Bakin' and Waitin'

All is quiet on the adoption front. So I'm a' bakin' while I'm a' waitin'. It helps to 1). pass the time, 2). distract me from checking my email every 10 minutes, and 3). a little chocolate therapy ain't bad, y'all (that last bit sounded like Paula Dean).

Give these a try:
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies (these are the dreamiest cookies ever)
Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 cups (12-ounce bag) milk chocolate chips, not semisweet
Nonstick cooking spray or parchment paper

Directions: (yields 60 cookies so you can freeze half of them if you'd like...or eat all 60 of 'em if this wait has got you stressed)
Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray cookie sheets with nonstick spray or line them with parchment paper.Using a mixer, beat the butter until smooth. Beat in the white and brown sugars, a little at a time, until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs 1 at a time, then mix in the vanilla and pumpkin puree. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Slowly beat the flour mixture into the batter in thirds. Stir in the chips. Scoop the cookie dough by heaping tablespoons onto the prepared cookie sheets and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the cookies are browned around the edges. Remove the cookie sheets from the oven and let them rest for 2 minutes. Take the cookies off with a spatula and cool them on wire racks.

Puffs & Pretzels Haystacks these are actually a no-bake treat
From Kashi
Makes 3 dozen

Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups Kashi® Puffed cereal
1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut (I used craisins)
1 cup broken pretzel sticks (about 3/4 inch pieces)
2/3 cup coarsely chopped almonds
12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ cup all-natural peanut butter (or almond butter)

Directions:
Combine Kashi Puffed cereal, pretzel pieces, almonds, and coconut in a large bowl.
Place chocolate chips in a small, microwave-safe bowl and microwave until melted, stirring every 30 seconds. Add peanut butter for final 20 seconds and stir until smooth.
Pour melted mixture over cereal and stir until well coated. Drop single tablespoon-sized dollops onto waxed paper. Refrigerate until firm and serve.

Watermelon

It's so unbearably hot here in the South! I'm seriously melting! So to cool down, we made a pitcher of watermelon juice. Ah, refreshing! Simply juice a watermelon in a blender or juicer. Watermelon is 93% water so it's quite a thirst quencher.

Farmers' Market Finds

Heirloom tomatoes from the Farmers' Market! Yum!! And just think, there are hundreds and hundreds of these tasty varieties growing on farms all over America, but unfortunately, most people don't know about these little treasures if they've only ever shopped for tomatoes at their local grocery store. It's a shame that grocery isles aren't overflowing with these locally-grown gems. It's no wonder that fast food has become the new "home-cooked meal" and obesity is at epidemic proportions -- few know that there is actually good food out there and loads of varieties of it right under our noses.

The isles at the Farmers' Market were over flowing with squash, eggplant, zucchini, and tomatoes this season. I found this recipe for grilled vegetable panini from Barbara Kingsolver's new book, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. The website is a great resource for eating locally and the book is excellent. The vegetable panini was scrumptious, the perfect summertime dish!

It's been a lot of fun engaging in the art of cooking and baking during this wait. I just passed my 175th day of homemaking and can honestly say, I'm loving EVERY MINUTE of it! And there is so much more to learn! An exciting journey for this mother-to-be. Daddy-to-be is pretty happy about it too! Doesn't the saying go, the way to a man's heart is through his stomach.

Project Cooking : Chinese Cuisine During the Wait

Another goal that I'm working toward during the wait is learning to be a bit more advanced in the kitchen. The first thing that I did to get myself motivated, was to host a Pamper Chef from which I earned some wonderful kitchen tools including measuring cups, measuring spoons, stoneware, a chopper, and a pinch of enthusiasm for a new found skill. Secondly, I created a recipe rotation using www.cookinglight.com.

I'm trying my hand at Asian-inspired cuisine. I happened upon a great Asian-influenced Cooking Light recipe for nutty pasta toss with shrimp. Enjoy!

1 TBSP minced fresh cilantro
1 TBSP grated peeled fresh ginger
3 TBSP low-sodium soy sauce
2 TBSP crunchy peanut butter
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
8oz. medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 cup vertically sliced onion
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into (1/4 - inch) strips
1 cup bagged prewashed spinach
2 cups hot cooked rigatoni (about 1 1/4 cups uncooked pasta)

Combine first 8 ingredients in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp, and saute for 3 minutes or until done. Remove shrimp from pan. Add onion and bell pepper to pan; saute 3 minutes. Add soy sauce mixture, shrimp, and spinach. Reduce heat to medium; cook 2 minutes or until spinach wilts. Serve shrimp mixture over pasta.