Saturday afternoon at Yew Dell Botanical Gardens

It was a brilliant weekend – which included a lovely Saturday afternoon at Yew Dell Botanical Gardens, in Crestwood, Ky. It was my first trip there, after living for over 12 years in Louisville, I am embarrassed to say. We ended up buying a family membership and wondering what took me so long to get there. Between soccer games, homework and home stuff, we forgot to stop and look around our community.

Yew Dell Gardens was full of trees and bushes and plants and Bonzai – not to mention frogs and more frogs and then more frogs. I was convinced the frogs were multiplying while we were there.Yes, I know it is a Botanical Gardens and this is expected!

The sign as your enter the gardens.

A real castle in the middle of the gardens. I would love to host a party here!

Father and Son at the Castle …

Great areas to walk around and explore …

Gorgeous landscape and plants that I have never heard of.

We were enjoying a Zen moment …

Colorful trees flowering in the Spring

Beautiful leaves everywhere

Me and My Boy

This is a perfect place for photographs.

Outdoor sculptures were a nice surprise

Weathered lady guarding the trees.

“The year’s at the spring,
And day’s at the morn;
Morning’s at seven;
The hill-side’s dew-pearled;
The lark’s on the wing;
The snail’s on the thorn;
God’s in his Heaven— 
All’s right with the world!”
-  Robert Browning, The Year’s at the Spring

Full blooms just in time for Derby weekend.

Crawling through bushes and vines. I guess you are never too old for that.

How sweet is my boy.

This was in a fortune cookies once. I am not sure what it really means.

No shade tree? Blame not the sun but yourself.– Chinese Proverb

Amazingly twisted

Brightening the days

FROGS! FROGS! AND MORE FROGS!

Boy Heart Frogs.

We turned a corner and ran into a FOOD TRUCK.  Johnny’s Diner Car.http://www.johnnysdinercar.com/  The people were really nice and the food choices was great. You can meet up with them – check out their schedule  on the website.

Food Truck

Note: All photographs courtesy of Best Husband ever, Jeff Dunn.

If you have a few hours free, check out this well-kept secret.

Breakfast “Cupcakes”

Leah Mattingly is the first in my series of guest bloggers this year. Leah works full-time at an advertising agency and has 2 kids with special dietary needs. Leah herself is allergic to nuts and her husband follows a gluten-free diet! Are you overwhelmed? Leah makes it seem easy. She has a plan and sticks to it and makes it all work for her beautiful family. Here is a recipe that is very popular with her kids for breakfast. She is definitely into False Advertising with her kids calling it  ”Cupcakes” but it seems to work. I have tried these and they are wonderful.

Breakfast Cupcakes

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day…but for working mothers it can also be one of the most difficult times of the day to offer a nutritious option that is also “grab and go” friendly. Our family has to be creative as we have lactose, gluten and nut allergies. (I know, I know. Dinner party nightmare guests.)
I have found Pinterest to be a lifesaver when it comes to finding allergy friendly recipes. I stumbled upon these cupcakes about a year ago and they have been a staple in our household ever since.
Some may consider these muffins, but if you want to get kids excited about eating gluten free, lactose free oatmeal (depending on your toppings, sugar free too)… then you call them cupcakes. Don’t you dare tell them otherwise!

The recipe yields around 28 cupcakes, and is easy to customize for each person. I ask the kids to pick their topping of choice for the week, sprinkle on top, and bake.

I typically make these on a Sunday morning and they last us about a week.

This week, Layla asked for apples, Micah asked for dark chocolate chip (we use very dark chocolate with high cacao content; these usually have very small if any lactose content). I also had some fresh blue berries that need to be used so I made a few of those as well.

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups applesauce, (we use unsweetened)
• 1 banana  (mashed)
• 3/4 cup honey
• 5 cups, Old Fashioned rolled oats
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 3 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 1/2 cups milk (we use coconut milk)
• Add toppings of your choice

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix eggs, vanilla, applesauce, banana and honey together in a bowl.
3. Add in oats, cinnamon, baking powder, salt and mix with wet ingredients.
4. Pour in milk
5. Spray cupcake liners with cooking spray, or sometimes I will drizzle with coconut oil. (These cupcakes tend to stick, so definitely take some measure to assist with separating the cupcake from the liner.)
   Pour batter into cupcake liners.
6. Sprinkle everyone’s favorite toppings on top (you can also mix these into the batter prior to pouring into liners.)
7. Bake 30 minutes

Taste great while still warm from the oven. For long term storage I recommend keeping them in the fridge and then heating about 30 seconds when you’re ready to eat. They also freeze well if the quantity is too much to be eaten in a week.

Clean & tasty food is part of our resolution for 2013

Life is so much better when it is lived with focus and direction. I am stealing that from the sermon at church this past Sunday. Personally, I do so much better when I have a few goals and I know what I am aiming for. Keeping with my character, I insist every New Year’s Day  that we have to make family resolutions. Jeff finally convinced Andrew not to fight it but just go with it. Wise man – my husband.

One of our resolutions this year is Clean food. Something we are hearing about a whole lot these  last few months. We We are not aiming for all the time or 100 % of the time but as much as possible. Still leaving a loophole for our french fries and other craving!  By the way, when I first mentioned Clean Food, Andrew’s was a little confused and asked what this means? “Are we just washing our food more?” #goodquestion

CLEAN FOOD – What this means for us

• Trying our best to eat fresh foods, that is not processed, without preservatives. Keeping with local and seasonal offerings but eating food that is not smothered in sauce, out of a can or from the frozen section. Not being a snob about where we purchase our food, just being careful to eat food that is fresh and good for your body – and don’t forget, TASTY!!

It is not easy when balancing life and work to always have the time to make these meals and sit down together as a family. It does take planning and thinking and a commitment and setting achievable goals. Maybe not every night, but at least 2 nights a week.

My goal this year is to feature a few working mothers who are walking this walk daily. Woman who are balancing jobs, sports, homework, family commitments, food allergies, school and busy schedules and still, with quick shortcuts and some thoughtful planning, keeping to their clean eating routine. I have asked a few friends to guest blog, to share recipes, ideas for dinners and quick prep, and their thoughts on this concept of clean. I think it will be fun to introduce you to my friends and get to know them and share a few tips.

So, look out for my upcoming Guest bloggers in the coming days. If there is someone you would like to introduce, please let me know. I am always happy to check out new recipes especially at 4:30 when I start thinking about what’s for dinner.

On a different note, as I was thinking about clean food and listening to Dave Stone’s sermon  this past Sunday about focus in life , I am thinking that we, as a family, need to extend this concept of clean beyond our food choices. We need to extend it to include:

• CLEAN THOUGHTS
• CLEAN CONVERSATION (And I don’t necessarily mean the language or choice of words)
• CLEAN RELATIONSHIPS
• CLEAN INTENTIONS

As we focus on what we send down to our belly, I want to focus on what we send out to our minds, our kids’ hearts, what we say to our friends, what we post on Facebook & Twitter. We need to focus on edifying conversations, positive thoughts, building our kids’ confidence, positive feedback, encouraging friends to believe in themselves and convincing them they can conquer what they put their minds. We need to hang out with folks who are moving forward, wanting good things for everyone, people who are happy and enjoy friends.

Is this too idealistic. I don’t think so. There is always the bad. There is always the unexpected wrench. There is always sadness – this is life on earth, right. But, amidst all this, we can still be intentional about so many things and that will make all the difference.

I am looking forward to an exciting, adventure-filled 2013 with family and friends. I am looking forward to making great memories, conquering a few fears (like the playground slide, I am deathly afraid of going down the slide!) and walking alongside friends. And don’t forget, I am looking forward to some great dinners, lunches, breakfasts and snacks!

COOKIES & COCOA WITH THE DUNNS 2012

The whole weekend was amazing, wonderful and beautiful. We ate cookies and spent the weekend enjoying friends and family as they visited with us.

Here is the story behind Cookies and Cocoa. It is now an honored tradition that is important to the family – I think Andrew would revolt if there was no Cookies and Cocoa. The Open House makes it easy for friends to stop by anytime.

My list of cookies and Treats were:

• Coconut Cake

   

• Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies

• Linzer Cookies
• Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Mexican Wedding Cookies
• Nutela Cookies
• Carrot Cupcakes with Orange Cream Cheese frosting
• Yellow Cupcakes with homemade Chocolate Buttercream icing
• Maple Cookies
• Cake Balls

• Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Ganache topping

   

Here are a few shots of the house and the party setting.

 

My friend Christa Sprouse helped me with all the flower arrangements. That girl is completely talented. She added beautiful touches throughout the house with roses and tulips and hydrangeas. With all the celebration, it is important for us not to forget why we are celebrating. It never fails to humble me that He came down and was born as man.

The tulips were semi submerged in water – this will be beautiful for a wedding as well. We set them around the house.

These are our beautiful sugar cookies – worked on by myself and Jeff. And, Andrew. The icing is delightful and this is best enjoyed with a cup of tea. We iced them with white, baby blue and green homemade royal icing – a nice Winter Snowy feel. They turned out amazing and taste so, so, delicious.

Our beautiful centerpiece idea! Roses and a bowl full of Christmas ornaments.

These Linzer Cookies are a family favorite. Andrew and I sneak one every morning before we head out for the day – which is why we were out of cookies by Christmas last year.They are filled with the most awesome rasberry preserve and the cookies just melt in your mouth.

Another popular treat this year were the yellow cupcakes with the homemade chocolate buttercream frosting.

A new addition to our menu this year was the Hazelnut Nutella Cookies which has earned itself a spot as a permanent menu item. It you love Nutella, this is the cookie for you.

For a healthy option, we snuck in some berries!!!

Beautiful dessert plates begging someone to eat off them.

3 Day Coconut Cake

This is always what is left of the Coconut Cake.

This is probably the most requested recipe of any cake I have ever made. It is probably the easiest cake recipe out there too. It does start with a box mix for yellow cake. I always use the Duncan Hines mix. I am sure you can make any yellow cake recipe.  It is the filling and the icing that make this cake the most delicious Coconut Cake out there. Be sure to let it sit for the 3 days – it not as moist when eaten sooner.

INGREDIENTS

CAKE:

1 box yellow cake mix (And all the things that you will need for that). Bake cake mix according to package directions in two 8 or 9 inch layer pans. Remove from pans and when the cakes have cooled, split each in half to make 4 layers.

FILLING: 

1 1/2 cups sugar
16 oz. sour cream
2 cups flaked coconut

Combine sugar, sour cream and coconut. Mix well.

Remove 1 cup of the filling and set aside. Use remainder between layers of cake that will be four layers high. It will be a thick filling.

ICING:

I cup reserve filling

1 medium carton (12 oz) cool whip

Take the reserved 1 cup of mixture and fold in cool whip and mix well. Use this as frosting for the cake.

Cover the cake and refrigerate for 3 days before serving.

Coconut Cake

Stopped for lunch at Stinky and Coco’s Diner in Winchester, Ky

We played a soccer game in Winchester, Ky on Saturday morning. It was an early morning and since we had driven the hour and 45 minutes, I wanted to at least poke around the town of Winchester. I have lived in Ky for 13 years now but am still fascinated by the different parts of the state. I can never resist an opportunity for an outing so here we were with the help of TripAdvisor and YELP at Stinky and Coco’s Diner. How can you resist it?

We drove around downtown, found the diner with no trouble and walked down to it. It was a little smaller  than I envisioned,  and a whole lot friendlier that I could have imagined. Everyone was extremely friendly since were the only non-regulars!!! The menu was totally unexpected and much fun. There was a lot more stuff listed in the restaurant on their board than what is on their menu.

Needless to say, the food was quite fantastic.

Jeff had their Spicy Chicken Sandwich which came laced with Sriracha Sauce and some homestyle fries.

Chicken Sandwich with Sriracha Sauce

Andrew of course, definitely wanted to order something which started with Stinky. He settled on the Stinky Melt!!

Boy Meets Stinky Melt!

I carefully chose their specialty – Shrimp and Grits! I love ordering what restaurants are known for just to get a taste of what they consider their best dish. The Shrimp and Grits was absolutely wonderful – Jeff kept trying to steal my food. It was a generous portion and thankfully with enough to share with my hungry husband – it just looked and tasted really, really fantastic.

Stinky and Coco’s Shrimp and Grits

All in all, lunch was a total success. We cleaned our plates and bowls with much gusto in a short time. The wait staff were very friendly- coming over and filling our drinks, asking if we needed anything and just chatting about random stuff.  A Steady stream of folks kept walking in and out – (it was a late lunch for us). A lot of the folks were clearly regulars and they all seemed to know each other.

It was a good experience and the next time we find ourselves in Winchester, Ky, we will definitely be stopping by to try more things out.

Here is their address:

Stinky & Coco’s Diner
1 N. Main Street
Winchester, KY 40391

859.744.8100

Find them on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stinkyandcocos

Twitter: https://twitter.com/stinkyandcoco

Andrew posing for us for a shot of the Courthouse.

Stopped for Mums, Pumpkins and Andrew’s first taste of Ale 81.

 

French Themed Tasting Brunch

I hosted a tasting for 6 guests today.  It was offered up at an Arthritis Foundation Raffle as a favor to my friend Kim.  I love cooking for tasting parties because you can try multiple recipes and often step out of your comfort zone.  The smaller portions make cooking the dish so much less intimidating.

Planning is key

When planning a tasting menu, it is important to theme it to help guide your recipe selection. Always confirm the number of people attending and also if anyone has any food allergies. I knew today’s group had 6 people, all women and one of them a vegetarian which really helped me select the recipes. I want my guests to enjoy the courses and it helps to know the type of food they like.

Seasonal Ingredients

I love cooking with seasonal, fresh ingredients. I love coming back from the Farmers Market and seeing the wonderful mix of colors of all my vegetables. I chose today, to focus on Fall tastes, ideal to usher in the season. Here is the menu – the Purist will tell you it is not completely French. I totally agree. I was cooking for the party in between multiple soccer games (my son was playing in a Tournament) so I planned around items that were familiar to me. A truer statement would be that it was French-inspired.

Table Setting

I kept the table setting tight and intimate to give it a cozy Paris bistro atmosphere. Simple but elegant roses were the centerpieces. Thanks to my dear friend Christa Sprouse who came over last night to do the flowers. There were beautiful and definitely set the mood for the afternoon. I focused in on early Fall colors for the setting – deep reds and some touches of yellow.

The 6 Courses

Here is what I served the lovely ladies.

Warm Mushroom Salad

Pumpkin Soup

Mango Yogurt Smoothie

Vegetable Tian

MAIN COURSE

Chicken Stuffed with Spinach & Cheese served with Roasted Vegetable

DESSERT

Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal

Banana Nutella Crepes

Here are a few of the recipes from today:

WARM MUSHROOM SALAD

This mushroom salad is so easy to make and it kicked our party off to a great and easy start. Guests loved the combination of flavors.  The perfect bite of this salad is quite delicious, so load your fork carefully. It is also unexpected to be served a warm salad – a nice treat on a rather cool day. Here is the recipe. http://cookingmalaysiagirl.wordpress.com/2012/09/23/warm-mushroom-salad/ 

VEGETABLE TIAN

This is an easy dish since you just have to assemble the ingredients and let it roast in the oven. Always nice to include the fresh thyme as a garnish for this dish. My guests LOVED the vegetables and the burst of flavors and colors makes it a wonderful dish to serve.

Here is a quick recipe for my version of this dish. http://cookingmalaysiagirl.wordpress.com/2012/09/23/vegetable-tian/

PUMPKIN PIE OATMEAL

I know this is a breakfast dish but I served it today as a dessert course. It was a hit with my guests. It was totally unexpected and a delightful little dish after the main course. I drizzled it with pure maple syrup and some heavy cream (just a tad) and topped it with pecans. Yum!

Here if the complete recipe.

http://cookingmalaysiagirl.wordpress.com/2011/11/12/pumpkin-pie-oatmeal/

All is all, a wonderful way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Good food, great friends and lively conversation. All of us sharing life!