October happenings....

One last Peanut Buster Parfait before heading back to Korea... mmmmm....Granddad's 90th birthday- Cheryl fashioned a "cake" out of cookies and a candle, as we were en route to the airport. Evan is asking if he can help Granddad blow out the candle. Granddad must have been a little taken aback by the request, given his expression...
Lu swinging at Dad's house.
Enjoying tasty Jonagold apples- fresh picked from the farm= delicious!!!

Walking beauty

Mango Chicken Curry

Adapted from a Reader's Digest recipe...
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes

You Will Need
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 chopped carrots
1 medium sweet red pepper, julienned
2 tsp. canola oil
1/2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
1 tbs. curry powder
2 tsp. minced fresh gingerroot
1 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 tsp. salt
2 c. califlower florets
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 cup chopped peeled mango- add more to taste
1 can reduced-fat coconut milk
2 tbs. tomato paste
Hot cooked rice, optional

What to Do
1. In large skillet, sauté onion, carrots and red pepper in oil 2 to 4 minutes or until crisp-tender. Add chicken, curry, ginger, garlic, salt, califlower and cayenne. Cook and stir 5 minutes.

2. Stir in mango, coconut milk, and tomato paste; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 10 minutes or until chicken juices run clear. Serve with rice.

Yield: 4 big servings

Roasting chestnuts

The other day we spotted our friendly Korean neighbors using brooms to beat down a tree. Curious behavior that certainly got E's attention!!! Upon closer inspection, we discovered they were knocking these spiny balls out of the branches and scooping them into a pile in the alley. They covered the pile with branches, leaves and sticks from the underbrush, then lit a small fire and the pile smoked for a couple hours.
Hmmmm....

E thought we should try that for ourselves... so, being a good sport, I strapped Lu on my back and we hiked off into the woods behind our apartment- armed with a broom and a paper bag for collecting our loot.

First lesson- don't wear flip-flops when walking in the forest.
Second lesson- those spiny balls are SO SHARP that neither E or I could pick them up to put them in the bag, but instead devised a game of swatting them with the broom while one of us held the bag open.
Third lesson- mosquitos find young flesh especially tasty at dusk
Fourth lesson- if it looks like a maggot, moves like a maggot.... it's probably a maggot.
Fifth lesson- "I don't want to climb the tree." is not a good enough reason to pass up on all the chestnuts in the upper branches.

So... we bring home our nuts, sort them and rinse them off. Then to find a recipe....

Preheat your oven to 425 F (210 C). Take your chestnuts and make a cut across the round side of each to keep them from exploding, and arrange them either on a rack or on a cookie sheet. Roast them until the skins have pulled back from the cuts and the nutmeats have softened (exactly how long will depend upon the chestnuts, but at least 15-20 minutes. Remove the nuts from the oven, make a mound of them in an old towel, wrap them up, squeeze them hard -- they should crackle -- and let them sit for a few minutes.

I'll let you know how they turn out... it's a lot of work for a cookie sheet full of chestnuts!

Know what you are eating...?

"Omnivore's Dilemma" Author Michael Pollan's New Advice on Buying Food: "Don't Buy Any Food You've Ever Seen Advertised"

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Hawaii Standard Time... in Korea.

We got back from Hawaii a week ago... so why are the children still waking up at 4:45am? I don't know. But it's ruining my early workout schedule. I'm up early... but so are they!!

It's now 5:48pm, and their both passed out- They both skipped their afternoon nap to go to the pool on base. E. is on the couch with McQueen clutched in his paws and Lulu, is in the crib, with a pacifier in each hand. So, yes, it's nice to cook dinner with some peace and quiet, but I have a sneaking suspicion that they will be up past their 8:30pm bedtime....

A few of the highlights of our Hawaii trip-

Seeing Anna and John in Honolulu while we enjoyed the Hale Koa in Waikiki.
E. and Matt got to ride on a submarine.
Dinosaur exhibit at the Honolulu Community College
Visiting (well, crashing the quiet vacation of) Dad and Kissy.
Picking up new fabric at the Kapaia Stitchery- inspiration for a bed-sized quilt and patterns for stylized Japanese stitching.
E. learned how to swim!! still has floaties on, but he can paddle around by himself!!
Tasty dinner at the Hanapepe Cafe- third time's a charm.
Lovely sunsets from the south shore of Kauai.
Seeing sea turtles in the surf at Tunnels Beach.
Relaxing by the pool with the sweet scent of plumeria on the breeze... ahhh.
Going for a run in the mornings- listening to the birds and the waves.

Enjoy the new slideshow of pictures in the upper right corner of the blog- you can click on a pic to enlarge.