In Which She Pretends She Is a Chef :)

I was visiting my grandparents' house last week and I got a chance to envelope myself in the Food Channel now and then. When I encounter these shows I am so glad we do not have cable t.v., for I'd be sitting there watching the cooking shows all day long. ;)

Some of my favorite chefs to watch at their trade are:

Ina Garten on "The Barefoot Contessa" [who I didn't get to see this time. :( ]

Giada De Laurentiis 

Bobby Flay

The Pioneer Woman

And the cooking-competitions "Chopped", "Iron Chef", and "Cupcake Wars." :) I have a silly little fondness for such things. So watching the cooking channel leave me having two desires:

1. To be able to chop that fast and with those knives.

2. To be original with my meals--to make them look amazing and taste superb.

I started thinking of ways that I could dress up the food I make for my family--after all, I spend half the day in the kitchen [literally] and there has to be something I could do differently now and then. :) I am thinking about starting up a recipe-inspiration series--what do you think of that idea? :) For now, here is some Pinterest-inspiration to help you and me along. :)

Frankly, this is brilliant! I have not tried shaping my eggs this way, but I think it would look stunning for a Mother's Day breakfast for really any occasion where you thought a little extra love would not go amiss. (Pity I don't like hard-boiled eggs. :D)

Okay. So this is not exactly food, but I adore this color scheme--it is so...Sicilian or something, with the citrus fruits mixed with the simple flower arrangement! Gorgeous!

Aren't these just so happy?!? Love it. I'm thinking it is Jell-o layered with...yogurt or pudding or something? Hm. Not sure how that would taste, but it's stunning!

Admittedly, I'm a sucker for pretty things. Especially parfaits...

What a cute little chubby pot-pie! I love personal things, and that dish looks simply adorable.

I've decided radishes are not good for anything except decoration. In that category they are irresistable...

And check this out:

Isn't that breath-taking? I love it. So. Much.

While on the subject of flowers I've gotta say, someday I am totally doing this:

There is a surprising array of flowers that are entirely edible--you just have to ferret them out. I had sudden inspiration (while taking a walk with Maryanna after choir) of sprinkling a salad with Violet Wood-sorrel (pink oxalis) which grows in profusion around here--The leaves, stems, and flowers taste like lemon, and so as children we called it "Lemon-grass," little realizing there was already a plant christened that. :D

This is what the wood-sorrel looks like--isn't it beautiful? But back to food.

It is also a proven fact that I am fond of tiny things like appetizers--aren't these adorable?

These are really neat too:

Not sure what they are filled with, but those appear to be roasted squash blossoms on top. :)

Anyway, I was greatly inspired by the Food Channel last week and I hope this post inspired you too. Look out for more neat recipe ideas in the future!

What's Cookin'?

There is always room on my shelf for another cookbook. I don't know about you, but I love flipping through a cookbook's pages and planning all sorts of fabulous meals that I never make. :D
The cookbook that I'm dreading marriage because of [i.e. because when I leave my house I won't have it anymore. ;)] is 1,000 Lowfat Recipes by Terry Blonder Golson. We found this amazing cookbook at the thrift store and decided to buy it. However, Mama and I don't like cooking with all low-fat stuff. You know, modified versions of healthy foods? (low-fat yogurt, low-fat milk, etc. or specifically, things that are so stripped down the make them "low-fat" that they aren't good for you anymore) So we weren't sure how much of that these recipes would call for.
We were delighted to find that this book is full of recipes that use foods that are already naturally low-fat. And all the recipes we have tried taste *Amazing*. With 1,000 recipes, this book is sure to have an idea for anything in your pantry. :D The sections range from "Small Bites & Finger Foods" to three different sections of entrees, to "Casual Meals" and "Sauces, Salsas, Pantry Staples, and Beverages." It's my favorite cook-book by far. :) I don't know about you, but it seems to me that most healthy-cooking books are full of impossible ingredients. I'm sorry, but I haven't the budget to purchase baby button-mushrooms and young artichokes and all that jazz. But Terry Golson leaves it all behind and starts rearranging foods you already eat into healthy, delicious meals. It's pretty cool! :)

Here's a smashing recipe for Garlic and Lemon Broccoli. I promise, it's amazing.

(image courtesy of pinterest.)

Garlic and Lemon Broccoli:

• 4 cups broccoli florets
• 1 Tbs. olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tps. fine strips lemon zest or minced lemon peel
• 1/4 tsp. sea salt
• 1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper

1. Steam florets until tender. If you like, use peeled and sliced stems as well as crowns. Drain and put in a serving bowl and cover loosely to keep warm.

2. Heat the oil in a small saute pan over moderate heat. Cook the garlic until golden but not brown. Stir in the zest. Pour this over the broccoli, toss with the salt and pepper, and serve immediately.

Serves 5 

Per serving: Calories 36, Protein 1g; Fat 3g; Carbohydrates 2g; Fiber 1g; Sodium 106mg.

Try it and tell me how you like it. :) I highly recommend this cookbook to anyone who wants to eat healthily without breaking their family budget! :)

Playing Mama ;)

It's been a long day today...Mama, Sarah, Leah, and Levi were gone thrift-store shopping to stock up on fall clothes and take advantage of half-price Wednesday. I needed all of my butchering, bakering, and candle-stick makering skills because I had a Mama-load of tasks to do:

• Watch the kids and make sure no one Disappears or Chokes. ;)
• School the kids. I know this isn't news to you gals who have been homeschooled your whole lives but to any strangers to the idea, this means a 5th grader, a 3rd grader, a 1st grader, and a Pre-K student...all at once. I managed to cover reading The Secret Garden aloud to them, (And yes, I attempted a Yorkshire accent for Martha) science, vocabulary and spelling, and handwriting.
• Bake for the co-op--this included concocting a custom ginger-cookie recipe by combining two seperate ones, experimenting with results, and turning out 5 dozen, baking 3 dozen cinnamon rolls, (I had to make a second batch due to some being too large. *who can say, "breakfast!" ;) and 3 knotted bread loaves. It was a relatively small week, actually.
• Summon up a batch of brilliancy to get energy out of children who have been cooped up inside a lot due to excess rain in the area. (It isn't the rain, but the thunder and lightening that makes me keep them inside.)
• Make a pot of chili
• Keep the house clean
• Etc.

Of course it was tiring, and of course I had to blare Celtic folk-songs on Pandora to keep a stream of awareness in my mind, and of course there were a few discipline sessions and more than a few raised eyebrows and "You'd better not do that again" but there was a moment when I realized that it was all way worth it, and that I had been riding on God's wings of energy. That moment?
I was reading a letter aloud to the younger ones and Gracie was sitting on my lap. Her chubby little arms stole around my neck and she kissed me loudly, then proclaimed. "I'm so glad you're part of my family!"
It is totally worth the work. What better reward could I ask for? :) ~Rachel