tejon

We also have a whiteboard on the refrigerator. As things get used up they go on the list for the next grocery run. Then each week I carefully transfer the list of needed items to the one I carry to the store, along with whatever is needed for the next weeks (I menu plan). All sounds very organized and in control....but I always end up going back to the store at least once for something I forgot, or because the boys suddenly decided to eat cold cereal again.

Last night was vegetable koftas in coconut sauce, basmati rice, chapatis, and raita. Black tea for the grownups, juice for the smaller folk.

I finished up the cake this last Saturday and it was a huge hit. I've never attempted something this involved before and am very pleased with the end result. Much learned along the way, including my first creme anglaise and the first time assembling a torte. Next time I will use a thinner layer of gelee, and put a bit of the bavarian in between each layer to keep them from separating on the plate. The taste and texture were amazing. I will definitely make this up again. Thank you, FWED! And a special thank you to Sinclair for suggesting making this in parts and freezing as you go. It made the whole process much easier and less daunting for someone not so familiar with pastry techniques. Here's the finished cake (power went out for several hours, so this was taken outside): Slice of cake. I pressed finely grated white chocolate into the sides in lieu of spraying the cake. It worked well and provided a bit of texture (and covered up any irregularities in the sides ):

I thought that honor went to boneless, skinless chicken breasts? I will never again forget that fresh pineapple will not set up, no matter how much gelatin I throw at it. It made a lovely mango/passionfruit/pineapple sauce, but was not what I needed to set into the top of my cake.

Good point. Food is such a subjective thing. The right amount of salt for me might be too much for you, or not seasoned enough. You'll soon find you have a general idea of how much seasoning you like and how you want dishes to turn out. That's the real joy in cooking - getting to where things taste the way you want, and knowing how to get there again.

Chopped Fuji apple topped with Greek yogurt (yay, Trader Joe's!) and chopped roasted almonds. English breakfast tea with a bit of turbinado sugar added in. Needless to say, I got up before anyone else.

Another cabbage idea, not quite as subtle in flavor - cabbage, cut into large chunks, cooked in butter over low-med heat with minced garlic, salt and pepper until it's just barely tender. Doesn't sound like much, but it's indredibly good.

That looks delicious I'm in comfort food mode, so I'd add roasted potatoes (toss with olive oil, s/p, done in our toaster oven if it's just for two!) and some cabbage cooked in a bit of butter, s/p, and some caraway seed. Apple and cream beg for heartier, root type vegetables and simple starches, at least to me.

I'm in the process of making layers and freezing, as Sinclair suggested. It's been invaluable to be able to do each part separately, since there are many firsts for me in this recipe. I just made my first pastry cream this afternoon, and it came out really well. One question - when using gelatin for the gelee and pastry cream, I was unsure if I needed to use hot water to soften, or use some of the ingredients listed in the recipe. I opted to use some of the hot cream in case of the pastry cream, and some water since there wasn't any liquid in the gelee recipe.

Were the pans covered while everything simmered? If not, that would probably account for some of the inconsistancy. Also, it could just be that the recipe was off in some way. While I was learning to cook, I assumed that any problem was always on my end (and admittedly, that was certainly true often enough!), but now I've learned not to trust any recipe completely, no matter who it came from. The tagine looks great - and if it also tasted good, that's all that matters.

Don't count on that excitement and newness to ever really fade. I *still* get excited about a new vegetable peeler or technique I hadn't seen before. It's like Christmas morning when I open a cookbook and start to read, every time.

Way to go, Mia! Thats some impressive sewing for a first try. Love the new pose, too. On the wall art - is that crazon or pen? WD-40 (if it's available there) sprayed on will take it right off. I keep a bottle just for "artwork" emergencies.

Ah - that makes sense. The "mochi" part should have clued me in a bit. The picture on the front shows the toppings you are describing, I just couldn't tell what exactly they were resting on top of. Is kuzumochi usually served with green tea? I'm wondering about that as an ingredient and coloring. Mostly just curious - I don't expect snack foods to necessarily make any sense.

Ahh.....the memories of Pepto Bismol colored bathrooms, miles of beige carpeting, and a kitchen with no ventillation of any kind.... (wait, I still have the latter two ).

My new favorite: The package says, "Kyofu Stick Kuzumochi Sitat "Kabaya". The main flavor seems to be green tea with little sesame seeds as texture. Very smooth and delicate in flavor. Googled a bit and found that Kuzumochi is a type of cake - it is a bit cake like in flavor as well. My five year old thought it tasted "like donuts!".

Somehow I'm guessing this is more or less how carnitas came to be in the first place. Through......analysis and exceptional culinary skill.

The cabinets look so much better painted, even if it's just primer at this point. I bet the room is already visibly brighter. Now you have me jonesing to get down and paint mine, since they look very close to your original picture.

Imagine the curious onlookers. "They actually bake bread? From scratch?"

Another dinosaur here. I stay home with my boys, Mr. tejon works outside the home. This was a difficult financial choice, as supporting a family of four on that income is a stretch. But it was important to both of us that one of us be home when the children were small, that someone be able to make a home for all of us. So that is my job, unpaid as it is. Food really is the center to our home - eating dinner together each night, making popcorn to munch on the couch while watching a movie, special snacks for the boys. We make free time to cook together, to share meals together. What better way to come together as a family?

I'll also admit to mauling perfectly defenseless chickens. And the occasional turkey as well.

Are the sausages similar to hot dogs? I've seen many pictures of bentos for children with sausages that look the same, so I've wondered if they were the same general product or just all have the same size and appearance.

I lived near Philly for several years and couldn't ever figure out why the Rodin museum doesn't get more attention. It's simply breathtaking.

I think home cooking has always been seen as a chore by the majority of people (mainly women) who were responsible for putting dinner on the table. There have always been some who enjoyed planning meals and cooking, but I think those have always been a minority. The large difference between now and a hundred years ago is the number of options available to those who don't cook well or who don't enjoy preparing things in the kitchen. Not only are there sit down restaurants, but fast food is quick and relatively inexpensive, and grocery stores are filled with foods that need little to no preparation. So the logical result would seem to be smaller kitchens and less food actually prepared at home. But is this actually happening? Yes and no. More meals are being eaten out of the house than one hundred years ago, true. But there has also been an explosion of foods that need *some* amount of preparation - crock pot mixes, soup mixes, ready bake meals, bread mix, cookie and cake mixes, frozen skillet meals, marinated and/or pre-cooked meats, etc. Why are people seeking out foods that need some amount of cooking when ready made foods are just as easy to purchase? Because there is an equal desire to care for one's family by making meals for them. Food is part of how we care for the ones we love. Something baked in the oven or simmered on the stove is valued above something that came out of the microwave. There will most likely always be home cooking in most homes. Perhaps less than our grandparents did, but I can't see it dying out completely.

Important questions for you: how soon do you need/want this all to be accomplished? How handy are you in general? Obviously, the more you can do on your own, the cheaper the cost.

If I can ask, what is Sports Day, and what are the traditional foods prepared for this holiday?