Mmmmm!

Hold on to your hat, kiddos.  Mama is on summer VA.CA.TION!!!

Boy.  How.deeee.

I love to cook-- actually, more bake than cook, but I really love to be in the kitchen.  I love getting dinner ready; I love exploring new treats; I love introducing my sweet ones to new and exciting dishes.  (I, however, do not love doing dishes.)  And while I generally try to cook most of the time during the school year [I'm a teacher by trade, if you are new to the party], once summer break rolls around, well... my mixer, measuring cups, whisks, potholders, and oven get quite the workout!

 

Samuel didn't want to wear his bib.

Big Brother and Big Sister volunteered to demonstrate how great it is.

They are ready for some treats. 

My kiddos and hubby are usually very adventurous with me, and all are required willing to try everything at least once.  Usually when my sweet ones are having the privilege to try something that is not their first (or second or third or...) choice for dining, I help distract them by sharing various stories from the different missions' trips that I have taken over the years-- and all the different kinds of foods that I got to experience.  Their favorite is my story of eating a fish head, complete with eyeballs, when serving in Togo, West Africa. 

[And just for the record, of my husband's own admission, I have reeeaaaallly broadened his food palate, especially when it comes to shifting past the good ole' American meat and taters.  Not that there's anything wrong with meat and taters...]

But this is not a post about adventurous foods.  No fish heads here.  No pig intestines there. 

Today has been a super carb-filled delight of a day.  I whipped up a batch of that delicious NY style pizza dough that I was talking about trying several weeks ago.  It has become quite the favorite here at la casa de Gibson.  I'll post a few pics of it once we get it all together.  (In case you missed the post, this particular recipe requires a 3 day slow rise in the refrigerator.)

But what I did bake for our lunch tomorrow was THIS:

Ciabatta Rolls

 
If you have ever had any amount of interaction with me-- especially if said interaction involved any sort of conversation about food-- you will already know how desperately I love bread.  Perhaps more than just food as a whole, bread is specifically my tree.  And this bread is a powerful temptation!  I made it with the intention of serving it tomorrow with my homemade chicken salad.  Doesn't that look perfect?  Crusty, chewy, yeasty, little chicken salad sandwiches.  (We'll be eating around noon-ish; you are welcome to join us! ;) )

I also delight in whipping up some summer treats for the sweets.  Since strawberry season has been upon us, and I had a delicious supply of strawberries just begging to be used,  and those sweet babies were burning off some energy outside, I thought a batch of shortcake would be a perfect surprise for all of us!

 

I snapped this shot from the porch.  

D and E are workin' as mechanics on their bikes.

This was a new recipe for me.  Usually when I make strawberry shortcake, I make a drop biscuit; however, in this instance, the batter/dough is spread in a baking dish.  As I have already shared, I love to be adventurous: so I decided to try something a little different.  And that adventure paid off!  This will be my new go-to recipe.  It's simple, it's quick, and I generally have all the ingredients on hand.  The only thing that I did differently from the original recipe was that I added about 3 tablespoons of sugar.  And that was actually quite on accident-- I misread the recipe as I was attempting to entertain the Littlest in his high chair, grate the Parmesan cheese for the carbonara, plus keep an eye on the ciabatta dough working in the mixer so that it didn't dance right off my counter.  (*That would've made me sad.  Very, very sad.)  But, in my opinion, it was a happy mistake!  I like a hint o' sweetness in my shortcake, so I'll add it every time.  Oh, and even though it said not to grease the pan, I was too afraid of ruining my delicious treat (for my sweets), so I greased 'er up anywho.  I'll probably do that every time, too.

 

Crumbly on the top.  Tender in the middle.

Delicious all the way through.

Sadly, I did not take the time before snarfing it all down take a picture.  The one shared with you just above is actually some of the leftovers.  Yes, there are leftovers.  How proud are YOU of ME?!  (Um, the right answer is: so very proud, Leah.)

So all in all, today was definitely an "mmmmmm!" kind of day.  And I am happy to report that in spite of all those yummy treats I made, I still managed to (a) log all of my stuff onto MyFitnessPal and (b) stay under my calorie goal for the day!

Oh, and I also mowed all of the grass today.

Go.  Mama.