what a week!

Oh my gosh, what a week!

THREE snow days or snow delays….

A successful launch of "Stock Your Freezer in a Snap - The Second Batch" {my second instantly downloadable ebook that guides parents, step-by-step, through creating a freezer stash of healthful, delicious family meals}. If you're a plan-ahead kind of parent, download it now and tuck it away for back-to-school because I am running a launch discount now!

And, as one last winter hurrah {please say this is the last snow day baking we'll be doing…}, we baked up a giant batch of our favorite Cinnamon-Chocolate Brownies with Chocolate Ganache for Vermont Alpine Racing's coach appreciation weekend...

I don't know about you, but I'm starting to think spring…. tidying the house up, de-cluttering, and shifting from comfort foods to lighter, fresher fare. With that in mind, I look forward to being in touch soon with my review of Mark Hyman MD's soon-to-be-released 10 Day Detox Cookbook which you can pre-order here.*

Here's to a fabulous weekend ahead, full of good food, family and friends!  And hopefully something delicious you can just pull from the freezer, during these last few weeks of winter, when we crave cozy, comforting fare. {That's a simple gluten-free lasagna pictured below, made with Stock Your Freezer in a Snap - The Second Batch's Broccoli-Arugula-Parmesan Pesto. Delish.}

*This post contains amazon affiliate links. You know the gig-- same price to you, small commission to me, which keeps The Full Plate Blog out of hobby status. :) 

homemade gift: simple grapefruit-orange-clementine marmalade

I know you're probably in a gift-wrapping frenzy when this post arrives in your inbox, but trust me, I must send this recipe along. It deserves to be immortalized here, so that the next time I need an amazing hostess gift, homemade teacher gift, or easy weekend cooking project with the kids, I know where to find it.

Marmalade. You either love it or hate it. I happen to love it. I didn't always love it though; it took a really good jar of marmalade to convert me. And I think that as many of us are bundling up, trying to stay cozy these next few months, marmalade just might be the ticket to happiness on those cold, dark, nippy mornings. Tart and sweet, brightly colored, and just a few ingredients. This one's a keeper.

Simple Grapefruit-Orange-Clementine Marmalade

(makes about 3 cups)

2 grapefruits

8 oranges

6 clementines

1 1/2 cups sugar, or more to taste 

pinch of salt

Zest the grapefruit into a medium saucepan, then cut away the peel and pith (white part) of the grapefruit, oranges and clementines. Rough chop all of the citrus (removing any seeds), and add it to the saucepan. Pour the sugar over the citrus, add a pinch of salt, and give everything a stir. Simmer the citrus-sugar mixture over low heat, stirring occasionally, for about 45 minutes-1 hour, or until juices are thickened. Cool and store in glass jars in the fridge for up to three weeks. 

P.S. It is exceptional served over coconut-rice pudding, after a day of sledding… and it would be equally decadent over the eggnog bread pudding we're having Christmas morning. Mmmm.

the 2014 savory pumpkin cannelloni project in pics

Drooling on your keyboard and want the Savory Pumpkin Sage Cannelloni recipe? Here you go.  And, you may click here for an amazon associate link to my recommended freezer packaging, if that's something you need for homemade holiday gift giving, or make-ahead meals. 

simple homemade gift + rainy day activity: lemon sugar scrub

School's out for us... and last week was a very rainy week. Normally I would just have my kids bundle up and go play in the rain, but my older son is in South America on an adventure with my parents for 10 days, and, well, call me a scrooge, but I'm not a huge fan of playing in the rain. Two days into summer break, I'd had my fill of Sorry and Totally Gross board games, and was feeling pangs of guilt that the last weeks of school had seemed so busy, and we hadn't done an end of year gift for all of the 'extra' (non-lead) teachers that play such an amazing role in my children's school lives. My 6-year-old overheard me mention this to a friend and excitedly announced that we should "make something!" So, we spent Friday morning making enough Lemon Sugar Scrub to pop in the school mailboxes of his Extended Day teachers, the Head of Early Childhood, her right-hand-gal assistant, his science, art, Spanish, and music teachers, the Head of School and his speech therapist (my child's... not the Head of School's). Because we now have our go-to Lemon Sugar Scrub down to a science, I am jotting the latest and greatest recipe down (with exactly what to buy, using brands and sizes readily available at your local market) here for you all looking for  a simple rainy day activity, or easy teacher/hostess gift, that your children can help make. Order the jars now (while you're thinking of it), and have the other ingredients in your pantry, and you too can the win mom-of-the-day award...

Lemon Sugar Scrub

(makes a dozen 8.5 oz jars)

twelve 8.5 oz jars (I get them at Container Store)

two 2lb boxes Sugar in the Raw

25.3 oz bottle olive oil (we used Filippo Berio Extra Light)

15 oz bottle pure lemon juice

zest of 3-4 lemons

{If you are making this with little ones, I highly recommend putting a towel down.} Combine all ingredients in a large bowl or pot. Divide evenly among jars and seal tightly. Let gift recipients know it's a beauty products, not an ice cream topping...

Here are action photos, since I know some of you like to follow along this way:

measuring sugar

now we know a box is 4 cups, so dumping sugar...

olive oil (yes, this makes me nervous on our brand new kitchen floors...)

lemon juice (yep, even more nervous about those kitchen floors...)

zesting lemons (I let him do one side of each lemon, then I did the other sides since they get slippery)

mixing

scooping (and I'm not going to lie: I was thrilled when he tired of scooping... at that point I had the remains of several jars worth of lemon sugar scrub running down my arm)

this photo's a little out of order, but I'm going to keep it here just to remind you to put a towel down... you can thank me later

voila! i wish i'd thought to take a photo with the ribbons and tags, but I didn't. you get the gist though!

meal delivery to our (beloved) Kindergarten teachers

In addition to totally obsessing over whether I am in 3rd or 4th place (given the minute-- this contest is CRAZY!), yesterday the kids and I delivered dinner to my little one's beloved Kindergarten teachers. Last week, we delivered dinner to my older son's 4th grade teachers, and they loved it. I mean, who wouldn't love the gift of a homemade dinner?

Now, let's be clear on one thing: during this totally nutty end-of-year period, I was not home slaving over the stove. In fact {insert somewhat smug look}, I haven't actually cooked these past two weeks (unless you count making that avocado toast "cooking"). Remember that one night when I cooked and stocked the freezer? Yes, we're both living off that goodness, and gifting it.

And so, between opening the freezer door at home, making a selection from the homemade stash and then going to our local gourmet shop for a nice salad, a treat, and an appetizer, we were able to give two hard-working teachers a night off... and the wheels could still stay on the bus, even during a super busy week.

How great is that?