Well summer, it's been nice knowing you. Hubby T heads back to work tomorrow, while Baby B and I have a couple more days to ourselves before Baby D joins us on a regular basis again. We've had a great last week at home together though, filled with great food, great family time and, of course, great things for Baby B, starting with...his new car seat!
Wow, he's finally facing forward and it's like he grew up a year overnight! I even feel like the mother of an older children driving him around now, it's a bit surreal. After much deliberation we purchased a Britax Roundabout and so far so good. I think it'll be more interesting for him to see out his window better and to see some out the front. He can definitely see me, as evidenced by his outburst of "I apple!" as we were driving home after church on Sunday. He saw mommy eating an apple so why shouldn't he get some too right?! By the grace of God, I had some apple slices packed in his diaper bag and it was all within reach so I passed them back to him, he devoured them and promptly fell asleep. Peace reigns, alleluia. I guess that's my one warning that whenever I want to eat a snack in the car, I'd better have something ready for him too!!
We had an extremely nice and longer than usual visit with Hubby T's parents last weekend. In addition to walking around the farmer's market and walking in CW and enjoying lunch at our favorite Cheese Shop, they helped us complete our patio and inaugurate Baby B's new car seat by going out for frozen yogurt!
There's lots more to say about Baby B, he seems to have changed a lot recently, but for right now I want to spent the rest of this post on some awesome food we have been enjoying. The first is the Garden Enchilada Bake from one of my favorite bloggers. When I made this I included some shredded carrot and chopped spinach; I also substituted some ground up chick peas for the quinoa because that's what I had, and it was delicious. Definitely a dinner winner with no leftovers.
My second culinary recommendation was inspired by the sample of Trader Joe's Lemon & Triple Ginger Snap Ice Cream I had a few days ago. I was a bit skeptical but it tasted delicious and I decided it would be more cost effective to capture those flavors in cookie form rather than buy the ice cream. A Google search for lemon ginger snap cookies yielded practically no results, so I decided to make my mom's ginger snap recipe and add in the lemon all on my own. This was a big step for me because, as you may have guessed, I don't create recipes. I am a recipe follower all the way. But oh boy did my experiment pay off. These cookies are delicious! These ginger snaps are fantastic in their original form, but for some extra zing and flavor, I would highly recommend adding the lemon. And in case you were wondering, these are soft ginger snaps, the only kind of ginger snaps worth eating (in my not so humble opinion:).
Gramma and Mama P's Lemon Ginger Snap Cookies
1 c. sugar
3/4 c. shortening (Crisco)
1 egg
1/4 c. molasses
2 1/2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. cloves
1 lemon
Cream sugar and shortening. Beat in egg, then molasses. Mix in all the zest of the lemon and the juice of approximately half the lemon. Mix in dry ingredients. Form dough into balls and place on greased cookie sheets.* Press flat with a glass covered with a wet cloth dipped in sugar. Bake 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.
*In case this doesn't make sense, let me explain further. Take a thin cloth (i.e. a handkerchief) and wrap it around the bottom of a glass. Make sure there are minimal creases in the fabric covering the bottom of the glass and secure the cloth with a rubberband. Run the bottom of the glass under some water, then press it down in a bowl of sugar. Press the glass on each ball of cookie dough to slightly flatten. Some of the sugar will stick to the top of the cookie. Re-dip the glass in the sugar as needed.
P.S. One last thing, a public service announcement if you will. The front driver's side of my car was almost smashed today because the car next to me changed lanes without looking. Dear friends, do not be lazy - remember to check your blind spot!! It's not that hard and will avoid a lot of unnecessary accidents....and horn honking.
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