My Boys!

Hello everybody! If you are a follower of my blog you probably know that my three boys are very much into sports. Actually they live and breath sports. Six days a week! They are involved in Jiu-Jitsu, Kick boxing and MMA ( mixed martial arts). Brandon & Cass are also assisting their sensei with the Little Dragons class which is Alexanders group age.

Saturday they had an "in house tournament". I had to post some pictures of them, they did amazing!

Here are Brandon and Cass in the morning of the tournament.

Alex in his first match with a fellow little dragon.

They were having so much fun. So sweet, it was the first time they actually herd the electronic bell from the timer, and they would sit there looking at the bell and even during the match they would still looks towards it.

Alex trying one of his moves, can't remember the name of it.

He actually did get the ... move, and won the match.

Here Alex is having his match for gold and silver medal.

His not very happy. The little girl won the game. His got the second place.

Alex got his silver medal.

Cass in one of the kick boxing match.

He was doing great, and won the match.

This is one match I didn't enjoy. Brandon and Cass against each other. They are so competitive. Brandon won the match but was not easy.

Cass is still in the same match.

Cass getting his silver medal.

Brandon getting his gold medal.

Brandon and Cass into a Jiu-jitsu match.

Brandon won By submission ( not entirely sure what that means, I guess that Cass "tapped")

This is an exhibition match between Brandon and Matt, an adult student at the club.

Still the MMA match. It was very entertaining.

They showed great technique.

Cass with his gold medal for MMA.

Brandon with two gold medals.

Cass with 1 gold and 2 silver.

Alex very tired, but wearing his silver medal.

So.... those are my boys and I'm very proud of them.

Parmesan and Paprika Grissini

Grissini or bread sticks, are the perfect accompaniment to salads or soups. My son Cass who loves any kind of fresh made bread eats them plain as a snack. I make two variations of grissini one with parmesan and paprika and the other with garlic and fresh herbs.

This time Cass asked for the paprika ones.

I like serving those as an appetizer as well, very easy to make, and pretty fast ( excluding the rising time).

From one recipe you get 24 bread sticks. This recipe comes from the " baking simple and sensational" recipe book by Jean Paré

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups .............................. warm water

1 tsp ....................................... sugar

2 1/4 tsp ............................... active dry yeast

3 cups ................................... all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp ............................... salt

1/3 cup ................................. olive oil

2 tbsp ................................... all-purpose flour

1 cup ..................................... finely grated parmesan cheese

2 tsp ..................................... paprika

Water (for brushing the grissini)

1 tsp ..................................... coarse sea salt

3 tbsp .................................. finely grated parmesan cheese ( to sprinkle on the grissini)

Stir warm water and sugar into a small mixing bowl until sugar is dissolved. Sprinkle yeast over top and let stand for 10 minutes until foamy.

In a large mixing bowl combine the flour and salt, mix well make a well in the center add the olive oil.

Add the yeast mixture to the well. Mix until a soft dough forms. Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 to 7 minutes or until smooth and elastic adding the second amount the flour ( 2 tbsp ) to prevent from sticking.

Gently roll the dough out to 10 inch round. Add the parmesan and paprika.

Fold the dough in half to inclose the filling. Knead for 3 to 4 minutes until evenly combined. Place the dough into an extra large greased bowl turning once to grease top. Cover with cling wrap and cover with tea towel.

Let stand into a draft free place for about 1 hour or until double in bulk.

Punch the dough down. Turn onto an lightly floured surface and divide into 2 equal parts.

Roll each part into an 12 inch rope. Cut into 12 ( 1 inch ) pieces.

Roll each piece into an 6 inch stick. Repeat with the second portion. Place the sticks onto two greased (or line with silicon mats) baking sheets.

Brush with water sprinkle with sea salt and parmesan cheese. Bake into a preheated oven of 450˚F for 15 minutes. Switch the position of the baking sheets halfway through the baking time to ensure uniform baking.

Variation: omit the parmesan and paprika. Add 1/2 cup of fresh chopped basil and 4 garlic gloves finely minced.

Serve with salad or as an appetizer.

Enjoy!

Rocky Road Chocolate Bars

Rocky Road ice cream is Alexander's favorite ice cream. Marshmallows! Anything with marshmallows is on "Alex's favorite things to eat" list.

That's why, when I found this recipe in " bars and squares" recipe book by Jill Snider, I had to give it a try.

Needless to say that everybody in the house loved the bars, especially Alex. I kept the bars in the freezer and Alex calls those, ice cream bars. So if you like rocky road ice cream then give those bars a try, they are so easy to make.

Ingredients

Crumb mixture:

1 1/2 cup ................................ graham wafer crumbs

1 1/2 cup ................................ miniature marshmallows ( withe or colored )

1/2 cup ................................. chopped pecans ( or almonds, walnuts )

1/2 cup ................................. icing sugar sifted

2 tbsp ................................. milk

Chocolate Mixture:

2 cups ................................. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup .................................. milk

3 tbsp .................................. butter

1/4 cup .................................. icing sugar sifted.

Grease an 8 inch square pan or dish.

In a large mixing bowl combine graham wafer crumbs, marshmallows, icing sugar pecans and milk. Combine until all the ingredients are moistened. Set aside.

Chocolate mixture:

In a small heavy sauce pan combine chocolate chips, milk and butter. Stir constantly over low heat until the chocolate is almost melted ( don't overheat).

Remove and stir until smooth and shiny.

Pour half of the mixture ( about 3/4 cup, no need to be exact) over the crumb mixture. Mix well. Spread evenly into the prepared pan or dish.

Stir the 1/4 cup of the sifted icing sugar in the remaining half of the chocolate mixture in the sauce pan, mixing well. Spread over the base mixture, smooth the surface and freeze for 1 hour or until the chocolate is set on top.

Cut into bars, and serve. I like keeping those in the freezer, but you can keep them in the fridge.

Enjoy!