April 2012

It has been a busy few weeks as I spend most of my day with my son engaging him and taking care of him.  He is growing so fast it is hard to believe.  I have always heard, read or been told that it happens quickly but now I can see it with my own eyes!

We are so very proud of him, as I am sure most parents are of their children.  It is a life changing experience and one that I do not want to end at all.  I suppose it will all come to an end sooner or later but for now the present is perfect :)

Nicholas is doing so many things now:

• Crawling everywhere at a fast pace!
• Pulling up on everything in sight.
• Laughing loudly at us and Queenie.
• Smiling with his eyes squinted which melts my heart.
• Drinking out of a sippy cup on his own at times.

I could go on and on.  I blog this not from a boastful point of view but from a proud mommy view <3

He is now 10 months old and we are getting closer to his first birthday.

A lot has been going on family wise within the Mitchell compound as we call it but one thing hasn't changed, the love and the family times together.

I did not want to have a big party or anything fussy for his birthday due to the awkwardness, which I cannot get into right now.  All family has drama and I wanted his birthday to be all about him and focused on just having a great time.

So, I decided that the day of his birthday we will spend it together, just us at the park or somewhere and take pictures and then on the weekend I will invite the immediate family members and have the cake, ice cream and snacks.  I want my parents on Skype with us too :)

He will look back on it one day and see that it was not all about the fanfare and flash but family time with his aunts, uncles and grand parents.

My true friends know that I love to entertain and I miss having my friends to do that for but now that I have a son, there will be lots of parties!  I am not about trying to show off or anything like that, just to cook, feed and make everyone feel at ease and at home.  The years ahead are going to be magical for my boy and he is going to have a lot of good memories as long as we have anything to do with it.

I also plan on making cupcakes for his little playmates and having a separate get together with just the babies.  How fun will that be!

So, in a nutshell that is what has been going on in our world.

I wish my work picked up again but I would not trade this for anything else.  God has blessed us with this time together as a family and we are doing fine so far.  Paul has been working hard and enjoying it again.  It can only go uphill from here.

Thanks for reading and travelling along with us on our journey together as a family.

Have a blessed day!

CHOCOLATE VELVET ICE CREAM

INGREDIENTS

1 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder (Nestle)
2/3 cup of white sugar
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1-1/2 cup of 2% milk
1 can of evaporated milk
2 cups of heavy cream
1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
1/4 cup of strong brewed coffee

METHOD

Whisk together the sugars and the cocoa powder with the 2% milk and evaporated milk.  You can use a hand mixer with a whisk attachment or do it by hand.  This allows the sugars to dissolve.

Then add the heavy cream, vanilla and coffee and whisk to combine well.

Pour into your ice cream machine and follow the manufacturer's instructions on your machine.  It should take about 25 minutes.

Transfer to containers and freeze for up to 2 hours for a more frozen consistency.

SIMPLE VANILLA ICE CREAM

INGREDIENTS

1 cup of granulated white sugar

1 can of evaporated milk

1 cup of 2% milk

2 cups of heavy whipping cream

1-1/4 tablespoons of vanilla extract

METHOD

Whisk the first 3 ingredients together until sugar is dissolved.  Then add the last 2 ingredients and stir well.

Pour mixture into your ice cream machine*.

Follow the instructions of your ice cream machine and let churn until thickened. Transfer to freezer safe container and let freeze for up to an hour before serving.

*I use an electric ice cream machine that uses a freezer bowl.

Easter 2012

It was so nice to be able to relax and spend the weekend together at home as a family, just us.  We had no commitments or places we had to be at a particular time.  We are always laid back and really do not like to "have" to be anywhere at a particular time.  It is not that we do not like being with others and hanging out and visiting with family but it is nice to have one holiday to ourselves.

I woke up and got started on making some homemade baguettes, which, thanks to the Cooking Channel's, Kelsey's Essentials, the recipe turned out great!

I baked a brown sugar and pineapple ham.  I usually do this only at thanksgiving or Christmas as my contribution to the family get togethers but it was nice to have a peaceful morning doing it just for us.  I bake the ham and then combine the spice packet with crushed pineapple and once the ham is baked, I slice it and fan it out on cookie sheets and then glaze and bake again for about 20 minutes.  My trick to getting glaze on every piece :)  Since it was just us, I did that to just a few slices for us to eat.  I broke down the rest of the ham into bite size chunks, slices and bigger dices and froze them wrapped in freezer paper and then freezer bags for future meals.  No glaze on those so that it can be used for fried rice, soups, stir frys, beans or whatever needs hamming up haha!

We had simple sides of cornbread stuffing and corn.  Sandwiches for dinner with the bread and ham.

I forgot to take pics of the meal because my mom called on Skype to chat with her grandson :)  I miss her so much and it angers me when so many people take their parents for granted and not cherish them.  No one's childhood is perfect but if it weren't for our parents we would not be here to be complaining or griping about them.  She misses Nicholas so much and wants to come back for thanksgiving this year.  I pray it happens!  I can't wait for my dad to meet him too.  If it is in God's will, we will make a trip to Trinidad this year, maybe in the Fall :)

Nicholas had a great day being a bunny rabbit haha!

Then later, Paul's parents stopped by for a visit :)

It was a lovely day.  I am blessed to have such wonderful in-laws, they have adopted me as their daughter and I am grateful.

So, that was my weekend in a nutshell.  I hope everyone had a great one too and I look forward to all the other holidays and milestones ahead with my son and Paul.

SHRIMP IN A COCONUT CURRY SAUCE

INGREDIENTS

1 package of frozen medium count shrimp, defrosted (or you can use fresh)

2 tbsp of curry powder

1 tbsp of cumin

1 tsp of tumeric powder

1 tsp of paprika

1/2 tsp of ground ginger

Hot sauce to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp of dried thyme

1 small onion diced

2 tablespoon of crushed garlic

3 green onions diced

1/4 cup of coconut milk

1/4 cup of hot water (if needed)

Curry sauce:

1 tbsp of curry powder

1 tbsp of cumin

2 tbsp to 1/4 cup of hot water (enough to make it runny when mixed with above ingredients)

METHOD

Wash shrimp in cool water, drain.  Season with all the dried spices and hot sauce as well as salt and pepper to taste.  Toss well and let sit for a few minutes.  You can even leave it in the fridge to marinate longer.

In a large skillet, add a couple tablespoons of oil and bring to a medium high heat.  Add the onions, then garlic and saute until translucent.  Add the curry sauce, stir well, once bubbly add the coconut milk and cook until it thickens.  Add the seasoned shrimp and lower heat to medium and stir frequently until the shrimp is cooked through.  Add hot water if sauce is too thick.  Add green onions and cover and cook for 2 minutes.

Serve with basmati rice or roti.  You can even get naan bread at your local Walmart.

CREAMY COCONUT ICE CREAM

INGREDIENTS

1 can of Thai Kitchen coconut milk
1 can of fat free condensed milk
2 cans of evaporated milk
1 tsp of almond extract
2 tbsp of corn starch
1 cup of heavy cream
1/4 cup of granulated sugar

METHOD

In a saucepan, bring the evaporated milk to a boil, reserve 1/4 cup of milk and mix in corn starch, set aside.  Once the milk has come to a boil, stir in the corn starch mixture.  Whisk until it thickens and corn starch is dissolved and cooked.

Remove from heat.  Pour mixture through a fine sieve into a heat proof bowl. Let cool for 15 minutes. Add the coconut milk (it will be thick but keep stirring it in), add the condensed milk and the almond extract.  Stir well.  Add in the heavy cream, stir well.  Place in the refrigerator to chill for up to an hour.

Place in your ice cream maker.  I used a Cuisinart ice cream/gelato maker.  The insert has to be frozen for a few hours.  Let churn until it thickens and the churning slows down.  Place in containers and freeze for about 20 minutes for a soft serve consistency.

Enjoy!

COCONUT CAKE

INGREDIENTS

1 box of Duncan Hines Coconut Supreme cake mix, prepared according to the package.  Allow 30 minutes or more to cool completely.

Cream cheese frosting:

1 package of regular or 1/3 less fat cream cheese

1 stick of unsalted butter

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1 teaspoon of almond extract

1/4 to 1/2 cup of milk depending on how thick you want the frosting

3 cups of powdered sugar

I package of sweetened coconut flakes

Cream the first 4 ingredients together and then slowly alternate between milk and powdered sugar as this will prevent lumps.

Spread the coconut on a cookie sheet and let it get toasted in the oven after you have removed the cake. Toss every once in a while to prevent it from burning. You are looking for a light amber color. (BTW, eating this toasted coconut by itself is a treat!)

Once the cake is cooled, frost and sprinkle cooled toasted coconut.  Keep refrigerated.

You can also make this recipe into cupcakes as well.