chocolate chip pumpkin cake

It is not like me to stray from a recipe. I must be feeling a little rebellious lately, because I have been taking liberties with quite a few dishes. Whoo-eeee...going crazy!!

I made this chocolate chip pumpkin cake with a vanilla glaze by taking bits of a few good recipes and putting it all together. It turned out really moist and is a delicious holiday spin on a normal cake. This freezes well if you add the glaze after thawing.



Recipe:
1 c. vegetable oil
3 eggs
1 can pumpkin puree
1 t. vanilla extract
2 1/2 c. white sugar
2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 t. baking soda
1 t. nutmeg
1 t. pumpkin pie spice
1 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. salt
1 bag chocolate chips

1. Preheat 350. Grease 2 8 x 8 pans. (Note: I should have lined the bottom of the pans with wax paper...then maybe they won't crack when coming out).
2. Cream oil, eggs, pumpkin, vanilla.
3. Whisk/sift all the rest of the dry ingredients (sugar through salt). Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture until just combined. Add chocolate chips.
4. Bake 40 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes, then remove from pan and add glaze.

Glaze recipe:
1 1/2 c. confectioners' sugar
2 1/2 T. milk
1/8 t. salt
1/4 t. vanilla
1 T. melted butter

Whisk together until combined. If too thick, keep adding milk until desired consistency.

their hangout spot

There is an almost-empty kitchen cabinet that the girls love to play in/fight over. I send them an incredibly mixed message about whether or not they can play in it. On the days they play happily and quietly with it, I encourage them to stay there. On the days they pinch each others' fingers in the door or blockade a sister and make her scream, I declare "it's not a toy!" and send them elsewhere.

Bad parenting, I know...I know.

rosemary roasted vegetables with quinoa, feta and walnuts

Something about the cold weather makes me want to cook. Maybe it's the warmth in the kitchen. I made a great new recipe last night and I think it's going in the official Webb Dinner rotation. I used a recipe from a magazine and added my own spin on it to make it even healthier.



rosemary roasted vegetables with quinoa, feta and walnuts
1 lb. butternut squash, cut into 1-in. cubes
1/8 t. black pepper
8 oz. button mushrooms, sliced
1 onion, cut into thin wedges
1 T. fresh rosemary, or 1 t. dried
1 T. olive oil
2 c. chicken broth
1 c. quinoa
2 cloves minced garlic
1/4 c. chopped walnuts, toasted
1.4 c. crumbled feta cheese

1. Preheat 450. Coat 2 baking sheets with cooking spray. Put squash in one, sprinkle with pepper, cover with foil, and bake 10 minutes. Uncover.
2. Put mushrooms and onions in other baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle rosemary and garlic on both baking sheets, mix around, then bake uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring once or twice.
3. Meanwhile, cook quinoa: bring broth to a boil, add quinoa, reduce to simmer, cook 15 mins.
4. Add vegetables to cooked quinoa. Add toasted walnuts. Top with feta.

thanksgiving

Our family came to our house this year so we didn't have to travel with all our baby stuff. And for that we were thankful!! We had a great time with all of the cousins, siblings and parents...all 18 of us.



I love watching all the cousins play together - every one of them is so sweet, fun and funny.



Claire hadn't met most of her extended family yet, and she was more than happy to be passed around from lap to lap.



I will remember this Thanksgiving for all the music: piano playing, violin, guitar, and the "chorus"; and for the cutest front-yard football ever (if football could be cute, this would be it).

banana bread

I've always felt guilty about constantly turning down Meg's requests to help me cook in the kitchen. Since I really want her to learn to enjoy food and cooking, I need to develop the patience to slow down and let her participate. Today was our first try together and we made banana bread. She was so happy that I am encouraged to do this again.


I also roasted some brussels sprouts (without Meg's help) - one of our all-time favorites. I cannot believe so many people dislike them!! They are so delicious, I could eat them every day.

7 weeks

When does a baby's personality begin to reveal itself- is 7 weeks too early? Because I think I like where Claire is heading. She smiles so easily - sometimes I will glance over at her and she will just be sitting there staring at me with a big smile on her face!

When I see her smile, I can't help myself...I am reduced to babbling, cooing, and making crazy faces to get her to smile some more.

hard but good

The best way to describe life with a preschooler, a toddler and a newborn is hard but good. It is equally difficult and wonderful. Seemingly small tasks - like getting dressed to go outside - take forever. But then, like this morning, they can quietly play for half an hour in the driveway. They were perfectly happy playing with the mulch, stones and dirt.







And when Claire decides to sleep in the stroller during the driveway playtime, it's even better.