Atlantic Beach Pie

I first heard about the Atlantic Beach Pie on NPR of all places... I tell you what... Talking about food can be very compelling... Who am I kidding, I must have been hungry when I heard it because it sounded so, so good. I had to make it. Being that last Sunday was Fathers Day I decided to make it for the husband to celebrate his day... It is so good and easy... Here is what you do:

For the crust:
1 1/2 sleeves of saltine crackers
1/3 to 1/2 cup softened unsalted butter
3 tablespoons sugar

For the filling:
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
4 egg yolks
1/2 cup lemon or lime juice or a mix of the two

Fresh whipped cream and coarse sea salt for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Crush the crackers finely, but not to dust. You can use a food processor or your hands. Add the sugar, then knead in the butter until the crumbs hold together like dough. Press into an 8 inch pie pan. Chill for 15 minutes, then bake for 18 minutes or until the crust colors a little.

While the crust is cooling (it doesn't need to be cold), beat the egg yolks into the milk, then beat in the citrus juice. It is important to completely combine these ingredients. Pour into the shell and bake for 16 minutes until the filling has set. The pie needs to be completely cold to be sliced. Serve with fresh whipped cream and a sprinkling of sea salt.

24/52

Even thought it's Summer break, the kids still have to do homework... Given that this past Sunday was Father's Day, I wanted to give the husband some recognition... Since we are a bilingual home (me being the Spanish speaker and the husband being the English speaker), it is his jobs to help the kids with homework... He great at it! This mama has little patience...

"A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2013."

As it turned out, these weekly posts have become an Iphone pictures dumping ground... I love taking pictures with my big camera but there are times when weeks go by and I have not touch it... My Iphone on the other hand, I use all the time... I read somewhere that the best camera is the one you use all the time... So here I am... Trying my hardest to post my weekly pictures, even if they are from my Iphone, it still counts, right?

And in case you wanted to know, I use the VSCO App to process my pictures.

Menu for the week

Korean Bulgogi/Brown rice/Shaved asparagus salad - Recipe from here
Pernil/Rice/Black beans
Fettuccini Alfredo with Broccoli and asparagus
Soba noodles with Brussels sprouts and kale - Recipe from here. I've made this before and we all loved it!

Breakdown:

Aldi $22
Costco $24
Kroger $10
Super H $17

We'll be working on the garden again this weekend... I'll have some pictures to share with you soon... We have not done a lot but we are making some progress, baby steps is our motto this year.

Sunday is Father's day. The kids and I are planning on spoiling the husband with his choice of breakfast and by baking him a pie... I hope he likes it.

Have a great weekend everybody! See you back here next week.

The Breakfast Project

Leftover ricotta calls for ricotta pancakes... Next time, I will be making Ricotta Cheesecake, OMG, it sounds amazing... But for now, let's tackle the task at hand: Ricotta and lemon pancakes made even better with a yogurt topping:

Ingredients for the batter (Recipe from here)

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup ricotta cheese
2 eggs
2/3 cup milk
1 lemon, zested and juiced
Butter, for griddle

Ingredients for the topping (Recipe from here)

1 cup whole or lowfat yogurt
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
2 tsp. honey
Berries

Directions:

1. Preheat a nonstick griddle.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, nutmeg, salt, and sugar in a small bowl.
3. Whisk together the cheese, eggs, milk, lemon juice and zest in a large bowl.
4. Whisk the flour mixture into the wet ingredients until just combined.
5. Brush the hot griddle with butter. For each pancake, pour approximately 1/4 cup measure of the batter on the griddle and cook on both sides until light golden brown.
6. Repeat until no batter remains.
7. Mix the yogurt with lemon juice and honey.
8. Serve the warm pancakes with a lemon yogurt drizzle and fresh blueberries.

Through their eyes

I am back with the last "Through their eyes" post from Turkey - See the first one here. This time from fairy tail Cappadocia. I hope you like the pictures and the info.

Derinkuyu underground city... Perfect for little humans

Hiking - If you like hiking... This place is like a little piece of heaven. Amazing valleys with pigeon houses, interesting natural structures, caves with beautiful frescoes... There is so much to see there... I am currently working on a post about hiking in Cappadocia so if you are planning a trip there... You definitely want to check it out!

Hiking breaks for apple tea/orange juice:

Turkish Night - I cannot say enough about this... So, so awesome:

Staying in a cave hotel - Goreme

Visiting breathtaking Open Air Museam in Goreme - The frescoes in these caves were just incredible.

Hot air balloon ride over Cappadocia - Need I say more?

Camel ride, say what? This was totally random yet so awesome!

If you are thinking about going to Turkey with your kids I would definitely recommend it! Turkey is one of the most kid friendly places we have ever been... My kids were treated with so much kindness by everybody. Additionally, all attractions for the kids were either free or significantly reduced... I think it has to do with their culture... They include their kids in every aspect of their lives... To use my friend's words while I expressed concerns about bringing our kids to the Turkish night, he said: "Nobody will care if you have your kids there, because we take our kids everywhere... They (the kids) don't have a choice"... I like the way they think!

See more "Through their Eyes" posts here

23/52

"A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2013."

Miss V skirt from here.

Menu for the week

Roasted chicken/Mashed potatoes/Green beans

Orzo salad with leftover chicken and veggies from our garden/Roasted eggplant

Chicken lasagna/Salad
Chickpeas with spinach/Salad

Breakdown:

Kroger $46

Aldi $23

Costco $8

Super H $20

Turkish breakfast, Sunday brunch at Milton's, planting flowers in the garden... Those friends, are all our plans for this weekend...

I hope you have a good one too!