Asher's very own table!

For Chanukah we got Asher his own little table where he can create all his works of art!

Chanukah Party

Asher working so hard on his Chanukah door-knob decoration at the craft table.

Bye-bye Ava!

At last week's playgroup the three boys, Drew, Asher and Michael were all standing there watching as Ava (the only girl at playgroup) was leaving. It was so cute!

Asher's counting

Asher can almost count to ten in Spanish. He'll skip a number here and there but he's almost got it down!

Tzedakah!?

As soon as Asher and I pulled up to this parking meter he says, "tzedakah!" (Pronounced zeh-dah-kah). A tzedakah box is a coin bank used to collect money for charity. Asher looks forward to putting Moises' change in our tzedakah box every week before Shabbat.

Grape-Nuts Pudding

I thought this looked like something Asher would really love and be healthy as well. And yes, he eats it right up! I have also made it substituting steel-cut oats for the Grape-Nuts which, in my opinion, is actually better.

1 cup Grape-Nuts cereal (or, I prefer steel-cut oats)
1 quart milk
4 eggs
1/2 cup sugar (I used 1/4 honey)
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. fine salt
Grated nutmeg

1. Heat oven to 350°. Grease a 2-quart glass loaf pan with 1 tsp. butter; set aside. Put cereal into a bowl; set aside.

2. Bring milk just to a boil over medium heat; pour over cereal and set aside to let soak for 5 minutes.

3. Beat together eggs, sugar, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl. Slowly pour egg mixture into milk mixture while whisking constantly. Transfer to reserved pan; set in a deep roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into roasting pan that it reaches halfway up pudding pan. Bake until just set, about 1 1/4 hours. Let cool; sprinkle with grated nutmeg.

Crispy Rice Snacks

This makes a great healthy treat for Asher... he and I both love it!

1/2 cup chunky peanut butter (I used organic honey roasted)
1/2 cup honey (I cut it back to 1/4 cup and found it to be plenty sweet...and so did Asher)
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups crispy brown rice cereal

Mix peanut butter, honey, nuts, vanilla and cinnamon together in a bowl. Add cereal and stir gently until cereal is well coated. Place a dish of water near the bowl. Using wet hands, form the mixture into walnut-size balls and place them on a lightly oiled dish or on waxed paper.

For variety, you can roll the balls in coconut, sesame seeds or chopped nuts.

I prefer to press the mixture in a square dish, cool in refrigerator and then cut into squares.

Million-dollar caramel cookies

I made these for the annual cookie exchange at Moises' office. I had been wanting to try this recipe for ever and thought this would be a good opportunity. These have definitely made it to my top favorite list of goodies. They are sure to be crowd pleaser!
(Makes 4 dozen)

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar, plus 1 Tbs
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour, plus 1/4 cup
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 Heath candy bars
1 bag Rolo chewy caramels

Preheat oven to 374

In a medium bowl, beat butter and sugars until fluffy, then add eggs and vanilla and beat well.

In a separate bowl, mix 2 1/2 cups flour, cocoa, salt, and baking soda. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture a little bit at a time and blend well. If the dough feels too sticky, sprinkle in a little extra flour. Cover and chill dough in fridge for about 30 minutes.

Chop Heath bars into small pieces. Place in a small bowl and toss with 1 Tbs sugar.

Once dough has chilled, wrap a piece around each caramel, forming a 1-inch ball and covering the candy completely. Dip top of the dough ball into the candy topping and place on parchemnt-lined baking sheet.

Bake for 7 to 10 minutes. Cookies will look quite soft, but do not over bake. Cool in pan slightly, them move to a rack or the counter to finish cooling. Store in a covered container.

Our Chanukah Table

For our first night of Chanukah we had spice rubbed brisket with rootbeer BBQ sauce, mixed green salad (of course), black rice, a giant latke, cranberry applesauce, cured salmon remoulade, and olive oil muffins.
While searching for some Chanukah-themed recipes (olive oil) to try out I came across this one that I thought looked interesting. I like that the olive oil flavor comes through in a nice way and the balsamic added a nice element as well.

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons orange zest
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons whole milk (or water for non-dairy)
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
Powdered sugar, for sifting

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place paper liners in a 12-cup muffin tin.

Blend together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl to blend. Using an electric mixer beat the sugar, eggs, and zests in a large bowl until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the vinegar and milk (or water). Gradually beat in the oil. Add the flour mixture and stir just until blended. Crush the almonds with your hands as you add them to the batter and stir until mixed. Fill the muffin tin almost to the top of the paper liners. Bake until golden on top and a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out with moist crumbs attached, about 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes. Remove the muffins onto a platter and let cool for 5 more minutes. Sift powdered sugar over the muffins and serve.

*****

I thought I would try taking the latke recipe I made last year and turn it into one big giant one by browning the mixture in my cast iron skillet for 15 minutes on each side on medium low and then baking at 400 for 20 minutes. The traditional way I did it last year was much better. But hey, it was worth a try! It still wasn't bad.

To top the latkes, I made cranberry applesauce and cured salmon remoulade.

*****

Cured Salmon Remoulade

2 oz cured or lightly smoked Wild salmon slices-diced small
2 T. capers
¼ cup chopped red onion
2 T. prepared horseradish
1 T. fresh lemon juice
3 T. flat leaf parsley-chopped
¾ cup mayonnaise
dash of hot sauce (optional)

1. Mix all of the above ingredients in a small bowl. Adjust seasoning if necessary. Store covered in the refrigerator up to 3 days.

*****

Cranberry Applesauce

5 apples (I prefer Jonathan apples), cored and cut into large chunks with skin on
1 cup of fresh or frozen cranberries
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 Tablespoon vanilla

Shred apples and cranberries in food processor or blender. Combine all ingredients in a covered pot to simmer over low heat for about 45 minutes to an hour, stirring occasionally.

Chanukah Presents!

Asher and Papi playing the dreidel game.
Asher loves cruising around the house on his new "moto" from Babi and Bampa. The cool thing about it is that it converts to a two wheeler and the seat adjusts for when he gets bigger!

Spicy Black Bean Soup

I've been in a little soup kick lately. Maybe being snowed in for two days has had an influence on that! Anyway, this is a delicious, easy soup that is even better as leftovers. I happened to have some extra ingredients on hand that I thought would kick it up a few notches listed at the end.

And rather than putting it through the blender, I just whirled my immersion blender in the pot until it was to the consistency I wanted.

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups chopped red onion
• 1 4-ounce can diced mild green chilies
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped jalapeño chili with seeds
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 2 15-ounce cans black beans, undrained
• 8 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• Sour cream or cottage cheese
  
• Tortilla chips

Preparation

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, green chilies, garlic, jalapeño, and cumin. Sauté until onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Add beans with juices. Bring soup to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer until flavors blend, about 15 minutes. Puree 3 cups soup in batches in blender. Return puree to same pot. Mix in 6 tablespoons cilantro. Season soup to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle soup into bowls. Top with dollop of sour cream or cottage cheese and tortilla chips. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons cilantro.

I also added 1 tablespoon chopped chipotle chilies in adobe, 1 tablespoon dry oregano, 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, can of corn with juice, and a pint of chopped cherry tomatoes.

Holiday party at Monkey Joe's

Asher and Michael taking a break from wrestling.

We had our playgroup holiday party at Monkey Joe's, Asher's new favorite hang out.


Asher got a set of nesting, stackable blocks from Drew at our gift exchange. He absolutely loves them and hasn't stopped playing with them once we got home.

Thank you Becky and Marlene!

Moises' sister, Becky and his aunt, Marlene sent me these cookies while visiting Paris! How sweet of them to be so thoughtful (they know how much I miss being there)! The cookies were so delicious (even after being mailed all the way from France) as you can see in this picture I had already eaten half of them!

Black Bean Tarte

I made this for our potluck at our playgroup today at Monkey Joe's. The crust on this is really what sets it apart. It's very tender and flaky with a few different spices that make it interesting. Next time I make it I'll try pureeing 2 cups of the beans along with an additional 2 Tbs of sour cream and mix it in with the rest of the filling rather than layering it on the bottom. I also sprinkled extra cheese on top before baking.

For crust

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) chilled unsalted butter, cut into bits
• 2 tablespoons ice water
• raw rice for weighting shell

For filling

• 1/2 pound dried black beans, picked over, or 3 cups canned black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 medium red onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons sour cream
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• a 10-ounce package frozen corn, thawed
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)
• 1/2 cup fresh coriander sprigs, washed well, spun dry, and chopped
• 1 1/2 cups coarsely grated Monterey Jack (about 6 ounces)
• 2 fresh jalapeño chiles, seeded and chopped fine (wear rubber gloves)
• 1/2 cup chopped scallions (about 2)

For lime sour cream:

• 1 cup sour cream
• 2 teaspoons fresh lime juice, or to taste

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Make crust:
In a bowl with a pastry blender or in a food processor blend or pulse together flour, spices, and salt until combined well. Add butter and blend or pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add ice water and blend or pulse until incorporated and mixture forms a dough.

Press dough evenly onto bottom and sides of a 10-inch tart pan with a removable fluted rim and chill 15 minutes, or until firm. Line shell with foil and fill with rice. Bake shell in middle of oven until edge is set, 8 to 10 minutes. Carefully remove foil and rice and bake crust 10 minutes more, or until golden. Cool crust in pan on a rack. Crust may be made 1 day ahead and kept at room temperature, covered loosely with plastic wrap.

Make filling:
In a bowl soak dried beans if using in water to cover by 2 inches overnight and drain. In a large saucepan combine soaked beans, bay leaf, onion, and water to cover by 2 inches and simmer, uncovered, 1 to 1 1/4 hours, or until tender, adding more water if necessary. Drain beans, discarding bay leaf, and cool.

In a food processor purée 1 cup cooked or canned beans with sour cream until smooth and season with salt and pepper.

In a skillet heat oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and sauté corn with salt and pepper to taste, stirring, about 2 minutes. Cool corn.

In a large bowl stir together corn, whole beans, bell pepper, coriander, Monterey Jack, jalapeños, and scallions and season with salt and pepper.

Spread bean purée evenly onto crust and mound with remaining filling, pressing gently. Bake tart in middle of oven about 20 minutes, or until hot and cheese is melted. Let tart cool in pan on a rack 15 minutes.

Remove rim of pan and serve tart warm or at room temperature with lime sour cream.

Make lime sour cream:
In a bowl whisk sour cream and lime juice with salt and pepper to taste. Sauce may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Makes about 1 cup.

Cauliflower Soup with Marcona Almonds and Piquillo Pepper Relish

This soup is so silky and delicious, and definitely going to be one of my new "go to" recipes. It's one of those that taste like you worked all day but hardly took any time or effort. I doubled the pepper relish in case I wanted extra for either the soup or just to have on hand for sandwiches or a topping for a salad.

Kosher salt

butter kosher salt black peppercorns jarred piquillo peppers olive oil mint garlic crushed red pepper flakes

1-3/4 lb. (6 to 7 cups) cauliflower florets (from 1 medium head)
4 Tbs. unsalted butter (I used 3 Tbs., I think even cutting down to 2 Tbs would be fine)
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup Marcona or regular almonds (roasted and salted), finely chopped
1/4 cup jarred piquillo peppers or roasted red peppers, rinsed, seeded, and finely diced
2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbs. thinly sliced fresh mint
1 medium clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

---

Bring 6 cups water to a boil in a 4-quart pot over high heat. Add 1 tsp. salt, then add the cauliflower and boil until very tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain the cauliflower in a colander set over a large bowl to catch the cooking liquid and let the cauliflower cool slightly.

Working in 2 batches, purée each batch of cauliflower with 2 cups of the cooking liquid and 2 Tbs. of the butter in a blender until very smooth. Season to taste with salt. (The soup can be made up to 4 hours ahead.)

In a small bowl, combine the almonds, peppers, oil, mint, garlic, and pepper flakes Season to taste with salt and pepper. (The relish can be made up to 1 hour ahead.)

When ready to serve, gently reheat the soup over medium-low heat. Garnish each serving with a spoonful of the almond relish.

Thanksgiving 2009 in Park City

Wes, his wife Jen, Me and Asher having breakfast.

We had a really nice Thanksgiving as usual! But this year we had exceptionally nice weather... sunny everyday and warm enough for a light jacket.
Me, Grandma Phyllis, my brother Wes, his wife Jen

Asher rock-climbing and playing in the snow at Grandpa Jim's house (my dad)

Asher on the balcony with Papi at Babi and Bampa's house
Like I said the weather was gorgeous! Asher decided to go barefoot.



The turkey! My mom was so wonderful to get a kosher turkey!

Moises' brother Gabi, and his wife Naty were on a ski vacation in Park City over Thanksgiving weekend so they joined us for Thanksgiving dinner! It was great to be able to see them too!



Asher trying on Bampa's new boots!
Babi and Asher playing with her camera
Papi showing Asher how to hold a pencil properly... he catches on quick!

Some Videos of our Thanksgiving Holiday

Asher was so excited to go outside to play in the snow with his new boots that Babi got him. But unfortunately they were one size too big. We ended up exchanging them for the right size in the end.

Our Little Chatter Box

Asher is definitely a little guy with a lot to say. He chatters non-stop in Spanish or English and repeats anything you say. We have definitely entered the "watch what you say in front of him" long ago. After today's trip to the grocery store I was inspired to write down some of the things he's been saying. Unfortunately I can't capture him in the moment on video so I will just have to brag about him in words.



While we were doing a little grocery shopping today, Asher was saying, "Hey der, howa you?" to just about everybody we passed by.

After somebody sneezes he says, "bless you!"

When he bumps his head (which is multiple times a day) he says, "Bump ya head, kiss it better!" with a big pout.

He'll say, "where is it?" and "ta?" (= donde esta?) with a big shoulder shrug and hands in the air.

"Who knows?"

"Whe ah you?" Where are you?

"Exacee!" Exactly!

"Muchos carros!" Lots of cars

"Big trucks!"

"Baja te!" or "Get down!" He uses both Spanish and English.

"Ven!" as he holds his arms out for you to pick him up. (Means come here in Spanish)

One evening when we were visiting my mom in Park City last month, we were walking into a restaurant and Asher notice there were wine glasses on all of the tables. He points out saying, "Kiddush!" Kiddush is the name of the Hebrew blessing you say over wine (we do this every Shabbat). So we sit down at our table and order some wine. As the server is pouring our wine he says, "vino!" (meaning wine in Spanish) Then finally my mom and I each take a sip and he yells "L' Chaim!" at the top of his lungs. L' Chaim is said when you make a toast which literally means "to life". Yes, Asher does love his wine just like Mommy and Papi!

OH BOY!

We just found out yesterday that Baby Eilemberg #2 is a boy... I will still be queen! We are so excited (we would be happy either way) Asher will have a little buddy to play with.
Little foot... this one is my favorite!
His boy parts!

The Comedian

Asher came up with this funny voice the other day as I was giving him lunch. He had me on the ground rolling because he would stay in character despite my cracking up. Of course I caught the tail end of his "act" on video, so unfortunately I didn't capture the best and full effect.

Monkey Joe's

Last week most of our playgroup got together at Monkey Joe's, a new play gym that just opened up. The kids had a riot. As soon as I let Asher free, he was running around non-stop like a wild man! It was perfect because we went at 10 am when it was really empty and there were no "big kids" to worry about having collisions with.

Asher was a machine climbing up all these steep ramps. And then he took on the all the slides without any hesitation. It cracked me up when he decided to go down on his belly, feet first. I guess he's like his dad; they both like to take calculated risks.

Salted Brown Butter Rice Krispies!

Who doesn't love rice krispy treats? I made these for our last play group that Asher and I hosted. I made a few minor changes that really take it up several notches.

And what were those changes? Ummm, just a bit more, ummm, butter (like double) which you toast until it’s brown and nutty and help along with some coarse salt, just minor things. But like I said, it changes everything.

Makes 16 2-inch squares or 32 1- x 2-inch small bars

4 ounces (1/4 pound or 1 stick) unsalted butter, plus extra for the pan
1 10-ounce bag marshmallows
Heaping 1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
6 cups Rice Krispies cereal (about half a 12-ounce box)

Butter (or coat with non-stick spray) an 8-inch square cake pan with 2-inch sides.

In a large pot, melt butter over medium-low heat. It will melt, then foam, then turn clear golden and finally start to turn brown and smell nutty. Stir frequently, scraping up any bits from the bottom as you do. Don’t take your eyes off the pot as while you may be impatient for it to start browning, the period between the time the butter begins to take on color and the point where it burns is often less than a minute.

As soon as the butter takes on a nutty color, turn the heat off and stir in the marshmallows. The residual heat from the melted butter should be enough to melt them, but if it is not, turn it back on low until the marshmallows are smooth.

Remove the pot from the stove and stir in the salt and cereal together. Quickly spread into prepared pan. I liked to use a piece of waxed or parchment paper that I’ve sprayed with oil to press it firmly and evenly into the edges and corners, though a silicon spatula works almost as well.

Asher, why so serious?!

Just relaxing at our hotel in Dallas.