just another ordinary miracle today

I was delighted when a dear friend of mine invited me to photograph the surprise arrival of her husband following a 6 month deployment. Wow! What a moving experience. I am so happy for this family to be reunited with one another after such a long time. Their happiness is contagious. I've been smiling all day. I hope this puts a smile on your face too. :)

Honey Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are our favorite "egg free" cookies. I have even (successfully) substituted half whole wheat pastry flour into these. ;) Don't over cook these tasty morsels. Error on the side of chewy.

1 ¼ cup flour

½ tsp baking soda

pinch Salt

¼ cup butter, softened

¼ cup sugar

½ cup honey

1 cup chocolate chips (or a mixture of pb chips, m&ms, reese’s pieces, etc.)

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Mix dry stuff (flour, baking soda and salt) together in a big measuring cup or a small bowl. 

In a medium bowl, blend butter, sugar and honey together with a rubber spatula or a mixer on low speed.

Mix in dry ingredients. Add chips and mix until everything is all creamed together.

Use a couple of soup spoons or tablespoons to drop blobs of dough onto a greased cookie sheet or parchment paper.

Happy 1/2 Birthday

We have a fun tradition in our family. We like to celebrate half birthdays. You pick your favorite dinner. Eat a little treat. Sing a birthday jingle. Well, today just happens to be cause for celebration. This little tike is 1.5 years old. I can't believe that it has been 18 months since she made her debut. I was just remembering the day she was born earlier today. It was awesome..... and painful. It has been worth every minute. 

Saluto Cappana Bleggi

My parents have found bluer (and warmer) skies. We will miss your glowing fire, strong beams, cozy beds, sunny loft, and lazy decks. May your new family enjoy you as much as we have.

Time flies

This was a fun project that took me exactly 1 year to complete! :)

I love looking at this, but it makes me already miss this sweet "baby cakes," as she's known around here.

Patience is a Virtue

I must be super virtuous after waiting for Trader Joe's to come to Utah for over FIVE years.  Here are some of my favs (among others) that I have been importing and now can purchase within my own state lines!!! My husband gave me a $22 dollar budget. Ha! I only exceeded it a little (by about $100.) Budget, smudget. The good news is that our pantry is fully stocked (as well as our bellies.)

Thanks Trader Joe's for making my life as a "label reader" just a little bit easier and humoring my endless location request emails. (And, just for the record, I realize that some of these labels may not be virtuous. Maybe they are just the lesser of the evils.)

The Windy City

For six months, I planned my trip to Chicago for November. My husband would be in meetings for 3 days. I would sleep, read, eat, photograph, and shop. It would be three entire, glorious days to do whatever whenever. I was mostly excited to dine like an adult. No leftover bread crusts, no worries about allergens, no spilled milk.

Flashback to Halloween.... Dex gets a horrendous case of the stomach flu. It lasts for 6 days! Followed by Maddie. Then, Millie. I managed to escape the dreaded disease... Or, did I?

Oh no, I did not! Twelve, yes 12, days later, while on my long-awaited sabbatical, the symptoms manifested themselves violently. There was no dining, no reading, no photography, and very little shopping (much to my husband's pleasure.) However, there was plenty of sleeping.

I did manage to take 4 random photos with my phone which don't really even resemble the vacation.

I do have to admit that it was better than the trip I took to San Francisco a few years ago when I had the swine flu. And, the saving grace of the trip was the restaurant we visited just before we flew home. Slurping Turtle was delicious. Since I was still adjusting to consuming food, I ordered "Slurping Noodles" which turned out to be perfect.

I tried to recreate the dish and came pretty close. It was a quick and easy dinner and all the kids like it. 

Slurping Noodles

Copy Cat from Slurping Turtle, Chicago

2 quarts chicken or vegetable stock

1 Tablespoon soy sauce or Braggs Liquid Aminos

1 Tablespoon coconut oil

1 cup carrots, match stick or thinly sliced

1 cup mushrooms, sliced

1 cup napa cabbage, shredded

½ cup broccoli florets

8 ozs straight cut rice noodles or vermicelli

Shrimp, use your preferred size

3-4 green onions, greens only slice on diagonal

¼ cup cilantro,

French Fried Onion, garnish

In coconut oil, sauté carrots, mushrooms, and cabbage for 3-4 minutes over med-hi heat.

Add chicken stock and bring to a simmer over high heat. Add shrimp, broccoli, and rice noodles. Simmer for about 5 minutes or until noodles are soft. Stir in green onions and cilantro.

Garnish individual servings with french fried onions. Slurp away.