What do you do on the weekend?
Do you do weekend sport?
Do you catch up on all of the weeks washing?
Do you have a Friday night ritual?
Do you get to sleep in?
Do you catch up with friends?
Do you catch your breath?
At our house we look forward to the weekend like everyone else.
A chance to unwind, take a breather, try to get some things done around the house.
I love that we don't have early morning sport that means getting up earlier than during the week.
If we aren't doing Farmer's Markets we are lying on bed with extras popping in and out for early morning snuggles trying to delay getting up as long as possible.
Then we stumble out in PJ's to cook a special weekend brekky.
The TV is on in the family room with old episodes of Wacky Races.
Remember that show? Oh my...... I love it as much now as I did in my own childhood.
My lads look forward to being allowed the tiny bit of 'weekend gaming'~ the only time they are allowed all week.
We will try and schedule a special 'Family movie' on Saturday night that we all watch together snuggled in like sardines on the couch. Sometimes even a TV dinner- quelle horreur!
We try and do some cooking together and shop for the ingredients as a family. I know it isn't what everyone finds fun but our family LOVES food shopping. We love going to Market together. Love the smells, the sounds, the colour, the faces, the culture......just EVERYTHING.
In fact we pretty much do everything together. There is a lot of together at our place. Is it a big family thing? I am not sure.
Somebody once asked me on Instagram if I 'forced' my kids to play together because all the pictures of them were together. Of course I don't force them too but yes we are together a lot. My kids unashamedly adore one another. And we adore that they do. Who wouldn't?
Whatever it is I love the weekends and our together time.
GOURMET GIRLFRIEND'S CRUNCHY FISH RICE PAPER ROLLS:
This recipe came about as a result of my 12yo wanting to cook some fish.
He was once my MOST fussy eater.
He is now my most adventurous and the most interested in cooking.
It was something we came up with together but he did all the prep and I did the frying.
We had such fun.
For me as such a busy mumma it is the most wonderful way to spend one on one time with my lads.
And then we get to eat the spoils! SO MUCH WIN!
I have a cold Rice paper roll recipe here but in this one you shallow fry the rolls to make them crunchy. DELISH.
WHAT YOU WILL NEED:
- 500g Rockling (or any other white fleshy fish) cut into 10cm lengths
- 1/2 cup walnuts
- 1 inch piece of ginger
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/2 bunch coriander
- 1/2 bunch mint
- 10 garlic chives
- (some extra of each of these herbs for putting in each roll)
- 2 Kaffir lime leaves
- lime zest & juice of a lime
- 1 red chilli
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon Rice bran oil (and extra for frying)
- rice paper sheets
METHOD:
Put everything except the rice paper sheets into the blender and BLITZ baby Blitz!
Pop a rice paper roll into a dish of water for just long enough to become just a bit soft (if you leave it too long the sheet becomes too soft to work with)
Now place it flat onto the workbench (it will totally soften as you place all the ingredients on top).
Smear a good heaped tablespoon of blitzed spice mix on top- in the middle of the rice paper, followed by a piece of fish and some more herbs.
Now fold up the bottom over the ingredients. You will notice the rice paper is now translucent & soft to work with.
Now fold in the left and right sides and roll into a cigar shape.
Now set aside on a plate until you have rolled all of your rolls.
Heat a nonstick pan to medium and shallow fry several at a time for abut 3-4 minutes on each side.
Serve immediately with Nuoc Cham dipping sauce (recipe here)
I'm having one of my fairly frequent 'Icelandic music' listening weeks this week.
I have shared this artist before.
Her voice is just enchanting...and i love the gentle drumming in this track too. Hope you do too!
Force your kids to play together? Oh that made me laugh! Um, how?
ReplyDeleteI want to come spend the weekend at your house - it sounds just perfect!
xx
They look absolutely amazing Ruth! I love love Rice paper rolls but the few times I have attempted them I have found it a bit too stressful. You and J make them look so easy and delicious so will definitely give this one a go. Maybe this weekend! I'll let you know how I go.
ReplyDeleteAs one of 5 I know that we weren't forced to play together as children, it's just what we did, we didn't need to have friends to come over! If friends did come to visit then everyone usually joined in anyway.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny though, we have gone through a stage in our late twenties/early thirties where we all are doing our own things, establishing relationships, families and homes, and I guess we haven't been as close in terms of the amount of time we spend together. But I know that no one understands me (or why I am the way I am) than my sisters and brothers! My Mother struggles with this and tries to force us into each others lives, somewhat clumsily. I wish she would trust us, as sometimes her efforts have the opposite effect of what she intended.
Ruth, your family is so wonderful. You place must be one of the best places to be on the weekend. I love that you all adore each other! I remember when I was in school, I was shocked when my friends told me it was weird that I still gave my ma and pa kisses and hugs when they dropped me off places. Didn't everyone!? Such a shame!
ReplyDeleteOur 4 are thick as thieves, all for one, one for all, musketeers! Don't you just love that. Will try these fishy treats, they look so yummy. Made your toffee apple cake yesterday for the crochet girlies who pop by each 2nd Friday, big hit! Was warmed up and served for dessert as well, and boon bonus there is left overs for a Saturday arvo tea! Enjoy your market perusing and purchasing, we're off to the hockey grand final, then home for a spot of gardening. Love Saturdays!
ReplyDeleteThese rolls look fantastic, I'm drooling. I'm so envious of your children who get along. Mine are too often at each others' throats! Boy/girl twins are always battling for attention, and the teen is so much older and finds them painful to be with... My Mr12 is stuck in the middle, peacekeeper extraordinaire or devilish too.
ReplyDeleteOh yummo! How delicious do these look?! We are together A LOT at my house too and we love it. Sunday is always family day and no matter what we spend it together doing something we all enjoy. We all love cooking and eating too and usually make something special together on the weekends and all get involved. This sounds like a perfect recipe for us to try! xx
ReplyDeleteI grew up in a household very similar to yours. We didn't have a TV for about 5 years as teenagers and we didn't miss it. We spent time doing homework or ball games or riding our horse or swimming etc. We weren't "forced" to play together LOL It just happened. Now I have a 15 year old, over 6 foot tall son, that still comes and gives me cuddles for his "Little Mummy" as he calls me (because I am now shorter than him). We do have a TV now but there are strict time limits. I can't imagine what it would be like to live in a household with a TV/computer in every room with kids that "do their own thing". What a lonely selfish life. Keep up the hard work and enjoy your boys! :-)
ReplyDeleteThese look delicious!!!!
ReplyDeleteAnd you make me want more and more kids!!!! I would love a big family! Although, so far, my two make enough noise for five! ;-)
I love our weekends - especially when we have no plans and can just hang out together. It's the one thing I long for all week! I do love seeing friends too, but with my boys missing their dad during the work week so much, I know that family time is essential for all of us.
And it's always a good opportunity to cook up a storm!!! Ever since your first day of IG bread baking (the walnut one) I've been learning to make more and more bread. Now we don't buy sliced bread anymore and I made a couple of plain loaves each weekend, slice them up and freeze them ready for toast and lunches. I'm slowly but surely getting better at it and it's an awesome smell when it's freshly baked and an awesome feeling to give homemade bread to my boys and husband for their lunches and breakfast. I also inevitably make something more complicated and time consuming on the weekends too which is much easier with an extra pair of hands to help. My 3 year old loves cooking with me and has already got about 4 recipes that he can make at least 80% of on his own - he bursts with pride when he eats it! ;-)
xoxoxox
I love hearing about your family life Ruth. I grew up in a big family ( eldest of 6) & I spent the majority of my time trying to escape the noise. Now that we are all adults I love being with them & wish that as a kid I had appreciated who they were more.
ReplyDeleteNow that i have kids of my own I see so much of myslef in my eldest. He craves alone time even though he only has to contend with one other brother! Even as a little toddler he liked being on his own, content with his own company & thoughts.
The thought of ever being able to force any siblings to play together is so funny. Even though my boys don't often seek out each others comapny they do get along well when they let themselves, when things just flow & before they know it they've spent an entire afternoon together. Those times always make me feel good.....
Frickin' YUM!
ReplyDeletecouldn't source garlic chives, just used regular chives, seems to still be a flavour explosion though.
and i haven't even shallow fried them yet!
you are an inspiring lady :)
With two of mine now proper teens, during school time I struggle to keep the togetherness that we always had, but the summer holidays have been a fantastic opportunity to haul them back in. It's been amazing, in fact. I'd really been feeling like we have two families sometimes now, but I've decided I'm just going to hang onto them all until the age gap narrows again!
ReplyDeleteRecipe looks super. And yes, can we come to yours for a weekend sometime? I wish. xx
We have been out and about so much all summer, I haven't had an Icelandic week in a couple of months now, off to Last.fm for one now! xxx
My friday night ritual is to eat tons of junk food. It's the only day I treat myself to that.
ReplyDelete