Wednesday Recipe: Smoked Turkey Cobb Wraps

So...this isn't as labor intensive as most of our Wednesday recipes, but there is some slicing involved, and the leftovers make GREAT work lunches.

From Mel's Kitchen Cafe (love her recipes!)

For Each Wrap

1 oz cream cheese, light or regular (you can also mix in some blue cheese crumbles!)
1 12-inch tortilla or wrap
2 leaves green or romaine lettuce
4-5 slices thinly sliced smoked turkey (in my experience, Fairway's is much better than Fresh Direct)
4 thin slices tomato
1 large egg, hard-boiled and sliced (B and I skip this)
4 thin slices red onion
1/2 avocado, seeded and thinly sliced
3 strips cooked bacon


I am awful at assembling, so here are Ababa's tips:

Place tortilla on large dinner plate.  Only put filling on the part that is on the inside of the pate (not the part that is on the rim).

Spread the cream cheese evenly over the tortilla. Place the lettuce down the center of the tortilla. Arrange the turkey over the lettuce. Layer the tomato, egg, onion and avocado over the turkey and top with the bacon. Roll up tightly and slice in half diagonally. Serve immediately.

Ginger Pork Lettuce Cups and "Wednesday Recipes"

When I go back to work in the office after Easter, I'll be working from home on Wednesdays.  Most nights dinner will be crock pot or something quick, but on Wednesdays I am planning to make tasty dinners that may involve more chopping and a little more time.  Bonus points if they will make great lunches for Thursday and Friday.

These delicious Ginger Pork Lettuce wraps that I made last night definitely fit the bill!

I served them with blistered garlic green beans and steamed white rice...oh yeah, and this (well a modified version using stuff I had on hand).

Ginger Pork Lettuce Wraps
adapted from Food and Wine

Filling:
3/4-1 lb ground or minced meat (I used 3 boneless pork chops)
1/2 red bell pepper, finely diced
1 stalk celery, finely diced
8 oz mushrooms, finely diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoon minced or microplaned peeled ginger
2 tablespoon Thai sweet chile sauce
1 tablespoon Asian fish sauce
1 tablespoon Asian toasted sesame oil
2 teaspoons soy sauce
Sriracha to taste (I used about 1 tsp)
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon neutral oil
2 scallions, thinly sliced

Topping:
4 radishes, finely diced
1 english cucumber, finely diced
2 scallions, finely chopped
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 tsp light brown sugar
garlic and ginger microplaned to taste
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

24 Boston lettuce leaves

Topping Instructions:
Mix all topping ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside.

Filling Cooking Instructions:
Mix meat with ingredients listed ginger through soy sauce.

In large saute pan, heat oil on high, toss in garlic and stir.  As soon as garlic loses its raw taste toss in the rest of the vegetables and the meat mixture.  Cook on high 8-10 minutes or until meat is cooked and sauce isn't super runny.

To serve, scoop meat into washed lettuce leaves and spoon topping over meat at table.  Roll up the leaves as you eat.


*I think the water chestnuts called for in the original recipe would be delish, but Ababa HATES water chestnuts.
**Next time I think I would use 2 stalks of celery and the whole bell pepper and a little more Sriracha

TGIF

Our car is in the shop...

I had to do school pick-up yesterday and today.

Yesterday I took E in the stroller, but quickly realized that carrying a 22lb stroller with a nearly 14 lb baby and about 10 lbs of diaper bags, backpacks, and coats up multiple flights of stairs in multiple subway stations, while chaperoning two 5 year olds was not the best idea 8 weeks post-partum.

Today I wore E in the Boba with the bottom cinched in some since he's still a little small for it.  He's not as comfortable in it as in the ring sling, but I wasn't so sure about wearing the ring sling for such a long time, including walking across Central Park, since my back and pelvic girdle hurt from yesterday.

1. I should have worn the ring sling, I think we both would have been more comfortable

2. I hate the M4 bus.  Every time I take it I say this, and everytime I am leaving B's school I wait for it b/c the stop is right there...but a 30 minute wait for the bus and then an hour and a half bus ride home in Friday traffic in a rush hour bus...even though it was cold and drizzly I should have walked back across Central Park and taken the B/C to the A like I did going there.  Never again M4, never again.

3. The M4 does offer some priceless moments though.  Today's was a very vocal 8ish year old boy, let's call him Nosy Ned.  E was fussy and after about 30 minutes on the bus had a total meltdown and really needed to nurse.  I had to take off the Boba vest, unhook the Boba, get him situated, pull up my fleece and shirt, unhook my nursing bra, and try to use the vest to cover up while in a rush hour bus that was packed like sardines and moving as slow as molasses.

Nosy Ned sidles up to me with  constant stream of chatter.  B announces to the bus that I am covering E.  Nosy Ned stage whispers to B that it's for "privacy".  Nosy Ned starts commenting on how long E has been nursing (approx. 5 minutes, but to Nosy Ned that was an eternity).  Nosy Ned goes on and on with the culminating topic being teeth.

(the whole conversation, I am trying to stay reasonably covered up with the vest and making sure that E is breathing and latched and doesn't slide off my lap with all the stops and starts of the bus).
NN:Is he teething yet?
Me: No
NN: Does he have any teeth yet?
Me: No
NN: Well, that's good b/c when he's teething he'll have teeth and then he'll bite you when he nurses.
Me: *speechless*
NN: That's what me and my sister did. Well, I don't know about my sister, but I know I did that. So, watch out because he'll bite you hard and it will hurt.
Me: Um...I am looking forward to that...I mean, not looking forward to that...I mean...(mouth just drops open)

NN's mom and friend are standing behind him. B is busy trying to figure out if it's a brother or a friend (love that, b/c NN was blond haired and blue eyed and friend was Southeast Asian and B totally thought that they were brothers at first).  NN's mom was cracking up but didn't intervene at all.

Only in NYC...

Perfect Eggless King Cake

I married a man from Louisiana, and I lived there for 2 years in grad school.  By far, my fave Louisiana treats are shrimp po'boys (fully dressed with only a little mayo), pecan pralines, and king cake.

My husband makes amazing pralines, the best shrimp po'boys come from a little gas station in my husband's home town, and I make King Cake usually just once a year here in NYC (though when in Louisiana I will happily inhale King Cake from the end of Epiphany through Fat Tuesday, usually from the local Rouses grocery store bakery in my husband's home town), so when I make it I want it to be great!

It's taken me three years, but this is the perfect king cake recipe with no eggs!  Sometimes eggless yeast doughs can be dry and tough and I have never made a confectioners sugar glaze that didn't have a weird after taste.  I always preferred the Rouses King Cakes to mine, which NEVER happens, I am not a grocery store bakery over homemade kind of girl.  But this year...score one for mama!

Mama's King Cake

Dough
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
2 pkg active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1/2 cup white sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
5 1/2 cups all purpose flour

Filling
3/4 c brown sugar
3/4 c white sugar
1 1/2 TBSP cinnamon
3/4 all purpose flour
1/2 cup very soft or melted butter
1/2 tsp salt

Icing
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla
purple, gold, and green sanding sugar

For Dough

• Scald milk, remove from heat, add butter, salt, and nutmeg
• Dissolve yeast in warm water with 1 Tbsp sugar, wait approx. 10 minutes for it to get foamy
• When milk/butter mixture has cooled to warm but not hot, add to yeast mixture
• stir in remaining sugar and flour, knead 8-10 minutes.  Dough should be a little sticky but easy to work with. If too dry, add warm water or milk 1 Tbsp at a time.
• Coat in butter or neutral oil, let rise covered in a warm place for 2 hours (until double)
• Cut dough ball in half
• Roll each half out into 10x17 rectangle

For Filling

• Mix all filling ingredients into a paste
• Spread on each dough rectangle

For Cake

• Roll up each dough rectangle to form long roll and join the ends to shape into an oval
• Bake at 330 for 20-25 min, until top is just starting to be golden on the edges
• Mix powdered sugar, vanilla, and cream to desired consistency and spread or pour on top of cooled cake
• Top with sanding sugars

Our favorite newborn baby items so far...

My SIL is expecting a baby boy this summer, so before I forget I wanted to share our favorite baby items so far...We really do love everything we have for the baby as we tried to keep our list very streamlined and intentional. Pretty much everything was either purchased from craigslist, received as a gift, or gotten from our local parents listserve. We can't wait for baby E to be able to enjoy the toys and books and other items he received, but right now, at this newborn stage, these are our essential items:

Our Top 10 11 14 Baby Items

Dutailier Glider (we got ours in great condition for $25 off of craigslist!) and use it with this nursing stool since we don't have room for an ottoman.

Aden and Anais Swaddle Blankets (we received these as a gift and use them for EVERYTHING, swaddling the baby, make-shift nursing cover, wiping spit-up or breastmilk leaks...super cute and super handy!)

Rock and Play Sleeper (this is the only place baby E will sleep besides my chest.  We did put the wedge insert from our Uppababy Cruz stroller in the seat to make it not such a steep angle and he was still too little for this the first few days home from the hospital, but now...now this sleeper is AMAZING and we are still using it with the insert)

Britax Pavilion Car Seat (we skipped the newborn bucket seat in favor of this, it's an amazing seat and will last baby E for several years)

Earth Mama Angel Baby Mama Bottom Balm (a life saver those first few days after labor, especially if you have stitches!)

Little Joeys Newborn Cloth Diapers (buy the brand name ones, the knock-offs from ebay look like the same design but seem to leak:-(  We have other newborn cloth diapers too, but these are our favorite and the only ones that Ababa will use)

Wool Nursing Pads (whatever you do, stick with medium.  Do not get the largest size as they are literally the size of dinner plates! These are way more comfortable than the cotton pads and don't leave you feeling damp)

Green Mountain Diapers Newborn Prefolds (Absolutely the best prefold diapers!  The newborn size work great on baby E as diapers, but also function as burp clothes, spit up wipers, heavy duty breast pads, changing table liners, and pretty much anything else you can imagine.  We have newborn and infant sizes and used both to stuff B's pocket diapers.  We used these for 2 years with B and will likely use them for the next 2-3 years with baby E.  Our favorite cover is the rumparooz newborn but we also use thirsties)

Womb Sounds (this youtube link has increased our nighttime sleep by 50%)

Zutano Booties (these actually stay on and keep baby E's feet warm. We will be getting the next size up when he outgrows these.  They are great for a winter baby!)

Snusa Monitor (baby E sometimes likes to stop breathing which is terrifying and I have a friend whose son died of SIDS, so this monitor gives me some peace of mind at night...I do have a love/hate relationship with this monitor as it does have some false alarms when it comes out of contact with the baby, but I would rather that than the alternative...)

MIracle Blanket E is a great sleeper during the day, but the Miracle Blanket is living up to its name at night!  He LOVES it.

Sleeping Baby Productions Linen Ring Sling This is working SO much better for us than the Sleepy/Boba Wrap.  I think it may be the perfect newborn carrier and will also be handy in the summer b/c the linen is so breathable.  Plus I got it in purple with black rings and it is gorgeous!!!

Graco Sweet Slumber Machine Since the white noise/womb sounds have become part of E's necessary nighttime routine (for the whole night!) we invested in this so we could reclaim our laptop for work in the evenings.

I am still searching for the perfect nursing bra, nursing cover, and newborn baby carrier (baby E won't be big enough for our beloved Boba 2G carrier until he's almost 1).  I'll keep you posted when I find the right ones.  I just ordered materials to make nursing covers and to convert a regular bra to a nursing bra, so hopefully those projects will be successful.  Also, our sleepy/boba wrap is great, but difficult to maneuver in slushy NYC winters.  I just ordered a sleeping baby productions ring sling and hope that will be a winner (and it is!).

Welcome baby E and "scrummin' on the old man Joe"

Well, impatience must run in our family, because baby E made his debut on January 26, more than 2 weeks early.  We are in love:-)

My water broke, fast and hard contractions started immediately, and somehow my labor stalled about 12 hours in (turns out baby E was posterior, and tilted, and in general just wasn't a big fan of labor). There were lots of complications (group B strep, meconium, heart rate decelerations for baby E, hyperemesis for me to the point of vomiting blood and being severely dehydrated, a fever for me, baby E not tolerating pushing, and an IT guy who had to come into the delivery room to fix the frozen fetal monitor!...), labor was almost 40 hours long--the first 24 hours were totally natural and then I chose pitocin and an epidural over a c-section--at the end there was a vacuum and a small episiotomy, and literally until he was crowning, the midwife thought that I would still need to have a c-section...but, praise God I had a vaginal delivery and have had a very easy recovery.

Baby E was quite banged up from delivery (a big ridge on his forehead, small hematoma on the back of his head, etc. but he has a full head of straight black hair that covered it all up, so he just looks cute:-)  He's a great nurser and is gaining weight like a champ!

B has been a fabulous big brother and we are feeling very, very blessed.  Despite the difficult pregnancy and labor, about 12 hours after delivery I looked at DH and was like "let's do this again"...hormones are a powerful thing!!!  I pretty much did the same thing after we adopted B.  We were in the trial by fire period of the first week and I was already like, let's start another adoption.  Whether through pregnancy, adoption, or both, Ababa and I would very much like to have a third (and maybe fourth) child.  So, we'll see what God has in store for us...right now we are lovin' life with B and E.

B really, REALLY wanted a girl, so he's already got a plan that "mommy has more eggs, so we can have a girl next...and if we have three baby girls that's call triplets" YIKES!  B's family planning is even more extreme than mine:-)

B is obsessed with "I've been working on the railroad" lately and knows all the words...in his own fashion....he is convinced there is a "dino" in the kitchen and that someone is "scrummin' on the old man Joe".  He cracks me up:-)

I love my boys!

Mommy, she looks like me!

Last week, B and I were in the elevator and our Dominican neighbor and her daughter (who is exactly B's age, they share a birthday!) got in.  We see them all the time, but this day was different.

They got off the elevator, and B looked at me with wide eyes.  "Mommy" he said "She looks like me, that mommy looks like me".

"How does she look like you?" I asked, trying to clarify what he was seeing as well as take a minute to formulate my response. Even after 2 1/2 years of reading "The Colors of Us" with him and talking about all the beautiful and yummy colors different people are, this is the first time he's talked about this.

"She's brown like me" he said, rubbing the back of his gorgeous brown hand. "She has brown skin"

"She does" I said.  "Sometimes mommies and their babies have the same color skin and sometimes they don't."

"What color skin do I have", I asked?

"Yellow" was his response.

"What color skin does daddy have?" I asked.

"Brown" he said, "but not the same as me."

We talked about how daddy is chocolate brown and B is honey brown and the baby will probably be honey brown like B (and that mommy is yellow, he's sticking to that:-) and that people in families can be different colors and we are still a family.  I am his mommy even though our skin is different colors.

And then we went for our walk.

But he's talked about his brown skin and my yellow skin several times this week. it is clearly top of mind for him right now.

My sweet, sweet boy. I am and always will be your mommy.  You are adopted, which is very special, and often children who are adopted are a different color than their parents (just like Horace is spotted and his parents are striped, and just like Rosie is brown and her family is grey and Choco is a bird and Mrs Bear is his mama).

You'll see when the baby arrives, that even if you had been born from me, we would probably still be different colors. I could be purple and you could be green and daddy could be blue, and we would still be a family.

Mommy and Daddy love you so much and we are so proud to be your parents!!!