Doce de Leite Cookies

 This doce de leite jar called out to me yesterday in the grocery store. I was originally thinking I would use it as a cupcake filling, but cookies are so easy and don't make half the mess that cupcakes do.

 Here's how i made the basic cookie dough:  

mix 7 ounces butter, 8 ounces light brown sugar

add vanilla and two eggs and mix well

stir in 10 ounces flour (a bit more than 2 cups)

and three heaping spoonfuls of doce de leite

Leave enough doce de leite to dollop on top of each cookie

 Bake for 9-10 minutes on 180 cº 350fº

 I won't say how many I ate, but the rest are going to the boy's school before I polish them off.

Pai is Home!

All is well on Happy Street. I picked Pai up at the airport with fresh clothes and then dropped him right off at the office. Three days felt like an eternity and it was so good to see him! From when I got the kids at school until the moment he walked through the door, they were begging to see Pai.

I love that my Zita jumped on the sofa to get that cheek to cheek hug in. We call these hugs "squeezie squeezies."  I'm not sure which child coined that one.

I'm now wondering how we will leave Pai behind for three whole weeks this Summer .

Lemon Drizzle Cake

I mentioned on Friday that I had made a loaf of lemon bread, but when I went to post how I made it, I realized that it is really more a cake than bread. Call it what you will, here's how I made it.

I made a fancy version of this picture with all the amounts written on top of each ingredient, but picnik.com wasn't cooperating with me.

180 grams butter ( bit less than two sticks)

3 eggs

zest and juice of two lemons

175 grams sugar

1 tspn vanilla

225 grams flour

pinch salt

3 tbsp milk

Butter and line a loaf pan with parchment paper and pre-heat oven to 180ºc (350 ºf)

Mix everything together in one bowl. It's best to mix wet ingredients and sugar first, and then sift in flour, but I just threw it all in there and the texture was fine.

Mix in the zest and bake for 35-40 minutes on 180ºc 350ºf.  

While the cake cools, mix the zest and juice of an additional lemon ( or half the zest of the first two lemons if you don't like it too lemony) with 3 tbsp sugar and drizzle it over the top. It will add a good lemon kick and make the top moist and sweet. I had never longed for rasberries or blueberries quite like I did Friday afternoon, but one can't have everything.

Everyone was thrilled to get in the car and smell slices of hot lemon cake/bread. After the excitement died down, I immediately got barraged with "what are we doing this weekend that's fun?"

Anticipation is the Worst of It

I was not looking forward to this weekend with Pai gone. Some might welcome time apart to refresh and regroup, but not this lady. No way. I hardly slept at all last night. Freddy knows an opportunity when he sees one and slept in Pai's spot. He does ninja moves all night long, and Pipocas barked for 8 hrs off and on as a way of chatting with the neighbor's new dog. Mostly though, I can never sleep well when Pai isn't here.

Lack of sleep, however, was the least of my problems. I was driving five kids to the other side of the river to a quinta near Alcochete, and I discovered this morning that the car battery was dead. As the day was unfolding, and I walked children to two separate tennis lessons- and back!- I was getting myself in a tizzy that things were falling apart without Pai home. I really needed a grip.

The father of a girl I was driving helped me jump the car, and the drive that I was dreading was easy.  We stayed a while after the drop off, and then I had a great afternoon with just Moojie at the Freeport Mall. This is what greeted us when we got back to the quinta.

The children were all taken on a safari jeep tour, followed by canoeing in their very own lake. They all came back soaked, but extra clothes solved that problem. 

They went straight to this bouncy castle and bounced their hearts out. Poor Freddy for the first time was on the small side and got bounced right out, landing on the grass with a bang. The blow up thingy in the background was a human foosball game that they all played until the farm labrador (Downton, anyone?) jumped in and ran off with the ball.

This has nothing to do with the party, but I loved little touches around the quinta like this chimney with the rooster on top.

Practically every quinta has a converted adega, barn, or outbuilding converted into a party room. The best part about these spaces are the high ceilings, and in this case, beautiful exposed beams. It was a bit awkward taking pictures so I could only get the door leading to the party room.

This is not the best shot of Moojie, but it's the only one I got of the exceptionally large Our Lady statue featured in the main courtyard. I'm not sure the picture conveys just how tall it looks in person. If you swing a cat in Portugal, you're sure to hit a statue of Our Lady.

So a day that I was dreading turned out not to be not so bad afterall. I can't remember the last time I got a few hours of time with just Moojie, which was the best part of the day.

Heavy Heart

We all had to say goodbye to Pai this morning until Monday night. He'll be in Barcelona for the weekend, which really isn't long, but like I said before, I just don't like it when someone is missing.

I'm waiting for a lemon quick bread to come out of the oven so the kids will have a homemade after school snack. Miss Zita doesn't like to eat food that comes from a package- not even Oreo cookies- so a lot of my baking is a necessary way of feeding the kids.

This picture has nothing to do with Pai leaving, lemon bread, or Zita's penchant for whole, homemade foods. The water looks so golden that I had to document it.

Someone Missing

I never like having one of the children gone, especially not over night.  It doesn't often happen, but when it does, the house feels too quiet and empty. The saying that the easiest number of children is one fewer than the number you have is absolutely true in my experience.

I was reminded of this when Zita was away at a sleepover during the Carnaval holidays.  She and Freddy had been getting on eachother's nerves up until she left. This always happens when we don't have the structure of school to fill our days. We have a general no sleepover policy, but I let Zita go as a way of giving everyone a little breathing room.

 

(picture from Christmas 2010: Zita 6, Freddy 4)

I thought her brothers would be celebrating, but boy did we all miss her! We had one sad Freddy who continually asked when we could go and pick up Zita. Every time we transitioned to a new activity, Freddy declared "it's just not the same without Zita."

When I curled up next to him for bedtime reading, he sadly told me "Mummy, I just really reallly miss Zita."  Sibling rivalry that wears me down to my last bit of patience all gets forgotten at moments like these.

Zita came home with refreshed tolerance for Freddy and admitted that she too had missed us.

Carnaval Continues

Our first day without school was the perfect start to Carnaval holidays. Not having to get out of bed at 6:30, double check uniforms, make lunches, and continually call out "hurry up! we're going to be late!", is a vacation in itself. The fact that the weather was sunny and warm, and that everyone was getting along and feeling dandy made the day nearly perfect.

We started off at the small little beach next to Guincho, which didn't have a single other soul on it. Armed with sand toys, a football, a picnic, and drinks, I was ready to hunker down and make a day of it. We are not a bunch that deals well with any weather adversity, so after 15 minutes and a unanimous vote we decided to move to a beach in Cascais that would no doubt be warmer.

We were right.

With her camp couselor spirit, Zita organized a long-jump game using a plastic cup to mark their jumps.

Intensive sand castle building ensued

 What's the best way to get a rise out of Zita? Pass a ball over her sand castle and pretend to almost drop it right in the middle.

They got a heathy game of tackle football going where most plays ended with Zita and Freddy both trying to bring Moojie down onto the sand.

Freddy asked to borrow my hat since he was "boiling up."

The water is still freezing, but that didn't stop him from taking a quick dip before we headed home for lunch.

We drove home with the windows down, the Police Live blasting,  and a distinct smell of coconut coming from their tired sandy bodies. The only thing we were missing was Pai.

Lillies and Other Random Pics

Our first lilly bloomed and it looks like we'll have at least 20 more.

 These bright orange bulbs have come up, and if I had any knack for flower arranging, I would get something going for a centerpiece in the dining room. For now, we'll just enjoy them in the garden.

 What I'm most excited about is our Jasmine. The smell wafts so high that when I open our second floor bedroom window, I'm greeted with a combination of Jasmine and salty sea air. Heaven.

 Poor Moojie hasn't had much of a break from school work since he's loaded in homework. His new desk is the veranda outside where at least he stays warm.

The veranda is the new kitchen in that it has become the hub of household activity. We're usually out there eating, doing homework, working on art projects, and rocking in the white rocking chair with cats lazing around us.

 This is out of order, but I forgot to post this of Freddy on Friday.

Saturday Afternoon During the Big Freeze

Here's Zita last weekend soaking up the sun after tennis. This weekend is even warmer so we are getting in all the beach time we can.

A nap in the sun is the perfect Saturday afternoon luxury.

Brothers

Love these boys

Prison Break!

Reports of a prison break on Happy Street in the early hours of February 16th have been released.

The suspect was last seen with a hippie girl also known in some circles as "Zita."

He is 49 inches tall with light brown hair and blue eyes.

Do not attempt to approach suspect unless you want a big cuddle!

I'm Not the Only One

who loves Freddy snuggles

Valentine's Day Wrap Up

I almost forgot to share our banner. I printed the letters and let Zita take the lead in deciding how we would put it up.

I was a bit disturbed by the heart messages in the boxes seen below on each pate.  Long gone are the days of  "Be Mine" and "Love You." Instead, the box was full of "Tweet Me," "Text Me," "Friend Me," etc.

Pai didn't make it home in time for dinner, which was fish and green beans per Zita's request, but he did get one heck of a beautiful tray waiting for him in the kitchen. Over-the-top romantic, I know.

Both dinner and the fanfare were very much appreciated, and I got lavish praise from everyone, which is all a mom can ask for.

Cupcake Centerpiece

Happy Valentine's Day

Entrenched in cookie decorating

Valentine's Day Prep

Valentine's Day is not a couples day on Happy Street. Rather it's a good excuse to decorate, eat sweets, do fun things, and drink champagne.

My mom once again came through with a killer care package so I'm all set this year.

I have plates, heart message candies, gorgeous cloth napkins that I can use again next year, and Sees red foil covered chocolate hearts.

The garland below was included in the care package, and I printed out the clip art letters from Marthastewart.com. We're ust about to glue them to pink paper and make a banner for the kitchen.

On the baking front, I got a new jar of sprinkles, and roudned up the rest of my love themed jars.

After reading two more chapters of Swiss Family Robinson because they simply couldnt wait to find out if the shark prevails, we made a batch of sugar cookies that will do for 50 cookies, and a double batch of vibrant pink buttercream.

The frosting is extremely bright in real life.

Lastly, I have 2 boxes of strawberries, ready for dipping in melted chocolate, and don't forget about our box of Blackie chocolates. It's not Valentine's Day on an American level, but it will have to do for Happy Street.

Example of Menu Requests in Action

Just when I thought I could get away with serving pasta in the absence of any dinner requests, Moojie texted his request in the nick of time!


Stay tuned for Valentine's Day prep.

Tinna to answer your question- I've never known picanha as anything other than picanha, but according to wikipedia, it's top sirloin cap steak, not to be confused with just top sirloin steak. I wound up getting vitela de lombo which is a nicer cut (veal). Below is the final result, or "proper dinner" as Moojie requested.   Nothing like an artery clogging dinner to make a teenage boy happy and full, at least for the next hour or so.

Here's Mr. Freddy cutting the chouriço that is cooked with the black beans.

New Haircut

I turned my back for 20 minutes and Pai shaved Freddy's head.

It looks cute, but I miss those curls he gets at the back of his neck. Note his fingers are covered in wax from one of my nice three-wick scented candles.