Wadi Digla

After the crazy trip to the pyramids last weekend we decided to take it easy this weekend. On Friday we went to a place just outside of Cairo called the Wadi Digla.  It was the perfect place to escape the hectic sounds and sights of the city.  We did a little geocaching and hiked through the martian like landscape while listening to the many calls to prayer echoing out of loud speakers in nearby Cairo.  We followed it up with a trip for a bite to eat in town.  It was a wonderful day.

j

There'll Be Some Changes Made and the Happiness Project.

I skipped my Makeover Monday post yesterday. It was the first day of school for my oldest daughter and I was busy in the morning helping her prepare for school and soothing my jealous little one. I took it easy on the writing this summer as well, and I gotta say that I'm happier for it.

So I've made a decision. I'm going to cease all the pointless networking that I've done to get this blog going and just make it what it is destine to be... a blog about my adventures in cooking and eating. I'm still going to participate occasionally in the hops that I enjoy (52 weeks of happiness and what I love Wednesdays), and I'm still going to post my Makeover Monday posts when I feel inspired, but I'm not going to scramble around looking for followers who probably never visit again after they push that follow button. I'm also going to slim down my reading list to include only the blogs that I really read. My feed is so full of clutter that I have missed out on a lot of interesting stuff.

This may sound like a lot, but the truth is that it is not going to change what I write or even what I like to read. It is only going to change the amount of energy that I put into it. I would like to put all my energy into writing and stop worrying about the stats altogether. I'm also going to start concentrating more on my other blog... Worth a Knit. I am in the process of getting my Etsy business going again, and my worth a knit blog is more connected with that pursuit. While foodlore and food writing are my passions my crafts of crochet, knitting and weaving are something that have more promise for turning into a future profession.

But enough with the idle chit chat... and on to the meat of the post... Happiness.

This weekend my older daughter's last "official" weekend of summer. So we decided to have as much fun as possible. We started out by having a fun Friday night. We visited friends, ate home style Mexican cooking, and took an evening dip in the pool.

Handmade tortillas with lots of wonderful toppings and fillings.

Inspiration in the kitchen... A friend from Mexico made these wonderful tortillas and I need to try my hand at it more often. They were so wonderful and fresh that my mouth is watering just thinking about it.

We stayed up a little late having fun in the pool before returning home. The kids had a blast and so did we.

After a fun Friday we decided to go geocaching on Saturday. On our run we discovered a really cool pirate cache for the kids. It was the complete package... the key, the treasure chest and even a pirate flag.

My little pirate's discover the loot.

A quick salute as they raise the pirate flag.

On the way home my little scientist had to stop to check out these huge bails of cotton.

So what did you do this weekend?

Cheers,
Jenn

52 Weeks of Happiness: New Discoveries

On a geocaching outing we discovered this little BBQ trailer in a small community called Lytton Springs. It was an odd day out. There was suppose to be a cache near this trailer, but all we found was the lid... so we stopped and had a bite to eat instead.
The kids weren't terribly fond of the food... but I thought it was pretty good... and the folks that ran the trailer were very nice. They sat and chatted with us for a long time.
The kids got chopped beef on a bun, which I liked very much... and my husband and I ordered the brisket sandwich. I would have liked it a lot more on a good whole grain bread... but that'll never happen at a BBQ joint. White bread is sacred at such times.
We stopped at the near by general store to get some drinks to go with our meal. This place was the real deal right down to the old lady manning the register with curlers in her hair. I loved the old bench with the Buttercrust bread sign for a back. It looked like something you'd pay a lot for at an antique store... but I have a feeling this thing had been here since it was new.

The best thing about this outing was that when we set out that morning we had no idea our day would be filled with new discoveries. You never know where the back roads will take you. I think our oddest (and certainly creepiest) discovery of the day was a box full of coconut shells and real chicken feet that we found at the gate of a nearby cemetery. I don't know what that was about and I don't think I want to... It was an odd morning for sure... but you never know where geocaching will take you next.

Cheers,
Jenn

Happiness is a Birthday Bash

I had a wonderful birthday... Roses, chocolate, and handmade cards from the kids... a night out with my husband... and a wonderful family dinner at a fun restaurant the next day. It was two days of non-stop fun.

I have always wanted to go to a Teppan restaurant so this year I decided to give it a try for my 41st birthday. We had a wonderful time. The food was good, but what is really terrific about it is the show. Who knew that cooking could look so much like a circus? The whole family had a great time and I can't believe I waited this long to experience something so fun.

The cook really put on a show.

An onion volcano!

Here is my daughter trying to catch a shrimp in her mouth. My husband caught his on the first try... the rest of us only wished we had such mad skills.

Thanks to my friends and family for making this fun night possible.

Cheers,
Jenn

Little Spoon's First Stop

Little Spoon collected it's first recipe recently and now it is off to Kenya, Africa (If you haven't read my previous post about this little spoon then check it out here ). It was picked up from our geocache at the spring lake trail head a few weeks ago and it has been traveling ever since. It changed hands at a recent geocaching event and is going to fly thousands of miles next week. Hopefully it's new carrier will sample some exotic dishes and visit exciting new places before passing my little spoon on.

Little spoon has already traveled a bit in Texas and it had a hand in making some delicious cupcakes. I haven't tried this recipe yet. Not only is it too dang hot to turn on my oven right now... but I decided to wait to try this one sometime when I have a more adult audience. Even if the alcohol is cooked off before stuffing it inside the cupcake... I still wouldn't feel right about serving cherries marinated in booze to my three and six year old.

Here is the recipe for your enjoyment... It sounds a lot like Black Forest Cake... I love the combination of chocolate and cherry... so I'm pretty sure if I made this dessert I couldn't eat just one. Here is the recipe in StephGails own words:

StephGails Boozy Chocolate Cherry Cupcakes

cupcake/cake recipe

2 1/4 C flour
1 2/3 C sugar (I use bakers sugar)
3/4 C butter or margarine
2/3 C baking cocoa (I inevitably add more than this by at least a TBSP)
1 1/4 C water
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
2 large eggs

Oven to 350 degrees
Grease bottom/sides of pan or use paper liners for cupcakes

Mix all dry ingredients, sift together so no lumps
Cream the butter/margarine with the eggs, water and vanilla
Mix the wet ingredients into the dry mixing continuously so not lumpy

bake cupcakes 22-25 minutes
bake cake -rectangular 13x9x2 - 40-45 minutes
-2 round pans 9 x 1.5 or 3 8x1.5 - 30-35 minutes

for the filling that I used
I buy the sour morello cherries in the jars from trader joes (or any jar of sour cherries in cherry juice - NOT syrup)
i used 1 jar to fill 3 dozen cupcakes with 1 - 1.5 teaspoons of filling

I started by pouring out about half the cherry juice and filling the empty half jar with amaretto and kirsch (cherry liquor from Germany) - about 1 to 1.5 Cups liquor - I mixed in with the liquor about a tablespoon - tablespoon and a half of corn starch powder and 2 teaspoons of cocoa powder and let sit for a couple days in the fridge. when ready to use I shook the jar to release any powder that settled to the bottom and poured the liquid into a saucepan. The drained cherries I chopped and returned to the saucepan. On a high heat I watched the saucepan like a hawk stirring regularly and making sure it didn't burn. Removing it from the heat after it softly bubbled for a few minutes (not to a rolling boil). I then transferred the sauce to a bowl and refrigerated until cool and ready to work with.

For the cupcakes I let them cool to room temperature and then careful cut a round conical divit in the top, removing some of the cake and keeping the top intact. I hollowed a little bit out of the cupcake, just a little, and put in a teaspoon to teaspoon and a half in the cupcake, returned the top and frosted.

For frosting -go nuts and make your own or do what I usually do and use the canned stuff.

Cheers,
Jenn

The Little Spoon With A Big Mission.

Tomorrow I am setting up a geocache and releasing two travel bugs. What is a travel bug you ask? You may even be asking what is a geocache... Well here is the story.

A few months ago I attended a Texas Parks and Wildlife class about geocaching. I was at my second BOW retreat (becoming and outdoors woman) and it was one of the offered classes. I had heard of geocaching, but when I walked into the classroom I had no idea what to expect... I had no idea that this would become a new obsession for me and my family.

What I found out was that geocaching is outdoor treasure hunting using a GPS device. It is done on a very large scale. People from all over the world hide containers, small and large, all over the place and then log the coordinates online for other people to find. You probably walk right by geocaches every day and have no idea that they are there.

A travel bug is an item, any item, that you attach a special tag to that allows you to track it's progress (using a tracking number). You place it in a geocache and send it out into world with a mission. The missions vary: some travel bugs simply want to travel as much as possible, some want to be photographed in exotic locations, some hope to increase awareness for a cause. There are countless reasons a person might send out one of these bugs. One of the travel bugs I'm releasing is a tiny measuring spoon.

This spoon was given to me by my mother when I went off to college. It is one of only two measuring spoons left from my first kitchen. It has been used to cook countless meals that have been enjoyed by many and I would like to pass the cooking bug along to as many people as possible. So the goal of this little spoon is to travel from place to place, inspiring people to cook and share a home cooked meal with their friends and family. I'm asking people to post a photo of the spoon with their home cooked meal... and send the recipe along to me. I would like to track it's travels here on my blog.

I'll have to see what happens and keep you posted.

The other travel bug I'm releasing is a crocheted finger puppet that I will be tracking on my other blog Worth a Knit. Stop by and read it's story if you are interested.

For the next few weeks my posts may be a bit sporadic. Summer is in high gear around here. This week we went camping at Krause Springs...As a result of our summer travels I missed this weeks 52 Weeks of Happiness and What I love Wednesday. Since geocaching falls under both of these categories I thought I'd share this post... It's a little late I know... but better late than never. I'll post photos of some of our summer adventures soon.

52 Weeks of Happiness Week 11: Geocaching and Fire Trucks.

This weekend was a lot of fun. My older daughter had a friend spend a few nights and we spent time together on a friend and family adventure. Friday night we ate pizza, painted our toe nails and watched movies in bed. We woke up Saturday morning ready for adventure. We started out our morning with some French toast and then we hit the trail to one of favorite swimming holes... and did a little geocaching on the way.

Geocaching is our family's newest obsession. It has taken us a lot of really cool places that we might not have discovered otherwise. On this trip it took us down a small road where found a cache hidden in a cattle guard, we met a couple of goats and a friendly deer, and then found some trinkets hidden in the trees.





Later on our drive, caching took us to this strange collection of junk in the middle of Johnson City tucked behind some old grain silos. It was full of strange stuff... an old broken down fire truck, a dismantled carousel, a mounted fish with a birds nest tucked inside where the head should be, a house covered in shoes... There were also a load of mosquitoes so we couldn't stay long.





Our final goal was our favorite swimming hole (other than the San Marcos River). We enjoyed a day of swimming in the spring water and hiking around the trails. We saw three snakes while we were there (none of them venomous) and lots of birds and lizards. The only downside was we found fire ants, wasps and poison ivy as well. I will be applying soothing oatmeal baths and anti itch creams to the kids all week... but it was worth it.




We had a picnic near the water. We made turkey, cheese and avocado sandwiches and had fresh fruit, chips and cookies. The strawberries were big and juicy and I decided not to scold the kids for playing with their food.



After a day of fun we headed home and I made spaghetti and meatballs and the kids took a bath and went to bed. We woke up the next morning and the kids had enjoyed treasure hunting so much the day before that we decided to get a few treasures around town before breakfast. We headed for a greenbelt near by, collected the cache, and then sadly got our car stuck in the mud on our way out.
We didn't have our cell phone so we had to walk to the fire station near by to use a phone... The firemen came out and tried to help us get our car out... but we ended up needing a tow truck in the end.
On the bright side... Paul got to ride in the fire truck... and the girls and I got a tour of the fire house and cool new hats. The tow truck cost us 50 bucks... but it's only money in the end... and the kids will remember this weekend for a LONG time.
Cheers,
Jenn