A Good Day for Baked Pasta

Today indeed started good for me.  There's no tinge of morning sickness today (well, none yet!) and to celebrate, I thought of cooking up a wonderful lunch for Brandon and Trixie.  It has been very difficult for me the past weeks because of all-day-sickness (hence, the lack of acitivity in my site...), but I'm hoping for better days ahead.  I decided to make Baked Pasta today, and I'm sharing with you this fabulous cheese topping recipe that I adapted from PinoyCook.  I've done this several times already, making changes every time and finally, this is the tweaked recipe that truly satisfied me.  You can use this cheesy topping for any type of pasta to be baked, i.e. baked macaroni, spaghetti, ziti, lasagna.... This topping truly makes a big difference, kicking the pasta up a notch.  It really makes the pasta more special.  Here's the recipe:



Cheese Topping for Baked Pasta
Yield:  Just enough to top pasta in a big rectangular baking dish

Ingredients:
40g unsalted butter (3/4 of 1/4 cup butter)
1.5 tbsp. flour
1/2 cup water
1 cup fresh milk
1/2 bar Philadelphia cream cheese, cut into small cubes
1/3 bar Eden cheese, cut into small cubes
Salt and Pepper
Dried Basil or Fresh Basil

Procedure:
Melt butter in a small saucepan until frothy.
Put in all the flour and cook until light brown and until flour exudes a nice smell (but not burnt).
Add in the water without lowering the heat.  The mixture will suddenly boil up or bubble up but don't worry and keep on stirring.  Add the milk and continue stirring.
Add the two cheese and cook until melted and thick.  I use a silicon spatula for cooking this cheese sauce so I can scrape the pan properly to prevent burning.  As soon as the cheeses melt, turn off heat and season with salt and pepper.  Add lots of dried basil.

Place cooked pasta in a big rectangular baking dish (I usually combine the pasta and the sauce already) and pour this heavenly cheese sauce on top.  Be sure to cover the pasta completely by spreading to the edges.  Bake for 25 minutes at 350F.  The pasta will become bubbly and wonderful.  The cheese sauce will kinda set and I don't bake my pasta until golden brown, but it's up to you. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. 

Tumbling Fun!

Brandon decided to "sunbathe" our bedroom mattress today and before bringing it back up, they had lots of fun on it first!

My Preschool Search for Trixie- Part 2

The search is over.  After two weeks of checking out the schools and sitting in with Trixie, we finally made our choice--- this morning, we enrolled Trixie at Little Sandbox Daycare and Learning Center.  Come to think of it, Trixie actually made the choice for herself.  I simply asked her and gosh, she does have a mind of her own and she already knows what she wants!  Brandon and I also liked the school so I'm relieved that our minds met regarding this one.  It was a tiring two-week school search, but I guess it was worth it.  Call us "praning parents" but going through this experience taught us that we really can't judge a school by its website, school signage or even phone-in information.  I am glad we took the time to visit the schools--- six schools to be exact.  I learned that you just cannot rely on "sweet talk" from the admin or teachers of the school.  You really must sit-in in a class and see what goes on, how the teacher handles the children, and most importantly, see how your child reacts.  I was almost swayed to enroll Trixie in one particular school because we visited it on a Saturday, so no classes, and I liked the lay-out of the school--- lots of wide, open spaces for children to play in and the teachers had credentials.  Trixie told us herself that the place is nice.  But when we sat in during an actual class, oh my, it was chaotic!  I felt that the teacher had no control over the little rascals anymore and she looked too tired and harassed to care.  I think we came on a bad day because they lacked teachers, but Trixie just stood there and looked at the wild kids hehe.  It was the opposite for the other school.  I was surprised to see kids so behaved and quiet!  But we didn't like the way the teacher handled the class. It was too bland and the English of the teacher was questionable (sorry, but that mattered to me...)  The only thing that Trixie liked about that school was the comfort room with miniature fixtures that she enjoyed using.  Actually, she went to the bathroom twice then said she wanted to go home already, so the toilet was more interesting for her than the class! Haha!  The teacher was surprised that we left so early, so I felt kinda embarrassed but staying there would be a waste of time for Trixie, so to speak.  Well, it's worth mentioning that there's another school that I liked- The Learning Jungle.  The teacher was accommodating and I noticed that the kids looked happy.  There was a boy who liked Trixie (teacher told us he liked small kids in general) that he came right at her and gave her a kiss on the cheek!  I was unsure of how Trixie will react, but she just shrugged it off as if nothing happened haha.  Well, we only stayed a little while because Trixie wanted to go home already; I guess she was already set on going to Little Sandbox.   I remember the day we sat in at Little Sand Box, I immediately felt comfortable because the room was bright and colorful and the teacher was really good.  She gave each student a warm hug and I sensed there was genuine love and concern.  But this was the real clincher that sent a clear message to me that Trixie liked the school.  During the class, a big boy pushed her.  She cried real hard so I had to bring her out of he room to comfort her.  The funny thing about it was that after she cried, she wanted to go back and so we stayed until the class ended!  I guess the teacher had am impact on Trixie too because for the rest of the day (and week, up to now actually...), she kept on telling me she wanted to go to school and even saying the teacher's name!   (See photo on the right to see a glimpse of the class at Little Sandbox.)  So there.  My search ended today.  Trix and I will visit the school for free play this week and next, until her summer class which will start in April.  I am officially a mom of a preschooler. :)

Making Quesadillas at Home

Trixie loves cheese quesadillas but as you can see, she loves making it more than eating it.

Motherhood Nostalgia

I found out over the weekend that I'm pregnant for the second time around.  This time, it didn't come as a surprise anymore--- Brandon and I have talked about Trixie turning three this year, so it was a good idea to have another baby, plus the fact that I'm turning 30 this year, but that's another story...  I've been seeing signs that Trixie might be ready for a sibling.  Early last month, Trixie toilet-trained herself and she now bugs us to bring her to school.  Our old maid also came back and Trixie likes her a lot, so I let them play together when I'm at my wit's end.  I call this God's perfect timing :) But there's something different this time around. I find my belly bulging more and I read that it's quite normal during the second pregnancy because the body kinda remembers how a "watermelon" grew in the tummy and the muscles don't quite resist anymore!  But other than some physical changes, I've been having these emotional outbursts whenever I spend sweet, quiet moments with Trixie (and these might also be the effect of surging hormones).  I find myself crying when I realize that with the growing belly comes diminishing moments with Trixie sitting on my lap.   For now, I won't be able to run with her in our backyard, jump and play silly with her in the mornings, and I won't be able to carry her in my arms for long.  I think she knows it too because she would look at me in the eye and that sweet look brings even more tears.  I find myself kissing and hugging Trixie more these days and assuring her that I love her very much.  Well, soon, there will be two of them and there will be more drama haha!  But I'm really happy that God blessed Brandon and me with another baby.  Trixie will be a big sister soon, and that thought always makes me smile.