I just realized this....

Rebekah and I both wrinkle our noses when we smile :) So funny and cute!

Recipes

Here are the ones for the Coconut Flan and for the Rice. The Coconut Flan is so easy and it is SO delicious! It is my favorite. The Honduran rice is amazing, but I don't make it that often because of that :) Rebekah loves it too.

Coconut Flan
By: Lidia Brodine

1 can of Sweet and condensed milk
1 can of Evaporated Milk
6 eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla
Coconut (optional)- 1 cup

Blend all the ingredients in the blender…no order necessary

Caramel
1 cup of sugar
¼ cup of water
1 teaspoon of vanilla

Bring caramel to a boil and let it simmer until it gets a dark golden color. Do not stir!

Once it's done, pour it on the pan you will bake it in. Make sure it is really dark because I really think that that is the secret to a yummy Flan.

Pour Caramel into pan and then pour flan mixture in it.

Put the flan pan in another pan of shallow water (not sure what you call this process) and bake at 350 for about an hour.





Honduran Rice

Oil-I use Olive oil, but you can use whichever you have
Onion-2 Tbsp.
Bell pepper- 2 Tbsp.
One garlic clove
1 cup of rice
2 tsp. of chicken bouyan or two cubes
2 cups of water
frozen(drained) or canned corn--as much as you like

Pour the oil in a pot...make sure it covers the bottom of the pot. Yeah...this is not the healthy part ;) Turn it to medium heat. Once it's hot, add the onions, bell pepper and garlic. Don't let it cook too long and then add the rice. Mix well and then let the rice cook until it has some color to it. Once it's ready, add the chicken bouyan and mix well again. Then add the water and let it simmer and cook for like 15 to 20 mins. When it's almost ready, add in the corn and let it finish cooking.

It's really yummy rice! Hope you like it. It might not turn out too good the first time, but just keep trying and it will get better the more you make it. It has some tricks to it, but once you've mastered it then it is easy!

Chiles Rellenos and Chicken Tortilla Soup recipes coming soon...

Chiles Rellenos

I love to cook! Growing up food was always a big thing. In our culture, food seems to be the way to love on others. Food is always the main focus on parties and even Christmas. So I grew up savoring it :) Even when I talk to my mom now we will say, "do you remember that Tapado (a typical Honduran plate) we had at Lissy's house? Wasn't it good!" or my mom will tell me, "I tried this new recipe" and she will just start telling me right then how to make it. It is fun! I am so thankful for this because I feel like I can bless others by taking them a nice, warm meal or just by having them over at our house to enjoy a meal and get to know them better. It is a blessing and it is a gift that I am grateful for.

The other day I tried making my mom's Chiles Rellenos recipe and OH MAN it was good! I had never tried making them, but my sister made them a while back for us and they were so good and Matty liked them so much that I thought I should try making them myself.

It is fun trying new recipes. Although I am not big on Recipe Books. I love making recipes from back home (Honduras) and people I know. If I like something I will usually ask for the recipe and make it. If my hubby likes it, we keep it. If not, we just don't. I have gathered lots of really good recipes that way.

If anyone would like the recipe for my mom's Chiles Rellenos let me know and I will post it for you or email it to you :)

Sparkle in Kita's Eyes

We love Christmas music and we look forward to the Christmas stations after Thanksgiving. I play them in my radio at home all day and I just love it!

A while back we had a Christmas CD on and so Matty asked me to dance with him and so we did. We love dancing at home together. Sometimes we will dance at nights once we put REB to bed...not all the time, but on occasions we do.

This time REB was still up with us and we were just enjoying dancing together and when we look down to see her, she was just looking at us with a sparkle in her eyes that seemed like it said to us, "mama and papa love each other so much" and there was a confidence in her knowing that. It was so sweet. Then she wanted to join in with us and she just laid on my shoulder while we all danced and kissed us. It was too sweet!

I love moments like this in which REB realizes that we love each other so much and that it is not all about her. That mama and papa have a very special bond and love for each other and that she is a part of it.

The Cross...That Sweet Cross!

I wrote this poem about 3 years ago as the Lord reminded me of my salvation. The salvation that is available to all of us through Jesus Christ. I am no poet, but the Lord inspired me to write this. I remember it was sometime in December as well. Hope you enjoy it and are reminded and rejoice in the day of your salvation!

The Cross…That Sweet Cross!

What a need we all have for a Savior
For we all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God
A Savior who is love and holy at the same time
Who loves us unconditionally, yet cannot accept our sin
Without them being nailed to the cross through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.
We were once sinners, but Christ paid the penalty for our sins!
We are now reconciled to God!
The price! What a price He had to pay
Yet it was His will…His love for us
Now we are born into the family of God
We have been adopted and we are now heirs with Christ
The cross…that sweet cross!
That took my sins and I bear them no more!
The cross…that sweet cross!
Now it is no longer I who live
But Christ who lives in me
My old self is nailed to the cross
Through His Spirit living in me
I am a new creation
I am His forever and for eternity!
The cross…that sweet cross!