Biccies Make It Better

Biccies. Biscuits. Cookies. 

(Italiano sotto!)

Whatever you want to call them, they can always make your day a little shinier. 

I have a weak spot for the usual American suspects...Chocolate Chip, Peanut Butter, White choc and cranberry. But lately in my quest to branch out, I kept running across an Australian biscuit called Melting Moments. 

The well-known Aussie Donna Hay has a couple recipes out there. Pinterest is a mine field...you almost can't avoid the recipes on there. I took this as a sign. 

Must. Make. Melting. Moments. 

I'm easily convinced.

The great thing about this recipe is that it is really easy enough to do with a small person...i.e Miss Livvy. 

She helped me shape and form the biscuits, pipe the filling and sandwich them together. See, child labour can be helpful. :) 

In keeping with my Bake-Off roots, I got the cookie recipe from one of my favourite British Bake Off winners, Edd Kimber. (You can find his site at www.theboywhobakes.co.uk)

The vanilla buttercream I used my go-to recipe and the jam was made from frozen berries I needed to rid from the fridge. Yep. Pure Mom class.

 Cookies as follows:
250 gr soft butter

1tsp vanilla bean paste

250 gr plain flour

85 gr powdered sugar

40 gr custard powder (I use Bird's)

1/4 tsp salt

Beat the butter and vanilla until soft. Sift the dry ingredients together and then incorporate slowly until you have a nice even dough. Refridgerate a bit while your oven preheats to about 150 degrees C (300 F).

Roll them into small balls - about a heaped tablespoon - and place about two inches apart on a pan lined with oven paper. With the back of a fork, make a small indention on the top, just enough to flatten the ball just a bit. Bake for about 20 minutes. Cool on tray and then move to cool completely on a wire rack. 

Once they have cooled completely, fill them with a ring of your favourite buttercream and inside that ring of buttercream, a dollop of jam - obviously store bought is just fine here....we are moms,not superheroes! Sandwich with an empty half, and attempt not to eat them all. I found that they are best after a bit of a rest in the fridge. 

 

Verdict: Good God Damn. They are Gooood....Thank you Australia!! :) 

 

Biccies. Biscotti. Cookies.
Qualunque cosa volete chiamare questi, possono sempre rendere il vostro giorno un po' più bello.

Ho una debolezza per i soliti biscotti americani ... Chocolate Chip, Peanut Butter (Burro di Arachidi), Cioccolato Bianco con Miltilli rossi. Ma ultimamente nella mia ricerca per espandersi, ho continuato a trovare un biscotto australiano chiamato Melting Moments.

Il noto Aussie Donna Hay ha un paio ricette là fuori. Pinterest è pieno...non si può evitare le ricette lì. Ho preso questo come un segno.

MUST: Fare. Melting. Moments.

Sono facilmente convinta.

Il bello di questa ricetta è che è davvero abbastanza facile da fare con una persona piccola ... cioè signorina Livvy.

Lei mi ha aiutato forma dei biscotti, farcire e chiudere i biscotti. Vedi, il lavoro minorile può essere utile. :)

In linea con le mie radici Bake-Off, ho preso la ricetta del biscotto da uno dei miei preferiti vincitori britannico di Bake Off UK, Edd Kimber. (Potete trovare il suo sito a www.theboywhobakes.co.uk)

La crema al burro alla vaniglia ho usato la mia ricetta e la marmellata è stata fatta da frutti di bosco congelati avevo bisogno di liberarsi dal frigo. Si, sono una Mamma di classe... 

Biscotti:
250 gr di burro morbido  

1 cucchiaino di pasta di fagioli di vaniglia  

250 gr farina  

85 gr zucchero a velo  

40 gr polvere per "custard" (io uso Bird)  

Pizzico di sale

 Sbattere il burro e la vaniglia fino morbido. Setacciate gli ingredienti secchi insieme e poi incorporare lentamente fino ad ottenere un impasto liscio. Raffredare un po' mentre il forno preriscalda a circa 150 gradi C.  

Rotolare in piccole palline - circa un cucchiaio colmo - e mettere circa due centimetri di distanza su una teglia foderata con carta da forno. Con la parte posteriore di una forchetta, fare una piccola indentazione sulla parte superiore, quanto basta per appiattire la palla un po'. Cuocere per circa 20 minuti. Raffreddare su teglia e poi spostare a raffreddare completamente su una gratella.

Una volta che si sono raffreddati completamente, riempirli con un anello di crema di burro e dentro l'anello, una cucchiaiata di marmellata - ovviamente comprato al supermercato è proprio bene qui .... siamo mamme, non supereroi! Chiude con un'altra meta, poi prova di non mangiare tutti. Ho scoperto che sono meglio dopo un po' di riposo in frigo.

Verdetto: Good God Damn. Sono buonissimi.... Grazie Australia !! :)

Fairy Tales

Una Vita di Sogni

I'm back! And the blog is going bilingual! 

I'll be a bit vague and say that since the last time I wrote something on here, I have been slightly busy. 

Busy raising a family, keeping a house, and chasing my dreams...dreams I never knew I actually had to be honest.  Which got me to thinking...at what point does a person say, "Ok, that's enough. I've done my lot"?

Many would listen to popular opinion. A woman of a certain age, married, kids, career, etc etc has certainly enough on her hands and most likely does not need to go out looking for more to do. 

Someone like me...well within 5 years of meeting H, we were married with a kid and a mortgage. It was insane. Would I do it all over again? You bet your ass I would. 

But yet, through the life changes, the cultural changes and the professional changes I undertook when I transplanted myself to be with him, I still crave more. My life and my family fulfill me like crazy, but why stop there...there is always more.  

I want to be better. 

A better wife, a better mother, a better speaker, a better cook, a better gardener...the list goes on. 

For the people who let someone else say that they should probably stop there, I am here to say that you don't have to. 

 For all the young girls who tell themselves that they can't...I am here to say YOU CAN. 

About 10 years ago, a career counsellor told me the ONLY WAY that I would be able to travel the world and experience life in other places was to get a job as a flight attendant. 

Seriously. That is not a joke. 

Whatever you want to do, you can do it. 

You have to sweat a little, as these things do not come for free, but the hard work is worth it. 

I wanted it. And I got it. 

Everything after that is the icing on the cake...

 A Life of Dreams

Sono tornata! E il blog da oggi e bilingue!

Sarò un po 'vago e dire che dall'ultima volta che ho scritto qualcosa qui, sono stato un po' impegnata.

Impegnata fare crescere una famiglia, mantenere una casa, e inseguire i miei sogni...sogni non ho mai saputo di avere onestamente. Questa mi ha fatto pensare...a che punto una persona dice: "Ok, ora basta. Ho fatto la mia parte"?

Molti ascoltare l'opinione popolare. Una donna di una certa età, sposata, figli, carriera, ecc ecc ha abbastanza sulle sue mani e molto probabilmente non ha bisogno di andare in cerca di più da fare.

Qualcuno come me...entro 5 anni di conoscere H, ci siamo sposati con una bambina e un mutuo. E 'stato crazy. Io vorrei fare tutto da capo? Puoi scommetterci il culo lo farei.

Ma ancora, attraverso i cambiamenti di vita, i cambiamenti culturali e le cambiamenti professionali che si sono impegnati quando ho trapiantato me stesso di stare con lui, ho ancora bisogno di più. La mia vita e la mia famiglia mi soddisfano tantissimo, ma perché fermarsi qui ... c'è sempre di più.

Voglio essere migliore.

Una moglie migliore, una madre migliore, un altoparlante migliore, una migliore cuoco, un giardiniere migliore ... la lista continua.

Per le persone chi lasciare qualcun altro dice che probabilmente dovrebbe fermarsi qui, io sono qui per dire che non è necessario.

  Per tutte le giovani ragazze che si dicono che non possono...io sono qui per dire che si può.

Circa 10 anni fa, un consulente di carriera mi ha detto che l'unico modo che io sarei in grado di viaggiare per il mondo e vivere la vita in altri posti è stato quello di ottenere un lavoro come Air Hostess.

Seriously. Questo non è uno scherzo.

Qualunque cosa si vuole fare, si può fare.

Devi sudare un po', in quanto queste cose non arrivano gratis, ma il duro lavoro vale la pena.

Lo volevo. E ho preso.

Tutto ciò dopo che è la ciliegina sulla torta ... :) 

xox sjkh

 ps - Il mio Italiano e ancora un po' semplice...scusami per le cose che magari ho scritto sbagliato! :)

Beauty and the Beast...

So here I am about 500 years later.  Sorry to keep you all waiting, but I figure that with the advent of Facebook and Twitter, you all already know that all the previous baby hocus pocus was indeed correct!  

A little GIRL will be our newest addition in February!  I must admit I am pretty darn happy and excited - the thought of not having to go out and buy anything has me absolutely giddy.  

No pushchairs, no carseats...I am ready for this! Bring it on!!

Well, hold up a minute.  I THOUGHT I was ready.

Four magical years ago, I was pregnant with Olivia.  It was seriously just that. MAGICAL. 
I loved every single second of it. There was not a complication, a niggle, nothing to make me say "Dear Christ, what the heck is going on!?".  No morning sickness.  No strange cravings or aversions.  I gained about 4 pounds.  I felt like a fairy goddess and wore heels every single day with no water retention or pain.  Later in the pregnancy as it was the height of summer, I was a bit sweaty and just generally shiny all the time, but I was still one of those pregnant ladies that people love to hate.  So imagine my surprsie when my expectations of "Same thing: Round two" didn't quite work out that way. 

Glam-Mamma Round 1

It started from the moment that peed-on stick told me I was pregnant.  Like my body didn't know it was meant to be in complete upheavel until my eyes had confirmed it.  I was also quite a ways into the second month that the test may as well have screamed at me that I was pregnant.  I'm almost sure that if I would have merely breathed on it, it would have come up positive.  This was after some time of trying - and then we gave up "trying" as it were.  And then it happened! Yay! Positive! 

About 42 seconds after seeing the magical two lines, the morning sickness began.  Morning sickness, not so much, it was all day sickness.  Within a couple of weeks, it was as intense as being on an endless deep sea fishing excursion...the nausea woke me up in the middle of the night. I was so hungry but then as soon as I started eating I wanted to stop.  It was pretty icky.   

Once it finally passed, I was ready to be that pregnant fairy goddess once more.  Well, not so fast there Mrs. Hart.  I broke out like a teenager. Where the hell was my glowing skin!?  I washed and scrubbed, convinced that maybe the nausea had affected my skin routine and that it would just bounce back.  Nope. 

With Livvy, my lovely dark mane was insane...it was so shiny and soft, like a Pantene commercial. I would just get out of bed and shake my bonce and it would fall into the perfect style - no brushing needed. This mop on my head resembles - well - a mop. It is unruly, there are bits that curl one way and then the other. I brush it and it goes all mental. The only way it can be tamed is by my hairdresser, and although I have no baby cothes to buy, I figure that spending a few days a week in Alice's chair may well bankrupt us. So the public gets my messy top knot.  And sometimes, if they are lucky they can witness the beauty of that awesome second head of hair that grows in when pregnant - it's like my halo, as it casts a mystifying glow around my angelic head.  

That is me Round 2 - the miserable old cow.

Then, the rhinitis.  Now THAT just sounds like the unattractive icing on the cake.  I have mystery allergies that started when I moved here to Italy. After an entire year of tests and things being prodded up my nose, the diagnosis was that I am allergic to the climate and there is nothing I can do. See ya later.  I have a spray that keeps the symptoms at bay, but when Livvy was baking in the Mommy Oven, the annoying symptoms all disappeared completely. This was definitely top of my list for things that excited me about being pregnant...until they started even stronger than before.  And with no medication, the sneezing and the stuffiness just gets worse and worse....combine this with a very low-lying baby (seriously I think my uterus may be in my legs these days...) and it is a recipe for disaster.  I used to always make fun of my mom for sneezing and having to actively think about holding in the pee (after 5 kids, who can blame her).  But now, I may actually be in a family first-place for the wet-pants award.  

TMI?  

Tough crap kiddoes - if I start on a sneezing fit you better get out the Niagra Falls rain ponchos and head for higher ground.

But at the end of the day when baby girl #1 has given out her goodnight kisses and is snuggled up in bed, and I get my moments with baby girl #2 who is having her nightly rave in my lower abdomen, I can't help but think that doing it all over again is worth every bit of the sneezing, wheezing, weeing, stuffiness and complaining.  These temporary imperfections will certainly be forgotten the moment I see the perfection that we have made. 
Seriously so giddy for February I could just pee...and I probably just did.

xoxo sjkh

Boy or Girl??

It is getting close to that time...the time when we can finally end the guessing games and start calling the bump (...which is now about 17 times the size now as it was at the same point with Olivia...I blame her big head for stretching it all out in there...) by it's proper name.

We have friends who have opted to know the sex of their unborn babies, and many friends who haven't.  In this day and age, it seems almost a waste of good technology to wait.  Also I am super controlling, and I NEED TO KNOW what is kicking me, so I can start with the "(insert baby's name here) Hart, if you continue kicking me in the bladder you will be grounded straightaway until your first birthday!". 

OK, maybe a bit excessive, but at least I need to know if the attic full of lovely little girly clothes will be useful or if I need to pack them off to the US and England to be used by my sisters and my sister-in-law one happy day! 

What do I want? Well, I have never been more diplomatic.  I want a healthy baby.  This will most likely be our last baby to be honest, so I just want a little angel who sleeps and eats well.  

And sleeps well.  

And did I mention SLEEPS WELL.  

I have come to understand that travelling back and forth to visit the grandparents in the USA is not easy with one little munchkin, and now I am a bit nervous to see how it will be with TWO.  And if a third comes along...well, that will be the end of the visits until they are teenagers and I think my Dad wouldn't like that one bit. 

So in the run-up to the determination of the gender of our baby, let's play a fun game in super-non-scientific gender guessing.  The old wives tales...

 

Heart Rate - According to legend, 140+ beats per minute indicates a girl, and below 140 a boy.
          My result - GIRL 

Cravings - Some people believe sweet cravings means it's a girl. If you have to have salty or sour stuff, then it's a boy.
         My result - A sasquatch obviously, I am insatiable...sweet or salty aside.

Chinese Birth Chart - There is an ancient chart you can see HERE which is meant to be able to determine the sex of your baby by using your age and the month of conception. 
        My result - GIRL

Drano - the most bizarre one I have seen yet - Pee in a cup and put in a bit of Drano. If it turns green it is a girl, if it turns blue it s a boy.
        My result - Sod that. I just peed in a cup last week which nearly always ends in disaster and there is no real Drano here.  Sorry folks.  

Even and Odd - Legend has it that the Mayans determined a baby's sex by looking at the mother's age at conception and the year of conception. If both are even or odd, it's a girl. If one's even and one's odd, it's a boy.
       My result - GIRL 

Keys - Puy a key in front of a preggo and if she picks it up by the narrow part it is a girl and the round part a boy.  
      My result - BOY

Spots - If your skin breaks out like you are mid-puberty the culprit is a girl.
      My result - GIRL

Swinging Ring - Take off your wedding ring and tie it to a bit of string, if it swings in a circle it is a boy; back and forth it is a girl.
     My result - GIRL

Morning sickness - Lots of sickness in the first trimester means a girl.  Little or no, it's a boy.
     My result - GIRL

OK, so there is an overwhelming majority of GIRL results here - but to be fair, if I would have answered a few of these whilst pregnant with Olivia they would have pointed to BOY!  

Now we wait and see...I'll keep you posted folks!

xoxo sjkh

Sweet Hiatus...

Ahh...summer.  This is my official summer vacation, as I am a "teacher" of sorts, but somehow this summer seems to have been the busiest one to date.  I have not really stopped working (OK, on and off, but still, I am never without a bit of work here and there...), and there are many many things in this house that we have SWORN that will finally get done during the summer break!  Hubs is painting the exterior right at this very moment...he is the best (and MAN does it look nice...like a new house!). 

I have been busy too, crafting and creating, hosting tea parties with a very special little girly, potty training, going for bike and scooter rides, splishing around in the paddling pool, teaching Liv to chant USA USA! during the olympics to get on daddy's nerves....the list of fun goes on.  

Just a few of the things that have taken up my time...

BUNTING!!

I have found my new little hobby - now if I can get the old machine I use to perform 100% of the time, I will be golden...

Birthday bunting for Livvy's friend Samuele...

Flags ready to sew for my mum...

End of Year gifts for teachers...I cannot quite believe that Livvy will be 3 soon and starting preschool.  Wasn't it just the other day that she was a TEENSY WEENSY baby going with me to that same school and teaching with me??

Cowboy cookies! I have never seen a more confused group of Italians...they were slightly mystified as what to do!

CAKES! 

As usual...some things never change.

Yes, I made my own birthday cake.  And it was GOOD!

Banana cake with cream cheese frosting...divine!

And of course, the craftiest thing I have undertaken this summer...

Coming soon - Feb 2013

Yep.  That is a tiny arm and hand.  And a head that is most likely NOT going to be tiny, if you know my husband and my daughter at all. 

So there you have it.  The Hart family summer.  Lots of working and ice cream.  

We really know how to live it up ; )

xoxo sjkh