The Simple-but-Perfect Pancake, Edited.

For the last week, I have been under the weather. And when I have a cold, the only thing I want to eat is breakfast foods all the time. They represent comfort. And as for anything with eggs, the spiciest salsas can be added to help me, well, breathe! (Bless you, cayenne pepper and Tabasco.) Last night, at a dinner for my daughter's end-of-season t-ball party, I ordered migas and hashbrowns for dinner. And they hit the spot! Sure wish I had those right now.

Lately, my daughter has been on a pancake jag, too - and requests them every day. Although I try to save pancakes and homemade chocolate milk for our Saturday morning ritual, I have been known to make some extra flapjacks and freeze them, since she loves them. This morning, unfortunately, I came up short. So, a bread and butter sandwich was our less-than-fun substitute.

I'd like to share an old post about "The Simple but Perfect Pancake," based on a recipe from King Arthur Flour. And, this past Saturday, I noticed that I've changed my version up a bit, so I think I'll share this, too.

Our Recent Saturday Morning Simple-but-Perfect Pancake:

• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/4 cups 2% milk
• 3 tablespoons Canola oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  
• 1 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
• 1 tablespoon wheat germ
  
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 cup malted milk powder
  
• Frozen blueberries or chocolate chips to drop onto the poured pancakes (while on griddle)
  

Feel free to review the cooking directions if you need a refresher on making good pancakes. Mixing all of the wet and dry ingredients separately, then combining them at the end, is an easy way to start things.

King Arthur always teaches me a thing or two on how to be a better baker. In my opinion, they are the masters at baking! (I have a real crush on that King Arthur...)

As for making "homemade" chocolate milk, here's what makes a good, rich cup of chocolate milk at our house:

8 ounces of cold milk
2 tablespoons of cocoa powder
2 tablespoons of organic cane sugar

Blend in a blender until thick and creamy. Guaranteed to make little ones and daddies smile.

May be a good night for pancakes + chocolate milk for dinner!

The Royal Laundry

One of those things that doesn't go away, laundry has been on my mind this week. So, I thought it appropriate to bring up an old post on laundry and the peace it can bring us. I figure I can either dread laundry every week or come to terms with this recurring part of life.

I'm trying not to fall behind like I did a couple of weeks ago, which led to doing massive amounts last week. But - one of my favorite things about doing loads of laundry is that I get to have quiet, put-order-back-in-our-family's-world time while doing so. While my little ones are sleeping, I fold their tiny shorts and colorful leggings while catching up on my favorite recorded television shows. (I usually do this when my husband is busy so I'm not leaving him out of the picture!)

Last week, I recorded and watched virtually every biography I could find on the Royal Wedding.

And, last week, despite a busy schedule for our family, I accidentally became obsessed with the Royal Wedding. But - I got a heck of a lot of laundry done while learning about Catherine Middleton's high school. And the potential designers for her dress. And how her parents run their own business. And how Kate and Will lived together before getting married.

My favorite part about watching the actual wedding was my children's commentating on the event, with comments such as:

"Mommy, she is looking at me. She is looking at me!! Me!!" (my daughter) and "Mommy, that pincess es boot-i-ful!" (my son).

We ran the highlights for Daddy on Saturday. And on Sunday, I had to finish watching a documentary on the Biography channel, "Will and Kate: A Love Story."

As I told my husband, "I have questions - and these shows give me the answers I need. Now I have closure." Now I can close this fun, beautiful chapter and move on. (And for this, I'm sure my husband is a tiny bit relieved.)

So, a lovely congratulations to the new Duke and Duchess of Cambridge!

(And congratulations to me for coming close to finishing our laundry.)

Shaping their world

I am the mother of a girl and a boy; a kindergartener and a toddler; an intense, always-in-charge big sister and an easy-going, just-happy-to-be-here-with-my-sister baby brother (unless she takes one of his toy cars – then everything breaks loose).

And when I’m having a day when I’m not quite feeling like myself, when I’ve had a late night, or when I feel more drained than usual, it’s not just me who is affected. It’s my babies. My sweet, impressionable sponge-like babies, five and two, who absorb every word and bit of energy I exude, be it negative or positive.

This is the part of parenthood I was not prepared for.

When my children were tiny babies, and I was a bit tired, I could shuffle it away for a while. But, now are they are a little older and are more aware of the world. My sweet, fair-skinned girl is a wise, independent force to be reckoned with who has a calendar busier than mine, and my little boy is a gentle soul who is exploring the world of demanding, bossy toddlers. Some days, as much as I love spending time with them, I’ve found myself more drained than ever. When my energy is low, I feel like I can’t be the mother I need to be.

I'm reminded that I need to take care of myself and refill my cup - which takes discipline sometimes!

For me, refilling my cup can only come through prayer and self-care. I have to love myself - take care of myself - so that I can love these children with my words, actions and my listening. So I can be truly present with them. So I can show them what it means to be a good listener and an unconditionally loving mommy. And an encourager in a sometimes critical, hurried world.

I’ve also found it’s important to take time as a parent to reflect on our children and their beautiful qualities, all unique to each child. Otherwise, I find I tend to focus only on what my challenges were for the day, be it discipline issues, manners (or lack thereof), messiness, nap protesting, screaming in the house (or in my ear), pestering a sibling, etc.

A few things I like to do:

Marvel at their photos and wonder - who are these sweet souls?

Wonder who will they become as adults...

Think about what about them I adore or admire...

Recall how they made me smile or laugh...

Or, find something I learned from them.

On days when I feel distant, I try to pull myself back into their world by looking at the world with their precious, new eyes. The bus my daughter rides to school seems like any other bus I’ve seen, but this morning, when I knelt down to kiss her goodbye, I noticed how giant the yellow bus really is. And how huge the towering tree above the bus stop is.

When you’re only five and two, this world is giant – and I feel like it’s my job to lead them through this busy world with rose-colored glasses – to see the beauty and magic and mystery we are given – and not the negative, the tired, the hurried, or the grumpy.

We're not perfect - we're parents. And this journey is a work in progress!

How do you like to bring color to your child's world?

Half-birthdays + whole chocolate cakes

Last week we had an extra-special day: Wednesday was our son’s official half-birthday! He is officially on his way to turning three in October, which is hard for me to digest, given I still think of him as our tiny baby boy. I told someone the other day that I think I will still be carrying him on my hip when he’s fourteen.

I hope I will never forget the constant plea of “Mama, ho me up! Ho me up!"

My daughter, who is five and a half (who may have a future in event planning), said upon returning from school that afternoon, “Mommy! We need to bake him a cake. Let’s do chocolate!” And, we fixed the kid’s favorite dinner – meatballs + mashed potatoes. Total comfort food. Yum.

After we got the cake in the oven, sweet girl agreed to help clean up the playroom (also our den) while I cooked dinner. And before I knew it, the playroom was spotless, there were name tags on placemats, fun plates at the table and bubbles at each place setting. It was a perfect way to celebrate our Bubby.

Following dinner: “Cake! Cake!”

I give King Arthur full credit for this Devil’s Food Cake recipe. I’ve made this several times already – but this time I baked it in a 9x13 pan and didn’t use icing to keep things simple.

This is such an easy recipe – there is no need for a box cake when you can put this together so quickly! We had some canned icing in the fridge, so everyone got a schmear of icing on their slice – but I liked that we could control the portion of the icing (since my husband and daughter would really prefer to eat a can of icing, sans cake). Although I prefer homemade icing, personally, convenience wins some days.

It works well as a snack cake, too, without the icing, and even – yes, a breakfast bread. Adding chocolate chips before warming up a slice adds a nice dimension, too.

I made this for my birthday last year and for our son’s second birthday this year. I suppose this is becoming a family staple recipe, which I love.

"Does a half birthday mean a half slice of cake?," Sister asked.

Nope.

Spring Art at the Park:

A perfect Saturday afternoon: sunshine, precious little hands crafting creations, beautiful artists, people-watching, art and life imitating each other like old friends.

Simple + healthy breakfast ideas

One of my favorite things about the morning is that it brings us a fresh, new beginning, nutritionally. If we don’t feel we put enough good things in our body today, we can always begin again tomorrow. And that starts with breakfast.

I am a breakfast nut! I’m pretty thoughtful about the nutrition balance I create for my family. Since I am in charge of our meals each day, my goal is for each of us to have a balance of grain + protein + fruit + dairy at breakfast.

A girlfriend of mine asked me last week what I feed our little ones for breakfast, which reminded me that I need a go-to list to choose from so I don't have to reinvent the wheel each week.

Here are some simple things that work for our family, including my (sometimes particularly choosy yet precious-with-sleepy-morning-eyed) babies, 5 and 2.

Smoothie – blueberries/yogurt (our daughter called it "yogie" as a toddler, so it stuck!), juice, flax (this recipe is a favorite - simple and delicious.)

Biscuits or English muffin +turkey or veggie sausage sandwich, fruit (berries are quick and easy) + milk

Fruity yogie + toast

Toast/butter/jelly + turkey bacon/turkey sausage/egg

Granola bars + yogie + fruit

Instant oatmeal (I add flaxseed, wheat germ, milk and applesauce – no one knows this.)

Turkey bacon cooked in the microwave

Edamame (shelled/salted)

Frozen soy breakfast patties – Morningstar Farms

Pancakes/waffles (Sometimes I'll make a large batch on the weekend). My new favorite pancake is the Banana Brownie Waffle batter from the Meal Makeover Moms. Indulgent and healthy!

Muffins, fruit + milk

Whole-grain cinnamon bread with cream cheese + fruit

Frozen waffles + berries + milk

Egg/cheese/salsa breakfast tacos

Breakfast casserole (made on a weekend)

Quick scrambled eggs in a coffee mug in the microwave: my new favorite thing for quick weekday eggs! (I often use these to make fast breakfast tacos.)

1. Grease a large coffee mug (I use canola oil).

2. In a small bowl, scramble 2-3 eggs, a splash of milk, a big pinch of cheese.

3. Place into the mug and heat on high for 2-3 minutes (try one minute per egg).

4. Enjoy!

Sweet bread baked during the weekend or Monday: zucchini bread, gingerbread, pumpkin bread or banana bread.

Mmm...makes me wish it was breakfast again! I suppose it will be here soon enough.

What are your favorites easy breakfast staples?

Babies, Love and Fruit.

Hi everyone! I’m happy to let you know that I’m sharing a recipe with you today, as it feels like it’s been a while since I’ve talked about food. (And posted something new.)

Lately, I feel like I’ve been up to my elbows in food, which I love. I’ve been trying lots of new recipes for our family – some hits, some misses. I cooked for some parties hosted at our home, leaning on a local French bakery for their amazing and scrumptious baked goods (and learned that it feels good to celebrate and serve local pastries). And, as I write this, I am finishing off a box of artisan dark chocolates from Valentine’s Day from my mother, known more these days as “Gran” to my children, who still makes me feel like the most special girl in the world. As I tell my children:

I love my mommy very much!

And, speaking of mommies, shall we talk about baby shower food?

On Saturday, February 19, after a fun week of hugs, kisses, paper valentines and chocolate, myself and two girlfriends (who are both remarkable ladies) from church honored and celebrated our sweet friend Elizabeth and her expectant son #2, due on April 1. Elizabeth and Baby Charlie had a lovely time at the brunch, relaxing, chatting and eating (as Charlie was wiggling and kicking!).

My favorite part was talking with amazing, wise, beautiful women, all very different, who are inspiring in many ways. It was a perfect way to spend a Saturday morning, celebrating a special friend and new life.

Everyone enjoyed munching on these giant elephant sugar cookies with a cup of coffee.

Along with some traditional breakfast casseroles and some beautiful goat cheese and leek quiche, prepared by fellow hostess Jennifer, I decided to try an Ina Garten recipe that I’ve had in my notebook for years for oven-roasted fruit. It was a hit – and was very tart, sweet, comforting and filling. It’s the perfect way to end a savory brunch menu (along with the cookies, of course).

Oven-Roasted Fruit by Ina Garten

(Below recipe from the Food Network)nocoupons

• 6 peaches, pitted and cut into quarters or eighths
• 6 plums or Italian prune plums, pitted and quartered or halved
• 1/2 cup sugar (although you could reduce this or use a natural sweetener)
  
• 2 cups fresh raspberries (thawed frozen cherries also work well)
  
• 2 tablespoons orange juice

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Place the peaches and plums snugly in a single layer, cut side up, in 2 glass or porcelain oven-proof baking dishes. Sprinkle with the sugar, and then top with the raspberries. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until tender.

Heat the broiler and place the fruit about 5 inches below the heat and broil for 5 to 8 minutes, until the berries release some of their juices.

Remove from the broiler and sprinkle with orange juice. Serve warm, at room temperature, or chilled.

I hope you're enjoying the early days of March. Spring and brunch always feel like a good pair.

What is your favorite brunch dish?