7.31.2012

Little Man's First Hair Cut

Last weekend, Little Man took a trip downtown with me for a big event: His first hair cut.


His locks weren't ridiculously unruly or overtaking his head, because he happens to be (cursed? blessed? I'm not sure) with very fine hair like mine. But his hair was getting long enough to hang over his ears and look a little ragged in the back, so we decided it was time for a bit of a trim.


Fortunately, Conservative Mom (who I almost called Conservative Grandmom just now because I've gotten so used to referring to her as Grandmom the last 8 months) was there to help keep little wiggle worm in place so I could snap some photos (that's her arm you keep seeing).


As you can see, Little Man thought the hair cut was a lot of fun, though he was a bit puzzled by what was going on behind his head and kept trying to look.



He handled getting shots and getting his hair cut so well, I can only hope he handles future procedures—like his first dentist appointment or whatever else may come up—as well.

7.29.2012

Fennel

Fennel is something I've had before in meals but haven't ever really cooked with. So at first, when I brought home a couple of fennel bulbs from my weekly CSA pickup, I was a bit puzzled as to what to do.

Fortunately, our CSA cookbook included a super easy suggestion: Roast slices of the fennel with potatoes, olive oil, salt, and pepper.


Uh, OK. I can handle that.

The fennel added a nice touch of flavor—something a bit different from the usual roasted potatoes. I'd make it again.

(Because I so often say a recipe is worth having again or end my posts with some really eloquent comment like "yummy," you may be wondering if I ever don't like what I make, The answer is a resounding yes. I just don't post the failures too often. Maybe it's because I don't have time. Or maybe it's because I know they're failures before I even eat them, so I don't even bother snapping photos. Trust me, there are lots of duds or so-so recipes. Just ask Conservative Hubby.)

7.28.2012

Amaranth

In today's edition of "What Did Julie Make?", our guest is amaranth.

I very likely have eaten amaranth before in salads or dishes I've had at restaurants, but I can't say I've ever purchased or made anything with it myself.


So at first, I simply tossed some of the leaves in our salad (which means, yes, Conservative Hubby, you too have now had amaranth).

The rest I sauteed with olive oil, garlic, and zucchini and had it for lunch when Conservative Hubby wasn't around.

It was nice and green and delicious. I actually regretted that I only made one serving's worth before I ran out of zucchini and amaranth.

7.27.2012

CSA Fixings

I am woefully behind on posting about food, which I'm sure has you all in a lather.

Just calm down already.

Here is the first of a few snapshots of what I've made with some of my weekly CSA loot. This ought to satisfy you for a while, right?

This is beet barley salad with feta.

I've never known what to do with beets, except hand them off to a Lithuanian woman in our office who takes them home to make a creamy, cold beet soup.

I intended to use the beets this year to make baby food, but I have something I can't bear to keep to myself anymore. So I'll fess up: So far, beets are the one food I have skipped exposing the little man to.

For one very important reason.

I do not want to clean up beet stains from our carpet, our couch, our clothes. And if you feed The Spit-Up King beets, you will be cleaning up beet stains. Lots of them.

So instead I decided to try out the beet barley salad with feta. And it was a pretty darn tasty combination.


I would've made it again, except I ran out of time and ended up handing off the rest of my beets to my coworker again. Someone needs to enjoy them if I don't have time to use them!

7.17.2012

Boating with Baby

The little man took his first boat ride while we were in Georgia for the 4th of July holiday. His Mimi and Papa hooked him up with a perfectly sized life jacket, so he was ready to set sail for a slow cruise on the pontoon boat.

He was teething at the time so hadn't been in the best humor most of the day, but boating was such a different experience he forgot to fuss and sat quietly, taking in the wind and the water and looking a bit confused about what the heck was going on.


We stopped at the Waterside Cafe at My Parent's golf club for shrimp and oysters on the patio, then headed home just before dark. And guess who fell asleep on the ride home?


7.15.2012

A Low-Country Boil

We celebrated the 4th of July in Georgia in true southern style: with a low-country boil at P-Diddy and Lovely Miss L's house on the lake.

Lovely Miss L's niece and her husband and daughter were visiting from Savannah, and her niece's husband took the lead on cooking one fabulous shrimp boil.


It was hot, hot, hot when it came time to cook, but since the chef had just gotten out of the water, he managed to survive. (Note Conservative Hubby closely observing his technique, in case he has the opportunity to create a Northern version of the boil some day in the future.)


Once the ingredients were ready, they were served up outside in a big tub, along with plates, plenty of paper towels, and not much else. I guess this type of thing is often served by dumping all the ingredients out on the table, but this time we were nice and civilized and kept everything in the tub for easy serving.


Along with the shrimp, we had two kinds of sausage (one spicy and seriously delicious), potatoes, onions, and corn.

It was hot and flavorful and the perfect summer holiday meal. I may or may not have gone back for seconds. And thirds. And then a few extra pieces of shrimp and sausage. Shhh. Don't tell.

7.03.2012

Lake Baby


Hey, guys. Collin here, checking in for my first official blog post.

I think you all need to come down and join me at the lake. It's fabulous down here. I've been spending lots of time in the swimming pool, pulling myself up to standing (in the bath tub!), mastering downward dog, and eating tons of fresh Georgia peaches.

So, you know, it's busy busy busy. But I've also made some time to relax in my lounge chair and entertain all of my grandparents with stories. They love my stories. If you come down and play with me, I'm sure you'll love my stories, too.

7.02.2012

Paddle Boarding

Shortly after My Parents moved to Georgia, the girls in his life purchased My Dad an inflatable paddle board as a gift. It's a pretty darn cool contraption, because not only does it work as a paddle board, it also has seats that can be attached to it so it can be used as a kayak.


It gets plenty of use in both configurations on the lake. When I spent some time at the lake in January, I took the kayak out for a brief spin, but the weather wasn't really the best for spending much time out on the water.

So this trip, I'm excited to report that I finally paddle boarded for the first time.

It was only a quick spin to the end of the cove and back. But now that I have the feel of the board under me, I'm ready to go every day. I need to practice up so I can impress My Sister with my mad paddle boarding skills when she gets here in a few days.

I'm also looking forward to getting Conservative Hubby out on it, as I think he'll really enjoy it, too.

7.01.2012

Kohlrabi

Last year was the first time I ever tried kohlrabi. I had no idea what to do with it, but was fortunate that the week it first appeared in my CSA delivery, My Sister was visiting. She, of course, was familiar with the curious cabbage cultivar.


So we sliced it up and ate it raw. It was a nice addition to salads, too.

This year, however, I decided to try something else with my weekly kohlrabi delivery. So I sliced it up, tossed it with a few cloves of freshly minced garlic, a nice drizzle of olive oil, and some salt and pepper. I roasted it until soft and served it sprinkled with grated Parmesan.

I intended to eat half of it and save the rest for a future meal. I ended up eating it all, standing over the pan, fork in hand.

And then I repeated the same scenario the next week.


Roasted kohlrabi is really, really good. With the garlic, it has a great flavor, but it's a very mild veggie. I think it's a great substitute for potatoes, actually, at any meal.

Please try it. I think you'll like it.

(This message was not paid for by the Friends of Kohlrabi Committee. I doubt such a committee exists, but just in case it does, please know they did not compensate me, in cash or cabbage cultivars.)