When I planned this week for the blog, I had a theme in mind…birthdays. I did okay Monday with Nonna’s Blossom Garland, and Tuesday with the purse giftcard holder. And even Wednesday with the St. Pat’s card and beer tag…I mean, there are lots of people with March 17 birthdays, right? Then Pi(e) Day threw me off schedule…I had to observe it with an actual pie, after all!
Today I’m back on track, sharing the cupcakes my third grader took to school for his birthday back in December. We were on vacation in Florida the week before his birthday, so needed a plan before we arrived home and had to immediately make them for the next day.
He is a Lego fanatic, and he was sure I could make cupcakes in the shape of Lego bricks and then he could build a cake from them to take to school. Ummm. While his faith in me in touching, there was no way I was going to attempt that after being away from home for nine days.
I began a quest, unbeknownst to the rest of the family, to find those Lego brick candies. I see them everywhere when I have no intention of buying them, but hit dead end after dead end in Florida. Because everything is shaped like a mouse there, I guess. Even Legoland itself didn’t have them. Finally, on our last day in Florida, we visited Winter the dolphin in Clearwater. There was a tiny little candy shop near the beach there, and lo and behold, they had the bricks…woohoo! Of course, my family still ridiculed me for picking out the exact colors and shapes I wanted to make 24 cupcakes.
Guess who was laughing when these turned out so superbly? I was, that’s who!
And now what you really clicked here to read…the Menu for the Week!
Monday: Chicken Apple Sausages with Seeds of Change Quinoa and Wild Rice and Green Peas
Tuesday: Easy Polenta Lasagna with Raw Veggies and Dip
Wednesday: Leftover Corned Beef and Vegetables with Soda Bread
Thursday: Unstuffed Cabbage with Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans
Friday: Martha’s Mac and Cheese with Fruit Salad
For Monday, slice and saute the chicken sausages with a medium diced onion in a large skillet. Add two packages of the grains, about 1/4 cup chicken broth, and a handful each dried cranberries and chopped roasted pistachios. Cook until it’s heated throughout. The sausages, grains, cranberries, pistachios, and green peas all came from Costco, so it was a one-stop shopping meal!
As the menu suggests, winter is dragging on here in Wisconsin. I saw my driveway Monday. But then it snowed overnight and it disappeared again. Oh, well. I’m just telling you this to explain the overwhelming amount of comfort food on this week’s menu!
