homeschooling wrap up: april!

another great month!

always, always tracing...

and practicing our threading...

our rotating culture center of the month was Asia!

making Chinese lanterns...

Chinese flag

the letter "M"

fire-breathing dragon!

kimono dress up!

chopstick fine motor skills

Michael and Mommy play :)

cherry blossom popcorn craft!

Daddy made homemade eggrolls!

all the foods from the two week unit ;)

and a trip to DC's Chinatown!

the famous Friendship Arch, pointing out architecture and characters, cherry blossoms!, Mommy and her boys, a bit of Vietnamese cuisine, more blossoms, and my sweetie!

for our felt, we used all Easter stories...

and worked on Easter crafts!

pom pom painting...

dyed eggshells...

lots of different egg dying...

a living Resurrection scene!

painting an Easter sunrise

"stained glass"

Resurrection eggs!

a great month!

strawberry coconut almond muffins

i was looking for a recipe to use almond pulp from our homemade almond milk the other day and stumbled across this.

i made some more than slight adjustments and came up with this delicious muffin.

super moist and definitely on the sweeter side, these are just plain delicious.

you can leave the coconut out but i'm a coconut nut.

and if you don't have almond pulp leftover, you can totally just chop up some almonds super fine and throw those in.

flexible.

ps-you could totally leave off the sliced almonds at the end and frost with a light, cream cheese frosting, like this one, and it. would. be. the. bomb.

bam. dessert.

Strawberry Coconut Almond Muffins
Makes 12.
Adapted from Baking Bites.
1 1/2 cups whole wheat or white wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 egg or 2 egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4-1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1/2-1 cup almond pulp, to taste, or just chopped almonds if you haven't just made almond milk :)

1/2-1 cup shredded coconut, sweetened or unsweetened, optional
1 cup strawberry puree (around 12 ounces fresh strawberries or frozen, defrosted, drained strawberries)

1/2 cup sliced almonds, for garnish

Preheat oven to 350*. 

Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg or whites, one at a time, followed by vanilla and almond extracts.
Stir about a third of the flour mixture into the butter mixture, followed by half of the almond pulp and half of the strawberry puree. Stir in another third of the flour mixture, followed by the remaining pulp and puree. Stir in the remaining flour mixture and coconut, if using, mixing just until no streaks of dry ingredients remain visible.
Divide muffin batter evenly into prepared muffin cups.
Sprinkle sliced almonds evenly over muffin batter.
Bake for 19-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean or with only a few moist crumbs attached.
Allow muffins to cool in the pan then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Enjoy!

sour cream chile enchiladas

did yall have a good cinco de mayo?
really, its just an excuse to eat more texmex.
and dress up in school like banditos.
and make (virgin) margaritas.
and sour cream enchiladas.

Sour Cream Chile Enchiladas

Makes 10-14.

Adapted from several sources online.

2 1/2 cups shredded and cooked chicken, rotisserie or leftovers

3 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided

10-14 soft flour tortillas

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons flour

2 cups chicken broth

1 cup sour cream

4 ounce can diced green chiles

Preheat your oven to 350*.

Combine shredded chicken and 1 cup of cheese.

Fill tortillas with mixture and roll each one.  Place seamside down in a greased 9x13" pan.  Set aside.

Meanwhile, melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.

Whisk in flour and stir for about a minute.

Add broth and whisk until simmering and thickened slightly.

Take off heat and let cool for about 5 minutes.

Add sour cream and green chiles and stir to combine.

Pour over enchiladas and cover with remaining cheese.

Bake for 20-25 minutes and then broil until cheese in golden and bubbly, about 3-5 minutes.

Enjoy!

go-to salsa for cinco de mayo.

need a banger salsa to take to a party/bbq/cinco de mayo?
this one wins.
hands down fabulous and you'll be the hit of the party.
enjoy!

~~~~

Do you like tomatillos??

I love them.
I.
Love.
Them.
I would so much rather have salsa verde than any tomato-based salsa out there.
Something about the smoky grilled flavor, the obscene amount of fresh cilantro, and the tart fresh lime juice just makes this the ideal salsa. 
For chips, for carnitas, for anything! 
Enjoy!!

Grilled Salsa Verde
Makes about 1 1/2 cups
Nonstick vegetable oil spray
2 pounds tomatillos, husked and rinsed 
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro (or 2 cups, if you are like me)
1/4 cup warm water
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 jalapeño chile, coarsely chopped

Spray grill racks with nonstick spray. Prepare barbecue over medium-high heat.
Grill tomatillos until slightly softened and charred in spots, about 15 minutes.
Transfer to processor. Add cilantro, 1/4 cup warm water, lime juice, and jalapeño; process until almost smooth. Transfer salsa to medium bowl. Season to taste with salt and enjoy!

pizza! ...but cleaner and wholer...is wholer a word?

i'm on a pizza kick.
and no, not domino's.
(although i do love a good deep dish now and then...)
but, i'm trying to eat "cleaner" and "wholer" lately so i've been using whole wheat, sprouted pitas or tortillas as my base and building from there!
personal pizzas like this, all crispy and hot from the oven, make an excellent breakfast or lunch but these would also make fantastic appetizers at a party.
not to mention, my boys love these.
they aren't even huge fans of commercial pizza so i was surprised when i first made one and both asked to try a bite.  then, another.  then, i had to split it between them and get up and make another one for me :)
love my adventurous eaters.

this first one is just a toasted pita, avocado mashed on top, salt and pepper to taste, and an egg on top!

normally, that egg would be just oozing the good, yellow yolk, but, alas...pregnancy. 

this one is also a toasted pita, with black beans (drained and rinsed and mashed with a bit of salsa) spread on top, half a sauteed sweet potato, a sprinkle of cheddar, and a healthy drizzle of sririacha.  

mmmm.

this one starts with a whole wheat tortilla, topped with asparagus, cherry tomatoes, feta cheese, and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, broiled in the oven for about 10 minutes, until nice and bubbly!  no need to par-cook any of the veggies.

since, apparently this baby wants as many sweet potatoes as possible, i mashed half of a previously cooked sweet potato on top of a whole wheat pita, topped with a bit of leftover pork roast from a dinner we'd had, and finished with an egg and that yummy green tabasco sauce.

delicious.

and finally, a brunch-ish, dessert-ish pizza.
but, i totally ate it for breakfast and didn't feel bad about it.
this has a whole wheat tortilla base, topped with slices of brie, pear, and scattered with blackberries, and broiled until the cheese is bubbly, about 6-7 minutes. then, i drizzled the whole thing with a little raw honey and enjoyed!