyed talking to someone as enthusiastic about the sport as I am or more! :)
On the way home from Kingsport Jon got the HP Touchpad bug. You know.... the tablet pc that went down to 100 bucks overnight? Yea well Jon was determined to get us each one since they were so cheap. We checked I'm sure about 10 or 12 Best Buys for stock. And in the end we both ended up scoring one on an electronics website that no one knew about that happened to have them in stock. Best Buy was worthless in the end. :) I also discovered the website "Pinterest" on the way home which kept me busy the whole 8 hours on the way home. That website is so AMAZING! So many DIY ideas, craft ideas, kids clothing ideas, and FOOD ideas. I love baking more than anything as you guys know. :) And this website had amazingly delicious looking recipes for EVERYTHING under the sun. Mostly desserts, but there were a few entrees in the mix. Jon said that the reason for that was because every woman is obsessed with sweets... which I think is probably true.
In children news, This morning I was doing the dishes. Trying to get breakfast dishes put in the dishwasher and make Hanni's breakfast before going in to wake her and I put a few banana pieces and some cheerios in the living room on the coffee table for Alex to eat. In case you don't know, in addition to breakfast Alex likes to have a mid morning snack of cheerios and some sort of fruit. So he apparently scarfed up his banana and comes in the kitchen while I'm doing dishes to ask if he can have more. He keeps buzzing around me saying combinations of dada na na ba ba... and I wasn't really paying attention. All the sudden he makes a noise and I look towards him and he utters, in the most perfect english... "Banana!" Yup. you saw right. the WHOLE word. I was in shock. I couldn't believe my 22 month old just said the whole word Banana. I start laughing and pick him up and hug him. He acted as though he didn't know why I was freaking out. lol. I wanted to cry it was just the most perfect sound I had ever heard. My son say a whole word... not na na.... or utterances.... but a whole word.
Hannah has started crawling. Not just army scooting but crawling. She took her first two crawls this morning in Alex's room while we were playing before their naps. It was so great to see that. I really never got to experience that with Alex so it is awesome to be experiencing all the firsts with Hannah. :)
In running news, I have gotten up to a mile .4. So close to the halfway point!!! I can't believe it :) I've started thinking that I want to get a run in 5 days a week instead of 4 but I can't seem to get my butt out of bed in the mornings that I usually don't run. I guess my body knows it hasn't been trained to get up at 5 am on those days. lol. I am still averaging a 12 minute mile. which isn't bad. If I keep this up I should finish my first 5k in around 40 minutes? That's what my goal is.. but I would be content with 45 minutes. :)
Well with that followers I will end! Thanks for reading!! I will post recipes on Thursday that I will have most likely gotten from my new favorite website pinterest. This is the last week that Jon has before he starts working out and cutting sweets from his diet. I actually need to cut the sweets as well. We both have horrible sweet toothes and it seriously needs to get reigned in. I told Jon that he only has to work out Monday and Friday. I hate acting like a mom but I just want him to be healthy. and he has officially been completely sedintary for a full year and a half. It's time for him to start back. I want to have my husband for a really long time. Maybe 90 years? :)
Until next time! xoxo.
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