Saturday, January 30, 2016

When Leftovers Become Magic


I was feeling ambitious yesterday and thought I would make a homemade dessert. 

My first thought was apple crisp, because I was making meatloaf for dinner and if I plan it right, I can make the topping for the crisp in the food processor before I use the food processor to make the slurry of grossness for the meatloaf (you know what I mean--the nasty mixture of eggs, onions, garlic, and breadcrumbs that gets mixed with the meat) AND the crisp can bake at the same time as the meatloaf. 

I just love kitchen efficiency.

But then I remembered the four egg yolks left over from when the MiL made the chiffon cake for her sister's birthday. So I decided to make chocolate pudding.

I used this recipe from Martha Stewart, mostly because it was the first one that came up when I typed "chocolate pudding four egg yolks" into Google. I have also in the past made the Tyler Florence recipe that is the second recipe that comes up when you type that combination of words into Google. I liked the Tyler Florence one better because it was more chocolate-y, but everyone else preferred the Martha Stewart one.

I used half milk and half cream instead of all milk, because I had the cream and why not, right? I also omitted the straining step, because it was too thick when I took it off the heat to strain through the very fine-mesh strainer I had. Didn't make a difference. I alsoalso used salted butter instead of unsalted, because it was all I had. Again, didn't make a difference. Oh, and I alsoalsoalso did not use plastic wrap pressed into the top to prevent the skin from forming, because I didn't care.

So, with all the changes, can I call it MY chocolate pudding recipe, then? Sure. Anyway, it's the one I'm going to use from here on out. Or at least whenever I have leftover egg yolks.

Friday, January 29, 2016

And the Nobel Prize for Science Goes To . . .

Charlie exited the bathroom this morning announcing, "I have a great observation: When you have tons of pee, it makes lots of bubbles." This was followed by, "This is how I know I'm going to be a great scientist when I'm a grown up."

American Medical Journal, take note: "The Male Urinary Stream and Its Effect on Toilet Effervescence," by Charlie is coming your way in 30 years or so.

Thursday, January 28, 2016

Oh, Just a Thursday

School for Cubby and Charlie today (hooray!); Mommy School for Jack*; dressing children, changing diapers, cooking, dusting, exercising, and all the other minutia that makes up a day for me.

We do get to bring a pretty impressive chiffon cake to Cubby's school today. It's the MiL's sister's birthday today. She happens to be the founder and still principal at Cubby's school, so the MiL made a chiffon cake last night and is sending it in for her sister via her grandson. Or rather, via her daughter-in-law, since I wouldn't trust Cubby to get a cake anywhere in one piece. That boy does love his desserts.

I can guarantee you that Charlie is going to be unhappy that Cubby is bringing a WHOLE, ENTIRE CAKE to school today and Charlie gets . . . stone soup. They make vegetable soup at his preschool every Thursday. Every kid brings in a vegetable and they all help cut them up and add them to the pot (like the story "Stone Soup", get it?). Charlie is not such a fan of soup to begin with, and to be honest, this soup is pretty bland, so I think the jealousy of cake vs. soup will be strong.

This is why I've been hoarding a couple of cookies, in anticipation of this very day. So Cubby gets cake, Charlie gets a cookie, and Jack gets . . . well, maybe if he's lucky he'll get some apple/pear sauce. Sucks being a baby sometimes.

Happy Thursday, my lovelies! What are you up to today?

* This is what I told Cubby and Charlie that Jack does while they're at their schools. In Mommy School, Jack learns how to eat from a spoon, walk, talk, and build with blocks. This is about the only school I feel I am equipped to teach. Beyond this, I leave it to the professionals.

Tuesday, January 26, 2016

All Different, But All the Same

Jack may be notably different than his big brothers in some ways (a notably better crawler, for one thing--go, Speed Crawler, go!), but there are some universals when it comes to babies.

To wit:


This is the cabinet they have all raided when I lock them in the kitchen with me so I can make dinner.


Yes, I know what you're doing, Jack. Not that I care, as long as you're occupied while I'm cooking.


Don't bother fleeing the scene of the destruction, Speed Crawler. I know it was you. It's cool. It's a tradition. See below.


Same pots and pans, same cabinet, different baby (that's baby Charlie).


Sunday, January 24, 2016

A Day of Rest (HA) and Indulgence


It's Sunday morning! That means a full shower with hair washing* AND the opportunity to trim my nails. WHEE!

Let's hear it for weekend pampering, of the most pathetic sort.

* After completing my first day of Level Two in the 30-Day Shred which is . . . ow. Yeah, "ow" about sums it up.