kismet art

Happy Mother's Day

Easter 2012 in Photos

When a Pizza Cutter Isn't Just a Pizza Cutter

Most people who know us know that in the Ackerman household Sunday night is pizza night.  Our Sunday night pizza night started before we had kids and since they were old enough to eat solids Ben and Emma have eagerly joined us for this ritual.  Served with a salad for us, veggies and fruit for the kids, it has become a dinner routine that is met with a chorus of "nooooo's" when pizza is not on the Sunday table.

Dave, who takes two carefully wrapped pieces of cold pizza with him every day to work without fail, is teased incessantly by his coworkers about his pizza for lunch habit.  Among the many jokes lobbed his way as he unwraps his pizza lunch is the inevitable "doesn't your wife know how to make anything else for your lunch?"  psst, guys, I don't pack his lunch.  I also don't lay out his clothing for him the night before work.  Dave is just a guy who really likes his pizza, even every day for lunch, so much so that he travels with his own microwave from work-site to work-site so he can reheat his slices.  I'm just the girl who makes sure he takes a serving of fruit and vegetables to balance out a little of the cheese.

As I was cleaning our pizza cutter this evening I was struck by the thought that this almost 18 year old, well worn, well loved, kitchen utensil is so much more than just a pizza cutter.

This pizza cutter has moved with us to 3 different homes and it's handle used to read "Papa Aldo's" before they merged and became "Papa Murphy's"- and yes, I realize you didn't need to know that but every fourth time that we bake pizza Dave reminds me of this. And it is one of our stories so I smile and nod and remember bits of culinary trivia about our early married life like the time I sent him to the store three times for something to keep our first Thanksgiving turkey tied shut or when he made me waffles using the baking soda from the fridge that was there to absorb odors.

Our beloved pizza cutter has also been used to cut pancakes and waffles into bite sized chunks for Ben and Emma's breakfasts and to even open a box or two (shh, don't tell Dave.)

Pizza is what Dave cooks for his weekly turn at dinner night, and he cooks it to perfection.  And with his favorite pizza cutter in hand he is able to get 16 slices out of a family size pizza -a point of pride almost equalled by his pizza cooking technique that involves moving the almost cooked pizza off the pan and broiling the top until it is just right. The fact that Dave is completely in charge of his pizza cooking technique also gives me a night off from cooking, and a night off from cooking makes for a super happy me.

By my calculations, give or take a week without pizza, this humble little cutter has made neat triangles out of almost 2,000 pizzas.  That's over a 1000 nights of coming together as a family to eat, laugh, and share a little love.

And that, my friends, is when a pizza cutter is more than just a pizza cutter.

Thankful...

..For my family, our home, food on the table, our good health, my friends, and for love.  Small blessings that I can't imagine living without.  Just so very thankful this year.

5 Summer Salads and An Easy Chocolate Cake (Recipe Included)

Here is a look at the 5 Summer Salads my mom and I prepared last weekend to celebrate my dad's birthday (thank you summer for finally giving us enough sun to be able to harvest most of the ingredients from our own gardens.)

Snowpea With Yogurt, Dill, Cashews, and Cilantro Quinoa with Tomatoes and CucumbersCucumbers and Vinegar with Walla Walla Sweet Onions Fresh Corn Salad with Red Bell Peppers, Lime, Cilantro and Red Onion Caprese Salad with Heirloom Tomatoes, Fresh Mozarella, Basil, and Olive Oil Oh, yeah, and that Chocolate Cake with Chocolate-Peanut Butter Frosting (lest you think we were a bunch of healthy eaters over here.)

Hershey's 5 minute-One Bowl Chocolate Cake Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 cups white sugar
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I use Euphoria's Sunrise Baking Cocoa)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 
2. Grease and flour two nine inch round pans (or one large 13x9 baking pan, or makes 24 cupcakes).
3. In a large bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla, mix for 2 minutes on medium speed of mixer. 
4. Stir in the boiling water last. Batter will be thin. Pour evenly into the prepared pans.
5. Bake 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until the cake tests done with a toothpick. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day Mom.And thanks Ben and Emma, I am so very happy to be able to be your mom.

Bits of Easter, 2011

Making Pizza Memories with Grandma

I grew up with the extraordinary priveledge of knowing my maternal and paternal grandparents (as well as 2 great-grandmothers, a great-grandfather, and even have some early memories of great-great grandparents too).  Like my parents before me, at different times during my life, we have lived within walking distance of at least one set of grandparents. As a young child we lived with my maternal grandparents for a year, Grandma and Grandpa Jones, who owned restaurants (as did Grandma Jones' parents) and because of this I have grown up around people who love food, love to cook, and love to teach others to cook.

Our children are lucky to have one set of grandparents 2 blocks away, grandparents who love to have them over for some fun in the kitchen.  And on the day these photos were taken my mom, aka Grandma, bought some locally made pizza dough, some sauce and cheese, tied aprons on Ben and Emma, and let them make their own pizzas.  There was a little gentle instruction but for the most part she just stood back and let them go for it.  Yes, it was a bit messy, and yes, some ingredients were eaten and not used on the pizzas, but what was best about this day was how their laughter filled the kitchen.

Not only did making their own pizzas give them each special appreciation for the food that was on their plates (they both said it was the best pizza they had ever eaten) but it reminded me that by adding a few extra minutes to the dinner routine, and being a little more patient when having them join me in meal preparation, will go a long way in giving both Ben and Emma that same love of being in the kitchen that I learned from my family.

Saturday Walk

Snow Day