It's Just Lunch

We are currently in the heart of a lone and dreary winter.  During the summer time I throw little lunch parties to cheer myself up and give us something to look forward to.  It is usually just a couple of friends and their kids.   At the beginning of summer I make a list of potential guests I'd like to invite.  I didn't even make it through half the list this year. So as there is happily very little going on this month, and my kids are getting a little wild, why not have friends over for lunch?


It is like a play date at the park only a lot more work, less exercise, and better tasting. It works better for us if I invite friends who have children so that my own children have something to look forward to as well.
One nice thing about lunch is that your expectations are low, so it is easy to impress.
Here is my [easy] winter lunch menu:


Curried Carrot Soup with Crispy Cheese Sandwiches.

Carrot Soup is super simple and tastes better than it sounds.  As a favor, here is the recipe:


2 onions chopped
a pat or two of butter
1.5 pounds of carrots, cut into 1 inch pieces
4 to 6 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 to 2 TBL Bombay Sweet Curry (from Costco, see not fancy) or any mild curry


Brown onions in butter.  Add curry to onions. Add chicken stock and carrots, boil till carrots are tender.   Puree soup in blender.  You can keep keep it on warm till needed.
Garnish with a dollop of plain yogurt and cilantro, if you have it.


Cheese Sandwiches shouldn't need a recipe but as a suggestion try using sourdough or french wheat bread,  a variety of cheeses, melters like Gruyere or Gouda and sharper like Parmesan or Kerrygold dubliner.  I stuck a little fresh basil in too.  You can use a sandwich press if you want a crispy sandwich with out butter, or just "grill" it in butter. (Why is it called grilling when really it is frying in butter?)

What's a party without dessert?  My Grandma suggested something warm and cozy like a pudding or lava cake.  She lives in Arizona where there is no winter so it sounds romantic to them.  Her suggestion was golden.  I had not made a lava cake in years.  It was warm, rich, decedent and easy, without tempting leftovers.  After reacquainting myself, here is my recipe: 
Lava Cake
1 scanty cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 oz unsweetened chocolate chopped up
10 TBL butter
3 eggs
3 egg yolks
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp orange oil or almond extract or whatever flavor fancies you
1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar


Butter 6 ramekin or custard cups.  In a sauce pan, melt butter and chocolate together.  Remove from heat.  Mix in all eggs and extracts.  Sprinkle in flour and powdered sugar, then mix just till smooth.  Divide batter evenly into ramekins.  
Heat oven to 425
When you are about to sit down to lunch, pop these in the oven, on a tray.  Bake for exactly 14 minutes. (Use a timer).  The cake should be firm on the edges but runny in the middle.  That's the lava part.
Remove from oven and let sit till just cool enough to handle.  Use a knife to loosen edges as far down as you can.  Invert onto a pretty plate and serve warm with a generous dollop of sweetened whipped cream.


Ready to invert..

The finished product.

Chocolate Lava Cake

Dear Diary

I have that feeling like when you write in your journal for the first time in a year and you feel the need to re-hash what has happened and how you felt about it (and what you were wearing) but it's all too much for one entry. "Just start with where you are now" they say.

I am not sure if I am ready to re-commit to blogging, but here is a smattering of posts that I had started and never finished or things I have thought about or done over the last few months. Again, nothing is complete, I find I don't even complete my own sentences any

Here's how it's going to work:  I show you a few photos, many of which you have already seen if you follow me breathlessly close on Facebook.  I say what's in my head when I look at these, maybe even explain what the post was going to be had I finished it, and then you tell me how cute my kid is in the comment room.  Shall we begin?

Fall Fashion Trends as modeled by Violet

Ankle and mid-calf boots seem to be replacing knee high or over the knee boots.  I think they make my legs look shorter.  This doesn't mean you have to throw out your knee highs, they are a standard, but don't expect jeans tucked into knee high or taller boots to look cutting edge.

Gold.  It's everywhere.  It is not a color I can pull off on it's own, seeing how I don't have Violet's complexion but I found that it brought depth and richness to my standard gray, purple, and brown hues.


































Above: A frank discussion on jeans and jeggings and where we are at now.  Just when most of us had adjusted to skinny jeans, stores and magazines have displayed bootcut again!  And not a conservative bootcut, but rather the skin hugging and then flare suddenly out at the bottom kind.  The very jeans that I recently thought were so out of style.  With the wisdom of fall behind me, I don't think bootcut caught on big again.  Stylish women are still wearing skinny, fitted jeans.  But now you're allowed to do either, I guess.

Not shown because I never took the pictures:

-Vintage inspired black lace dress -I loved this and regret not taking the photos.

-Teal, the color-we were both going to wear it while both reading magazines.  Someday.

-Pleated shorts over stockings -something only a baby can wear.

Halloween:  Another excuse for a wig. 

Can you guess why I love this picture? Whitman is Aquaman, Justin is Sexy-(he's taken ladies)- Brainiac, and Davy is Super-thong-man.

Violet met her cousin Max, who is 6 weeks older and wiser.  As you can see, he was concerned for her comfort and welfare the whole trip.

I can't believe I'm even showing you Christmas pictures, so over it, but I have to say that I really enjoyed my flocked tree.  It was a spicy smelling fresh Frasier fur that was sprayed with whatever they flock a tree with, probably something terrible, but you don't have to water the tree or put it on a stand.  

Violet enjoyed it too.




Here's a picture of the whole tree...

Har, har.

I am still making Pavlova's and you can't stop me.



Christmas: another excuse for a wig.



New Years Eve:  What do you do if you are already married and don't drink?  Exactly.  I did decide to have a "dark dinner".  No electricity can be used anywhere in the house.  The fact that I was given two large candelabras for Christmas may have motivated me a little bit, but this could be done with sensible candles or food storage oil stuck in an old pumpkin or whatever.  We ate Thai food.  For good luck!

And Carrot Cake Cookies.  For good luck!  [I've been making this recipe for 10 years and it's golden, just as is.  Other options are to add chopped nuts, sub 3/4 cup drained pineapple for 1/2 cup of the sugar, and add orange zest to the filling.]

Finally, it snowed in my dining room the whole month of December.  I hung lightweight snowflake ornaments, maybe 2 dozen or so, on clear fishing wire attached to the ceiling with a clear thumbtack.  Magic.  But like most magic it needed to come down in early January.

Come back tomorrow for a real Q&A from a desperate mother!

How I Spent My Summer "Vacation"

I am at the end of a marathon with the finish line in sight. You see, I don't care for hot weather or children with too much time on their hands, so summer is not my season. At least this summer the weather was on my side, 70's and breezy until recently, when it's turned hot just to further my excitement for fall. I am ready to retire my position as Summer Activities Director. This week my two oldest sons start school and fall is around the corner, which is to say, I've made it. I've made it.

As a special treat, and because I love to-do lists, here is the one I made at the beginning of summer. I'd like to remind you all that I have a new baby but also an ambitious 2 year old.

Scratch that! Who really wants to read my to-do list? It was only exciting in the beginning of summer. Instead, I'll give you what you really want:

Baby Photos:

Violet soaking up the sun.

Hanging out with her BFF.

The day I was taking these photos at the park (not the beach, I totally fooled you!), BFF came too and her mom just happened to have a newborn swimsuit with her in the car and I just happened to have an extra blond wig with me. I think at first her mother was -skeptical (repulsed?) by the idea of her precious daughter in a wig, but I think they were both happy with the results.

Next to show up was the girl's (beefy) friend S.W. He knew just how to position himself.


I am including this last image, that an (innocent) bystander snapped. I love how two moms are desperately arranging wigs on their newborns.

Funny, a new mom came to the park that day. She seemed ...surprised (impressed?) with babies in bikinis and wigs on a chilly day. "I didn't know they made wigs for babies..." "They don't!" I retorted, "they're medium sized dog wigs!!" (Thanks for the tip Juli.)

Recipes:

What says 'summer indoors' more than a Smore Cookie? First my friend Melinda made these and then I had to copy her like it was my original idea. They are so good it's dangerous. I can't say enough about how delicious they are. I find regular smores too sticky and frustrating.
Recipe from Martha Stewart.

Gossip:
My sister Niki came for a visit. The one you've heard about. Pictured with her is her (3rd) husband Randy. We really liked him and hope he sticks around! (Niki- call me! I forgot how to text.)
True story: her daughter Viv came too. She's six and wears Lee Press On Nails. After she left we found tiny painted finger nails all over the house, like her own little calling card.

Advice on How to Live Better:

To cheer myself up and to keep nutty busy this summer, I threw several lunch get-togethers. I won't go into the details- that's a whole post just waiting to happen.


Reality Check:

Here's where I rant about my efforts to be a fun mom and how boys don't seem to appreciate it.

Every year I buy my school age boys a new wardrobe. I consider not just how I would like them to look but their individual tastes, what is in style for their age, and what their needs will be as far as climate and comfort. And do they thank me for my efforts? Of course not.

I have been told stories of little girls who eagerly try on their new clothes with rapture and thankfulness. This year I was rewarded with a tiny morsel. When I laid out their piles of new clothes, Davy showed a little enthusiasm and even said thanks. That sentence was pay off enough to keep me shopping.

Also, I saw this great Back to School idea on ohdeedoh.com.

Perfect! I will do this the night before school starts and start a new family tradition. The kids will love it.

This looked cuter in person.

I think this (lousy) photo shows just how excited they were. They didn't even notice. Okay, again Davy did notice that 'the placemats are everyone's favorite color', but that's it. Sure there was only one written up menu, that's because both Violet and Whitman were crying. Jana tells me that when she puts any effort into setting the table her girls eww and ahhh over every detail. What would that be like?

I did a bunch of other stuff to, but it is thankfully done and over till next year. Hooray for fall!

How was your summer?

Gifted

I'm in love and I don't care who knows it.
That's how I feel about the interior of these latest treat boxes. And just like true love, I can't even play it cool and pretend to be neutral. Remember how I said not two weeks ago that the red and white candy cane striped boxes were my favorite?

Well, they were superficial- looked good on the outside, nothing special on the inside.
My new love looks decent enough on the outside:



Yet I'll admit maybe the red and white are more eye catching initially, but it's what is inside that counts.But what is inside the pretty boxes, you ask? Clockwise from the top: Mexican hot chocolate cookies, peppermint brownies, orange shortbread snowflakes, and cranberry cashew coconut bars.

What? This doesn't fascinate you? A quick and slightly dull Q and A then.

Dear Alisha,

Am I lazy to be giving kids all gift cards for XMAS, especially when they are all ages 9 and below? Some suggest I buy something small and add a gift card. Really, anything small is at least $3 to $5. I'm imagining when they get the gift card, they probably be happier if I combine that few dollar to the gift card instead. And if your answer is yes, what do you suggest be great gifts for boys and girls ages 9 below.

Sincerely,

Many Kids to Shop For

Dear --what do I call you? Lazy but Kind Shopper?

I love gift cards. I love them for myself. To me they're better than cash because cash I might be expected to do something practical with. But this isn't about me. My own children started liking gift cards at around age 8. They, or he, since I only have one child that age, grasped the concept and looked forward to picking out their own toy.

Recently my 5 year old was given gift cards for his birthday and I was surprised at how apathetic he seemed towards them. I tried to make it interesting for him while at Target picking out a gift. As a mother, I love it when my kids get gift cards rather than large, noisy gifts that will be a chore to find a place for.

Here's my advice. Don't give a gift card to anyone under 5. Age 8 and up, it is a very good idea. Between 5 and 8 is a grey zone. All kids like the little go-along gift. If you are so inclined, just buy something silly. I hate it when people give my kids candy. Enough already. Other options if you don't want to send an actual gift, contact the parent ahead of time, ask them if it would be okay if you sent them cash or a gift card so they could pick out a toy their child would really like. As a parent, I wouldn't mind that at all as long as it wasn't a last minute request.

As there are a few other mothers who read this blog, maybe they will throw out a few other ideas or share their opinion. Hopefully with out fights or accusations, ladies.

I fear this discussion did not reach you in time.