Some southern love with Charlie's family, and Christmas for a Jew :-)

I had my first Christmas in college with my college boyfriend's family. We broke up the next week (after being together for 4+ years, so you can imagine how that went).

Last year Charlie and I had a small Christmas together. It was secular and based on being together and presents, which is what I"m told a large amount of Americans do to celebrate Christmas anyway, so I was okay with it, being Jewish and all!

This year, Charlie left for his deployment on the 18th, and I was on the east coast, so I decided to stop over in Alabama and Kentucky for a few days to spend with his family. Even though I wasn't there on Christmas (i was in Arizona for a Jewish Educator's conference, ha!), we opened presents together and it was awesome.

I flew into Alabama and Sarah picked me up. I LOVE spending time with her, she's truly become an older sister to me, who gives me advice etc. Her hubbie Hunter was on a short business trip, so I got to have her and Mister Will all to myself.



He was a little tired and shy at first. And don't worry, we were stopped for some take out, not driving that way!

Will is probably thinking "Aunt Avigail, I kind of remember you, give me a moment to warm up to you again"


By the next morning, I snuck him into my bed and got these sorts of smiles - you should have heard the laughs!


Sarah went to work that morning, and since Hunter was still on his business trip, I had a car to myself. She encouraged me to drive to Auburn (2 hour drive) to visit Uncle Jim and Aunt Jill and the kids for the day. I LOVE LOVE LOVE being with them. Uncle Jim is Charlie's youngest Uncle, who he still thinks of as being 29 years old. He is big and tall with a heart and sense of humor to match. I don't want a year to go by without seeing this Perry family!

When i asked him to snap a pic of me and my new cousins, I got this:


Followed by these:
Just the girls:




And then all the kids:




I somehow didn't snap one of Aunt Jill. Sad. Guess we'll just have to have another visit soon.

When I left after dinner, they all stood outside the door waving and yelling "We love you!". I know this is such a little thing, but I just about burst into happy tears from all the love (I didn't, but when I thought/wrote about it now I almost did!).

Before going back to Sarah and Hunter's house in Birmingham, I had to stop at CVS to pick up a prescription. Actually let me back this up a bit. Earlier that day, before heading to the Perry's, I stopped at Walgreens for a prescription. Lo and behold, they doesn't accept tricare. Um, what? Really? One of the two largest pharmacies (I think! Haha) doesn't work with the military's insurance? How is this not more public?

Anyway, I asked the guy to call it in to CVS for me, making sure the pharmacy stayed open late, since I knew I'd be driving back from Auburn. In Boston, Jason (my sister's amazing boyfriend) gladly told me and Charlie that you could officially download google maps to your iPhone again, instead of apple maps. However, since I was driving and using Siri for my directions, it defaulted to Apple Maps. Well, at around 11 or 12 at night, I arrived here:


That doesn't look like CVS to me, even in the midst of wonderful southern hospitality!

Frustrated, I found a way to get there with google maps (instead of apple maps), and when I got there, the guy from Wallgreens hadn't called it in!!! I know that this isn't a real life problem, or you may call it a "first world problem" but BOY was I frustrated!

The next morning we left at the ass-crack of dawn to go to KY. I slept in the car while Sarah and Hunter chauffeured me and Mister Will :-)

In Kentucky, we stayed at "Grandy's" house, which is on his farm, and adorable. Also visiting were Buddy (charlie's brother) and Carol and their kids. I had never met their kids and fell in love instantly! Especially when Sarah Grace let me braid her hair in all sorts of different ways! What I loved most was how these little kids were so excited to babysit and hang out with their cousin!


Jonathan, Buddy and Carol's Youngest, wasn't sleeping over at Grandy's, and so we had to get him bundled up and warm for the ride back. Would ya look at this combination of clothes?


Sarah zipping him up:


Good night hugs from Auny Sissy (whose recipes will be highlighted in later posts)


Over the next few days we just hung out with family and had fun. Buddy found me this gem:




Sarah Grace let me do her hair some more:


But most importantly, we got prepared for some special nuptials. On Thanksgiving, Paula, Charlie's mom, called us and told us she was getting married over Christmas! How amazing that I was already planning on spending that time there with them!
Hunter and I ventured to (this is literally the name:) Tinytown, TN, to pick up a small wedding cake for them. Of course we got lost but we had a great time, I love that I got along with him since Sarah is so special to me!

Here's the cake all set up:

When we got back Sarah had been working up a storm to get the house decorated, and it looked amazing. Here she is with some of the flowers:


She blogged about the wedding in greater detail here.

Dan, or "grandan" as the grandkids called him, has been in Paula's life since they were little kids! They make each other so happy and I am beyond thrilled for Paula and the happiness she has found. One of the most touching things was that Paula wanted to use some of the blessings that I interpreted from the sheva brachot at my wedding. Specifically, she wanted Sarah to read the one she read at our wedding, Buddy to read the one they read, and me to read the one she read. I absolutely love how this carried through from our Jewish Ceremony to their Christian ceremony!

Here is Dan ready for his bride in the front porch of Grandy's house:


All the family (except the bride and groom) on Grandy's porch

Kiss under the mistletoe!


One of my favorite things about Sarah and Hunter is that every time I've spent time with them, they have this special cuddle time in a love seat. I love seeing her sitting in his lap and watch them interact, they are so in love! Here is the should be pro-photographer checking her 500+ pictures during their special hubby/wife time:


And of course while they were sneaking some hubby/wife time I tried to sneak as much baby time as I could:

That evening we opened Christmas presents, since Sarah and Hunter and myself were leaving on the 23rd. I loved that they put a cowboy hat on their tree! How southernly authentic!


I loved the gifts that I received SO much (including a camera strap cover Sarah made for me with her sewing machine after I mentioned how much I loved hers!). More specifically, I loved GIVING gifts! I know it sounds lame and cliche, but I get so excited when I figure out exactly what to get someone.

Sarah used her sewing machine to make the "babies" of the family these matching PJs:

Can' get any cuter!!! And you shoulda seen the near dozen adults acting like monkeys behind the camera to get those smiles!

Some of the food served over the weekend that I just loved (albeit, not the best for my waistline) was:
-sausage balls (ummmmm, have any born and raised westerners heard of these? SO YUMMY!
-cucumber dip (I have a "healthy" version sitting in my fridge right now!)
-Aunt sissy's crazy bread (recipe coming when I make it and snap pictures)
-Jam cake with brown sugar frosting

I want it all! Speaking of recipes, I made a yummy french onion chicken last night but didn't snap pictures. I'll snap one of the leftovers and post the recipe.

Good to be back, Y'all!!!

Sufganiyot - fried jelly donuts recipe

I have a confession to make - this may come as a surprise.

I used to hate baking.

I know. I KNOW!

I always said I was a cook because you could really use your instincts, read a recipe, and then go along as you do it to make it your own. I know a lot of people, like my very dear friend Jaren, who is an excellent cook, have different approaches and follow recipes. I just can't do it.

Well, I would always say I hated baking because I didn't like following the instructions. But I slowly transitioned, and learned to love it. Now yeast is an every day ingredient for me, and I can make OMG cookies in any variation with my eyes closed.

So with this newfound love of baking, I decided to take on several things at once I never would have all in one "recipe" - fried jelly donuts!
Yeast!
Deep frying!
Stuffing with Jelly!

Challege Accepted.

I made these during Chanukah - food fried in oil is a tradition because the Maccabees found enough oil for one night, and it miraculously lasted for 8.

I looked at recipes and decided to go off of this one from food.com.

I adjusted a bit by adding some whole wheat flour (not that I was trying to healthify something so unhealthy, I'm not delusional, I was just low on a/p flour).

I also used butter instead of margarine. In a lot of Jewish recipes, you will see the use of margarine or oil - this is because it makes the recipe "parve" aka, not meat or dairy. Therefore, you can eat them with most meals and it would still be kosher. Since I am 0% kosher, I used butter.

Also, I don't buy yeast packets, I just buy a jar and measure it.

1 package of yeast is usually a 1/4 ounce, which is 2 and a quarter teaspoons of yeast. Viola!

So with adjustments here are the ingredients:
4.5 teaspoons of dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (I use a meat thermometer to make sure it's around 100 degrees)
3/4 cup sugar (when I adjusted I used 1 cup and it was better)
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
6 tbs softened or melted (but not hot) butter (unsalted)
2 cups whole wheat flour
3 cups a/p flour (when I adjusted I used all ap flour and it was better)
lots of vegetable oil to deep fry
fruit jelly
powdered sugar for sprinkling on top

Directions:
1. Sprinkle your yeast into the water, and let sit for about 5 minutes.
2. In order, add sugar, eggs, and butter, and mix.
3. Mix your flours and salt in a separate dish, and add in to your dough.
4. Knead your dough using your dough hook for about 5 minutes. Let sit about an hour.
5. Roll out your dough, and use anything with a circular edge (cookie scoop, small cup, etc) to form circles of it. Place them on lined cookie sheets, cover with a towel, and let rise for another 30 minutes.
I used pam to make sure it didn't stick.



(I used a cookie scoop because I wanted to make small donuts for a bunch of people, but really any size will do).

Here is where I messed up the first batch, and fixed it on the second batch.
What you SHOULD do it this:
6. Bake your donuts at 350 for about 20 minutes.
7. Take them out of your oven, and THEN deep fry them for about 1-2 minutes on each side.
8. Once you take all the donuts out to cool on your lined cookie sheets, either use a food injector (this is how you do it in israel!!) or slice a small crevice with a knife. Fill with good quality jelly.

Let me talk for a second about a good quality jelly. You can buy an amazing fried donut, and if it's artificial, yucky, lazy cheap style jelly, and not good quality preserves, it will just not be authentic. It will be good, but not great. Get some good preserves, and it makes a huge difference.

9. Once they are all stuffed, I use one of those fine metal strainers that you can use for sifting to tap powdered sugar all over the donuts.



These were pretty good, but the next batch I made I used a bit more sugar and all ap flour - much better!

By the way, the next morning I could smell the fried oil from my bedroom (with the door closed), so you may want to open your windows and use some air freshener if that smell grosses you out. It reminded me of the parking garage at my college, which was over a McDonalds!

I miss blogging. Here's my December Boston trip.

Hi all,
I am not sure how I went from blogging twice a day to once a month. I guess my new years resolution (Besides to raise my body pump weight) is to start being a regular poster again - it's so therapeutic for me!

Lots has been going on and I have a few posts written already that I will share in the next few weeks, when the time is right.

Charlie and I went to Boston in December - it was his last weekend of grad school before his deployment. As it happens, my sister and Jason were visiting Boston that weekend for Mass General residency interview, and even better, my great uncle and aunt (who are like a set of grandparents to me) were visiting!!! I LOVE seeing my Boston family and wish I could do it more often.

Me and my uncle Dolfi:


(Dolfi's legal name is the Hebrew version of Benjamin, but his family still calls him Dolfi)

My sister and Jason talking with Yoav and Alina (cousins) and great aunt Ruthie


Yoav and Alina moved back to Chicago about a week after we were there, so wonderful that we were able to see them once more before they moved!

It was toward the end of Chanukah, and here is Jeff (my cousin) lighting candles:


Playing with the panorama function on the iPhone:

(to the left is my great uncle Dolfi, and next is my great Uncle Schari - you can so tell they are brothers!)

Really playing w/the panoramic view on the camera - nobody knew when to look


Love my Great Uncle Dolfi, you are like a Saba (grandpa) to me:


I LOVE this picture below because it looks like the lighter for the candles is Jason's mustache.


The next day we went to my favorite east coast restaurant, legal seafoods:


We had lobster dip and clam chowder and scallops and shrimp and crab cakes. What a lovely kosher meal for the last day of chankuah!!

Me and Jeff in front of the Chanukiah in downtown Boston. For those who don't know, most Americans call this a "Menorah". This is technically a menorah, like a square is a rectangle. A menorah is a candelabra, or in modern Hebrew, a lamp. A Chanukiah has 8 candles and one "leader" candle to light the others, and is specific to Chanukah.

Me and my sister were cold walking around, even though it was relatively warm for this time of year in Boston:



After Boston Charlie and I drove down to Baltimore where he was deploying from (or so he thought). We stopped in Philly for the night to see bff Eden, as well as Charlie's friend Rob and his new girlfriend, and My cousin Bridget (jeff's older sister) and her fiancé. It was very short but nice.

The next day we drove to Baltimore only to realize that Charlie was leaving from Norfolk, whoops! We went to a movie on our last night together (perfect date for us). The next morning, Charlie dropped me off at the airport and I hung out at the USO all day, so he could drive down to his departure. I was going to Alabama and Kentucky, which I'll save for another post.

Great to catch up a bit! Yayyyyy.

One of the things we really made room for in our budget for our wedding was a videographer. At first I didn't think to even get one, thinking you hardly ever watch your "wedding video".
My amazing sister in law, Sarah has been in so many weddings, and one day I saw a reel she was tagged in as a bridesmaid. I instantly knew I wanted this!

Terrence Lighten did an absolutely amazing job. It was worth every penny.
Enjoy!




Our wedding highlight reel

from Lighten Films - 702.266.6226 on Vimeo.

Guest Blogger: Eden Sherman Attempts Cakepops

Hi all,
My best friend Eden was deliberating buying a cake for a birthday dinner. I told her to bake one and she laughed at me. I then realized she could make cake pops, as they are truly not that difficult! I wrote her an "idiot-proof cake pops for my bff" word document, and was excited to see the results. Below is Eden's post about her cake pop making journey. Enjoy!


(me and eden in the limo home from my wedding - I was already in my change-out dress)

Cake Pops 101: For the baking-challenged.

Yesterday, I decided to take a stab at making some cake pops, at the suggestion of my BFF Avigail (aka Aggy) for a special someone's birthday.  Who makes boring cakes these days anyway? Armed with mental images of the beautiful (and probably professional) examples I found on Pinterest and my How-To Guide that Avigail wrote especially for me, I was ready to go.

I went to Michael's after work to pick up the supplies. I must know myself pretty well because I went back in after I made my initial purchase to grab another bag of candy melts, just in case. (these became necessary later on as you will soon read)

Here are the ingredients I used:

1 box of Betty Crocker Triple Fudge cake mix

1/2 container of Betty Crocker Whipped Buttercream Frosting

3 bags of Wilton's Candy Melts

1 vial of Wilton's tinting nonsense in "royal blue" 

1 bag of Cookie Sticks (aka lollipop sticks- I didn't do their marketing, trust me)

Take a good look at this nice and neat picture, because it's about to get really messy really fast...

First, I baked the cake according to the directions on the back of the box. Simple enough, right? Not so much...turns out we only had JUMBO eggs in my house, and I'm pretty sure at least one of the 3 I used was a double-yoker. Oh well...in the oven it goes! After a solid 35 minutes at 325F and a brief scare that the cake was going to outgrow its pan, I did the old toothpick test. Let's just say the cake failed miserably. After another 15 minutes, it was finally done. Avigail had suggested that I take it out of the pan to let it cool, so I loosened it, and then flipped it upside down onto foil on the counter since I don't have any fancy cookie racks. (love you BFF) As Avigail pointed out, there was a nice chunk missing. Thank you non-stick spray!

At this point, I'm already beginning to doubt my baking abilities. Brody agrees with this doubt and thinks I should just quit before I even really get started. Doesn't he look like he's thinking, " are you sure this is a good idea?"

Meanwhile, Kona is more interested in the toys that I packed up for their weekend getaway at Best Friends. He's a smart boy, that Koki!

Back in the kitchen, I let the cake cool while I showered. I came back downstairs and broke the cake up into pieces, put them in a mixing bowl and then added about half of the container of frosting to the bowl. Good thing I remembered to take off my rings first because I would have been picking chocolate cake and frosting out of them for the next year. I mixed the cake and frosting with my hands until it achieved a dough consistency. I would tell you what it resembled, but I will let you use your imagination because I'm supportive like that ;)

After I let the dough harden in the fridge for an hour, I formed balls and put them onto a foil-lined cookie sheet and put them in the freezer to harden for another hour. When they had hardened, I inserted the sticks. 

What happened next was a bit too messy for pictures, and my iPhone thanks me for not covering her in goo. I carefully read the instructions on the back of the bag of the candy melts, making sure I used a glass bowl to melt them in the microwave. Once the candy was completely melted, I attempted to darken the blue coloring of the candy by slowly adding in this highly concentrated gel. I figured the gel would be intense but I didn't think it would stain my fingers and cause some weird chemical reaction when mixed with the melts, to the point where the melted candy quickly hardened and became unusable. At this point, I was grateful for that extra bag I decided to get last minute. I realized that I would have to abandon my goal of creating a nice deep blue colored pop and instead settle for a shade of blue that bares a strong resemblance to baby shower decorations. Oh well...

I repeated the melting process of the candy and made sure to steer clear of the mutant gel. I then dipped the pops into the melted candy as best I could. I even tried to get a little fancy and added some sprinkles to a few. What resulted was some unfortunate-looking cake pops...

Don't they look delicious? ;)

At this point, I was running low on the blue melts. But I still had a few cake pops to go, so I opened the last bag of candy melts (this one was white).  I melted the white candy per the instructions, but for some reason the white melts didn't want to cooperate and began to harden as soon as I took the bowl out of the microwave. This resulted in me speedily trying to dip the pops and smear the coating on them before it became unusable once again (fun times). 

Here's the second batch!

I finally finished my creations at 12:30 am ( I started at 7pm). After wreaking havoc in the kitchen for a solid 5 hours, you would think I'd have these beautiful cake pops to present at tonight's birthday celebration. If anyone has a heart, they will still try one because after all, it's the thought that counts, right?!