Not Your Average Rice Pudding!

So in hopes to find a dreamy new dessert for my Christmas Eve meal, I tried "Creamy Rice Pudding Cake" from Lori Longbotham's Luscious Creamy Desserts. I am a tad-bit of a cream-o-holic, so I was a little disappointed at the dryness of the final product. Next time, I'll skip the part that turns it into a cake and eat it as a pudding! Here is the recipe as a rice pudding:

4 cups half-and-half
2/3 cup Arborio or other short-grain Italian rice
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
8 strips lemon zest, removed with a vegetable peeler
3/4 tsp. ground coriander
pinch of salt
1 1/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Bring half-and-half, rice, brown sugar, zest, coriander, and salt to a simmer in a medium heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently. Reduce the heat and cook at a bare simmer, stirring frequently, for 15 minutes or until most of the liquid is absorbed. Remove the pan from the heat and let stand for 10 minutes, then discard the zest and whisk in vanilla. If you want some added sweetness, you could serve it with meringue cream*, whipped cream, or fresh fruit. Lemony and creamy, two of my favorites!

*Meringue cream: 2 large egg white, 6 tbsp. sugar, 3/4 cup heavy cream, 3/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract. At least 30 min. before serving, beat egg whites on medium-high until whites form soft peaks. Gradually beat in 1 tbsp of sugar at a time and continue to beat until whites form stiff peaks. In another bowl, beat cream with the vanilla on medium-high until the cream forms stiff peaks. Fold cream into meringue until well combined. Refrigerate, tightly covered, for at least 20 min. (or for up to 6 hours).

Season's Greetings!

Merry Christmas, from the Morrow Family!

Whoa There, June! (Part III)

So I'm too behind to say much... Here's the short story-- Ben's grandparents headed up a trip to Key West, FL (where Ben's grandpa was born). On our drive down to the Keys, we stopped at the swamplands to visit some gators! I was surprised at how brave Abby was in the reptile show! I still won't touch a snake to this day, but Abby volunteered to go up front and hold one. ...But I did hold a baby alligator :)

We also got to cruise the swamp waters on a hover boat... a refreshing, loud, fun ride!

In Key West, Ben booked a condo on a Navy base (lacking charm and ocean view, but hey, it was cheap). Plus, his family stayed with us so we were able to hang out more together. I had never felt such heat and humidity! Some of the things we did were...
Celebrate Bill & Carol's 50th wedding anniversary!

Beach time


Eating out! (Cuban, seafood & Sloppy Joes with live music)



And taking in the sights...


Linda was SUCH a trooper! She had some not-so-fun medical issues with her dialysis come up, and she still got out and made the best of it! Wo-MAN!



The house Bill was born in!

Ben and I took a jet ski tour around the islands!


Let us share some the the Key West charm with you!

Whoa There, June! (Part II)

I should be saying, "Whoa there, life!"...not just June (since it's September and I'm still working on June). But our 2nd trip of the summer was to none other than the beautiful state of Pennsylvania! Abby had been wanting to see where she was born so we said, why not!
Being in the military, we're always looking for steals and deals, so we hit up Sesame Place amusement park for FREE. Ben, Gavin and Abby were chosen to be in the Elmo's World show (Abby as a "fish" dancer and Ben and Gavin for the part where Elmo asks the "baby" a question and gives him a kiss). I LOVED Sesame Street and the muppets as a kid, so it made me smile to share that place with my kids.

We also visited downtown Philly in the pouring rain. We toured the Mint, then found our way to a HUGE market with lots of vendors and goodies (philly cheesesteak sandwiches, of course!...which happened to be closed by the time we got there but that's besides the point. Oh, and our umbrella got stollen. The Philly charm never ceases).
Our next stop was in Amish country! We stayed at a farm bed and breakfast (Rocky Acre B&B) and the kids LOVED it! They still want to go back. My favorite part was the breakfast feast and driving the golf cart, Ben's, playing with the kids, Livi loved the kittens, and Abby made a friend and had fun doing it all-- morning pony rides, hay rides through the country side, big tire swing by the creek, collecting eggs from the chicken coop, saying hi to the goat "Cookie"...

And finally, we made our way to Hershey and stayed with our gracious hosts, the Parrish's! Jackson and Abby are the same age and had loads of fun (so did Asher and Livi as they tried to keep up). We were able to hit some old hot spots in town, like Palermos for a stromboli, and Rita's Ice for a gelato-- Italian ice layered with frozen custard. I KID YOU NOT, they had SWEDISH FISH ice which was heavenly! Ben and Mitch took the kids on a canoe ride down the Swatara Creek, and Wendy and I took the babies to the outlets. Who can resist no tax on clothes! :) I also got to meet up with some friends from the playhouse I used to act with. Wendy is quite the photographer, so she did an impromptu family photo shoot for us at the Hotel Hershey. Thanks, Wendy! I love 'em, and trust me, we didn't give her much to work with :)

It's fun reliving memories with familiar places and old friends. Pennsylvania will always feel like another home to us, and that makes me happy.