A special visit

For just a few hours, I am alone with baby.  D has taken the kids to church, and so we are here, baby M and I, for a bit resting, enjoying each other and the quiet.  I didn't want to go online, but it seems like I just can't collect my thoughts properly with a million kids running around the place.  (Ok, three or four is hardly a million, but it may as well be because the volume they can reach is truly amazing!)  I am prepared for their return though with a vegan chocolate cake.  I am not above bribery.  :)  

We have been having rather mild temperatures up to this point, so the kids don't think it feels very much like Christmas.  That might be somewhat of a Godsend since I haven't had any nagging yet.  :)  (The proverbial silver lining...)  St Nicholas did pay a visit to these little ones this morning though, and weren't they just ecstatic!  We try to keep it a little low-key because we don't want "things" to be the focus of the feast.  They got each a bottle of apple juice (that's a big thing since we don't keep juice in our house unless we make it from the fruit itself), and some money.  (I think the juice was a bigger hit!)  Boy were they happy that Bishop Nicholas didn't forget them.  His is one of their favourite saint stories.

I am looking for a quick pattern to knit or crochet a pair of slippers for miss J.  She has outgrown her old ones and I think it would be a sweet Christmas gift.  I will, of course, have to make them in pick for the proper effect.  Also, embellishments would be greatly appreciated, so I'll have to see what I can do.  Maybe a little jewel glued on will suffice?  Or perhaps a felt flower?  

Don't ask about the state of my home.  It is in need of some TLC.  Small table covered in glue, buttons and bits of paper.  And glitter everywhere.  (What's with kids and glitter?!)   The bathroom was clean yesterday, but now the counters are covered with puddles of water and a few drops of toothpaste.  At least the laundry is somewhat under control.  

And as for the kitchen, I think I'll pass on any describing.  Why is it that dishes can be done, and yet the kitchen can still be messy?  I'll never understand how my babies are able to do what they do.  So full of enthusiasm for everything.  And this mama trying desperately NOT to extinguish their little flames of excitement.  (SO hard!)  But worth it when they come to me proudly with their little projects.  I just have to keep the end goal in sight and try not to flip out on the journey.  After all, flour covered counters may be a nuisance, but little ones who learn through that to be self-sufficient and enjoy cooking in the kitchen is priceless to me.  

Happy Feast Day!


PS - I will try to post some photos later on today when I have the time.  Right now I am going back to enjoying my baby.  :)  

Cooking and cleaning can wait till tomorrow,
For babies grow up, we've learned to our sorrow.
So settle down cobwebs, dust go to sleep,
I'm nursing my baby and babies don't keep.

-Unknown 

In a pickle

Rain-washed air smells so fresh, so clean, so wholesome.  You can't help but take extra deep breaths as you inhale its scent.  I love being outside right after a storm, especially in the quiet of evening.  When nature itself rests, absorbs, and covers the earth with a tranquil garment of peace.  The stars twinkle, the crickets chirp, a few fireflies glow softly.  Everything is soft, everything is peaceful, ready for its nightly rest and renewal.  

My soul is somehow renewed, strengthened by these moments,  And in a way I cannot completely understand.  As if the soul is able to assimilate an unearthly peace, a glimpse of God Himself through His handiwork.  What beauty, what richness, what blessing!

Amid these thoughts, it seems a little odd to reminisce on the past week.  We were supposed to head to Quebec this weekend, but our plans had to be cancelled due to an unfortunate last minute occurance.  However, it ended up working out beautifully for this tired mama.  We had a lovely Sunday, though it wasn't as flashy as some.  We finally got a couple bags of cucumbers from the  farmer's market.  (Along with tomatoes and fresh eggs of course!)  Last night we finished preparing them and getting them into jars.  I use this recipe in a general way and we add our own seasoning to taste.  I always have fresh grape leaves in my freezer (usually for stuffing) and we've used them with lots of success in the past.  The pickles really do stay crunchy, even over many months.  That's my little helper in the picture above posing with our jars of pickles.  He is eagerly waiting for fermentation, and plans on helping to burp the jars as needed.  :)  What a darling that little man is.

On Monday we went blueberry and corn picking at Andrew's.  The kids had the time of their lives playing in the bushes and on the climbing structures afterwards.  The berries weren't as ripe as we wanted, but that didn't stop the little ones.  Oh no.  Look at that little munchkin in the bushes stuffing her face with berries.  That makes me happy - watching them wading through bushes checking under leaves, finding a ladybug, chasing a butterfly, purple smears on their hands and mouths.  It just feels so right.  Children need to be connected to nature, to the outdoors, to life.  It's so easy nowadays to plunk them in front of the screen and leave it at that.  But this?  This is what they thrive on!

A simply beautiful day.  Wishing for many more days like these...

Letting off steam and waiting for spring

I haven't been on this space in a while.  A few things going on to keep me away.  Lots of work getting french materials ready for the summer as well as running the home and working with the kids.  Also kind of slower with Lent.  And sometimes not slower.  But that's usually because of the kids.  :)  They never slow down.  Except to sleep.  And maybe read.  (I love reading time...)

We had some dear friends over this evening.  A bit of a last minute gathering, but so wonderful.  So needed.  To connect and share and go deep.  There is strength in that, and comfort.  The kids were bouncing off the walls though, and for some reason it rocked my boat more than usual.  I mean, I struggle with patience on a good day, but today was not one of my finest.  I felt like I was almost picking fights with them... kind of like a teenager.  Maybe PMS is on the way... yeesh!  

At the end of the day though, all they really needed was to let off some steam.  Things improved once I sent them out the door.  They ran in the hallways over and over on our floor until they were too tired to keep going.  Then we made donuts and had them with fruit.  Cause if you're going to have donuts, you should be healthy about it... Riiiiight.

Then they begged me to sleep beside each other on the floor.  They've been begging for almost a week.  Tonight, I caved in and set up the mattress with some pillows.  This is what I came in to see when I went to check on them later.  (Obviously it was way darker than what the picture shows...)  So sweet.  So innocent and full of childlike love.  They were practically holding hands.  

And that made it all better.  (Well, that and having the dishes done.)  The whole day, my bad mood, my yelling, my stressing out over silly things.  Gone.  

I guess I needed a little TLC too... even if it came from sleeping babies showing it to each others.

PS - Despite the slew of recent -30 days, we are eagerly looking to spring nowadays, as you can tell!  We've planted some radish and parsley seeds in little "planters" for the kids.  Actually, it was M's idea and he started it all.  Now we have 3 little containers sitting on our table basking in the sun.  Stay tuned for the finale!  

A long journey

The cold is moving in again and we are expecting -30 degree weather for tomorrow.  That being said, I am actually looking forward to a cosy day together.  We don't have a fireplace, but we have a wall of windows on our corner unit, so the sun warms our place nicely in the winter.  (Sometimes I turn off the heat during the day because it's more than enough.)  A couple little ones are not well, so there will be some snuggling and reading - two favourite activities - and hopefully some quiet work.  And reflection.  Lots of that.

Lent is beginning, my friends.  A long journey towards the most profound and brightest Feast.   The Feast of feasts.  But first, there is the journey.  An often monotonous journey punctuated by a quiet sadness or gravity.  I love what Alexander Schmemann wrote about Lent - it captures the whole spirit:

"But then we begin to realize that this very length and monotony are needed... Little by little we begin to understand, or rather to feel that this sadness is indeed "bright", that a mysterious transformation is about to take place in us.  It is as if we were reaching a place to which the noises and the fuss of life, of the street, of all that which usually fills our days and even nights, have no access - a place where they have no power.  All that which seemed so tremendously important to us as to fill our mind, that state of anxiety which has virtually become our second nature, disappear somewhere and we begin to feel free, light and happy.  It is not the noisy and superficial happiness which comes and goes twenty times a day and is so fragile and fugitive; it is a deep happiness which comes not from a single and particular reason but from our soul having, in the words of Dostoevsky, touched "another world".  And that which it has touched is made up of light and peace and joy, of an inexpressible trust.    (Alexander Schmemann - Great Lent: Journey to Pascha)

A blessed journey to you.  

Gastronomical alchemy

In the spirit of good sportsmanship, scientific advancement, and all around fun, I decided to make another batch of maamoul using a different recipe.  I feel it is only fair as there are dozens of variations on this delectable treat and I've only begun to scratch the surface.  I'm on a quest to find and create the best maamoul.  Plus, I received a few comments from some Lebanese friends who were shocked that I used flour.  (Also a few who wondered why I didn't use mahlab...)

So....

Maamoul round 2!

This recipe is a modified combination of two (maybe more?) recipes from here and here.  Why modify?  Because I am a scientist.  That's what I do.  I modify things.  For fun.  For science!  (Plus, I didn't have coarse semolina on hand... and, I love butter.)

Anyhow, I am happy to report that this recipe is much easier than the previous one I attempted.  Less room to botch things up.  (Now I understand why dem Lebanese were so shocked!)  As for the taste... it was like biting into buttery shortbread with a slight nutty undertone.  (Mahlab is subtle like that...)  The verdict?  They were both delicious, but I think I like this one better.  It's easier.  And a half notch tastier.  Hurray for scientific experimentation and gastronomical alchemy!

Before introducing you to my new recipe though, and for some random fun, here are a few fun Easter/spring crafts that I love!

• A creative twist on the traditional Easter basket... no?  (Also loving the other tutorials at the bottom of the post!)
• This plastic bottle owl from Craftberry Bush and featured on The Crafty Crow.
• These clear art stamps from Crafty Secrets
• I'm pretty sure that Easter Cookie Pots are the best way to gift cookies.  Just imagine if you received one all done up like that!

Ok.  Now I've got that out of my system, on to the recipe!

FLOURLESS MAAMOUL

*Note, as this recipe contains both cream of wheat and semolina, it is, unfortunately, not gluten free. :o(

Dough:

5 1/2 cups fine semolina

1 1/2 cups cream of wheat

2 cups butter, melted

2 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp mahlab

3/4 - 1 cup orange blossom water

Filling:

2 1/2 cups walnuts

1/2 cup sugar

2 Tbsp orange blossom water

Mix first 4 ingredients together.  Add melted butter and combine well until mixture resembles a crummy dough.  Add 1/2 cup of orange blossom water and knead dough well.  Continue adding orange blossom water 1 Tbsp at a time until dough is sticky and cohesive.  (As Bethany mentions, the dough should be sticky, but not stick to your hands.)  

Set aside to rest for 3 hours.  (This helps the soften the semolina and cream of wheat.)  While waiting, prepare filling by dumping everything into your food processor and blending for a bit until it looks coarsely ground.

Knead dough briefly.  Pinch off a small walnut sized piece of dough and flatten with palms.  Place a generous spoon of filling in the middle and pinch the edges together to seal.  Place ball in a lightly floured (or semolina-ed) maamoul mold and press well.  Tap mold firmly on counter top or palm to release cookie.  

Place on baking tray and bake at 400 degrees F for about 15-20 minutes.  The colour should be pale gold, but not golden.  Remove, let cool and then sprinkle with powdered sugar.  

FYI: Apparently these babies will keep up to one month outside of the refrigerator if well sealed!  Bonus!  (That might not be a problem though since they don't usually last that long.  At least not in our house.)  Happy eating!