Musical Clothes

Little J is fascinated by clothes.  Ever since he has figured out how to put them on and off by himself, he likes to change them -- over, and over again. Once of his favorite things to do on a morning at home is change his outfit, three, four, five times.

A few nights ago, he decided to change his shirt around six-thirty.  Please note that he emphatically wanted Daddy to help him... so I wasn't extending his misery by snapping the picture first.

Yes.  He put the shirt on upside down -- and backwards -- and was really upset with the fact that it was hurting his back.


As I finish this post, he is in his seventh or eighth pair of pants for the day -- this time a pair of snow pants.


(c) Lessons from Cooper

Nesting is in full swing

This was possibly the most relaxing day we have had in a very long time.  Relaxing, but also really productive.  For once, noone in our family had a specific plan outside of the house.  And without a plan, we accomplished alot today, all without any pressure to get anythin done in a specified period of time. We also had one of my favorites -- appetizers for dinner (mmmm), followed by dessert!

I can tell the baby must be coming soon.  In the last seven days, I have completed the following:

1. Leadership Hendricks County

2. My last hour of CLE for 2011

3. My expense report (oh yes - like 10 days early!)

4. The Christmas tree is up and decorated.

5. The baby quilt is finished, and currently in the wash.

6.  I found and purchased the "going home outfit" -- two options, one in newborn and one in 0-3... since Big J and I produce really long babies, I'm afraid newborn won't fit.

7.  Received our new car seat for Big J's truck, and ordered the car seat for my car.

I also completed about 75% of the Christmas shopping within the last two weeks.  I wish I could say that I was completely caught up at work -- but that is a whole other story.  I think all I have left to definitely accomplish before the baby is here (mainly because I won't be able to easily do this for a month or two after the baby is born) is go to see Breaking Dawn.

All of this productivity is making me hope that the baby is coming sooner rather than later -- but I guess we will see!

Tonight we had one of our family favorites for dinner - NFL dip with a kick:

It might not look super appetizing, but it is yumminess.  To make it:

1. Brown 1 pound of sausage

2. Add 2 bricks of cream cheese.

3. Add one can of ro-tel tomatoes, or other brand with chiles and onions added.

4. Stir well.  Serve warm with corn chips.

We followed dinner with a homemade chocolate custard.  Yesterday when cooking, I accidentally added 1 cup of milk to eggs where I meant to add 1 cup of broth.  Rather than tossing the eggs and milk, I put it up until today.  This afternoon, while lazily watching television with Big J, I found a custard recipe that almost precisely used the quantity of eggs and milk I mixed together yesterday.  It was a winner!  Little J thinks so too:

So there it is, 7 pm, dinner is eaten, the projects for the day are done and tomorrow's shopping trip is all planned.  I think I'm ready to sit on the couch!


Chocolate Custard
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup sugar

Combine ingredients until mixed well but not foamy.  Pour in to six custard cups placed in a 9x12 casserole dish.  Add 1 inch boiling water (about 5 cups).  Place in 325 degree oven for approximately 40 minutes, until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Enjoy!

(c) Lessons from Cooper

Pumpkin Pie

Thanksgiving is an odd day for the gluten-free.  So many of the treats and tastes revolve around the usage of the forbidden flour -- from pie to stuffing to verything in between, gluten is hidden everywhere.

Big J is the pie maker in our house.  This year, he is experimenting with gluten free crust.  We also realized, **after** I made it back from the store that we did not have evaporated milk on hand ... which led to a quick search for a pumpkin pie recipe that didn't need that particular ingredient.

He made the crust from a recipe in You Won't Believe It's Gluten Free by Roben Ryberg, and made the filling from a recipe out of Living Without Magazine.

This was Big J's first adventure of cooking with Little J in a few months.  It is amazing how much more Little J can do -- and how much he really wants to help.

We used fresh pumpkin and weighed out the 15 oz needed.

The fresh texture was drier than canned pumpkin, so Big J added a 1/4 cup of milk.  Note that he is using the food processor without the lid.  This is not  recommended.  Big J escaped unscathed, but it definitely isn't the safest thing I've ever seen attempted in my kitchen.

Big J truly packed the brown sugar, using a spoon and pressing the sugar into the cup.

Little J helped add the sugar.

Then he tasted it to make sure it was okay for everyone.

Big J mixed up the dough for the pie crust.

He chiled the dough and then pulled off the wax paper.

The filling looked a little lighter than it does with canned pumpkin.

Our pan is a "deep pan."  We might need to adjust next time for a little bit more crust.

Looks like Thanksgiving!  Smells like it too as it bakes!

The finished product turned out perfectly.  We should have used foil to protect the pie edges from burning, but otherwise, the pie turned out great.  The crust was flaky, the interior pumpkiny, spicy and not too sweet.

Many thanks to Big J for making adjustments to the pie this year!





Pie Crust

4 ounces cream cheese
2 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup oat flour - about 90 grams
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/4 teaspoon baking soda.

1. Combine all of the ingredients in a medium sized bowl and cut together with a pastry cutter.

2. The dough will form into a ball of dough.  Place the dough on a heet of waxed paper.  Cover with another sheet of waxed paper.  Chill for 15 minutes.  Roll into a large circle, 12 to 13 inches in diamerter.

3. Remove the top sheeet and turn the dough upside down into a 9 inch pie plate.  You may need to chill the dough again before removing the remaining paper.  Trim, tuck and pick the dough at the edge of the pie plate.

4. Prick the crust all over with a fork to deter air bubbles and slippage.

Pumpkin Filling:

15 ounces of fresh pumpkin
1/4 cup whole milk
1/2 cup pakced brown sugar
1/3 cup honey
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon fresh cinnamon
1 teaspoon fresh nutmeg
1 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Puree pumpkin and milk in the food processor.
3. Add pumpkin, sugar, and honey in large bowl
4. Mix together.  Add eggs one at a time.  Then add whipping cream, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and salt.
5. Pour batter in to uncooked piecrust and bake in preheated oven for about 60 minutes.

based on a recipe from the October / November 2011 issue of Living Without.

(c) Lessons from Cooper

Pumpkin Pie

Thanksgiving is an odd day for the gluten-free.  So many of the treats and tastes revolve around the usage of the forbidden flour -- from pie to stuffing to verything in between, gluten is hidden everywhere.

Big J is the pie maker in our house.  This year, he is experimenting with gluten free crust.  We also realized, **after** I made it back from the store that we did not have evaporated milk on hand ... which led to a quick search for a pumpkin pie recipe that didn't need that particular ingredient.

He made the crust from a recipe in You Won't Believe It's Gluten Free by Roben Ryberg, and made the filling from a recipe out of Living Without Magazine.

This was Big J's first adventure of cooking with Little J in a few months.  It is amazing how much more Little J can do -- and how much he really wants to help.

We used fresh pumpkin and weighed out the 15 oz needed.

The fresh texture was drier than canned pumpkin, so Big J added a 1/4 cup of milk.  Note that he is using the food processor without the lid.  This is not  recommended.  Big J escaped unscathed, but it definitely isn't the safest thing I've ever seen attempted in my kitchen.

Big J truly packed the brown sugar, using a spoon and pressing the sugar into the cup.

Little J helped add the sugar.

Then he tasted it to make sure it was okay for everyone.

Big J mixed up the dough for the pie crust.

He chiled the dough and then pulled off the wax paper.

The filling looked a little lighter than it does with canned pumpkin.

Our pan is a "deep pan."  We might need to adjust next time for a little bit more crust.

Looks like Thanksgiving!  Smells like it too as it bakes!

The finished product turned out perfectly.  We should have used foil to protect the pie edges from burning, but otherwise, the pie turned out great.  The crust was flaky, the interior pumpkiny, spicy and not too sweet.

Many thanks to Big J for making adjustments to the pie this year!





Pie Crust

4 ounces cream cheese
2 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup oat flour - about 90 grams
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/4 teaspoon baking soda.

1. Combine all of the ingredients in a medium sized bowl and cut together with a pastry cutter.

2. The dough will form into a ball of dough.  Place the dough on a heet of waxed paper.  Cover with another sheet of waxed paper.  Chill for 15 minutes.  Roll into a large circle, 12 to 13 inches in diamerter.

3. Remove the top sheeet and turn the dough upside down into a 9 inch pie plate.  You may need to chill the dough again before removing the remaining paper.  Trim, tuck and pick the dough at the edge of the pie plate.

4. Prick the crust all over with a fork to deter air bubbles and slippage.

Pumpkin Filling:

15 ounces of fresh pumpkin
1/4 cup whole milk
1/2 cup pakced brown sugar
1/3 cup honey
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon fresh cinnamon
1 teaspoon fresh nutmeg
1 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Puree pumpkin and milk in the food processor.
3. Add pumpkin, sugar, and honey in large bowl
4. Mix together.  Add eggs one at a time.  Then add whipping cream, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and salt.
5. Pour batter in to uncooked piecrust and bake in preheated oven for about 60 minutes.

based on a recipe from the October / November 2011 issue of Living Without.

(c) Lessons from Cooper

Scallion Bacon and Cheddar Corn Pudding

At the end of October, I thumbed through my mother's isse of Paula Deen's Christmas.  I've always known Paula as a cook that likes to use butter.  What I hadn't realized up to that point was how many of her recipes did not involve alot of flour.

This is one of them. The original recipe only called for 1/4 cup of all-purpose flour, which I substituted with oat flour.  Other than that, we prepared it as written.

First we mixed the dry ingredients into a medium sized bowl.

Next, we pureed the corn in the food processor. 

 Little J enjoyed manning the equipment.

Next we added the corn puree, eggs, and sour cream to the dry ingredients.  After stirring together, we added the cheese, onion and bacon, reserving a bit of cheese for the topping.

Finally, we put the whole mixture into a 2 1/2 quart casserole, topped with the remaining cheese and popped the whole thing in our toaster oven for 55 minutes.  You can tell it's Thanksgiving when we pull out the toaster oven -- it ideally helps us out when there just isn't enough room with one oven.

Scallion Bacon and Cheddar Corn Pudding
from Paula Deen's Christmas, with a slight variation to make it gluten free

1/4 cup oat flour
2 tablespoons corn meal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 32-ounce bag of whole kernel corn
1 1/2 cups sour cream
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups of mild cheddar cheese, shredded, divided
1/2 cup chopped onion
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Grease a 2 1/2 quart casserole dish. In a large bowl, stir together four, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and pepper.

2. In a food processor, puree 3 1/2 cups of the corn until smooth.  Add corn puree, sour cream, and eggs to the flour mixture, stirring just until combined. Stir in 1 cup of cheese, onion, bacon and remaining whole kernel corn.

3. Pour batter into prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake for 55 minutes or until casserole is puffy and center is nearly set.


(c) Lessons from Cooper

Scallion Bacon and Cheddar Corn Pudding

At the end of October, I thumbed through my mother's isse of Paula Deen's Christmas.  I've always known Paula as a cook that likes to use butter.  What I hadn't realized up to that point was how many of her recipes did not involve alot of flour.

This is one of them. The original recipe only called for 1/4 cup of all-purpose flour, which I substituted with oat flour.  Other than that, we prepared it as written.

First we mixed the dry ingredients into a medium sized bowl.

Next, we pureed the corn in the food processor. 

 Little J enjoyed manning the equipment.

Next we added the corn puree, eggs, and sour cream to the dry ingredients.  After stirring together, we added the cheese, onion and bacon, reserving a bit of cheese for the topping.

Finally, we put the whole mixture into a 2 1/2 quart casserole, topped with the remaining cheese and popped the whole thing in our toaster oven for 55 minutes.  You can tell it's Thanksgiving when we pull out the toaster oven -- it ideally helps us out when there just isn't enough room with one oven.

Scallion Bacon and Cheddar Corn Pudding
from Paula Deen's Christmas, with a slight variation to make it gluten free

1/4 cup oat flour
2 tablespoons corn meal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 32-ounce bag of whole kernel corn
1 1/2 cups sour cream
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups of mild cheddar cheese, shredded, divided
1/2 cup chopped onion
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Grease a 2 1/2 quart casserole dish. In a large bowl, stir together four, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and pepper.

2. In a food processor, puree 3 1/2 cups of the corn until smooth.  Add corn puree, sour cream, and eggs to the flour mixture, stirring just until combined. Stir in 1 cup of cheese, onion, bacon and remaining whole kernel corn.

3. Pour batter into prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake for 55 minutes or until casserole is puffy and center is nearly set.


(c) Lessons from Cooper

A weird Thanksgiving

It has been an odd November.   Between being sick the second week of the month, and being out of town last weekend, it almost seems too soon for Thanksgiving.  But it is here already -- meaning our due date is less than four weeks away!

When I was growing up, we often went to visit family on Thanksgiving.  We would get up early, load in to the minivan and drive three hours to my grandparents.  After a big meal and time with family, we would often drive back -- getting home in the late hours of the night.

As time went on, and my grandparents passed away, we shifted to Thanksgiving at Mom's, with my brothers.  And as time continued to march on, as we married and had additional family obligations, we started to blend our Thanksgiving with those close to us.

Before I had children, I would go out the Wednesday night before Thanksgiving.  It seemed no matter where I went, or with which old friend, I always ran in to a bunch of people I knew.  The last two years, we have hosted Thanksgiving, and Big J and I have spent the Wednesday before Thanksgiving cooking.

This year, between being sick and being out of town, I hadn't shopped for the ingredients we needed for our contribution to the family feast -- let alone done any advance cooking.  I woke up this morning, tired from a restless night, and realized that I had five things I needed from the store.

About 10 a.m., Little J and I headed out to the local Meijer.  We left Big J organizing his pie baking project.  We arrived to a store as busy as any Saturday.  The funny thing is that, despite all of the hype about the advance Black Friday deals, people didn't seem to buying Christmas gifts.  They seemed focused on the same thing I was -- stuff to eat for dinner.

Little J and I finished up the list and headed home.  We started to cook.  And finally, it feels like Thanksgiving.

It's funny how life changes over time -- how our expectations of a good day, a fun night, or a relxing time, change over time.  I used to think a night out with friends was a fun night, now I think it is just as much fun to watch Little J learn something new, or play on the floor.  Thanksgiving used to revolve around the food, the extended family and the friends.  It's still about all of those things, but it's also about being so grateful to God for the life he has given me - the family, the friends, the child I have and the one on the way.

Happy Thanksgiving!

(c) Lessons from Cooper

A long night’s rest

Little J is usually a pretty sunny child.  He has tantrums, but overall, he is very easygoing.  But his world was shaken a little last weekend.

BOTH Mommy AND Daddy left for two. Whole. Days.

He was in good hands.  But I think he missed us.  For starters, he hasn't made it through the night yet in his own bed.  And he hasn't gone to bed at his regular time since last week.  And finally, he won't take a nap.

It's most  worrisome for me because his ear infection is back (or never left).  He needs his rest.  He has big circles under his eyes

It's almost like he's afraid we'll disappear again.  Last night, after struggling to get him to go to sleep, Big J snapped this:

Of course, he woke up in the middle of the night again.  I think he was only able to go back to sleep once he was spread-eagled, in the middle of the bed, with one hand on me and the other on Big J.

This morning, he clearly was sleeping a well-deserved rest.

This has shown us something pretty important – in a week or two or four, Big J and I will be occupied at the hospital for at least 48 hours.  While I don't want Little J hanging around during the actual birth process, clearly we need to make sure that he is at the hospital with us for much of the time afterwards.  I wonder how that will go?

© Lessons from Cooper

A twist on peanut butter blossoms

I've always loved the peanut butter blossom - you know, the peanut butter cookie with the Hershey's kiss in the middle?

So this morning, thumbing through the holiday coupons, I saw the recipe.  I had most of the ingredients on hand -- and so I decided to try them out, gluten-free.

I had to sub chocolate chips for the Hershey's Kisses, but other than that....

We measured out everything and started the mixing.  Little J had to try out the sugar before we got it into the bowl:

Next Little J dumped the ingredients in, with supervision:

We chilled the dough for about thirty minutes and then made up the first dozen.  They turned out pretty tasty.  We had a full afternoon planned, so we wrapped the rest of the dough into a big long roll and left it in the fridge.  We made the second round about three hours later.

Between the first and second round, the cookies tasted the same.  However, the second round definitely held together better.  I also noticed that I did better when the I let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for a minute or two before putting them on the cooling rack.

Here's the recipe:

1/2 cup vegetable shortening (Crisco)
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 cups oat flour
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Sugar

1.  Preheat oven to 375.
2. Cream together the shortening, peanut butter, brown sugar, sugar.  Add egg, milk and vanilla.
3. Mix the dry ingredients.  Add slowly to the mixed ungredients.
4.  Stir in the chocolate chips
5. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
6.  Form dough in to 1 inch balls, roll in sugar
7. Bake for ten minutes.  Let cool on cookie sheet for 2 - 4 minutes, before removing to cookie rack.
8. Store in airtight container.

Enjoy!

(c) Lessons from Cooper

It's worth it for the chocolate!

Little J is a climber. From the time he could wiggle off of our laps and on to the floor, he has been trying to figure out how to get up and down, from place to place, to get what he wants when he wants it.  We taught him early on to always exit feet first.  He demonstrated this skill recently at the doctor's office, when he wiggled his way off the four foot high table -- feet first.  He dropped on his feet, lost his balance and landed on his butt.  It was actually a pretty good demonstration of his motor skill ability, and all right in front of the doc.

This morning, as I loaded the dishwasher, Little J pushed a stool from the counter over to the pantry cabinet.  I turned around as he dug in the silverware drawer for a spoon.  He then ran, like he thought he was going to get caught, for the big chair in our dining area.  He plopped down, opened the jar of Nutella, and started to eat it with a spoon.

I was impressed by a couple of things. 

1. The Nutella was actually set back pretty far in the pantry, towards the top.   He managed to get the jar out of the pantry **without** knocking anything else out.

2.  At least he has the table manners to use a spoon.

3.  He has the motor coordination to unscrew the lid.  I don't know that I knew he could do that yet.

I'm usually not a big fan of multiple spoonfuls in a row out of the jar -- especially when the spoon user has been sick recently, but I knew there were only a few spoonfuls left, so I let him have at it.  For the next hour, he carried the jar and his spoon around.   If only it were always this easy to make him happy!

(c) Lessons from Cooper