Apple Rhubarb Rosemary Crumble

Brian and I were a little dumbfounded when our produce box showed up last week with rhubarb in it. Brian's been doing all of the cooking since I went back to work after maternity leave -- and he's done an excellent job (seriously, the boy has been surprising me night after night with his mad kitchen skills). But when the rhubarb side-stepped it's way into our home, I decided to throw him a bone and make time to cook. 

I had exactly 15 minutes before my 5 month old would be waking up and demanding boob, so I opted for a simple crumble recipe, pairing the rhubarb with apples and rosemary, which also came in my produce box. I got everything prepped and in the oven just in time to rescue my sweet baby boy from his diaper. 

My recipe calls for almond flour, which is a great source of protein. If you don't have almond flour or can't find it in your local stores, just use an equal amount of all purpose flour (hint: you can buy almond meal at Trader Joes or on Amazon.com). I also recommend using grassfed butter -- it's simply WAY more delicious than regular butter. Trust me. We get our grassfed butter from a local dairy farm, but you can buy Kerrygold grassfed butter in most supermarkets. Here's a secret...grassfed butter is actually GOOD for you. But I digress. 

So, without further ado, here's the crumble!!

APPLE RHUBARB ROSEMARY CRUMBLE 

- 3 stalks rhubard, chopped

- 3 apples, peeled and chopped

- 1 egg, beaten

- 1/2 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped

- 3/4 cup sugar

- 1/4 cup maple syrup

- 1/4 tsp nutmeg

- 1/2 tsp cinnamon

- 1/2 cup all purpose flour

- 1/2 cup almond flour (or ap flour)

- 1/2 cup brown sugar

- pinch of salt 

- 1/2 cup cold butter 

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Combine rhubard, apple, rosemary, egg, sugar, maple syrup, nutmeg and cinnamon in a bowl. Stir to mix. Transfer to a pie tin.

Combine all purpose flour, almond flour, brown sugar, salt and butter in food processor. Pulse until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. 

Pour crumb mixture evenly over fruit mixture. 

Bake for 50-55 minutes. Serve warm, and a la mode if you're feeling frisky.

Cheers!!

To Quote My Husband...on This is Love

For those of you who have enjoyed my husband's pithy musings that I've posted on my blog, he just released an AMAZING worship album called "This is Love." It's available on iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, etc. 
Click here to check it out!!

You can also listen to it for FREE by clicking here.
Enjoy!!

Brown Rice Risotto with Bacon, Leeks, Truffle Butter and Poached Eggs

If you follow Pig and Paint on Facebook, you're probably totally like "share the brown rice risotto recipe already!!" I'm sorry followers. {sad face} The last couple of weeks have been busy as my maternity leave came to an end. I'm just finishing my second week back at work {heavy sigh}, and I have been going-going-going non-stop. Hoping this gets a little easier, but I don't know that it will ever feel "normal" to leave my baby boy in the care of someone else. At least, that's how I feel right now. Sorry to get all Eeyore on ya. HEY! You know what's happy and fantastic? BROWN RICE RISOTTO! Yeah, let's talk about that. 

Risotto is typically made with arborio rice, which is a medium grain rice. You know what else comes in medium-grain-rice form? Brown rice! You can make brown rice risotto the same way you would with arborio rice. You'll just want to use more cooking liquid and plan for a longer cooking time.

This recipe was adapted from Bon Apetit's Bacon and Leek Risotto (which can be access by clicking here).

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups brown rice
• 2 large leeks
• 6 slices thick cut bacon
• 1 1/2 cups freshly grated parmesan
• 6 tsp white truffle butter
• Pinch of crushed red pepper
• 8 cups chicken stock
• 2 large eggs per serving

Begin by adding the chicken stock to a stock pot and bring up to a low simmer. Add your oil and bacon to a  dutch oven and heat over medium heat. Cook until bacon is crisp, stirring occasionally. Using slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to paper towels. 

Add the leeks to the dutch oven; cook until soft but not brown, stirring often, 4 to 5 minutes. 

Add the brown rice to pan; stir 1 to 2 minutes. 

Add two ladles of the warm chicken stock; stir until absorbed, about 2 minutes. Continue adding broth (two ladles full at a time) and stirring until all broth has been added and rice is tender but still firm to bite and sauce is creamy, stirring almost constantly. Season to taste with salt and pepper. NOTE -- before the last of the chicken stock is absorbed, start bringing a pot of warm up to a simmer to poach your eggs. I typically add a splash of vinegar to the water and add my eggs when the water is simmering. I let them cook for a couple of minutes until they seem done. 

Portion risotto into shallow bowls. Garnish with a dollop of truffle butter, bacon, parmesan and 1-2 poached eggs (we like two in my house).

This is seriously one of the most glorious and decadent dishes you will ever put in your mouth. It's SO good.

Cheers!!

I did the unthinkable...

So, I did the unthinkable. Ok, maybe this isn't THAT dramatic, but it sure feels that way. But it was something I mulled over for months. Before I tell you what I did, you have to promise not to throw rocks at my head, ok? Ready? 


ahem...I took down my DIY Oly Serena Drum Chandelier... 



Yeah....this one:

Don't hurt me!! I love -- LOVE -- this light fixture, but one challenge I could never overcome was keeping this fixture level. Every time our A/C kicked in, it blew my fixture into an ever-so-unattractive slant. All. Of. The. Time......Uncool. 

Then, there was the suspicious circle-y theme that was festering in my family room. I don't know why I didn't see this before, but somehow I ended up with too many similar-size circles in my family room. Between the penny tile on my fireplace and the wine cork monogram, the chandelier was kinda tipping the scales on the circle-o-meter. 

And then there was the brown issue. After I installed my wood plank wall behind my TV, I realized how much brown was in the room. Brown wood plank wall, brown bamboo shades, brown and blue rug, brown side tables, brown wine table, brown dining table, brown kitchen cabinets.... It needed to be de-brown-ified big time. 


And I know the fixture is gorgeous....trust me, I know. I labored over this fixture to make it perfect. But before you walk away frustrated, thinking I've totally fallen off my rocker, you have to understand that the fixture only had that gorgeous shimmer during certain parts of the day. The capiz shells weren't shiny most of the day....the majority of the time, it looked like this:

So, the chandelier kept getting bumped down the totem pole. But, I honestly didn't plan to do anything about it, since I knew I'd have my hands full with my newborn baby. Buuuuuuuut, through an interesting turn of events, my mother-in-law happened to purchase a light fixture I had fancied ever since I saw a similar one featured on Centsational Girl. The fixture was from Lamps Plus and my mother in law planned to put it in the dining room of her new house.

Possini European Flower Pendant

She got the fixture in her home and realized it was too large for her dining room. I couldn't help but gush over the fixture. One thing led to another, and now I have a very, merry Christmas present hanging in my family room. {insert ear-to-ear grin here}
So, I gave my husband a winning smile and sweetly asked him to help me install our new light fixture. How could he say no? 

Suddenly the room felt light, bright and magical (ok, that last part may be a slight exaggeration). 

I'm planning to repurpose the capiz shells to beef up my first capiz shell chandelier.
Anybody else make any major home decor changes recently?
Cheers!

Miracle Child: My Birth Story

While it's all still fresh in my mind, I wanted to document Samuel's birth story. I hope y'all don't mind! Birth stories are very personal and sometimes out of our control, so I'll just thank you guys in advance for letting me share my story. 

So here it goes... 
My birth story started with curtains. You probably remember the huge headache I got from fabric.com when I tried to order fabric for my nursery curtains. Long story short, I finally found a seller on ebay selling the exact fabric I originally wanted, and ordered it. 
UPS delivered the fabric around 5:30pm a week later, on a Monday. I opened the package immediately, and began laying my fabric out in the hallway to start making curtain panels. My husband was out at a church board meeting that evening, so I knew I'd have a couple of hours to work on projects. I finished the curtains that evening, and posted this picture from my iPhone on Facebook. I was exactly 34 weeks along. I had 6 weeks left to go.

 

After I finished the curtains, I prepped my workbag and set out my outfit for work the following day -- Tuesday was my commute day, so I would be headed into San Francisco that following day. I realized as I was getting my things together that I needed to buy a new train ticket for my commute. I was planning on this being my last commute day of my pregnancy, and I was more than annoyed that the Amtrak site wouldn't let me purchase a ticket for the following day online for some reason -- thank goodness, because I would have never used it!
Brian got home from his board meeting after 10pm. We hung out for a bit and I went to bed around 11pm. 
I wasn't in bed for more than five minutes before I felt a kick -- an unfamiliar kick, very low in my pelvis. Almost instantly I felt the warm trickle begin. A wave of panic rushed over my entire body. Without hesitation, I jumped out of bed, at this point still unsure what exactly was happening, but fully aware something wasn't right. I raced to the bathroom, and as the trickle became a stream, I realized my water had just broke. My water broke.... At 34 weeks.
Tears started running down my face. I'll be completely honest -- I was freaked out. My pregnancy had been going so well, I never imagined I'd be standing in my bathroom at 34 weeks with amniotic fluid running down my legs and pooling on the floor. I started shaking. I took a deep breath and screamed as loud as I could for Brian. He was upstairs in seconds, and I choked out words my mouth could hardly form, "My water just broke."
Brian was calmer than I was. I'm not sure he fully realized as I did that birth was now eminent. Even if he did, he's always been calm in times of emergency. And I was so glad he was calm for this. He brought me my phone, and I dialed Labor and Delivery. The words came out a little easier this time, "I'm 34 weeks and I think my water just broke." My heart sank as I was instructed to come directly to the hospital. I knew they would say that, but it just affirmed a reality I was still struggling to accept. I grabbed my purse and Brian grabbed chapstick and a hair scrunchy for me, and that's all we took to the hospital. In theory, we should have had 6 more weeks so we hadn't packed a bag yet. 
I'll never forget how I felt taking that first step inside the ER entrance of the hospital. It wasn't the feeling I'd imagined in my dreams of bringing my boy into this world. I was terrified, my cheeks still damp with tears. We went straight to L&D, and were officially admitted at midnight once it was confirmed that my water did indeed break and that my baby was very low and head-down. I was still shaking. 
I'm a planner (surprise, surprise), and I thought I had mentally prepared myself for every possible birth scenario. I knew birth could be unpredictable, and I wanted to be able to roll with the punches. But premature delivery was not something I had ever fathomed because I had zero complications with my pregnancy. I had no idea what to expect. Over the course of my pregnancy, I had watched numerous birth videos of all varieties. My favorite part was always the very end when baby was handed to the mother for snuggles. I loved the reaction of the moms. I craved that moment. And now, at 34 weeks, I wasn't sure I would get that moment. I knew if I had a c-section at full term I wouldn't get to hold my baby right away, but he'd be waiting for me after I got off the operating table. At 34 weeks, regardless of how my son would be born, I knew he'd be taken away to the NICU. I could hardly think about it without crying. All I wanted was for my baby to be ok, and to be able to touch him and hold him. 
I was given an IV and hooked up to an assortment of monitors, including one watching my boy's heartbeat. The nurse turned the volume up and my husband and I listened to our baby's heartbeat for the duration of my 15 hour labor. When the nurse left the room, Brian held my hand and we prayed together, for the health of our boy and for me, as well as for miracles that would point to God's glory and power. God's first miracle -- I started to calm down. 

I wasn't feeling contractions yet but the nurse told me they were picking up contractions on their monitor. Around 3am, I did start to feel them. Around 4am, the decision was made to augment my labor with pitocin. That stuff hurts like a mother! I endured about 5 hours of that, with contractions coming now every 1-3 minutes, and then finally got an epidural -- sweet relief! The best part was the fentinol I was given prior to the epidural to help me sit still. The nurse warned me that I would feel drowsy. Well, let me tell you, drowsy hit me like a ton of bricks. I slurred through my words, "Whoa.....you weren't kidding..." She laughed and said, "You feel like you just drank a pitcher of margaritas, don't you?" I think I nodded. At least, I intended to. 
The epidural was easy and painless -- I experienced no discomfort whatsoever. And when it was all over and the pain relief started to kick in, I was pleasantly surprised to find that I could still feel and move my legs, wiggle my toes, and even feel my contractions. I just didn't have any pain. I only felt pressure.  
Shortly after the epidural, my BFF surprised us with snacks and drinks for Brian. Such a blessing! We had left the house with nothing. She had also been to our house to let our dog out for a bathroom break.
  I was finally able to sleep at this point. I didn't realize how tired I was until this moment. And, yeah, maybe the fentinol was helping, but at this point it was now Tuesday and I hadn't had a wink of sleep since Sunday night. I will say one aspect of labor I wasn't privy to was the fact that if you get an epidural, you must also get a catheter. It makes sense logically but was never something I had really thought about. For some reason the catheter seemed scarier than giving birth! But it was painless, and to be honest, it was a huge relief (pun intended) because they were pumping massive of amounts of fluids into me through my IV and getting up to pee every 30 minutes with the boatload of monitors I had hooked up to me was a huge annoyance. So, I welcomed the catheter with open, um, arms. 
I slept to the sound of my baby's heartbeat. It was comfort to me, almost as if he was speaking to me from the womb, "Don't worry, momma. I'm doing great and everything is going to be fine."

Nap time.

I loved every nurse I had. The entire hospital staff was simply outstanding, and we enjoyed getting to know each of them. My doctor stopped by a few times to see how I was doing, and I was checked periodically to see how my labor was progressing. Around noon, I had made it to 3cm, but the nurses were noticing that my baby's heart rate wasn't responding well to my contractions, which were coming at a very rapid pace -- the pitocin was turned off in hopes of spreading my contractions out a bit. This helped my baby's heart rate, but  my labor didn't continue to progress. At 3pm on Tuesday I still wasn't quite 4cm, and I had developed a fever. My doctor explained that the fever could be a sign of infection (which would also explain my water breaking so early), and she recommended we move forward with a c-section. 
The assortment of nurses I had throughout my stay thus far had all reassured me that babies born at 34 weeks generally do great; they just need to stay in the NICU for a few weeks. In fact, I didn't need to get steroid shots to help his lungs, or do anything special prior to delivery. They all said, "We just want to see a nice pink baby when he's born," and that stuck with me. All I could think about going into the operating room was, "Lord, please let him cry and please let him be pink." 

Ready for surgery!

The c-section was an interesting experience. First, I got to see my husband dressed like this:

Brian in the bunny suit, aka the "awesome suit."

Now, that was worth the price of admission right there! 
Secondly, I was numb from my shoulders to my knees, which made it difficult to breathe because I couldn't feel myself breathing. Don't get me wrong, I was breathing just fine and was being closely monitored the whole time -- I just felt like I wasn't able to get a good breath. Once I understood why I felt funny, I was able to manage my breathing for the duration of the procedure.
Thirdly, I wasn't aware going into it that you can FEEL everything they are doing in the surgery. I could feel every incision, stretch and movement they made in my abdomen -- I just didn't feel any pain. It was the oddest sensation. I was pretty drowsy, which I'm sure helped, but my husband told me it was one of the most terrifying experiences of his life. He didn't watch the actual surgery, but could see my body rocking back and forth on the table as they worked to deliver our baby. He told me later his whole life was on that operating table, and he realized it he could lose it at any moment. At that point, I felt kinda bad for being so drowsy, because I'm sure my glazed-over eyes weren't helping his fears. 
My surgical team was amazing. My OB led the team, which I was very happy about. My doctor is absolutely fantastic, and I felt so at ease with her in charge. My nurse at the time was just wonderful. She had a c-section fairly recently, so she continually reassured me about what I would experience and how I would feel. The rest of the surgical team was jovial and friendly. They asked if there was anything they could get me while I was on the table being prepped for surgery. I said "How about a sandwich and a hot stone massage?" I like to think that they liked us more than most patients. :)
I knew exactly when they pulled Samuel out -- I could feel him emerging from my belly. The next few seconds seemed like an eternity as I waited to hear his first cry. And, then it happened. A perfect "waaaahh!!" followed by a hiccup and another cry. It wasn't a hysterical cry...more of a "why did you wake me up" cry. I remember feeling such an amazing sense of relief and thankfulness to God. I forgot how difficult it was to breathe. And then I saw him, growing in pinkness with each passing second. They brought him to a station near my face and cleaned him. I couldn't stop staring at my beautiful little guy. I couldn't believe he was actually here. I couldn't believe he was all mine. And that was God's second miracle. I looked at Brian and saw tears pooling in his eyes and spilling over. In the 13 years that I've known Brian, this is the second time I've seen him cry. It was beautiful -- tears of joy for our baby boy. 

Just born!

They brought Samuel to my lips and I kissed his face before they took him off to the NICU. The team finished putting me back together (I might have been a little tempted to randomly make buzzer noises, like the game of Operation, but I decided it was in my best interest to let the doctors focus). Members of the surgical team started saying their good-byes, wishing everyone a happy Thanksgiving and I was replying with thank yous and "Happy Thanksgiving!" back at them. The very-tall surgical technician who assisted my doctor said good-bye to the staff, and I chimed in, saying to him, "Thank you so much, Dan!"He leaned over the curtain to Brian and I, and said, "You guys are blessed. I pray your son grows up to be be smart, musical and great singers just like you two." At this point, he had my attention. How did he know this about us? He pulled down his mask, "You probably don't recognize me, but I go to Valley Church." We were overwhelmed with God's providence in that moment. What a blessing to have an angel from our church watching over my surgery. God's favor knows no bounds. And that was God's third miracle. 
I was taken to a recovery room, while Brian went to see Samuel in the NICU. As I regained feeling in my body, I started shaking, which apparently is totally normal after giving birth. Luckily they were able to give me medicine to help me stop shaking. Brian joined me in the room, and we started making phone calls to announce Samuel's birth. Brian put the phone up to my ear so I could talk to my mom. I remember my voice sounding horrible -- hoarse and weary. I tried my hardest to make my voice sound normal. I didn't want her to worry, because I was really doing great -- I just sounded like I'd been run over by a truck. Our friends arrived shortly thereafter and joined us in my recovery room. They showed up armed with preemie clothes that they and another dear friend from our church had purchased -- I was overwhelmed with their thoughtfulness. 
I was wheeled to my room, where I started to ask Brian a million questions about our baby. I was put on bed rest for 12 hours, and all I could think about was making it through those 12 hours so I could see my baby in the NICU.
My first post-delivery nurse and nurses assistant showed up shortly thereafter. I kept telling them how much I was looking forward to seeing my boy. When they had finished taking my vitals and getting me situated in the room, the nurse said to me, "I can bring a wheelchair and take you to the NICU, if you can stand up on your own." I could feel my stubborn sense of determination swelling up in my throat. Dag nabbit, I would STAND if my life depended on it! And so, just a few hours after having my guts sliced open, I was on my feet -- unsteady, and not at all upright, but standing nonetheless. 
They wheeled me to the NICU. And then....we met. "Hi baby. I'm your mom."

Meeting for the first time.

He had an assortment of tubes, monitors and machines attached to him...most notably, a machine to help his lungs expand and contract, an IV and a feeding tube. But all I could see was my precious boy.

Holding Samuel for the first time.

Amazingly, my son was off the breathing machine in about 12 hours, was off the feeding tube as soon as my milk came in, and had his IV removed after about 3 days. But the biggest miracle of all was that he did so well we were able to bring him home after only 6 days -- not the 6 weeks we feared as a worst case scenario, or even the 2-3 weeks we hoped for as a best case scenario. Six DAYS. Six days. Praise God!!

First family portrait

My doctor had tests run to try to determine why my boy was born early, but all of my tests came back normal, so unfortunately we don't know why he came early. But I can't imagine life without him. Brian and I are so in love with our son!

My boys. 

He's been doing incredibly well, progressing as if he was born at full term. I am a proud momma. :)

Cheers!!

Tostones: The Macho Banana

There were several Dominican staples my mom cooked regularly for our family as I was growing up. One of my favorite dishes is captured in the glorious flavors of Pollo Guisao. I shared my crock pot version of that recipe last year. Today, I'd like to share with you my version of tostones. 

What are tostones, you ask? In a nutshell, they are twice-fried plantains. Think of plantains as the macho-man version of a banana -- you know...huskier, thicker-skinned, probably lifts weights. They are starchier and denser than a banana, and in their green, unripe form, they lend themselves well to savory dishes. What I love about plantains is that they are incredibly versatile, regardless of their stage of ripeness. If they are green, make tostones. If they are yellow and ripe, prepare them like mashed potatoes and top with caramelized onions and a fried egg. If they are over-ripe and black, fry them in butter with brown sugar, clove, and cinnamon. 

But today, we're talkin' tostones. I am of the opinion that tostones are best served with some sort of saucy, stewed meat. They bring texture and an underlying sweetness to the party. I'd recommend pairing tostones with pollo guisao or mole. Click the links below to check out my easy crock pot versions of both:

Crock Pot Pollo Guisao

Crock Pot Mole

So....let's get started.
Ingredients

• Green Plantains (approximately 1 per person)
• Coconut oil
• Garlic cloves, smashed (5-6)
• Salt
• Parsley

Just so we're all clear, THESE are plantains. 

Peel and slice your plantains into approximately one inch thick slices. 

Smash your garlic to break open the cloves while keeping them in whole pieces. 

Add your smashed garlic to your saute pan with enough coconut oil to come up about quarter of an inch in your pan, and turn the heat on to medium. Once coconut oil melts completely, turn garlic occasionally until it is evenly browned, about 5-7 minutes.

Remove the garlic from the pan and discard (it will be too bitter to eat, but never fear, because now your oil is infused with garlic). Add your plantain slices to the oil in batches and fry for approximately 1-2 minutes on each side. Take your time and do not crowd the pan.

Once your plantains are done with the first fry, you'll need to bust out your tostonera. Don't have one? That's ok...I made tostones for years without one. All you need are two flat surfaces to flatten your tostones. You could use a cutting board, or the bottom of a plate or cup. Let your imagination go crazy.

One by one, flatten your plantains.

Add your flatten plantains back to the oil in batches and fry for a second time, still over medium heat, for an additional 1 minute per side.

Transfer the tostones to paper towels and salt immediately.

Sprinkle with parsley or cilantro and enjoy with a delicious stewed or braised (or crock potted!) meat.

Cheers!!

The Lolly-Mobile

Another nursery project in the can!

If you've been around this blog for awhile, you know that I am a bird person. My very first pet was a bird, and I had birds most of my life. We recently gave away our parrot, Lolly, when we found out that we were expecting, as she was not child-proof. Lolly is now living a happy life on a farm in Napa. I still miss that little squeaker, but I know it was the right decision for our family. 

With that said, I wanted to add a bird element to Samuel's nursery, to celebrate the 7 years Lolly was part of our family. I also wanted to incorporate this gorgeous lamp into the room somehow. I bought it on clearance on TJ Maxx. 

I loved the bronzy finish and its curvaceousness. It didn't come with a shade (hence, the clearance status), but that was fine with me. I knew I'd use it somehow, someway. And that's when the idea hit: a mobile! The shape of the lamp was perfectly suited to hang a mobile over the crib. 


I found a free bird pattern online, and got to sewing. I used leftover fabric from other elements in the nursery to create my little birdies. 

I started by tracing the patterns over my fabric and cutting out the pieces. 

I pinned the edges together, connecting the guide dots as described in the instructions that came with the pattern. I hand stitched the pieces together, leaving the tail open.

Next, I stuffed each bird with stuffing until they were nice and plump.

Wash, rinse, repeat.... until I had five birds. 

Then, I had to figure out how to hang them. I found a small lamp shade in my craft room, and then the wheels started turning...I striped the lampshade of it's, uh, shade. 

I picked all of the glue residue off of the shade....it was tedious, but worth the effort.

I gave it a coat of copper spray paint, and got to work securing the lampshade frame to the lamp. I had leftover gold chain from another project that I used to affix the shade.

I used safety pins to get my birdies into place and determine their final arrangement. 

I ended up moving only one bird.

Last step was to sew the birds into place. 

Tada!! I am soooo proud of this piece....I feel like it is a fair representation of things that delight me (birds and crafts), and also reminds me of a very special bird who was a part of my life for 7 years.

I still need to figure out what to do with the light bulb socket. The lamp isn't plugged in, so it's not really a hazard at this point, but I do want to get it covered up to remove the temptation.