Homemade Chicken & Dumpling Soup

So I don't have the BEST track record when it comes to cooking. David never fails to tell our guests about times where our dinners looked more like vomit than it looked like food (this has happened multiple times). And we laugh at my failed attempts. Hardy, har, har.

But recently I've been making a HUGE effort to do better with cooking. And thanks in part to Martha Stewart (she's like, my home maker idol), I've learned a lot about proper cooking technique and ideas. I can now proudly say that my cooking has greatly improved. I can now look at a recipe and feel confident that I can make it.

One of my favorite new recipes:
Chicken and Dumpling Soup.

I forgot to put the garnish on it before I took the picture. Oops.

Chicken & Dumplings Recipe: 

 Broth: 

 4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Boob Halves cut into three pieces

4 Medium Carrots, cut diagonally into slices

1 Onion, chopped

1 Garlic Clove, minced

 1 Bay Leaf

2 Celery Stalks, chopped

1 1/2 c. Chicken Stock

Salt to taste 

1tsp Fresh Thyme

Dough:

1/4 C. plus 2 T. Yellow Cornmeal

3/4 C. All Purpose Flour

1 t. Baking Powder

1 T. Lemon Zest

3/4 C. Finely Chopped Fresh Parsley

2 T. Grated Parmesan Cheese

1 1/2 T. Unsalted Butter, in small pieces

1/2 C. Milk

Directions: 

1. Bring 2 quarts water (with chicken boobs, carrots, onion, celery, garlic, bay leaf and stock and 1/8 tsp. salt to a boil in medium pot. Skim froth. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer 20 mins. Add thyme. 

2. Meanwhile, mix cornmeal, flour, baking powder, 1/2 tsp. salt, zest, parsley and cheese in a bowl. Add butter  and blend with fingers until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add milk and stir until dough forms.

3.  Roll dough into 1-inch balls (I just used a small spoon to scoop it). Add all at once to simmering broth. Cover, simmer until dumplings are cooked through. I tested them with toothpicks. If I stabbed them and the toothpick came out clean, they were done (usually about 20 minutes). Serves 6.

LATE POST: Calvin and The Snow

Thankfully, there isn't a whole lot of snow left. We've been getting a few "surprise" snow storms here and there. Calvin LOVES the way the snow crunches under his boots. The way his feet sink into it and looking back at his tracks. His biggest complaint? When he falls, he lifts his hands up in the air and arches his back so his face doesn't touch the snow (kind of like a locust pose you'd see in yoga but hands in the air in front of him). 

Can you believe the size of that coat? It swallows him up! You should see us getting him into his car seat with that thing on. He's like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man!

Mr. Handsome.

Check out that toothy smile. 

Doesn't it just melt your insides? 

This face is how he gets me to do anything he wants. 

I'd rob a bank for this kid.

Dozer

Tomorrow will be a bittersweet day for the Gomez Family.
Our puppy, Dozer, will officially be going to a new home tomorrow around 6 p.m.

He is technically mine and David's dog. We thought we could keep Dozer at my parents' house temporarily (one year or so) until we could get out of our apartment complex, since we don't have the money to pay for a pet deposit. Soon, one year turned into two years, and we've just renewed our lease for a third year in this complex. Which means Dozer has stayed at my parents house for longer than we'd planned. And it's been really good there for him. The only thing is that with my parents working and all of the kids gone at school and such all day from early in the morning to late in the afternoon, Dozer doesn't get a whole lot of attention (poor thing has to hold his pee for that long?!).

So we decided it would be best for him to go to a home that could give him the care he deserves.
We found a home for him not too far from where we are. A family with a stay-at-home mom and two little girls who want a loving doggy. It makes me happy for both the family and for Dozer, but I am going to miss his cute cuddly self. He fits in so nicely with our family, I mean, the dog loves to sing, after all.

Seems so silly to be writing all of this about a dog, but he is part of our family.
He will be greatly missed.

Chillin'

Loving all the sunlight that pours into Calvin's room every morning. Calvin loves his bean bag. 

He'll take his books and "read" them.

Most often those stories have hand motions that we make up to go with them.

And he's memorized the order of those hand motions. 

 I'll have to get that on video so you all can see how debilitating-ly cute it is.

I could watch him play all day. 

He's got quite the imagination!

Watching (you guessed it) Elmo in Grouchland 

holding his little wooden hammer and eating some cheerios

or Ay-oh's ... as he calls them.

Stoked For Spring

We had some brief warm weather to break up all the gloominess! We were so excited about it, we just had to bust out in our shorts and skirts! Calvin for some reason would tug at the bottoms of his shorts, like, check these things out!

This kid....

He Just Makes Me Laugh.

Calvin's been "saying" prayers for a few months now. But all of a sudden, we go to pray for a meal and he starts talking in this little high squeaky voice.. And all I could do was laugh and think to myself, Does he think we pray that way?

Does my voice get higher when I pray?