Grape stomp!

Grape stomp!, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

I'm a bit behind on my blogging due to David getting a nasty stomach bug last weekend and then, as he was on the upswing, I came down with it and was semi-comatose for two days.

So I apologize for being brief, but I fear I'll never get around to blogging about our activities if I wait until I have the time and/or energy!

So -- on October 21, Mom and Mick had a little "gleaning party," where we picked grapes that were left over on their Cabernet grape vines. The official harvest for their Owl Ridge wine was about a week prior and there were still plenty of grapes left that were ripe and ready to eat or process for food or drink.



Davey started feeling sick first thing that morning but, as Mom pointed out, he could just as easily feel sick in the vineyard as he could at home. So in between feeling sick and puking, he enjoyed going up and down the rows and tasting the grapes.



While at Mom's we helped make some grape jelly. I haven't tasted it yet, but I'm looking forward to it. Unfortunately, just as we were all about to sit down and have a hearty lunch, Davey decided to puke all over us both so we had to take a nice, warm shower and change clothes.



So we went home and just had a mellow rest of the day together. Poor little guy. Once he was asleep for the night I made some grape sorbet from a recipe of, as usual, the amazing David Lebovitz and his book The Perfect Scoop. Most tasty!

The next day we went to the doctor who said it was a bug going around and to just make sure he got lots of fluids. By that afternoon his appetite was back and he was in a chipper mood. And then... that night... it hit me. Ugh.

But we're all better now in Merzville. Happy and healthy!

North African Inspired Slow Cooked Chicken

North African Inspired Slow Cooked Chicken, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

This morning I woke up thinking I wanted to find a slow-cooker recipe for a whole organic chicken I had in the fridge. I looked through my cookbooks and found one I'd totally forgotten about: Ready and Waiting by Rick Rodgers. Wow, how long had it been since I'd looked through there?

Inside I found a recipe that sounded right -- not exactly what I had on hand, but close enough for rock 'n' roll. So I took his recipe for Moroccan Chicken and Vegetable Stew and Moroccan Hot Sauce and made some modifications. We all, including Davey, enjoyed it!

Davey decided, for the first time, to have a napless day. Ugh!! At the end of the day, it's a good thing I'd chosen to do a slow-cook recipe!

North African Inspired Chicken Stew
1 acorn squash (~1lb)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp (a few good twists) freshly ground black pepper
3 carrots, cut in to 1/2 inch rounds
3 celery stalks, cut in to 1/2 inch pieces
1 onion, thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 chicken, cut up in to the usual pieces
1-3/4 cup chicken stock
1 15oz can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1/3 cup raisins

1. Cut the acorn squash crosswise in to 3/4 inch thick rings and scoop out the seeds. Cut the rings in to quarters and pare off the skin.

2. In a small bowl, combine the spices.

3. In a 3-1/2 quart slow cooker, combine the acorn squash, carrots, onions and garlic. Sprinkle half the spice mixture over the vegetables. Sprinkle the remaining spice mixture over the chicken pieces and arrange the chicken over the vegetables. Pour in the chicken broth, cover and slow-cook until the chicken shows no sign of pink at the pone when prodded with the tip of a sharp knife, 5 to 6 hours on low (200 degrees F). During the last 30 minutes of cooking, add the garbanzo beans and raisins.

Serve the chicken and vegetables over rice or couscous (we enjoy brown basmati rice) with broth spooned over it all. Serve Moroccan hot sauce on the side.

Moroccan Hot Sauce
3 cloves garlic
1/4 tsp coarse salt
1/3 cup reserved cooking liquid from the stew
1 tb crushed hot red pepper
1 tsp lemon juice

1. Sprinkle the garlic with salt. Using a sharp knife, chop and then mash the salted garlic to make a paste. Scrape the garlic in to a small bowl. Stir in the reserved cooking liquid, the crushed hot red pepper and lemon juice.

2. Use a small spoon to drizzle the sauce over the stew.

More ice cream sandwiches!

Molasses crinkle cookie and cinnamon ice cream sandwich, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

Yep, another week, another reason for a gathering and another ice cream delicacy.



Jackie Sapir came stopped by our home for a couple days on her way back to Australia. After ten years living in the U.S., seven of which were in San Francisco and the last three in Boston, she's decided to head back to Sydney. We were lucky enough that she stopped in the Bay Area and stayed at our home for a couple days before leaving the country. In fact, as I type this, she's sitting next to me on our sofa, however she flies to Sydney tomorrow.

At any rate, in her honor we held a small dinner gathering last night. Just a simple and casual affair: A giant recipe of pasta with red meat sauce, lots of garlic bread made on Acme Sourdough Battards, green salad and red wine (including a bottle of 2003 Owl Ridge Cabernet). Bonnie made chocolate chip cookies (mmm) , Polly made Molasses crinkle cookies and I made cinnamon ice cream.

Yes, of course the cinnamon ice cream was from The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz. Any of you that read this blog could have guessed that. ;-)

Doesn't it sound like the Molasses Crinkle Cookies are just begging to be paired with the Cinnamon Ice Cream? Um. YES.

Anyone want the recipes for the cookies and/or the ice cream?

*slurp*

A new year, a new photo album

Wet laughter, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

So in the first year (and the months leading up to his birth), we uploaded well over 2500 photos in to David's first photo album. It's time to start a new photo album for his second year of life. As with the first one, we'll keep the newest pictures at the beginning of the photo album. So for those of you that bookmarked the original photo album (you know who you are), you can go ahead and bookmark this new photo album now: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jessicafm/sets/72157602359967344/

One year well-baby visit

Yes, I'm a handsome boy, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

Hi all! This morning David had his one-year well-baby visit with Dr. Lee. Aside from having a cold and still having allergies to eggs and dairy, Dr. Lee pronounced Davey as perfect. Who didn't know that? Ha!

In terms of the cold, Dr. Lee checked David's ears to check to see if any ear infections have started. His ears are perfect.

In terms of the allergies, I described what happened when I put dots of raw egg white, egg yolk and liquid milk on Davey's skin. He said he'd like us to take David to an allergist to do real allergy testing to see what, exactly, he's allergic to, and to what degree. It's possible he's only got a topical allergic reaction, and that he could eat dairy or eggs with only a rash as a problem. Or we could find that he's highly allergic to something and that we should keep an Epi-pen on hand. The allergists he recommended, Dr. Tam and Dr. German, are the doctors I already go to for my asthma. I also went to school with Dr. German's son, Donald Jr. It's a small world! Drs. Tam and German are both very busy men, apparently. We'll take David to see Dr. German at his next available appointment: November 27! Until that visit, we'll continue to avoid eggs and dairy in David's diet.

Dr. Lee went on to say that he'd like to see David drink a lot more soy milk than we're currently giving him, as now that he's in his second year we need to increase his calcium intake. He also said that he's a proponent of weaning off breast feeding after one year. Though he admitted that La Leche League would kill him for saying that. His view is that there are obvious benefits to breast feeding for the first year, but beyond the first year breast feeding becomes more of a pacifier and that David should be getting the majority of his caloric intake from solid food at this point.

I'm not sure how I feel about weaning him just yet, so I'm taking that advice under consideration. However I've asked Marina to start giving Davey soy milk instead of my breast milk when they go to the park or I'm otherwise not available to nurse him. Maybe we'll start slowly weaning him now, mostly to ensure he's getting soy milk to ensure he's getting the calcium he needs.

And, finally, to his stats:
Length/height: 29-1/2"
Weight: 17lbs-10oz
Head: 18-1/2"

And, lastly, David got some vaccinations: HIB and Hep-B. The nurse was going to also give him a flu vaccine, but I told her that he was allergic to eggs, so no flu shot for him. Now it's ultra-important that Mark and I get our flu shots. Heck, we should pay for Marina to get her flu shot too, if her insurance doesn't cover it.

Chocolate ice cream sandwich

Chocolate ice cream sandwich, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

Um, YUM?!

For David's first birthday party, I made a couple of ice creams from David Lebovitz's, The Perfect Scoop: Cinnamon and Philadelphia Style Chocolate. In an unprecedented move, I served up all the cinnamon ice cream at the party without taking photographs! The cinnamon ice cream went lickity-split, as we were also serving apple pie and you know that combination couldn't be beat. The chocolate ice cream was very good, as well, but it was not completely finished by the end of the party.

Tonight I decided that I needed to make an ice cream sandwich with the chocolate ice cream and a couple of Safeway's "chewy chocolate" cookies. The cookies are actually cocoa meringues with walnuts. While the photo is enticing and the flavors individually delicious, the combo didn't quite work. The cookies tasted much sweeter than the ice cream and they were too crispy to really work well. But it had to be done. ;-)

Now, in case you'd like to make the ice cream, here's the recipe. I highly recommend it! For this batch I used Scharfenberger cocoa powder and Ghiradelli unsweetened chocolate.

Chocolate Ice Cream, Philadelphia Style
2-1/4 cups heavy cream
6 tb unsweetened dutch-process cocoa powder
1 c sugar
pinch of salt
6 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 c whole milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

Whisk together the cream, cocoa powder, sugar and salt in a large saucepan. Heat the mixture, whisking frequently, until it comes to a full, roiling boil (it will start to foam up). Remove from the heat and whisk in the chocolate until it's completely melted, then whisk in the milk and vanilla. Pour the mixture into a blender and blend for 30 seconds, until very smooth.

Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator and then freeze it in your ice cream maer according to the manufacturer's instructions.

The First Cold

Another first for the beginning of his second year of life: A cold. As bedtime neared on his birthday, Davey started showing the telltale signs of a cold. Oh, my sweet boy. Sneezing, congested coughing, crankiness. Needless to say, nobody slept well that night! He was awake and squealing, screaming, coughing, sneezing and crying at least once an hour all night long.

Yesterday was spent trying to rest up and eating homemade chicken soup (my Jewish mother genes kicked right in at the first sign of the cold). Thankfully he liked the soup (heck, so did we). Mark went out and got a humidifier and some Vick’s Baby Rub. It was a cranky day, but by the time dinner was over, Davey had a warm bath with California Baby Cold & Flu Bubble Bath, warm pajamas and slippers, Baby Rub on his chest and back and the humidifier on. He slept quite well through the night, waking at 12:30am and 4:30am for nursing, but going back to sleep easily until he arose for good at 7am.



Today he’s doing a lot better, though he’s still got a crusty nose and a slightly cranky personality. That could be just as much from the cold as the fact that the weather’s funky and he’s had to stay in the house all day instead of going for a long walk and an hour at the playground.

Oh, and now I’VE got the cold, too. At least that means I’m making appropriate antibodies to pass along to him through my milk. There’s always a bright side.

Somebody please pass the Kleenex.

Happy birthday David!

Teddy Bear Zombie, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

Our sweet baby David is now a year old! Yes, everyone kept (okay, still keeps) telling us that time flies when you have a baby. I always agreed with them and said I understood. And I still suppose I did understand, but until you've got a kid, it's impossible to realize just how fast time zooms by.



We celebrated his birthday with a party filled with family. Everyone brought something tasty to share for lunch and we supplied the hamburgers, hot dogs, sausages, Chinese chicken salad, cinnamon ice cream, chocolate ice cream, crystal geyser sparkling water and organic sodas. As befitting a Freiberg (or Merz) family gathering, there was too much food and it was all fabulous. Go family!

Everyone was so generous in their time and gifts to David. It's marvelous to see him well loved.



For his part, Davey seemed to enjoy watching everyone (he IS a real people watcher), crawling around, playing with his toys, eating lunch al fresco with everyone and getting to eat birthday cake.



He did need to escape to the quiet of his room a couple of times, which is understandable. It was a lot of commotion and action for one little guy to take in. Once everyone was gone, we had a quiet time, the three of us, opening the remainder of his gifts. Davey's having a good time exploring all his new toys and books. Thank you everyone!

After a quiet dinner for the three of us, Davey had a nice, big-boy bath in the adult-sized tub with some new bubble bath. Mmmm, fun! Mark gave him a new hair-do:



While having his bath, Dad and Linda stopped by on their way home from the airport. They'd had a gig in Florida on Saturday and spent Sunday aboard aircraft, flying home... on their anniversary... in different rows. Awww. :-( But they were happy to be home and together. After visiting a while and bringing Davey a really cute card, they headed out to have a romantic anniversary dinner at Kitchen on Grant Avenue. Happy Anniversary, Dad and Linda!

And speaking of anniversaries... Happy anniversary David and Dee Merz!

October 7 is a great day.

Enjoying his pig on a string

Enjoying his pig on a string, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

Nearly 1 year old - holy cow!

Today I brought down two toys that were gifts to him before he was born. Until now, I wasn't sure if he was ready for them. But now he's most definitely ready and enjoying them greatly. Debra, one of my colleagues, got these wonderful toys (grasshopper, pig, chicken and car) from a wood crafts-person in New Hampshire. They're absolutely gorgeous and have captivated Davey.

Thank you Debra!

Someone likes guacamole

P1030428.JPG, originally uploaded by freemntn.

Davey's recently shown us that he's over the whole "bland food," thing. On Thursday night he gobbled up boef provencal that I made for dinner, sauce, onions, fennel bulb and all. Last night he cheerfully chowed down on ling cod sauteed in white wine, lemon and capers. And tonight he gobbled up guacamole on tortilla chips. He didn't eat so many chips, but we did a lot of double (and triple) dipping in the guacamole.

What a good little eater!

Zoo day!

Looking for Lemurs, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

Recently we decided the day was perfect for a family visit to the zoo. Mark had a bus to check out in the Sunset, I looked out at the sky and suggested we head to the zoo after he'd looked at the bus.

What a perfect plan!

The day was beautiful and sunny, a rarity in the Sunset District. The San Francisco Zoo wasn't very crowded so we were able to get up close and see pretty much any animals we wanted; even the lions in the Cat House, who were being weighed.

We got to see the penguins being fed:

Unfortunately, the petting zoo was closed -- it looked like they were renovating it -- so Davey didn't get a chance to pet and feed the goats (a favorite childhood memory of mine). However, we did enjoy the Meerkat exhibit right by the closed off petting zoo entrance.

The playground there was a bit of a disappointment. I remember it being pretty darned cool when I was a kid, but they've had to remove the old aircraft and stuff like that in the name of "safety." sigh. The equipment that was there was old, wood, metal and getting rusted. That said, Davey enjoyed the slide with Mark:

Last, but definitely not least, we had some quiet time with the western lowland gorillas!

On the way home we stopped on Clement Street and grabbed a couple delicious carne asada burritos from Gordo Burrito to take home for dinner.

While Davey didn't get excited about the animals, per se, he did watch them and look where we pointed and seemed to enjoy a day in the sun with his mommy and daddy.

All in all, so did we.

Bubbles make it better

P1030270_2.JPG, originally uploaded by freemntn.

I gotta be meeeeee!

I gotta be meeeeee!, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

Gazing off in the distance

Gazing off in the distance, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

Who's over there?

Who's over there?, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

Happy 14 Prescott!

Prescott IS a pretty, pretty princess, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

Last weekend we celebrated the 14th birthday of our wonderful nephew, Prescott. Such a nice 14 year old boy you haven't met, let me tell you!

It was a very fun family and close friend party -- all the guests hand-picked by Prescott, himself. He chose well. It was a very relaxing, filling, tasty and fun-filled afternoon.

Happy birthday Prescott!!

Of course there's a food angle for this blog, right?

I made the Chinese Chicken Salad recipe from Simply Recipes. That salad, while time consuming to make, has become my favorite in the couple of months since I first tried it. Apparently others also loved it at the party, as several folks asked for the recipe. So folks, there it is -- enjoy!

I also took this opportunity to try out a vegan cake recipe. Davey is still quite allergic to eggs and dairy and as his first birthday approaches, I'm anxiously trying to determine what kind of cake I can make for the big day. I surfed the web. I scoured my cookbooks. I asked for advice from David Lebovitz, who kindly replied and suggested using soy products and (ick) margarine, but that he'd avoided such things so didn't have any experience to share. Then the idea hit me... I asked Dad to pose the question for a good recipe to his compatriots in the Cooking Conference on The Well. That was a great idea as several members posted some suggestions!



The one I ended up going with was the vegan creme filled devil's food cupcake. While it's not what I'd choose for my own cake and I thought perhaps it was a little dense for my taste, it was quite good for vegan and Davey seemed to like the half I gave him with lunch on Sunday.



I didn't do the top decorations (i.e. squiggles) for this dry-run, but I'll go nuts when it comes time for the real birthday cupcakes. Also, note that the recipe for the creme filling made entirely too much and it was quite thick and difficult to pipe. I think I might figure out how to halve the recipe (if my 6qt mixer will let me) and make it a little thinner. It was pretty difficult to pipe because of its density. I think it might be nice to add a little flavoring such as orange, cherry, or peppermint, too.

Until then, here's the recipe:

Devil's Food Cupcakes With Fluffy White Filling and Chocolate Icing

Adapted from "Vegan With a Vengeance," by Isa Chandra Moskowitz (Marlowe, 2005)

FOR THE CUPCAKES:
Nonstick cooking spray
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
3 tablespoons black cocoa powder (see note) or more Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup plain soy milk
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

FOR THE FILLING:
1/3 cup nonhydrogenated margarine, such as Earthbalance
1/3 cup nonhydrogenated shortening
2-1/2 to 3 cups confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the chocolate icing:
1/3 cup plain soy milk
4 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup or confectioners' sugar

For the royal icing:
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons plain soy milk.

1. For the cupcakes: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-muffin pan with paper liners, and spray lightly with nonstick spray. In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and
salt. In a mixer, combine the soy milk, oil, syrup, sugar, vinegar and vanilla. Mix at medium speed for 2 minutes. Add half the dry ingredients and mix to blend. Add remaining dry ingredients and mix for 1 minute.

2. Use a standard ice cream scoop to fill cupcake liners 3/4 full. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Turn out onto a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.

3. For the filling: In a mixer, beat margarine and shortening until combined. Add 2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar and beat until very fluffy, about 10 minutes. Taste for sweetness and add remaining 1/2 cup sugar if
desired. Add vanilla and beat for 1 minute more.

4. For the chocolate icing: In a small skillet, bring soy milk to a simmer. Reduce heat to very low and stir in the chocolate and maple syrup, stirring until just melted. Turn off heat.

5. For the royal icing: Using an electric mixer or by hand, sift sugar into a bowl and add 1 tablespoon soy milk. Mix, adding up to 1 more tablespoon soy milk until consistency is like stiff toothpaste.

6. To assemble: Prepare two pastry bags, one fitted with a large plain tip, and one with a small writing tip. Fill large-tipped bag with filling, and the small-tipped bag with royal icing. (Instead of pastry bags, thick resealable plastic bags may be used. For filling, cut off one corner of bag so the opening measures a scant 1/2 inch across. For icing, opening should be just large enough to pipe a thin line.)

7. Using your pinkie, poke a hole in center of each cupcake top about an inch deep. Push tip of pastry bag with filling into each hole, firmly squeezing in filling and slowly drawing tip up and out. When all cakes
have been filled, wipe off any excess that sticks out from holes; tops of cupcakes should be flat.

8. Place cupcakes on a baking sheet or tray that fits in refrigerator. Rewarm pan of chocolate icing over low heat if necessary, stirring constantly. Dip top of each cupcake into icing, swirling to coat completely. When all cupcakes are dipped, refrigerate 10 to 15 minutes to set. When set, use royal icing to make squiggles across center of each cupcake. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve, up to 1 day.

Yield: 12 cupcakes.

Note: Black cocoa, which gives the cake its characteristic dark color and bittersweet flavor, is available from King Arthur Flour, (800) 827-6836

Pistachio Gelato

Pistachio Gelato, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

The latest and greatest ice cream made in our kitchen was this Pistachio Gelato. Of course this came from David Lebovitz, but this time it was a recipe from his blog, not from his book.

It turns out he was coveting one of the prizes I received from the Menu for Hope III raffle from last December: the Bronte Pistachio Creme. I'd been holding off opening that jar as one of those, "That's just too good to eat, I can't open it until I know what I'm going to do with it." David came up with the perfect idea and blogged about it.

Armed with his (very simple) recipe, I gave it a shot. When I gave Mark the dasher to lick, as I moved the gelato from the freezer bowl to its container, he exclaimed that it was the best ice cream I've made thus far (and I've made a lot of ice cream now).

Sweet, but not too sweet, incredibly rich tasting; this is my absolute favorite gelato. It blows away any pistachio gelato I've ever bought, including the one I got at a gelateria in Lucca.

And now that I've used up my jar of pistachio paste, I will just have to live with the memories of this luscious frozen creation. Unless I find that paste again somewhere...

Pistachio Gelato
Recipe from David Lebovitz

About 3 cups

2 cups whole milk
1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
7 ounces Bronte pistachio paste
a few drops of lemon juice

1. Make a slurry by mixing the 1/4 cup of the milk with the cornstarch, mixing until the starch is dissolved and the mixture is smooth.

2. Heat the rest of the milk and the sugar in a medium-sized saucepan.

3. When it almost starts to boil, stir in the cornstarch mixture and cook at gentle simmer for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.

4. Remove from heat, scrape into a bowl, and chill thoroughly, preferably overnight.

5. Once chilled, whisk in the pistachio paste and just a few drops of lemon juice until smooth.

6. Freeze the gelato in your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Wow, I'm officially a published photographer!

Impeach Cheney!, originally uploaded by jessicafm.

I received two tear-outs and two copies of the September 2007 issue of San Francisco Magazine in the mail today. They purchased this photo that I took during the MLB All Star Game and published it on pages 48-49 of this month's issue of their magazine. How very cool!

Now I'll have to start dressing like an artist.

3 years!

Picnic at Point Reyes on Mark & Jessica's 3rd wedding anniversary
Originally uploaded by jessicafm

Wow, yesterday we celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary. Sweetie Mark let me sleep in until almost 9 and had a cup of decaf ready for me when I woke. Ah, how nice! I hadn't slept that late in I don't remember how long.

Then we packed up the stroller, some lunch stuff for Davey and headed out the back roads for a little country drive. We stopped at the Rouge et Noir cheese factory to pick up lunch stuff for Mark and I and then drove to Point Reyes headquarters to have a little picnic. A nice bench in the shade of bays and pines, a tasty lunch, a good mood, perfect temperatures and a happy baby... it was lovely. Then we went for a stroll along the Earthquake Trail, with Davey enjoying pushing his stroller for part of the way.

Afterwards we drove back to civilization through Lagunitas, waving to Schuster as we passed by his street. We passed through Woodacre where Mark showed where he lived for a short while as a young boy. Then we drove by a few open houses in the Dominican area of San Rafael, just for the fun of it, ending up at Northgate Mall to stroll around, let Davey play in the playground for a bit, and do some window shopping. Okay, I bought some very cool shoes, too. :-)

We met up with Dad and Linda at El Encanto for an early supper, which was delicious and very fun, as usual.

Dad and Linda gave us two very beautiful floral arrangements as anniversary gifts, because they couldn't decide between the two. Thank you guys!

Wow, 3 years... it's been wonderful so far and it's just getting better. Love, love, love!

Tunnel!

Tunnel
Originally uploaded by jessicafm.

11 months old

Goofing around on the playground - 11 months old
Originally uploaded by jessicafm.

Amazing to think of it, but 11 months ago I was cradling a tiny little bundle in my arms while lying in a hospital bed, wondering at his newborn beauty.

Now he's got 4 teeth with a 5th making its way through, waves bye-bye and hi, says: mama, dada, mama-baba, walks with a little aid from his push-car (or a helpful grown-up), eats solid foods, plays hide-and-seek and generally fills our home with love and joy.

We measured him today and our unofficial numbers have him at 29 inches long and 17-1/2 pounds. He's a great eater, but is still a skinny little muscle boy.

Happy 11 month birthday, my baby!

I think I'll try some corn on the cob!

I think I'll try some corn on the cob!
Originally uploaded by jessicafm.

It seems that Davey likes corn! At least he likes the idea of chomping on the cob like Mommy and Daddy. He did manage to pop a few kernels with his four little teeth. Notice that he wouldn't let go of his prized red ball though. ;-)

And so begins his interest in cars

Davey's been pushing everything he can around the house lately. If it's a book, he crawls along and pushes the book with one palm. If it's an overturned plastic bowl, he gets up on his knees and pushes. It seemed like it was really time to get him a push-car, yeah? Well, YEAH! We picked up this car on Tuesday afternoon and as soon as Mark put it together that evening, Davey was pushing it everywhere he could inside the house. Now it goes at a bit of a breakneck speed on the hardwood floors. But it's just the right speed on the lawn:





And his first experience with automotive problems:

Love-filled, lively, lickable Labor Day

What started out as a, "Hey, let's check out this barbecue recipe," between a small number of close family turned in to a big Schuster/Freiberg/Merz family get together in our back yard.

Earlier in the week Polly sent an email to Dad, uncle Jon and I to share a recipe from America's Test Kitchen for Kansas City BBQ Sauce:

Kansas City barbecue sauce is very sticky, sweet, and smoky—far more so than most tomato-based sauces. We like our barbecue sauce extra-thick. If you like a thinner, smoother texture, the sauce can be strained after it has finished cooking.

Makes about 4 cups

• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1 onion, minced
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup root beer
• 1 cup cider vinegar
• 1 cup dark corn syrup
• 1/2 cup molasses
• 1/2 cup tomato paste
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons brown mustard
• 1 tablespoon hot sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)

Heat oil in saucepan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Whisk in remaining ingredients, except for liquid smoke, and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until mixture is thick and has reduced to 4 cups, about 1 hour. Stir in liquid smoke, if using. (Sauce can be refrigerated in airtight container for up to 1 week.)

Now doesn't that sound good?

Instead of making this, however, I mentioned a recipe I'd just seen on Simply Recipes for Grilled Spicy Citrus Ribs, and was curious to try. Not that the Kansas City BBQ recipe didn't sound good, but... I was hoping maybe we could have a little rib-off. ;-)

Unfortunately, uncle Jon is having major back pain and couldn't come over. And it was all very last minute that Polly and Dad decided to come over. Then on Monday morning Polly asked if we should invite Ginger Barton, if she was still in town. "Hey, that's a great idea!" Polly called Ginger and, indeed, she was in town for one more day before heading back to Oregon. She wanted to come to a BBQ, as did Wolfgang and Amy Schuster and their kids, Mason and Morgan, as well as Steve Schuster and their daughter, Bethany. Phew -- we just went from a few people to a full-on party. Since the Schusters and the Freibergs may as well be one family, this was one heck of a wonderful afternoon!

I made some ribs based on a combination of Simply Recipe's version and my uncle Jon's barbecue glaze (recipe at the end of this post), plus some strawberry lemonade. Polly brought some lentil and corn salad, popcorn and "broken peach frosting ice cream," and some marinated tri-tip. Dad brought a bunch of hummus dips, corn, sausages and beer. Wolf and Amy brought sourdough bread, potato salad, corn and limeade. Steve brought sourdough bread (still warm from the ovens) and garlic to make some great garlic/olive oil/vinegar dip, using the olive oil I received from Sara of Ms Adventures in Italy as part of my winnings in the Menu for Hope III raffle.




It was quite a feast and quite a love-fest. I absolutely love everyone who was at our home...

Now, for the recipes.

Strawberry Lemonade
Based on the basil lemonade from Orangette
2 cups Strawberry Lemon Syrup (see below)
2 cups cold water
2 cups ice cubes
1 ¼ cups fresh lemon juice

Stir together in a large pitcher and serve in a tall glass, "on the rocks."

Strawberry Lemon Syrup
2 cups water
1 cup sugar
4 strips of lemon zest
1 cup sliced strawberries

Bring water, sugar and lemon zest to a boil in a medium sized pot. Once boiled and the sugar is dissolved, turn off heat, add the strawberries, put a lid on the pot and let sit for at least an hour. Strain out strawberries and lemon zest and chill until ready to use.



Barbecued Ribs
Based on Simply Recipes Grilled Spicy Citrus Ribs
Ribs
2 racks of ribs (about 4 pounds), St. Louis-cut spareribs or baby back ribs*
2 1/2 cups spicy citrus brine
Oil for the grill grate
1 cup "uncle Jon's glaze" (recipe to follow)

Spicy Citrus Brine
1 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (about 3 oranges)
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (1-2 limes)
1/4 cup water

2 Tbsp Kosher salt
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 Tbsp crushed red pepper flakes

1. Prepare the brine. Combine the juices and water and measure in a measuring cup. You should have exactly 2 1/2 cups liquid. If you have less, add enough water so that you have 2 1/2 cups of liquid, if you have more, discard the excess. The correct ratio of liquid to salt is important for the brine to work properly. Place liquids in a medium sized bowl, add other brine ingredients - salt, thyme, and red pepper flakes. Stir for half a minute until the salt has completely dissolved.

2. Prepare the ribs. If you want, remove the thin membrane that lines the concave side of each rib rack. This will make it easier for the brine and spices to penetrate as well as easier to cut and eat when the ribs are done. Insert a dull knife edge between the membrane and ribs to loosen. Grip the loosened membrane and pull away to remove. Cut the racks in half. Put in a plastic ziplock freezer bag. Add the brine to the bag. Squeeze the excess air out of the bag and seal the bag. Massage the brine into the ribs. Place the bag of brine and ribs into a bowl (in case there is leakage) and place into the refrigerator. Refrigerate in the brine for 3-6 hours. Note that brining too long can over-saturate the meat with the brine. So stick within the 3-6 hour time frame.

Uncle Jon's BBQ Glaze
1/2 cup good quality raspberry jam
1/2 cup sweet chili sauce

Stir ingredients in a bowl (or measuring cup) until thoroughly mixed.


3. Heat the grill to 300-325 degrees with indirect heat. I was using a gas grill, which made this easy: I turned on the outer burners but left the middle flames off.

4. Remove the ribs from the ziplock and pat off them dry with paper towels. Place on the grill for about 25-30 minutes. After 20-25 minutes, flip the ribs and cook for another 15 minutes. Then brush on a liberal amount of Uncle Jon's Glaze and cook for 10 minutes. Flip ribs one more time, apply a liberal amount of glaze and cook for another 5 or 10 minutes. The internal temperature of the ribs, with an instant read thermometer, should read 155 degrees.

5. When the ribs are to temperature, take them off, let them rest a little while and then slice up in to one or two rib sections.

Grab your napkins and dig in!

Moments in time at the Sausalito Art Festival

How can I resist this face?


Dad takes center stage with Quicksilver Messenger Service.


Dad was in fine voice!


Rozzie and Prescott wait patiently for the Tim Cain performance.


Davey enjoys a Tim Cain performance.


Oh god, pride of man!


Davey and Polly discuss his desire to pull her earrings.