BLT Pizza

Brad and I always have LOVED the Club Pizza from CPK so when I came across this recipe I decided I had to try it out. It's not the CPK recipe at all, but it has the same kind of feel to it. I made it last week and our whole family thought it was GREAT! Thought I would share in case any of you wanted to add some new flavors to your dinners. The added benefit was that the ingredients were all things I pretty much have around anyway. Enjoy!

BLT Pizza

For the dough:
1/2 cup warm water
1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups bread flour (I didn't have any so I just used regular)
1/4 cup olive oil

For the topping:
9 strips bacon
2 T dijon mustard
4 oz shredded mozzarella
2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano, finely grated
2 medium tomatoes
1 T mayo
1/2 T lemon juice
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 cups finely shredded romaine lettuce

1. Pour water into a medium bowl. Stir in the yeast, sugar, and salt. Set the mixture aside until foamy (5 minutes). Add the flur and oil and stir until a dough begins to form.
2. Gather dough into a ball. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 10 minutes). Form the dough into a ball. Place in an oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap in warm place until dough has doubled (about 1 1/2 hours)
3. Heat oven to 450. Slice bacon crosswise into one ince pieces. Pan fry until lightly browned, but not crisp.
4. Grease baking sheet or pizza pan. Transfer dough onto sheet and press out into a circle. Evenly spread mustard over the dough. Scatter both cheeses, the tomatoes, and the bacon on top.
5. Bake the pizza, rotating the pan half-way through, until crust is lightly browned and cheese has melted. (This only took me 15 minutes tops) Meanwhile, in a medium bowl whisk together mayo, lemon juice, and Worcestershire sauce. Add the lettuce and toss to coat.
6. Transfer the pizza to a cutiing board and let it cool for 5 minutes. Top it with the lettuce mixture and slice and serve!

3rd Time's the Charm

I have to be honest and say that the first two times around I thought we had pretty much mastered the little girl mold, but I guess we still have a thing or two to learn. Although I do think it will be impossible to do any better than we have with the first two, we are certainly going to try with this 3rd girl that will be joining our family in late July or early August! Brad and I will definitely admit that we never would have imagined starting our family with 3 girls in a row, but we are definitely excited about this healthy baby we have and the addition she will be to our family. She has two excited big sisters who we told about this pregnancy just after Christmas. Ella requested a brother "since we didn't have one of those yet", so she will have to wait a little longer to have that request fulfilled. Maggie has said all along that this baby would be a girl.

It has been fun having the extra perks of Brad being an OB this time around. We were able to sneak in early one night while Brad was on call for an ultrasound to confirm a heartbeat. He was also able to correctly diagnose sciatica when it reared it's ugly head one weekend in February without me having to get in to see a doctor. And when the regularly scheduled ultrasound with the u/s tech came up inconclusive as to this baby's gender, Brad was able to do one himself with the fancy 3-D and 4-D machines which gave us an extra look at this little one. This picture below is one of my favorites--we were able to see this sweet baby's face and if you look just under her chin doesn't it look like she is holding a teddy bear? So fun!



The official due date is August 3rd and the plan is that while I am seeing one of Brad's attending physicians for my regular prenatal care, Brad will deliver the baby when the time comes. And while I know he already has more than 150 deliveries under his belt, I am excited to really see him in action so I can believe that this is what he does every day! I'm sure it will be special for both of us.

Wish us luck when the teenage years come and we have 3 girls barely 4 years apart!

Holbrook Reunion

Brad's parents are leaving on a mission to Russia the end of March. Since we weren't all able to get together over Christmas or Thanksgiving, we wanted to find a time to reunite before they leave. And since Brad has the least time off and the most difficult schedule to work around, we decided to make that get together down here in Albuquerque. Everyone came in town for an extended weekend in mid February--it was nice to all be together, I may be wrong but I don't think we have all been together since Brad's graduation last May. Those with kids stayed here at our place, and those without enjoyed extra sleep and quiet at a nearby hotel.

We spent the time playing at the hotel pool, taking the tram up to the top of the Sandias to experience some snow, and hiking around the petroglyphs. Unfortunately the weather didn't cooperate and we had some cold windy days while everyone was here. We'll all get together again in late March for the farewell, and then it will be 18 months. We will miss Grandma and Grandpa Holbrook dearly!!


SWIMMING

Boys will be boys. . .

TRAMWAY

That's right, Maggie who is always game for any of Daddy's ideas, fit alll the way inside this teeny-tiny locker and we shut the door! I thought she would be upset, but she just kept wanting to get in again and again!

PETROGLYPHS

(The Volcanoes and Boca Negra Canyon)



Ella sure loves and misses her cousin Emily