Easter

The cake pictured above is a traditional Russian Easter Cake which most of the Orthodox families make for Easter and give to friends.

We really had a great Easter this year, complete with easter egg hunts, colored eggs and great food. Plus, the Easter Menu was quite a success!

The first of the Easter festivities was my Easter Lesson where my students hunted for easter eggs in the Library to find facts about easter in the eggs and in some of them candy 

After the hunt we went into the classroom to color easter eggs which they also enjoyed.

The Russian families who celebrate Easter usually color eggs, but a large percentage of the people here do not celebrate Easter, so this was the first time coloring Easter eggs for many of them.

On Saturday all of the expats in the city had a big gathering to celebrate Easter. During which we had an easter egg hunt for the kids and some of the adults too 

A lot of great food

And we made coffee for the expats.

Sunday was the big day! I prepared for the Easter Feast by making my table look beautiful with these babies:

Then the cooking began. First I made these wonderful rolls. I did not have wheat flour, so I just used all regular instead, they weren’t as healthy, but still delicious! My finished product doesn’t look quite like the one on the recipe. But here it is:

Next I was surprised at how delicious these potatoes were. I didn’t add baby artichokes because you can’t get them here, but it was still a great dish. Let me know how it tastes with the baby artichokes if you decide to try it 

The next dish was my own creation. Carrots! I added this one after I created my original menu because I decided that I needed one more thing. What is better than carrots on Easter? The recipe is simple:

1. Peel, Cut and Boil about 5 Carrots.
2. Drain water when carrots become tender
3. Add 1 tbs butter, 1 tbs brown sugar, 3 cloves of garlic and salt & pepper to taste.

The lamb was a serious hit, probably because people here love meat! They did not have a leg of lamb here. The best meat that Curtis found was lamb chops. So I seasoned them according to the recipe and cooked them for about an hour and a half.

I also made a salad which is something I make with almost every meal here. We found out this winter that the lettuce is pretty much always in season. So we buy it a lot and make salads to stay healthy. My favorite salad dressing is this simple mix that I learned a long time ago from my sister in law (but modified a bit):

1. 1 tbs Olive Oil
2. 1 tbs lemon juice
3. 1 tbs parmesan cheese
4. 3 cloves of garlic ( I told you, I love Garlic!)
5. 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Lastly was the dessert which is usually my favorite part of the meal. I did not really like this particular dessert though. The directions were difficult to follow and the end result was not worth it. Although it might not have been exactly what it was supposed to be, it just did not taste very good. Luckily I made some chocolate chip cookies also, just in case the dessert wasn’t good and much to my dismay, it wasn’t. Glad the cookies were there to save the day 

Despite all of the modifications and complications. I think everyone enjoyed the meal 

After the meal we had the last Easter egg hunt. Complete with M&M’s brought all the way from America by Grandma 

The last thing we did was color easter eggs. It seems kind of backwards, but my friend had never done it and we had one last packet of colors. So we boiled five eggs, got all the colors ready…

And came out with some pretty good looking easter eggs 

Happy Easter Everyone! Hope you enjoyed yours just as much as we enjoyed ours! 

Easter Menu

We have decided to have some of our local friends over for Easter this year, so I will be cooking my first full Holiday Dinner! This Christmas I prepared the turkey and a pecan pie for the feast we had at a friend’s house, but preparing my own meal for such a large group with new recipes will be a challenge. But it is a challenge that I think I am ready for!

I went to the Cooking Light website to find some ideas and this is what I have decided to include in my very first Easter Menu:

1. Roast Lamb with Garlic and Rosemary
2. Roasted Fingerling Potatoes 
3. No-Knead Overnight Parmesan and Thyme Rolls
4. Dark Chocolate Orange Cake

Most of our friends are mslm and do not eat pork, so I have decided to go with lamb. To add some green to the table I will also prepare a simple salad. I will not be able to include baby artichokes with the potatoes, along with a few other adjustments for some of the other recipes since I can’t get everything here, but overall I should be able to make a nice dinner if I do it right. Stay tuned for the results… 

What's for dinner?

Tonight my dinner was quite delicious, so I thought I would share it with you all. I didn’t have much in the fridge by way of vegetables, but I did cut up what I had and threw together to create a delicious attempt at tortilla soup.

Here is what I put in, but of course you could modify or add things. I probably would have done a few things different if I had more ingredients, but it is fun to experiment with what you have on hand 

1. 1 Tbs Olive Oil
2. 1 large onion
3. 1 red bell pepper
4. 3 small radishes
5. 2 medium carrots
6. 1 can of corn
7. 1 can of beans
8. 1 cup of water
9. 1 chicken bouillon cube
10. 3 tbs sour cream
11. 1 tbs red wine vinegar
12. 2 tsp lemon pepper
13. 1 tsp salt
14. 5 cloves of garlic (I love Garlic) 
15. Topped off with a bit of grated cheese and some dry basil

Heat up the olive oil on medium heat, add the onions, then pepper, then carrots, followed by radishes, corn and beans. Add one cup of water using the bean can to measure is an easy way to do it. Add bouillon, sour cream, lemon pepper, salt and garlic. Let boil for about 5 minutes, let simmer for about 10 minutes. Then put in bowls and top with cheese and basil and voila! 

You are welcome to try it. It might have tasted better with some potatoes and some chicken, and possibly some fresh cilantro on top instead of basil, although the basil was surprisingly good. You could also add in some crushed tortilla chips. Sometimes I fry a little lavash (which is our equivalent to tortillas) and top it off with some of that, but I was trying to go healthy tonight. 

It was perfectly accompanied by a salad with a light lemony dressing. Now that is what I call a great impromptu dinner   

Family Visit

The time with Curtis’ Family seemed to come and go so quickly! Last Saturday morning Curtis and his mother were sharing their first hug in almost two years and by Friday morning we were saying goodbye!

Curtis and his mother were so happy to be reunited! Our good friend also joined us on this joyous occasion to welcome his family into our “new” hometown. It was crazy to them that this “foreign” environment was our home, but we have lived here for almost two years now. I can imagine that it was a surreal experience to step into such a foreign place and find that your son & his wife are extremely comfortable with their surroundings 

Overall, the time with his family was even better than expected! They really seemed to enjoy being part of our lives for a week. Meeting our friends and just hanging out in our world! Here is the lowdown on our week together. Starting with a picture of our first meal together at the turkish restaurant across the street from our apartment.

After having lunch together and catching up a bit, we let them have some rest and then headed to a good friend’s home for dinner. After dinner it was difficult for them to stay awake, so we talked a bit and then took them back to their hotel conveniently located very close to our home, only a five minute walk!

Curtis’s mom stayed with us so we could have some more time alone with her. They were all amazed by how nice our apartment was compared to the surrounding areas, such as the staircase leading up and the condition of the building. But it is pretty normal to have rundown buildings here with really nice apartments inside of them. Usually the condition of the building does not determine what’s inside 

The next day Curtis took his mom to the local fellowship that we attend while I hung out with Grandma, Aunt Diana, Aunt Sabina and Uncle Allen. We had a nice pancake breakfast and then we went out to look at the tulips which were perfect by the time they arrived!

Tulips are the national flower here and wild tulips grow in the mountains, but I was told that this is the first time that they have planted such a large amount of tulips in our city. It is absolutely breathtaking!

The tulips are all located around this giant tulip fountain. It is not quite as beautiful as the real tulips, but it was a nice place to sit and relax for the morning.

When Curtis and his mom returned we walked out to the bazar and saw some more interesting sites together.

Then Curtis took half the group to walk around the bazar while the other half relaxed at a park nearby. After that we met up with some friends at an Uzbek Restaurant for dinner. Chris and Diana tried fermented mare’s milk for the first time. And Curtis gave a “traditional” toast to give the family a feel for the culture 

The next day we went to a local park that is quite charming.

There is a huge monument at this park in memory of those who died in World War II.

We also took some photos in front of the monument, in an attempt to get into the local newspaper in Curtis’ hometown. Hope it works grandma 

After that we went to a small local restaurant and ordered some Квас – a popular fermented drink that is served only in the spring and summer here.

The next day we had an open house at our apartment in order to introduce our closest friends to Curtis’s family. Many of them said that this was the highlight of their trip because they got to meet our friends and really get a feel for what the people here are like, that is my favorite part too 

I think Uncle Allen had a lot of fun too   We were laughing so hard about this picture.

It was such a great opportunity to introduce them to our friends and to introduce our friends to them 

The next day we headed out to the English Center to show them where we work!

After we had lunch with our team, we headed to the cafe to make them some coffee!!

They enjoyed their coffees. While I enjoyed making coffees 

After enjoying some down time in the cafe we headed out to do conversation club with the students. First they did it with the regular conversation club crew and then with our students

That evening we needed to relax, so we went out to one of our favorite restaurants Madlen.

We have a great mall in town with an indoor ice skating rink, so we decided to go there the next day to hang out. And to eat lunch in the food court.

The last thing we did was one of the best things. Aunt Sabina really wanted to eat horse meat and we were trying to find it at many different restaurants because I have never cooked it. But late wednesday night, the day before their last day here. These wonderful girls called and offered to give them a wonderful before they left!

They made us all the National Dish! It was a really wonderful meal and a great end to our time together.

Aunt Sabina was so happy!

It seemed like the time we had together really flew by! But it was so good and it seemed so complete. We were really able to show them a lot and spend a lot of good times together talking and laughing and just enjoying each other’s company and learning about each other’s lives. I really appreciate the fact that Curtis’s family came all the way out here to see us and I think that we will all remember this time for the rest of our lives. It was such a special time that we had together!

And now, only about two more months till we are home to see the rest of our family and friends!!

Fresh Chips and Salsa

One of the things that I always make fresh now is Chips and Salsa. It started a little less than a year ago when Curtis and I were craving mexican food on Cinco De Mayo. I thought, “why don’t I just try to make some homemade salsa?”

My first batch consisted of whatever was in the refrigerator, but I have gotten salsa making down to an art now. I make salsa for all our parties and I have the locals hooked! It is so easy to make and you can find all the ingredients right here, fresh from your local fruit lady! 

Here is the recipe if you want to try it at home. 

Salsa (Pico De Gallo)

1. Tomatoes (5 medium Sized)
2. Onions (1 large)
3. Cilantro (1 bunch)
4. Salt (to Taste)
5. Lemon Juice (1-2 lemons)
6. Garlic (3-5 cloves, depending on how much you like garlic)
7. Cumin (to taste)
8. You can also add Pepper and/or Chili Powder, but I usually make it without these two ingredients

Quick Dessert

The other day when the family got here we went to a friend’s house for dinner and I made this dessert. It was quite a hit, so I decided that I would share the recipe with you all. It was super easy to make, preparation took about 10-15 minutes and the cooking time was about 45-50 minutes. It was especially quick because I used canned peaches since we can’t get fresh peaches here. I suppose it might take an extra ten minutes or so if you used fresh peaches. It is super easy and tends to impress people 

You can find the recipe here : Peach Crisp

Photo Credit: Real Simple

A little weekend baking

This weekend I got the baking bug! I decided to make some chocolate chip cookies for my girls on saturday and then for our guests on Sunday, I decided to try my hand at something new; Famous Guthrie Carrot Cake, I got the recipe from my sister in law’s blog.

Instead of making cupcakes, like she did, I made my first layer cake. I also did not have time to get any walnuts or pecans before I made it. Still, it turned out quite nice and ridiculously delicious! Thanks for the recipe Brenda!

I love to make chocolate chip cookies in my favorite red bowl. They are my favorite things to bake by far, mostly because I love to munch on the cookie dough and of course I always save some for Curtis.

I love that I know the recipe by heart now. I love that they are easy to make. I love that you can just glob the dough onto the pan carelessly and they still come out in almost perfect circles.