Low and Slow...

It's my wish as Summer peeks through the door...  

To go low and slow...  

To savor every delicious juicy strawberry, 

home grown green beans
from my mother's Victory Garden...  

I want to sit on the front stoop, 

chilled Pinot G in hand and watch the kids 

chase fireflies or zoom back and forth on scooters 

and bikes with training wheels...  

Summers seemed to last forever as a kid... 

This morning a friend and I talked about 

when Labor Day was on the calendar!  

It can go so fast unless you will the days to slow down...  

For Memorial Day weekend, 

I insisted we treat it like a vacation... 

No household chores, just fun...

The house looks like a family of hyenas were here, 

but it was worth it.  

We barbecued with friends and family, 

saw a movie, splashed around the local pool
with half of Chicago, 

held a lemonade stand 

and participated in Bike the Drive.  

This annual event closes down the famed Lake Shore Drive 

for one Sunday morning in May for folks 

to bike the full fifteen mile length..

It's a mostly flat ride, except for the overpass hills. 

No piece of cake to scale hills

with a 52 pound kid riding in back...  

Thank goodness Kate was willing to help the cause 

and pedal with all her little might...  

I was struck with how quiet the drive became 

minus gas powered vehicles...  

I was awed by the sheer numbers of cyclists 

and the gorgeous view of the lake...  

I was annoyed by the "Lycra Speedsters" 

who mistakenly took the event for the Tour de France 

and who thought us casual riders were a nuisance...

When one fifty something lady huffed 

at my son who was getting to close to her, 

I responded with an audible announcement, 

"IT'S A BIKE RIDE, PEOPLE!!!"   

For Pete's sake....

this is a huge family event...  

If you want to ride ninety miles an hour 

without other people around, 

take the lake path at 2am....  

Sheesh...  

Anyway, despite the grumpy ones, 

it was tons of fun..
. 

Jack must have said ten times 

how much he loved the ride... 

I think his favorite part was scavenging 

all the free stuff at the finish line festival...  

So summer is almost here....

School lets out in a couple of weeks 

and then the camps begin....  

Pottery camp, sailing camp, 

nature camp, gymnastics camp, 

sleepaway camp, Cubs camp....  

I want to be a kid again....

The plan is to enjoy camp, 

then head to the pool the rest of the day 

until they plop into bed, 

near comatose from physical activity...  

That's the plan so far...

I'd like to spice up the camp routine 

with some fun extras that don't cost anything... 

This link has some great summer fun ideas...  

Here are my favorites I might try:

1. Picnic in the park

2. Library trip

3. Factory tour to Eli's Cheesecake Factory and the Jelly Belly Factory

4. Paint watercolors with squirt guns.

5. Tie Dye Shirt project

6. Make wind chimes

7. Make Slime

8. Pajama day (rainy day)

Summer is pawing at the gate, 

but we aren't going to charge toward its finish...  

Heck, we may even go hang out on a farm 

and chew on a tall piece of grass in one hand, 

glass of wine in the other....  

Enjoy your summer!

Calzones over the Miles...

Americans love portable food... 

It's why drive thru's were born...  

Speaking of drive thru's, my brother intentionally makes his voice 

sound full of static when he orders at the drive thru... 

Yep, my family is funny that way...  

Cracks me up...  

Anyway, with time being so compressed, 

who doesn't snarf a breakfast sandwich or Whampus Jr. 

on the fly now and then?  

Okay, maybe Martha hasn't ever sampled a Big Mac, 

but we have french fries that carbon date back to the pleicostene era 

under the drivers seat of my car...  

I am always looking for home made food more inventive than the PBJ 

to toss into the back seat for the journey from school 

to baseball practice, tumbling, tutoring, etc.  

Ask and you shall receive...  

My good friend, Ashlyn, came to the rescue this morning 

with a recipe that made my heart sing.

Now Miss Ashlyn and I were colleagues not long ago 

at a huge public company, 

leasing retail space across the country.  

We were part of a group of folks 

who worked hard together for a number of years 

and became quite close, 

like family, I'd say...  

And when the recession hammer came down 

and scattered most of us to the winds, 

that good time came to an abrupt end... 

Most of us stay in touch, thanks to FB, 

but I sure miss my buddies...  

Ashlyn has two growing boys 

and she is a Southern gal, through and through,
full of energy, hospitality, smarts 

and awesome recipes...
 

I miss our hushed recipe sharing sessions 

during those boring conference calls, Girl!  

Calzones...  

She swears by these 

and says they do not squirt all over the back seat of the car, 

enroute to practice... 

I'm going to hold her to that, 

as we are test driving these babies tonight...  

This recipe was adapted from a calzone recipe in 

Pioneer Woman's first cookbook, apparently... 

So, thank you, Ree, for originating this dish!  

Here we go!

Calzones
Ingredients:

Dough:
4 C Flour
1 tsp yeast
1tsp salt
1/3 C Olive oil
1 1/2 C warm water

Filling:
Breakfast sausage. (I didn't have any on hand, so I used 5 links of sweet Italian sausage)
2 C Jar Marinara
Pepperoni
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
2 T Jar Pesto

 Brown the sausage in the skillet..

 Next, I always drain meat in a colander 

and rinse it with cold water.  

It's my mom's tip to really get the grease out.  

I do what my mama says....

 In a bowl, stir together the marinara and pesto.  

The pesto adds a little zing.  

Who couldn't use some zing now and then?

Add in the sausage and stir together.  

Cover and place in fridge until assembly begins.

To Make Dough:  

1 1/2 cups warm water - sprinkle on a teaspoon of yeast 

and let it sit for a minute or two.

In your mixer, put 4 cups flour 

and drizzle in 1/3 cup olive oil 

with the paddle (not dough hook) on low.

Add one teaspoon salt.

Now stir the water and yeast gently 

and slowly pour into the mixer 

until it all comes together.

Put some olive oil on your hands 

and scoop it all out into a ball - 

place in a bowl that has been rubbed 

with olive oil and cover 

with a damp/warm towel.

Let dough rise 2-3 hours.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

Take the dough in balls 

(a little smaller than a baseball) 

and press them down on a floured surface.

 Roll into a circle 

(about the size of a tortilla).

 Place the marinara down in the middle, then sausage, 

4 pepperonis 

and a handful of cheese.

 Fold over and press closed with a fork.

Place them on a greased cookie sheet 

and brush with olive oil 

(I added some garlic powder to my olive oil).

Bake for about 15 minutes until they are browned. 

This made about 10 large calzones.

 I am going to freeze the extras for on the go meals.

 Ashlyn said:

"I wrapped them in foil and put them in a lined cooler and off we went. When my husband got to the game around 7:30 p.m. they were still warm. We'll be having the leftovers tonight. I'll definitely make these again and again. Super easy and very easy to eat, not messy at all for the car!"

We may not have our recipe sharing sessions in person  anymore, 

but we girls still share via the web. 

P.S.:  The calzones were deelish
and loved by the family...
Thanks for the great recipe, my Friend!

Shoofly Pie

 For those of you who live in Chicago, 

this weekend was all about NATO...  

The dignitaries, the security, the delightful groups of protesters... 

We are all quite weary of the lot of them 

and would like our town to get back to normal...  

For those of you who live 15 minutes outside of the metro area 

and beyond, you probably heard not a peep about it....

At least I hope not...  

Most of Chicago either left town 

or stayed close to home to avoid all that mess...  

Or they went to the Crosstown Classic 

to witness the Cubs get bludgeoned by the White Sox 

three games in a row...  

Tommy was not happy...  

And me, in between doing a little gardening, 

I hid away in the comfort of the kitchen, 

far from the chants 

and the motorcades (aka "Car Porn" in my house...)

This recipe has been stuffed in my binder of magazine tears 

for a year now...

Shoofly Pie...  

Given that this pie has no nuts, fruits nor proteins, 

I was curious as to what the fuss was all about.  

How could it be tasty?  

But, it has stood the test of time...  

My great-grandmother had her own clipping for Shoofly Pie 

in her wooden recipe box...  

If you read the card above, apparently Mr. Robert Deardorff 

wrote a scintillating article on the Pennsylvania Dutch... 

Shoofly Pie does have Amish origins.  

Mrs. Lloyd Bedsworth Jr offered up her version... 

It must be good for Mamaw to have saved it... 

 

So I decided to give the 2011 version a try... 

The first failure was the box of ready made pie dough....  

Note to self:  use said pie dough within six months of purchase...  

Blue spots do not indicate freshness...  

So I made the dough from scratch...  

If you have a food processor, 

making dough couldn't be quicker nor easier.  

The key is to stop as soon as the dough 

starts to come together...  

The filling for Shoofly Pie looks like an Old Fashioned, 

without the ice and rocks glass...  

So weird...  

Although, you could drink an Old Fashioned while baking the pie....

Sorry, just a thought...

Where was the texture for this confection? 

It is just this amber liquid, swimming in the fresh pie crust...

Then you top the whole thing with a lot of streusel.  

I was quite skeptical until the pie started 

to rise and take shape.  

The baking soda is the key...  

One must have a sweet tooth to appreciate this pie, 

but let's just say my family hoovered their slices 

in mere seconds.  

I took the remainder next door to assure 

that tantalizing pie didn't make its way to my posterior...  

Try Shoofly Pie... 

It's a gentle nod to the past, a unique offering at a potluck 

and it's delicious!

I'll bet if Chicago's Finest served slices of Shoofly Pie 

to the protestors 

those chants might have turned 

into a rousing rendition of Kumbaya...

Shoofly Pie, courtesy of Country Living Magazine

Ingredients

Piecrust:

• 2 cup(s) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon(s) salt
• 3/4 cup(s) shortening
• 5 tablespoon(s) water

Filling:

• 1/2 cup(s) dark corn syrup
• 1/4 cup(s) light brown sugar, packed
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) baking soda
• 1/2 cup(s) hot water

Crumb Topping:

• 1 cup(s) all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoon(s) shortening
• 2/3 cup(s) light brown sugar, packed
• 1 pinch(s) salt
• 1 pinch(s) ground cinnamon

---

Directions

1. For crust: In a medium bowl, mix flour and salt. Cut shortening into flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. Gradually add water until combined. Press together to form dough and chill for at least 1 hour or up to overnight. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/8-inch thickness; fit into a 9-inch pie pan. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. For filling: Combine corn syrup, brown sugar, and egg. Dissolve baking soda in hot water, stir into syrup mixture, and pour into crust.
3. For topping: In a medium bowl, mix ingredients using your fingers or a pastry blender until combined. Sprinkle crumbs evenly over corn-syrup mixture. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes.

Mother's Day Bliss...

Twelve months ago, give or take a few days,

I lamented how Mother's Day 

was sort of a joke.... 

 

It's supposed to be a day of rest, relaxation 

and general joyous bonding

of mother and her precious children... 

In reality, it is like any other day,

plus the added stress of cooking brunch 

for the whole family,

entertaining everyone

and the resulting massive clean up afterward... 

So much for rest and relaxation... 

A year ago I declared that NEXT YEAR 

would be different! 

I would find a peaceful escape 

to honor my daily endeavors

in the land of mommy... 

Right. 

 Along with a few other things 

that have not transpired

over the last annum such as financial solvency, 

organized closets

and tighter abs,

my quest for a blissful mother's day

will not occur... 

However, mild improvements are to be celebrated... 

Two years ago, Tom worked on Mother's Day

and it was the Anti-Mother's Day... 

Man did that suck... 

Last year, the day did not belong to me,

but there was breakfast in bed... 

This year, I am escaping, albeit on Saturday... 

Massage and mani pedi appointments have been secured

I am so looking forward to that...

On Sunday, family will come over... 

I will clean, shop, prepare and make brunch... 

And I will enjoy seeing family because

I love them and they like my food... 

It all works out in the wash, right?

As I was pondering what to write 

about Mother's Day,

I considered some of the myths

that surround the mystique of motherhood

believed by those who are not mothers themselves..

1. Pregnancys makes you "Glow."

Perhaps it is the perception that 

the little bun in the oven

 is making Mama to Be glow with motherly joy. 

The fact is that said bun is creating 

an internal body temperature

similar to the Hot Springs in Arkansas. 

Do you ever notice that pregnant women 

wear short sleeves in January? 

2. The Instant Bond Upon Birth. 

Let's face it, Friends.  Unless Jr. was born cesarean section,

he or she looks more like a misshapen prune 

after nineteen plus hours of pushing. 

I'd venture to suggest that perhaps 

after the little one

has had a proper bath from the nurses

and once you have been tidied up yourself

that true maternal love is allowed to fully bloom.

3. Baby will sleep through the night after three weeks. 

How about more like three months? 

Kate's reflux made her scream 

like the house was on fire

for nine weeks before she settled 

into a decent sleeping routine. 

Tom and I believe lack of sleep is truly 

what makes parents lose their sanity. 

I have friends with eight year olds who still wake them 

in the night and sneak into their beds. 

God help those parents... 

And those amazingly fortunate parents whose kids
slept through the night 

during the first two weeks of life...

May I punch you in the face? 

Did I say that? 

Sorry....just kidding...

4. You will feel that smushy, lovey feeling for your kids 

all the time and they will be perfect...

You are joking, right? 

Did I dream my six year old would 

have an all out tantrum over cereal? 

Did I, in any way imagine my son 

would accidentally almost set the house on fire? 

Do my perfect, precious kids really think farts are THAT funny? 

Perfect, no. 

All smush, all the time, no. 

I love them enough to willingly 

lie on the tracks for them. 

Believe me, they feel loved. 

I will not be guilted by the perfectionist mom society out there. 

Read this by Erica Jong...  It's AWESOME.

5. You can have it all!   

Hahahahahaha!  I am crying, I am laughing so hard. 

Erica's article addresses this, too. 

If you try to have it all, someone will hate you, 

your kids, your husband,

your friends, but probably yourself. 

Do what you can and forget about the dried spaghetti 

smeared under the kitchen island

and the unsorted socks that breed.

Like Erma Bombeck said,

"If the item doesn't multiply, smell, catch fire, 

or block the refrigerator door, let it be. 

No one else cares. 

Why should you?"

6. You will keep all your friends.  

I wish this were true and I sorely miss some of my friends 

whom I don't see anymore.  

Motherhood changes things.  

Once you have crossed over to pumping milk 

and bringing snacks to soccer, 

your single and friends without kids 

will have different interests.  

It's like moving from the city to the suburbs.  

Sometimes the divide is too great.  

It takes a ton of effort to keep those friendships together.  

There will be casualties.

7. That baby weight will fall right off!  

To those of you who weigh less now than before pregnancy, 

yadda yadda yadda...  

The rest of us who are still battling those last ten stubborn pounds, 

welcome to the club.  

It is a raw deal that we bear the children 

and then continue to bear the vestiges of the journey.  

Can't men at least get stretch marks during our pregnancies?  

I have heard of sympathy weight, 

but how many men actually gain 40-60 lbs?   

Can't their shoe sizes increase, too?  

Why can't their hips widen to accommodate toddlers, 

only to never slim down again?  

C'mon, it is only fair...

8. Kids thirst for your quality time.  

Let's get this straight.  

Kids only want your attention 

when you are on the toilet, 

making a phone call or answering the door.  

Any other time, they would much prefer 

Sponge Bob or Call of Duty.  

And once they hit the age of ten, 

you are dead to them in public settings.

9. Motherhood is wholly satisfying.  

I would be burned at the stake by the politically correct, 

witch hunting society in the U.S. today,

 if I didn't proclaim that  

motherhood completes every fiber of my being!!!

Would I give my kids up?  

No way...  

Do I sometimes wish Tom and I 

were living a charmed life in Tuscany, 

flitting to Monaco for the weekend 

and occasionally sleeping in on Sundays, 

only to wake to a cappuccino and a newspaper?  

YES!!!    

Life is not perfect, but I can't complain...  

There are many things to be grateful for, 

and two of them hug me daily...