Birthday Wishes.

Well we had a birthday today so we were busy all day with getting ready. It started with some serious stirring as we tried our hand at making a castella. The hand whipping has us promising to get a hand blender by the fall of 2011. We also talked about getting a good mixer. Yes we are planning to seriously settle down. After that was done the kidlets and I went out shopping. We got some prezzies for mom and some fixins for dinner. Upon arriving back home the Mrs. took an afternoon off for herself. Her last directions as she left were to bake the loaves at 325 for 50 minutes starting at 3:15. So at 3:30 I turned the temp gauge to 325 and set the timer for 50 minutes. What I didn't do was turn on the stove. So at 4:20 I looked in the oven to see some seriously deflated loaves. That were still moist. After barking at the kids for turning the oven off I realised I was the bad guy and turned it on. The loaves pictured below would have easily blocked all views of the little shelf behind them if they had been baked properly. It was a body blow for the wife when she returned to these shrunken sad looking loaves. They still taste good but I messed that one up good.

Trying to recover from the bread debacle I had stuffed the pork roast with an apple, celery, onion, garlic, and cilantro stuffing. There were other spices, salt and pepper and bread combs added as well. This was then roasted with yams and onion slices for about 2 hours. It was delicious but really really late. Once again the extra hour for bread put everything behind schedule.
At seven when we finally sat down to eat the kids had already polished off a whole round of brie and crackers. They had also had some sparkling blueberry drink and an "almost" greek salad, perked up with a bunch of cilantro. It was a long eating up and down evening but I think the birthday girl would give it more thumbs up then thumbs down. Although she lives and dies with her bread. Well I have the rest of my life to make it up to her and probably will spend most of it trying. Here is the kids helping me bake bread, stuff a roast and decorate cupcakes while their mother is out for the afternoon.

Home and Home.

So it was home cooking again today. To start with we did make bread today, honest. Only I didn't take any pictures of it. The first rise was pretty long and the second rise was also long. It was a warm day. Yet the bread just wouldn't get that big. However, it is going to be great slathered with my topping of choice or under a fried egg with melted cheese on top. Yes, we like bread.On a different note I made some lasagna for dinner this evening. The ever strong zucchini made it's presence felt as the bottom layer. Overall it was pretty good but could have used another can of tomatoes. Not as saucy as I like it. The garlic bread was pretty good, even if it wasn't our bread. The green salad was really tasty and we are still enjoying the thai sesame ginger dressing. The daughter wanted to know if it is sold here in town. I replied of course. She wanted proof. Was I sure? Had I seen it? I answered in the affirmative but I don't know if she really bought it.

Curri-tastic.

Well it is official, the wife makes a darn good curry. It was the chickpea vegetarian version and with a little hot sauce it even had some kick. The kids gobbled it up so that was a double happiness. The meal was accompanied by a green salad with the Thai sesame dressing. We also had some foccacia bread to round out the meal.

It turns out the actual date for the show (in which the daughter has a stunning 6 lines) is Thursday the 26th of November. We can put you up Thursday night if you want. I know its tough but think about it. In anycase the show will probably be video taped for posterity.

Cool enough for the Oven.

Well we decided that with a slight break in the temperature today was finally the day to make bread. Rather a late start to that but by 4:00 they were all baked up and looking good on the counter. Now I told everyone to keep their hands off and their appetites whet so that they could devour some pizza.We made two kids (ham and basil; ham, pineapple and basil) and two adults (zuchinni, mushroom, onion, olive, banana peppers and basil). The wife also talked me into putting a cup of whole wheat into the dough in the place of a cup of regular flour. The dough was a little bit firmer. This made it harder to work with but it also slid more easily off the pizza peal. I partially lost two of the pizzas off the back side of the stone and had to fish out the hanging off bits. More flavour in the dough, maybe a little bready. However, it was good and the wife was satisfied so the most important criteria was met.The zuchinni that graced our pizza is pictured here beside a cucumber and tomato that were picked from the garden today. The basil and banana peppers on the pizza also came from the garden. Everything is coming together. Looking forward to the first eggplant and all the varieties of peppers and tomatoes that have not yet ripened. Gonna pick some beans tomorrow.

Where's the dinner?

Well we didn't quite get around to making dinner tonight. I made some tomato sauce for pasta at lunch time and everyone ate that.

What we did do was whip up some homemade hot dog/smokie buns for tomorrow nights dinner. We do plan to get some nice wonderbread style buns for the kids dogs and for anyone else who feels the need. However, I am really looking forward to my homemade smoky tomorrow evening. Until then.

BBq is Back

Well we whipped up some bbq chicken for this evenings dinner. It was going to be shake and bake but turning on the oven that would have been madness, 33 degrees here today, 91 for our American readers. Funnily enough we were actually baking bread so I had to go outside and use the last of the gas. Note to self. Get more propane.
The chicken was good, the bread was out of this world, hot and slathered with butter. Boiled peas and corn with some leftover coleslaw and it was real barbecue here tonight. Day four of schedule madness was not quite as tight as it could have been but we have high hopes for tomorrow. Lots of bday party planning and cake making to get done. Note to self, keep camera handy.

Here are some more bread shots. This should last us two weeks.

Play then Eat

Well that was the brilliant plan that our dinner guests brought with them this evening. Usually when they come over they arrive for dinner and then the kids have plan time afterwards and everyone is pooped or full and then it gets late and everyone is a little whiney. However, arriving two hours before dinner the kids had a great play day, dinner was made at a leisurely pace and then we ate and everyone went home. Perfect.

Now I did a horrible job of managing the camera this evening and there wouldn't be a single photo were it not for the guests intervening as I was about to dig in to the last pizza. It was kind of a potluck and the guests brought, wings, chips, and a wicked awesome zuchinni chocolate cake. Of course I have pictures of none of these. We added in some pizza and a ceasar salad. It was passable pizza but it definitely wasn't inspired. I don't think I was focussed enough. I was having too much fun hanging out pre dinner to really get in the zone. Everyone else gave the impression of being satisfied so I will have to take them at their word. But I know I can do better.

I did manage to get a post feast picture of the kitchen before I did the dishes. This is of course the state that the kitchen is still in as I write this post. Procrastination is one of the major driving forces behind this blog. Just in case you didn't know.

Oh yeah, we also made bread today. This is the dough after the first rising. Apparently you need to spray it with water if it gets dried out in the rising process. I would never have known. The bread turned out pretty well but of course I didn't take a picture of that either. Having a good day here. We are hoping to make croissants tomorrow. Now that should be interesting. I hope we have enough butter.

Full Friday

At least for me. I was out the door at 8:30 to take part in the union contract meeting mentioned earlier. We read through our almost complete contract for two and half hours. Mind numbing but informative. Then I bought some hockey sticks, look for hockey pucks in vain and brought home some boneless skinless chicken breasts for dinner.

Upon arriving home I found the family engaged in a movie and waiting for their dough to rise. They decided to make bread today. Interesting little buns of all sorts. Sticky Jam buns, chocolate chip filled buns and a wonderful cheese, garlic and dill number that was really awesome. The picture doesn't do it justice because we have already finished about a third of them. I really need an alarm that goes off right before I eat anything reminding me to take a picture.

Before the buns went in the oven we put the hockey sticks to good use and played some hockey outside. We also did some slalom skating and had another snowball fight royale. With all the plus 3 and plus 5 days recently the ice seems to be getting a little thin. If winter doesn't return in full force we may not be skating much longer. Some leaves that were frozen into the ice managed to melt holes from the warmth of the sunshine. However, if it gets nice and cold I am sure I can keep the sheet solid for another month or two. Post skate we came back in and watched another movie. The kids had been snacking on buns [ed. no the time line doesn't work but live with it] so they didn't really need lunch. Around five I started chopping up the last three potatoes. No one mentioned we were down to three when I said earlier that I was making fries so that was what we had. It all worked out and no one that was hungry for fries went without. The chicken breasts were sliced in half, soaked in soy sauce and sugar and then fried up in the fry pan. Instant Terkiyaki chicken burgers. The tomato and lettuce that were purchased with the breasts filled out the burgers nicely. Everyone else snacked on them seperately but I had a proper burger. Now we are fed and ready for another movie. I believe it will be Underdog. Good times.

Party's over.

Well it had to happen. Winter vacation has ended. We have put the house back to rights, more or less, after finishing up with the doctor this morning. Nice way to start the new year. Unfortunately, after returning the machine and having my last lunchtime nap for a while I had to spend some quality time at work getting ready for tomorrow. I was worried that everyone would be all broken up about me not being around. Not the case as it turns out.

To start with the rest of the gang decided to make some bread. Not just any bread but chocolate filled bread. There was some opinion that is was slightly overcooked but the pride on the kids faces at having made their own bread was unmistakable. I was ever so gently persuaded to have a third piece with my dinner. Now I know how all of those people that I brow beat into reading this blog feel. Come on, have another post, its really good.

Now they didn't only bake bread while I was away. They also spent some serious time outside playing. A lady who was passing on the side walk stopped to talk with the fam and informed them of how she used to play in the snow. Apparently, her mom would whip up some water with food colouring and she would make designs in the snow. So quicker than you can say Dave's your uncle they were outside making snow art. By the time I got home it was too dark to see, or it had all melted away but they said they had a good time. They also re-planted the now defunct christmas tree in the front yard. I kind of like it.As for dinner there was tonkatsu, stir fried veggies, rice and the aforementioned chocolate bread. I enjoyed the lot. No leftovers for tomorrows lunch but hey that is what dinner is for. And really, the kids put away most of the tonkatsu.In an interesting turn of events, I did not have a beer with dinner. Drying out is going to be tough after the holidays. I have pretty much had a beer or two every day in the afternoon for the last two weeks. Honestly though, I am pretty sure the new chocolate addiction will be even harder to break. The next big event in our lives is Baby due day. Less than two months and the excitement is building. Lots to do, lots to do.

Tough Work

So we had home made turkey curry for dinner last night. We just didn't have it at home. We pot lucked it up with some friends. Unfortunately, we didn't bring the camera. The curry was even better this evening, as curry usually is, but I didn't get any pics of it this evening either.

However, there was some serious baking going on tonight and that was recorded. Recently, the family was turned on to a Japanese animated series called Yakitate Japan. It follows a Japanese boy who wants to make a truly Japanese type of bread. He moves to Tokyo and has various adventures at the store he works at. The daughter wanted to bake something this evening and the quickest thing I could think of were scones. With no yeast and no rise time they worked out just nicely and in under half an hour we were done. A savoury chive and cheese combination was meant to match soup but they ended up just being eaten in hand. You can see from my daughter's current state that it was a tough job baking these guys. Well the back to work count down is on. I may have to actually go in and do some prep before Monday. Lets not think about that right now.

My blog runneth over.

Well it was a busy day here on the 23rd of December. Things are in full swing holiday wise and here is a quick recap. We started the day with mom heading off for the christmas sweet sale day at the bakery. We were meant to arrive there around 11:00 but got a telephone call just before leaving to say that we should arrive after lunch. So it was outside for a skate and then back in for a lunch of cup ramen, leftover pasta and sauce, re heated cold hot chocolate and jello. After lunch we bundled up and headed off for the bakery. Mom was there in full regalia doing her baking thing. In this picture you can actually see her making the An-pan. It is good. We could be living in Japan right now for all I know. Anyways the kids got to make some bread and decorate and eat a cupcake with the other little tykes. It was a good time and after we left the bakery we walked back home and didn't quite make it inside. I chopped some wood to get us ready for the next couple of days and the kids played on the home made tobogan run. It is just the pile of snow that we make every year with our neighbours while clearing our respective driveways. But it always seems to shoot nicely down into our driveway.


I make the stairs up the neighbours side so that the run doesn't get ruined. The kids pretty much massacre the stairs anyways and the neighbours always fill it up with the new snow fall. It is a round about procedure which keeps everyone in shape. Post sliding we came back inside and sat down for some more movie watching. While the daughter rewatched the first Harry Potter, the son and I whipped up some Pizza dough. However, just before this mom came home and then went out shopping for all the christmas fixings. I believe she even got some roast beast. Anyways, two hours later and we were almost ready to sit down to eat. Then this happened.


Spontaneous christmas music dance party. I think it had to do with the fact that I had actually done some house work and the place looked really good when mom got home but I can't be sure. In any event the dancing was followed by some good old pizza eating.Apparently my pizza is so good it makes you want to stand up. How else do you explain his inability to sit down and eat it.Dinner was followed by Harry Potter number 2. A little scary but everyone is asleep now so it couldn't have been that bad. Should a three year old really be allowed to watch this stuff. Someone should talk to his parents. hee hee hee.

200

I am loving the irony that the blog about managing to get out 200 blogs on a regular basis comes six days after my last blog. Now that was a dry spell. But I have good reason, as you shall soon find out.

So the original title for this evenings blog was going to be "Wishes". Yesterday, after a weekend of debauchery (which is described below) I made the request for a vegetarian week (not just a day but a whole week. I've got some cahones eh.) I return home this evening to this.The home made bread was just out of the oven. I asked my wife what the potato, zucchini, and lentil stuff was, she replied, "nandaro?" meaning, "what I wonder?" or "something or other." It was made in a pot on the stove but was sort of a casserole. I had to convince the daughter that though it looked like "wei" which is japanese for barf, it tasted great. Think fried potatoes with cheese, some lentils, and zucchini with various spices. The green salad had some of those final yellow tomatoes and our new best friend the black olives. The bread was steaming as we sliced it open. The butter melted right in. It was an all around excellent vegetarian meal. Great.

Now for the Saturday night meal. It too was totally outstanding. It followed the lovely wedding ceremony of Kelly and Cole. The ceremony was in the chapel at BurnabVillage Museum. Which is a pretty cool museum to boot. The bride looked lovely and the groom looked nervous. Just like every wedding I have ever been too. The actual ceremony was short and sweet and then his fate was sealed... I mean and then they walked happily down the aisle. The reception was held in the Centennial Lodge at Queens Park in New West.

Now this was the meal of the weekend. Buffet style, four salads, roast beef, a lovely chicken, a pasta, wine at the table, open bar, dessert table, candy table with little gift boxes you could fill with your own selection of candy. We all ate, drank, and danced our faces off. We had a great time and felt great that we were able to be part of their day. The family continues to grow.

We also had a great time the night before at the Juice's house. We had fajitas, guacamole, salsa and chips, and some lovely brownies to finish the night. The kids were totally wrapped up in chasing the vicious cats and watching Monsters Inc. I have to admit that my end of the conversation was lacking because I was paying it too much attention to the movie. It was a good night and that Juice, he sure can cook.

Reaching way back we also had a dinner on Wednesday night of last week. This was the night before the day we left for the coast thus the busy-ness that forced this long blog to make up for almost a weeks worth of meals. It was a pasta and meatball dinner with green salad in tow. It was lovely as a dinner but the meatballs managed to make it into a meatball sandwich the next day for school. It has been commented that some readers of this blog have a little envy of my dinners. It must be going around because the students that I kept in at lunch today were complaining about how good my lunches look. They said it was mean of me to keep them in and then eat such an amazing lunch in front of them. I pointed out that I could not help them and just go and eat my lunch in the staff room. This quashed most of the dissent.

There were other dinners in the mix but they were either eaten on the road or on the fly so there just isn't much to post. Hope you are all well and we should be back to service as usual for the foreseeable future.

Hot Yoga Makes Me Chili.

So with the stove burning all day, and myself at home to keep it hot, it seemed like the right thing to do to make chili. The daughter had a friend call her up this morning while I was out raking the leaves. Said friend came over for a play day at 1:00 and by that time the wife was back from work. I voted, returned a book and bought the necessarys for chili. Threw it all in a pot and settled it down on top of the stove. As you may have noticed there is a time lag between putting the pot on the stove and being able to eat from that pot. This is the perfect time to get your yoga on. The standing poses are almost insufferable but the laying on the floor poses towards the end get the nice cool draft from the cold air returning from upstairs. I am feeling truly released and should try to get to bed by 9:00. That would make for a very good Sunday. It aint gonna happen but it sounds nice in theory. Here is the dinner shot.How can you tell I was in charge of dinner. Single bowl of chili. No accompanying rice, soup, or salad. The bread was bought and the chips were being snacked on pre dinner. I added some extra water to the chili because I only had one can of stewed tomatoes and I was worried a really thick chili might burn. The kids called it soup but it was still pretty thick. I put mushrooms in my chili for the first time and they really do go with any meal. Between mushrooms and olives I feel I have turned around most of my vegetarian cooking. Not that this chili was vegetarian but the mushrooms sure do go a long way.

I finished the book Flowers for Algernon last night. We picked up a Japanese language version of it this summer for the wife. I am looking forward to seeing how the two versions compare.

Not too much thanks.

Before dinner the kids were watching a video. The son had no intention of eating dinner and was really quite put out that I had stopped the video.
I was feeling very tired of dealing with situation and didn't have any energy to deal with it. I sat for a moment looking for a way out.
Then suddenly an opportunity presented it self. The daughter hung off my arm and then fell to the ground. My son did the same and suddently everything was all better.
So we went to the table and everyone had some leftover noodle soup and a very simple, cabbage and ground beef stir fry over rice. Everyone except me. I had been snacking and eating all day at the conference we had today so even though it is 9:15 and I didn't eat dinner I still feel stuffed.
After dinner the daughter was feeling it again and managed to give us a couch assisted hand stand. The wife on the other hand wanted to point out her handy work. Asides from making dinner today was a bread day. With some of the dough she and the daughter made some fun bread.These are an-pan. I especially like the smiley faces. Today's bread experiment was not using any oil. The bread did not rise in its usual way but that just means you need to slice it on a diagonal instead of straight up and down. It is still better than anything you can buy. Its the love you see, you can actually taste the love baked right in.

Friday: At least we have our hands.

Friday is bread day. It is an all day affair. After mixing and kneeding the big ball of dough is left to rise for three hours, although it is punched down every hour. After this it is split up, rolled and placed in the individual pans. After rising for another two hours it is ready to go in the oven. It is truly a labour of love. Mom does the labour and we give her the love. Nothing like homemade bread. I sometimes think of offering to get a bread machine for christmas but at this point I am worried that would be sacrilegious.