November Wrap Up: Instant Pot Turkey a la King

This may have been the fastest November known to man.   I swear it was Halloween yesterday, and this weekend it's already Chanukah!

It's funny, compared to October, November was a lot more low-key.  October we've got an event every weekend day.  December is going to be the same.  But November?  November had weekends with nothing planned at all. 

We started and ended the month with Thanksgiving celebrations.   And between the two, there were birthday parties and school breaks.  Lots of school breaks this month.

Which is fine, because it meant Thatkid and I got to go on a great adventure.  

You see, one of my friends was due with her second child mid-October.  When she first told me she was pregnant I told her I'd be there right after the baby was born.  The issue?  She lives in New York.  And when Thatkid found out I was going to New York, he begged me to take him along.  Our original plan was to go over his break in October, but that was the week she was due, and we didn't want to show up mere days after she gave birth.

So, November it was.  We took the red-eye on a Friday night and found ourselves in New York at 4:30am on a Saturday morning.   We waited around for our luggage, changed clothes in the bathroom, then caught a car out to our hotel.  It was too early to check in, but we dropped off our luggage at the hotel and grabbed a train out to Brooklyn to visit my friend and her kids.

It was Thatkid's first subway ride and he was beyond excited.

Until he fell asleep.  He slept almost the whole way to Brooklyn, and I was glad - it had been an early morning for us!  We visited with my friend who had breakfast all ready for us, and Thatkid got his first taste of New York bagels - still warm from the oven.

Then it was back on the train and into the city.  And another little nap for Thatkid.  We had thought about trying to check into the hotel, but it was getting toward lunchtime, so instead we went and grabbed a slice.  Thatkid was VERY impressed with New York pizza.

One of the things Thatkid really wanted to do while we were in New York was to see the Statue of Liberty.  I was a little worried about tying us down to a timed ferry ride, since I wasn't exactly sure what we were going to be doing, but I knew we could get a really awesome view from the Staten Island Ferry, which left every 30 minutes.  So after lunch, we headed downtown.

The views from the ferry do not disappoint.

Right next to the Staten Island Ferry is Battery Park, which houses a "new to me" attraction.  The Seaglass Carousel.

The Seaglass Carousel is, as it sounds, a carousel comprising of glass sea creatures.

This is my new favorite ride ever.  And my new "Must Do" in NYC.  The music is fantastic, the glass lights up and is beautiful, and even the movement of the ride is unlike anything I've ever experienced.

Another thing Thatkid wanted to do in New York was see some Hamilton sights.  Hamilton's homestead, The Grange, was farther north than  I was planning on taking him, but I knew that Hamilton's grave was just a hop skip and a jump from Battery Park.  So we walked up to take a look.  

We found Alexander, Philip, and Eliza Hamilton, Hercules Mulligan, and Angelica Schuyler.  We also found a tour group.  Thatkid hasn't quite figured out all social niceties, so he joined right in, listening to the stories, until I gently guided him away.

Our next stop was dinner - a surprise for Thatkid.  I'd heard word about a special theme restaurant, called Ninja, that was a big hit with kids.  And so I made us reservations without telling him.   We got in and were ushered into a dark elevator.   At the bottom, a ninja jumped out at us and pointed us down a dark hallway.  At the end, another ninja showed us to our table.  This was pretty much the tone of the restaurant.  Ninjas, ninjas, everywhere.

Thatkid was sold.  From the light up drinks,

To the tableside magicians,

To the smoking entrees.  It was a good choice for a young boy.

Even the bathrooms were over the top - covered in cherry blossoms.

Our final stop for the evening was the thing that had driven Thatkid to want to come on this trip to begin with - Broadway shows.  I told him we could see two, and let him pick from everything out there.  And his first choice was King Kong.

I have SO many thoughts on this show, and I could write an entire essay about it, but the condensed version is that it was wonderful.  So much more than I was expecting.  Christiani Pitts, who played Ann Darrow, was a phenom, and she brought so much life to the character that I honestly feel the show was about Ann, not the giant ape.   And that giant ape?  A wonder of puppetry.  The show was everything that's amazing about Broadway shows, and Thatkid couldn't have agreed more.  Despite having been up since 1:30am California time, he sat spellbound and entranced the entire show.  It currently ties for first place for his favorite musical.  

Of course, being up so early Saturday meant our Sunday got a much later start as Thatkid slept until 10am for the first time in his life.  And I happily let him.  The original plan was to ice skate in the morning, but by the time we were showered and dressed, morning was almost over.  So instead, we headed out to get burgers and milkshakes.

And then we hit up the Christmas Markets at Bryant Park, which is one of my favorite things to do in the winter in New York.  

Thatkid loves ice skating, so I thought it would be fun for him to go ice skating while we were there.  We checked out the rinks at Rockefeller and Bryant Park, and I showed him pictures of the rink in Central Park.  He decided that Bryant Park was where he wanted to skate, which made me happy, because it's my favorite rink in the city.

After we did over 20 laps in the rink (he counted), we headed uptown to the American Museum of Natural History.  The plan was to check out the gem and mineral exhibit and see the giant T-Rex skeleton.  Of course, after we got there, we found that both those exhibits were closed.  

So we settled on checking out the other giant skeletons in the museum.

In December of 2005, Thatmom, Thatdad, Thatbrother and I spent Christmas in New York City.  I still have such great memories from that trip.  It was the last trip we took just the four of us; I got married the following August.  On Christmas Eve, we ate dinner at a restaurant my dad had found - Jekyll and Hyde's.  It was a theme restaurant, with animatronic wall decorations that spoke to you, and characters who wandered around performing.  The overall atmosphere was a little spooky, a lot silly.  

In December of 2008 I took Thatboy to New York for the first time.  And I thought he would get a kick out of the restaurant, so I took him there too.

So obviously, bringing Thatkid with me to New York for his first time, we had to eat at Jekyll and Hyde's.  While he didn't know about Ninja, he was really looking forward to this meal.  We got to sit right at the foot of Frankenstein's slab.  Which was really fun during the portion of the evening when Frankenstein comes to life. 

We kept up the gothic theme of the evening with Thatkid's second show choice - Phantom of the Opera.  Actually, this was technically his first show choice.  He's been asking to see it since last spring.  Long before we had even discussed New York.

Our last day in New York was a lazy one.  Thatkid slept in again, and then we went to grab bagels to bring home.

Our last stop before grabbing a train to the airport was Grand Central Station.  He was not excited at the prospect of another train station, but once we were inside, he was pretty impressed.

It was a pretty fast and packed long weekend.  We got in Monday night and he was off to school on Tuesday morning.  Luckily he only had to suffer through 4 days of school before his Thanksgiving break started.  And just like that we're here.  See what I mean about November passing quickly?

November passes so quickly, that Thanksgiving seems like just a little blip.  I've started a tradition the past two years of making my own turkey at home, so that I can stretch it out a bit.  Because turkey is delicious and shouldn't only be enjoyed on one day!  Plus this way I have leftover turkey to make sandwiches!  If you didn't get your fill of turkey, and don't want to make a whole bird for your family, I've also found this is a great time of year for stocking up on turkey breasts, or turkey cutlets.  I use them in much the same way I use chicken, but the turkey flavor just can't be beat!

Instant Pot Turkey a la King

2 Tbsp butter

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1 Tbsp flour

1 cup chicken broth

1 lb turkey breast or cutlet, cut in bite sized pieces

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup frozen peas & carrots, thawed

1. Press "Saute" on the Instant Pot and add butter.
2. When butter is melted, add the turkey and mushrooms, cooking until mushrooms are tender, about 3 minutes.
3. Add flour and stir until smooth.
4. Slowly whisk in chicken broth.  Press "Off" on the Instant Pot and place the lid on.  Make sure the valve is turned to "Sealing."  Press "Manual" and adjust the time to 8 minutes at High pressure.  
5. When the Instant Pot beeps after pressuring cooking for 8 minutes, allow it to naturally release pressure for 13 minutes.  Press "Off" on the instant pot.
6. Add heavy cream, peas and carrots, and press "Saute" on the Instant Pot.  Cook until warmed through.
7. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve over pasta, rice, potatoes, or even leftover stuffing!

The newest member of our "family": Italian Wedding Soup

It's been such a busy month that it has taken me a full month to get up to Los Angeles to visit The Actress and Baby A.  But this weekend I finally had time to make the trek!  And lucky for me, Baby A is still teeny tiny!  (Something you have to worry about when you have to wait a month to meet a new little girl.)

I got lots of prime baby holding time while I chatted with The Actress about all the fun aspects of new motherhood, like feeding woes and lack of sleep.  And then we headed out for a walk where we could talk about all the intimate details no one warns you about with birth and which become something completely normal to talk about with your girlfriends after they've had children.

Armani's back at work now, and working some long hours.  I brought up a big bag of dinners for my friends knowing they were probably exhausted in the evenings.  I've seen some controversy about what to bring to new parents which is something along the lines of "UGH!  Please don't bring pasta!  Everyone brings pasta!"  But I am undeterred.  In the first case, not everyone has people bringing them food.  And even when they do, that food is usually long gone after the first couple of weeks.  In the second, new moms are notoriously ravenous.  You burn a lot of calories making milk and feeding it to your young.  And finally, pasta freezes really well, which means you don't have to eat it the day it's brought.  

For The Actress and Armani, I made a lasagna, some baked ziti, and some Italian Wedding Soup.  I didn't have anyone bringing me food after Thatbaby was born, and baked pasta dishes were something I adored.  And this is surely soup season.  Italian wedding soup is one of the easiest in my arsenal.  Because it's just heating up chicken broth and then letting that broth cook your meatballs and orzo.  There's no excess fat in the form of oil or butter, just what's naturally in the chicken broth and meat, so you don't need to feel too guilty about it.  And it has just the right balance of dark green leafy vegetables, carbohydrates, and protein, which makes it the perfect meal for a new mom.

Italian Wedding Soup

1 lb ground turkey

1/4 cup breadcrumbs

1/4 cup parmesean

1 sprig chopped parsley

1 egg

1/2 onion, minced

8 cups chicken broth

1 bunch of spinach, torn

1. Combine the turkey, breadcrumbs, egg, parsley, onion, and parmesean in a large bowl.
2. Roll 1 Tbsp of the meat mixture into a ball.  Repeat with all of the meat mixture.
3. Bring the chicken broth to a boil.  Add the meatballs, orzo, and spinach.  Cook for 10 minutes, until orzo is cooked.

Boys' Night In: Thatboy's Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

Shortly after we were married, I went for a run and sprained my ankle.  As I sat on our couch, my foot elevated and iced, Thatboy offered to make dinner for the two of us.  

Now, Thatboy does not cook.  Thatboy has trouble making those frozen meals in a bag.  You know the ones where you dump the entire thing in a skillet and just cook until it is hot enough to eat?  So you can imagine I was a little skeptical of his offer.

He was so proud of himself as he set the plates in front of us - spaghetti in a meat sauce.  He did it himself!  The noodles!  The sauce!  It wasn't a complicated recipe.  In fact, it doesn't get much more basic.  But the fact that he had come up with it himself, and carried it through, made it an extra special dish.

Last week I went out with the girls for some drinks and conversation, leaving the boys to fend for themselves for dinner.

Leaving Thatboy in charge of dinner often results in the boys having Chipotle for dinner  (which I guess I should be thankful for, because it's a step up from the Taco Bell Thatboy would eat before we had a kid).  But sometimes, Thatboy pulls one out of his back pocket.  Like the re-emergence of his famous spaghetti with meat sauce.  And because Thatboy doesn't do measuring, there was plenty leftover for weekend lunches.

Thatboy's Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

1 box of spaghetti

1lb ground turkey

1 jar of your favorite marinara sauce

sriracha

parmesean cheese

1. Cook spaghetti according to package directions.
2. While spaghetti is cooking, brown the ground turkey in a saucepan .
3. Add the marinara sauce to the turkey and cook until the sauce is heated through.
4. Add sriracha to taste.
5. Drain the spaghetti and add to the sauce, tossing to coat.
6. Serve with lots of parmesean cheese.

VERY COLD: Turkey Tostadas

Thatbaby learned a new word while we were away - "very."  Now everything is very very hot (soup) or very very cold (the lake).  About that lake...

This trip was originally planned to celebrate TFIL's 80th birthday.  Obviously plans changed and the trip became a kind of memorial.  I'm not sure how long TBIL had been planning his "hike up Mount Hoffman" but a couple weeks ago he mentioned something to Thatboy about how he didn't think TMIL could handle it.   For some reason it seemed weird to me to ditch TMIL on a memorial trip for her recently deceased husband, so I volunteered to stay behind with Thatbaby while the rest of the group did the hike.

The morning of the big hike, TSIL decided to hang with us.  We took two cars and caravanned up to the meadow area of Yosemite.  It was a long drive, and Thatbaby managed to fall asleep shortly before we did a switch.  Thatboy joined his brother, while I took the wheel of our car.  In the process, Thatbaby woke up.  He was not happy.  I will spare you the gory details, but lets put it this way - TMIL had us stop at the very edge of Toulumne Meadow, I think to get out of the car.

He mellowed out once he got out of the car and into the Ergo.  After a bit, he even wanted down so he could hike, run, and draw in the dirt with sticks.

After our meadow hike, we headed over to Tenaya Lake, one of Thatboy's favorite spots in the entire park.  In fact, the plan was to meet up here after they were finished with their hike.  We headed over early to give ourselves lots of time to sun and swim.

Except when we got to the lake, the sun disappeared.  It got cold.  Which is why that lake was very very cold.  I managed to keep Thatbaby out of the water for a while, until he got covered in dirty sand and we went to wash his hands in the water.  Which turned into wading in the water.  Which turned into sitting in the water.

By the time I pulled him out to put on his swim diaper, it had started thundering and lightning. So instead of swimming, we bundled up in towels and watched the sky.  And when the sky opened up and started raining, we headed to the car to wait for our family somewhere warm and dry.

On the way there, we ran into Thatboy and the hiking crew!  Undeterred by the rain, Thatboy wanted in the lake.

I sent our littlest lifeguard to meet him with a dry towel.

Once we got into the car, Thatbaby quickly fell asleep.  I guess very cold water will do that to you.  He slept until dinner.  Which was a Thanksgiving meal for some reason.  Thanksgiving in August.  What will they think of next?  Typically, I like my turkey in a different form in the summer.  Ground, mixed with spices, and served atop a tostada.

I mixed the turkey with crushed tomato for this recipe and Thatboy really liked it.  He felt like it elevated it above the typical taco mix.  And Thatbaby?  He really liked the cheese.  He's probably part mouse.

Turkey Tostadas

3 Tbsp olive oil, divided

8 corn tortillas

1 red onion, chopped

3/4 lb ground turkey

1 can crushed tomatoes

2 tsp chili powder

salt and pepper

1 can pinto beans, drained

sour cream

avocado

cojita cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400.  Pour 2 Tbsp oil on a sheet pan and coat the tortillas with the oil.  Cook for 5 minutes, flip, then cook another 5 minutes until crisp.
2. Heat a tablespoon of the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.  Cook the onion until translucent, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the turkey and cook for another 5 minutes, until it's browned.
4. Stir in the tomatoes, chili powder, and salt and pepper to taste.  Simmer for 3 minutes.
5. Make a well in the middle of the turkey and add the beans.  Mash the beans and stir them into the turkey.  Cook until heated through.
6. Top the tortillas with sour cream, turkey, avocado, and cojita cheese.

Fourth of July: All American Chili

Happy Fourth of July everyone!  Thatbaby and I are on our own for the holiday as Thatboy isn't even in the country.  Although he claims he'll be attending a Fourth of July party in the country he is in.  Which reminds me of the Fourth of July I spent at an Irish Bar in Austria, drinking tequila.

But really, I don't consider the Fourth of July to be a real family holiday.  Even though I've spent the past 3 years spending it with Thatboy and Thatmom.  For me, The Fourth is about communities.  Friends and neighbors gathering together.  BBQs, parades, and fireworks.

Because when it comes down to it, America is about people coming together.  We are the melting pot, are we not?  And the past few weeks have made it even more clear that America stands for the inclusion of all.

This chili represents all that is good in America.  The melting pot idea.  Where beans, meat, and vegetables all come together to create one perfect dish.  Each ingredient is the star in its own right.

All American Chili

2 dried ancho chiles

1 1/4 cup water, divided

3 Tbsp canola oil

1 onion, chopped

2 bell peppers, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 lb ground turkey

1/4 cup chicken broth

2 cans black beans, drained

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can tomato sauce

6 ounces tomato paste

1 Tbsp dried oregano

1/2 Tbsp ancho chile powder

1 1/2 Tbsp cumin

1/2 tsp cayenne

1/2 Tbsp cinnamon

1/2 Tbsp cocoa

1/2 Tbsp salt

1/2 Tbsp cornstarch

1/2 cup dark brown sugar 

1/4 cup Jack Daniels 

1. Bring chiles and 1 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan.  Lower to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.  Cool.  Puree in a food processor or blender.  
2. Heat canola oil in a pot.  Add onions, bell peppers and garlic.  Saute until the onions are tender, about 10 minutes. 
3. Add the turkey and cook until cooked through.
4. Add the chicken broth, pureed chiles, black beans, tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, oregano, chile powder, cumin, cayenne, cinnamon, cocoa, and salt.  Reduce heat to low and cook for 20 minutes.
5. Combine corn starch with remaining 1/4 cup water, stirring until smooth.  Add this mixture to the chile and cook for an additional 5 minutes.
6. Add the brown sugar and Jack Daniels and cook for another 10 minutes.

Stop to smell the flowers: Turkey Lasagna

One of our favorite springtime rituals is a trip to The Flower Fields. This is the first year we've been able to bring Thatbaby with us and we were sure he would enjoy it.

We were right.

I'm not quite sure he was as enthralled by the beauty of the rows upon rows of colorful blooms, but he sure liked crawling up the dirt hills to sit on.  And throwing the dirt.

He loved running up and down the rows of flowers.

He loved smelling the blooms.

And goofing around with his parents.

 

He enjoyed the sweet pea maze, even if we did get lost and he got tired and wanted to be carried.

So all in all, I would say it was a successful trip for all involved.

I love going to The Flower Fields and I know Thatboy feels the same way.  I'm hoping our love has already started to be instilled in Thatbaby, but I guess only time will tell.  Flowers are interesting in that they're so beautiful, but temporal.  The ranunculus featured at the Fields are only there from March to May.  Being there reminds you to take the opportunity to appreciate the fleeting beauty all around us.

Food is similar to flowers.  Because when you make something, you put your time and love into the dish, and its beauty is also gone shortly after.  Take this lasagna, layer upon layer, gone in a single meal. But really, can you blame anyone for devouring it?  Like flowers, you just need to enjoy it while you can, taking time to appreciate its beauty.

Turkey Lasagna

•  2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 bunch spinach
• 1 lb ground turkey
• 16 oz fresh ricotta
• 1 egg
• 8 oz fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced
• salt and pepper
• 2 cans diced tomatoes
• 1 package lasagna noodles

1. Preheat oven to 375.  Heat olive oil in saute pan over medium heat.  Add spinach and cook until wilted.  Remove from pan.
2. Brown turkey in same pan as the spinach.
3. Combine the egg, ricotta cheese, 1/4 of the mozzarella, salt and pepper in a bowl.
4. Pour the juice from one of the cans of tomatoes in the bottom of an 8x8 baking dish.
5. Place one layer of noodles over the tomato juice.
6. Spread half the cheese mixture over the noodle.  
7. Add half the turkey and spinach over the cheese.
8. Add one of the cans of tomatoes and half of the remaining mozzarella.
9. Add another layer of noodles, cheese, turkey spinach, tomatoes and mozzarella.
10. Cover and cook for 45 minutes.
11. Remove foil and cook another 10 minutes.