REAL SIMPLE and delicious

Real Simple had a recipe a while back that was so good and easy I thought I should share it with you. After trying it a few times, I think I have sufficiently altered it enough to make it just right! Here is a link to the original if you are a purest or if you just want to see the picture of it. (The original had too much meat, and grease and not enough noodles in my opinion). It's a true 30 min meal! It would be really good with an Asian Cabbage Salad. Maybe I will post that next.

Thai Pork and Noodle Soup
1/2 lb ground pork 
(you can get free range from the natural food store for $5/lb, spice the other half for a pizza, soup or eggs for the next night!)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp fresh ginger, minced
2-4 scallions, sliced, white and green parts separated
1/2 lb shitake mushrooms, although button are cheaper and work jut fine
4 cups broth
1 Tbsp soy sauce
20 wonton wrappers, cut into 1/2" strips
2 Tbsp lime juice
Sliced red chili pepper or you can spice it up with Siracha, an Asian red chili paste
Cilantro

Brown the pork, breaking it up with a spoon. Once completely cooked, add the minced garlic, ginger and the whites of the onions. Cook 6-8 min


Add the mushrooms and 1/2 tsp salt, cook stirring for 2-3 min more.


Add the broth, soy sauce and 2 cups water to the pan and bring to a boil. Add the wontons one at a time, reduce the heat and simmer for another 2 min or so.


Add the lime juice.


Serve with the sliced chili peppers, cilantro and green onions.

Perplexed about Perplexus

This little toy looked so intriguing. And even though I bought these for the boys weeks before Christmas, it wasn't until a few days before that I realized it was one of those splurges I actually bought for myself!


The kids opened them and they went immediately to the hands of the adults in the room. Garrett and Justin were so competitive in their fervor to beat the other one out on progress, most evenings were spent with them on the couch tipping and tilting and moving all around over their usual cokes and Crown Royal. It's honestly any wonder they ever managed to beat one of them before the Christmas break was over.


Now that the excitement has faded a little, and Patrick actually has a chance to work on the mazes, he has made some great progress on the original. He's nearly mastered it and is slowly making his way through the epic. He now sits on the couch every evening working at it. (With me right beside him of course!)

I will say, it is tough to get a kid something that looks like a ball and tell them they aren't allowed to play with it as such. I read reviews that warned against dropping and rough play for fear that the insides would break and render it useless. We are almost a month into having it and they have taken pretty good care of them.

So...if you are looking for something for just about anyone over the age of 7 to say 110, you should look into these things. They are addicting and ridiculously fun. Aeneas is beginning to figure this out but if you want something for a younger kid, look for the Perplexus Rookie. Below are the two we have.

This is the Epic 125 obstacles!

This is the original 100 obstacles!

This little thing has won all sorts of awards!