Disney Cruise Casual Dining

I haven't found a better way to vacation with small children than taking Disney cruises.  They are truly fantastic and we always end up having the best week.  There is so much to do on the ship for adults and for the kids, the service is impeccable, especially if you go concierge, and the warm ocean breeze and tropical islands are such a welcome change from all the snow and cold in KC.

Rainbow over the concierge deck in the Bahamas

The food on Disney cruises is in a class of its own.  There are three main dining restaurants on each ship and there is a variety of casual dining options (although it's a challenge to get hungry in between regular meals).  On the last cruise, which we took on Disney's newest ship, Disney Fantasy, we had every breakfast (and sometimes lunch) at the Cabanas.

Since it was difficult to pick between a classic lox breakfast and the wonderful muesli they make onboard, I usually ended up having two breakfasts each morning.  The girls have simpler tastes, so it was all about bacon, hash browns, Mickey waffles and doughnuts.

Alexis almost enjoying the ocean breeze on the Cabanas' deck

Yes, that is a fresh chocolate glazed doughnut on Emily's plate, which I'd never let her eat in KC

Mickey waffle

Dining inside the Cabanas.  Love the Mickey-shaped partitions on the plate.

For the daytime, there are smoothies from the Frozone and ice cream treats from Eye Scream.

Alexis is airborne from excitement

There is also 24-hour room service, which our kids overuse when it comes to ordering ice cream Mickey bars.

Alexis enjoying her Mickey bar for dessert at Animator's Palate

Since our girls enjoy a party lifestyle all seven nights on the ship, late at night they get hungry for burgers from the Tow Mater Grill.

Late-night cartoon watching in bed.  

One night of the cruise is pirate night, when everyone dresses up in pirate costumes, there is a Pirates in the Caribbean show on the upper deck and the fireworks in the night ocean sky, all of which culminates in a midnight buffet, where any respectable pirate would, of course, get a turkey drumstick.

That's Paris-Brest desert on Bill's plate.  And a taco.  Not sure if the Pirates of the Caribbean ate those.

The day at Castaway Cay, you can choose to eat a barbecue lunch on the island (or go to any restaurant on the ship).

Then there is also a cocktail hour at the concierge lounge, where you can get all sorts of treats and enjoy them on the concierge deck.

That's my set up of tea and passion fruit smoothie.

Somehow you then still need to get hungry for dinner, which is followed by a Broadway show, after which you somehow always end up at the Tow Mater grill to only wake up in the morning and repeat the cycle.  Seven days later, the crew rolls you off the ship and a couple of hours later, faced with the food options at the Orlando airport you begin planning your next Disney cruise.

Cherry Bomb

It's Nespresso Saturday at our house again.  This coffee drink is made with cherry whipped cream.  To make it, I whipped the cream in my Vitamix.  I didn't add any sugar, since the drink is quite sweet from the condensed milk and the cherry preserves, but you can add sugar if you'd like.  I then added the cherry preserves and set the whipped cream aside.  I put a tablespoon of condensed milk into each glass, then brewed a lungo capsule on top, then slid on top a heaping tablespoon of the cherry whipped cream and added a dusting of cacao powder on top.

I realize that my blog has become much more pralines than crunches.  The last two weeks, with the snow, Alexis not feeling well, Bill's work travel, and my job change, have not been workout-friendly, but now that things are settling into place, I am excited for my session with Trainer this afternoon.  Kettlebells, here I come.

Apple Tart

Not much beats a warm apple tart and a hot cup of tea on a winter day.  Especially if you have an excess of apples on hand.  Since I love to bake and experiment with new recipes, and since the aforementioned apples were in excess, I came up with this apple tart.

INGREDIENTS

For the short pastry:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 stick butter, cut up in chunks
2 egg yolks

For the filling:
3 apples, peeled, cored, and sliced in 1/4 inch slices
3 tbsp of orange marmalade (optional)
0.3 cups of orange juice
0.3 cups of sugar (add more if you like sweetness)
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp cinnamon sugar (optional)
0.5 tsp grated nutmeg

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Make the short pastry by processing the flour and chunks of butter in a food processor or a mixer.  Once they begin to combine, add the yolks, and continue mixing.  If the dough is not coming together, add 1-2 tbsp of hot water.  Once the dough is fully mixed, form a ball, wrap it in plastic wrap, and place in the fridge for 20 minutes (it will be easier to roll out once it's chilled).
3. Peel, core, and slice the apples.
4. Roll out the dough and line your baking dish.  (I used this rectangular fluted tart mold.)
5. To make sure the pastry doesn't puff during baking, either place parchment paper on top of the pastry and fill it with beans or prick a few holes with a fork.  Bake for about 20-23 minutes.  
6. Once the pastry is baked, spread it with orange marmalade.  Then arrange the apple slices, pour the orange juice on top, sprinkle with cinnamon, sugar, and nutmeg.  Return to the oven and bake for 40 minutes.

Enjoy!

Snow Day

Snowmageddon is upon us.  It's been snowing continuously since the early morning and we are under an official Winter Storm Warning until 9 am tomorrow morning.  Last night, in preparation for all the expected inches of snow, all of the schools in the area announced closings.  My office closed today, as well.  Because there was no rush associated with getting out of the house this morning, we had an egg-and-bacon breakfast in our breakfast area by the window, while watching the backyard getting covered in snow and contemplating the strength of the pool cover.

Uncured bacon (no nitrates or nitrities) and Omega-3 eggs

After breakfast, the kids settled in for a comfortable day of TV watching in the basement (I know), and Bill and I settled in for a comfortable day of working on our computers, since whether or not our offices are closed, there is still work to be done.   Bill's work and Emily's TV watching were punctuated by two snow-clearing missions.  Alexis so wanted to join them in all the snow-shoveling but was told that (a) she needed to be 7 years old to be allowed to shovel snow (we made this on up on the spot); (b) she didn't have her own shovel; and (c) we were suspecting this activity would violate some state child-labor law.  Surprisingly, Alexis accepted these arguments, made us promise that we will buy her a kid-sized pink shovel for her 7th-birthday, and agreed to watch Doc McStuffins instead.

And since no snow day is complete without cookies, the girls and I baked these delicious gluten-free chocolate chunk cookies by Immaculate Baking Company.  As much as I love to bake from scratch, I don't always have the time to do that, which is when pre-made options come in.  The Immaculate Baking products are my favorite, since they are clean and don't have any of the usual offenders; no high fructose corn syrup, no artificial flavors, no hydrogenated fats.  I usually buy them at Whole Foods and was pleasantly surprised to see them at The Fresh Market.  The girls decorated them with M&Ms.  I tried to steer them toward the Unreal Candy, but didn't succeed this time.  I prefer the Unreal Candy version of M&Ms because it has no artificial ingredients, no GMOs, no corn syrup, and no preservatives.  

Immaculate gluten free Chocolate Chunk cookies

Alexis's "strange outfit" is her witch costume from her Wizard of Oz dress-up kit

Enjoy!

First Day and New Books

Today was my first day at my new firm.  To start the day right, I baked Trader Joe's cinnamon rolls for breakfast.  Alexis was beyond excited:  "It's like having candy for breakfast!!"  I couldn't agree more, which is why we have cinnamon rolls for breakfast once a year at most.   At breakfast, Alexis also decided to clarify the meaning of the word "wise."  When Bill explained to her what it meant, Alexis exclaimed in bewilderment:  "Oh!  I didn't know that!  Yesterday, I accidentally called Nana 'wise,' because I thought it meant 'old'!!"  I'm glad Nana wasn't anywhere near to hear that.

Everyone at the office was so nice and welcoming on my first day.  I was even treated to a lunch out.  We went to BRGR, where I typically order a burger and, occasionally, if I feel adventurous, a portabella sandwich, but today I was steered toward amazing chicken tacos, which I wouldn't have ever noticed on my own.  Ordering food at BRGR will never be the same.  

Since I now work on a reduced schedule, it was strange leaving the office soon after lunch and when everyone else was still working.   I think this part will take some getting used to.  In addition to being a part-time office worker, I am now a full-time school line pick-up driver.  It takes about an hour to collect the kids from two schools and get home.  Emily is now having her piano lesson and there is nothing like some classical music to accompany the household chores, which I now get to do when it's still light out.  (Yes, I can get happy over the strangest things.)

I also came home today to yet another Amazon package.  As Bill likes to sing:  "Stuuuff keeps arriiiviiing in the mail!"  Um, yes, it does keep arriving, since I have a serious book habit and also generally source everything, other than perishable groceries, from Amazon.   This time, the wonderful UPS driver dropped off the long-anticipated book by Michelle Tam and Henry Fong, Nom Nom Paleo:  Food for Humans, which was just released in December.  I've been following Ms. Tam's blog, Nom Nom Paleo, for some time now.  As the title suggests, the book contains Paleo recipes and know-how.  I've been reading books on Paleo for more than a year now and the lifestyle sounds appealing, but where would the coffee concoctions, chocolate croissants, and cinnamon rolls fit in?  Still, I can't get enough, so I am looking forward to digging into this book once the kids are in bed.

Also, yesterday I bought for my Kindle Natalia Rose's book, Forever Beautiful:  The Age-Defying Detox Plan.   I've read all of Ms. Rose's prior books and, not having opened this new book yet, I know that it will contain an extreme vegan plan.  Yes, I know that I look confused, but I just cannot stop reading anything and everything on the subject of nutrition and its influence on our health, longevity, and quality of life.  

Vegans and Paleoists are at complete odds (other than everyone seems to like their vegetables), but both philosophies make sense to me, so can't we just all get along?  I do think that combining elements of both and not going to any extremes is what works for me.   Minus the cinnamon rolls.  Those truly need to go.

Lobster Night

I was born and raised on the water, where the Danube meets the Black Sea, which meant abundant fresh seafood.  And Bill was spoiled by seafood, particularly lobsters, while stationed at a Navy base in Maine.  Even though both of our kids were born in Kansas (and they do like their steak), they are also big fans of lobsters.  So when The Fresh Market, which I absolutely adore, announced that they were selling lobster tails for $6.99/each compared to the usual price of $12.99, we didn't need a second invitation.  The rest of tonight's dinner menu included cabbage slaw and steak fries. 

To make the broiled lobster tails, I boiled water in a large pot, then added the tails and boiled them for 7 minutes.  We then split them with kitchen shears in half, placed them on a baking sheet, poured on top some melted butter with crushed garlic and broiled them for 7 minutes.

Place lobster tails into boiling water and boil for 7 minutes

Cut each  boiled tail in half with kitchen shears

Melt 1/2 cup Kerrygold butter + 1 tsp of crushed garlic

Pour the melted butter on top of the split lobster tails and broil for 7 minutes

Cut two Idaho potatoes lengthwise, then make half-moon slices.  Cover a baking sheet with foil, pour some olive oil and preheat for 3 minutes in a 400 degree oven.  Take out the sheet, place the potato wedges on the sheet, drizzle on top with olive oil, add salt, and return to the oven for 30 minutes.

Place the sliced potatoes on pre-heated oil (if you do not preheat the oil, they will stick to the foil)

400 degree oven, 30 minutes later

Served

To make the cabbage slaw, I shredded 1/2 small organic green cabbage, 2 organic carrots, and 1/2 organic yellow onion, all from The Fresh Market, which is great for organic produce.  I then made my own dressing, whisking together 1/2 cup organic mayo, 2 tablespoons organic light sour cream, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 tablespoon organic apple cider vinegar, and 1 teaspoon crushed garlic.  Combine the shredded vegetables and the dressing.  My kids asked for seconds.

We ate at our dining room table and the kids enjoyed their lobster tails at candlelight.  We talked about our day, the two birthday parties we attended, and our plans for tomorrow.  

Tiramisu made for a nice dessert.  

I see a major workout in my future.

Chocolate Espresso

It's Saturday morning again!  And this means coffee and chocolate croissants at our house.   The croissants come from Trader Joe's and we set them out the night before in the kitchen to rise.   I bake them in the morning, as I make coffee.  Since yesterday was my last day at the firm and on Monday I start a new chapter in my career, it felt appropriate to celebrate not with a quick brewed cup, but with something a bit more decadent.  This drink, inspired by the recipes I saw on Nespresso's site, fit the bill.  It layers 1 tablespoon of condensed milk, 1 tablespoon of chocolate sauce, 1 Nespresso cup, frothed milk, which I made in my Aeroccino machine, and cacao powder sifted over a heart stensil, held close to the top of the glass.

1tbsp condensed milk + 1 tbsp of Jen's Zen Chocolate Sauce

Brew a Nespresso lungo capsule on top of the condensed milk and chocolate sauce

Frothed milk on top

Raw cacao sifted through a heart stensil

There is snow on the ground, our fireplace is on, and it was so nice to have my sugar and caffeine in peace.  But as much as I'd love it to last and to spend the rest of the day at home, I have to go to two kid birthday parties this afternoon.   I will go wrap birthday presents now.