Crispy Skin Salmon Salad w/Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

During our Sunday night planning, Micah found this recipe by Curtis Stone:

CRISPY SKIN SALMON SALAD WITH ROASTED CHERRY TOMATOES 

Serves 4 

Ingredients 

16 cherry tomatoes on the vine 

2 teaspoons plus ¼ cup extra-virgin 

olive oil 

Salt and freshly ground black pepper 

4 6-ounce / 180 gram salmon fillets, 

skin on 

1/2 cup fresh lime juice 

1/4 cup grapeseed oil 

4 ounces / 125 grams mixed baby 

lettuce leaves 

Method 

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F / 180°C. 

2. Place the tomatoes on a small baking sheet and drizzle with 2 

teaspoons of olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. 

3. Roast the tomatoes in the oven for about 8 minutes, or until they begin 

to split. Remove the tomatoes from the oven and cool slightly. 

4. Meanwhile, sprinkle the salmon with salt and pepper. Place the salmon skin side down in a large heavy nonstick sauté pan. 

5. Place the pan over medium-low heat. Increase the heat to high and cook the salmon for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the skin of the salmon is golden brown. 

6. Turn the salmon and cook for 1 to 2 minutes longer, or until the salmon is just pink in the middle. 

7. Place the lime juice in a bowl and slowly whisk in the grapeseed oil and the remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil. 

8. Season with salt and pepper. 

9. Mound the lettuce leaves into chef rings on 4 plates or stack the lettuce in the center of the plate. 

10. Arrange the crispy skin salmon and roasted tomatoes over the salads. 

11. Drizzle some of the vinaigrette over the salmon and salads and serve. 

I love taking a recipe and putting my own twist on it (or sometimes I just have to make do with what I have on hand). We didn't have grapeseed oil so I substituted peanut oil, we also used spinach instead of the mixed baby lettuce leaves.  Then we added a few cashews, slivered almonds and a pinch of parmesan cheese. Here's our finished product - in Micah's words, "Sunday night planning taste good!"

Learned my Lesson

As pink as him...

So we took our youth students to Schlitterbahn.  To be honest I was excited to go and have a relaxing day in the sun without the baby... In preparation I decided to put on a low spf sunscreen in hopes I would just get a nice tan.  Micah of course questioned my rationality of the decision and  I had a hard-headed moment, as I can sometimes do. Needless to say this white skin of mine just soaks up the sun but of course I don't feel it or really notice it until the next day when I'm in pain and my 8 month old is grabbing and pinching my arms - OUCH! Hopefully I've learned my lesson.

I remember a couple weeks ago my mom telling me that if I ever got a sunburn to soak in the tub with white distilled vinegar, it really did help relieve the sting - it's amazing all the things vinegar is used for, here are just a few or you can check out this site for 1001 uses for vinegar.

Soothe sunburn with a spray of white distilled vinegar, repeating as often as you like. Ice-cold white distilled vinegar will feel even better, and may prevent blistering and peeling.

Eliminate bad breath and whiten your teeth by brushing them once or twice a week with white distilled vinegar.

Make nail polish last longer. Wipe fingernails with cotton balls dipped in white distilled vinegar before putting on nail polish.

To remove film in glass baby bottles, fill with equal parts hot water and white distilled vinegar. Let sit for at least an hour. Scrub with a bottle brush.

Full of Flavor

On the menu tonight (remix of Donna's excellent cooking)... 

Asparagus sauteed in olive oil and peanut oil with minced garlic and cashews

Bar-b-q chicken (it's better baked, but didn't have the time tonight)

We also had a baked sweet potato and let me just say this meal was full of flavor!

Fun day

Fun day...

At the Hunting and Fishing Expo

Playing with daddy while mommy does some shopping

Daddy is lowering my crib because I'm getting close to being able to stand up...

While mommy and daddy were busy I decided to get out all my books.

I like my lower crib, I stood up all by myself for the first time.

Just the right height, I can chew on this but don't tell my mom :)

Mack - 8 Months

Ahh, my baby is 8 months old today and he's not slowing down... here's a few pics to recap the past month.(Sorry if any of these pictures seem redundant)

Trying out the jumpy thing, I kept hitting the door though, so I may need to wait till I have a little more body control (the tile didn't help with the pajamas).

I'm praising Jesus with my Baby Praise video.

Got all the toys out, now how do I get in this thing...

Mommy got me up on my knees but I can't figure out how to keep them under me.

Saturday afternoon nap with my dad.

Oooh, this is new, it has handles.

I love story time with my Bible.

I think I can get out of here...

Aww the cold ice helps my tooth.

Hmmm, I think I can get out of here too, I keep mommy busy!

See my first tooth, it started cutting through on July 1st.

To be like my daddy, he's cool.

Well I think I'm somewhere between 17 and 18 pounds.

I love to read!

Still trying to crawl, I'm good at getting up on my hands.

And today (officially 8 months) I kept going backwards, how did I end up under the couch?

So Mack has officially cut his first tooth, is trying to crawl, attempting to pull himself up on anything he can reach (including the sides of the crib - time to lower the mattress) and of course he just keeps getting cuter!

Food & Fellowship

Anytime there was a holiday or some occasion to celebrate Micah and I would naturally have our family (Master's Commission) over to the house.  Well now that Master's Commission is over we've decided to broaden our family circle to encompass the youth leaders that work with us in Axis.  So we're having a few couples over to the house... I just love when we have company because I get to cook a nice meal and I get to bake some sort of dessert:) 
Here's what's on the menu:

Lasagna/Bread/Salad
Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 (29 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
• 12 dry lasagna noodles
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 pint part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 pound mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. In a skillet over medium heat, brown ground beef, onion and garlic; drain fat. Mix in basil, oregano, brown sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, diced tomatoes and tomato paste. Simmer for 30 to 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add lasagna noodles, and cook for 5 to 8 minutes, or until al dente; drain. Lay noodles flat on towels, and blot dry.
3. In a medium bowl, mix together eggs, ricotta, Parmesan cheese, parsley and 1 teaspoon salt.
4. Layer 1/3 of the lasagna noodles in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Cover noodles with 1/2 ricotta mixture, 1/2 of the mozzarella cheese and 1/3 of the sauce. Repeat. Top with remaining noodles and sauce. Sprinkle additional Parmesan cheese over the top.
5. Bake in the preheated oven 30 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

I figure after a heavy meal like Lasagna we need something a little lighter for dessert so we're gonna try this (made my own tweeks so we'll see how it turns out):

Strawberry Pizza

Ingredients

• 1 pkg of Betty Crocker Sugar Cookie mix
• 1 stick of butter
• 1 egg
• 
  
• FILLING:
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 cups sliced fresh strawberries
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 2 cups crushed fresh strawberries

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Put butter in a microwave safe bowl and melt.  Once melted, crack egg in the butter and whip. Next pour it over the sugar cookie and mix well.  Spread in a pizza pan.  Cook for 14-16 minutes. Cool completely.  
2. In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Spread over cookie. 
3. In a saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch and crushed berries until blended. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Cool slightly. Spoon over cream cheese mixture then arrange sliced strawberries on top. Refrigerate until serving.

Looking forward to our food and fellowship! 

Time to Lower the Crib

I think it's time to lower the crib!

Delicious Snack

Not sure what to call this but it is quite a delicious snack! (Thanks to Kirk)

• Crackers (Triscuts are best but I had to substitute Ritz)
• Mustard (just a dab)
• Lunch meat (I used turkey & ham)
• Cheese (I used swiss & cheddar)
• Salsa

After you assemble in order the ingredients are listed, warm in the microwave approx. 25 seconds to slightly melt the cheese. And ENJOY!

Determined to crawl!

Texting

So I just figured out how to text to my blog, this is cool!
--
==================================================================
This mobile text message is brought to you by AT&T

Learning as we go...

We're constantly learning as we go... Micah and I decided to make a small tweak in something we were doing with Mack... we'd been taking Mack to his room to change his diaper and to put him to sleep.  But sometimes he isn't too fond of either of those things; so we have started to spend a little more time with him IN his room playing as well as reading. The big idea is to get him used to HIS room and not see it as a place that he dreads.  Today we were working on crawling and getting used to being on his tummy. So far it's been working great!

Reading to Baby is one of the most soothing interactions you’ll have. Turns out it’s a bonding experience with benefits, improving vocabulary, reading readiness, focus, and attention. As with adults, reading contributes to a child’s general knowledge of the world. You can start as early as birth on this together-time activity that’s truly powerful for both of you.


Micah and I did just that, we began reading to Mack as soon as he was born and he loves it.  He gets so excited, especially when we read his Bible to him. It's never too early to start pouring the Word of God into your child!

Cooking at the Crump's

Once a week at the Crump household Micah and I have started cooking together... something fun to do while spending quality time together. So after a walk in the park (with 96 degree weather), we stopped by the grocery store to pick up a few items for our meal tonight.

Here are the boys, shopping... well Micah is shopping and Mack is snacking.

With huge tortillas, homemade spanish rice, chicken, black beans, avocado, sour cream, cheese and fresh home-made salsa we had our rendition of Chipotle burritos!

And it tasted yummy!!!