can you say "heart shaped sushi" ten times fast??

As you may well know, we usually have pizza on Valentine's Day. This year, we had a unanimous coup of sorts that resulted in a chant of "heart shaped sushi! heart shaped sushi! heart shaped sushi!

until it became...

"heart shaped shushi...heart saped shusi... fart saped soupshi!" (it wasn't pretty, but it was fun!) wink, wink

And so Heart Shaped Sushi it was.

It was easy to make. We simply rolled our sushi the way we usually do and when it was cut formed a heart by pinching the end to make a point (the bottom of the heart) and pushing in to make the top of the heart.
It was perfectly heart shaped.
It was delicious.
It was a Happy Valentine's Day.

Here's some quick tips to get you started making sushi with your kids:

Making Sushi with Children
Sushi has an allure that, once familiar with it, kids just love. Sometimes it is considered exotic and can have the reputation for being difficult to make. In all actuality, it is one of the easiest things to put together, and even better, it is easy for kids to put together and enjoy.

Making the rice
Sushi rice is usually a pearled or short grain white rice, but you can make it with short grain brown rice just as well. Make the rice (1 part rice, 2 parts water) ahead of time so that it has enough time to cool. There is nothing more discouraging to a budding junior sushi chef than sticking their little hands into a hot pot of rice. Ouch!

Rolling Sushi
Once you have your rice made and cooled, you can begin putting your sushi rolls together. If you don’t have a bamboo mat commonly used to roll sushi, a tea towel or even a piece of aluminum foil will work. Nori (available in the “ethnic foods” aisle or in Asian markets, is the dehydrated, paper thin, pliable sheet of seaweed wrapped on the outside of a sushi roll, the piece that holds all that rice and goodies together. Depending on how the sushi is rolled, the nori can be on the inside or outside of the roll. When working with new sushi chefs, start with just having the rice on the inside of the nori. Spread the rice evenly across the nori and then you are ready for your insides!

Sushi Insides
Place any one or more of the following items across the middle of your rice covered nori and roll:
Sweet bell pepper
Fried tofu strips
Avocado
Cucumber
Julienned (sliced very thin) carrots, jicama, or any other root vegetable
Fresh spinach
Dates
Plums
Sesame seeds

Once you sushi is rolled together, you can either cut it into bite-sized pieces or keep it as a whole roll to just nibble upon.


Sushi Toppings
Many children are turned off by the spiciness of wasabi, the green horseradish paste usually served with sushi. While offering wasabi might not be your child’s forte, try just giving them a small serving of plain soy sauce or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos to dip their sushi in. Sushi aficionados in training!

tortillas continued...

So our special entree finally got made, even after that (oh so fortunate) snowflake incident.

This is one of Zeal's most favorite meals, and I just realized I haven't ever posted about it.

Tortilla Shells, a.k.a. "Zeal's Zesty Taco Salad"!

We fill our tortilla shells with our favorite guacamole recipe (Thank you dear Ina!). But here's the quick and yummy on how to make your own healthy taco salad bowls:

1. Set 2 empty food cans on a foil lined baking sheet.
2. Drape a foil square (made from a larger piece of foil folded in half two times) over the top of each can.
3. Quickly immerse a tortilla in water/oil mixture as in this recipe, then lift out and let drain.
4. Drape the damp tortilla over the foil on the empty food can and "sculpt" with fingers (if you place it slightly off-center the shell with have a dramatic higher flair to one edge).



5. Bake the taco salad shells in a preheated 450 degree F oven until they're lightly brown and firm enough to hold their shape, which will take about 4 to 5 minutes.
6. Using pot holders, carefully lift the shells off the cans and place them cup-side-up on the pan; the edges on larger tortillas might need support when the shells are inverted so loosely crumple some foil into 4-inch balls and push them against areas that sag.
7. Return the shells to the oven and bake until they're crisp, about 2 to 3 additional minutes.
8. When cooled, fill with whatever, as my grandma says, gets your "sufficiency so fanci-full"

the way the cookies crumble

Zeal and I took advantage of one of Anjali's many naps today to sneak into the kitchen to finish some "cookies" we began late yesterday once she was down for the night (I might add here that nights are going quite well; we're all actually sleeping!!)

So, back to the cookies. Last month, we tried our favorite oatmeal raisin cookie recipe (good ol' Better Crocker) using our favorite pancake mix (Azure Standard Buckwheat) instead of the flour, baking powder, etc. Remember the birth day cake? Yes, we are in a pattern with cutting corners with pancake mix. ;) Well, the cookies turned out great. Your best ever! A triumph, said Daddy.

So, in need of a late night snack we could all enjoy, Zeal and I thought about those cookies. Those cookies. And we were officially on a mission. The boys went to the store for a bit of brown sugar. And then we got to work.

Only problem: in our baby's-here, we're-running-the-cupboards-dry mode, we were also out of egg replacer, or anything that would work as a binder for these cookies.

We thought oil might do the trick, but nope, that didn't work.

Disappointed, but okay we'll live, we went to bed and planned to go to the store in the morning.

Well, morning led to afternoon and we never did get to the store. At one point, Zeal remembered the cookie project and long story short we decided not to go out.

Can I just have a bowl of it? he asked, and then ate a bit with a spoon.

And then, with a brightened, light bulby face...

Let's make it into granola!!! he announced.

Brilliant kid. It's so, so good!

That's just the way I like my cookies to crumble. Yum.

**And yes, that's a Darth Vader mask you see in the picture. Zeal says he's Darth Baker.

Taco Soup

We're entering into soup-phase, that time of year when our cooking revolves around the many combinations of WARM we can come up with. And as in many years past, that includes one of our family favorites, Taco Soup.

Here's the recipe for this quick and yummy soup that has everybody smiling.

Taco Soup
Ingredients:
1 lb. tofu, cubed
1/2 onion chopped
taco seasoning mix
1 1/2 quarts of tomato juice (more, if you like our soup more soupy and less chunky)
1 cup salsa
tortilla chips
your favorite taco toppings (cheese, olives, avocado, etc)

Directions:
Sauté onion and tofu in a bit of olive oil until lightly browned.
Add taco seasoning mix (only half a packet if you want to cut the spice) and stir for one minute.
Add tomato juice and salsa and simmer until warmed through.
Ladel soup into bowls. Add tortilla chips around the edges of soup and top with your favorite taco toppings.

A little something for Daddy during this holiday season...

Well, I know I normally just stick to posting ideas for family cooking projects, or things Zeal and I have made together, but I just can't resist giving you this one too, because Daddy just loved it so much (since the pregnancy began our house has become rather... "dry").

Here's what Daddy got for Halloween...



A Pumpkin Martini!

Sugar the rim of a martini glass with a mixture of fine sugar and pumpkin pie spice.

Shake equal parts vanilla vodka, pumpkin spice syrup (such as the kind coffee/lattés are flavored with), and half and half (Silk creamer to make it vegan). Pour into martini glass.

Top with a bit of nutmeg and serve.