European Bakeshop

I found this video online about the European Bakeshop. This gives you a better idea of the shop. I highly recommend it! If anyone gets a chance and goes down there, please post a comment and let me know! (oh and bring me back a cream puff!)

http://www.ktka.com/news/2006/sep/18/hartford_woman_shares_big_european_taste_small_kan/



(for some reason the links don't seem to be working, so I am trying to post them two different ways. If one is showing up as a hyperlink, click on that. If not, cut and paste the link)

Adventure Day

Brenna and I wanted to do something special so we set out for a bit of an adventure today. My camera is in DC and I forgot to have my mom bring her camera so I have no pictures. It kills me to say that! I told my mom that we need to repeat this entire day just so I can have some pictures!

Mid-morning we headed out to Hartford to go the European Bakeshop there. Hartford is a town of about 500 in the middle of Kansas that has an honest-to-goodness French bakery. Seriously! She is from France! Hartford is a quaint little town with about a 2 block city center. The bakery was really cute. They served quiche (unfornately someone had bought the entire quiche that morning so there was none for us!), crepes (!), cinnamon rolls, croissants, rolls, ice cream, sandwhiches....pastries...cheesecake. All kinds of things. Oh and also baquettes and loaves of bread.

Brenna had a cinnamon roll and hot chocolate, mom had a cream puff and I had coffee and a banana chocolate crepe. Oh la la! It was incredible. The last time I had a crepe that good I was in France! (De--remember the chocolate crepes we had in France??) It was awesome. I would much rather drive to Hartford for that kind of breakfast rather than go to Village Inn! I also bought a baquette, an almond croissant and chocolate roll. Mom bought two loaves of bread.

She does a lot of catering and I really want to use her sometime for something.

Check out her website here...and go and visit sometime! Well worth the drive. She has limited hours so check those out before you drive out there!



www.europeanbakeshop.com

Next we went out to the Flint Hills National Wildlife Refuge. We walked a hiking trail that goes by a marsh. We saw about a gazillion frogs! It also has a dock that goes out over the marsh and there were some cranes out there. Pretty neat.

Next we decided to go out the Indian Hills Loop. We spent about 30 min driving around Hartford trying to find it! Which is funny because Hartford is really small. :)

We finally found it and it was really neat. Lots of pretty area to look at. Marshes, watery areas with TONS of cranes. Big white and grey ones. All over the place. Also saw a family of deer, a mom and two babies. Really great drive. We plan on going out some other time so we can explore a bit more.

Here is their website. It would be a great half day trip for any family in this area. And De and Tommy, we decided this would be a place we would take you when you come to Kansas! (notice that I said "when" and not "if")



www.fws.gov/flinthills

Afterwards we went up to Lebo to eat at a little cafe called the End of the Trail Steak House. It was pretty good. Next door there was a little house that has been turned into a home decorating stuff. Very cute. Lots of fall stuff out.

So all and all it was an excellent day and we came back tired! I plan to do the whole trip over again soon so that I can take Gavin and take lots of pictures!

Washington D.C.

Zack and Gavin are in DC this week for a fun guys trip. Gavin is a real history buff and loves anything related to the Presidents, so we arranged this for his birthday. They left on Tuesday evening and seem to be having a great time!

They have seen so much! Wednesday they did Arlighton National Cemetery and saw JFK's grave with the eternal flame. That night they went to a Redskins game also. They also went to the Museum of Natural History.

Thursday they went to the White House and Capitol building. It is pretty difficult to get into the White House now. You have to contact one of your representatives and they do a background check on you. It was a self guided tour and pretty quick. For the Capitol tour, one of our representative's aides gave them a tour. Zack said it was really neat. They also went around to the Jefferson, Lincoln and Washington monuments.

Friday they....well let me think. I can't really remember! I will have to update when they get back.

I know that today they went to the ESPN zone (remember that Zack is there too!) and are doing the moonlight tour of the monuments as we speak. It is a bus tour that takes you around to all the monuments while they are all lit up at night. They tell you about them and you get a chance at each one to get out and look around.

They fly home late tomorrow evening! I will be posting pictures I am sure!

Blast from the past

We are so lucky to be blessed with excellent family all the way around. Our kids have so many people who love them immensely, completely and unconditionally.

Grandpa Gene would be one of those people. Here are a couple of pictures from a few years back. Can you tell these are two peas in a pod?

Ireland pictures. Some highlights

I have not yet gotten a good slideshow online that I can share with everyone and I was holding off on sharing too many pictures until then...but since I am in the blogging mood tonight..I will share some!

Here is Gavin at a Barrycourt Castle


The whole family at Muckross House in Killarney


Brenna feeling the ocean on her feet for the first time ever! With our dear friend Deirdre..


The kids at the beach.


It was a beautiful place



A pub we visited in Dingle.



A kiss....


Another kiss. Me kissing the Blarney stone.


Another beach in County Cork.

CSA, 8/19

Here is our share from this week. Farmer John reports that we have passed the peak of the season, so our shares will be getting smaller as the weeks progress. I split a half share, so what is pictured is always actually a 1/4 of a share.



Because mom and I were just trying this out this year, we decided to go small. I wanted to make sure I was going to utilize the food and not let it go to waste. I can honestly say that I have used nearly all the produce. It has been a huge benefit to our family!

My mother in law and I are sharing a Winter Share that is coming up in a couple of months, and I made the jump to sharing a full share. I don't have any doubt that I will utilize what we get and Bev enjoys fresh produce a lot too, and I know she won't have any problems. The Winter share program is new for Farmer John as well, so it will be interesting to see how it all works out.

The kids and I haven't been out to the farm lately as I have had tennis lessons on Tuesday evenings that have made farm pick ups difficult. But tonight was our last night so I am looking forward to getting back out there before our summer share ends.

Tomatoes!!!

I don't trust people who don't like tomatoes. Now, I am not talking about soft, tasteless, pale, store tomatoes. Those should not even be blessed with the name tomatoes. I am talking about juicy, colorful, hearty, fresh tomatoes. Like these from our CSA...


And one of my favorite things to do with good tomatoes is BLTs. We got some Texas toast, lettuce and bacon. Also had some nice fresh sweet peaches. This is what you call a summer dinner.


Gavin was a little unsure of trying a BLT and then swiftly devoured not one, but two BLTs. He decided that the name should be changed to EGS. Extremely Good Sandwich!

CSA dinner

Last week, I made this yummy dinner with some of our CSA produce. First off, I grilled some corn.


Here is one of our special "surprise" ears of corn! The kids loved that!


And here is my famous potato salad. Well, I think it is famous anyway! I get lots of requests for it, let's put it that way. I used potatoes from the CSA. Now, let me just say, if you are a potato salad purist, you may not like this recipe. It is not your standard potato salad. And if you are on a health food kick, this is not the recipe for you either. It may not be good for you, but it tastes darn good!


Heather's Frequently Requested Potato Salad

2 lbs red potatoes
8 oz ranch dressing
1 cup shredded cheddar
2.8 oz bacon bits or pieces
pepper
salt
garlic powder

Place potatoes in pan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 30ish minutes or until tender. Drain them and let sit for about 10 min. (I just do this so they aren't so hot!) Quarter (or cube) and put in a large bowl. Add dressing, cheese, bacon bits, and seasoning. You can eat it warm or cold. Either way is good!

I also grilled some peaches and then put vanilla ice cream over them. Very very good. To grill them, I cut them in half and then first brushed them with vegetable oil and then put them cut side down directly on the heat for 4ish minutes. Then I moved them to the top rack of the grill cut side up for 10 minutes.

Greatest neighbors ever

Have I told you that I have the greatest neighbors ever? They are so nice and thoughtful and treat the kids wonderfully. The kids, especially Brenna just adore them!

Last week, on the day before school started, our neighbor brought over dinner for us totally unexpectedly. She said she knew the day before school can be stressful so she didn't want us to have to worry about dinner! It was also a thoughtful thank you gift for her presents that we got her in Ireland. This is the second time she has done this by the way. The last time I had just pulled up after a long day at work and I was tired and stressed out and was trying to figure out what we could have for dinner. When I saw what she had brought over, I literally cried!

So she brought us BBQ meatballs and cheesy potatoes. YUM!!!! They were very very good.



Brenna enjoying every last bite!

Summer is NOT over!

Although school has started, summer is not over in our neighborhood! We have many kids in our area which is great for lots of outdoor playing. After school last week, I hooked up the sprinkler for my kids and the next time I went out, there were 8 kids playing outside!





One of the kids getting a bucket of water poured on his head!

First day of school

Gavin started school last week! It seemed unbelievable that summer was over already, but he was excited and has been having a great time.

Here is my handsome young man!


So excited to see his friends again!


Sitting in class

Tex Mex Pasta

This is a recipe that I have made for years and that we really enjoy. When I say "we", I mean my husband and myself. My kids, including the boy who would eat practically anything and will name raw ahi tuna as one of his favorite appetizers, do not like it at all. But part of the pleasure of being a parent is teaching kids that when you are served something you don't like, you sit polietly at the table and at least enjoy the conversation!

One of my goals with the produce from the CSA this summer is to find kid-friendly recipes that are also healthy. And I have managed to find some great recipes and my kids have eaten all kinds of delicious fresh produce all summer. But it is also important to remember that we do NOT have to only prepare foods that we think they will like. I think there are great lessons in fixing foods that are out of the comfort levels of kids. The fact of the matter is that there are going to be many times in our life when we are presented with food that we don't care for. Kids need to learn how to deal with that. Also, dinner is more than just eating. It is spending time together, catching up and bonding. None of that goes away just because the kids don't want to eat.

We don't have a one bite rule. Our only rule is to sit polietly and remain at the table until everyone is done. Of course there are no sweets if a good amount of dinner is not eaten.

I decided to make Tex Mex pasta this week to utilize the "bounty" we recieved on Tuesday. I altered the recipe to use more of the produce. I used the green bell pepper, a big jim pepper, zucchini, onion and sweet pepper!!

It was hard to get a good picture, because it kind of looks like a jumbled mess! But it really is good.


Brenna enjoying her apple from the farm and not even considering eating what is on the rest of her plate.


I served the pasta with some fresh heirloom tomatoes as well. Look at these? Are they not beautiful? The larger one is called a Caspian Pink and they really were very pink inside! And a yellow one too, but I can't remember what that one was called. I used some olive oil, balsalmic vinegar and blue cheese on top. A trick I learned from my mother in law! So so good.


Here is Gavin enjoying a tomato. He loves tomatoes.




Tex Mex Pasta

8 oz penne pasta (I used whole wheat)
1 lb bulk turkey sausage (I used pork)
1 med red bell pepper, chopped (used a green bell pepper that we got in the CSA, plus one Big Jim pepper that we had gotten)
1 zucchini, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 cups frozen corn, (I grilled three ears of corn and then cut off the kernels)
1 cup salsa
14.5 oz diced tomatoes, undrained
3/4 tsp oregano (didn't use)
1.5 cup shredded cheddar
1/2 cup fresh cilantro

Cook pasta as directed. Cook sausage almost done in an electric skillet. Drain. Add peppers, zucchini, onion to skillet and cook until veggies soft and pork cooked through. Add corn, salsa, tomatoes and oregano. Heat to boiling. Cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Turn off heat and let cool just a bit. Add cheese and cilanto. (I like to let it cool just a bit so that it stays a bit cheesy. If it is too hot, the cheese just kind of reduces in to it)

Blueberries

I realized tonight that I had forgotten to post the pictures of recipes of the blueberry muffins we had made after we got our fresh blueberries from the CSA.


Here is my sous chef.....



And the finished product.



Here is the recipe. They are called, "To Die for Blueberry Muffins". I would not say they are to die for, but they are pretty good. :)

Pretty Darn Good Blueberry Muffins

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 cup fresh blueberries
1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup butter, cubed
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease muffin cups or line with muffin liners. Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, 3/4 cup sugar, salt and baking powder. Place vegetable oil into a 1 cup measuring cup; add the egg and enough milk to fill the cup. Mix this with flour mixture. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full, and sprinkle with crumb topping mixture.
To Make Crumb Topping: Mix together 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1/4 cup butter, and 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon. Mix with fork, and sprinkle over muffins before baking. (you will have quite a bit leftover)

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until done. (I had to cook mine more like 30-35 min)

Grilled Corn

I discovered grilling corn last summer and it has been my favorite way to cook and eat corn since then. It gives a nice sweet smokey taste. It is super easy.

Grilled Corn

Leave the husks on! I put them in a sink filled with water for about 30 minutes before grilling. Heat the grill to medium-high. Take the corn out of the water and give them a bit of a shake before you put them on. Cook corn for about 30 min. Turn every 5-7 minutes. You want the outside to be moderately charred. To tell if they are done, I take one off, pull a bit of the husk off, and take a bite. It should be nice and crunchy, but not too crunchy! You want the outside pretty charred so that there is a bit of char on the corn and the silk should be pretty much burned off. I like to leave them sit while we cook the hamburgers..hot dogs...whatever. That lets them cool down a bit. Then take the husks off. I usually do this over the sink. Butter, season and eat! YUM!

Bounty! CSA, August 5th

This is what you call a bounty! This week from the CSA we got 1 apple, 1 dozen sweet corn, 4lbs kennebec potatoes, 2 bell pepers, 1 big jim pepper, 1.25lbs heirloom tomatoes, 2 slicing cucumbers, 2 minature white cukes, 1 lb okra and 2 large onions! Wow!

I am starting to do some menu planning tonight and hope to get to the store tomorrow evening. I have a lot of options for meals!