Tastes of Summer

I was cutting these tomatoes in half for the salad. Took a bite of one and was blown away. Never have I ever tasted a tomato so sweet, so delicious. It went like this: one for the bowl, one two for me. The mother's guilt started to set in as I pictured Henry at preschool while I ate my own healthier version of bon bons; that, and raw tomatoes are one of his favorite foods. No worries though as the feeling quickly passed. As I professed to Walter [the dog] how grateful I am for Minnesota summer produce, I just kept popping one gift right after another into my mouth.

Thank you, Mother Nature, for making life taste so good.

Meatless Monday: BBQ Pizza

BBQ pizza (cornmeal crust, BBQ sauce, pineapple, onions),
cole slaw with a dollop of chipotle Vegenaise, baked beans.

While transitioning to a plant-based diet, I never thought I'd actually enjoy pizza without cheese. I still miss it, but I'm definitely missing it less and less as time goes on; it's a different story for Eric, I think. 

We've discovered that using BBQ sauce or the pesto Vegenaise as a base makes a dairy-free pizza quite tasty! I know you're skeptical, but give it a shot. 

Summer Storm

Our sweet baby George came into our arms and left us one year ago today. 365 days. 

365 days of empty, aching arms. Of waiting to wake up from my nightmare. The worst nightmare. Of wondering why this happened to George. And Eric. And Henry. And me. Of waiting for the other shoe to drop. Of being sad and pretending not to be; of realizing that my friends know I’ve been pretending and loving them for that. Of being beyond thankful for nurse Jodi; she shared my pain and held me so close that day.  Of truly learning the value of family. Of wishing "grief" was still just a word. Of wondering if George felt pain. Of hoping to feel him move just one more time. Of making sure I remember. Everything. Of wishing my little boy peace.

Today we planted a Japanese Summer Storm Lilac tree for George. Its name, Summer Storm, aptly fits. The ivory flowers should bloom around his anniversary every year, commemorating our boy and all he taught us:  love, compassion, and respect for life.  

Rest in peace, George. Sweet peace. 

I See You In My Everyday

I see you in the peace of night

I see you in the bright sunlight.

You're in the breeze that gently blows.

You are the calm of fallen snow.

Magnificent are wings that fly.

I see you in the eagle's eye.

You're in the turquoise of the sea.

I can even see you in parts of me.

I smell you in the lilac trees.

I hear you in the bumblebees.

You are the colors of the fall.

You are the mountains soaring tall.

I feel you in the summer storm.

And in the springtime nice and warm.

You are the blossoms on the branch.

You're in the firefly's evening dance.

I remember you in all good things.

In the wondrous treasures nature brings.

Your memory will forever be.

The greatest gift you gave to me.

-Lauren Waters

Workers Working on the Job Site

Workers Working on the Job Site by Henry Thorkelson is an epic page turner, guiding readers through the tangled relationships between construction workers, police, and bad guys.  

Praise for Workers Working on the Job Site

"This literary thriller will keep you up at night wondering who's bad and who's good." (E. Thorkelson, dad)

"I have a new appreciation for pine cones after reading this book." (A. Thorkelson, mom)

"Bark. Woof. Howl." (Walter, the dog)

Note:  Please contact his agents, Mom and Dad, if you are interested in the movie rights.

Workers Working on the Job Site
by Henry

A dump truck at a worker site

The backhoe is putting dirt and rocks int he dump truck

The bad guy is trying the police...

After the bad guy gets caught he gets put in jail. He was trying to get the good guys.

*chaos*

Another bad guy is chasing some good guys into the construction site.

The police caught him again.

The construction site is safe. The pine cones are there to make it safe.

The end.

Hide & Seek

I always wonder what I will "catch" Henry doing at daycare when I pick him up. In a perfect world I could hide behind that tree unspotted and spy. But the kids can smell you blocks away and start yelling, "Henwee! Yer mom's he-ah!" That's who I am to these kids: Henwee's mom. It rocks.

Today's activity was hide and seek. Henry and Eleanor (above) were hiding from Leo and Addie. It was fun to watch it play out because when we do this at home Henry typically announces where he is hiding. "Dad, I'm in the shower!" "Mom, I'm under the desk!" and then he jumps out to find you. Yeah, the whole concept is a bit tricky; I get it.

Rhyme Time with Henry

Mom:  I feel like some guac.

Henry: I don't like guac.

Dad: Do you know what guac is? It's a nickname for guacamole just like how Hank is a nickname for Henry.

Henry: Do you know what rhymes with Hank? BANK!

Mom & Dad: It sure does!

*approving head nods by parents and ear-to-ear grin by preschooler*

Henry: and SKANK!

*silence*

lady killer

Henry's favorite song these days is The Righteous Brother's "You've Lost that Loving Feeling." He has the lyrics down better than I do and finishes it off properly with the "ba dum, ba dum, ba dum dum..." Adorable. I never thought I'd be able to capture it on video, but I did....

He also likes spinning in circles with his hands up in the air like a princess (like Ariel from The Little Mermaid). My goal is to get this on video too. He'll hate me when he's 20.

banana ice "cream"

Nausea hit. Again. Some women can't eat when their nauseaus. I, on the other hand, stuff my face.

Tonight's stomach-settling-food-of-choice: banana ice "cream". I've read this "recipe" on a million blogs and finally tried it for the first time. Ingredients? Frozen bananas and peanut butter. Choose your own proportions. Throw it in the blender. Wait until it's frothy, creamy, whatever. Delish. New freezer staple: frozen bananas.

[I did try this with just bananas at first and it was really good! I had a hankering for the Elvis combo though, so went all in with the PB. Thank you. Thank you very much.]

meatless monday: thorkelson take on vegan lasagna

It was one of those days where (a) the store two miles away seemed so, so far, (b) following a recipe would require too much attention, and (c) I felt like mashed potatoes. If you know me, you know I l.o.v.e. mashed potatoes. I was often found doing my own rendition of the "mommy's little piggy"scene from "A Christmas Story" as a child (with my sister's encouragement, of course).

We had a Costco size bag of red potatoes in our pantry, so I knew I was covered there. But then I was stuck. Mashed potatoes go well with your standard meat protein, which would then quickly disqualify this meal as meatless now wouldn't it? I also didn't have the goods in the house for some sort of meat[less]loaf. After an assessment of the fridge and other pantry goodies, I came up with a lasagna of sorts, which was of course inspired by moussaka with the potatoes.

Ingredients:

• No boil lasagna noodles
• 10 baby red potatoes, plus olive oil
• 1 stick of butter (I used the soy-free Earth Balance)
• Marinara sauce
• Baby portabello mushrooms (about two cups), sliced
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cups of spinach
• 2 tbsp garlic
• Salt & pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. 

2. Toss baby red potatoes in some olive oil; put them in preheated oven to roast (I left mine in for about 35 minutes). 

3. While the potatoes are roasting, sauté the mushrooms, onion, and garlic; when the onions and mushrooms are nice and golden, add the spinach and sauté for another few minutes until the spinach is wilted down. 

4. When the potatoes are done roasting, mash them with the stick of butter until they are a creamy texture. Lower the temp of the oven to 350 degrees.

5. Get an 8x8 pan and get ready to assemble! Layer in this order: marinara sauce, noodles, mashed potatoes, spinach mixture. You should get at least three layers with the above amounts. Add one more layer of noodles and top with marinara sauce.

6. Put in oven uncovered for about 30 minutes (until sauce is bubbling). Let it cool for 10 minutes until slicing. 

Serve with a side of green veggies.

I was really pleased with how tasty this turned out! I'm definitely looking forward to left-overs. 

my next unnecessary purchase

When I started working last fall we knew there would be some lifestyle changes. And I use the word "some" loosely. The most challenging piece for us has been mealtime when both Eric and I are working up until it's time for chow. Hungry parents is one thing, but a hungry child is a whole 'nother ball of wax.

When I tell people of this mealtime woe the usual response is, "Oh just throw some stuff in the crock pot before you leave for work." Yes, yes, that's all good and fun. But think for a second about what you put in the crock pot that isn't meat...right. We do have some vegan crock pot recipes (chili anyone?) that have worked for us, but frankly, they leave a bit to be desired and still require monitoring. There's not much of the "set it and forget it!" variety. Anyway, why this ramble? Our "go to" on the challenging evenings has been sushi. Well, vegetable sushi...but still sushi. It's fresh, healthy, ready to eat, and oh so good.

Henry has really taken to eating the sushi with chopsticks because that's how mom and dad eat it. Usually this just means stabbing the squishy rice parts with one chopstick and inserting the piece into his mouth. This is typically in between the times when the chopsticks act as a stir stick for mom's water, drumsticks on the table, and Walter poking devices. But hey. He's into it. I'm thinking that I'll get him these chimpstick chopsticks to help him experiment with the utensil. Plus, it's super cute. At $6.99 maybe I'll get one in a different color for me.

the thorkelson trio is expanding

officially due november 2, 2012

meatless monday: california grilled veggie sandwich

eric grillin' up some
veggies indoors

Meatless mondays are back, jack!

Eric was the champion of this meal. I really give him five gold stars for this because, frankly, it was one heckuva cohesive trio of dishes. And it should be noted that I went back for thirds on the potato salad. Just sayin'.

california grilled veggie sandwich : we didn't use any cheese and put the grilled veggies on toasted sourdough bread. delish!

red potato salad with horseradish : love potato salad and this was a nice switch-up from the traditional recipe.

snappy crunchy coleslaw (no mayo) : another winner. it had me at raisins.

It's challenging to be vegetarian during grilling season, so I'm happy that we've decided this will be our "go to" Weberified sandwich this summer. I can't just imagine it now with some grilled corn on the cob. Yum!

mad men inspired

Eric and I are huge fans of Mad Men. We streamed all of the previous seasons within months, sometimes watching four episodes at a time. We typically would sit and stare at the screen for a couple of minutes after the episode was over and think about what just happened? really? what will happen next? what do you think about Don? And that would lead into, "Want to watch the next one?" To which we would unanimously answer "yes!"

I have always felt that my marketing background has allowed me to be aware of the ad-wizards ploys. But folks, I've been taken. Yesterday I was at Target trying to identify my next facial moisturizer purchase. I sized up the Oil of Olay, looked at the Yes to Carrots, and took a step back to take in all of my various options: anti-wrinkle! moisturize! serums! Then I saw it sitting there in its lone self. Pond's. If you watch/ed Mad Men, you'll probably remember that Pond's cold cream was one of Peggy's first campaigns she was assigned to at Sterling Cooper. Well, I picked up the cream and stared at it fully recognizing why I was even considering it:  Peggy's words about a woman doing something for herself rang through my head. Hmph. Meanwhile, a woman in her 60s or so swooped in front of me and picked her own Pond's. I examined her face. It looked youthful. Sold. I put the Pond's in the cart. Now, I don't mean to say that I've been "taken" because I purchased a poor product. I just feel fooled for falling to the ads that I always say I can avoid...even it was clearly product-pushed to me via a TV show.

On that note, I realized that this was not the first time. No, dear reader, it wasn't! *gasp* In a recent online glasses purchase, I ultimately chose a pair that touted they were Don Draper-esque. Sure, he's a man. But hell, I'll take 'em!

I know I'm not the only one to fall victim to such advertising. It's normal. It's pop culture. I just never thought I would be *that* person. I like to pride myself on buying things because I like them, not because present day activities say "it's cool".

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to find a vintage cigarette case for my bubble gum smokes....

happy birthday, annabelle!

Henry's girlfriend turned two today. Don't worry. We've advised him regarding dating younger women. The birthday celebrations were marked with a luau. In March. In Minnesota.

Birthday girl digging her party.

Award for best caption here.

Henry hung back while the other tots streaked through the back yard. 

Double-fisting goldfish and cupcake. 

meatless monday: stuffed zucchini boats

This week's recipe is adapted from one of the recipe cards from the co-op. We had all of the ingredients in the house, except for the zucchini. Doesn't get any better than that, right? I have a confession though: dinnertime rolled around and I was like, "Veggies. Bleh. I want pizza. And I want it with meat. The unidentifiable kind." With a bit of encouragement from Eric, I marched into the kitchen, poured myself a glass of wine, and got to cooking. This turned out to be so delicious and completely hit the spot. It just goes to show that sometimes the brain knows better than the stomach. ;)

Ingredients

• 4 small/medium zucchini (or yellow squash)
• About 4 cups of fresh veggies that you have on hand, diced (I used eggplant, mushrooms, red pepper, onions, and tomatoes)
• Fresh herbs, such as sage, oregano, or basil (used just basil...and tons of it...just use what suits your palate)
• Olive oil
• Salt & pepper
• Parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash the zucchini and trim the stem end off. Cut the squash in half, lengthwise. Put the zucchini on a baking sheet in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes (until tender). While the zucchini is still warm, scoop out the center flesh with a spoon. 

Meanwhile, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet and cook whatever vegetables you are using. Add the fresh herbs and cook for just a couple minutes longer.

Take cooked zucchini boats and fill with cooked vegetables. Top with parmesan cheese and serve.

Note: another option would be to get a good melting cheese. You would then heat the broiler and place the cheese on top of the filled zucchini boats and broil until the cheese melts into the vegetables. 

the times they are a changin....

Most of you know this by now, but for those that don't.... I'm headed back to the workforce on Monday! Woo hoo! I came across an amazing opportunity to work for a holiday and seasonal decor wholesaler. And it's in Northfield, to boot! I've enjoyed staying home with Henry and will miss so many things about it. Too many things to even recognize at this point. But my head and heart are ready for this new adventure. We found a great day care for Henry (thanks, Donya!) to attend, and Eric is going to *try* to get day trips as much as possible. Meanwhile, I'll be figuring out how to rock out the working mom thing. I already have my new crockpot cookbook sitting front and center on the countertop. I have a feeling many, many meals will be prepared from it. I guess that's what you all have to look forward to for Meatless Mondays! ;)

We had Henry's two year appointment yesterday: he's healthy. :) Tall, healthy BMI, big head. Everything is right on track and he's a "normal" two year old who is developing his own personality.

I need to upload our photos from Burlington, but rest assured and know that we had a lovely trip. I know it was keeping you up at night. ;)

meatless monday (on tuesday): caprese sandwich

Lunch is often a challenging time. I'm hungry, I want something fast, and I want something good. My "go to" sandwich lately has been the easiest of easy to make and oh so delicious.  I didn't have a name for it until I decided to post something about it here. I'm pretty sure it was just called, "Ally's Awesome Sandwich" but now I'll coin it as the "Caprese Sandwich." All you need is the following: Arnold's sandwich thins, fresh mozzarella, basil pesto, and a tomato. Build your sandwich to your liking and voila! you have lunch. I'm guilty of cheating on the co-op and purchasing most of this stuff from Costco. The pesto there is a ginormous jar (of course) and costs the same price as the little, itty bitty jar at the store. Also, Costco has these logs of mozzarella for a really reasonable price. And yes, those sandwich thins are there too. So that's that. 

Sorry for not posting this on Monday like I was supposed to. I found that my day was perfectly content just hanging outside on the front porch soaking up this last bit of amazing weather. Really, I just can't get enough of it. They are saying it could possibly even be close to 90 later this week. 90?! In October?! All I can help but think about is how this is one sick joke being played by the weather gods. I can hear the banter now, "We'll trick them with a warm, cloudless fall day and then BAM! bring them to reality with frigid, can't feel your toes weather." Yep, folks. The glass is half empty today. ;)

meatless monday: polenta-stuffed peppers

I have tons of cookbooks. An obsession with them, really. If I'm bored (a.k.a. procrastinating) I scour Amazon up and down for the latest and greatest book that will cure any of my "what's for dinner" woes. The shopping cart usually gets filled with five or so and then I realize that I'm on a budget and just use the amazing interweb to keep my culinary juices inspired. Alas, this week is yet another Martha Stewart fave: Polenta-Stuffed Peppers.

This recipe really holds on to this last part of summer with red peppers and sweet corn. I followed the recipe fairly closely with the exception of adding more cheese. :) When you go to her recipe, take note how hers look and how mine looks (pictured left). I wonder if I'll ever be able to plate to the point that it looks restaurant-presentable. Probably not. Don't hold it against me. 

It's been really nice eating less meat. Nice on the wallet, that's for sure. We have our inaugural themed dinner party at our house this Saturday where the host makes the main dish and then the other couples will bring a dish (appetizer, dessert, side dish). The host chooses some sort of theme for everyone to follow, and I chose "Tomato and Zucchini Bumper Crop" for the first one. My friend Ali does this monthly with her friends in Appleton, so I thought I'd bring it here to Northfield. I'm on the hunt for a zucchini lasagna recipe that will blow everyone's mind.... I did find a zucchini, eggplant and goat cheese recipe but I'm concerned that it won't exactly be a crowd pleaser. The last thing I want to do is invite people over and feed them crap. So we shall see. 

meatless monday: zucchini fritters

Martha Stewart never fails me. Really, her recipes are always reliable. I made these zucchini fritters the other night and went to bed with a stomachache because I ate so much. We partnered them with a simple cherry tomato salad. Yum.

By the way, I completely forgot to take a picture while making these. I'll try to remember for next week!

meatless monday: karina's sweet potato black bean enchiladas

Life was really tricky when Henry was allergic to both wheat and dairy. I realized how often I threw cheese into things to make them taste delicious and often struggled with the "what's for dinner" dilemma. I really didn't like the idea of a "mom and dad dinner" and  "Henry dinner". Early on in my search for tasty gluten-free recipes, I came across the Gluten Free Goddess blog. I would say that I used her recipes for about 90% of my cooking for a good year until Henry became tolerant of wheat. I recall a few times when Eric and I would be chopping vegetables together, commenting on the food and ingredients, to which we'd then typically say, "Oh Karina...." and then we'd smile and take a sip of our wine.

One of our family favorites of hers are the sweet potato black bean enchiladas. The first time I made these, I remember thinking that they were going to be horrible. Enchiladas without cheese? Not possible. Trust me though. The vegan version of these is delicious. De. Lish. Us.