We're back!

Over the past few months the boys and I have been exploring our kitchen, so this blog will be the place I post our pictures, kid-friendly recipes and some of the meals I make too.

General disclaimers:
     1. I am not a professional chef or photographer. Be prepared for basic pictures & recipes that use normal ingredients!
     2. I work for a living, so I will use shortcuts like canned broth and beans. Seriously, who plans ahead enough to soak beans overnight?
     3. We are a family of very picky eaters. We range from mostly carnivore to non-meat eater. Meals in this house often have several varieties but all within the same category (I.e. Fried catfish for H & big J, fried chicken for little J & fried tofu for me!)
     4. I am a vegetarian but not hard core to the point where meat can't touch my cutting board one. I often enjoy veggies cooked with meat (think roast with carrots & potatoes) which makes me a fraud in the true vegetarian world;)

I believe the kitchen is the best room in the house and hope someone will be able to use these lessons, recipes and ideas in their own home too.

First up: Orange poppy seed scones
Made by: H

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
2 t. Baking powder
1/4 t baking soda
2 T sugar
1 t poppy seeds
2 T orange zest
1/3 cup cold butter
1/2 c buttermilk
1 T. Milk
1 egg

Combine everything and squish that butter in! Once everything has been incorporated, shape it however youd like, place on a greased cookie sheet and bake 8-10 minutes at 425. Once cooled glaze them with an oj glaze (1 cup powdered sugar and 1 T. Orange juice)

Second: Grilled Cheese with homemade ramen
Made By: me

It is raining cats & dogs, outside is a cool 63 degrees, allergies are knocking the boys down and therefore soup & grilled cheese made the dinner menu. H wanted ramen, but I HATE feeding them the 17 cent variety because of the incredibly high sodium content and overall low nutritional value of it, so I made my own! Only downfall was that I only had Asain rice noodle, so the final soup had a "rice noodle slimy" texture. I thought it was fine because the flavor was spot on, but the boys said they would have given 2 thumbs up if the noodles had been the right variety.

Ingredients:
2 T oil
2 T soy sauce
3 T minced garlic
1 shallot diced
3 t ginger (I used ground, if you have fresh use much less than that!)
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup water
1-2 cups mushroom
1 cup chopped carrots
Handful of greens (kale, spinach, etc)
2 cups Ramen noodles, or use rice noodles & omit soy sauce for a gluten free dish

1. Sauté garlic, ginger & shallots in the oil & soy sauce
2. Add broth & veggies
3. Simmer 15 minutes
4. Add noodles and simmer until they are cooked

Serve hot with sliced hard boiled egg (if desired) and browned bread crumbs (add butter & bread crumbs to a fry pan & brown them).