Randomness Part 2: Recipes

*Edited*  I apologize for the weird font sizes and spacing issues.  I spent a ridiculous amount of time trying to fix it and make it all the same and just when I thought it worked, I realized that it looked totally different when it published.  I don't know what the deal is.  Also, does anyone else that uses blogger know what is up with pictures lately?  It's been really difficult to get them arranged on the page for some reason.

Now for some more randomness...

Yesterday was Fat Tuesday, and to those of you who aren't Catholic (which I'm not) or from Louisiana (which I am), a day called Fat Tuesday probably sounds pretty weird.  Mardi Gras in French means "Fat Tuesday" and it is the day before Ash Wednesday.  I'll not go into all of that, but if you are interested just click the links.  

I spent all last week in Louisiana, and the tail end of the week was spent in New Orleans at the Mardi Gras festivities.  I'll have actual pictures from that soon (well, as soon as Mom and CeCe send them to me).  Since pretty much no one here knows or cares about Mardi Gras (to me it's a cultural thing) I wanted to do something fun to acknowledge "Fat Tuesday." I

 made Natchitoches Meat Pies and King Cake.  Zach, Sarah, and Micah came over and we hung out and watched Micah entertain himself with a hand full of beads for a couple of hours. :)  Both the Meat Pies and the King Cake turned out great, so I thought I'd share the recipes that I used.  

Natchitoches Meat Pies

INGREDIENTS:

½ pound ground me

at

½ pound ground pork

½ cup cooking oil

½ cup chopped onions

½ cup chopped celery

¼ cup chopped green bell

 pepper

¼ cup chopped red bell

 pepper*

1 tbsp diced garlic

2 cups beef stock (see recipe)

2 9-inch pie shells

1 egg

½ cup water

salt and cracked black pepper to taste

METHOD:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. 

In a heavy-bottomed sauté pan, heat oil over medium high heat. 

Sauté beef and pork until golden brown, stirring constantly, until all liquid has evaporated.

Add onions, celery, bell peppers and garlic. 

Sauté three to five minutes or until vegetables are wilted. 

This should cook slowly for about one hour, adding beef stock to mixture to prevent sticking. 

Season to taste using salt and pepper.

Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Roll pie dough into circles and cut into halves. 

Spoon a generous portion of the cooked meat mixture into the pie shells. 

Brush a little egg-wash around the edge of the shell, fold over and press the edges with a fork similar to apple turnover.

 

Place on a greased cookie sheet or pan. Make small slits in dough to vent steam, egg-wash entire pie and bake thirty minutes at 400 degrees. 

Pie may also be deep-fried. 

*I left out the red peppers because they are really expensive right now.  Also, I added Tony's Chachere's Cajun Seasoning and a little

Crushed Red Pepper flakes.  However, I did not let the meat and veggie mixture cook for an hour - it tasted just fine after 15 or so minutes of cooking.  Believe it or not, aside from the length of time I cooked the meat stuff,  I actually followed the recipe!

King Cake

Prep: 30 min.; Cook: 10 min.; Stand: 5 min.; Rise: 1 hr., 30 min.; Bake: 16 min. 

This recipe uses bread flour, which makes for a light, airy cake. You still get tasty results with all-purpose flour--the cake will just be more dense.

Yield:

Makes 2 cakes (about 18 servings each)

Ingredients:

1  (16-ounce) container sour cream

1/3  cup  sugar

1/4  cup  butter

1  teaspoon  salt

2  (1/4-ounce) envelopes active dry yeast

1/2  cup  warm water (100° to 110°)

1  tablespoon  sugar

2  large eggs, lightly beaten

6  to 6 1/2 cups bread flour*

1/3  cup  butter, softened

1/2  cup  sugar

1 1/2  teaspoons  ground cinnamon

*Creamy Glaze*

Purple-, green-, and gold-tinted sparkling sugar sprinkles

Preparation:

Cook first 4 ingredients in a medium saucepan over low heat, stirring often, until butter melts. Set aside, and cool mixture to 100° to 110°.

Stir together yeast, 1/2 cup warm water, and 1 tablespoon sugar in a 1-cup glass measuring cup; let stand 5 minutes.

Beat sour cream mixture, yeast mixture, eggs, and 2 cups flour at medium speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until smooth. Reduce speed to low, and gradually add enough remaining flour (4 to 4 1/2 cups) until a soft dough forms.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic (about 10 minutes). Place in a well-greased bowl, turning to grease top.

Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 1 hour or until dough is doubled in bulk.

Punch down dough, and divide in half. Roll each portion into a 22- x 12-inch rectangle. 

Spread 1/3 cup softened butter evenly on each rectangle, leaving a 1-inch border. 

Stir together 1/2 cup sugar and cinnamon, and sprinkle evenly over butter on each rectangle.

Roll up each dough rectangle, jelly-roll fashion, starting at 1 long side. 

Place one dough roll, seam side down, on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bring ends of roll together to form an oval ring, moistening and pinching edges together to seal. Repeat with second dough roll.

Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 20 to 30 minutes or until doubled in bulk.

Bake at 375° for 14 to 16 minutes or until golden. Slightly cool cakes on pans on wire racks (about 10 minutes). 

Drizzle Creamy Glaze evenly over warm cakes; sprinkle with colored sugars, alternating colors and forming bands. Let cool completely.

Cream Cheese-Filled King Cake: Prepare each 22- x 12-inch dough rectangle as directed. Omit 1/3 cup softened butter and 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon. Increase 1/2 cup sugar to 3/4 cup sugar. Beat 3/4 cup sugar; 2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened; 1 large egg; and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Spread cream cheese mixture evenly on each dough rectangle, leaving 1-inch borders. Proceed with recipe as directed.*6 to 6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour may be substituted.

*Creamy Glaze

Yield:

Makes 1 1/2 cups

Ingredients:

3  cups  powdered sugar

3  tablespoons  butter, melted

2  tablespoons  fresh lemon juice

1/4  teaspoon  vanilla extract

2  to 4 tablespoons milk

Preparation:

Stir together first 4 ingredients. Stir in 2 tablespoons milk, adding additional milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, until spreading consistency.

I only wanted to make one cake so I halved the recipe.  Have you ever tried to half 1/3 cup?  Yeah - it comes out to .666666666 and on and on.  So basically I just eyeballed it.  I made the whole recipe of creamy glaze though, because it is yummy.  

This was a Southern Living recipe.

Randomness: Moonpie Designs

I just realized that I never posted any pictures of some of my Christmas orders - and here it is the end of February!  Sheesh.  

Take a gander:

Matching aprons for mom and daughter

Bib and Burpie sets in a new font.  I like it - what do you think?

Super soft blanket

Diaper Bag - 4 outer and 3 inner pockets

(Justin actually picked out the fabric for this bag.  He did great!)

Scalloped Edged flannel blanket and bibs

Those are the last things that I've made for Moonpie Designs.  Pretty soon I get to start making things for me and Baby Moon.  Yay!

Bump Watch: 16 1/2 Weeks

At my last doctor's appointment at 15 weeks (I think 15 weeks - it was Jan 23rd) I weighed 133 1/2 lbs.  Mind you that was with jeans, a sweater, cami, tummy sleeve, socks, undergarments, and a hat. . . hey, it adds up people!!  I did manage to get my shoes off before the nurse started reading the scale. :) They don't waste anytime.  My blood pressure was borderline low again but they keep saying it's because I'm calm and small.  Ha!  Calm my butt.  

We were very excited about this appointment because we hadn't heard the heartbeat yet and knew we would get to that day.  It took a while to find it and both Justin and I were freaking out internally (his face turned pretty white real quick) and then after a little while the doctor said, "that's your heartbeat mom, hmmm, that's a baby kick, that's another kick..." and then there it was plain as day - loud and fast!  I breathed a huge sigh of relief and Justin regained his coloring. :) The heart rate was 162.  Please refrain from giving me your opinion on the connection between heart rates and the sex of the baby.  I already know and I think its hogwash.

I also had my Triple Marker test that day and I swear I am asking for a new blood-taker-person next time.  She has bruised and hurt me every time she's done it and I've never had a problem with having my blood drawn before.  Sarah agrees with me - this woman is no good.

What else?  That's about it. I still feel pretty good except for occasional headaches (three or four times a week) and round ligament pain.  Also, my balance is slightly off since there is a turnip (or so says Baby Center) in my belly. I haven't felt the baby move yet, at least not that I can really tell, but expect to feel it soon.  And we have not yet decided if we are going to find out the sex, so don't ask.  

My belly button is having to work extra hard these days - it's getting pretty stretched out already.  And what you can't see in this picture is that my jeans are unzipped ALL THE WAY and I have a rubber band through he button hole and around the button that is just about stretched to the max.  But you do what you gotta do right?! 

We bought furniture for the nursery over the weekend and I will post pictures of that tomorrow. Promise! Camera batteries are charging right now.

Yay!

Check this out regarding the CPSIA.

Thanks for all your help - keep it up!

And thanks to Natalie for sharing the news!

"Baby Yih-yum"

***Scroll down for more info on the CPSIA. UPDATED***


Ok - so y'all know that I keep sweet Isabella everyday. But Sarah pointed out to me this week that I haven't blogged about the new addition to the Cardoza family, William - or, "Baby Yih-yum" as Micah and Bella call him. He's about 3 months old and is the cutest thing. So now I keep both of them everyday. We've been having a lot of fun, but I must say there are times when I wonder why on earth people have more than one child. It's a lot of work! :)

I snapped a few pics yesterday right before we headed back over to their house. Take a look:

I've been getting that look from Bella A LOT lately. She's definitely stepped up the stubbornness over the past couple of weeks. Ah - all that is a 2 1/2 year old!

Squinty eyed smile

Don't you just want to eat those cheeks! He's adorable and such a great snuggle-er.:)

Look! I can squint my other eye!

*Scroll down to read a post about saving the handmade community and small business like Moonpie Designs.*

SAVE HANDMADE!!!

*UPDATE*

Go here. There's more info about the CPSIA.
****************************************

If you make and sell handmade baby goods, love someone who does, or enjoy buying unique gifts for your kiddos, please go read about the CPSIA. It's a complete crap piece of legislation that goes into effect on February 10th and will quite effectively shut down Moonpie Designs and thousands of other small businesses like mine.

Read about it here - Caroline does a good job of explaining the basics of a very complex law. She gives several links you can visit to learn more and/or see how others are taking a stand and how you can too.

Though I'm hopeful that eventually there will be plenty of changes made to the clearly-not-well-thought-out original law, I'm still stressed about it. I started Moonpie Designs because I enjoy making things, but also because I wanted to have something I could do at home that might provide a little income once the kiddos start coming. Well, one is well on it's way, so you can see why I might be frustrated.

Just so you know, I just typed all of that with only my right hand. Baby William is snuggled up with the other one. More on that preciousness later - I took some pictures of him yesterday. For those of you who have no idea who I am talking about, check back later today to find out. :)

I'd love to know what you think about this CPSIA thing.

Goodbye 2008

Well Merry Christmas and Happy New Year and just a general hello!  

I seriously don't really even know where to start there are so many things that need to be blogged and shared that have happened over the past few months.

I guess I'll start with the biggest news - there is a Baby Moon on the way!  I'm nearly 13 weeks pregnant with what the books say is something akin to a medium shrimp in size (Last week it was a lime, which I would think is bigger than a shrimp but apparently I am wrong.).  Funny how something so small can cause so many changes!  Thankfully I haven't been "sick" at all (and by "sick" I mean throwing up) especially for the first 10 weeks.  As long as I ate I was fine.  Weeks 10-12 were plagued with headaches though and nothing really helped except for sleep and if you've ever been pregnant you know how little sleep one can get between having to pee every two hours whether you drink anything or not to just being uncomfortable to not being able to shut off your brain no matter how exhausted you are.  For the most part the headaches are gone now, but have been replaced with an appetite that rivals a teenage boy's.  Seriously - if I don't eat every two hours (almost on the dot) someone is going to get hurt.  I know it's normal, but I just keep thinking that if I continue eating like this I am going to gain 100lbs and never ever look anything like I used to.  Is that vain?  Maybe.  Probably.  But I'd really prefer not to feel like a cow for the rest of my life. :)  I weighed 126lbs at my first doctor's appointment at 5 1/2 weeks and last night I weighed 130 which nearly made be fall over until I remembered that I'm supposed to be gaining weight.  So I guess 4 lbs isn't all that bad.  

We are thrilled about this baby (though also scared senseless at times) and our families are as well.  It was a very good holiday season.

We stayed in Conyers for Christmas this year since we were in Leesville for Thanksgiving.  We took a little trip to Nashville with the Mays to see our favorite singer/songwriter, Andrew Peterson and a slew of other uber talented folk perform his Behold the Lamb of God concert at the Ryman.  That's really a whole nother post though.  Sarah already talked about it all so you can go there to read more.

 For the most part it was a relaxing time with Justin off of work for several days.  Christmas Eve we went to the Moon's and had a traditional Christmas meal and then laid out on the couches and watched tv.  We spent Christmas morning at our house and opened our gifts from each other and my parents.  Justin got me a waffle maker and it has already been put to good use.  I cooked Chicken Deluxe for lunch and took it over to the Moon's where we ate and then exchanged gifts.  Great times.  Our Korean friend, Jang, drove in from North Carolina on Christmas day and came with us to Greensboro for Christmas with Justin's extended family.  He stayed until Monday morning.  We didn't do much after Christmas but lay around and watch the new movies we got :  The Dark Knight, Sleeping Beauty, Enchanted, Juno, The Sandlot, and Sleepless in Seattle.  I had a big order to fill that had to go to Dallas by today so I spent lots of time cutting fabric and sewing.  All in all it was pretty relaxing.  I'm starting to ramble so here are some random pictures:

Our Christmas gift from my DD - quite possibly the best gift EVER!  Love me some La-Z-Boy.

The belly at 11 1/2 weeks and my new pjs from Momma and Daddy.  It's tradition - every year we get new pjs to open on Christmas Eve.  These are the softest pajamas I have ever owned.  I wish I could live in them.  Wait, I pretty much have been.:)

My stocking.

And now I am mad at blogger because when I try to add images from the web it says that they have been added but they haven't.  BOO blogger.  I guess I'll have to add those later.

Hopefully it won't be so long between this post and the next!  Until then friends.

Noises

There's something in our attic again. This time it's big. Like, really big. Big enough to eat ALL of our blocks of rat poison and not die. This thing might be next of kin to Chuck Norris.

Justin and I were eating dinner and watching NCIS and all of a sudden it sounded like someone was walking on our roof. He ran outside with the flashlight to see what it was then ran back in and said it was in the attic.

Guess who's getting a call from us in the morning? Yep - the Wildlife people that we paid $600 to seal up our roof so nothing can get in. Clearly that worked. Sheesh.

I'm just so glad Justin heard it too because if I had called him and said, "there's a person walking on our roof right now" I'm not sure he would have believed me.

Truth

This is so very very true of me. How bout you?

Click here.

Halloween

Justin and I were Juno McGuff and Paulie Bleeker from the movie Juno for Halloween this year. How'd we do?

Here's the DVD cover:
And here's us:

Not too bad huh? Just so you know, I painted Justin's socks, shirt, sweatbands, and the orange stripes on my shirt. It took hours, but turned out great. I thought so at least. :)

Halloween was super low key this year. We went to the May's and hung out for the evening with some other friends. Here's Micah as Charlie Brown and Isabella as Little Red Riding Hood:Crappy picture - they were so NOT into pictures that night. But they were adorable.