Friday Things
1. This past Saturday marked the 1 year anniversary of bringing Duke home to live with us. I can’t believe it’s been a year already! He’s currently in the bratty teenager phase of puppyhood, but he’s also one of the sweetest dogs ever. He loves his people :)
2. On Monday, I hit the halfway point of my pregnancy – 20 weeks! I’ve been feeling really well and continuing to grow, grow, grow. We had our anatomy ultrasound last week – the baby is growing right on schedule and so far looks to be perfectly healthy. And yes, we did find out the sex… :)
3. I’m loving The Essential Techniques That Every Home Cook Should Know from Food52. Great resources!
4. So, I have this problem. I feel like the ability to slice an even piece of bread is missing from my DNA. No matter what I do, I always screw it up! I either slice the top normal and then the bottom of the slice is like two inches thick or vice versa – the bottom is virtually see-through. Any tips for slicing bread evenly? I need a guide or something!
5. Last Saturday, I saw a ton of people tweeting about a Simpsons marathon that was on TV. This might be a shocking confession, but I’ve never seen a single episode of the show. When it first came on, my sister and I weren’t allowed to watch it, and then by the time I was old enough for it to not matter, it was never something that really appealed to me. Please tell me I’m not the only one!
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6. I’m not sure if I’ve never noticed them before, but yesterday at the grocery store they had bushels of fresh hatch chiles from New Mexico. I can’t ever remember seeing them around here before, so I’ve never cooked with them. They had fresh ones, and then they had containers of roasted ones that they were roasting on-site right outside. What can I do with these, and how spicy are they?!
7. I love this post: When Productivity Tools Get in the Way of Actual Productivity. No matter how many different types of apps, online calendars or fancy planners I try to use, I always go back to my trusty notebook and pen. For me, nothing beats physically writing things down.
8. Full House back on the air?! My inner 10-year-old could not possibly be more excited!
9. I am slowly getting into the habit of keeping fresh-baked foods in my freezer (I figure this will help when the baby arrives – good to start the habit now!). I started this week with the whole wheat sandwich bread… next up – cookie dough! It’s all about balance, right?! I’m planning to stash away some of these salted peanut butter cup chocolate chip cookies. If you’ve never done it before, just make the dough as you normally would, then place the balls of dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet and pop in the freezer until the dough is completely frozen. Then, throw them in a freezer-safe resealable bag and bake as many as you’d like at a time, just add a couple of extra minutes to the baking time. Cookies on demand!
10. TGIF! Have an awesome last (long) weekend of summer!
Congratulations on one year of Duke and the baby boy! My son and I have really enjoyed your photos of the pups–I’m sure they’ll be wonderful companions to your little boy.
As a New Mexican, I put green chiles in everything. A few everyday uses: in a turkey Swiss sandwich on sourdough bread, either cold or heated up; on pepperoni pizza; in my scrambled eggs; in chile con queso; in guacamole; in corn chowder…this week I even put it in an apple pie! I hope you try some and enjoy it, but be warned–it’s addictive stuff!
All good wishes to you on the other half of your pregnancy – and a boy – what a joy! I adopted two 7 year old girls nine years ago and the time does fly too fast – just like your year with Duke did. During the bad moments you just have to remember, this too shall pass…Oh, I’ve never seen a Simpsons either!
You’re not alone: I’ve never seen a single Simpsons either!
Years ago when I first got a bread machine, someone gifted me a bread knife that had a guide on it to make even slices – it was adjustable so you could make them however thick/thin you liked. I’m sure if you google it, something will come up.
Congratulations on your baby boy!!
You are not alone…I’ve never watched The Simpsons either! Growing up, I wasn’t allowed and now just have no interest. I actually am thankful that my parents wouldn’t let me watch it; however I wasn’t allowed to watch 90210 either and now find myself wanting to buy the whole set of dvd’s and settling in for a marathon weekend ;-)
I wasn’t allowed to watch 90210 at first either, but by the time we were in high school I could. I didn’t watch it much then since I hadn’t gotten into it, but I’ve since watched the entire series from start to finish as an adult and LOVED it! We weren’t allowed to watch Married with Children, either. Glad we weren’t the only kids with TV rules!
I thought I was the only one not allowed to watch The Simpsons!! And yes, I do feel like it’s just too late for me to pick the show up. Same thing with Friends. :(
I picked up 90210 a few years ago – gold!
I highly recommend a Friends marathon! That’s one that I started right from the beginning… it took me from freshman year of high school all the way through to a couple of years post-college. It’s a great one!
Did you see Jimmy Kimmel Wed. night I think? The girls were all on a did a skit with him. Have heard that is has gone viral.
For me, the best two uses of hatch peppers is on a cheeseburger or in/over eggs. I want to go to New Mexico and try every burger there is. Here are a bunch of hatch chili recipes on Pinterest. I know what ingredient we’re going to be cook with this weekend! Yum! http://www.pinterest.com/hatchgreenchile/green-chile-burgers/.
Congrats to all of you! How exciting! I must tell you-you need a bread knife. Not your regular bread knife. Mine is a beauiful wood one and there is a gap between the wood and the SHARP part to use as a guide. I am not describing it very well. It helps! Woodworkers sell them at art shows usually.
Not what you are describing (with the wood), but same idea: http://www.amazon.com/Browne-Foodservice-MWS91R-Right-Hand-Wonder/dp/B001BTO708/ref=pd_tcs_subst_k_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=09FAAG2B7XVFCHGHH1GJ
Baby boys are the best!!! I have two little guys and am so happy they are boys (even though I thought I wanted a girl). Congratulations!!
Congratulations on the news! You’ll be surrounded by boys!
I’ve never been much of a Simpsons fan though I have seen the show. It just doesn’t really appeal to me I guess :)
My aunt (who lives in New Mexico) posted a picture of a big box of chiles that she just got, but I have no idea what she plans to do with them :)
I love freezing cookie dough for quick and easy future cookies. I usually only do it around Christmas. If I start making different cookie types in November then I have a good variety for Christmas without having to back so many back to back batches!
Congrats on the baby boy! I’ve never watched the Simpsons either.
My grandma taught me to always slice a loaf of bread from the side. This way you get the angle straight where it most counts. And you won’t smush the top of the loaf. Using a serrated bread knife, letting the knife do the work, gently saw back and forth as you go down, watching the angle on the bottom of the loaf (which is now exposed too). It works for me every time.
Hatch chilies are not a variety of chile. Hatch is a town in NM in which the chilies are grown. They are known as the chilie capital! They grow all varieties. The variety I’ve seen in stores here that are labeled Hatch Chilies are similar to Anaheims in the heat dept. But remember chilies can vary in heat even the same variety of chilie. If the stem is curved, the chilie is going to be hotter than the one lying next to it with the straight stem. It’s an age thing. I’ve bought poblanos out of the same bin where one was mild as could be and one was very very spicy. That was before I knew the stem trick. Anyway, if they’re from Hatch, they’re the best!
It’s so funny you should say that about the bread slicing. When you posted your whole wheat bread earlier in the week, I literally had the thought, “Wow, she has the most even bread slices ever. How does she do that?!” Congratulations on your baby boy!
Congratulations on your baby boy!! Thank you for sharing the sex. I can’t stand when people SAY that they found out sex but refuse to share. That is just annoying… We have 3 boys and 1 girl. Boys are the sweetest little guys and YES they love their mommies.
I see absolutely zero appeal with The Simpsons so you are not alone!
I have the bread slicing problem, too. My slices always are a little thinner on the bottom, so I very slightly angle the knife towards the rest of the bread. It helps a little. Once while watching Giada De Laurentiis I noticed she had the same problem. That made me feel a little.better.
Bread sliced sideways with a slicer is the same top to bottom.
Congratulations on your baby boy! My tip for slicing bread in even slices? I use an electric knife…..perfect slices everytime and I bake bread every week!
Michelle, Congratulations on having a son! What wonderful news! he is going to be one lucky fella. I predict your house is going to be the gathering place when he gets older. A cool mom and one who know how to make good food, plus you will probably be the chauffeur to hockey practice lol. As far as the Simpsons, do not get it either and you can add Family Guy to the pot. Your mother did you a favor!!!!
CONGRATS on your baby boy!! Half way there, it’s fun stuff now…registering and getting that nursery ready!! I have never gotten into the Simpsons either, you are not alone!!
Congratulations! You will now be the only female in a house full of males! I am happy to hear all is going well at mid-pregnancy.
I have not seen even one episode of the Simpsons. I have seen short snipits and I just don’t get them but I am not a cartoon person and never have been.
Finally, I have a batch of your peanut butter chocolate chip cookies in my freezer ready to bake whenever needed. Storing cookie dough in the freezer is a great way to always be just minutes away from fresh baked cookies.
Enjoy your weekend!
A boy….Congratulations!
My husband likes watching the Simpsons, but I simply can’t watch it. I have better things to do with my time. ;)
Here’s the bread slicing guide I’ve been using for many years. It works very well!
http://www.amazon.com/Norpro-370-Bread-Slicer-Catcher/dp/B00004UE6T/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1409308553&sr=8-1&keywords=bread+slicing+guide+for+homemade+bread
This is exactly what I need! Thanks for sharing the link!
That is the one I use as well. However, I have noticed that if you cut along the lines given the bread tends to be thicker than I would like. So I just use the first section and move the loaf so I am cutting the size of bread that I want. I hope this makes sense. Happy baking.
Congrats on the baby boy. . .he’ll be here before you know it.
As for the Simpsons, my parents didn’t let us watch it either, so I never watched as an adult either. Adult cartoons in general seem like an odd concept to me though, cartoons aren’t supposed to swear or depict violence or adult content, just seems wrong.
Yaaay – it’s Hatch Chile season!! Get ’em now because the season is short! Heat can vary from mild to medium hot, depending on the variety and also what kind of growing season they had (hot days/cool nights is perfect). Use anywhere you would use an Anaheim, but the flavor is better in my opinion. Buy ’em roasted, seed and peel ’em, freeze ’em in portions and you’ll be a happy cook! Or you can roast them yourself (we’ve spent some fun Sunday afternoons, taking turns at the chili roaster, peeling/seeding/packaging while drinking a beer or three!). Remember: do NOT rinse that wonderful roasted flavor down the drain after peeling! Note: the heat increases the longer they are in the freezer. YUM! I know what I’m doing this weekend!
Congrats on the baby boy :) That’s great news.
Plus – you’re not the only one who has never seen a single Simpsons-Episode – me neither. I have no idea what’s so funny about it or worth wasting time on watching it :P
And i’m glad I’n not the only one missing the “How to cut bread right”-Gen ;) My Grandma used to slice it right in front of her chest – I had always been afraid, she’d be chopping her boobs off …
Congratulations :) exciting times!!!
I’ve never watched the simpsons either, tried one episode and couldn’t stand it. I did see the movie on tv but really, couldn’t see what the fuss is about!
Congrats on your SON! :) That is so awesome you know. I had to know when I was pregnant, too. Like at 13 weeks. 4D ultrasound had to happen :) Have a great holiday weekend!
I haven’t seen the Simpsons either. I don’t get the appeal if it. Congrats on your baby boy.
My parents didn’t let me watch Simpsons either! I thought I was the only kid in the world with parents that strict! Yeah for a baby boy!
You’re not alone on The Simpsons matter! My mom didn’t let me watch it either, so I really don’t know a lot about the show. I kind of feel left out, but oh well :) I real thought I was the only one!
Congrats on your baby boy!!!
Hi Michelle,
Hatch chiles are Anaheim chiles grown in the Hatch Valley of New Mexico, which gives them a special terroir. There are mild and hot varieties available, and they can vary as much as a normal chile level can. They’re usually fairly mild, though… Anaheims are pretty low in drama. I grew up just north of Texas, so New Mexican and Texan foods are some of my favorites.
There are lots of really great things you can do with Hatch chiles! For some great inspiration, Confections of a Foodie Bride has some places for you to start, and I’d look at Homesick Texan as well: http://www.jasonandshawnda.com/foodiebride/archives/category/ingredients/hatch-chiles/ and http://www.homesicktexan.com/ I roast and skin them and freeze them to keep around all year, then I add the roasted chiles to humus (it’s AMAZINGLY good), or make queso dip, fold them into omelets or frittatas, or turn them into chile verde sauce. They’re amazing… I hope you have fun exploring them!
Anahiem are really good I roast them, skin them, then make a green chile with them. It’s just a simple recipe but it’s great with beans and tortillas – or just about anything. I’m sure you’v seen the ristras of the Anaheim peppers when they turn red, I make a red chile from that also. Michelle, the narrower the pepper, the hotter it will be. Make sure you protect your hands when preparing them.
Congratulations on your little man to be! I grew up with 5 sisters, so adopting a boy was a bit of a shock for me, but no one loves his mommy more than a son!
Aww, Duke and Einstein are getting a baby brother! Yay and congrats again to you and your hubby :)