Like Buttah!

With all the bread that's been baking in our house recently, it was only a matter of time before we decided to make our own butter! So today, Bennet and I went to the store and bought fresh cream and spent the afternoon in the kitchen. We even used the buttermilk for irish soda bread. After all, you really need something to slather all the butter on!

Mommy is using the food processor,


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...but Bennet is going the shake-it-up route to creamy, buttery goodness!


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We've got whipped cream!


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At this point I started wondering if I did something wrong...


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But all of a sudden, the processor started shaking and there was something clunky inside! It actually worked!


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Drain off the buttermilk.


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And Bennet's STILL shaking!


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It's time to flavor the butter!


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Sun-dried tomato and basil butter.


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Italian herb and garlic butter.


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Toasted almond and honey butter.


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How about now, Mommy?


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Let's take a look....BUTTER!!


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All the pretty butters in a row.


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After all that hard work, a little taste of buttermilk sounds good!


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Fresh, Homemade Bread EVERY day!

I heard about this from a friend and just had to give it a shot. So, I made the dough 2 days ago, which took about 5 minutes to mix and then just sat around on my counter, and later in my fridge. Yesterday, I spent another 5 minutes taking it out of the fridge and setting it on my counter. A little while later it went in my oven. And by lunch time, we were all eating sandwiches on bread that had been made less than an hour before! YUM!!

Today, I made sesame rolls that were destined to be lunch sandwiches again today! Delicious!!

Here's a link to a page with the master dough recipe that I used. It honestly couldn't be easier! I don't even have a pizza peel or baking stone, so I used the back of a cookie sheet and another cookie sheet with parchment paper instead.

Fig, not newton

At a recent playgroup that Bennet and I attended, the hostess handed us a baggie on our way out and told us to feel free to pick some figs. Apparently there were a lot and they were falling off the tree quickly. Now, I have never actually had a fig, other than the fruit and cake version, so I was surprised that someone actually had a whole tree full of them in their yard!


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Being someone who enjoys trying new things though, I marched on over to the tree, where a 9 year old girl taught me how to pick figs and which were ripe. Also, she told me that the flower is on the inside. Interesting.

So when we got home, I washed one and sliced it in half, and munched. They are fabulous! Bennet and I ate a ton! They may be my new favorite fruit! (Recently, jicamas became my favorite veg.) Since, I had known nothing about figs before today, I thought I'd share some interesting tidbits about them courtesy of California Fig Advisory Board.



Although considered a fruit, the fig is actually a flower that is inverted into itself. The seeds are drupes, or the real fruit. Figs are the only fruit to fully ripen and semi-dry on the tree.

Dried figs were first sold in a commerically manufactured cookie in 1892.

Figs contain a natural humectant -- a chemical that will extend freshness and moistness in baked products.

A chemical found in figs, Psoralens, has been used for thousands of years to treat skin pigmentation diseases. Psoralens, which naturally occurs in figs, some other plants and fungi, is a skin sensitizer that promotes tanning in the sun.

Figs provide more fiber than any other common fruit or vegetable. The fiber in figs is both soluble and insoluble. Both types of fiber are important for good health.



So I couldn't just eat them plain. I had to do some experiementing! So I halved the figs, stuffed them with goat cheese and a pecan, then wrapped them in bacon. A minute or two under the broiler, and they were heavenly!


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Kinda makes you want to try figgy pudding!

Plans for this week

Monday -- Heading to Pensacola to get carriers for the cat's for our flight to Japan. Apparently, we need to weight the carriers with the cats in them for the paperwork for our move! (Sounds ridiculous, I know). And Audrey Hepburn will be DISPLEASED!!! Don't worry, I promise to photograph the adventure!! Hopefully we'll get a chance to hit the pool for an afternoon swim. Although the afternoon storms have been pretty bad lately!

Tuesday -- Bennet's speech therapy in the am, of course. And then I think we'll head to the library too. If our stroller is back from the shop (yes...I got a flat tire on my stroller) we'll hit the trail that runs in front of the library.

Wednesday -- Popsicles and some sprinkler action in the morning. We're going to a playdate in the afternoon for a few hours. Yea for socialization!!

Thursday -- More therapy and pool time! Perhaps some grocery shopping as well.

Friday -- Lundy's blueberry farm! We're going to pick our own blueberries and then bake a pie! YUMMO! Pics will be added for you to drool over!

Saturday -- I'm thinking this is a potential beach day (weather dependent). I really want to head down in the late am and pick up some Bagelhead's for lunch. I REALLY miss Bagelhead's! Next to Bobbi and Cathleen, Bagelhead's is what I miss most about working!

I'd like to go to the playground a few times too. We didn't get to all week because the weather has been awful! I brought our slide indoors for Bennet, and he's been dragging it all over the house -- apparently you haven't fully experienced the slide until you've slid in the bathroom, bedroom, living room, and hallway!

Making up for all of the not posting I've been doing lately!

Alright...so let's go back in time a bit.

A few days ago, we had some boxes, tissue paper, tape (no glue though -- bummer), and toilet paper rolls. So we made a dinosaur habitat! I don't know who had more fun with it!


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In fact, I got so into it, that I made a mailbox and mail during B's naptime!


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A few days later, our playsilks arrived!!! YEA! SO we dyed them with Kool-aid, which worked really well. A bit too well actually! I'm scared of what all that kool-aid I drank as a kid has done to my insides....oh well. The silks came out great, B loves them, and as an added bonus, they smell nice and fruity!


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p.s. playsilks are my new favorite toy! We're never buying another mass produced toy again!!

Two days ago, B and I decided we would lift the cooking ban which I started when my dear husband left for training. So we made a real meal! *gasp* It was great! I've really missed cooking and the lasagna turned out great. We used goat cheese instead of ricotta, and veggies in lieu of meat. It was pretty kickin if I do say so myself!

So there, you're caught up! And I'll do better now!