In honor of Mother’s Day, this week the kids and I demonstrate just how we make my favorite Tabouli recipe. And, as mentioned in the Recipe of the Week that featured Tabouli, the kid’s do not eat it. BUT, that doesn’t matter, cuz, remember…it’s Mother’s Day!

Happy Mother’s day everyone. Enjoy the show!

Alex, Soph and Mom

This week’s Recipe of the Week is Tabouli. It is not a recipe of the week because our whole family loves it–the kids won’t eat it. Soph says she likes the taste, but not the feeling, and Alex, well he won’t even try it. The reason it’s the Recipe of the Week is because I, the Mom, love it (hence the adorable name). We’re actually going to demonstrate just how we make it on Mother’s day week–in honor of me, of course ;D

Anyway, here’s the recipe we use. It’s a conglomeration of a bunch of recipes I’ve seen, I just sort of took what I liked and added it. I think it’s super delicious

The Mom’s Tabouli
2 cups bulgur wheat, pre-soaked
1 1/2 to 2 cups fresh parsley, minced
1/4 cup fresh mint, minced (optional)
4 green onions, sliced finely
1 large tomato, diced
1 large cucumber, seeded and diced
1 green pepper, diced
1/4 to 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp salt
pepper to taste
1/4 to 1/2 cup lemon juice
1/4 to 1/2 cup Olive Oil

Instructions
The first thing you do is soak the bulgur wheat in water for about 1 hour – 2 cups of water for the 2 cups of bulgur should be perfect.

While the wheat is soaking, prepare the other ingredients, mincing the parsley, slicing the onions and dicing the tomato and green pepper (some recipes include minced, fresh mint, so adding about 1/4 cup of that wouldn’t hurt either, we do sometimes, too). You can also prepare the dressing by mixing the olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper together. We usually use a measure closer to the 1/2 cup range for both the lemon juice and olive oil, bu the recipe is still well dressed when you cut the dressing down to 1/4 cup each.

When your bulgur is ready, mix everything together and then let it chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour for the flavors to blend. Then, you’re ready to serve!

Enjoy!

Alex, Soph and Mom

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Disclaimer: the picture is not my tabouli, I don’t have a picture of mine yet, but it looks a lot like this…I got the image here.

I love hanging out with my kids. I suppose that’s something that shouldn’t need to be said, but I say it because my kids make me feel like the luckiest mom in the world. We have lots of fun together cooking, playing games and even just watching movies. Plus, my kids are hilarious…sometimes at meals we spend more time laughing than eating. I don’t know if it’s the season or what, but I”m feeling extra blessed to have such great kids.

Last Friday, Soph and I went to Disney Princesses on Ice with her girl scout troop. I’m not a huge fan of the princess movies and all that prince-charming-will-make-me-happy-love-at-first-site stuff; BUT, I love the tiara’s and dresses and so does Soph. She wore her Snow White dress and tiara and I dressed normal, but I think I was the only mother in the place with a cinderella tiara on–Soph wanted me to wear it and she thought it was cool that I was the only mom wearing one Despite the over-priced wand and popcorn in a princess bucket, we had a great time. Soph said her favorite part was all of it. My favorite part was sharing the experience with her.

When we arrived home from our princess extravaganza, Alex and Aunt Dani were waiting for us with a surprise. Alex had hung our newly acquired disco ball in the ceiling above Soph’s bed. We got the disco ball from a neighbor down the hall and the kids were both excited about having their very own mirrored globe to bounce sparkly lights around the bedroom. When Soph saw the sparkliness her brother had installed right above her bed, the first words out of her mouth were, ‘Mom, can we have a disco party in here?’

And so, the next day, we did. We listened to disco music and ate some Snickety Snacks and other treats. Soph danced and Alex did some jumping between our beds. We even had a cake.

Sophia love our disco party and I’m sure has our next one already planned out. Alex loves whenever jumping on the bed is a part of the planned festivities. And, Mom, she just likes having fun with her kiddies!

Perogies are dumplings stuffed with various fillings. They are traditional in Poland, and since Alex and Soph are half Polish (on their dad’s side), we make them every year for the holidays. Alex & Soph’s recipe is a potato filled perogie that is boiled and served with sour cream. And, although there are a few steps, it’s fun teaching the kids about this traditional, family recipe. We have a great time making them together, plus they’re super tasty.

Pasta:
1 cup flour
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
1 Large egg

Pour all the ingredients together in a food processor. Mix until everything comes together and then roll into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 1 hour. (Note: More traditional recipes just put the flour on the table, make a well in the middle, crack in the egg (no oil) and mix by hand. I prefer my recipe because the dough is easier to work with and it’s waaaay less messy.)

Filling:
5 potatoes
4 slices bacon
4 Tablespoons Butter
1/2 Cup Whole Milk
Salt and Pepper to taste

Peel and boil the potatoes until they are soft.

While the potatoes are boiling, fry the bacon until crisp. When it’s done, crumble it into bacony bits.

When the potatoes are done, drain them and then mash them with a potato masher. Next, add the butter, milk, bacon bits and salt and pepper. We like to use a hand mixer to beat it all together and smooth out the potatoes. If you feel it’s too dry, add additional milk.

Assembly

First, roll out half of the pasta to about 1/8 inch thick (we use our pasta machine because we have one and we like it ). You will need extra flour to eliminate sticking, so before rolling, make sure to sprinkle some down. Then, using a 3 inch round cookie cutter (or a glass) to cut several rounds. Next, take about a tablespoon or so of the filling mixture and place it in the center of the round. Fold the round over and pinch the edges together to seal tightly. Continue this process ’til you’re out of filling or dough or both. As you finish each perogie, lay it on a foil-covered baking sheet that is lightly sprinkled with flour…the perogies will stick to each other if the set close for too long. Now, you can freeze them for later or boil them and eat.

If you choose to boil them, bring the water to a boil first, then gently place them in the water. When they start floating, they’re done–3 to 5 minutes (longer if frozen). Place the cooked perogies in a bowl with some butter, and then serve individually with sour cream. Once they’ve been boiled, if we have leftovers, we like to fry them up to reheat. It adds another dimension of deliciousness.

We hope you enjoy our family recipe for perogies! In a couple of weeks, Alex and Soph will share their techniques for this family recipe, so make sure to stop back every Saturday for our next episode (or sign up for our newsletter and we’ll let you know when it’s up).

Thanks for stopping by and we hope your Holidays are Happy!

P.S. Two see Alex and Soph demonstrate this recipe, check it out at Two Kids Cooking TV!

Whether my day is crazy or calm, busy or boring there is one thing I always look forward to, sitting down for an evening meal with the kiddies (and my sister, while she’s living with us ). At dinner, we all share the happenings of our days and it usually ends up with a story that leads to a laughing fest. I realize my children are only 10 and 6, but sometimes they are downright hilarious. There have been a couple of times I was laughing so hard I had to run to the bathroom to avoid an accident.

Of course all this family camaraderie only happens if the TV is off, and some nights, I admit, we do just sit and watch and eat and barely talk. I’m not sure how I feel about this. I mean, I know that in the ideal world I’d have enough energy after commuting, working, cooking, etc…but the fact is, sometimes I don’t.

Family meals are supposed to be about more than just the food and eating. They’re supposed to be about sharing and fun too. I guess since I am far from perfect, I’ll trust that those meals we have together when the TV is off build bonds; and I’ll hope that family ties are strengthened even when dinner includes watching Phineas and Ferb from the dining room table while eating spaghetti.