A FRIDGE FULL OF FOOD...

Jordan's Flowers in the Making

 

For full tutorials, search "gumpaste flowers" at www.youtube.com.  There are some really nice videos up with step by step instructions.

Flowers like the roses and calla lilies I used for Jordan's cake start with a gumpaste center that is dried overnight and then petals added around it.  For roses, I like to complete one layer a day and let the previous layer dry, if I have the time.

Like buttercream drop flowers, gumpaste drop flowers are simple cutouts with dragee centers, great for fillers or to add a touch of whimsy to cupcakes.

A few pics of the process: 

Niece Jordan's Birthday Party: Baked Ziti with Pepperoni and Salad with Lemon Balm Vinaigrette

 

It might seem a little odd that most of the family parties are at my house but I think it's about me being the oldest of our five kids and our mom having passed away 20 years ago. I've become the matriarch of my little family, sort of Grandma by Proxy.  So for many years, the niece and nephews have all expected to have their birthday parties at "Aunt Gonnie's". 

Since I make the cakes and do most of the cooking, it's very convenient for me.  I've always felt a little guilty that I'm the one who learned to cook but, being the oldest, I was the sergeant-at-arms in my mother's kitchen for as long as I can remember, and my little sister, Jordan's mom, being six years younger was mostly kicked out to go play.  Lucky her in ways!  Not that she's a bad cook, she just didn't get the same experience I did in the large family/trial by fire way I did.

  

Jordan requested her menu, which is our tradition, Ziti "with pepperoni" and "strawberry cake with strawberry buttercream and blue roses".  I can dig it.  Ever since Jordan was a toddler her favorite meal has been spaghetti but as she's gotten older she's added the spicy pungency of pepperoni to her favorites and strawberry cake has won her heart since she was a baby.  That I bought strawberry cheesecake ice cream to go with it was like a strawberry sugar nirvana shared by all.

The menu board to the left is a little freebie bank whiteboard give-away we got years ago that's always been my little party cheat sheet. It's on the fridge so that I, and anyone in the kitchen helping me, can consult to avoid the common after dinner "Oh crap! We forgot the ___" moment.

 

 

I'll give the recipe below. We found the Ziti with Pepperoni to be an excellent choice for a crowd, easy to prepare in advance and a hit with everyone. 

It is also my entry in this week's Presto Pasta Nights, created by wonderful Ruth at Once Upon a Feastand hosted this week by Sara of I'm a Food Blog .  On Friday of this coming week, be sure to stop by to see all the pasta doings going on.

Additionally on the menu:

 

Basic spring salad of leaf lettuces, chunked zucchini, celery, spring onions, tomatoes, shredded carrots, and edible flowers from the garden:  Sweet William and Purslane.

Accompanying the salad was a host of bottled dressings for the timid and a home-made lemon vinaigrette for Auntie Miranda and I, made from lemon balm and parsley fresh from the garden.  The recipe for this also, is below.

Later this week a post a few pics of the "garden", not traditional rows or square foot, my garden is a fairly ambitious collection of pots on the back porch...I'll also write a separate post on the cake with more behind the scenes pics of making the gumpaste flowers.

 

 

Happy Birthday to my wonderful, vivacious, growing-up-way-too-fast, fabulous niece, Jordan!

David Leong & Springfield Cashew Chicken VOA Story

 

The rough cut of the Cashew Chicken report Suli Yi of Voice of America made is up on You Tube.

To view, click here:  Springfield-Style Cashew Chicken

(Thank you Suli!)

For more info on the interview itself and recipes, click here:  Voice of America Embraces Cashew Chicken

Doctor's Kitchen Monday: Glenna's All Day Spaghetti 3-Meat Sauce (Low & Slow w/Lots of Veggies)

 

In keeping with the goals I've mentioned before of dieting and reining things back in my life, I've been thinking I'm going to start posting more of my daily menus, of course hoping it will inspire me more and more to keep fighting the good fight when it comes to food. As in REAL food, not processed crap.  Sure, there will be days when I eat out or drive through a "thru" or screw up (translation: soda!)  but all in all I'm feeling pretty rejuvinated. It's amazing to me how many of our choices in life, bad choices in life, are made because we feel bad.  Do you know what I mean? I'm finally, after months of respiratory infections and fighting my asthma, starting to feel like myself again.  The odd thing to me is how much feeling better has perked me back up in terms of not only my attitude but in my food choices and what I'm physically able to do.  I'm not "living" on sugar and caffeine anymore.  Isn't it the ultimate irony that when the body feels crummy we tend to take the easiest way out and feed it crap from a box or a window when that's the most important time we should be concentrating on healthy, vibrant, nutritious foods?  Crazy but human. It's just too easy these days to grab bad food when we feel bad and save cooking for when we feel better.  Sad, but true.

But hey, I'm back, and today I made my new favorite all day spaghetti sauce that's actually packed with, yes three meats, but also tons of fresh veggies and isn't overloaded with fat.  This sauce is not your average hamburger and tomato sauce sauce. It has three meats:  sirloin (chunks and ground), pork chops, and Italian sausage.  It's finished out with five vegetables and a host of seasonings. Normally, I'm not a huge meat eater, not because I don't like the taste but because I don't like the texture. This one is different.  From being simmered so long, the meat has the softer texture of a really good slow-cooked chili or vegetable beef soup.  With about a 40 minute prep, if you can handle two pots at once, it's a great recipe to throw into the crockpot to finish simmering while you work during the day, or sleep to us nightshifters.

This is my entry for this week's Presto Pasta Nights, created by the very cool Ruth of Once Upon a Feast, and hosted this week by Patsy of Family, Friends, and Food.  Check out both blogs on Friday to see the round-up of great pasta dishes across the blogs this week.