It's a Wonderful Life!

   Top of the morning to ya!

   

   It's no longer morning here; but tradition is tradition and I'm stickin' to it! ;-)

   This is the second to last day of a South African long weekend. Sadly enough, they have bought the feminist lie and we are "celebrating" Women's Day... for four days. The great side is that we were able to relax and enjoy great fellowship.

   We had a braai at our place and my photographer (*cough* Gabbi) lost sight of the goal and I am afraid that I cannot show you interesting photos from that. I'll give her some slack, though, because who could resist holding two brand new adorable babies in our fellowship??!! ;-)

    Even though this is primarily a food blog, I want to share our party/fellowship/braai photos and other shenanigans to give you a glimpse into our life here, as well. However, I did manage to take a few photos over the weekend that give an idea of what we've been up to.

Dad was brave enough to teach Mo and me how to drive his manual beastly vehicle... Mo did better than I did. I definitely am thankful for automatic! (I want to conquer this, though.)

I made some chicken and veggie curry Friday night. It was really good, if I might say so myself. I am not a huge fan of curry chicken because I've never really had one that made me just crave it. However, I wanted to make this taste as best as possible and I got good feedback from the fam. :-) Made my day!

I sauteed the veggies in a separate pan and then added the chicken and coconut milk to this. Let me tell you, butternut squash makes an excellent sweet contrast with this!

Pip chilling out on the couch next to me... Too funny!

Gab trying to take all the credit for the brownies. I was taking photos of each step and she ran up. She's a hoot! ... We had to improvise quite a bit since we're using what was already in the house to make everything. This tub-like mixing bowl was a blessing because every other bowl in the kitchen is not meant for cooking for a family of 7. 

These are not ribs... This is the delicious brownie batter. I folded in milk chocolate bar chunks since I have to find this baking store that supposedly has chocolate chips. They turned out to be delectable... Even to our Afrikaaner guests. :-)

Stole this finished product photo from my mom! So glad she took this because I had to leave the house before they were done in the oven and, therefore, did not get a photo.

This is the view once you step out of our back sliding doors. Spectacular... You see all kinds of gorgeous birds, various types of deer, the neighbours' dogs, men golfing, etc. We have one squirrel too. Ha! 

And of course it is the ideal reading spot.  I can't imagine the splendour of Eden, because this is absolutely breath-taking!

Soaking in the winter sun.

"Well... That's all I have to say about that."

Practice What You Pinterest

Trial run recipe for some chocolate chip cookies that got me salivating on Pinterest. They turned out ok considering that I didn't have everything I needed. However, I definitely have notes for next time.

Top of the morning to ya!

   Brand new blog and I am already slacking. This post was left in drafts, yesterday; but I'm kind of glad because I ended up changing it a bit. I want to be consistent but not boring... And when I returned to my original post, I realised it was a good thing I walked away for a few hours so I could look at it with fresh eyes. 

   The inspiration for this blog is really to help me keep track of the baking I do. So, I decided to share different trial-run recipes that I've worked on as we wait for all of our cooking supplies to arrive in our shipment.  

    Back in Houston, I was blessed with the opportunity to learn under a woman who opened her dream bakery. She named the shop after her mother who was also a great baker and her signature items were mostly her mom's recipes. If you ever land in Houston, I recommend that you visit MargieBeth's Bake Shop. 

   Thanks to that experience, I have a renewed passion for baking and am eager to adapt and perfect different recipes. I come from a semi-long line of bakers and my maternal grandfather actually went to culinary art school in Pittsburgh. (He was generous enough to give me all of his books from that experience.) My pap is an INCREDIBLE chef. He can make anything and it always tastes better than the original recipe. In fact, he is quite the renaissance man. My grandmother is one blessed woman! ;-)

   Recipes can be broad, endless, and sometimes overwhelming. I've decided to make my Pin-oholic self productive by practicing what I pin...

   

 I used chocolate "chips" and hazelnut milk chocolate bars for this recipe. The browned butter really made them look darker. 

     I began very simply with this recipe I pinned on my board 'Sobremesas'. Being a slight rebel at heart  (as far as wanting to add my own twist to anything creative), I have adopted what I heard a chef say: 

A true chef has at least one twist or secret ingredient that  they incorporate into their baking/cooking. 

   The lady I worked for in Houston once mentioned in conversation that her daughter had found some cookie recipe where you brown the butter before creaming it with the sugar. This definitely seemed like a novel idea and would perhaps make the dough even more rich. Graeme and I agreed after tasting the dough that it resembled a very mild rum flavour. Yum!

   To my dismay, I absent-mindedly did not take photos of the finished product. They looked pretty because I refrigerated the balls of dough for a day. However, I was not pleased with the texture. 

   

    Next time, eh? :-)

"Well... That's all I have to say about that."

  

 

Top of the Morning!

View on the way to a friend's farm.

    Oi!! My name is Caelyn. I've recently relocated with my family to South Africa for business. If you have never been to South Africa, I HIGHLY recommend it. I am American; but southern Africa, in general, is my heart's home. The saying holds true and I am living proof that Africa gets in your blood.  

   

 Incredible view from Kaapsehoot where we went to see the wild descendants of abandoned horses.

  However, most importantly I am the daughter of the Most High King, Yeshua the Messiah. The fact that He cleansed me of my unrighteousness and made me holy (set apart for His Glory, alone) is something that I take very personally.  - With His grace and mercy in mind, I am able to enjoy His creation and the gifts and resources He has allowed us to create with. 

Not to make you jealous or anything, but I just want to give you every angle. :-)

    

    I love any creative outlet (e.g. fashion, baking, decorating, etc.). As a Whitlock (which my mom is convinced means something like, "consumer of much food"), I am also very passionate about gourmet cooking and baking. 

When you wake up to views like this, you can't help but wake up and glorify God for His splendid work!

   

   Breakfast is my absolute favourite meal of the day. Hence my choosing the title "Top of the Morning!!". I was elated when an Israeli friend confirmed that breakfast is to be eaten like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper. (Although I think mine is more like: breakfast like a king, lunch like a king, and dinner like...a king.) 

"Breakfast," as Sesame Street muppets sang it, "Is the most important meal of the day."

   

   

   Before you make a decision to follow me, I must say this: you gotta love food... And if you don't share a passion for food... well... this is the place for you too. :-) 

   My father was a Ranger in the United States Army and one of their prerogatives is, "Never leave a man behind." - I don't intend to. Anytime I run into someone who merely eats to live, I feel an overwhelming compassion for them. Then my innate marketing side comes out as I take on the task of showing this obviously (in my opinion) sheltered person that there is "a whole new world" out there. You just have to open your eyes!

   So... With all that said: welcome! Enjoy the ride and participate through comments and support, if you feel so led. It'll be a bumpy ride; but I can guarantee an adventurous one, as well.

'Whelp... That's all I have to say about that.'