Tuesday, December 30, 2008

In the midst...

Hi all~

I am in the midst of reclaiming my house. You know, putting all those Christmas decorations away, clearing out the clutter, going through all those kid's toys (are they multiplying in the toy box, or what?!). I have rearranged my kitchen a bit - the stuff on the counters, at least. I just rearranged the family room furniture in anticipation of our future no-t.v status - finally adding in a train set/block table so the kids can keep some of the toys off the floor (or such is the idea).

Yet I still have to get the boxes from the garage and take down the Christmas tree, that is what's holding me back. I just need to DO IT ~ yet with this headache, I'm guessing that chore will get pushed to tomorrow again. Oh well, it *will* happen.... My mom pointed out our Christmas tree space would make a great sitting area, with a 2nd hand chair or two and a side table. I bet it would work for a nice nursing spot as well, as long as I can find the perfect, comfy, 2nd-hand store chair. I've got two months to find just the right one, so wish me luck!


And one more thing, the diet is going well thus far. I am eating way less, especially in the afternoon/evening hours - which are the hardest for me, by far! While my folks were here, I had plans to make up a bread pudding dessert with vanilla sauce. We simply ran out of time, so that recipe never did make it to the table. Instead, I made it up last night. This time, instead of going out and specially buying raisin bread, I made up a homemade loaf in my bread machine. It was AMAZING!! The bread machine loaf was big enough for one and a half the original recipe, plus a few slices of cinnamon raisin bread for toast in the morning. And the homemade bread made the already-delicious recipe even better!!

As a bonus, I remembered that my dh *loves* cinnamon raisin bread and now I can make it again for him just 'cause I love him - mmmmmmmmmerrrrrrrr.......;)

Dean and I have been TRYING to simply eat smaller portions, especially smaller portions of dishes like that! So there's actually still lots in the fridge and we don't feel guilty about what we *have* eaten. Wow!

So here's the recipe for Bread Pudding w/ Vanilla Sauce. If you have the capabilities of making your own raisin bread, I highly recommend it - it makes an already terrific recipe AWESOME!!

BREAD PUDDING
2 c. milk
1/4 c. butter
4 c. raisin bread cubes (~8-10 slices)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350* - spray 8X8 pan

In medium pan, over medium heat, stir milk & butter until butter melts.

In large bowl, place bread cubes - then pour milk/butter mixture over the cubes and let it soak in for 10 minutes.

In the mean time, lightly beat the eggs, sugar, vanilla, nutmeg & cinnamon. After the 10 min. are up, pour mixture over bread cubes and mix LIGHTLY to blend.

Spoon in the 8X8 pan, bake 45-50 minutes, 'till center is *almost* set.
It will look a bit puffy and may fall when it cools. That is fine!

Top w/ Vanilla Sauce and enjoy!!


VANILLA SAUCE
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. butter (1 stick)
1/2 c. whipping cream
2 tsp. vanilla

In medium pan, over medium heat, combine br. sugar, butter & whipping cream. Cook 5-8 minutes, stirring very often, until it boils and thickens up.

Take off heat, stir in vanilla. Spoon over individual servings (not the whole batch) of bread pudding and enjoy!!


Later, my friends, I gotta get rid of this headache and get some supper in the oven for my little ones (a previously frozen meal, great for those headache days). I'm going to enjoy my last batch of Bok Choy Salad tonight.....yummy!! A big ol' THANK YOU to another Michigan Momma out there, what a great recipe~



p.s. Somehow, I keep missing picture opportunities of my food. I'm gonna have to keep the camera in the kitchen and lock the childproof gate until AFTER I snap the needed pics. It'll happen (I think).....~Lori

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hope your headache goes away.

Your little sitting/nursing corner sounds cozy!! Hope to see pics when you get it set up. :)

Sarah said...

Mmmm! That bread pudding sounds yummy. I have never actually had bread pudding, but it was one of my grandmother Ruth's favorite deserts! Perhaps I will try your recipe and see what the fuss is all about!:)

Anonymous said...

I'm assuming you checked with your OB before going on this diet, right? I've always heard, to never go on a diet while pregnant.

I think its great you two want to lose weight, just concerned that you might lose too much weight while pregnant.

I've tried bread pudding and have never been a fan of it.

I love cinnamon raisin bread though. It's one treat we have at Christmas.

Unknown said...

Oh, no, you can "diet" while preggo - just not in the traditional "starve yourself" kind of way. You just have to eat a normal, healthy diet - which obviously you don't have if you are quite overweight. So technically, this is MUCH better for me than to continue on in the same ways of eating that I have been.

Make sense??

I agree though, to starve yourself, to restrict needed nutrition, is NOT the way to go! Yet to strive towards a healthier way of eating definitely IS the way to go.

My OB is cool with me losing weight, staying the same, or gaining weight. She likes me to keep control and not gain too much - and she doesn't want me to lose too quickly either - but some weight loss is a great thing!

Hey, and thanks for the concern~~
;) Lori