Ice cream! (part two)

Once you finish wringing the milk from the dessicated coconut you are ready to separate the cream from the milk. This really easy - you cover it and put it in the fridge. Yep, that's it! Well - then you have to wait. And don't rush it. It will need to stay at least overnight.

At the same time you put your milk in the fridge, put your ice-cream maker canister into the freezer to prep.

Dream sweet creamy ice-cream dreams. :o)

Puree your favorite fruit and add your sweetener of choice to your desired sweetness. A quick slosh of vanilla (gf, of course!) can be added if you like. (strawberry and orange)



Lift sections of cream from the top of the milk. Press into a measuring cup. You will need equal parts (1:1) cream to milk. A cup is a good amount to start with.

Stir in your fruit puree ans try to get all the lumps of cream smoothed out.

Set up your ice-cream maker and pour your mix in. Let it churn for at least 30 minutes. (vanilla - yum!)



Voila!



This is a mix between an ice cream and a sorbet. It is very loosely based on this recipe. There are recipies out there with a custard base, but as I am very sensitive to too many eggs I only use them in what I can't replace with flax goo. ie - baked goodies.

Of course it is best eaten right away, but gosh what would I do w/out ice-cream waiting for me in the freezer? lol Just let it sit on the counter for 5-10 min to alow it to soften and then dig in!

Sorry - no time for long posts.

I am subbing two routs for one week and I have forgotten how exhausting it is.

Some fun pics:

Bananas never last long around here, but good times with your bro/sis sure do!

Daniel always enjoys helping out. We had that compost turned in no time.

Emma is really getting the hang of tricycle riding. And she has nearly outgrown hers!

My fairy princess helping me mow the lawn.

Emma's self portrait. Each time I look at it I wonder is it Em or D? But Em was te one with the katsup smear on her cheek. LOL

Emma-isms

Emma wanted to make some cookies. She put them on the stone all by herself!


She also wanted to make some potato fries. The tart pans were her idea as well. She added the salt and decided she wasn't done seasoning them. She added garlic powder and onion powder. They weren't bad actually!


What you see her wearing is her favorite dress-up outfit. It doesn't fit her at all and the crotch sags down to her knees. But it's pink and sparkly and has a pretty flowing skirt so she loves it.

Books!

I've had these pictures sitting in the que since just after we moved. Now I'm finally getting them up!

I saw this idea from another blogger. The bookshelf was okay - but it was hard to see the books.

Daniel would walk up to the shelf and yank all the book off. It took him about 20 minutes to figure this new system out. All he has to do now is start at one end and with his hand out walk to the other end!

Gardening

When we're not all sick, we are hard at work getting our garden set up. Here are some pics to give you an idea of our progress:


Getting my compost pile started.

Emma and Daniel help mix the soil.


Em took over the camera.

The boxes are filled with soil and are ready to be planted!

These are our two 3ftx3ft boxes. I was originally planning on 4x4 boxes, but when you get your lumber as scrap from local home construction sites like I did (free wood!) you go with the size that's available. Actually, I really like the 3x3s because Em can easily reach all the way to the middle. (not so great when she decides to pull up all the onion plants she can reach.)

The chicken wire cages for the top were a PITA to make but have already come in handy keeping the young transplants shaded from the noon sun and the 30mph wind from blowing the soil away. Oh - and now They're keeping the hungry birds and squirels from my carrot/spinach/pea seeds.



This is our 14ftx1 1/2ft box. Agian - free scrap lumber dictated the size a bit. I am now glad we have the extra room on the edge. You see the onions that I got from the nursery (one container white and one red) contained about 70 onion plants! I couldn't bear to throw any of them away so I planted them all. I'm still trying to find someone that wants some onion transplants - any takers? :o)

The trellis isn't quite finished yet - I snapped this picture just as a storm was rolling in. This box is for our tomatoes, cucumbers, pie pumpkins, squash, peas and beans.



Our starters from the nursery (next year I want to start my own indoors - baby steps). Did I mention the 30mph winds? I brought them inside just after.



Here we have red and green cabbage and a square of mint that I will be transplanting to near the compost pile to discourage unwanted critters.



Here we have broccoli and red and white onions w/ some carrot and spinach seed that haven't sprouted yet.



Thanks for sticking with me to the end here. I'm very excited about our garden (it's my very first) and I really hope it does well!

Chicken Pox

Daniel has the chicken pox. Emma was giving him blowfishes so I was hoping she'd get it too. That was 3 days agoand they were both exposed at the same time. Break out already!!

The day after D broke out Em woke up with a fever and dozed off and on all day. I pretty much spent the whole day nursing one or both of them. I forgot to take are of myself and guess what? Well I got sick. At first I thought - nooooooo, I'm not supposed to get the pox! Well, it's not chicken pox. I think it's just a virus I got from not taking care of myself. It's really kicking my butt! Thanks goodness it's the seekend. Lesson learned. I'm still on the mend and so is D.

Pity party for one?

Well - I re-read the last post and it seemed so sad and depressing. I took it down because I was surprised at how negative it was. And really - I must have just been having an off afternoon. Because I really have not been feeling bad foodwise lately. We've been eating some fabulous gluten/dairy/soy/citrus/chocolate (you get the idea!) dishes around here. Just last Saturday after a hard hour or two of garden work in the hot sun we sat down to this:



Yum, yum, yum!

In fact, the carrot and pepper almost didn't make it into the bowl!


(Emma was camera shy at the moment)

My favorite so far has been falafel. It is sooooooooo good! I made a double batch and froze them. Most of my recipes come from food bloggers with similar food allergies. This one came from all recipes.com

Falafel
INGREDIENTS
1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup fresh parsley
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 egg
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon salt
1 dash pepper
1 pinch cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup dry bread crumbs
oil for frying

1 (6 ounce) container plain yogurt
1/2 cucumber - peeled, seeded, and finely chopped
1 teaspoon dried dill weed
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon mayonnaise

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl mash chickpeas until thick and pasty; don't use a blender, as the consistency will be too thin. In a blender, process onion, parsley and garlic until smooth. Stir into mashed chickpeas.
In a small bowl combine egg, cumin, coriander, salt, pepper, cayenne, lemon juice and baking powder. Stir into chickpea mixture along with olive oil. Slowly add bread crumbs until mixture is not sticky but will hold together; add more or less bread crumbs, as needed. Form 8 balls and then flatten into patties.
Heat 1 inch of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Fry patties in hot oil until brown on both sides.
In a small bowl combine yogurt, cucumber, dill, salt, pepper and mayonnaise. Chill for at least 30 minutes. *I use homemade mayo to avoid the soybeen oil and just skip the yogurt. Put the falafel over some greens and drizzle the cucumber dressing on.

Life is good!

Em arranging some flowers she picked from our yard in a vase. I love having flowers for them to pick and enjoy!

Almost one month

Wow! Has it been almost one whole month since I last blogged? I guess it has. After a somewhat mild day yesterday full of playing with cousins and jumping on the trampoline, we woke up this morning to this:



Snow in April! It's good day for staying inside playing games, reading and blogging!

It's so hard for me to get started blogging again after a long hiatus. There is so much that has happened that I don't know where to start!

We moved! Well, across town. We are now renting a house!! It is such a nice change. We have a basement and a back and front yard. We have a living room and a playroom. It's pretty sweet.

I'll finish off with some random pictures from the last month.


My gorgeous boy.

Emma and I went to Barnes and Noble for their storytime (A big dissapointment) and while waiting for it to start we found some great books to look at. Have you seen those large hardcover books with little envelopes inside and flaps to lift - very rustic and heirloom looking? Emma was facinated. Ipulled this one off the shelf first and was sure that she would love it.



No go. She walked straight past it and pulled this one off the shelf.


Yeah - I was surprised but happy that I got to ooh and aah my way through the fairy one while she thumbed through the piratology and wizards and wands books. LOL






Why is it that pictures of children asleep over their food are so darn cute? Anyway - here is our most recent dreamy diner.



I'm not entirely sure why, but I crack up everytime I see these pictures. Check out Daniel. He's a game show host!


Fun with the kitchen. I think that they are using an old, old bottle of dried basil I had laying around. The place smelled like dried basil for days!


A quiet moment. *sigh*


She was so worn out. Can you see the drool running down her cheek? :o)

Join me for Earth Hour

http://www12.earthhourus.org/

On March 29, 2008 at 8 p.m., join millions of people around the world in making a statement about climate change by turning off your lights for Earth Hour, an event created by the World Wildlife Fund.

Earth Hour was created by WWF in Sydney, Australia in 2007, and in one year has grown from an event in one city to a global movement. In 2008, millions of people, businesses, governments and civic organizations in nearly 200 cities around the globe will turn out for Earth Hour. More than 100 cities across North America will participate, including the US flagships–Atlanta, Chicago, Phoenix and San Francisco and Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver.

We invite everyone throughout North America and around the world to turn off the lights for an hour starting at 8 p.m. (your own local time)–whether at home or at work, with friends and family or solo, in a big city or a small town.

What will you do when the lights are off? We have lots of ideas.

Join people all around the world in showing that you care about our planet and want to play a part in helping to fight climate change. Don’t forget to sign up and let us know you want to join Earth Hour.

One hour, America. Earth Hour. Turn out for Earth Hour!

opinions please!

Well, the other day I stopped by a fuel station and a man at the next pump commented on my bumper tags. You remember:




The left one says "Circumcision? NO! Moroni 8:8"
The right one says "If God wanted me to have a foreskin, I would have been born with one."

So we got to talking and mostly only talked about the religious aspect. While I am religiously aposed to routine infant circumcision, our bodies are temples - no unnecesary cosmetic surgery and all that, what I feel most passionate about it the human rights aspect. You know - the owner of the penis should get to decide how it functions and what it looks like.

That said I think I am going to swap one of them out so I have one religous and one not. This is where you guys come in. Which one should I replace it with?

"Foreskin is NOT a birth defect"

"10 out of 10 babies oppose circumcision"

"His body - His choice"

"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities." Voltaire

"Custom will reconcile people to any atrocity" George Bernard Shaw

Post your vote on your blog - great way to get the word out - or just leave a comment here. Thanks!

The haircut!

And the haircut has happened! We took Emma in for her birthday pictures and the next day she helped us shave her head. I would post the b-day before pic but they haven't called yet. Oh well.

Shaved beauty!



I made this hat for her the day we cut her hair. Her favorite is a purple one I made but she won't wear it for a pic. That's Em for you! lol

Emma asked for a red cake with black frosting. Her only other request - spiderman! It turned out pretty nice if I do say so myself. :oP I'm a bit disapointed because I forgot to draw the web on. I got a little excited and just put the toys on.



She didn't seem to mind.



While Emma opened her gifts Daniel had plenty of fun with her birthday cups.



Tuan helped Emma put together her new puzzles. They were made by a great company in Vermont. I recomend them very highly. Maple Landmark Woodcraft

I've been tagged!

Weird! I typed this out on Feb 12 but for some reason never posted it. Well - better late than never! ;o)

I have been tagged by my sister Cindy

Here goes!

10 Years Ago:
I was 15 years old and a senior in high school. I was an orch dork (viola), a band nerd (french horn and color guard) and music geek (chorale). I stayed home every night reading great books and watching great films and living a nerdy but happy existance. lol

Things on my to-do list today:
1. blog!
2. finish making finger-knitted flowers w/ Emma and a card w/ Emma and Daniel for a Valentines package for Tuan.
3. Play violin with Emma
4. Read to Emma and Daniel
5. Continue making Emma's planet mobile - hopefully we'll get the sun painted
6. Recover from falling onto my head while holding Daniel on the ice this morning - OUCH!!


What I would do if I were suddenly made a billionaire:
Buy a modest home. Donate the rest to my favorite charity Nocirc.org

3 of my bad habits:
1. Putting myself down.
2. Yelling.
3. Underestimating myself and my kids.

3 places I have lived:
1. Ponca City, OK
2. Stillwater, OK
3. Twin Falls, ID

5 jobs that I have had:
1. McDonalds
2. Certified Nurse Aid
3. Newspaper Carrier
4. Mom
5. seriously - that's it!

5 Things people don't know about me:
1. I love to watch the commentaries on movies and will happily spout off random factoids if (and if not) asked.
2. I love to start puzzles but rarely finish them because I get to frustrated not being able to find the pieces.
3. I crochet play foods that I haven't yet had the courage to sell on Etsey.
4. I suppose I am either boring or perhaps everyone just knows me really well.
5. see number 4!