{ A day in the kitchen }

 

 

The Kitchen is the Heart of the Home!

 

I think we've all heard that quote, and I for one am a firm believer in that it is absolutely true.  It is where we cook meals for our families, where we bring family together and where we sustain our bodies with nutritious food.

 

I love being in my kitchen and love spending time in it, pottering around, cooking, or doing dishes (I know that sounds weird, but I find doing dishes by hand, very relaxing).   Most of the time, you will find me in that room, in my happy place, where I feel the most at easy and calm.

Cooking is something I have enjoyed since very little.  I've told the story, I think a few times, of when I first started being interested in pots and pans and cooking.  I was just 5 years old, sitting at my great grandmothers feet.  I wanted so much to have my own set of pots, so my grandmother took me to the local store, in a small village in Portugal, and bought me a set of play pots and pans.  

I still remember it as if it was today.  They came in a big transparent bag, with a knot at the top, and I proudly carried it all the way home.  I wouldn't let my grandmother carry it, I was so proud of that set, that I wanted it all to myself.  Hahahah

When we got back home, my great grandmother was sitting at the kitchen table peeling potatoes, for lunch.  I sat at her feet, pulled out one of the pots, and asked her if I could cook too.  She passed me a small peeled potato, which I asked her to chop into small pieces and she obliged with a smile on her face.  I popped it in the pot, added water and salt and pepper and said I was going to make a soup.  She just smiled through it all, encouraging me.

So, as you can see, cooking has been ingrained in my soul since a very young age, and I think that's why to this day I absolutely adore being in the kitchen cooking for the family. 

So come into my kitchen with me.  I had my family over this weekend, and I decided to surprise them with some Portuguese desserts.  The first is for Bolas de Berlim, which if I were to translate would be Balls from Berlin.  Not exactly a great name, but it apparently was brought over to Portugal by German Jews fleeing World War II, and since Portugal was a neutral country, a lot of Jewish people immigrated there.  

 

Anyway, these fried donuts, filled with a delicious egg cream, are typically sold not only in bakeries throughout Portugal, but you will find them all over the beaches during the summer.  They are very reminiscent of our childhood in Portugal and one of our favorite desserts.  They do take time to make, and of course since they're fried and full of sugar, it's not something I make very often at all.  

 

I think the last time I made them was years ago.

 

So before I got to work on those, I quickly got dinner in the crockpot, so I wouldn't have to worry about it.

Then I got to work, and oh my word, the result were delicious perfect looking Bolas de Berlim, which my stepmother actually thought were bought at a bakery.  What a blessing and a wonderful compliment to me!

I may have a recipe on the food blog already, I'm not sure, I will check and if I do I will leave it linked here for you, but if not, then I'll be sure to get these on the blog this week.

They take some effort but are well worth it.

The recipe called for 12 but I actually ended up with 28 because I made them a bit smaller and doubled the recipe.  We have a big family of 16, so always need to make more.

The recipe I just linked for you above is not the recipe I used, this one came from an old Portuguese cooking magazine which I have collected for many years.  Teleculinaria!

Gorgeous!!!  (although I will say, I am regretting eating 2 of these, because I'm still paying for it today and that was Saturday that we had the family over lol)

I also made another Portuguese dessert which is kind of like the Portuguese Cookie Cake which I've shared here before.  You can find the recipe here if you want to make it, and I do suggest you give it a try because it's delicious.

This one however, is made the same way, but instead of a buttercream filling, it is layered with whipped cream that is mixed with pineapple jello and pineapple chunks.  It is so refreshing and easy to make and yummy too.  

I don't have this recipe on the blog yet, so this one will be going up very soon.

I ended my day in the kitchen, with a yummy dinner of Coney Island Hotdogs, and two amazing desserts to serve to the family.

They were a hit, and nothing was left, not a crumb.  

There is a pleasure that comes from serving your family, and seeing everyone enjoy your food.  It's a blessing for sure.

Thank you for joining me in my kitchen.  I hope you all have a blessed Wednesday.  Take care friends ♥

Reminiscing old times and prepping for Thanksgiving

 

Our daughter messaged me yesterday, asking if I could please send her some of dad's military photos, because her work is doing a presentation for Veteran's day, and she wanted to include her dad.

That sent me into the blog, into old posts, dating back between 2007 and 2012, when we were stationed at Luke AFB in Arizona.  I scrolled and scrolled, and found some for her, but after I did, I found myself still scrolling, still reading, still remembering, still feeling so blessed and thrilled, that I had made the effort to blog every day.

At the time, it was just blogging because I loved blogging, I wasn't thinking that future me, would one day be sitting in a completely different State, on an Autumn day, reminiscing.  It almost feels like those words on the pages, were written by someone different, and I guess in a way they were.

I was younger, I was in a very different place in life, still had both kids at home, being home schooled, was still an active duty military wife and so on.  

It's amazing how we change and adapt, as the years go by and life and circumstances change around us. 

 

 

If you look above his head, you will see TSGT Curtis.....he had his name on one of the F16's, as he was the Dedicated Crew Chief.  It means they are basically recognized by the Air Force as the primary keeper of that particular jet, it's like they own the jet, they're responsible for it as they know it inside and out.  

I still remember this day, and when I took these photos.  Curtis was working at the Air Show, and the kids and I only arrived in the afternoon.  They were so happy to see daddy, and clung to him the rest of the day.  I honestly miss the active duty military life, so much.

Anyway, back to reality and to now.

 

We've woken up a couple of days with some thick fog outside.  Are there any others out there who love a good fog?  Not to drive in, mind you, I don't like driving in fog at all, but I love fog.  I think it's so pretty.

Now let me show you what I've been up to these past few days.  As you know, I had family over on Sunday and then Monday I had to get the house back in order.  Usually I prefer to get it all cleaned up and tidied right after everyone leaves, but sometimes I am too tired to do it, and just leave it until the next morning.

The first thing I did was wash some chair covers, some kitchen linens and one of Kaia's blanket that was in the closet.  (I don't know why I do that, but if it's been in the linen closet for a few months, or from one winter to the next, I like to wash it before letting her use it.)

This always becomes a fort for Elliott.  He loves hiding under it while stalking one of us, he also takes naps under there, and sometimes uses it to hide if family comes over.  He is not a friendly cat at all to anyone other than the humans that live in the house.  Wish he was nicer, but I think it's a pretty normal thing with cats in general.

 

 

I had the family over for on Sunday for coffee and some snacks.  I made a Chocolate Yogurt Cake and our Portuguese Bola de Carne (Bacon, Ham and Chourico Bread).  The recipe for the Bola de Carne is already on the blog.

The cake along with a few others that I've made lately, will be going up soon.  I need to get my butt in gear when it comes to the recipes, I have so many floating around, and it's hard for me to keep track of them too, which makes it a pain every time I want to make one of them again.  I can never remember where I wrote it down.  

Hopefully this afternoon, I can actually take some time, sit down and get those up for me and for you all, of course.

 

I've been taking such immense pleasure, in keeping my home cozy and tidy.  It's hard for me to fathom that just a few months ago, I had completely lost track, was just living day to day, moving through each hour, doing the basic needed for us to survive.

 

I wasn't paying attention to the details, wasn't really worried about putting anything in it's right place, or adjusting this, or adding a little homey touch here or there.  It's weird for me to imagine that, but I am human and sometimes life happens around us, in such a way or speed, that we struggle to keep up with the basic needs, not to mention the extras. 

However, I am getting much joy from being back in the game, so to speak.

 

Things like the tree in the corner of the dining room.  Last year, I didn't even put it up until almost Christmas, and then put on but a few ornaments and called it good.

This year, I am going back to my tradition of decorating it for Thanksgiving.  One year, I think it was the year before my mother in law Pat, passed away, I made brown paper Thanksgiving Placemats.  Everyone got to write down what they were thankful for, and was a great way to go around the table and hear everyone.

This year, I am doing it a little different, I will have a basket with some printed leaves, that everyone can write something they're thankful for, and then hang on the tree.  I think my niece's daughter Eva, and son Dalton, will enjoy hanging them up.

So I will get those printed out either today or tomorrow and start the process of cutting them out.  

 

Before I leave, I just wanted to show you what I made for dinner on Monday night.  It's Kibbeh.  If you've never had it, it's a Lebanese specialty, made with Bulgur Wheat.  Typically you make it into oval patties and then fry them, but you can also make it in the oven.

Usually I would have made it the most popular way, but I was not in the mood to fry anything.  We actually don't eat much fried food at all, it's very seldom that we do.  I opted for the oven version, which is equally delicious.

I will have that recipe up for you as well.

It does take a bit of prep, but only in the sense that you need to soak the Bulgur Wheat for at least 30 minutes, depending on how coarse it is.  The rest of the preparation is nothing more than if you were making a meatloaf.  So good!!!  I put a ton of cheese in the middle, which made it even better.

Right, I need to get off here, and go finish my meal plan, so that I can get my pickup order placed.  For some reason it's taking me a while to get this done, some meal plans just flow, others take me sometimes days, because I seem to draw a blank and can't think of anything to make.

Kinda funny, considering meal planning is all about making things easier and not getting stuck in front of the freezer, trying to figure out what to cook.  But I guess my brain gets stuck on the planning itself, and that's ok, at least I know it will save me when it's time to cook dinner.

Anyway, I hope you all have a blessed Wednesday, don't forget to check out my sidebar to pray along with me, for the hostages kidnapped from Israel.  You will find their names on the sidebar, every day there will be a new name to pray over.

I'll see you all soon.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

{ Blog 365 #111 - Cream Cheese Pound Cake }

 

 

Cream Cheese Pound Cake

Source:  A Spicy Perspective

 

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, softened (3 sticks)
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 3 cups granulated sugar, divided
• 6 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups all-purpose flour

 

 

Directions:

 

• Set out the butter, eggs, and cream cheese to come to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Move one oven rack to the center of the oven and remove any racks above it.
• Pull out a standard 12-cup capacity bundt pan. Grease the bundt pan with extra butter or shortening, then scoop 1/4 cup sugar into the pan and shake it around until the fat is well coated in sugar. Dump out any excess sugar. Set aside.
• Place the softened butter and cream cheese in the bowl on an electric. Beat on high until the mixture is totally smooth. Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula, then add the remaining 2 3/4 cups sugar. Beat on high again for 3-5 minutes to cream the ingredients until very light and fluffy. Scrape the bowl again.
• Turn the mixer on low and beat in the eggs, vanilla extract, baking powder, and salt. Then slowly add the flour a little at a time, until fully combined. Once the batter is smooth, turn off the mixer, as to not overmix the batter.
• Scoop the batter into the prepared pan. Bake on the center rack for 80-90 minutes. After 80 minutes, test the cake by inserting a toothpick deep into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, take the pound cake out of the oven.
• Let the cream cheese pound cake rest in the pan for 15 minutes. Then carefully flip the cake onto a platter or baking rack.

 

{ Grocery Day and Big Mac Sloppy Joes for dinner }

I feel like I just picked up my groceries a few days ago, but it's already been two weeks, and it was time for a grocery pick up again.  I am starting to get a bit of cabin fever when it comes to grocery shopping.

While I've enjoyed the pick ups and the ease of shopping from the comfort of my own home, I quite loved the experience of actually going inside the store.  Hoping to get back to that soon.

But for now, here is a quick glimpse at my grocery haul for the next two weeks.  It is not a lot, I am sticking to very easy meals and using what I have in my fridge and freezer.

I am also busy working on long term meal plans.  Well, long term, meaning months in advance.  Just writing down meal ideas, going through the cookbooks, and looking online as well.  I think it's good to be prepared in advance and to always have some extra meals as backups.

 

That's what I spent today doing, aside from the grocery pick up, putting away everything, cleaning and doing laundry and paying bills.  I ended the night making some Big Mac Sloppy Joes.  I'll have the recipe for you soon, really going to try and get it on the food blog, but if not, it will for sure be here on this blog on our next Cooking Thursday.

Hope you've all had a wonderful Friday.  I for one am so happy that the weekend is upon us.

 

Have a blessed night and I'll see you back here tomorrow!

 

There were a few items I didn't get because they were out, and so tomorrow I have a smaller order to pickup.  Mainly drinks and my laundry detergent and softener.

The total for this haul was $281.39 and the smaller one tomorrow is $81.  Y'all $81 for 4 of the 12 packs of drinks, diet coke, dr pepper, mountain dew and sprite, a 40 pack of water, laundry detergent and softener.  That's it.  Lord helps us all!

Now let me quickly show you my sloppy Joes, they were delicious and tasted just like a Big Mac.  We each had one, which was plenty because they're so big, and I still have some of the meat leftover, which will be used for nachos for lunch tomorrow.

 

{ Wednesday Catch Up }

Good morning everyone, welcome back to my little corner here on the web.  It's been a while since my last post, so I thought it was time to come in, and show you what I've been up to.  

Be prepared though, I have a lot of pictures to share, so you may want to grab a cup of coffee or tea, before you settle in for a little chat.  I just felt I needed to get these pictures and my thoughts, on the blog, but there really is no sequence or events, so I'll be kind of just jumping all over the place, hope that's ok.

So what has been happening around here?  A lot of homemaking and getting back to the core of who I am.  I was feeling so discombobulated for a while.  Felt like I couldn't get back to the things I wanted to do and loved doing.  But that kind of changed about a month ago, when I pushed myself to just get on with it and quit allowing life and my convoluted mind to keep me in a unmotivated, stuck place.

The first few days were hard, I wanted to revert back to old habits, to sitting around, to not wanting to do anything, to making excuses for not baking this, or making that, or gardening or whatever it was that I had floating around in my brain.  It was like a bubble of all these things just brewing in my mind, but being stuck there and not really coming out and being accomplished.  

If you've ever been in that state of mind, you know how difficult it is to snap out of it.  But I did, I forced myself and I am so happy to be where I am at this moment.  I've regained a renewed love for homemaking, cooking and baking, taking care of the home, working on projects, making things and watching the kind of shows and movies I've always loved.

So, I've bounced back and I couldn't be happier for it.  I just hope that it also keeps me focused on the blog, and putting out posts like I used to, whether it be something I want to show you, a day in the life, a recipe or whatever it may be.  Life goes by so fast, and I'm letting it go by without documenting it.  Well that's a sad thought, isn't it?

Anyway, that little intro went on longer than I thought it did, but that is what happens when you haven't talked in a while, then open your mouth and it all comes tumbling out.

Let me now shift gears a bit and show you in pictures, what I've been doing.

Little man Elliott, was a bit sick on Sunday.  Being the cat that he is, he sometimes gets into things he shouldn't, like Kaia's peanut butter treats.  He vomited them up on Saturday night, then spent most of Sunday feeling quite sick, threw up two more times and just wasn't his usual bubbly self.  Thankfully, after much prayer and no doubt the offensive treats making their way through his digestive system, he bounced back and got back to his sweet, funny, naughty nature.

I've been quite busy faffing back and forth, between the inside of the house and outside.   Thought truth be told, it's been more in than out, because the triple digit temperatures we've been enduring the past few weeks, have been way too much to endure.

We are desperately needing rain, our rivers and ponds are drying up, our grass is all dead, our plants and fruit trees are struggling to survive.  It's been quite the dry summer for us.

Inside though, the plants are thriving.  So much so, that this gorgeous Peace Lily above decided to flower after about 3 years of not producing anything.  

Let me tell you a little story about this specific plant.  My sweet mother in law Pat, gifted me this Lily when my equally sweet grandmother Odete, passed away in 2016.  Had this been years ago, this poor thing would have been dead within a month, tops.  I just could not for the life of me, keep any plants alive.

But to see it not only thriving but now flowering, is just amazing.  I am so happy to see this beautiful Lily in all it's glory.

In between my homemaking, I have also started a college course.  Brace yourselves, I know you're probably wondering what on earth, and where did that come from?

But, this is a free course, amongst many others that are offered by Hillsdale College.  It is called The Great American Story:  A Land Of Hope, and is available for anyone who is interested to take.  I must admit, I am quite enjoying it and learning more about our beautiful country.

They have quite a few free courses to enroll in, and I'm going to take a few more of these, just for fun.  Wanna know my next?

The Young Jane Austen:  Northanger Abbey

 

No surprise, is there?  Hahahahah

I have also been reading, a lot, like a lot.  (That just reminded me of Johnny Depp's trial when Amber Heard on the stand said that when she met him, he drank a lot of tea, a lot of tea, like a LOT of tea.  LOL)

This wonderful book pictured above, is for an upcoming review.  It is called The Weekly Gratitude Project.

Also am on book 2 of Janette Oke's Women of the West series.....Julia's Last Hope.

And, currently, also reading What Will They Think?  Nine Women in the Bible who can Help you live your Life Boldly by Grace Valentine (also for a review)

Desserts, cakes, and breads have also been working their way through the kitchen.  Along with delicious home cooked meals.  

This delicious looking pasta dish below, will be up on my food blog, hopefully by this afternoon.  It is a really inexpensive, yummy meal that stretches quite far, and is the easiest thing to throw together.

The grill has also become our newest friend, and weekends are spent outdoors, under the gazebo, eating yummy things, like steak and these amazing Korean Barbecue Bratwurst, from our local butcher shop.  

 

They are divine!

Homemaking is full speed ahead as well.  I've moved things here and there, I've reorganized, cleaned and focused on keeping our home lived in and cozy.  There is nothing quite like having a clean, tidy home is there?

For this purpose, I've relied on some trusty and long time favorite cleaners, like the Old English.  I've been using it for over 20 years and have never found another that is as good.  

You know I believe that when we find a good product, as long as it's still in production, why change it?  They make so many.  The shelves are usually packed full of dozens of cleaners, which sometimes just confuse a shopper.  I just stick to what I know.  anyone else like that?

In the garden, we've been having a hard time.  The drought that I mentioned at the top of this post, hasn't been kind at all.  Our little grape vine, has been coming along for 3 years.  We actually thought it had died, but it suddenly sprung to life and has clung onto the wire fence.  A few weeks ago we noticed a grape, one single grape.  Can you spot it in the photo below?

I am hoping that eventually it will grow into more, but the fact that it has been growing slowly but steadily the past few years, is enough for me to appreciate.

I have two pepper plants, and only one has produced so far, and again, just one single pepper.  What is it with the single fruit and veg?

My cherry tomato plant has been consistently providing beautiful red tomatoes, so at least this one is doing well.

One of my Hibiscus plants, has a ton of mushrooms growing in it's soil.  Now, for a newish plant lover, as I am, this was a bit of a concern.  I first noticed my money tree growing mushrooms, and now one of my Hibiscus.  

But I researched it, and apparently it's normal and actually means your soil is quite rich and providing a wonderful ecosystem for your plant to thrive in.  I was pulling the mushrooms out, and will continue to do so with my indoor money plant, because I don't want Elliott to get into it.

But as for my outdoor plants, I think I'll leave them be.

Besides, am I the only one that looks at this photo above, and immediately pictures a fairy house?  There is something about this picture that is so magical in a sense.  I have stared at it for far too long, but I can't help it, it takes me into fantasy worlds, with beautiful English forests.

Boy my mind can travel can't it?

And with that my dear friends, I bring this catch up post, to an end.  I really enjoyed sitting with you and chatting a bit, bringing you up to speed with what I've been doing or working on, and showing you a bit of what is around me.

On today's agenda, I have:

• College Course Work
• Feeding my sourdough starter
• Pulling down my bag of fabrics to sort through, for a project I want to get into
• Watering all the plants out on the patio
• Taking more photos for another blog post
• Reading
• Hoping to finally watch the new Downtown Abbey movie

What are you up to today?