So Eric and I have been cramming for Charlotte’s one-year check up with the doctor. There is this test that we are supposed to put her through to see if she is up to speed on baby skills. Stuff like one handed cartwheels, obstacle courses, and speed reading.

Just kidding. It’s really a list of stuff that you should be doing with your kid to help them develop, like peek-a-boo and waving bye-bye. We are trying to get them all checked off before her appointment so that we can add “smartest baby in the world” to our previously accomplished “cutest baby in the world” achievement.

Charlotte has yet to take her first step. A few days ago I was in the other room when Eric called to me, Karen this is it! I’ve found a way to get Charlotte to walk! I came in expecting him to be luring her with his iPhone.

Instead I see this. That’s right, he put necktie-reins on our baby. She will be running around in no time. Don’t worry I will put the brakes on if he decides to bust out the baby blinders.

I’ve only been in Utah for four months and I’m already making weird jello combinations. What is happening to me? Seriously though, this stuff rocks. It is the perfect sweet and salty combo.  Healthy people would call it a dessert, but that’s not how I roll.

The other day my brother gave me this link which his friend Kristy had sent to him with the comment, Get Karen to make this!!! It is not at all a waste of time! It is a video of somebody making an origami crane out of jello. Yes you read that right. And all this while the.coolest.song.ever. plays in the background (Rill Rill by the band Sleigh Bells). My favorite parts about this video:

• The fact that there are absolutely no measurements
• Their huge container of gelatin. Where did they even get that?
• The only other things they have in their fridge to go with their jello-cranes is a can of Crisco and a beer.
• The part where they are making a paper crane and say Sorry you can’t see this part . . . It’s important.

What can I say? Today is just a jello day.

Jello Pretzel Salad

Source: The Girl Who Ate Everything

2 1/2 cups pretzels, crushed fine (use a food processor or blender)
3 tablespoons brown sugar
3/4 cup butter
1 (6 oz) package instant strawberry jello
1 (10 oz) package frozen strawberries or small container (16 oz) sliced fresh strawberries
1 ( 8 oz ) package cream cheese
1 cup sugar
8 oz. cool whip

Combine pretzels, brown sugar, and melted butter and press into a greased 9 X 13 pan. You can use more butter if the crust isn’t sticking together. Bake at for 10 minutes.

Make jello according to directions and add the strawberries. Refrigerate until partially set. This took an hour or two. If it is not set enough it will leak through your cream cheese layer and make your pretzels soggy.

Beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Blend in cool whip. Spread over cooled crust. Make sure you spread completely to the edges to create a seal so your jello doesn’t leak through. Pour jello over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate until set.

One time my brother’s wife Sandi was comparing her love for her kids to my mom’s love for her own.  Janice has true compassion, she said. I just have tiny love.  As in, she claimed to love her babies only because they were tiny and cute rather than having true compassion for them. (Yeah right.)

Do you see that bowl on the left, the one with the sauce in it? It is tiny. We are talking a circumference the size of a silver dollar here. I used to think it was the most useless dish that we owned.

When Eric and I got married we registered at Bed Bath and Beyond, land of expensive kitchen gadgets and As Seen On TV gizmos. This was back before I was a cooking fanatic. I wasn’t in the kitchen much and couldn’t see why Eric was registering us for stupid items like olive oil dispensers (which I now use probably every day of my life) and tiny tiny bowls. What the heck are we going to use that for? It’s not like we are Martha Stewart and need to put our salt into a pretty bowl before we dump it in our food.

But he insisted, and sure enough, out of all the things on our registry, the tiny bowls were chosen. For years I nagged him about those bowls. Every time we moved I would try to sneak them onto the give-away pile but he always caught me.

Then one day he was doing the dishes and accidentally pulverized one of his tiny bowls in the garbage disposal. At first I viewed it as an opportunity to get rid of the other one. But he just looked so depressed. He turned to me and said Karen. Look at how tiny this bowl is. I have tiny love for it.

How could I resist that? Long live tiny love.

These meatballs are awesome. The dipping sauce totally makes it. I served it with jasmine rice and it was perfect.

Asian Turkey Meatballs with Lime Sesame Dipping Sauce

Source: Skinnytaste.com

1/4 cup panko crumbs
1-1/4 lbs 93% lean ground turkey
1 egg
1 tablespoon ginger, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
3 scallions, chopped
1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil

Dipping Sauce

4 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons water
1 fresh scallion, chopped

Preheat oven to 500.

Mix ground turkey, panko, egg, salt, scallions, ginger, cilantro, 1 tbsp soy sauce, and 2 tsp oil and mix with your hands until combined well. Shape 1/4 cup meat mixture into a ball and transfer to a baking dish. Repeat with remaining mixture. Bake until cooked through, about 15 minutes.

For the dipping sauce mix together lime juice, water, soy sauce, and remaining 2 teaspoons of oil in a bowl. Add scallions.

Transfer meatballs to a serving dish. Stir sauce, then drizzle meatballs with 1 tablespoon sauce.

Serve meatballs with remaining sauce, about 1 tablespoon per person. I made jasmine rice to go with this and it was great.
Makes 12 meatballs.

Eric and I figured out recently that we are more in love than any other couple. Ever. Don’t stop reading just yet; this is not going to get mushy. I have empirical evidence.

Eric and I shared a car until very recently. Now we are “taking care” of his sister’s car while she is away on her mission. Which is awesome for me. Now I can go get that crucial lemon or bottle of rice vinegar or almond extract that is the only missing ingredient for whatever I am making (yes, that is the only exciting thing I have to do with the car. Shut up.)

One day a few weeks ago I needed the car for the day, which meant dropping off and picking up Eric from work. I hate driving and avoid it whenever humanly possible, so as soon as I got to his work I slid over to the passenger seat so that he could take the wheel. He got in the car and we both leaned in for a quick peck. Cute, right?

Wrong. Instead of Eric’s usually very agreeable lips, I was met with the most intense shock of my life. Did you know that lips are one of the most sensitive areas on your body because of the high concentration of receptor cells? Well folks I could tell. It hurt so bad.

Really though, it’s kind of romantic. I mean, who doesn’t want electric kisses? Even if they leave you with red marks and throbbing teeth.

This is a great recipe for when you are craving some summer food but haven’t been invited to any bonfires lately because it’s 5 degrees outside. These bars are ridiculously delicious and come together pretty quick. They are super rich; you don’t need a big piece.  Unless you are me, in which case you do.

People always ask me why there are 3 extra gallons of milk in our fridge. This is why.

S’mores Bars

Source: slightly adapted from Lovin’ from the Oven

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
enough chocolate chips to cover the pan. I like semi-sweet but I suppose milk chocolate is more traditional.
1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme (one regular jar)

Preheat oven to 350. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light. Beat in egg and vanilla. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture and mix at a low speed until combined.

Divide dough in half and press half of dough into an even layer on the bottom of the prepared pan. Pour some chocolate chips on top.*  Microwave the marshmallow cream for 10 or 15 seconds so that it scoops out easier (make sure you remove all of the foil first!!) Spread chocolate with marshmallow creme. Place remaining dough in a single layer on top of the creme (most easily achieved by flattening the dough into small shingles and laying them together).

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool completely before cutting into bars. (yeah right)

*Note: The original recipes calls for 2 Hershey’s bars instead of chocolate chips. That would probably be really good, let me know if you try it.  I just never have them on hand.