Cake decorating class!

So I started taking a cake decorating class for fun and here's what I've done so far!

The 1st week I decorated some cookies, basically just learning the star tip.

The 2nd week I filled and decorated a cake! It was super fun. This week we only learned to use the round tip. Can you see my fish, bubbles and seaweed stuff?

And fish don't live without water so I had to add it to the sides!

How to Make Sushi!

At the request of many of you, here is how to make your own sushi. This will save you tons of $$ and you can get super creative.

To make the rice:

I use a rice cooker. It is super easy.
If you use white rice, use 1/4 C less the amount of water as normal. Example: For 2 C rice you would only put in 3 3/4 C water.
If you use brown rice (which I do) cook the rice normal. Example: For 2 C brown rice use 4 C water.

When the rice is done, add about 1 tbsp white or rice vinegar per each cup of rice. I like mine a little more vinegary so I do one extra tbsp. Then I add 2 tbsp Chia seeds but you can use Sesame seeds. Stir all this together.

To make the sushi:

Cut up anything you want in your sushi. Examples:

-Carrots
-Avocados
-Cucumber
-Zucchini
-Green Onion
-Cooked Eggs
-Crab
-Tuna
-Pickled Daikon (a delicious Korean radish)
-Red, Green or Yellow Peppers

Here is a picture of everything I used:

Now, take your toasted/roasted seaweed and place it shiny side down. SO, there is a shiny and a rough side. You want the rough side up and shiny side down. OK?

Now take some rice and spread it over about 1/4 - 1/2 of the seaweed like this

Now put your fixins in the middle of the rice pile like this

Now it's time to roll it up! Start at the side with the rice and fixins and roll it up once and try to shape it roundly.

Then pick up the top part of the bamboo mat and pull it so you can roll the sushi roll one more time. If you do not pick up the bamboo mat, you will roll it up with the sushi roll. Tasty.

Spuish down the roll and shape it roundly. Then pull the bamboo sheet again and roll the sushi roll up one more time.

Repeat process until the sushi roll is completely rounded and done.

Then cut the rolls with a serrated knife because they work the best. Then enjoy the beauty of your homemade sushi!!

We didn't start the fire!

So today we went on an afternoon walk with Pete and Kristin in their neighborhood. Their neighborhood has a yearly day when the trash company will take any amount of trash for free (or just the normal price paid per pick-up). So we perused the unwanted items for anything fun.

We came across a fire in the front of someones house where there "trash" would be and asked Pete and Kristin if it was legal to have fires like that to which they replied, "I dunno." We thought it was strange especially since no one was by the fire. So as I ran up to the person's house, a lady driving by was like "Should I call 911?" To which I said, "Ya, that'd probably be good." I got to the door and rang the doorbell twice until they answered, saw the fire, and ran around like mad people. As I came away from their house, their neighbors were just watching the fire grow. One man told me not to run by it as he didn't want it to explode and hurt me. Gee, thanks buddy. The guy's friend asked him if he had a hose and so they got their hose ready as finally the owner of the fire finally got outside and had his hose out too. There was smoke everywhere!! It was crazy man. My question is what was in the trash that made it catch fire and gave no worries to those who threw it out??

Our Fave Pizza Recipe

I feel like our blog is turning into a recipe book, but I have nothing else to talk about :) Food is a part of our everyday life. So here is our new favorite pizza recipe!

Dough:

-3/4 C Warm water

-1 tbsp Yeast

-1/2 tsp sugar (or honey)

Put these 3 items into a bowl together and let sit for 5 minutes or until bubbly.

Meanwhile,

-2 - 3 C Wheat Flour (I almost always use 2 - 2 1/4 C)

-1/2 tsp Salt

-2 tbsp Chia Seed

-1/4 C Olive Oil

Put these into a mixer. Then pour the yeast mixture into the flour mixture when ready and knead for 8 minutes.

Put into a 15" pizza pan or a cookie sheet.

Then add toppings. These are our favorites:

-pour a little olive oil on the top of the crust

-put on some shredded parmesan cheese

-add chopped (about 3) roma tomatoes

-add 1/2 of a chopped red onion

-add some chopped pineapple

-then add some spinach

-top with mozzerrella

Bake in the oven at 425 for about 20 minutes and enjoy!

A Little Something to do with Wheat Storage

It seemed like everyone in Vegas had wheat and used it. Here in Illinois, people don't even know where the cannery is. So here's a recipe for pancakes that are so delicious I could eat them for lunch and dinner (and sometimes I do):

Wheat Pancakes:

1 C Wheat Flour

1 C Milk (I use almond milk)

1 Egg

2 tbsp Olive Oil

1 tbsp Honey

2 tsp Baking Powder

1/4 tsp Salt

2 tbsp Chia Seeds (You don't have to put this in but with these 2 tbsp of seeds you get 10g of carbs, 10g of fiber, 6g of protein, and 120 calories)

*If you want fruit, put in 1/2 of chopped fruit

Whisk all ingredients together and cook on the stovetop. Add peanut butter, jam, or maple syrup and ENJOY!

Recipes

Michael and I are back on track and eating our normal healthy foods. I have not eaten sugar for 28 days and I don't really crave it anymore. However, I have been staring at a recipe lately and have been dying to try it so today I did and it was de-li-cious!! So here it is:

For an individual size (apx. 3/4 C) of CHOCOLATE BANANA SMOOTHIE:

*1 frozen banana (you might want to chop this up 1st)

*1 oz dark chocolate (you might want to crush this up 1st)

*1 pinch of cinnamon (it equals to be about 1/16 tsp)

*1/2 C almond milk

*If you like sweeter drinks, you can add one drop of honey

Put all of these ingredients in your blender (in the Vitamix it blends right up but regular blenders might be trickier) and blend until smooth. Enjoy!

Here is our recipe for Almond Milk (or you can buy it from the store):

*1 C almonds, soaked in water overnight. This will become 2 C almonds. Rinse and drain.

*4 C water

*1 tsp vanilla

*2 tbsp honey (or agave)

Blend all ingredients in blender. Pour liquid into a nut milk bag and gently squeeze liquid through into a container. This will last in the fridge for a few days.

The joys of fertility

I have decided to post about the process of invitro. And I am saying the very beginnings as we haven't even started the actual invitro process yet!

WOMEN:

Step 1: Typically they will start by taking your hormone levels on a random day.

Step 2: If hormones are fine, they will do an HSG test which tests to see if your fallopian tubes are open or if there's a blockage.

Step 3: If nothing is wrong there, it's time to start ultrasounds! You will call the doctor on the 1st day of your period. On day 3 you'll go to the office, get blood drawn, and get a uteran ultrasound to check the process of your eggs.

You will go back on day 12, 14, 21, and 27 (or whatever days the doctor says) and get blood drawn and do the ultrasound each time.

Step 4: You go to the doctor and get your cervix filled with fluid to see if there's a hole in it (I guess).

*For me, my estrogen level is low in the beginning, my LSH is low in the middle and my progesterone is low in the latter stage of my process. Apparently this is easily fixed with pills. Good news right? Typically...

MEN:

Step 1: You will go to the doctor and get blood drawn. For some reason these tests take a couple weeks to get results. So you'll wait...

Step 2: You'll go to the doctor and give them a semen sample in a very awkward room...

Step 3: If your levels are normal, you'll move on to step 4. If all looks well, the woman will take her drugs and you will go from there.

Step 4: So your levels are normal but your semen analysis wasn't. Now you are going to go to a Urologist and talk about getting a testicular biopsy done. The biopsy will help them know if you have any active sperm in your testes. Apparently 50% of men who have low sperm counts can have a great sperm level hiding in their testes.

Step 5: If you have sperm hiding, you will get the sperm taken out somehow and frozen for future times.

Step 6: If you don't have sperm hiding, you can use a sperm donor or adopt or not have kids. *Most of these steps for us are done. It has taken 4 months so far with waiting for appointments and everything. I feel like it's taking FOR-E-VER but 4 months really isn't that long granted it's been about 4 years since we started trying to have kids. So here's to waiting....