Easy empanadas

Valencian Savory Empanadas
My mom mentioned the word empanada on Friday afternoon, just in brief passing. Since I had no dinner plans and because my mouth immediately began to salivate, I decided I had to make empanadas for dinner. I searched online for the easiest-sounding recipe and found one that only took 20 minutes of prep time and 10 minutes of cook time. Sure enough, the recipe was super simple and very tasty. Next time I'll probably use a beef or pork filling instead of ham.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 small tomatoes - peeled, seeded and chopped
• 4 ounces diced cooked ham
• 2 hard-cooked eggs, chopped
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 (10 ounce) can refrigerated pizza crust dough

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions, and saute until tender. Pour in the tomatoes, and cook for a minute, then stir in the ham and heat through. Remove from the heat, and mix in the eggs and parsley. Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Unroll the can of pizza dough on a clean surface, and stretch or roll into a 14x10 inch rectangle. Cut into twelve 3 inch squares.
3. Place equal amounts of the filling into the centers of the squares. Brush the edges lightly with water. Fold in halves to form a triangle, pressing the edges to seal. Place on a greased cookie sheet and prick with a fork.
4. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Nutritional Information

Amount Per Serving Calories: 124 | Total Fat: 5.7g | Cholesterol: 41mg

Thanks mom for the idea!! As you know I am easily persuaded when it comes to food.

"Snowbear" short

Hubby, Caleb, Paxton the dog, and I ventured outside to play in the snow this 20-degree January morning. We took a number of photos and one short video, which ended prematurely due to dead batteries in the camera.
While nothing exciting really happens during the video, it's what's being said and how it's being said by both Hubby and I that warrants a blog posting. Enjoy. Transcript provided below.

“Snowbear” short
Date of production: 1/30/2010
Length of feature: 21 seconds

Set in the Busbee family front yard on the first snow day of the year.

Mommy: “Here we go…it’s our snow day in Durham.”

Daddy: (Speaking to child)
“Say hey mama.”

(In child’s voice)
“Hey, mama, hey.”

Mommy: “We’ve got our little snow outfit from Kristin on.”

Daddy: (Said to no one in particular)
“Our snow outfit.”

Mommy: (In a voice a million octaves too high)
“We’ve got our little snow outfit from Kristin on.”

Daddy: (In a voice similar to George W. Bush)
“I’m a bear.”

Mommy: (Getting squeakier by the second)
“That’s right.”

Daddy: (Again, to no one in particular, a la George W.)
“I’m a snow bear.”

Mommy: (Speaking in baby talk)
“The biggest…”
“Caleb!...”
“Hey buddy!”

End scene.

Winter wonderland

Here in Durham we love getting snow – it happens so rarely. The "wintry mix," as the weather channel loves to call it, began last night around 6 pm.

Wintry mix coming down slowly.

By 8 pm there was a soft blanket of snow covering the ground.

This is the view this morning around 10:30. A whole 4 inches of snow. AWESOME!!

The best part about the snow is that it gave us an excuse to put Caleb in his Columbia bear suit, a precious gift from Aunt Kristin in Alaska. It fit Caleb perfectly and he stayed snug and warm while we were outside playing in the snow.

Lean treats

Now that I have less time on my hands I find myself grateful for a hot meal each day, which often comes in the form of a Lean Cuisine. They are delicious, low in calories, and have many options available.
Usually I am left satisfied after eating one, but I also am an all-day snacker. Today's Lean Cuisine however was less than filling. It was the roasted garlic chicken. Look at how decadent it looks on the box cover.

Just look at those plump chicken tenderloins and that hearty serving of sauteed spinach.

Then look below, at the actual dish – photo taken via camera phone today at lunch.

To Lean Cuisine's credit, the meal was absolutely delicious, despite its appearance.

But on my plastic fork you can see the size of the chicken "tenderloin" that comes with the dish. I feel that perhaps the box cover photo was just a tiny bit deceptive.

Dressed to impress

We've encountered another sad situation in which baby Caleb is about to outgrow a favorite sweater of mine. Thusly, a photo shoot was necessary to capture this handsome gentleman in his bold striped sweater. Plus, my mom has been begging for updated photos of the baby. She hasn't seen a photo since Saturday. Who could blame her?!

Daddy playing flying baby with Caleb.

Recipe for the perfect day

Hubby and I had a fantastic Saturday, filled with plenty of guilty pleasures.
First the breakfast of pancakes, which I previously mentioned. Then I decided to make home-fried potato chips.

I simply cut uber-thin slices of one whole potato with a peeler, heated up a skillet with vegetable oil, and let those bad boys fry. Hubby made an herb mix to sprinkle atop the warm chips.

We then spent the first part of the afternoon at the Triangle Brewing Company for their weekly free beer tasting. You get there around 1:15 and grab a spot in line. They hand you an empty pint glass – for free, might I add. You get to the front of the line and choose which of their 7 beers you’d like to try. Hubby and I followed everyone else’s lead and got immediately back in line while sipping on our first sample (one which was quite generous in size…about 8 ounces). Once you get to the front of the line you again select your next beer to try. This cycle repeats itself until the free tour of the brewery begins.

The tour itself only lasted about 25 minutes, after which they allow you to drink unlimited free beer once again. I’m confused as to why we haven’t visited this downtown Durham brewery sooner, as they’ve been open for 2 and a half years now.

Then I remembered that the reason is because Hubby and I are addicted to our Saturday wine tastings at Wine Authorities. We headed that way directly following the beer tasting to sample four delicious wines and three cheeses from the Hillsborough Cheese Company. Wine + cheese = perfection (in case you didn’t know).

We tasted an herb-covered fresh chevre, a Bloomin’ Sweet Ash (Valencey), and a Bloomin’ Lunitas (Charouce). Hubby and I purchased the later two to serve as appetizers at a dinner we hosted later that evening, pictures of which follow.



Even though it was a chilly January day, I'd say we definitely made the best of it!

Morning playtime

Saturday mornings in the Busbee household are the best. We don't have to go to work and we have the entire day ahead of us. (And hubby sometimes makes pancakes.)
One of my favorite things about Saturdays is that I get to play with Caleb instead of dropping him off at daycare. He is into everything now. It seems that his goal in life is to grab everything in sight and, if possible, stick it in his mouth. He loves all of his toys and is starting to show preference to some over others. Here are some of our Saturday morning moments!