Well, we picked the right time to start growing our own strawberries...this is outrageous!

Farmers planting strawberries and other crops in California will soon have to contend with cancer-causing poisin instead of bugs, worms, and fungus if regulators get their wish.

We went to France last night!

On the menu for dinner last night was some potato and leek soup (potage parmentier) and onion and bacon pie (Flammkuche). It was cold yesterday so we were craving some warm, yummy comfort food!

Potato and Leek Soup (Potage Parmentier)

1 lb all purpose potatoes, peeled and diced

1 lb leeks, trimmed and washed well, thinly sliced

8 cups chicken broth

1 tbsp salt 2 tbsp minced parsley

2 tbsp unsalted butter

4 tbsp heavy cream

1. Combine the potatoes, leeks, broth, and salt in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat. Lower to a simmer and cook, partially covered, for 40 min.

2. Mash the potatoes and leeks against the side of the pot with a large spoon. Taste and add salt if necessary.

3. Before serving, stir in parsley, butter, and cream.

Onion and Bacon Pie (Flammkuche)

2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp salt

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast

3/4 c warm water

6 slices thick cut smoked bacon, diced

4 tbsp unsalted butter

3 lbs onions, thinly sliced

salt and pepper to taste

1 cup creme fraiche

1. Dissolve yeast in warm water. In separate bowl, combine the flour, salt, and oil in bowl. Once yeast is dissolved, pour into bowl with flour, salt and oil. Knead dough for about 8 min.

2. Place the dough in a large greased mixing bowl. Cover and let rise 1 - 1 1/2 hours until it doubles in size.

3. Prepare the filling while the dough rises. Cook the bacon in a large skillet over med. high heat until the fat is rendered but not browned. Remove the bacon and drain on paper towels. Add the butter. When melted, add the onions and cook until soft and golden, about 20 min. Remove from the pan to a large bowl with a slotted spoon, draining away most of the fat. Season with salt and pepper. Let cool for 30 min. Stir in the creme fraiche.

4. Punch down the risen dough. Lightly flour and roll out into a 12 inch circle. Place on a pizza pan. Spread the onion mixture over the dough. Scatter the bacon on top. Let rise 30 min.

5. Pre heat oven to 375 degrees F. Place the flammkuche on rack and back for 30 min. or until the bottom of the crust is golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool for 15 min.

It was a little time consuming, but well worth it! To save time, you could always buy pre made pizza dough.

Bon Apetit!

Dump Whatever You Have on Hand in a Pot Pasta Sauce!

I felt like getting crafty for lunch today...because it's saturday, we're bored, and we're hungry! So I decided to make a big pasta dish because I had a few veggies on hand I really needed to use before they went bad! You can mix this recipe up with whatever veggies you have on hand. Here is what I had:

1 Bunch Carrots chopped

8 Roma tomatoes chopped

1 onion

1 clove garlic

1 package mushrooms sliced

1 handful basil chopped

long drizzle of extra virgin olive oil

sea salt and pepper

1 lb bowtie pasta

Directions:

Cut up all the veggies, dump them in the pot, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Turn stove burner on medium low and stir in a long drizzle of olive oil. Let simmer about an hour.

Cook the pasta and throw in the pot when it's done and you're ready to serve. I also had some broccoli on hand today so I threw that in the pasta water and let cook about 2 minutes, drizzled with olive oil, and sprinkled with parmesan cheese.
Yummy
Yummy

Bella's Favorite things to do on a rainy day!

1. Perler beads

2. Watch movies and eat popcorn

3. Make cookies

4. Eat Dinner

5. Paint

6. Rock baby Willem

7. Play with toys

8. Clean my room (?)

9. Play games

10. Make some Dinner

11. Read Stories

12. Eat banana yogurt

Ertwen Soep (Dutch style split pea soup)

In our family, there is nothing better on a rainy day than a nice, big pot of home made ertwen soep. Commonly referred to as "hot dog soup" by the kids (that's what Bella calls it and what I called it as a child), it has been a favorite of the Modderman/Maagdenberg family for decades (My maternal side of the family)! Here is our version...

Ingredients:

6 stalks celery, chopped

2 leeks, chopped

1 onion chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 smoked ham hocks

generous amount of sea salt

1 bag split peas

handful chopped parsley

pinch nutmeg

pork kielbasa, sliced

black pepper

Directions:

Drizzle olive oil in large pot over medium flame. Add onion, celery, and leeks and saute for about 3 minutes. Add about 12 cups of water to the pot. Add ham hocks to the water and simmer about 2 hours.

Add the bag of split peas to the water and simmer another hour, stirring occasionally. Once it has become a soup like consistency add the chopped parsley, a pinch of nutmeg, and black pepper to your liking.
Finally, slice the kielbasa and add to soup only moments before you are going to eat it.

You can serve this over rice if you like, but it is fantastic all on it's own! Smakelijk eten!

Bella having fun with Oma and Papi at the A's Game!

Baked Penne with Asparagus and smoked gouda

Ingredients:

salt

8 ounces dried ziti or penne

1 lb asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces

2 tbsp olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

1/2 lb smoked gouda (we like it cheesy)

bunch basil chopped

Directions:

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add the ziti and cook for 5 minutes stirring often. In the meantime, trim bottoms off of asparagus and cut into 1 inch pieces. Bella is shown demonstrating how to trim the bottoms off asparagus.

Add the asparagus to the boiling water and continue to cook with the pasta about 2 minutes. Drain the pasta and asparagus and reserve 1 cup of the cooking liquid.

In a large, heavy skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add garlic and saute about 20 seconds. Add the pasta, asparagus, salt and pepper, and the reserved cooking liquid. Toss and coat the pasta with the oil and garlic. Remove the skillet from heat. Add the gouda and basil and toss. Transfer to baking dish and cook in preheated 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes. Here is what the finished product looks like below.

Bon Apetit!