February Quotes

Lila Kate:

"Oh, mama, you are so beautiful!"

"Here you go, sweetheart." or "It's okay, sweetheart."

Olivia:

"When I'm grow up, I'm going to be a doctor for Denali. You know, a veterinarian."

In response to Matt asking her to stop picking her nose (this was in a public setting):

"But, you do it, daddy!"

Matt: "No, I don't."

"Yes you do! I see you do it!"

Banana-Oat Pancakes

My mother recently sent me the King Arthur Whole Grain Baking cookbook. I am in love with this book and will share some of my adaptations of the book's recipes from time to time.

It wasn't until I got married that I discovered life outside of a boxed mix. Who knew that homemade pancakes, muffins and even cakes (read: one bowl cake mix recipes are in nearly every cookbook) only take 2-5 more minutes of my time than a boxed mix - and they taste so much better!

For the past five or so years, I've been experimenting with many different pancake recipes and have had success with several different recipes. Saturday, I stumbled across this one in my new book. I don't really like bananas and it was with great reluctance that I made these pancakes. I am so glad that I tested it out. They are absolutely delicious (and healthy). So, ditch that box and give these a try!

Currently, we have the luxury of obtaining bananas from the Portuguese islands of Madeira. They are small and sweet-a perfect addition to this recipe! Of course, any banana will do!

From The King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking cookbook:

Banana-Oat Pancakes

3 small bananas, mashed
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 Tbsp. sugar
2 eggs
1 cup oat flour (I used whole wheat flour b/c that's all I had)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped (optional-I didn't use them)
******
1. Stir together the mashed bananas, butter, lemon juice and sugar in a medium bowl. Beat in the eggs.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the oat flour, baking soda, salt and spices.
3. Slowly fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Stir in the walnuts. Let the batter sit for 10 minutes.
4. Heat up a griddle or skillet on medium-high heat. Spray generously with cooking oil and wipe up excess oil.
5. Drop 1/4 cup of batter onto the griddle or skillet until bubbles begin to form, 3-4 mins, flip.
6. Keep pancakes warm in 200F oven or serve immediately with a touch of real maple syrup (no butter needed).

Nutrition: 2 pancakes = 203 cal, 8g fat, 6g protein, 2g sugar, 308mg potassium, 3g fiber

Mafra Wilderness Park

Wild Boar

Sunday, we took the girls to Mafra. There is a wildlife park located there that I've been wanting to check out. We decided to do a short (4K) walk around part of the park. We didn't think we'd see any animals. We were pleasantly surprised.

This month, many restaurants in the town of Mafra are serving up specialty dishes made with the meat from the animals that roam the park. After our walk, we stopped off at a local restaurant participating in the local event and enjoyed venison and boar dishes. I don't know if any of you have ever had the opportunity to taste wild boar. It is delicious!

Lila checks out the "reindeer" (as she likes to call them) while resting on my back.

Daddy and Liv

Liv and Mommy

Monsanto Bike Park

Saturday, we brought the girls to a park in Monsanto (near Lisbon). The park has a "private" road for children where they can learn how to ride their bike in traffic. Here are a few pictures:

Lila trying to keep her speed in check

Liv riding the wrong way on a roundabout

Caution!