Cinnamon Buns

For as far back as I can remember, Thanksgiving has always been that day that I sleep in for as long as I possibly can and then spend the day relaxing and eventually having dinner with my family. This Thanksgiving began a little differently....

This year I decided that I was going to run the Turkey Trot 10K race (that's 6.2 miles!) Truth is, I had never actually run farther than 5 miles, but I decided that I was up for a challenge...and so from bright and early I had a whole new list of things to be thankful for...

-Many thanks to my mother for agreeing to wake up at 7 am on her day to sleep in and drive out to Virginia Beach with me, and hold my keys and phone while I ran off to run a race.

-Big thanks to my husband who took the kids with him to shul early this morning and then brought them to see me cross the finish line!

-Must thank my running coach who did an excellent job of preparing me for this race!

- And I am most certainly very grateful that I was able to run the entire race and finish!!

Of course I am also plenty grateful for the  many blessings that make my life so wonderful each and every day!!

Being that we were headed to my parents for dinner I was only left in charge of making the potato dishes...but then I remembered that I had frozen my leftover Challah dough on Friday afternoon...and the next thing I knew, I was making cinnamon buns! They were sooo easy to make..and soooo delicious to eat!!

Cinnamon Buns

Challah dough 
Canola oil
Vanilla sugar
Cinnamon
Sugar


Roll the challah dough out as thinly as you can. Rub some canola oil over the entire piece of dough. Sprinkle on some vanilla sugar, and lots and lots of sugar and cinnamon. Rub it all in. Roll the dough as tightly as you can. I then coated the top with a little oil and more vanilla sugar, cinnamon and sugar. Slice the big roll of dough into buns. Lay the buns down side by side on a greased baking sheet (swirl side up!). Sprinkle just a little more sugar. Bake on 350 for about 30 minutes. Glaze and enjoy!!

Glaze (Drizzle glaze on while cinnamon buns are still hot!!)

1 1/2 cups confection sugar
1/4 cup water
Sprinkle of vanilla extract
Sprinkle of lemon juice

Salmon in the Sukkah

It is a good thing I like to cook because there was ALOT of cooking happening at Chabad House in the last few days. We ended up having our Yom Tov meals at the Chabad House Sukkah because our Sukkah at home is simply too small. We averaged 40-50 people for each of the two dinners and lunches during the first two days of Sukkot.

I was over the moon excited that Levi (along with the help of my brother) did the bulk of the shopping and just left me to create yummy foods!

This Sukkot, we decided to get Shalom his very own Lulav and Etrog set. Watching the glimmer in his eyes when he used his Lulav and Etrog during Tefillah was incredible. I loved watching him take such immense joy in performing a Mitzvah!

So what did we eat this Sukkot? We had zucchini soup one night and sweet potato- carrot soup the other, brisket one night and rosemary chicken the other. We had a wide variety of salads including garden salads, purple cabbage, spinach-portobello and many others :) We also enjoyed roasted carrots and orzo with sauteed veggies, chicken stir fry, fried rice and who knows how many other foods.
One of my favorites was the salmon I baked for the first night of Sukkot. The fish was created based on what I thought my father had told me he put in the salmon I had at my parents' home a little while ago - I called him at the end to make sure I hadn't missed any ingredients :)

Chag Sameach!

Balsamic Salmon

Salmon
Kosher salt
Balsamic vinegar
Extra virgin olive oil
Garlic
Pepper
Onion soup  mix

Preheat oven to 400. Place salmon in a pan and sprinkle with kosher salt - allow to sit for a few minutes. Drizzle on a small amount of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle a good amount of garlic and pepper. Add a small amount of onion soup mix (Goodman's is my favorite). Rub everything into the fish and bake until fish flakes easily.

G'mar Chatima Tova

Yom Kippur is on the way...my family and I will be joining my parents for the Seudah HaMafseket (meal before the fast), meaning that I don't have to spend all that much time in the kitchen. I was simply asked to bake honey cake and make Israeli couscous (yum!!).

May it be the will of Hashem that we should all be sealed in the book of life and experience a myriad of blessings in the coming year.

Personally, I am like my honey cake to be light and fluffy, however Levi is a big fan of the classic, traditional, heavier honey cake - so that is what I made today!

G'mar Chatima Tova!!

Classic Honey Cake

3 eggs
1 1/3 cups honey
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup coffee
2 teaspoons baking powder
3 tablespoons oil
1 tsp baking soda
4 cups flour
Cinnamon

Preheat oven to 325.  Beat eggs and honey. Add sugar and mix again. Mix coffee with baking powder and add to the mixture  -add the oil and then mix. Combine baking soda, flour and cinnamon (I used a whole bunch) and then add to the cake batter and mix well. Bake for about an hour. 

Shana Tova!!

On this last day of 5772, my alarm clock rang before it was even light outside. As the night sky slowly turned into a morning sky, I laced up my running shoes and headed out the door to meet a friend. Yes, I was fully aware of the fact that we have 50 people joining us for each meal of Rosh Hashanah, I also knew that I had to put the finishing touches on our awesome children's programming to be held during services and I even remembered that I need to take my two kids shopping for new dress shoes. That being said, I also knew that getting out for a run was going to help me keep me centered and ready to accept whatever the day may bring my way! As we crossed over the bridge into downtown, we saw this beautiful view, and I couldn't resist snapping a picture. Looking at the serene and beautiful water with the sun rising, I couldn't help but marvel at the wonders of G-d. At that moment I asked Hashem to please bless my family with a beautiful, peaceful and serene year. I asked for a year that doesn't come with choppy waves to overcome, but rather a year that is smooth and flows nicely. I asked for a year filled with blessings that are easily recognizable as blessings. As Rosh Hashanah quickly approaches, I wish each and every one of you a Shana Tova U'Mituka! May all of your Tefillot (prayers) be answered and may 5773 only bring you peace, health and happiness!! Of course Rosh Hashanah wouldn't be complete with plenty of delicious meals - and so while I better get myself started on the cooking and baking, I will share the recipe for the couscous and veggies we will be eating tonight:)

(I learned how to make this "recipe" from our friend Sara who graciously made it for us for a good number of Rosh Hashanahs before moving away. I have zero measurements - and I change up the ratios of veggies each time I make it.)

Couscous and Vegetables

Olive oil

Onions

Carrots

Zucchini

Celery

Yellow squash 

Canned chick peas

Fresh parsley

Chicken stock

Salt

Pepper

Garlic powder

Couscous

To make the veggies:

Prep all veggies by cutting into big chunks. Heat olive oil in a large pot, add onions and sauté. When onions start to get soft, add in carrots, zucchini, celery and yellow squash. Saute these veggies for a few minutes. Add enough chicken stock to cover all of the vegetable by about 2 inches. Chop up parsley and add to the pot along with the canned chickpeas. Season with salt, pepper and garlic. Bring to a boil and then allow to simmer until all of the veggies are soft. 

To make the couscous:

Bring the pot of vegetables to a boil. Place desired amount of couscous in a pan or pot. Ladle the hot soup from the vegetables over the couscous. You want to put enough liquid, to the point where it looks soupy over the couscous. Cover the dish with the couscous with a towel and allow the couscous to absorb all of the liquid - this will cook the couscous. When ready to serve, place the couscous in the middle of a big platter, place the vegetables all around the couscous. Enjoy!!

Torah and Tea Tries to Return

My apologies for not posting anything since July...It was an incredibly fun and busy summer! We went to both North Carolina and NY and had loads and loads of relatives come visit. Along with that I spent quite a bit of time running (never thought I would do that in the summer!) and exercising in the gym! Last, but certainly not least, I ran an incredible summer camp for 4 weeks which kept me more than busy!


Today we started to settle back into our normal (?) lives, with the first day of school. My kids were excited to pack up their supplies and head off to school this morning, and I was excited to embark on a new school year with new students.

After a 4 week break from Torah and Tea during camp, today was the day Torah and Tea was set to restart. I happily baked cookies and got ready for my friends to arrive..and then the sky opened up, improving the value of our house, because we are suddenly living on the waterfront;)

So unfortunately Torah and Tea had to be pushed off since nobody wanted to swim to my house...but I still have the cookies...and they still taste good! So here is the recipe...

Oatmeal Craisin Cookies (Adapted from the Quaker Oats container)

3/4 cup canola oil
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3 cups raw, old fashioned oats
1 cup Craisins

Preheat oven to 350. Beat oil and both sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla and mix well. Add flour, baking powder and cinnamon, mix again. Add in oats and Craisins and mix well. Drop by the spoonful onto a cookie sheet. (I actually found it easier to roll cookies into small balls and place on the cookie sheet.)
Bake until light golden brown for about 10 minutes. 

A Broccoli Brunch

Every now and then I get a lazy Sunday morning...today was one of those days! Got up late and finally decided to head down the stairs at about 10:00 :) Decided to lace up my running shoes and head outside to run to  my daily mile while the temperature was still about 86 (yea - factor in the heat index..and it was HOT!!) My kids saw me gearing up and decided that they wanted to join me too...so we did a 5 minute walk for a warm up and then they ran around the block with me before I finished off my mile. I love getting my workout in first thing in the morning...leaves me feeling energized for the rest of my day! Back at home, after I had finally cooled off, I decided to make mix broccoli into my scrambled eggs for brunch...was delish.

Broccoli Scambled Eggs

Canola oil

Fresh broccoli florets - cut into smaller pieces

Eggs

Salt

Pepper

Garlic

Heat a small amount of oil in a frying pan. When oil is hot, add the cut up broccoli to the frying pan and sauté until almost soft. While broccoli is cooking, mix up the eggs with some salt, pepper and garlic. Add eggs too broccoli and stir frequently until cooked as desired. Enjoy!

Grilled Veggies and Visitors

Last Thursday I was lucky enough to have two of my cousins and their families come for a visit. I have spent soooo many hours with these cousins - as children we visited their family in NY often, they came to visit us here in VA a couple of times over the years - and I lived in their house for two years while I was in school in Brooklyn.  While we spent tons of time together in the past, neither of them had been to Norfolk since my wedding ten years ago.  

A while back we decided that it was prime time for them to visit..and I was thrilled when they picked a date and made plans to bring their families for a visit. The 5 days they spent with us made for an incredible time. The kids (there were 7 in total!) spent hours playing together, while the adults spent time catching up. (My cousins and I took a good number of trips down memory lane - lots of good laughs!!!) We spent plenty of time on the porch having popsicle parties to cool off in the big time heat we've been having down here and spent lots of time lingering over delicious meals. We also made time to visit the beach, botanical gardens and the children's museum. I truly enjoyed every minute of their time here - it was truly relaxing and I loved watching my kids get to know their cousins. Here's to hoping they don't wait another ten years to visit!! (I shared a few pics at the bottom of this post.)

I decided to go with grilled veggies for dinner on the first night of the visit. I normally stick to mushrooms, onions and peppers when I am grilling veggies in a basket. This time I found a bag of fresh green beans in my refrigerator and decided to add them to the mix. Everyone loved the addition of the green beans - they were soft and crunchy and had a great grilled taste!

Grilled Mixed Vegetables

Your choice of veggies (I used peppers, onions and green beans this time)

Olive oil

Salt

Pepper

Garlic

Oregano

Rice vinegar

Wash and cut veggies and place in a bowl. Season with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, oregano and rice vinegar. Mix well. Place veggies in a grilling basket and set on hot grill. I grilled them on high at first and mixed them pretty often. After a little while I lowered the flame to low and closed the grill to finish them off. Enjoy!

Fearless cutie enjoys the beach!

The girls spent hours playing with Mushky's American Girl Dolls

The whole clan LOVED the Play Do party on the porch

While anxious to go near the water at first, this cutie was super brave
 and filled his bucket on his own!