Wednesday and Wesley: Look at that grin

I swear, this kid has me wrapped around his finger.

Candied Yams Recipe

First off, I have to warn you. This is the most delicious recipe for sweet potatoes. Mama Myers will need to chime in and tell me where this recipe originated from. We just have these on "special occasions" because they are a pretty naughty way to eat vegetables. Enjoy!

Candied Yams - Boykin Style

6 medium Sweet Potatoes
1 Cup Water
1 1/2 Cup Sugar
1 stick butter (56 grams)
1 1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Vanilla

Boil or bake potatoes. Remove skin and slice into shallow baking dish. Combine water, sugar, butter, and salt into a saucepan and boil. Cool somewhat and add vanilla. Pour syrup mixture over potatoes (should cover the lower two thirds of the potatoes, minimum. Bake uncovered for 30-45 minute at 350 degrees F until potatoes begin to brown.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I think this kid will take after his parents and love food. He was definitely happy last night while eating/playing with his dinner. : )

Butternut Squash Soup

My soup obsession is still going on strong, and after this weekend, I may be eating soup year round. I find something so satisfying in making soup from scratch.

This recipe came from Katie, and I was a little bummed after receiving it, because I had no idea where I could get butternut squash. I had not seen it in the usual grocery stores in Denmark, and did not want to go on a wild goose chase to find it. I could write a whole post on my efforts to find rice cakes without salt. But I digress...

The whole family went to Bilka on Saturday to pick up only 2 things. Bilka can be a freakin nightmare. I have gone on a weekend, and cursed the entire human race. I think I actually said to myself, "I hate people". Yep, the place can drive you crazy. So we went with some patience and just got our two things and continued to walk around for awhile looking at all the stuff. This place is like a Costco or Sam's Club. They have everything you could want in large quantities. While perusing the produce section, Adam finds something, hollers over to me, holds up a butternut squash with a questioning look on his face, and I said YYYEESSS!!! Grab me two of those! They cost 10 DKK each. Mommy was happy.

Here is the recipe:
Serves 6-8| Hands-On Time: 20m | Total Time: 2hr 00m
Ingredients
1 3-pound butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch cubes (5 to 6 cups)
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 teaspoons kosher salt
pinch of freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon butter
1 large yellow onion, diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
3 stalks of celery, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage (about 6 large leaves)
6 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions
Preheat oven to 400° F. In a large bowl, toss the squash with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, 2 teaspoons of the salt, and the pepper. Place the squash on a rimmed baking sheet and roast in oven for 15 minutes. Turn the cubes over and continue roasting for 15 minutes or until they are caramelized; set aside.

In a Dutch oven or a large stockpot, heat the butter and the remaining oil over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, and sage and sauté, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are translucent and tender, 10 minutes. Add the squash, broth, and the remaining salt and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 30 minutes or until the liquid is flavorful. Remove from heat. Using a blender or a food processor, blend the soup in batches until smooth. Return to the pot and keep warm. Top with grated Parmesan.

This soup was rather labor intensive with the peeling, chopping, and roasting of the squash, but you could also just let the soup cook the squash and skip the roasting step. The soup was simply delicious. The sage really made it taste yummy, and reminded me of Thanksgiving. I have a ton of other soup recipes, and I can't wait to try one again next weekend. Stay warm out there!

3-2-1 Let's Shred!

Any "shredders" out there? There seems to be a fitness cult in regards to Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred. The concept is simple. You do the DVD, everyday, for 30 days, and bam, you are fit. (Eyes are rolling). The workout is only 20 minutes long. (Um, that is usually my warmup.) The breakdown is 3 minutes of strength, 2 minutes of cardio, and 1 minute of abs. You repeat this about 3 times and with a warmup and cool down you get your 20 minute workout. I actually like the concept. It changes enough to keep you interested, and I need to focus on my core. I think I will try this out on Monday. I need something constructive to do while Wesley takes a nap, and it does not need to be baking. :) Have a good weekend!

My little fish

We took Wesley to the swimming pool last Friday, and he LOVED it! He was splashing and kicking his legs, and after almost 45 minutes in the water, I told Wesley and Adam it was time to go home. I am just the mean old fart. I am taking him to a baby swimming class this Friday. Hopefully he will have as much fun with me as he did with daddy!

Homemade bread is healthy, right?

So I have a couple of recipes to discuss and share with y'all.

First up is Basil Beer Bread. This was a really simple recipe that I actually made while talking on Skype with my sister for 35 minutes. I used half whole wheat and half regular white flour to make it "healthy". I didn't measure the parmesan, and therefore must have been short, because I could not taste it. The recipe is a great basic recipe, and would be good the next time with different add ins like cranberries, walnuts, etc.

Makes 1 loaf| Hands-On Time: 10m | Total Time: 1hr 05m

Ingredients
olive oil for the baking sheet
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4-ounce package active dry yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 cup (3 ounces) grated Parmesan
1 12-ounce bottle beer, preferably ale
flour for the work surface
1 cup chopped or torn fresh basil

Directions
Heat oven to 400° F. Oil a baking sheet. In the bowl of a standing mixer on low, or in a large bowl using a spoon, combine the flour, yeast, salt, pepper, and Parmesan.
Add the beer and mix just until the dough comes together. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Sprinkle with the basil and knead gently just until incorporated. Shape the dough into a round loaf and transfer to the prepared sheet.
Bake until the loaf is lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Turn the loaf onto a wire rack. Let cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Great bread for a soup or salad. I will definitely make this again!

Soup recipes - I need some!

When the weather turns gray, and temperatures drop, I could eat soup at every meal.

I was going to post the recipe for the only soup I make and that is chili. After looking back through old posts, I realize I had already written about my yummy chili.

Help me here.

Post any links to some good soup recipes, or send me a quick "how-to" on your famous soup. I would like to try the ones that you have to puree, but I don't own an immersion blender, so would have to use the regular blender. I also love stews and chowders.

I just realized that soup, if pureed and left chunky, could also be baby food.

Yep, making soup this weekend AND baby food. Time management is key now, people.

Have a good Friday!

There was an EARTHQUAKE!!

Wesley and I play this game called "Earthquake" which involves me laying on the bed, with Wesley on my stomach. I then start rocking from side to side, and tell him "hang on!!!". After a couple big sways, he falls to one side of the bed next to me and just laughs. Good times.

Have a good hump day!

Wesley's first race!

Well, Wesley has done several races as an inside baby. He has attended many races, but yesterday was the first race where he actually was on the course. This was definitely a family effort:

This race we did yesterday is apart of a 4 race series in order to try to have the best time and win the "cup". Adam is good enough to actually win the cup, while in my division there are 50 year old women running 40 minute 10Ks. Yep, this is just going to be a "fun" race series for me, where I will not worry about time.

The neat thing about these races is that it is a 5K loop you either do once, or twice if you signed up for the 10K. I signed up for the 10K, while Adam signed up for the 5K. I ran the first loop with Wesley in the stroller while Adam "raced" his 5K. He then met me, took the stroller, and did a 5K cool down, while I ran my second loop without the stroller.

Wesley did wonderful the whole time. He is such a trooper. My friend Megan, who is also a runner, asks the question on her blog "are we bad parents?" for getting our kids out of bed, bundling them up, putting them in a jogging stroller, etc? I sometimes wonder this myself, but in the end, I say they are getting fresh air, a change of scenery, and an impression that normal people run all the time. This is way better than sitting in front of a TV, right?

Hope you have a good Monday!

Wednesday + Wesley = New picture!

Here is my baby this morning. We were going on a walk, and I had just put on his cute jacket. He said he wants YOU to have a good hump day!