Lemon Meringue Cake and Wild Mushroom Soup

I found a couple of really good recipes and we liked them so much, I wanted to share them. The first one was Wild Mushroom Soup. I followed the recipe exactly and it turned out perfect, so here's the link. In case that doesn't work, here it is to copy and paste: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/cream-of-wild-mushroom-soup-recipe/index.html

And here's the picture from the website:

It looks exactly like that, too. It's so good. I'm eating it right now, actually. It's great for a nice hearty fall soup. By the way, the recipe calls for white wine and if you choose to use it, don't worry about the alcohol. Just sniff it to be sure that it has all cooked out. That's what I used, but we tend to keep some wine on hand (for cooking :)) in our house. If you don't want to use it, you can use chicken or vegetable broth instead. Of course, the flavor might be slightly different, but I'm sure it would still be good.

The Lemon Meringue Cake is somewhat my concoction. Well, I didn't actually make up any of the recipes, but I took a couple different ones and put them together to make this, and then I named it. Robert and I had a lemon cream cake at an Italian restaurant a couple weeks ago that was so good I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since. So, this was an attempt to recreate that. It turned out differently than I had hoped, but it is very good in and of itself. It somewhat reminded of lemon meringue pie--hence the name. Here's the recipe.

Lemon Meringue Cake











For the cake:

6 eggs, separated
2 cups sugar, divided
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 tsp. salt
4 tbsp. lemon juice (fresh--really, it's better that way)
2 tbsp. lemon zest
2 cups flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two 9 inch cake rounds.
In a large bowl, beat the egg whites to soft peaks. Add 1 cup sugar and beat until the mixture holds stiff peaks. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, beat the oil, the remaining 1 cup sugar, and salt. Add yolks 1 at a time. Add the lemon juice and zest. Add flour and mix until just combined. Set aside.
Slowly add 1/2 the egg white mixture to the oil and flour mixture. Using a rubber spatula, carefully fold in the remaining egg white mix. Divide evenly into the two pans and bake for 40-45 minutes. Tops will have a crust from the egg whites (hence the "meringue" part of the name). Let cool for a few minutes in the pans, then remove and let cool completely before compiling and frosting the cake.

For lemon cream filling:

2 egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (I can't stress fresh enough)
2 tbsp. butter, slightly softened
Pinch of salt
1 tsp. lemon zest
1/2 cup heavy cream

In a cold, small to medium sauce pan (not non-stick), whisk together egg yolks and sugar until just combined. Whisk in lemon juice, butter, and salt. Turn to medium-low heat and cook for at least 5-6 minutes, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Mixture should turn opaque, thicken, and coat the back of the spoon. Do not let it boil or it will curdle. Pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a medium bowl. Stir in the lemon zest and allow to cool slightly. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing directly onto the surface, and refrigerate until chilled. In the meantime, whip the cream to medium peaks. When the filling it cooled, gently fold the cream into the lemon filling until just combined. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. This filling tastes just like the inside of a lemon meringue pie, hence that part of the name.

For the lemon frosting:

3/4 cup butter, softened
3 1/2 cups powder sugar
2 tbsp. heavy cream
2 tsp. fresh lemon juice (again, must be fresh)
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. lemon zest

Beat the butter until creamy. Gradually add the sugar. Add the cream, lemon juice, vanilla, and zest. Beat on medium-high speed for about 3 minutes, or until light and fluffy.

The cakes shouldn't need to be leveled, but check to be sure. If they do, use a serrated knife to flatten the tops and/or straighten the edges. Stack them with the tops down, to avoid getting meringue crumbs in your icing. This cake will need to be refrigerated to stay fresh.

Tips for icing:
Place four pieces of wax or parchment paper in a square shape on your serving plate or cake stand. Place bottom round of cake on paper. Dollop the filling on top and spread, leaving about 1/2 to 1 inch border. Place second layer on. Dollop icing on top and spread evenly to the edges, then down the sides. When done, carefully slide paper pieces out from under the cake. You should have a clean cake plate left and a perfectly frosted cake! (Note from the picture that I didn't take the time to do this, but it's nice to do when you're trying to impress someone. :))

Blessings

I've decided it's okay to vent once in a while, as long as you follow it with a list of blessings. And the blessings list has to be longer than the complaint. (See below if you don't know what I'm talking about.)

I'm grateful that...

Ethan's asleep now.
Craig's asleep, too :)
Robert came home early from work!
Craig has been very happy and pleasant since Robert's been home.
Robert has tomorrow off.
Conference is next weekend.
I have been able to take a shower every day since Ethan was born.
I am not pregnant anymore (peeing is SO much easier).
We have a good air conditioner.
Robert likes his job.
Our car has good air conditioning.
I have good neighbors.
I just ate Capt. Crunch. :)
Craig and I get to go to church tomorrow (well, for one hour at least).
I can bake and eat it too! No sugar restrictions.

Well, I think Craig's awake, so I'd better go. Thanks for indulging me today. :)

Life

Can a thing like the terrible twos exist before they're two? Craig is driving me crazy some days. It's not really his fault. I'm his only playmate and now I have to spend some time every day feeding and taking care of Ethan. Ethan doesn't require a lot of maintenance, but more than Craig would like me to spend. The really difficult thing is I would have more time for Craig if he didn't bother me and Ethan so much during the times I'm holding him. Usually he falls asleep after a feeding, but Craig has been so clingy and obnoxious (yelling, pulling on Ethan's hands, climbing on me) that he keeps Ethan awake. Therefore, my time with Craig is greatly reduced. Sometimes I just put Ethan down to be with Craig, but then Ethan's only happy for about 20 minutes, which isn't enough for Craig. By the time I get him calmed down and unfussy, Ethan's needing to be put to sleep since he never was allowed to go to sleep in the first place.

Gotta go...I have one crying my arms and another pulling on me and screaming.

Two weeks, already?

Ethan was two weeks old yesterday. It's hard to believe. He's already outgrown his onesies that are sized "just born" (they're tiny and fit perfectly for the first week, before he filled out). He's been a great little baby...so easy. Well, so far. He sleeps most of the day and when he's awake and fed and has a clean diaper, he's content to sit and watch the world go by, until he gets tired again. Then I have to swaddle him and put him back to sleep. He also is a decent sleeper, unless he gets some gas pains. But even that doesn't last too long. I'm taking advantage of this while it lasts, since I know very soon he'll be awake and wanting attention more. And he'll go through the growth spurt where all he wants is to eat 24 hours a day. I'd better begin making a list of movies to rent.

Here's a picture after his first bath at home.

Craig was acting so strange while I gave Ethan his bath. Normally, when Ethan cries, Craig is just curious. It doesn't seem to bother him. But during Ethan's bath, Craig was nervously walking around the house and started crying himself. This was a real cry, too, not "dry" crying. I tried to take a picture of him, but whenever I turned the camera on him, I got this.

I guess when you're not quite a year and a half old, your concern for your younger brother only lasts until a shiny electronic thing is put in front of you.

Robert got a new job! It's not ideal, but it better than before. He's a cook at a catering company in Phoenix, but it's a very large, very prestigious catering company. It's much more of what he enjoys, it pays a little bit better, and it is a guaranteed 40 hours a week. Plus he gets some Sundays off. So, he's happier. He also goes to work super early, which means he's home by 4pm. Well, I'd better go. Craig needs to take his morning nap.

10 Odes to Mom

"Mom"
circa 1970

When I started having contractions on Friday, I called my mom and let her know. We'd been worried about how her getting out here was going to work out with her work schedule and prior engagements (she has such a busy social calendar :) ), but babies just know when to come. Ethan timed it just right. My mom was able to finish out the work day Friday and fly out Saturday. She was here Saturday afternoon, just in time to take over Craig-duty for our neighbor and be with him the last night before Robert and I came home.

That was #1--having her here so Robert could be at the hospital.

It also worked out well since Monday was Labor Day, she was already off work and getting paid. She went home last Saturday, so she only had to use 4 family sick days. That was #2.

Robert also ended up having a lot of time at home since Ethan came between his days off, so he was around until Thursday. Which meant my mom didn't have to pay for a rental car and was able to spend some extra money on Craig and buy him some awesome books and toys. He was very happy and very easy to deal with last week--plus he got a little attention while the new baby got all of my attention for a couple of days. That was #3.

It was also great having her here to stay with me while Robert ran to the store, cooked, and went to a job interview on Tuesday (more on that later). She was also able to stay with Craig while Robert and I took Ethan to his first doctor's appointment. All of these things I had been planning on she and I doing, or Robert and I, depending on when she was going to be able to get here. But it worked out perfectly. I think that's #4-7.

She picked up doughnuts Monday morning. A BIG #8.
(Remember, I've been avoiding sugar since January.)

Robert hates dishes, so my mom was on dish duty. I never saw a dirty dish in the sink.
That's #9.

And last but not least, the day before she left she cleaned all three bathrooms--showers and all.
There's #10.

There were more things, too, that I could go on about. It was just a lot of fun to hang out, talk, chit-chat about things she thought I knew but hadn't come up in phone conversations and vice-versa. We had a good time together, all of us, she got to see grandchild #12 and she was able to spend a lot of time with Craig and really get to know his unique little personality.

Thanks Mom, I had a great time and can't wait until we can see you and everyone again.
We miss you already.
We love you.

Ethan and Me

I woke up at about 7:00 last Friday morning to a welcomed and familiar cramping. I was so relieved. I didn't know how long it would be, but I knew I was beginning labor. Throughout the day, they came regularly and mildly, between 10-20 minutes apart. So, as I mentioned yesterday, I thought a way to get them to come quicker was to go shopping for a kitchen table. We got the table, but the contractions didn't seem to speed up or intensify much. Finally, around 8:00 that night, I noticed some significant changes. They were slowly getting closer and stronger. By 11:00, we decided it was time to go to the hospital. When we got there, I was 5 cm! Yay! They have a spa tub, so I sat in that for a while (and it was really nice and soothing).

Then we went back to the room and I laid down for a while, at which time the contractions jumped from uncomfortable to bring-me-to-tears intensity. After about 2 hours, they checked again and I was 8 cm! That was really fast compared to the last time. They called the doctor, pulled out the carts, and we got all geared up. That was about 5:00 am. Then things slowed down again. I finally started pushing at about 8:30 am with little progress until they broke my water. After that, I had two big contractions with some big pushes, the nurses began running around calling the doctor, telling me to stop (I'm thinking, "What? After all this time? Can't you just catch him?"), and then the doctor comes in, has to put on his blue gown and gloves, which seemed to take an eternity, and finally we got going again. A moment later, at 9:10 am, Ethan was born. Whew! He took his sweet time getting ready, but once he decided it was time, he didn't want to wait for anyone.

So, that's the story, and believe it or not, it is condensed.

More pictures

Thanks to this:

I have a few minutes to post some pictures. It's a new vibrating chair I got for Ethan yesterday. We put him in it and few minutes after I took this picture, he was sound asleep.

Craig was sleeping during this picture, but Ethan was so cuddly and cute and Robert and I both happened to be dressed and showered, so we took it. We never did get one of the three of us in the hospital.

I took this one yesterday. He looks a little angry--his nostrils aren't usually that flared.

Robert got me these flowers on Tuesday. He picked them all out himself and even chose the base. Then the florist arranged them, of course. I really like the colors and combinations. He's got an eye for that sort of thing. :)

Here's our new kitchen table. While I was in labor all day Friday (literally) I wanted to get out and walk around. So, we went shopping for a new table. We got an amazing deal on this one because of the Labor Day sale they were having. It was delivered Tuesday and we love it. The flowers look perfect with it.

I will post my condensed labor story later.

Ethan Joseph

So it's still true--no baby ever stayed inside forever! These are the pictures we have so far. We'll take more and post them later. Ethan Joseph Leal was born Saturday morning at 9:10 am. He weighed 8 lbs 1 oz and was 21 inches long. He took to nursing right away and eats regularly, unlike mister Craig who slept straight through his first 24 hours of life without hardly a sip. My mom got here yesterday afternoon so she was able to stay with Craig last night and we got home by about noon today. Everything is great, I feel great, and we're just sooooo thankful for our wonderful friends who helped us out when we left for the hospital. Kristin came over at 11:00 Friday night and stayed the night, leaving her own family at home a few doors down. She took care of Craig all the next day until Robert was able to go spend some time with him and until we got my mom here and settled. What would we do without the church and the people in it? See you all next time I get a chance to post!

(Jeopardy Theme Song)

Still here, still waiting, still pregnant, still have cartoon-style feet that only look more like balloons with toes every day.