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Timestamp: 2009-09-16 23:11:15 UTC

#6 SnoWhite said...
I'd go for either the Tribest YL-210 - Yolife Yogurt Maker or the Nesco / American Harvest FD-60 - Snackmaster Express 4 Tray Food Dehydrator :)
September 2, 2009 4:14 PM

FNCCC Week #3 - Alexandra Guarnaschelli

The featured chef this week was Alexandra Guarnaschelli who grew up in the kitchen with her mother. This inspired me to let my girls help with this week's recipe, pizza! I posted about their experience HERE. They made cheese pizza and I topped mine with portabella mushrooms. We really enjoyed the pizza crust and would certainly use it again.

Basic Pizza Dough
Recipe courtesy Alex Guarnaschelli
Serves: 4 (6-inch) pizzas

Ingredients
2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups warm water (about 110 degrees F)
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for rolling dough
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper (I used black pepper)
1 scant tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus some additional for coating the bowl/greasing the trays

Directions
In a large bowl, combine the yeast and warm water. Stir to dissolve the yeast and allow the mixture to rest for 5 minutes.

Using a sieve or strainer, "sift" about half of the flour over the yeast mixture and blend until smooth with your hands. Add the salt, pepper and honey and mix to blend. Sift in the remaining flour and mix to blend.

Lightly flour a cutting board or flat surface. Turn the pizza dough onto the floured area and knead for 3 to 5 minutes. The flour should feel smooth and the ingredients fully integrated. Place the dough inside a lightly oiled large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest in a warm place, about 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in volume.

Press gently on the dough and turn it onto a floured surface. Divide the dough into 4 equal parts, rolling each quarter into a loose ball. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow the dough to rest for an additional 15 minutes. Flatten each ball, 1at a time, and roll into a 6-inch round. Place each round in a single layer on a lightly greased baking sheet.

Tip for topping the pizza: Brushing the dough with olive oil can create a barrier that will help to prevent the topping from making the crust soggy.

For my pizza sauce I mix 2/3 tomato paste with 1/3 tomato sauce (whatever volume you need) with a generous amount of Italian seasonings.

Can't wait to see what you were cooking! Link up your post to Mr. Linky below. Next week's chef is Alton Brown who has about a zillion recipes. There's something for everyone so pickone and join in!

This Can't Be A Wordless Wednesday - Frog Tales

Little Bit LOVES frogs. We have a family of them inside the eves by the front door and a few that camp out on the lights by the back door. When we are lucky, one is on the sliding glass door and we get to see the frog's belly and cool suction cup toes. Little Bit gets so excited and shrieks "Fffffrr! Ffffffrr!"! She'll get around to the "og" soon enough.


This morning I was holding her on my hip while trying to put a note in the door warning the technician that I would be right back (don't you hate the 9 to noon window they give you?), when this frog jumped directly onto Little Bit's forehead. Picture me screaming, jumping up and down, trying to get this big frog to release his grasp on this little head. The frog jumps to the door frame. I feel like an idiot. Little Bit has had the ride of her life and cannot get enough of the frog that was once on her head.


If you ask her "where was the frog"? She'll put her hands on her knoggin and giggle with glee. Do you know how many times we sang the Laurie Burkner tune "Little Bit has a frog on her head....and she keeps it there all day"? Can't get it out of your head now. Good. Now I'm not alone :)

Check out more Wordless/Wordful Wednesday posts HERE , HERE or HERE.

Super Tomatoes

Wow! My mom sent me pictures of the strawberry tomatoes that they just picked (in MN). One weighs 2 lbs 8 oz the other 2 lbs 6 oz. LOL - I have trouble with anything bigger that cherry tomatoes (darn squirrels). They can grow some tomatoes!! Some day I will crack the Florida tomato gardening code :)



My dad - where my green thumb originates :)

Tempt My Tummy - No Cook Peach Ice Cream

So far all of my ice cream and sorbet recipes required some kind of cooking. This Peach Ice Cream is completely no-cook and very quick. If you like sweetened condensed milk (I could drink it right out of the can), you will like this one, as you can taste a hint of it. I was afraid it might overpower the peaches but it didn't. Simple. YUM!








No-Cook Peach Ice Cream
Makes 1 1/2 quarts

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (5-ounce) can evaporated milk
1 1/4 cups whole milk
4 peeled, sliced medium-size fresh ripe peaches or 1 (15.25-ounce) can peaches in light syrup, drained
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup peach nectar (I didn't have this so used juice from a can of pineapple chunks)

Whisk first 3 ingredients in a 2-quart pitcher or large bowl until blended. Cover and chill 30 minutes.
Process peaches with sugar, lemon juice, and salt in a blender or food processor until smooth. Stir into milk mixture with peach nectar.
Pour milk mixture into freezer container of a 1-quart electric ice-cream maker, and freeze according to manufacturer's instructions. (Instructions and times will vary.)
Remove container with ice cream from ice-cream maker, and place in freezer 15 minutes. Transfer to an airtight container; freeze until firm, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Want to win an ice cream maker (or anything else for $50 from Cookware.com)? Enter my giveaway for a $50 gift certificate! The giveaway ends tomorrow and you have a good chance at winning!

Visit Blessed with Grace for more Tempt My Tummy recipes!

When Things Turn Quiet

You know when you are doing a task and time gets away from you? That happened to me today. When I snapped out of it I had an eerie feeling. The house was too quiet. Upon further investigation I found a wet little girl.....who found a new place for water play. Great.

Kid Friendly Friday - Free-Range Kids - Something To Think About

So the post I was going to write about the best toddler game ever is postponed because I read an article yesterday (HERE) that has made me think about how much of a "hovering" parent I am. The author, Lenore Skenazy, wrote the book"Free-Range Kids: Giving Our Children the Freedom We Had Without Going Nuts With Worry" and the founder of the blog freerangekids.com . Her premise is that we need to give our kids the freedom and responsibility that we had growing up. I wholeheartedly agree.

I find myself thinking of all sorts of bad things that could happen to my kids if I'm not there to supervise their every move. The article points out that crime is at a low, and they are safer than we were in the 70's and 80's. So what has changed? Media. Our parents watched Dallas and Dynasty (not MY parents mind you, but you get the picture) (which the author notes that the biggest crime was big hair) and today's parents watch Law & Order and CSI. Between that and the news are inundated with bad things that happen to kids. But are we protecting our kids too much? What will be the outcome of so much protection? (please read the article, it has much more than what I covered and it really is a good read)

For example....

Bigs started first grade this year. I walk her to school and pick her up each day. Last year I walked to the front of the school to pick her up directly from her class. This year I wanted to meet her at the crossing guard. This means she would have walked approximately 50 yards directly in front of the school building, on a sidewalk lined with school personnel, cross the road with an adult crossing guard and there I would be standing. No big deal but no deal. We tried it the first day and her teacher walked her all the way to me (even crossing with the guard). Tried it the second day; same thing and the teacher concluded that I would have to go get her at the front of the school from now on. Let me make clear that Bigs has no problem meeting me at said place, she was excited about it, but the school is completely concerned about the unescorted walk. I'm not saying that the teacher is at fault at all, just an example of how our schools are hovering. Is this good for our kids?

I remember walking home from school in the winter with my best friend Andrea. We spent what seemed like hours (probably much less) making snow chairs and forts along the way. What a time we had playing and pretending. We would often get scolded about taking so much time to get home. BUT we were kids and we were learning. How often do our kids get that freedom? When in first or second grade I would ride my bike over to Andrea's house which was about a mile away ALL BY MYSELF. Gasp. I'm lucky I am alive to tell about it. That doesn't happen much anymore. If it does, we tend to think that the parent doesn't care or lets the child do whatever they wish. Are we not teaching our children well enough for them to do these things on their own?

The website has story after story about how overprotective we are getting. I couldn't stop reading.....and when I'm done with this post I am going to read some more :)

Kids Freaked Out By Grass Squirrels and Playing Outside

A Prosecutor Debates the “Kids Waiting in the Car” Arrest

Just When You Thought It Was Safe To Play On The Lawn

And because I thought this was hilarious....

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Link up your kid friendly post with Mr. Linky below. It can be anything other parents would be interested in; recipes, crafts, reviews, etc. Enjoy your weekend!