what have you been eating?

My sister couldn't have said it better: the winter months get long and the cooking through them can get monotonous. I'm missing my summer and fall weekly CSA share that provides built-in ideas and direction for each day's menu. I think we're probably universally feeling the economic pinch of increasing food costs. Creativity is the name of the game, and it's what I haven't got in abundance these days!

Seeing some other dinner ideas sure did get me a little re-inspired, though!

I'll share mine if you'll share yours!

Disclaimer: I'm not famous for following recipes. Even when I read one, I rarely do exactly what it says. Flexibility is one of the things I love about cooking. But I'll share the recipes that at least provide the general ideas I work off of, where applicable.

Here are 5 meals I've cooked recently (as in, in the past 2 weeks), not including sides/veggies:

1. Greek Veggie Wraps (I used quinoa in place of couscous)

2. Chipotle Chicken Chili (I used chicken thighs, diced and crushed tomatoes, and dried beans)

3. Pasta in a sort of sausage bolognese sauce

4. Chicken and biscuits

5. Mom's Roast Turkey (and giblet gravy, among other "fixings")

On the docket for the coming days (as in, in the next 2 weeks), not including sides/veggies:

1. Lazy Sunday Casserole

2. Black bean quesadillas

3. Wild rice and potato soup (made with stock from the previously roasted turkey)

4. Greek Marinated Chicken

5. Bacon-Wrapped Meatloaf (really a Cook's Illustrated recipe, but I don't have a subscription)

Your turn! (If you have a blog, just post the link to your entry here in the comments. Otherwise, feel free to answer right in the comments.)

ice skating

February has come and just about gone. That one's hard to believe, isn't it?

This month has been filled with baby snuggles, math lessons, read-alouds, outdoor play on bright sunshine-y days, huddling with blankets and hot cups of tea on the bitterly cold days, playing basketball in the church Upward league, a special afternoon at Nana & Papa's for just the grandkids, both being and hosting Sunday afternoon lunch guests, getting back into a few more pre-baby routines, making dinner when I have no inspiration left and then making it again the next day when I again have no inspiration left, Valentine's Day celebrations, Friday School, enjoying our first accompanied-by-sunlight-meals of the year, and much, much more.

A major highlight was Aubrey learning to ice skate!

Our little town has an outdoor ice rink, along with a decent selection of free skates and plenty of free hot chocolate to facilitate enjoyment. We don't get there often, but the past two years it has provided a good deal of fun for the kids.

This month, they hosted a special Saturday event called Frozen Feet where they provided pulled pork, marshmallows for roasting, hot beverages, and prizes right at the rink. There are disadvantages to living in small town (no grocery store, anyone?), but most of the time, I couldn't imagine life any other way. Free events for kids that aren't overly crowded and are genuinely fun? Sign me up!

Daniel took the four oldest kids to Frozen Feet and, in addition to having a blast, Aubrey had her first ice skating experience.

She loved it.

he made me a mom

When Gabriel entered the world and made me a mom at 11:56pm on February 26, 2003, I became richer than I've ever been. The beautiful baby turned talented boy turned God-fearing young man has blessed me far beyond what any words could ever say.

To celebrate his birthday, we began with pancakes for breakfast. He likes them simple: plain buttermilk fluffiness with a pat of butter and a generous glug of local, 100% maple syrup on top.

Siblings pitched in to do his chores for him, which is the customary gift around these parts since none of them have income or money with which to buy presents for one another. Gabriel spent the time he would normally have been doing his chores listening to music on his bed while writing-- two of his favorite pastimes. Following schoolwork, Daddy came home to pick him up and bring him to the church for some fun with the basketball hoops.

For dinner, he wanted chicken and biscuits. I was happy to oblige. We ended the evening watching a baseball flick.

(Sports, music, and down-home kinds of food are this boy's love languages, I tell you.)

Tomorrow, relatives will come over for apple crisp topped with homemade whipped cream. We'll sing boisterously and he'll open a few gifts.

Friday, two of his buddies will accompany him home from Friday School, spend the afternoon here, share a meal with us (by request: turkey dinner leftover casserole-- ha!-- and chocolate chip cookie pie with vanilla ice cream), and head to the Saints game in Canton.

The celebration kind of evolved into a 3-day party without any real planning on my part. I think it's a humorous reminder of the way his delivery evolved into a 3-day labor-- certainly without any real planning on my part!

Gabriel is a passionate and disciplined leader in the making. With those beautiful God-given tendencies at times comes weakness, but as he is learning to day-by-day yield all of himself to the Lord, he is growing into a young man I am deeply blessed by and proud of.

Pick-up ice hockey is the latest sporting addition in Gabriel's life-- made possible by the outdoor rink right down the road from us-- and I think his "trapper hat" just completes the look! Can you tell we live a mere 30 miles from the Canadian border?!?!

stretching

It's one of those seasons. The kind where I feel myself being pulled a little bit more taut, a little bit further, a little bit harder. The kind when I wish it were that I could just say I've bitten off more than I can chew and then simply pull back, but really I know that it's the Lord growing and expanding and putting some good, Holy Spirit pressure on me.

Pressure to dig in, in new ways. Pressure to be a little bit more to a few more. Pressure to hear from Him afresh.

My children are no longer all little ones. As terrifying a thought as it can at times be, I have had to acknowledge that we are growing beyond "the early years" with our older ones-- especially my oldest, whose tendency toward analysis and introspection is perhaps catapulting him toward growing up faster than I would often choose. Heart to hearts and grappling with sin and yielding already-firmly-formed habits to Jesus are becoming a deeper and regular and necessary occurrence.

And yet even as I am feeling the stretching of a new season beginning to engulf us, I'm a mama to a 9-week-old, I am in the throes of the turbulent toddler years with another, I am trying to make sure I find time to sit and read to the 4-year-old who is content enough to let me forget about her altogether if I am not careful, I'm working with a struggling early learner, I am guarding an 8-year-old's childhood, I am schooling and cooking and laundering and cheering and correcting and all the other myriad of things that come with the title Mother.

Of course I feel unequal to the task.
Of course I am unequal to the task.

What a comfort it is to know that He is ready to pour out all grace, all wisdom, all hope, all blessing that I need. What I lack in pedigree, skill, and knowledge, He gives to me each day in the amazing form of Himself in me. What a blessed thought.

"Know Me. Abide in Me. Find your strength in Me. Discover joy in Me. Rest in Me."

My choice is you, God, first and only. And now I find I’m your choice! 
You set me up with a house and yard. And then you made me your heir! 
The wise counsel God gives when I’m awake is confirmed by my sleeping heart. 
Day and night I’ll stick with God; I’ve got a good thing going and I’m not letting go. 
I’m happy from the inside out, and from the outside in, I’m firmly formed. 
You canceled my ticket to hell— that’s not my destination! 
Now you’ve got my feet on the life path, all radiant from the shining of your face. 
Ever since you took my hand, I’m on the right way.

Psalm 16:7-11
 

 My book-end boys: 2 months and almost 11 years old.
How I love them, and each one in-between.
I wouldn't trade this calling to motherhood for any riches, fame, or opportunity in the world!

soup and biscuits

What a cold winter! We have been slammed with more below 0 temperatures than I can ever remember.

And what better way to spend these frigid nights than gathered around a candlelit table with a steaming bowl of soup and warm biscuits?

Perhaps you'll enjoy these recipes as much as we did.
They made just enough for one meal in our home.


Sausage Kale Tomato Soup
an adaptation of my good friend Lisa's florentine soup and Ina Garten's tomato soup

1lb bulk Italian sausage (hot or sweet, depending on your preference)
8 good-sized cloves of garlic
2 28-oz cans crushed tomatoes (I like Muir Glen)

6 cans chicken stock (or water with 3tsp chicken base)
2 big bags/bunches of kale (or spinach, etc)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1c heavy cream

In a large dutch oven, brown sausage over medium-low heat until cooked through. Add 8 cloves of garlic, either left whole or minced, depending on preference. Let them cook for a good few minutes, until garlic is soft and bits of the sausage are crisping.

Add crushed tomatoes, chicken stock, a good tablespoon of kosher salt and at least a teaspoon or so of freshly ground black pepper. Bring to a boil, add kale, and then reduce heat to simmer for 30 minutes or so (about the time you'll need for the biscuits to bake!).

Stir in the cream, return the soup to a simmer, and cook for 10 more minutes, stirring frequently.

Taste for seasonings and don't be afraid to add more salt and/or pepper!


Cheddar Pan Biscuits
a recipe I found in my early days of marriage that has long remained a favorite in our house-- there's nothing healthy about it, but as far as comfort food goes, these biscuits can't be beat!

1/3c butter
2-1/4c all-purpose flour (or a combination of spelt, coconut, and almond flour)
1c cheddar cheese, shredded
1T baking powder
1T sugar (or evaporated cane juice)
1tsp dried basil leaves
1/2tsp salt
1c milk (preferably whole)

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Melt butter in 8-inch square baking pan in oven (3-5 minutes).

Combine all remaining ingredients except milk in a medium bowl. Stir in milk just until moistened.

Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; knead until smooth. Pat or roll dough into 12 x 6-inch rectangle. Cut into 12 (1-inch) strips.

Dip each strip into melted butter in pan; fold each strip in half. Place folded strips in 2 rows in same pan. Bake for 23 to 28 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve warm.