Beer Batter Bread

This is just too easy not to try. I tried this recipe because my dear friend Jonathan Clark tried it first and found it to be successful. He got the recipe from from the William Sonoma Baking Cookbook. I have made this 2 other times and it was just splendid, super yummy with just butter or a little bit of strawberry jam. :) So here it is..

Beer Batter Bread

• 3 cups all-purpose (plain) flour
• 3 tbsp firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 bottle (12 fl oz) beer, unopened and at room temperature
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted, plus extra for serving

Preheat the oven to 375. Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. In a bowl, stir together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt. Open the beer and add it all at once and it should foam up. I used some orange creme beer because that's what I already had in our fridge and it turned out well. Stir the batter quickly until the ingredients combine. Your batter should be a little lumpy. Pour into the greased loaf pan and drizzle with the melted butter.

Bake until the top is crusty and a cake tester comes out of the center clean, about 35-40 minutes. Let the bread rest in the pan 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool. Cut a big ol' slice of that thing and dress it up with butta' and some jam. Jonathan mentioned that the left overs were just as good as the first slice. I can't say that we would know that seeing as our bread magically disappears the day it's made (with the help of some friends).. so no left overs for us.

I hope that you try it, love it and tell me all about it. :)

Sun-dazeeee

It's Sunday, the day that I have the house to myself and the day that I (normally) get things done around here. In going to bed last night, my plan was to sleep in and then get started with my day and my chores. There was laundry to be done, counters to be wiped down, dry dishes to be put away, a new Martha Stewart magazine to be read and my brother's birthday painting to be finished.. but but but, here I sit on the couch, at 3pm, in the very same place I have been since I woke up. What a shame. And all I have gotten done today is read my magazine and baked a new loaf of bread (and ate two slices)... oh an watched 10 Things I Hate About You, My Best Friend's Wedding and Man vs. Food. -- and I have enjoyed every moment of it. But the time has now come to get myself up, start the laundry, jump in the shower, clean things up and get ready for my darling husband's homecoming. I like him. :)

It's a short update, but it's all I got right now. The weekend is almost over.. hope you've had a good one.

Spring Time

I love spring time and all of the blooming flowers that it brings. Our peach
and apricot trees have budded and blossomed in our backyard, along with
the pink and red camellia trees on the side of our house. It makes life
feel new again and with the new season brings a new list of goals,
hopes and dreams. For this season, I pray for..
...a refreshed attitude and frame of mind.
...a simpler, less materialist life.
...more late night drives with my husband.
...a thankful attitude for the jobs we possess.
...more of Jesus everyday.
...our time to be spent reading and creating new things.
...lots of deliciously cooked dinners.
...a clean house. :)
...more walks in our neighborhood and naps in the park.
...lots love and time to be shared with our family and friends.

(photo via waterproofvalentines)

A long day that ended with potato dumplings.

Today was busy. My class and I went on a fun field trip to a walnut ranch in West Covina. There were a lot of fun, hands on activities for the kids to do and they really enjoyed it, so did I. After the field trip, I went to my Grandma's house to take care of her (as I do every Wednesday) and she was especially confused when I came walking through the door. I think having a Grandma with Alzheimer's is something that I have gotten used to.. either that or I'm just calloused. It's all just very odd.. very sad. I think it's something that I have already grieved over. She doesn't know me at all anymore, I am a stranger to her.. but there are those random times when she looks up and she smiles and looks at me as a familiar face. She's very sweet. We played cards, put together a puzzle and sat outside and looked at the trees and the flowers.

Later, Paul and I went to the farmers market and did our grocery shopping. We were tired and hungry when we got home and decided that something hot was the way to go. I had some left over mashed potatoes from a couple nights ago and decided to make potato dumplings in tomato soup. The process is pretty easy, all you need is some flour and your left over mashed potatoes and you're in business. I sprinkled flour on the board, plopped a big handful of potatoes on it and needed it until it felt more like a dough that could be rolled out, adding flour until desired consistency. I rolled it and cut it into bite size pieces and put them in the hot soup to heat them through. All it needs is some freshly ground black pepper and a spoon, total comfort. I served it along side a fresh mixed green salad and it was the perfect pair. It was super easy and it hit the spot.

Bed time.

Quick update

I find her to be quite lovely.

I had thee busiest last 7 days, which is clear by my recent absence. I have no idea where the weekend went. It was wrapped up in the moving out of old furniture and the moving in of new, a sweet rainy wedding, a bridal shower and minimal amounts of sleep. I still haven't recovered. Oye. So for now I am back to my normal life. I cleaned the house, got caught up on some reading and made sure the house and dinner were ready by the time Paul opened the front door. Broccoli and tofu in a garlic sauce served with a heaping spoonful of mashed potatoes... all organic I should add. :) Yay for that. More updates to come.. hope you all had a nice weekend. Happy Monday evening. :)

(via la boom!)

Greek Turkey Burgers

Still dreaming of a normal camera.. one day.

I've been trying to come up with a healthier spin on the dinners that I usually make and this one came out perfectly. This was so filling.. no need for a side because there is so much going on inside the burger. This dish was inspired by a recipe I saw done by Ellie Krieger. I made a salad from one of the left over patties today and I think it was even better than last night. :)

Greek Turkey Burgers

• 1 pound lean ground turkey meat
• Whole wheat hamburger buns, 4
  
• 1/4 of a white onion, finely chopped
  
• 1/2 cup feta cheese
  
• 1 cup fresh spinach, chopped
  
• Extra virgin olive oil
  
• 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1 clove garlic, minced
  
• 1/2 of a lemon, juiced
  
• Cucumber
• Lettuce
• Red onion
  
• Salt and pepper
• Avocado (optional)

>>Saute olive oil and onion in a non-stick pan until onion is translucent. Add spinach, stir occasionally until wilted down. Add feta cheese and freshly ground black pepper and mix together. (No need for salt because the feta is salty enough.)
>>Form turkey patties to desired size and stuff with the onion, spinach and feta mixture. Seal each burger so that the mixture doesn't make a mess on the grill. Place patties on a grill pan over medium high heat, 8-10 minutes on each size.
>>In a bowl, mix together yogurt, garlic, lemon juice, 1/8 tsp salt and pepper.
>>Once the turkey patties are cooked through, you can build your burger. Top each pattie with a spoonful of the yogurt, a few slices of cucumber, avocado, lettuce and red onion .. and enjoy!

You can always add fresh, chopped dill to the yogurt to gain a more intense Greek flavor. We are not fans of dill in this house.. unless it's a dill pickle. ;)

One.Five.TwoThousandTen

Paul should be home in approximately one hour. He picked up 20 extra hours at work this week (which totals to 60 hours - yipes) and I am trying to be a good wife by making sure the house is clean, dinner is on the table and that I am dressed in my sweetest apron as he crosses the threshold. Real Simple's orange chicken with bulgar pilaf (sub quinoa for bulgar because the grocery store didn't have it, darn) will be served on our dinner table this evening and I hope it turns out just right. I am really trying to commit to my "2010 try to achieve" list this week (one week at a time) and I am doing that by staying in tonight and cooking for the two of us instead of going out. Feels good. :)

Another way that I am sticking to my list is by taking a picture everyday. So for today's picture, I give you this: my new favorite pillow. This was gifted to us by Mallory and Jonathan for our Christmas present and I couldn't be more thrilled about it. Here it rests on our couch and I look at it fondly every time I enter the room.

The little sign in front says "de Partee" (!)

I wish the picture could be better but as we know, the photo booth camera is going to have to have to cut it until something better comes along. Is this not the cutest thing? I have a lot of love for this little pillow. Please excuse Tootsie's behind, she was not willing to move for the photo. Happy Tuesday. :)