How Green Was My Valley...

Beautiful book I just finished reading. First published in 1939 - all about the mining communities in Wales before the war. Very poetic and beautifully written. Combines the vernacular with a composed elegance that is rare to find.

Cauliflower Cheese Bake

This delicious, cheesy casserole is a great way to enjoy cauliflower, and we LOVE it!

Ingredients:

•1 large head of cauliflower, about 1 1/2 to 2 pounds, cut into flowerettes

•***Sauce***

•4 tablespoons (2 ounces) butter
•1/4 cup all-purpose flour
•1/2 teaspoon salt
•1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
•2 cups milk
•1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
•1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) Cheddar cheese, mild or sharp

•***Topping***

•1 cup soft fresh bread crumbs
•1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley, optional
•1/2 teaspoon ground paprika
•1 to 2 tablespoons melted butter

Preparation:

Boil or steam cauliflower in water until just tender, about 6 to 8 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Grease a 2-quart baking dish. Heat oven to 350°.

In a medium saucepan, heat butter over medium heat. Add flour and stir until smooth and just bubbly. Add salt, pepper, and milk. Cook the sauce, stirring, until thickened and bubbly. Add the mustard and cheese and continue cooking, stirring, until cheese is melted.

Combine the cauliflower with sauce and spoon into the prepared baking dish.

Combine topping ingredients and sprinkle over the cauliflower mixture. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the casserole is bubbly and topping is browned.
Serves 6.

Wiesmann Roadster

About a year ago, I saw this car on the road in Nuernberg, and had no idea what it was, but was quite impressed with what I saw. I came home and told Bas about it, describing it as having "8 tail lights, and very muscular, old-school, roadster type fenders." But he had no ideas as to what it was.

Then last spring we got passed by one going the other direction, while he was driving - and I was like "that was it! That was it!" But he didn't get a really good look. SO I went home and googled every which way I could figure, and even trawled a list of all automakers hoping to find it. For some reason I have been bound and determined to figure out what it was...

Then I got super-passed (when someone blows by you, like you're standing still even though you're driving 100 mph) on the autobahn a couple weeks ago, by the same mystery car. I was by myself (translation - no Luna,) so I decided to see if I could catch up and make out the model. Well, I floored it and was probably doing 220 kph (135 mph), and wouldn't have caught up if it hadn't been for traffic, but I still couldn't make out the symbol.

So this week, Bas and I have been very excited because they are doing a "Top Gear" special in Amsterdam. Top Gear is one of our favorite shows, and for those of you at home, you can catch it on BBC. It's awesome - all about cars, which we both love, but also very well written and produced, and consequently, hilarious. I highly recommend it. They include a lot of travel segments and guest celebrities to round out all the car talk...

Anyway, so they were running one of the TV trailers and had an image of a car that reminded me of my mystery car, so I casually went back to Google on a whim and decided to type in "German Sports Car" and wouldn't you know it, but I didn't get Porsches - I got my mystery car! Right in the top results for Google Images. FINALLY!

So now we know. Their symbol is the Gecko, and they are basically a body manufacturer. All of their parts and engines are supplied by BMW. But they are definitely German, which explains the sudden sightings... not even that expensive, at about 70k in British Pounds (compared with other luxury cars anyway...) Would love to be driving around in one, if it weren't for our little backseat-tiger!

Seaside!

We just booked our week in Florida, on our trip home in April. We're staying in Seaside, and I am SO excited about it! I first went there when my best friend Laura got married, and fell in love with it. It's where the Truman Show was filmed and is a "planned" community - and boy do I mean ultra(!)-planned - also, hence, really beautiful!

Here are some pictures - the last two being the cottage we are staying in...

Sledding and Sleeping...

After our week in Egypt, we were quite excited to hit the slopes... too bad that Luna decided that it was torture to do so! She screamed the whole way, have no idea what this was all about, but she REALLY didn't want to go! Didn't even like to get pulled on the sled!


We decided to go sledding where they go at school, only to discover that when at the actual spot - it really isn't a hill! Didn't matter anyway, because Luna was having none of it!

But we had a little fun anyway...



This is Luna's new trick - here I am going to bed. Can't you tell? The rug is my blanket!


Night night!

Bruschetta...

I've been on a big bruschetta kick lately, ever since I decided to make it for our Christmas party. It was soooo good. So now we frequently eat it as an appetizer before dinner... yum, yum...


needed:

baguette
1-2 garlic cloves
a few small ripe tomatoes
white wine or champagne vinegar
good extra virgin olive oil
ricotta cheese
balsamic reduction (you can get this now already reduced, looks like a ketchup consistency liquid and comes in a squirt bottle - check by the dressings and the vinegar...)

prep:

Preheat oven to Broil.

dice tomatoes into good chunks, and place in a small colander. Let juices drain. Once juices have drained, place in a small bowl and add a dash of vinegar. Let marinate.

slice baguette on slight diagonal, to desired number of pieces and places on cookie sheet. Place in oven on top rack, let stand a few minutes till desired doneness, and remove.

Rub half a garlic clove on each slice of bread. Then add desired amount of oil to each slice. I like to douse them, as crunchy Bruschetta tears up the inside of my mouth...

Drain marinated tomatoes, and load each bread slice with a good amount. Add a small dollop of ricotta, and then a thin drizzle of balsamic reduction.

Yum Yum!

Hummus

Since we only had hummus once in Egypt, I was left a bit unfulfilled and craving it... so I decided to make a up a batch yesterday. First time I made it at home, so I was able to go heavy on the lemon and light on the tahini (sesame paste), which is the way I prefer it...

•1 16 oz can of chickpeas or garbanzo beans
•1/4 cup liquid from can of chickpeas
•3-5 tablespoons lemon juice (depending on taste - I used juice of 1 lemon)
•1 1/2 tablespoons tahini
•2 cloves garlic, crushed
•1/2 teaspoon salt
•2 tablespoons olive oil

Preparation:

Drain chickpeas and set aside liquid from can. Combine remaining ingredients in blender or food processor. Add 1/4 cup of liquid from chickpeas. Blend for 3-5 minutes on low until thoroughly mixed and smooth.

Place in serving bowl, and create a shallow well in the center of the hummus.

Add a small amount (1-2 tablespoons) of olive oil in the well. Garnish with parsley (optional).

Serve immediately with fresh, warm or toasted pita bread, or cover and refrigerate.

Luna's 3rd Language

As most of you know Luna is attending a German kindergarten two mornings as week, and has been since October. I know that she understands her classmates and teachers, but we really hadn't heard her speaking much more than ja, nein, ein, zwei, bitte, danke and tchuss... but all of a sudden lately she's saying things that definitely aren't English! And since her pronunciation still isn't great, we're not always sure if it's German or whether we just don't understand what she's saying...

so today we were in the car on the way back from getting a sled, so that we could all go our sledding today. And Bas asked her what we bought today... and her response was Schlitten! She has been sledding while at school, so she came out with the German word for it first, even though we had been talking about a sled!

Then this afternoon, she started tugging on Bas's arm, saying something we didn't quite understand and pointing at her toy train set. Bas looked over at it, and realized what she was saying... he said "Kaputt gemacht?" And she said "Yeah!" (When she said it, it sounded a bit like "Poot macht!") It's a little unnerving! But I imagine by this time next year, she'll be talking rings around us!

Pool Pictures and More...

Here are some shots of our room, before it got too cluttered up... we arrived on the red eye at 6 AM... took a nap, and then had a full day at the pool! It was listed as a 5 star resort... wouldn't say it quite qualified as that, but it was certainly very new and very beautiful!


Complimentary beach towels and beach bag...


Beautiful woodwork and fabulous bathroom...

Vacation dawning...

Love this picture...

Resort at night...

Wall in the cafe' covered in tea cups!

Don't drink the water! Might be more than she can handle!

Our second night was a bit warm, so Bas opened the door to the terrace... and them bugs ate Luna alive... she must be super sweet - they didn't bother us at all! Poor thing - everybody avoided us at the pool after that, looked like she had chicken pox!

Looks like it must have been a very interesting conversation....

Soon after Luna got attacked by bugs, she fell and split open her lip and chin - the other parents must have thought we were very negligent!

At our favorite after dinner place... you can't see my outfit, but I had so much fun wearing HEELS! Egyptian restaurants are great at taking your children away from you - to entertain them while you enjoy yourself. Took some getting used to, but it was very welcome after a while! And this place was great because they also had free popcorn - Luna loved it!