Caldo Tlalpeño

It was the first rain of the season today and soup seemed like the perfect thing to make. I love chicken tortilla soup so I decided to try and make Caldo Tlalpeno, which is another popular Mexican soup. Despite using two kinds of chiles in this soup , it is not as spicy as you would think. I do recommend only using a tiny bit of the chipotle chile, using a whole one would be way too much. I used a Pasilla chile rather than the recommended Poblano or Anaheim chile and after doing a little research on the Internet it looks like these 3 chilies are so vastly different that they are not interchangeable. I think I may need to do a chile tasting to decipher the difference.

Adapted from Eating Well Magazine
Serves 4

6 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup water
1 head garlic, cloves separated and peeled
8 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast, trimmed
2 teaspoons canola oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 poblano or Anaheim chile pepper, chopped
1 canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, (see Shopping Tip)
1 cup instant brown rice
4 radishes, sliced
1 small avocado, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 lime, quartered

1. Bring broth, water, garlic and chicken to a boil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, skimming any foam that rises to the top, until the garlic is tender and the chicken is cooked through, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from the heat. Transfer the garlic with a slotted spoon to a blender and the chicken to a clean cutting board.

2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a medium skilletover medium heat. Add onion and poblano (or Anaheim) chile and cook, stirring, until beginning to brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Add to the broth.

3. Add 1/2 cup of the broth and chipotle pepper to the blender and process until smooth (use caution when pureeing hot liquids). Pour the mixture back into the broth in the pan. Stir in rice. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook until the rice is tender, about 10 minutes.

4. Shred the chicken and divide among 4 bowls. Ladle the broth over the chicken and top with equal portions of radish, avocado and cilantro. Serve with a wedge of lime.

Newport Beach

Samantha and I headed south this weekend to meet up with Grandma and Papa Robinson and to visit my sister and her family vacationing from Colorado in Newport Beach. We were supposed to take Samantha to Disneyland for the first time but the weather was not cooperating so we are going to do that another time. Even though we had talked Disneyland up to her for the past month she has no idea that she never went.

Lauren gave Samantha a make-over

Papa with his grand kids

Dinner at Crab Cooker

The long car ride was a breeze with the DVD player

Riding the Ferry

Take The Cake

Dreyer's Take the Cake Slow Churned Ice Cream

Yellow cake flavored light ice cream with a frosting swirl and multicolored sprinkles.It tastes like a mixture of Pillsbury's Funfetti Cupcakes with Foster Freeze Soft Serve Ice Cream and Lofthouse Sugar Cookies (the frosted sugar cookies you always see stacked in the bakery aisle at the grocery store).

I am pregnant so I think it is okay that I am obsessing over this.

Half Way There!

We are officially at the half-way point (20 weeks) with Baby #2. We had our 20 week ultrasound today and everything looks great. This is also the appointment where the doctor will tell you whether you are having a girl or a boy. We decided to stick to our plan of not finding out but Todd or should I say "Dr. Todd Fallon" thinks he was able to decipher the ultrasound and saw what he thought was a girl. The doctor assured us that unless he did a 3-D zoom on that particular area, you can't tell.

The doctor gave us a DVD of the ultrasound and I of course watched it in slow motion to see what I thought it was (why in the world am I doing this when we want it to be a surprise?!). Anyways, I saw what I thought was a BOY and then later a GIRL. So basically, we have no idea and I am not watching the DVD anymore.

Samantha went with us to the appointment and was not really into watching the baby on the screen. She was more enthralled with the doctor rolling the doppler thingy around my belly as she chomped on a lollipop. She then began to say, "The Baby Fell Down" and "Peanut Butter" over and over. I can kind of see where she may have thought the baby was falling but not sure what the reference to peanut butter was.

The best part of the appointment was that both Todd and I felt the baby kick for the first time. It was kicking so hard that we could actually see my belly move up and down.

I am feeling really good. I am still working out 4 to 5 times a week doing a mix of weight training, spinning, treadclimbing and kickboxing (not sure how much longer I will be able to do kickboxing as my balance is a little off). Despite all the working out I am doing, I feel like a blob. I am also officially in maternity pants. Oh what fun it is to be pregnant!

Here is a video of a 3-d face shot of our little Boy or Girl or better yet Alien - seriously does anyone think ultrasound pictures are cute?!

Jazzercise to the Wiggles

Bounce House Heaven

Anyone who knows Samantha knows she likes bounce houses. She has been to a handful of birthday parties that have them and since then she associates birthday parties with jumping!

Samantha lucked out when I saw from the freeway that Earl Warren Showgrounds had a massive bounce house, pumpkin patch, choo-choo train bonanza all set up.

The choo choo train ride was a big flop compared to the bounce houses. Samantha was not thrilled to have time taken away from jumping and when the train stopped she bolted back to the bounce houses.

Dinner Date

With Todd in school 3 nights a week, Samantha and I have been on our own for dinner quite a bit. Most nights we go out to eat because it is no fun cooking for one (Samantha doesn't count as a whole person when it comes to eating).

Monday nights are half off spaghetti and meatballs at Taffy's. It is just around the corner from our house and one of the most kid friendly restaurants in Santa Barbara that I know of. I order one pasta dish for Samantha and I to share and bring another home for Daddy for $8!!! Best deal in town. Plus, I get my craving for pasta satisfied. I am enjoying all this good eating because as soon as Baby #2 arrives all this eating is not going to be on the agenda.

Which leads me to the top 5 things I dislike about pregnancy:

1. Weight Gain

2. Headaches

3.Heartburn

4. Not being able to sleep on my stomach

5. Weight Gain Again.....

Oh but it's going to all be worth it, right?

I can't wait to have two little munchkins slurping up pasta like this one day: