"The wife is like the fire, or to put things in their proper proportion, the fire is like the wife.
Like the fire, the woman is expected to cook: not to excel in cooking, but to cook,

.... be a cook, but not a competitive cook,

a school mistress, but not a competitive schoolmistress; a house-decorator but not a competitive house-decorator, etc...
She should have not one trade but twenty hobbies; she... may develop all her second bests.


Women were not kept at home in order to keep them narrow;
on the contrary, they were kept at home in order to keep them broad.
"

G.K. Chesterton, What's Wrong with the World?

July 29, 2013

Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins


I made these muffins last week and the boys said they were the best muffins they had ever had.
I plan on making them often for snacks.  (Hey! Something healthy they actually like for a snack! Yes!)

I found the recipe online here.


Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins

2 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, optional
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen (I added an extra 1/2 cup)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups buttermilk (I used almond milk with a TBS white vinegar per cup)



1) Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lightly grease the cups of a standard muffin pan; or line with paper baking cups, and grease the paper cups.
2) Whisk together all of the dry ingredients, including the blueberries.
3) In a separate bowl, whisk together the vanilla, vegetable oil, and buttermilk or whey.
4) Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients, stirring just to combine.
5) Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling them nearly full. A slightly heaped muffin scoop of batter is the right amount.
6) Sprinkle the tops of the muffins with coarse sparkling sugar or cinnamon sugar, if desired.
7) Bake the muffins for 18 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle of one of the center muffins comes out clean. 


See, the boys were grabbing them before I could even get a picture! 


Baby brother eyes the action from his Bumbo throne.  Soon son, soon.  You'll be a grabber too. :)

July 4, 2013

Fresh Basil Vinaigrette

This is a recipe I found years ago off the food show Everyday Italian.
I've made it many many times.  It's great on any summer salad.
 How could anyone not like fresh basil?  The smell, the taste, the Italian restaurantish-ness.



Fresh Basil Vinaigrette

In a blender, blend together:

1 bunch fresh basil (about 2 cups)
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 clove garlic
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

With blender running, add:

3/4 c olive oil 


 
Enjoy!