igloo 2013

A few years ago when there was a big snowstorm we spent the day in the park with friends trying to build an igloo. We had a great time doing it, and did manage quite a large construction, but never succeeded in building the roof. It was a great day and I have wanted to try igloo building again ever since. I noticed some snow brick molds on The Land of Nod and ordered a few for our family. We have hardly had any snow since then so the molds have been collecting dust in the basement...until now.

When we woke up on Saturday morning to a beautiful snow covered street we were all eager to go to the park. We met a bunch of friends and all split up...Owen wanted to sled with one group, Oliver set to work making snowballs and a fortress, preparing for battle, and Bea and I started building our igloo. It was slow going at first...it took us a few tries to get the hang of the brick molds, but we happily set to work. When we had only completed a few rounds and our igloo wall was about 18 inches high our friend Sam arrived. Sam was part of the original igloo building group a few years ago (and is also the father of a favorite friend of the boys) and apparently he left that first effort, like me, determined to build a successful igloo. Unlike me, he did some homework along the way, and as a result became the crucial partner in our effort!

Once Sam was on our team progress was much quicker. A few interested kids and parents came to watch and eventually many joined in the effort. Armed with a metal spatula Sam was stationed inside the igloo, carefully lining up our bricks so that the walls curved in nicely. The rest of us made the bricks...packing the wet snow firmly into the molds. As the igloo grew we had to go farther and farther from the site to collect enough fresh snow to make the bricks so Bea, Lila and I delivered bricks by the sledful. By the time we were ready to close the roof a small mob had gathered to watch and help.

Sam ended up completely enclosed in the igloo and had to use his trusty spatula to cut a doorway out. The crowd cheered and the kids poured inside. Eventually I made my way in too, with Bea, and I have to say it was beautiful to see the white walls glowing from the inside.

million moms for gun control

I've been debating whether or not to post about this for the last two weeks...this blog is really not meant to be political...however, it is a blog about family (mine in particular) and this is something really important to my family. After the shootings in Sandy Hook my husband I ended up in tears almost every night thinking about the senseless tragedy and the devastating loss that all those families were going through. It shook us to the core, hitting close to home for so many reasons. Since then there have been so many more shootings that I have lost track of the numbers. In the wake of that tragedy there have numerous marches and petitions asking for increased gun control laws -- I have marched for various things in my lifetime and I felt strongly that this was one I wanted to be a part of. As for taking the kids...I think it's important to teach them that if you really believe in an issue that you do have a voice and you can make it heard. 

shaved fennel and endive salad with oranges

I recently noticed red oranges at our food coop and was excited to try them. They were fantastically sweet and juicy, and were perfect on this salad, but any good oranges will do.

SHAVED FENNEL AND ENDIVE SALAD WITH ORANGES

3 oranges (if you see red oranges they are a beautiful addition)

1 bulb fennel, very thinly sliced (use a mandoline if you have one), reserve fronds for garnish

1/2 cucumber, seeds removed, very thinly sliced

2-3 heads endive, depending on size, sliced into 1 inch pieces

juice of half a lemon

a drizzle extra virgin olive oil

coarse sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Remove the peel, pith, and outer membranes of the oranges by following the curve of the fruit. Slice into 1/4 inch thick rounds. Place all remaining ingredients in a serving bowl and toss until combined. Arrange orange slices over top of salad and garnish with fennel fronds.

quinoa with roasted vegetables

I made this recipe for our annual New Year's Eve party so it is big enough to serve a crowd, but it can be cut down easily since the amounts do not need to be precise. I wanted to try something new and since I love all the winter squash and root vegetabes at this time of year I decided to start there. The experimental part was the dressing: I made a vinaigrette flavored with garam masala and cardamom and sweetened slightly with maple syrup. A little fresh mint stirred in at the end added some brightness to the dish.

When you cut all the vegetables, make them small enough to be bitesize, but not so small that they get shriveled when roasted. I roasted the beets separately because I find it so much easier to slip the peels off once roasted than to peel them raw. Roasting them in their skins also keeps them nice and moist. You can substitute delicata squash for the butternut of you like - this would be a good idea if you want to do a smaller batch since delicata are much smaller than butternut. Another great thing about delicata squash is that you do not need to peel it - the skin is quite tender once it is cooked. If you use delicata, cut the squash into rings and use a spoon to scoop out the seeds before roasting.

QUINOA WITH ROASTED VEGETABLES

1 bunch chiogga beets

1 bunch yellow beets

1 small butternut squash

6 purple carrots (regular carrots can be substituted)

6 small shallots

olive oil

coarse sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1 package red quinoa

a handful of mint leaves, finely chopped

for the dressing:

1/3 cup white wine vinegar

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 teaspoon dijon mustard

1 teaspoon garam masala

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

pinch cayenne

pinch ground cloves

1 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

 

Heat over to 425°. Scrub beets and trim stems. Wrap in aluminum foil (I did 2 packets with 6 beets in each) and place on a sheet pan. Roast in the oven for about an hour, or until beets are easily pierced with a knife. Set aside until cool enough to handle. Using a paper towel wipe skins from beets. This step may be done the day before if desired but bring to room temperature before adding to the quinoa.

Remove peel and seeds from butternut squash and cut into small chunks. Scrub carrots and cut into small chunks. Remove papery skins from shallots and cut into halves or quarters. Toss the vegetables with olive oil and salt and pepper and roast for about 30 minutes, or until golden brown and tender. The exact cooking time will vary depending on the size of your veggies.

While the vegetables are roasting, cook the quinoa according to the package directions. Make the dressing by combining all the ingredients except the olive oil in a blender and whir to combine. While the blender is running slowly add the olive oil in a steady stream until emulsified. Taste and adjust seasoning with more salt if needed. Cut the roasted beets into bitesize pieces and add to the quinoa. Add the roasted carrots, squash and shallots to the bowl and toss with half the dressing. Continue adding dressing until the salad is moist and flavorful -- I had about 1/4 left over for another day. Stir in finely chopped mint just before serving. This salad may be serve hot or at room temperature.

happy new year!

Happy New Year everyone!

We will be sipping these drinks tonight as we celebrate with friends.

Pimm's Cups are a favorite of mine - and great for a long evening party since they are not too potent. Slice a cucumber, an orange, and a lemon and put them in a pitcher with a sprig or two of mint. Fill the pitcher with Pimm's and let macerate until the party starts. When ready to serve fill a glass with ice and fill halfway with Pimm's mixure and top the glass with ginger beer or ginger ale.

The red drink in the photo is a recipe I found in Saveur. It was a huge hit, and so pretty.

Enjoy!

birthday art party

Apologies for my complete negligence the past few weeks -- the fall is always the busiest season for me and this has been no exception! Although it is old news now, I thought it might be nice to share the sweet art party Bea had for her birthday this year. Family and a few friends gathered for origami, tape wallets, and tote bag making. Bea loved preparing for the party too...which was great since it was all she could think about or talk about for days. 

The cardboard tables Adam made years ago for one of Oliver and Owen's parties were pulled out of the basement once again. The money spent on the inch thick cardboard all those years ago was certainly well spent! They are so light weight that we can move them easily around the house, and they have been surprisingly sturdy.

Bea set the table with blank muslin tote bags from Muji and assigned places to the guests by decorating a brown paper bag for each. Those bags were filled with a pack of origami paper and a silk lipstick case (filled with a chapstick) later...both favors were from Pearl River. I bought a bunch of fabric markers at Pearl Paint and the kids set to work decorating their bags upon arrival. 

As the kids finished up their bags we moved to another spot where Lauren and I helped them make tape wallets. I found amazing tape at Pearl Paint. My kids love making duck tape wallets but they had done it so many times I wanted to try something a little different. This tape has more of a fabric finish and the colors were great. It was pricey but the rolls are big and I am sure we think of other uses for it. We hardly made a dent in the rolls during the party.

Last but not least, Oliver taught the girls how to make origami ninja stars. I got pretty floral origami paper at Muji (unfortunately not available online) when I picked up the muslin bags. 

 

By the time all these projects were complete the kids had about 20 minutes of time for playing and cake. All in all a successful party!

very veggie lentil soup

I love lentil soup...so much so that I posted have already posted two recipes, here and here...but when we had vegan houseguests recently I made a new version that was very delicious and totally vegetarian. This version includes carrots, celery, lots of garlic, yams, and kale so it is packed with nutrients. I used garam masala to season it which turned out to be a great choice. 

VERY VEGGIE LENTIL SOUP

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, peeled and diced

4 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced

4 ribs of celery, diced

1 teaspoon garam masala

1 bay leaf

1 whole head of garlic, cloves separated and papery skins removed

1 pound french lentils

2 large yams, peeled and cut into small dice

1 bunch kale, tough stems removed, finely chopped

2 teaspoons salt

Heat olive oil in a large stock pot and add onion. Saute until translucent. Add carrots and celery and cook until softened.  Stir in garam masala, bay leaf, garlic cloves, lentils and 16 cups water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer and continue cooking for about 30-40 minutes or until lentils are soft. Stir in yams, kale, and salt and cook until yams are tender, approximately 20 minutes more. You can add more water if needed - I've made this soup twice now and the first time I needed 20 cups of water but the second time 16 was plenty. 

happy halloween, a few days late

 

Between an unbelievably busy fall, and then the craziness of Hurricane Sandy, Halloween did not get the attention from me that it has in past years. Thanks to a week without school we were able to still make our own costumes at the last minute. All three kids changed their minds about what to be so many times that my head was spinning. In the end, the boys opted to be knights.  We made armor from flattened and manipulated aluminum baking pans from the supermarket. Oliver originally wanted to be a Spartan (and happily repurposed a skirt we had made a few years ago from foil insulation) but he morphed into a barbarian as he scoured the house for more items to include in his costume. The faux fur legwarmers he had pilfered from a neighbors cast offs completed his look. 

Bea also waivered many times but quite a few of the ideas seemed to be inspired by our bedtime reading of the Chronicles of Narnia this year. She was pleased when we finally agreed on the White Witch -- so was I since we could just layer on as many white clothes as we could find and complete the look with a little black lipstick, fake witches nails, and an icicle crown made of aluminum foil.

fall salad with salmon, grapes and radishes

This salad is another delicious meal we enjoyed while visiting my friend Page and her family. The moist rich salmon paired beautifully with the sharp flavors of daikon and radishes and the sweet juicy grapes. Now that it is grape season there are lots of varieties to choose from...Page had found "gold'n'sweet green grapes" at her local farmers market but I think any seedless grapes would be nice in this salad.

Page had also bought lots of beautiful baby greens...again, any you like will work. Top the greens with thinly sliced daikon radish, peeled and seeded cucumber slices, radish slices, grapes, and flaked roasted salmon. We made a white wine vinaigrette with a little extra mustard to finish it off.

conchiglie with delicata squash, bacon, leeks and escarole

This past weekend we visited our dear friends Page and Adrian for our annual trip to the Rhinebeck Sheep and Wool Festival. After spending a fun day in Rhinebeck we went and spent the night at their house in Connecticut. Page had bought tons of gorgeous vegetables as the farmer's market in anticipation of our visit. While the kids spent hours outside looking for salamanders (they claim to have found 18!) Page and Lauren and I spent time hanging out and cooking together...something we love. This pasta includes some of my favorite fall produce: delicata squash, leeks, and escarole. It was delicious!

When using leeks be sure to wash them really thoroughly. Thinly slice into rounds and submerge in a bowl of cold water. Agitate the leeks to loosen any sand. Lift out of the water into a colander and repeat with fresh water until there is no residue in the bowl.

We used conchiglie which is a snail shaped pasta for the dish but you can substitute rigatoni or penne. We doubled the recipe below since there were 12 of us in all.

CONCHIGLIE WITH DELICATA SQUASH, BACON, LEEKS AND ESCAROLE

3 small or 2 large delicata squash, cut into 1/2 inch thick rings, seeds removed

Extra virgin olive oil

1/2 pound bacon, cut into 1/2 inch wide strips

2 large leeks, thinly sliced and washed (see note above)

1/2 head of escarole, washed and thinly sliced

1/2 pound fresh ricotta

1 pound conchiglie

Preheat over to 400°. Put a large pot of water on to boil for the pasta. 

Toss delicata rings with olive oil and salt and pepper. Arrange on a single layer on a baking sheet and roast for about 25 minutes, or until golden brown on both sides (you will need to turn the rings halfway through cooking) and tender. When squash is cool enough to handle cut rings into bitesize pieces. (You can return the squash to the oven to keep it warm if you finish this step before the rest of the dish is ready.)

In the meanwhile saute the bacon in a large skillet until crisp. Trasfer to a plate, reserving the fat. Cook leeks in bacon fat until very wilted and begining to carmelize. Add escarole and continue cooking until very soft. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper if needed.

Cook the pasta until al dente while sauteeing the greens. Drain it in a colander and return to the pot. Stir in ricotta until pasta is well coated. Add greens, squash, and bacon and stir. Serve immediately.