I clean in the Nude and other Confessions of a Boring Housewife

Well, first of all, let me clarify...my blog title, like a lot of what you read on the internet, is only partially based in fact. Yes, I clean in the nude...when I'm cleaning the shower — it's a two-fer. Well, okay, another confession...I am GOING to be cleaning in the nude on a more regular basis because I let it go far too long in the shower and the soap scum/hard water combination was kind of a disaster. It almost defeated me until I read on-line to use Oven Cleaner! Who knew?? So from now on the sponge is coming with me in the shower, sorry sweetie!

Another confession I have is that I'm really not boring at all...but I live in Boring, so technically I am a Boring housewife, no? Honestly I hate that the place I call home is named Boring. Well, not HATE, I''ll reserve that term for another one of my confessions, but I strongly dislike it...and after 5 years of living here, I still tell people I live in Damascus or "the Portland area."

I'd also like to confess that I have a serious obsession with taking pictures of my food. Whether we are out to eat or eating in, I love to style food for pictures. When I am making a new recipe for the blog and I style the step-by-step how-to pictures it takes me twice as long to fininsh the recipe. Case in point, this morning, my poor kids didn't eat their breakfast streusel Lemon-Blueberry muffins until almost lunch time! (I dare say, they were worth the wait!) See for yourself with the recipe found here.

I'm not sure if this is a confession or just something weird that I do (or both), but for years now I have this inner dialogue that runs through my head and phrases my thoughts as facebook status updates! Before FB, I would have entire blog posts spinning around in my head. (today's post was concocted entirely in the aforementioned shower/nude cleaning session this very morning. Should I be embarrassed? Seek medical attention? Oh, come on...you know you do it too!

Not really a confession, but more of a realization on my part that I have really missed blogging! I can hardly believe it, but I really didn't post for 2 years...yikes! I used to post on a regular basis and now with Hayden going to school full time next year I'm really hoping the creative "me" will come out of hiding again! I'm just bursting with ideas of how to spend my long-lost "free" time.

My last confession...hmmm. I'm not even sure how to put this. I've lived in the "country" for 5 years now, so I should be used to "country folk." Right?? nope! At first there was a lot of adjustments, but the one thing that I still can't stand is...wait for it...Truck Nutz!!! Yep, Rednecks unite!!! I HATE THESE THINGS (and this time I mean hate!) Who on God's green earth would ever buy these things? Barf! When I am cruising down Hwy 212 in my Honda, singing to Beyoncé, the last thing I want to see in front of me is chrome nutters swaying off yer truck!

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

When life gives you lemons (and blueberries), make these muffins...they're delicious!

Blueberry Streusel Muffins:

1 cup (240 ml) milk

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 cups (390 grams) all-purpose flour

1 cup (200 grams) granulated white sugar

1 tablespoon (12 grams) baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces

2 cups (260 grams) fresh or frozen blueberries

1/2 tablespoon grated lemon zest

2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter, melted

Blueberry Streusel Muffins: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C). Place rack in middle of oven. Line 16 - 18 muffin cups with paper liners or spray with a non stick vegetable spray.

In a measuring cup mix together the milk, eggs, and vanilla extract.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut the butter into small pieces and blend into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives. (The mixture should look like coarse crumbs.) Remove one cup of the mixture and set aside in a separate bowl to make the streusel topping. To the remaining muffin batter, gently fold in the blueberries and lemon zest. Add the milk and egg mixture to the flour mixture. Stir until just combined. (Do not over mix this mixture or the muffins will be tough when baked.)

Fill each muffin cup with the batter, using two spoons or an ice cream scoop. Fill any unused muffins cups with water to prevent the pan from warping.

For streusel topping: Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons (28 grams) butter and drizzle over the reserved 1 one cup of streusel topping. Mix together with a fork until it is crumbly and looks like coarse meal. Sprinkle a couple of teaspoons of the streusel over the top of each muffin. Place in the oven and bake until very lightly browned and firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 18 - 22 minutes. Place on a wire rack to cool.

Makes 16 - 18 regular-sized muffins.

Note: Frozen blueberries can be used instead of fresh. Do not thaw the berries before using them. Make sure you do not overmix the batter after you add the blueberries or the batter will turn blue.

These muffins taste great paired with Tillamook Lemon Squeeze yogurt!

Fabulous Food Friday: Cottage Cheese Pancakes

I scoured the blog for this recipe, because I swear I'd posted it already, but it was no where to be found. I did however, find it posted on Facebook, so I'm really only half losing my mind!

These pancakes are great with syrup, but try them with Raspberry Butter for an extra yummy treat!

Cottage Cheese Pancakes

1 cup cottage cheese

6 large eggs

pinch of salt

2/3 cup flour

1 tbsp oil

Combine in a blender and poor on a greased griddle. My Grandma Swanson used to make these when we stayed over, now I make them. Our kids love these so much that I have to double the recipe! Enjoy!

Fabulous Food Friday: Raspberry Butter

I got this recipe from the Pioneer Woman's blog...don't you just love her? She is a food blogging super star!

Pioneer Woman's Raspberry Butter

2 sticks of butter

1/2 cup raspberries

powdered sugar (optional)

Make the berry butters: in separate batches, whip 2 sticks of butter at a time on high using the whisk attachment. Switch to paddle attachment. Add either raspberries or blackberries. Turn mixer on low for only about five seconds, just long enough for the berries to begin to mix in/break up, but not so long that it turns into a mess. Clean mixer bowl and attachments and repeat with other kind of berry.

With each batch, turn mixture out onto a long sheet of plastic wrap set over a long sheet of foil. Use the wrap/foil to roll the butter into a cylinder: first seal the plastic wrap around the cylinder, then secure the foil around it. Twist the ends, gradually applying more pressure as you twist in order to make the cylinder taut.

Once it's a nice, neat cylinder of foil, place into the freezer for 30 minutes in order to quickly solidify it, then transfer it to the fridge until you're ready to use it. Butter should be nice and firm.

NOTE: You can add a little sifted powdered sugar to the butter to make more of a sweet spread for bread and muffins! For French toast, though, the maple syrup makes things sweet enough.

Raspberry butter on a warm stack of Cottage Cheese Pancakes

Yummy melted goodness!

It's in the Bag!

Packing 3 kids for a two week vacation can seem like a daunting task, but to me, the 5 hour flight was what I was most worried about. For months I have been stashing away activity books and other goodies to keep my little angels busy while we were in the air. Nothing worse than hearing "I'm bored" for hours on end!

Each kid got a new suitcase for Christmas from their Grandma Flutter. They are the perfect size to be considered carry on, which saves us a ton of money by not checking them at the ticket counter. I set out their flip flops the night before, because even though it is chilly in Oregon, I knew it would make getting through security much easier.

Their backpacks are loaded to the top with activity books and snacks. I am SOOO glad I packed snacks because come to find out, US Airways does not give out complimentary snacks...at all. Just drinks. You will have to pay an inflated price to eat their food and quite honestly, I would have paid just to have something more to eat, but nothing on their menu list looked good to me.

Here is a look at what I packed in Zander's bag. Most everything fit inside a large ziplock bag, which made taking it out on the plane much easier. The majority of the books and activities were purchased at the Dollar Store or at the dollar area of Target and Michaels. Target had dry erase boards, pens and erasers!! Dollar Store had the zipable pencil pouches, colored pencils and pencil sharpeners, all which got used a lot!

Just before school got out, I found these cute luggage tags in the dollar bins at Michaels!

Raspberry Lemon Scones

It's hard to believe that just a few days ago we were sitting at the table in my friend Merrilee's kitchen in Philadelphia eating her homemade scones. After a long flight back to Oregon, my parents greeted us with a big container of fresh raspberries from their garden...I knew just what I was going to use them for!!!

This morning I tried out a new recipe using lemon zest in the scone mix...They were a huge hit served with some Jamaica Iced Tea!

Raspberry Lemon Scones with a Lemony Glaze

Scone Recipe:

2 cups All-Purpose Flour

1 tablespoon Baking Powder

1/2 teaspoon Salt

2 tablespoons Sugar

5 tablespoons cold Unsalted Butter

1 cup Heavy Cream*, plus more for brushing the scones.
1 cup frozen fresh Raspberries

1 Lemon zested

*NOTE I didn't have heavy cream, so I just used 1/2 C milk and 1/2 cup sour cream

Lemony Glaze:

1/2 cup fresh squeezed and strained lemon juice

2 cups Powdered Sugar, sifted

1 tablespoon Unsalted Butter, softened

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

For the scones; sift together all the dry ingredients and zest of one lemon. Using a pastry cutter or 2 forks, blend the butter into the flour until it resembles wet crumbly sand. Make a well in the center and pour in the heavy cream, mix just until combined making sure not to over work the dough. Fold in the raspberries, be careful not to mash or break the berries.

Press the dough out onto a floured surface forming a rectangle. Next fold up the sides to form a circle with all the berries on the inside. Next cut diagonal leaving you with 8-10 triangles. Brush the tops with a little heavy cream and bake for 15-20 minutes. Let the scones cool a little before applying the glaze.

For the glaze; sift the powdered sugar and whisk in the strained lemon juice. Whisk in the butter until smooth. Whisk again and set aside until scones are slightly cooled. Drizzle, Brush or Dunk the scones in the glaze.

Jamaica Iced Tea

Last year while on an art walk in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico we tried a refreshing beverage at one of the downtown boutiques. When we returned this year, the owner was still giving out samples...this time after a quick lesson on how to prepare it, we bought several bags of the dried hibiscus flower so that we could make the Jamaica iced tea for ourselves when we got home.
Throughout our travels in Mexico, we have seen this drink offered in many forms. Besides the tea, we also tried jamaica margaritas and jamaica martinis!

As mentioned above, Jamaica, pronounced ha-MIKE-uh in Spanish, comes from the hibiscus plant and when steeped in boiling water makes a deliciously refreshing beverage with many beneficial elements. These hibiscus petals are high in vitamin C, contain diuretic properties, aid in digestion, but also can be used to stabilize high blood pressure and as an artery and kidney purifier.

Before returning home we stopped at a very rustic store where the locals buy dried jamaica flower petals and purchased 2 kilos worth to bring home in addition to the others purchased at the boutique. This was a fun test for me to see how rusty my Spanish was. I had to complete the whole transaction in Spanish and I loved every minute of it!!! I also walked out of the store with a quart of Mexican cinnamon, and some coconut candies for the kids! The Mexican airport officials thought it was great when they opened up my luggage and out pops out bags and bags of dried jamaica!!!

Without further ado, here is the recipe:

Jamaica Flower Iced Tea Recipe
(Agua de Jamaica)

4 cups water
1/2 cup dried jamaica flowers
1/2 cup sugar (I used brown sugar)
Another 3 cups of cold water
More sugar to taste
1 lime, thinly sliced

If you prefer, you can sweeten with any natural sweetener of your choice including honey in place of granulated sugar).

First off, pick out a pot that won't stain. Hibiscus has the potential to stain just about anything it comes in contact with.

Bring the 4 cups of water to a boil. Remove water from heat and add the dried flowers and sugar. Place a lid over the pot and steep for 10 minutes, stirring once or twice along the way to break down the sugar granules.

Pour the infusion through a strainer into a pitcher or jug (this is usually where something gets stained). You are going to want to add about 3 more cups of cold water to the pitcher. Taste and adjust based on your personal preference. You can add a bit more sugar if you think it's too tart or more water if you feel like the jamaica is too overpowering.

Cool completely and serve with plenty of ice in glasses garnished with a slice of lime.

Serves 8.