Other cute pictures!

Auntie Lynne took this great shot. Blake loves to smile and giggle. He is always very happy.

We just started giving Blake stuffed toys because he is finally touching them and showing interest. The first time we gave him the blue dog "Bluey", he fell asleep on his own in his bouncy seat. We love "Bluey".

Blake loves to cuddle with "Bluey" and pull him to his face and kiss him. What a great stuffed animal! The best thing about this one is that it doesn't fall off of him because it is soft and flat.

Swaddle Me This?

Blake has to be swaddled at night because it keeps his arms still. Babies have a startling reaction when they sleep that wakes them up. Here are some great pictures of how we have put Blake to bed and how we find him in the morning.

Blake put to bed. Doesn't he look cute?

Our little Houdini. Often at night you can hear him grunting trying to get out of the swaddle.








This is my favorite picture. He has actually turned the swaddle completely around and managed to get one arm out the top of the swaddle. Look closely at the picture.

We have now decided to purchase a woombie. It is a competely zippered outfit without any wings that you velcro. Blake can definitely get out of the current swaddle. We will let you know how that turns out.

2nd Swim at Grandparent's House

July 25th, we visited Grandpa Bob and Grandma Carol down in San Diego. We love to visit with them. Blake liked the pool last time, so we thought we would try it again. He had a lot of fun and he had another new outfit to wear in the pool. Doesn't he look cute?

Artichoke Salad

This is a really great different salad. I was watching Barefoot Contessa and it looked so yummy. I am not usally a fan of artichokes but it was so tasty.

Roasted Artichoke Salad

Ingredients:
4 boxes (9 ounces each) frozen artichoke hearts, defrosted or 4 cans of artichokes drained
Good olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 shallot, minced
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
5 tablespoons white wine vinegar or champagne vinegar, divided
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
6 tablespoons capers, drained
1 jar roasted red peppers, sliced thin or you can do 1 jar of sun dried tomatoes
1/2 cup minced red onion
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 pinches hot red pepper flakes, optional

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Place the artichoke hearts in a bowl with 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and toss until the artichoke hearts are coated. Dump the artichoke hearts onto a sheet pan and spread out into 1 layer; roast in the oven for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the vinaigrette. Place the minced shallot, lemon juice, mustard, 1 tablespoon vinegar, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. (I did not use a fod processor so I just made sure everything was minced and mixed really well) Process for 5 seconds. Add the basil leaves and process into a green puree. With the processor running, slowly pour 1/4 cup olive oil into the bowl through the feed tube until the ingredients are finely pureed. (Again, just mince and mix well) Set aside.
Place the roasted artichoke hearts in a bowl and toss with enough vinaigrette to moisten. Add the capers, red peppers, red onion, parsley, 4 tablespoons vinegar and red pepper flakes, if using, and toss gently. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper and let stand for 30 minutes for the flavors to blend. Serve at room temperature.

Ale House Burgers with Red Onion Compote

So I have been told to post some more recipes, because everyone enjoyed the Asian Spare Ribs recipe. Here are some more of my favorites. The Burger Recipe is to die for. The burgers stay so moist.

Ale House Burgers with Red Onion Compote

Ingredients For Red Onion Compote:
1/2 cup water
1 1/4 cups beer
1/2 cup brown sugar (maybe only 1/4 cup)
2 red onions, sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Ingredients For Burgers:
3 pounds ground beef
1/4 cup beer
2 tablespoons grill seasoning
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar
Romaine lettuce
4 hamburger rolls, toasted

Directions For Red Onion Compote:
In a medium saucepan add 1/2 cup water, beer, brown sugar, and red onions. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and stir to combine. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Simmer, stirring occasionally for about 1 hour or until the mixture has thickened and has reduced to about 2 cups. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool completely.

Directions For Burgers:
In a large bowl mix together the ground beef, beer and grill seasoning until well incorporated. Reserve half of the mixture for Round 2 Meatloaf recipe. Shape the remaining beef into 4 equal portions and flatten each portion. Place 2 tablespoons of cheese in the center of each and wrap the edges around the cheese to form a ball. Flatten each ball into patties. Place on platter and cover. Refrigerate if not cooking immediately.
Set up grill or indoor grill pan for direct cooking over medium-high heat. When ready to start grilling, oil the grate. Place patties on the hot oiled grill and cook 4 to 5 minutes per side for medium. Serve over lettuce on toasted buns topped with red onion compote.

July 31st Dinner

I bought these huge mushrooms from Costco the other day and I wanted to make something special with them. So I decided to make this recipe for Brad last night as an appetizer when he got home from work. Aren't I a great wife?

Savory Herb-Stuffed Mushrooms

Ingredients
24 medium mushrooms, about 1 pound
6 tablespoons reduced-fat stick margarine
1 small onion, chopped
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, or 2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (3-ounce) package low-fat cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves, or 2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
1 cup packaged herb-seasoned stuffing croutons

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Remove stems from mushrooms. Chop enough stems to make 1 cup. Melt 2 tablespoons margarine in saucepan. Brush mushroom cap tops with margarine, place top side down in shallow baking pan and brush undersides of caps. Heat remaining margarine in same saucepan. Add chopped mushroom stems, onion and garlic and cook until tender. Stir in cream cheese, combining with fork if necessary. Add Parmesan cheese, parsley and herb seasoned stuffing. Mix thoroughly. Spoon about 1 tablespoon stuffing mixture into each mushroom cap. Bake until heated through.
Tip: To make ahead, prepare as directed but do not bake. Cover and refrigerate up to 24 hours. Bake as directed.



Since I had so many mushrooms, I thought that it would also be nice to do a chicken and mushroom sauce. So I tried this. It was amazing.

White Wine Mushroom Sauce

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 sweet onion, chopped
8 ounces baby bella mushrooms, sliced
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup semidry white wine
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Directions:
White wine mushroom sauce: In a large saute pan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter with olive oil. Add onions, mushrooms and cayenne pepper. Saute until onions are translucent and mushrooms are tender, about 8 minutes. Add wine and reduce until it's almost evaporated. Add chicken stock and simmer until reduced by one third. In a small bowl press together remaining butter and flour with fingertips until well blended, then slowly add to the sauce while stirring with a wooden spoon. Simmer until sauce resembles loose gravy, about 5 minutes. Serve warm with chicken.