Hi everyone! Just gonna be quick and drop by dinner menu for you. Here we go…

MONDAY:
– Second to last trip to Disneyland (passes expiring soon and we have two days off school this week, so perfect!)

TUESDAY:
– Bertucci’s Tortellini
– Salad

WEDNESDAY:
– Leftovers

THURSDAY:
– Pesto Chicken Salad Sandwiches

FRIDAY:
– Last trip to Disneyland with our annual passes!

SATURDAY:
– Grilled Turkey Club Sandwiches

SUNDAY:
– Pressure Cooker Pot Roast
– Potatoes and Carrots

You know the drill: PLEASE post your own meal plans in the comments below! They are so appreciated by myself and others. Keep it coming! And have a great week!

Hello, everyone! Just now getting to my weekly menu planning because I’m still on my konmari kick. It feels good to clean out and organize but man am I sick of cleaning out and organizing. 😉 ANYWAY…time to get this week’s dinner plans in gear.

MONDAY:
– Red Beans & Rice

TUESDAY:
– Chicken Soup with Rice

WEDNESDAY:
– Pat’s Asian Chicken Salad
– Nate and I are going to see David Sedaris! Can’t wait!

THURSDAY:
– Leftovers

FRIDAY:
– Pesto Chicken Salad Sandwiches

SATURDAY:
– Eat out night

SUNDAY:
– Pressure Cooker Pot Roast
– Potatoes and Carrots

You know the drill…please share your own meal plans in the comments! Thank you! Have a great week!

Marie Kondo and her magical tidying-up ways are all the rage…again. AND WITH GOOD REASON. Have you seen her new show on Netflix? It’s wonderful, both because there are tons of great tips and inspiration and Marie Kondo is the cutest human and you’ll totally fall in love with her.

Photo credit: Denise Crew/Netflix

Last week the kids and I visited two of my aunts while we traipsing around the West in our minivan. Both of these aunts have very tidy homes (I know for a fact at least one of them read Marie’s book years ago). Stepping into their homes and finding my way around their kitchens/cleaning supplies/whatever was no problem because everything was so organized, logical and easy to see. While all of it was inspiring, the thing that really stuck with me was my Aunt Barb’s pantry shelves. Sure, they looked great, but more importantly I noticed that she very clearly only stocks the foods she uses on a regular basis. I know, DUH. This should be obvious, but I had so much food I’ve kept for years (and even moved from house to house) that I was never going to use. So, I came home and immediately started cleaning out my food drawers and shelves.

Then Nate told me that Marie Kondo had a new show on Netflix called Tidying Up with Marie Kondo. We bought her book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up years ago but I never read it. It seemed the fates were trying to tell me something, what with the tidy aunties and the tidy TV show converging on me. Anna and I watched a few episodes over the weekend and, well, I’ve been an organizing Tasmanian devil all week.

I didn’t do any before-the-tidying-frenzy photos, but I did take some after shots! (On my iPhone so my photography is, well, not awesome…but whatever, this isn’t a photography lesson, amiright? I’m tired after all this cleaning, too tired to pick up my heavy camera.)

Organizing The Kitchen

Most every shelf, cabinet and drawer got cleaned out and organized this week. Previously all my canned goods resided in the drawer you see below. Which means I couldn’t see all the cans easily. But also I hardly ever used anything that was in that drawer, the drawer that happens to be the most accessible in my kitchen. Out all the cans went (holy crap some of them were old…you can see the rings from a leaky, rusty can in the drawer that I couldn’t clean off!), and I put the good cans of food on a shelf in the garage, where everything is super easy to see and, therefore, actually useful. I put things in drawer-previously-known-as-the-useless-canned-food-drawer that we use on a regular basis and even ended up with room to spare. (One of my favorite things in life are empty spaces in closets and drawers!) This is only one major change that happened in the kitchen this week…I won’t bore you with the rest, but needless to say using my kitchen is now 100% easier.

Clothing

We’re not quite done cleaning out everyone’s clothes, but most of it is done. The way Marie Kondo folds clothes is fantastic. Owen knows how to do it now and was super excited to organize his drawers. As I went through all his shirts with him there was one that he never wears and I was surprised when he said he wanted to keep it. When I asked him why he never wears it he said, “Because I can’t ever see it.” Now he can see all his shirts, again making the things we have more useful! I am really hoping as we get into the normal routine of life we can maintain this folding technique when doing laundry because it is awesome. I’ll keep you posted!

Bathrooms

Every single drawer and shelf in both our bathrooms was completely emptied and then organized. Like food, there was stuff in there we hadn’t touched in ages (sometimes over a decade!). We went from completely stuffed cabinets and drawers to having room to spare. Again, everything is viewable and therefore more useful. Here’s our medicine cabinet, organized by category. It’s like a pharmacy!

Everything Else

I cleaned out closets, linens, shoes, you name it. Here’s my cloth napkin drawer, where now I have room for dish cloths and my vacuum attachments. This drawer is like a whole new person (you know, if drawers were people).

We kept the things we use regularly as well as those things that spark joy, we recycled/tossed/donated everything else, and then we tidied up. And it was the best use of my time in our home in a long time. Thanks Aunt Sue, Aunt Barb and Marie Kondo!

Happy New Year and Happy Tidying!

Happy New Year! Might I suggest meal planning as a resolution? I’ll share my own food-and-the-environment resolution in the next week or two!

MONDAY:
– Cora’s Ground Beef Tacos

TUESDAY:
– Fajita Rice Bowls

WEDNESDAY:
– Crispy Coconut Chicken (stealing this idea from Vicki’s menu last week!)

THURSDAY:
– Leftovers

FRIDAY:
– Chicken Soup with Rice

SATURDAY:
– Hors D’Oeuvres Extravaganza (have a few friends over that night, details TBD)

SUNDAY:
– Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo
– Salad

Your turn! Share those weekly meal plans in the comments below! (Remember, it’s the best new year’s resolution ever, and posting your menu here each week is a great way to stay accountable. Just sayin’.)

Hello! In the last day or two I have decided to go on a road trip this week with my kids, so no menu from me this week. I haven’t the faintest idea what we’ll be eating for dinner let alone anything else the next 7 days as we galavant across the Old West!

I am certain that some of you will have your menus planned, which the rest of us will need desperately since I’m coming up short with inspiration. So, this week more than ever, please post your wonderful meal plans in the comments below! And now I must go pack the car.

Happy New Year!

“I want bulle.” 

Those words have come out of my 7-year-old’s mouth no less than 1,000 times over the last week. Bulle is our family’s word for Swedish cardamom bread, whether in bun or braided loaf form. Bulle technically means “bun” in Swedish, so the cardamom version is actually called kardemummabullar (bullar is sort of like the plural version of the word for bulle…my dad explained it to me and it was weird Swedish grammar stuff that I cannot re-explain, so we’ll just leave it at that). I’ve had the recipe for vetebröd (braided Swedish sweet bread, in our case flavored with cardamom) on my site for years. I even shared a bun version of that recipe, the way my grandmother always made it. When Nate and I went to Sweden with my family this summer we had kardemummabullar like we’ve never made it here at home. Obviously the first thing we did when we were all together post-trip was try to replicate that Swedish goodness. My sister-in-law Cora and I took a first crack, then she and my mom have since perfected the recipe and technique. Cora graciously wrote a post and recipe for us, which I am sharing below. These cardamom buns are magic.

Kardemummabullar

By Cora Wallin

You’re welcome.

Sorry, wait. That’s supposed to come at the end, isn’t it? But seriously… you’re going to be so grateful to me. I accept flowers, love notes or life-sized Chris Hemsworth cardboard cutouts. Jane has my details.

Let me start off by saying I am not Swedish.

*gasp*

I have the height and love of all things butter and cardamon but not the stoicism or obsession with rotten seafood. I leave those to my father-in-law, Hansy-Poo. (He’s really going to hate that I called him that. But he won’t show it because, well… stoicism, remember?)

When Christian (Jane’s brother) and I first started dating, I knew my husband’s family was Swedish but mostly only on the holidays. Christian told me fabled tales of Christmastime and, in particular, the Christmas Eve feast: breaded Swedish ham, savory meatballs, pickled herring and sugary bullar. Turns out he was mostly right about the deliciousness, just exclude the fish.

His mother is basically Mrs. Claus. Her home becomes utterly transformed at Christmas. Her presents are decorated so beautifully she uses them for decorations on high shelves and in her windows. The candles, the non-creepy Santa collection, the music and the tree with 15 strands of lights make it all feel like Christmas might actually be hugging you. Then she starts to cook.

(All photos in this post are by Jane, except this one from, which is from Cora and Christian)

Lawd, the food. I eat, roll over for a nap, eat some more and only then do I leave the table. It’s goooood, people. After everyone’s rib cages are finally able to expand again, she gives one final gift. She makes bullar. And this is now my gift to you fine folk.

We went to Sweden last summer and ate bullar at every stop, from gas station to coffee shop. I kid you not. Then Jane and I came home and started tweaking the old family recipe. We did a damn fine job, if I do say so myself. Of all the authentic sampled kardemummabullar, I can think of only one small shop in the-middle-of-nowhere-Sweden whose bullar outdoes what we made. So it may seem like a lot of steps but stay with me. It’s worth it.

Please do try to wait until they’ve cooled some before eating three (or more) right off the cookie sheet. Taste buds grow back but it does take time.

Presenting…Phyllis, Jane, Cora and Some Old Swedish Broad’s Cardamom Buns!

Swedish Cardamom Buns | Kardemummabullar

 

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Note: Fresh, home-ground cardamom is worth the effort. I’ll attach the link for where we got ours. https://www.thespicehouse.com/cardamom-whole-seeds

Author: Jane Maynard, Phyllis Wallin, Cora Wallin and Some Old Swedish Broad

Ingredients

• BREAD
• 2½ cups scalded milk
• 2 packages or 4½ teaspoons dry active yeast
• 7½ - 8 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup butter, melted then cooled
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2½ teaspoons coarsely ground fresh cardamom (or 3 teaspoons store-bough ground cardamom)
• EGG WASH
• 1 egg, beaten
• FILLING (There is debate about the amount of filling. Cora and Phyllis do the amounts listed below, Jane uses half amounts listed below. Cora says it's because Jane is more American but she crazy (luckily for Jane she got final editing rights to this))
• 1 cup butter, softened
• ⅔ cup light brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon coarsely ground fresh cardamom (here is where you really do want to use freshly-ground cardamom, it makes a difference!)
• SIMPLE SYRUP
• ¾ cup water
• ¾ cup sugar
• TOPPING
• 1 tablespoon coarsely ground fresh cardamom (again, fresh is best!)
• 1½ tablespoon coarse sugar

Instructions

1. Scald milk and cool to lukewarm. Add yeast to mixing bowl then soak with ½ cup of the luke-warm milk and gently stir. Let yeast dissolve and bloom, 5-10 minutes. Add remaining milk and ¼ cup sugar. Beat in 3 cups of flour and beat until smooth. Cover and set aside to rise until double in bulik 45 minutes - 1 hour. (We use a KitchenAid stand mixer to make this bread.)
2. Add remaining ½ cup sugar, cooled butter and salt. Add cardamom as listed under the bread ingredients as well as 4½ more cups of flour to the yeast mixture. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead in ½ cup more flour. Knead until elastic and smooth. (At this point Jane simply adds the remaining 5 cups flour to the mixer and uses the dough hook to do the kneading. Cora and Phyllis apparently don't do any kneading, although why they aren't using the dough hook on the mixer is a mystery to me. Again, Jane is loving her final editing powers here.) Place dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover and let rise until double, 45 minutes to 1 hour. (Jane usually just leaves the dough right there in the mixer bowl and covers it, works just fine. One less bowl to wash.)
3. Turn dough unto to lightly floured surface. Roll into a large rectangle. Spread evenly with filling and fold dough in half. Cut 1-1½ inch strips of dough with pizza cutter.
4. FORMING THE KNOTTED BUNS: Now it's time to form the beautiful, awesome-looking buns. This part is tricky. There are lots of ways to do this. Jane does it differently than Phyllis and I remain as neutral as Sweden conforming to whatever method takes my fancy. There are links below this recipe so you can watch videos of people shaping the rolls. Definitely go watch those videos! You will essentially twist the strips and tie a knot. They’re supposed to be rustic, so don’t stress if they don’t all look the same. They will all still be beautiful.
5. One strip at a time, gently hold one end of dough with one hand while the other twists the dough until it stops, making a spiral. Be careful not to break the dough. Now wrap dough around two fingers once or twice depending on the length of the strip and tuck ends into the center of dough. Phyllis tucks one end in the top and one end in the bottom. Jane holds the bottom end while wrapping around her fingers and uses the other end to go over the center of the top before tucking into the center of the bottom. See, confusing! Watch the videos they’ll help.
6. Place rolls on un-greased, parchment-lined or Silpat-lined cookie sheets. Let rise until double, 30 to 40 minutes. Preheat oven to 400º F.
7. While buns rise a final time, make simple syrup. In a medium saucepan combine sugar and water. Bring to a gentle boil and allow to cool.
8. When buns are double in size, gently brush with the egg wash. Bake in oven 14–16 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through.
9. When buns are done the tops and bottoms should be a dark brown. The bottoms are your key to doneness, so be sure to lift one before you take them out and make sure it's dark brown. Immediately brush hot buns with simple syrup and sprinkle with sugar cardamom topping or pearl sugar.

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This is the way Jane forms the kardemummabullar knot:

This is the way Phyllis forms the kardemummabullar knot:

OTHER RECIPES YOU MAY LIKE:

• Vetebröd | Swedish Braided Cardmom Bread
• Swedish Semla
• Swedish Pancakes
• Swedish Meatballs

Happy Holidays! Merry Early Christmas!

I just finished grocery shopping. I think we can huddle in for the next few days with no need to go anywhere. I am really looking forward to quiet time with our kids!

MONDAY:
– Christmas Eve Chinese Takeout (Maynard family tradition!)

TUESDAY:
– Swedish Meatballs, Boiled Red Potatoes and Lingonberry Jam (going to try making gluten-free, dairy-free meatballs for myself…we’ll compare to see if they’re any good!)
– Vetebröd (Swedish Cardamom Bread)

WEDNESDAY:
– Leftovers

THURSDAY:
– Pat’s Asian Chicken Salad

FRIDAY:
– Eat out night

SATURDAY:
– Homemade Hamburgers

SUNDAY:
– Breakfast for Dinner: Waffles, Eggs, Fruit

Blah

My oldest child Cate turned 14 a few days ago. (PS: FOURTEEN. Unreal.) Cate is obsessed with toast, so much so that I’ve instituted a toast ration in our house. Yeah, I know, meanest mom ever. But this ration is there to protect all of us – it keeps Cate from dying of malnutrition from overindulgence of toast and also saves me from spending my entire retirement on good toast bread to support her habit. (I think drugs might be cheaper, quite frankly. Not that I’m condoning drugs or anything but seriously I SPEND SO MUCH MONEY ON BREAD, PEOPLE.) As her birthday party was approaching this year she came up with a brilliant/hilarious/bizarre birthday cake request: toast. Yes, she wanted a cake that looked like toast. Honestly, I wasn’t opposed because I figured it couldn’t be too hard to figure out how to make a cake that looks like toast.

I was right. A toast cake is not hard at all. And the cake ended up being so fun the photo I posted on Instagram got the most likes of any photo I’ve ever posted there. Who could have predicted a cake that looks like toast would be so popular, even among non addicts?

Since the cake was such a hit, figured I’d give you all a quick rundown on how to pull it together. In addition to a quick step-by-step, I’ll share the recipes I used.

How to Make a Cake That Looks Like Toast

• Bake two 8- or 9-inch square cakes. I made vanilla cake with cream cheese frosting because those flavors go great with cinnamon sugar.
• Stack the unfrosted cakes on top of each other and then cut out pieces as indicated in the drawing below.

• Frost the cake like you would any 2-layer cake but leave the sides unfrosted. I made a back and forth motion on the top in parallel lines so the frosting would look like butter was spread on the cake.
• Once the middle and top of the cake are frosted, sift a bit of cocoa powder into the frosting and blend well. You want to make a nice light brown-colored frosting. I probably added about a tablespoon or so. Use this to frost the sides of the cake.
• Once the cake is frosted, sprinkle the top carefully and evenly with cinnamon sugar.
• Be sure to click here and read through my Amateur’s Guide to Making Super Cute Cakes post. That post has all the tips you need to successfully decorate the cake!

That’s it! If you can make a 2-layer cake, you can make a toast cake.

Vanilla Cake

 

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Prep time

40 mins

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

1 hour 10 mins

 

This is a great basic vanilla cake recipe from Matthew Mead's "Cakes for Kids" book. I've re-written the directions in my own words.

Author: Jane Maynard

Ingredients

• 2½ cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for pans
• 2½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ⅔ cup butter at room temperature
• 1¾ cups sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temp
• 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1¼ cups milk
• 2 teaspoons grated fresh orange or lemon zest (optional...I have never added this b/c I am lazy)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350º F.
2. This recipe works for 24 cupcakes, 2 8-inch or 9-inch cakes, or 1 9x13 cake. If using cupcake liners, place liners in muffin tin and set aside. If using cake pan(s), lightly grease the bottom of the cake pan, line it with parchment paper, then grease the parchment paper and the sides of the pan. Lightly flour the pan. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the 2½ cups flour, baking powder and salt.
4. Using a stand mixer, beat butter on medium-high speed for 30 seconds. Scrape down the bowl.
5. Leaving the mixer on medium speed, add ¼ cup sugar. Beat for 3 minutes. Keep adding sugar ¼ cup at a time, mixing for 3 minutes between each addition until you've added all the sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then beat on medium speed for 2 more minutes.
6. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating at medium speed for 30 seconds between each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
7. With the mixer on low speed, add ⅓ of the flour mixture, then half of the milk, then ⅓ of the flour mixture, then the rest of the milk, then the rest of the flour mixture, mixing until just combined for each addition. If using zest, add it now.
8. Scrape down the sides of the bowl then give the batter one more mix at high speed for 20 seconds.
9. Spread the batter in the pan, filling cake pans or cupcakes ⅔ full with batter.
10. For 8- or 9-inch cakes, bake for 30-35 minutes. For 9x13 cake, bake for 35-40 minutes. For cupcakes bake for 10-12 minutes. Toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean when done.
11. Cool cake in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Using a knife, cut around the edges of the cake, then invert the pan over the wire rack, lift pan to remove cake and peel off parchment paper. Let cake cool completely on the rack. For cupcakes, let cool in the pan for 15 minutes before removing.

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Cream Cheese Frosting

 

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This frosting is perfect for decorating cakes and cupcakes!

Author: Jane Maynard

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened to room temperature
• 10.5 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 5 cups powdered sugar (maybe 5½ cups if you feel like it needs to be a bit thicker)

Instructions

1. Beat the butter and cream cheese with a hand mixer or in a stand mixer until smooth.
2. Beat in vanilla.
3. Add powdered sugar and beat on low speed until combined, then on high speed until frosting is smooth.

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UPDATE 12/18/18: This past week included two of my kids’ birthdays and my busiest work week of the year. As I add this update to this post it’s 5:00 pm and I still don’t know what’s for dinner! 😉 SOOO…please share your menus for the week of 12/18 in the comments below! A few of you already have and I love those people oh so very much. Have a great week! 

I have a few carryover items from last week’s menu, which means no grocery shopping until later in the week, woohoo!

MONDAY:
– Pressure Cooker Pot Roast
– Mashed Potatoes & Salad

TUESDAY:
– Homemade hamburgers

WEDNESDAY:
– Roasted Salmon with Urban Plates Chimichurri
– Side vegetable dish of some kind

THURSDAY:
– Leftovers

FRIDAY:
– Chili

SATURDAY:
– Cate’s friend birthday party night! We’re going to have pasta for all the girls and they can choose between Bolognese or Alfredo
– Salad

SUNDAY:
– Leftovers (I think we’ll have even more leftover food by Sunday, so two nights of leftover this week!)

You know the drill…share those weekly meal plans in the comments below! And have a great week!

Hello friends! I am buried in work, so getting just now getting my weekly menu pulled together. But here we are, done! Once again the blog forces me to get a little organized, which helps alleviate some of the work stress for sure.

MONDAY:
– Carne Asada Tacos with Fresh Masa Tortillas

TUESDAY:
– Pressure Cooker Pot Roast
– Mashed Potatoes & Salad

WEDNESDAY:
– Homemade hamburgers

THURSDAY:
– Leftovers

FRIDAY:
– Nate’s work party and kids going to a Christmas party with friends

SATURDAY:
– Eat out night

SUNDAY:
– Roasted Salmon with Urban Plates Chimichurri
– Side vegetable dish of some kind

Thank you in advance for sharing your own weekly menus in the comments below. I don’t know what I would do without them each week when I sit down to plan! Thank you!