Emergency Quiche, and the adventures of the Cooler-less Couple.

Eep! So for the third time this year, our fridge has suddenly stopped working. I’m no fridge scientist, but the mass amount of ice buildup in the lower freezer half probably has something to do with it. Needless to say I’ve become an expert at suddenly having to figure out what to do with a plethora of perishables while I thaw the fridge out again.

The stupid thing is that I refuse to get a new cooler. We had two coolers doing nothing but occupying vast amounts of precious cubic space for years. These coolers took up space in our apartment in Virginia, our first apartment in Canada, our second apartment in Canada, and our third apartment in Canada. “Some day we might need these coolers,” we’d think. Add the fact that my father-in-law gave us one of the coolers, tapping into my hoarder mentality of “someone gave it to me so now it’s been imbued with sentimental feelings and if I throw it away the universe will collapse in on itself with the sadness of a thousand wasteful daughters-in-law.” Seven years and two kids later (and having NEVER used these damn coolers) we finally purged them… only to have our fridge go on the fritz every other month or so.

So… what do you do with all your food when you notice the global warming occurring once again, (at this time of year? At this time of day? In this part of the country? Localized entirely within your kitchen?)… You make a carrot, cheddar and pork chop, jalapeno pepper quiche with a lovely whole wheat crust!

32

Brewing green tea and alfalfa.

 

I turn 32 today, and it feels no different from 31
It feels so good to be able to celebrate with my kids (their entire playgroup sang happy birthday to me this morning!) and family. Everyone is healthy. It’s more than I could ever have asked for. Even if, in the time that it has taken me to write these five sentences, my two year old has asked me for half a dozen different things ranging from peanut butter pita sandwiches to a puppet show, and my 6 month old is starting to wail from the rug in front of me. Life is good.

Life at the end of March

Things are good. This side of the planet is warming up again and I’m getting out more often, eating better, and lost ten pounds and trying to maintain it in a healthy way. I’m not as depressed these days, I think because the sun has been peeking through the clouds. I managed to get out of the house long enough to get my first tattoo(s):

 

February Care Package

I baked several batches of these squares this morning, before throwing my kids in the car and driving 1 hour to an impromptu doctor’s visit when my son’s eye started looking like it might be harbouring some sort of plague.

I’ll be sending a batch of these, plus whatever else I can manage to get in the oven tonight, to a good friend of ours who just made Vancouver Island his new home. They’re actually a tad crumblesome, so I’m hoping they make the trip. If not, I’m sure they’d taste good with yogurt.

My son’s eye, of course, looked totally normal by the time we made the trip to the doctor.

Dried Cranberry and Pecan Bars

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 3/4 cup dried cranberries
• 3/4 cup pecans
• 3/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease 11×7 inch baking pan.
2. Pour melted butter into a mixing bowl, and beat in the egg, brown sugar, and vanilla extract. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and pumpkin pie spice together in a separate mixing bowl. Stir the flour mixture into the butter mixture until thoroughly blended. Mix in the cranberries, pecans, and oats until evenly blended. Press mixture into prepared baking dish.
3. Bake in preheated oven until top is dry and edges slightly pull away from the sides of the pan, 13 to 15 minutes. Cool before cutting into squares.

January

Bye January! It’s been cozy. I’m not getting out much and I’m not losing all the baby weight yet but I am doing lots of cooking and painting. And eating.

Red Raspberry Leaf Tea

EXCELLENT for trying to conceive because it promotes a healthy uterus. Excellent during pregnancy (skip it during the first trimester if you want to play it safe) because it tones the uterus and is full of good stuff… Even if you are male, or never plan on having children, this herb is rich in vitamins and minerals.

 

 

Peanut Butter Granola Squares

I needed a go-to treat for my two year old who wants nothing more in the world than to feast on soda crackers. These started out as granola bars in my mind but morphed into oatmeal cookie squares in the process.

1 cup flour
2 cups rolled oats
1 cup peanut butter
teaspoon cinnamon
teaspoon allspice
3/4 cup dried fruit
3/4 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup olive oil
2 eggs

Pre-heat oven to 350. Mix dry ingredients, then mix the rest separately and stir everything together. Bake in 9×13 dish for 20 minutes or until edges are golden, let stand for 5 minutes.