Celebrations

I adore my mom. We just celebrated her 67 birthday this past weekend. On March 20, 2000 she informed my brother and I that she had been diagnosed with Non Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Upon hearing that news I sobbed uncontrollably for days and wept for weeks. It remains the most devastating information that I have ever received. I find it hard to think of a world without her. I have friends who have lost their parents, and the older I become the more commonplace this will be. I simply don't know how I'll survive it when it happens, but in my heart I know I will because she raised me to be strong.

If you know my mom, it's easy to see that she has something special. She is hard not to like. She is perhaps the most kind, generous, and loving person I know. She is also very positive which is something I admire greatly. There is simply too much complaining in this world. I find our society is a breeding ground for people to grumble about even the smallest inconvenience. People seem to forget that we are one of the most privileged societies in the world. Everyone seems to want more, yet lack the ability to appreciate what they already have.

My mom has had a challenging life, yet still has a great attitude. Years ago, she and her long term partner broke up and she was forced to declare bankruptcy. The bank seized our house and she had to move into a basement apartment. It was a low point in her life and I asked her how she was coping. At the time she was an Oncology nurse, and she felt like she didn't have it too bad. She said "Everyday I go to work and people are dying. I have a patient who is 26 with three kids and she won't live to see next week. It puts it in perspective. At least I've got my health." After her diagnosis, I reminded her of our conversation years earlier, and asked how that had changed her outlook. Again she amazed me with her response. "I am almost 60 years old, and I have two wonderful children. Not everyone gets to have those things. I have nothing to complain about." When ever I'm ready to complain about life I remember those conversations with my mom and it allows me to see all the joy and love that surrounds and fulfills me. And I am grateful.

My mom was told she had 5 to 7 years to live. After several rounds of chemo, a stem cell replacement and some radiation she is still going strong ten years later. In yo face cancer!
We celebrated with a meal of stirfried beef and green beans, basmati rice, steamed baby bok choy, and dumplings with peanut sauce, and of course some cake. I'll pass along my peanut sauce since I've been asked for it many times. This sauce tastes good with anything. It comes from the Fresh at Home cookbook.

Peanut Sauce

3 tbsp olive oil
1 cooking onion, diced
6 tbsp minced fresh ginger
6 cloves garlic
2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 1/3 vegetable stock
3/4 cup rice vinegar
1 cup water
2 cups smooth peanut butter
1/4 cup lemon juice
2/3 cup tamari
2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
1/4 cup sunflower oil

Heat oil in a pot, and add onion, ginger and garlic. Cook until onion is soft.
Add curry powder, and cayenne pepper, cook 2 minutes and then remove from heat.
Add remaining ingredients, and let cool. Blend until smooth. Before serving heat gently over low heat.

the joy of cooking.

My boy loves to eat.

He's really, messily into it, in a way that neither my husband nor I remember our daughter being.

In fact, I spent a bemused dinner hour a few nights ago spoon-feeding my three-and-a-half-year-old daughter the same pasta that my nearly-eight-month-old son was happy shoveling into his mouth unassisted.

That she was eating that pasta at all was down to her being willing to try it only because her brother seemed to like it so much that curiosity got the better of her - not curious enough to pick up the spoon and feed herself, mind you, but enough to agree (with a certain indulgent air) to give it a try for Mama.

And yes, I did consider that a victory.

I know that in time the other shoe will drop, and our boy will become, at least for a while, as picky about what goes in his mouth as our girl is at the moment, but for now, we're happy to take advantage of his willing palate with dishes like this one.



Morroccan-ish Chicken
I think the secret ingredient here is the ras al hanout, which is reportedly a blend of over 20 spices and goes a long way toward adding authenticity to my attempts at Morroccan cooking, about which I know not a great deal. I got my little jar, made by a company called The Epicentre, from this great store in our neighbourhood.

I also think this would be a great slow cooker recipe, but as my kitchen is not equipped with that particular fabulous appliance, I can't be entirely sure.

3 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp each coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp ground sumac
750 g boneless, skinless chicken thighs
2 medium onions, diced
a 2" piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
a 796 ml (28 oz.) can San Marzano tomatoes and their juice
juice of a lemon
1 tsp ras al hanout (see note at the beginning of this recipe)
8 dried apricots, finely chopped
1/2c canned coconut milk, plus more if needed to thin sauce
fresh coriander leaves, for garnish

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large, heavy ovenproof skillet with lid, heat olive oil over medium-high heat.

Stir together thyme, salt, pepper and sumac in a large, shallow dish. Add chicken thighs and turn to coat with spices. Add thighs to hot oil in pan and brown well, turning once, about 5 minutes or so per side. Remove thighs.

Add chopped onions to pan and cook, stirring frequently, until golden, 7-8 minutes. Add ginger and garlic and cook, stirring, a further 2-3 minutes, until very fragrant.

Add tomatoes with their juices and lemon juice, breaking up tomatoes with the back of a wooden spoon as you stir. Add ras al hanout, apricots, and coconut milk. Stir well.

Return chicken to pan. nestling the thighs into the sauce a little bit. Bring to a simmer, then cover and transfer to hot oven.

Cook about an hour, until chicken is tender and the house is filled with lovely smells. Serve over couscous and garnish with coriander leaves.

Serves 4-6.

Easy Peasy Japaneasy

Sometimes you need an easy meal. Sometimes you need your kids to just get along. Sometimes you need some time to yourself. Sometimes you need to not be in charge. I've been highly irritable lately. I expect that should change in the next day or two. Otherwise I may need to get my crib back. But let's not go there. It seems too scary.

I love sushi but rarely go out for it the way I did in the past. It use to be on the top of our list when we went out for dinner. Now it pales in comparison to the other options out there. I think that's probably because we don't dine out as frequently as we use to. There are so many different types of food that I want to try, and the possibilities seem endless in Toronto. Although I love Japanese food, I feel like I've sampled most of the culinary delights that Japan has to offer. This, of course, does not negate my frequent cravings for sushi. Instead of wasting a night out at a Japanese restaurant, we now delight in a night in on Japanese. It's not a purists meal but it does satisfy that base need for rice, nori, fish and wasabi. Plus you can throw it together when you feel like your fridge is empty and you need a break from life.

Cheater's Sushi

2 cups sushi rice
1 1/4 cups of water
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 avocado, thinly sliced without peel
1/4 lb smoked salmon
2 tbsp of honey mustard or wasabi
1/4 cup mayonaise
1 sheet toasted nori
1/4 cup fresh chives or green onions
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds

Combine water and rice and bring to a boil. Boil for 1 minute and reduce to low and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let rest for 10 minutes. Do not remove lid during cooking and resting. Transfer rice to large bowl and toss with rice vinegar.
Line an 8 inch square baking dish with plastic wrap. Arrange smoked salmon slices on bottom, overlapping slightly. Arrange avocado slices on salmon. Combine mustard and mayonnaise and spread over salmon.
Gently spread half of the rice in dish as the next layer. Place nori on rice and cover with remaining rice. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest for 15 minutes at room temperature or refrigerate.
To serve , unwrap and invert onto a serving platter. Sprinkle with chives and sesame seeds. Cut into squares, and serve with wasabi and pickled ginger.

mama down.

Is there anything worse than the flu bugs you get from a baby?

I know, I know, of course there is.

But at this moment, eyes and nose streaming, ears clogged, throat raw, sleep-deprived and generally miserable as I am, I am finding it hard to keep some perspective.

In fact, I am so miserable that there is really only one thing I am willing to eat - and it is pictured above.

This silken, soothing custard is the ultimate comfort food to me, and my childhood dish of choice when anything really unbearable came my way.

Give me this, and some hot water with lemon and lots of honey (no whiskey, I promise), and I may live to see another day.

Baked Vanilla Custard
adapted from the Laura Secord Canadian Cookbook

2c milk
1/2c sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
a sprinkling of nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Boil a kettleful of water. Lightly grease a one-litre ovenproof dish.

Combine milk and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat and whisk until milk is very warm (do not bring to a boil, or you will have a curdled mess rather than a silken dreamy thing to eat) and sugar dissolved.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together eggs an vanilla. Pour milk mixture into egg mixture, whisking constantly.

Pour custard into prepared dish, and sprinkle with nutmeg. Place dish in a roasting pan and place in the oven; pour boiled water into the roasting pan, until it reaches half way up the sides of the custard dish.

Bake 25-35 minutes, until almost set. Remove custard from roasting pan and leave it to cool, in its dish, as long as you can. It might be marginally better cold, but I never get that far.

Serves two greedy people.

Projects

I am currently revamping my kitchen. It seems to be taking me a little longer than I expected. My first project was to paint the kitchen cabinets. That took me 13 months. The next plan was to paint the walls. That only took me 3 hours. Now it's not that I suddenly became a very efficient painter, it's just that the wall space in my small kitchen is mainly covered by cabinets. Those cabinets are now a lovely shade of grey. We bought our house almost 6 years ago. It was a bit of a crack house, and had been empty for 3 years. The local hell raisers had gotten whiff of that and decided to make good use of our house while it was vacant.

When our house came on the market, my real estate agent mistakenly invited me to the agent showing. Things had not been cleaned up yet. By things I mean the kind of things you don't want to see in a house that you may buy. The garage had recently been burnt down, there were several piles of knee high raccoon feces in the attic, plus needles, bottles and spoons in the basement. I'm guessing the spoons weren't for soup parties down there. Oh home sweet home!
We bought it, gutted it, and rebuilt it. There were only a few sketchy fellows knocking on my door when we moved in. I guess they were looking for their old party spot. I hope my home looks a wee bit better than when they were shooting up in my basement. I'll admit I'm a little slow with decorating projects but I'm improving. After we renovated, we did prime the kitchen cabinets. It took me just over 4 years to start painting them their lovely shade of grey. Now that 13 months doesn't sound so bad does it?

Stir Fried Beef with Green Beans and Chilies

This is perhaps the best stirfry I have tasted in a long while. It looks a little complicated but it's not once you get the hang of it.

Marinade

1 egg white
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp Asian five spice
1 tbsp cornstarch
salt and pepper to taste

1 lb boneless beef top round, sliced thinly against the grain
3 tbsp of peanut oil
3/4 lb green beans

Sauce
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 inch fresh ginger, minced
4 cloves garlic
2 green onions
1/2 dried chili
1/4 chicken stock
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp Chinese vinegar or balsamic
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds

Combine ingredients for marinade in a bowl. Toss beef in marinade and refrigerate for 15 minutes. While the beef is marinading, blanch green beans and toast sesame seeds.
Heat peanut oil in pan until hot, and begin to fry beef in small batches. Once all the beef is cooked, set it aside or warm in a low heated oven.
Add ginger, garlic, green onions and chilies in remaining oil, and saute for a few minutes. Mix in stock, cornstarch, soy sauce, vinegar and sugar. Simmer a few minutes until sauce thickens. Return beef, beans and sesame seeds, and toss to coat. Serve with rice, and a cold beer. Enjoy!

gratitude.

My baby has been unwell for a couple of days now.

I'm grateful that it seems to be nothing serious, just a bad cold and a bit of a fever; and although it has resulted in such an astonishing lack of sleep at night (even for us) that I have been stumbling through my days woozy and disoriented, I'm less bothered about that than one might expect.

I am actually a little bit grateful, because in the long nights and (even longer, frankly) days that he's not been feeling well, he and I have been stuck together like glue.

I love everything about holding him so close, constantly - and it's a rare treat given that he is my second child and my affections, considerable though they are, are (necessarily) usually divided between him and his sweet sister.

I'm grateful to have had some extra moments to inhale his sweet-apple scent and wonder that he won't take a soother - so unlike his sister! - and that he gets panicky, just like I do, if he doesn't have one foot uncovered in bed.

I am also grateful because as I write this, he is asleep.

He stayed asleep (mercy!) when I slipped out of bed.

And the rest of my family is still sleeping, too, giving me an unfettered moment to enjoy a luxuriously hot cup of coffee (I'm on decaf these days, but the placebo effect is remarkable) and make everyone pinwheels for breakfast.


Cinnamon Pinwheels

When I was growing up, we had pinwheels for breakfast when we were out of eggs so pancakes or muffins were not an option - because we never knew when they were coming, these resonate in my memory as the best kind of treat. The recipe, of course, is Gwenn's.

1c milk
1 tbsp cider vinegar
1c all purpose flour
1c whole what pastry flour
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2c + 2 tbsp butter
6 tbsp soft brown sugar
cinnamon, to taste

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Combine milk and vinegar and let stand while you get on with the making the dough:

In a large bowl, whisk together flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Cut in 1/2 c butter until it is the size of peas and dough is crumbly.

Pour in soured milk and mix just until it clumps together. Turn out onto a floured board and knead gently 11 times (not more, not less. Seriously! This is the key to the success of your pinwheels!). Add more flour if the dough seems excessively sticky.

Roll dough into a rectangle about 14"x10". Melt remaining 2 tbsp butter and brush evenly onto dough. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over butter, and dust with cinnamon.

Roll dough up longwise, to form a cylinder, and pinch along long edge to seal. Cut crosswise into slices about 1" thick.

Place pinwheels on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake 15 minutes, until golden.

Makes 16-18.

conventions.

Like many aspects of our life, my family's weekday mealtime routine is a bit unconventional.

My husband works in the late afternoon and late into the evening, so breakfast is an extremely leisurely affair, involving baking, cocoa-drinking, story-reading, music-making, and, in good weather, a trip to the park or another outing of some kind to blow off some steam and get everyone stoked for lunch.

Lunch is the main meal of our day, and it happens in the early afternoon. The spouse who has not taken the kids out in the morning is usually the one who prepares the food, and once we've finished eating and cleaning up, and the kids and I have begun to shamble through the remainder of our day, my husband goes to work.

I relish our days together as a family, and I recognize that they are a luxury that not many families are able to enjoy, particularly in the fast-paced and expensive city where we live.

The corollary, that we worry about our finances perhaps a little more than some of our friends and neighbours, feels like a small price to pay for all of this time with our babies. They are growing at lightning speed, and soon enough (sooner than I care to acknowledge), the demands of a more conventional schedule will impose themselves.

The only slight drawback of our daily routine is that the evening meal my children and I have together tends to be a touch on the uninspired side: these days I rely heavily on French toast and cheese omelettes, roasted vegetables, and - more often than I care to admit - granola with applesauce.

This soup is one that is currently in heavy rotation on weeknights. It's not overly glamourous, but it covers all of the basics; and it's dead easy to make, which has its advantages at the time of day that every mother I know refers to affectionately as 'the witching hour.'

Day's End Alphabet Soup

I chop all of my vegetables in the food processor, and I aim for two cups of each. I always have carrots, onions, and celery on hand, which is why they are specified here, but I encourage you to be creative!

2 tbsp olive oil
2 medium onions, finely chopped
4-5 carrots, finely chopped
6-7 celery stalks, finely chopped
2 tsp cumin seeds, coarsely ground
1 tsp celery salt
6 c low sodium chicken broth
3/4 c alphabet noodles

In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onions and saute 5 minutes, then add remaining vegetables, cumin, and celery salt. Saute until veggies are tender. Add chicken broth and bring to a fast simmer. Add noodles and simmer 6-8 minutes, until noodles are cooked.

Makes easily a couple of dinners' worth.

Deviations

I went out for dinner last week with a girlfriend of mine. It was at a new restaurant on a popular strip that has been the talk of the town as of late. I wasn't particularly impressed with the food. Perhaps I am picky but if I am paying someone money to cook me food I expect it to be good, or at least better than I can cook at home. I want to be wowed. I want to be clueless as to how that person concocted the dish. Those things didn't happen at this restaurant. What I was impressed with was the excellent service, drinks menu, and the scene. I am always amazed that there is this whole world that goes on out there after 7:30 pm. Call me egocentric, but doesn't everyone get into their jammies after the kids go to bed. By "kids" I mean my young ones not those out raving all night. Am I dating myself by assuming that kids still go to raves? Man, I am so nineties. Maybe I need to get out more.

Nevertheless, there was certainly a scene. I wasn't really part of it but I did witness it. We sat at the bar, and we were well taken care of by the bartender. After he found out my girlfriend was a sommelier, he just had to have us sample all the wines they had on offer. I faked my way through it all. I know what I like and don't like but don't ask me to break it down. I gushed in all the right places, but secretly I was just pleased we were getting free drinks at a fancy hangout.

What I was most impressed with was the cocktail menu. I'm not much of a cocktail drinker. I usually like to have wine with my meal. This menu wasn't run of the mill and everything sounded interesting. Most of the drinks I had never heard of before. I started the evening off with a Lavender Fizz, and when I am on my deathbed this will be my last request. I may have a few in the interim as well.

Now I know this is a food blog, not a drink blog but bear with me. You may forgive my deviation after your first sip.

Lavender Fizz

1 1/2 oz of gin
3/4 cup of soda water
juice of 1-2 limes
lavender syrup to taste
garnish with a sprig of mint and wedge of lime

Lavender Syrup

2 cups of water
2 cups of granulated sugar
2 tbsp of fresh or dried lavender blossoms

For syrup, boil all ingredients in a stainless steel pot. Remove from heat and let steep 30 minutes. Strain, and refrigerate in a tightly covered container. You can also buy ready made Lavender Syrup online and at specialty stores, in case your lavender blossom cupboard is empty at home.
For Lavender Fizz, combine all ingredients and serve over ice. Garnish with a sprig of mint, and wedge of lime.

Allergies

I am mildly allergic to cats. I'm fine if I don't touch them, and I only start sneezing after a few hours. That is all good with me since I am not a cat person. I don't have to suppress any desires to cuddle with cats. I'm quite happy to ignore them. I feel bad for those people with major allergies. It must truly suck. My girlfriend Linda gets really bad eczema. Last summer it got so bad that her eyelids crusted over from it. Her Naturopath has concluded that it must be from a food allergy and therefore has striped her diet of all things tasty. To me that seems a fate worst than crusty eyes.

For all those burdened with a no gluten, sugar, beef, pork, eggs, and dairy diet, Asian food may be for you. I had a dinner party that included Linda and her family. I didn't want her to have to eat a separate meal and feel like a freak. Most suitable recipes tended to be Asian, so Asian it was. I made fresh mango, chicken, and bean sprout rolls with peanut sauce, sweet and spicy salad, and pho (Vietnamese soup). I did add beef to everyone's pho but left Linda's vegetarian. It was a delicious meal and good times for all. But best of all was that Linda woke up the next day clear skinned and reaction free.

Below is the beef pho recipe. The vegetarian version is optional. This is a tasty soup for all including those without allergies.

Beef Pho

4 ounces dried rice noodles
8 cups beef stock (vegetable stock can be substituted)
1 onion finely chopped
4 tbsp hoisin sauce (recipe below)
2 tbsp fish sauce
2 tsp finely grated fresh ginger
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp five spice powder
2 cups bean sprouts
2 scallion trimmed and thinly sliced
10 ounces thinly sliced lean beef (omit if doing veg version)
handful of cilantro
broccoli
1 block tofu cut into cubes and marinated (recipe below)

Hoisin sauce

4 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp honey or molasses
2 tsp white vinegar
1/8 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp sesame oil
20 drops Chinese hot sauce
1/8 tsp black pepper
Combine all ingredients until it forms a paste.

Marinated Tofu

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup tamari
1/4 cup water
1 1/2 sunflower oil
1 block of tofu cut into cubes
Mix all the ingredients and then pour over tofu. Marinate for at least half an hour.

Soak noodles in a bowl of boiling water for 10 minutes.
Place stock, onion, hoisin, fish sauce, ginger and spices in a pot. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add broccoli for the last 5 minutes.
Drain noodles and place equal amounts in soup bowls. Place sprouts, scallion, tofu and beef slices on top of noodles and pour stock in. Let stand for a minute to poach the beef. Serve with cilantro, and drizzle with lemon juice.

girl food.

My daughter adores pink.

Not only is she enamoured of the colour; she is quite convinced that pink is for girls ONLY.

Whenever she tells us that, in her stern, unwavering 3-year-old's voice, my husband and I duly remind her that there is nothing saying boys can't also enjoy the beauty of pink, just as girls can sometimes be fond of blue, etc. etc.

While we try to be earnest and attentive when we have this conversation, and our aim overall is to discourage the division of likes and dislikes along gender lines, most of the time we're content as long as we manage not to encourage it.

And in fact, to be honest with you, often our efforts even in that department are a little half-assed.

Last night, I made the roasted beets you see above. I may have mentioned that my daughter is not inclined to try new foods, and that vegetables are particularly problematic; so I thought I had hit the jackpot when I realized that beets are - yes! - a pink food.

Her eyes widened slightly when I pointed this out.

"Mama," she said, "does that mean that beets are GIRL food? For girls ONLY?"

My answer came instantly and unflinchingly: "Yes, darling, they are."



Beets for Girls ONLY

The above photo was taken without the goat cheese topping, because frankly the dish looks a little better that way, but I'm sure you don't need me to tell you how much better it tastes after it's been slathered in goat cheese, butter and fresh herbs!

2 bunches beets, peeled and quartered (reserve beet greens for another use)
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4c soft goat cheese
2 tbsp soft unsalted butter
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon leaves

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Toss beets and olive oil and place in a shallow oven-proof dish. Roast for about 20 minutes, until just barely tender.

While beets are roasting, mash together goat cheese, butter and salt until combined. Stir in tarragon.

Dollop goat cheese mixture over beets and continue to roast a further 10 minutes or so, until beets are quite tender and cheese it golden in parts.

Serves 3-4 as a side dish.

The Red

I never really knew my grandparents. Both my grandfathers died when I was very young. My nanna lived in England and I rarely saw her. My grandmother lived in Utica, NY and I saw her on and off throughout my childhood. My only real clear memory of her was when I visited her in the nursing home when I was maybe nine. She had Alzheimers, and I remember giggling with my brother when she gave us a tour of the nursing home. She showed us the dining room and then across the hall to the lounge, and then across the hall to the dining room and then back to the lounge. My brother and I were hard pressed to not find it hilarious. Kids are mean, and I guess we were not the exception. Both my nanna and grandmother died before I had the chance to know them.

Jess' family still has a few ninety plus folks. My favorite is Aunty Irenie. She is feisty, opinionated, sharp as a tack, and speaks five languages. She still works as a translator. She's had an interesting life. She fled Germany when Hitler was taking over, and then lived in Chile for years before coming to Canada. At every family gathering she makes her red salad, affectionately known as The Red. It is not a crowd pleaser. Some of us love it and some of us don't, but it is always there. I can't imagine a Parker get together without it.

Here is Irenie's red salad. It is a little old school so if you don't like it I am also going to post my version of The Red. I call it The Modern Red but don't tell Irenie. I still want to be invited back to dine with her.

Irenie's Red Salad

2 cans sliced beets, diced
4 stalks celery, diced
3 apples, peeled, cored and diced
1/2 cup Miracle Whip

Combine all ingredients and serve.

The Modern Red

1 large bunch of beets
1/2 cup crumbled feta
handful of fresh mint, torn in small pieces
1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
1-2 apples, peeled, cored and diced
handful chopped walnuts

Dressing

Equal parts olive oil, and rice wine vinegar
Dollop of Dijon mustard
1 tsp of maple syrup or to taste

Peel and chop beets. Boil them until you can easily pierce them with a fork. Transfer to a bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Pour desired amount of dressing, toss and serve.
Note:
Don't throw out your beet greens. They are very good for you. I like to saute mine in olive oil, a little garlic and balsamic vinegar. They taste great on a salad or pizza.

easter post-script.

This is the ham I cooked for the two of us, our 3-year-old, and our baby.

Delicious, yes!

Excessive? Possibly.

Never knowingly undercatered, I always say...

good intentions.

I had every good intention of making at least a portion of my Easter dinner in advance, to share with you here.

Sadly, that isn't what happened, but I can tell you that the fabulous ham recipe I am using can be found here, and I am making these potatoes. There will also be green beans, possibly a salad, and whatever remains of this morning's chocolate haul for dessert.

Now, a glass of bubbly and we're off to join Alysa's family to hunt for eggs.

Happy Easter!