They have him pegged!

For the past two years Matt has worked as an Ambassador for the Business School. He read hundreds of applications, hosted a multitude of students interested in the Paul Merage School of Business and planned events for admitted and interested student. I'm pretty sure he did more than that, but that is all I know about. At the end of each year they have a dinner to celebrate another year on the job and they give these awards to the graduates. Each award has to do with character and personality. I'd say they know my guy pretty well! What I know and what makes me love him all the more is that his motivation comes from the Lord!

Lemons, Lemons and More Lemons!

A few weeks back my church had its annual Spring Tea! It was such a fun day and totally fun to get ready for. My great friend Stacy and I put together the "Backyard" Theme table you see below. We used burlap and flowers found in the yard. We used twine and sticks. We gave honey and drank from mason jars. We had a jar of Meyer Lemons - straight from the Farmer's Market! Better than the table was the message. Our pastor's wife taught us about Perfect Peace. Peace that comes from the Father, a good and perfect gift. I have benefited from this gift many times over. If left to my own devices I worry and become anxious. Bu,t if I go to the Lord and hand over my worries He promises PEACE! Not just peace, but perfect peace...you know...the kind that surpasses understanding as promised in Phil 4:6-7.

Well...after the Tea I still had all those LEMONS! So Matt and I decided to challenge ourselves and see how many recipes we could come up with that use lemons or rind or juice. Here are our results. We had a fabulous lemony dinner and I recommend every recipe we made!

First up: Lemon Herb Muffins - Betty Crocker

These were delicious! They would be great with a quiche or egg dish for brunch or grilled chicken for dinner.

• 2 eggs
• 2 cups Bisquick mix (we used Trader Joe's Multigrain Baking mix)
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary or basil leaves, crumbled (we used rosemary)
• 1/4 cup white coarse sugar crystals, if desired (we used brown sugar)

1. Heat oven to 400 F. Place paper baking cup in each of the 12 regular sized muffin cups

2. Beat eggs slightly in medium bowl; stir in remaining ingredients except sugar crystals, just until moistened. Divide batter evenly among cups, sprinkle with sugar

3. Bake 15-20 minutes or until tops are golden brown

Next: Lemonade - of course!

6 lemons
1 cup white sugar
6 cups cold water

Juice the lemons to made 1 cup lemon juice. Combine with 6 cups water and white sugar.

We did it this way, but I recommend making a simple syrup with the sugar and water. You boil 1 cup water and then add 1 cup sugar and stir until dissolved. Allow to cool and add the rest of the water. Then combine with the lemon juice. I think this will work better!


Third: Lemon Blackberry Scones

I saw this recipe on my friend Michelle's Blog. You must try it! They were delicious. Click here to go to the recipe. She used blueberries for her recipe, but the grocery store here in the OC just had a small carton for like $50 dollars - so I went with the Blackberries. Came out great!


Last: I saved the best for last! These were amazing Crab Cakes!

I have such a thing for crab cakes and have been wanting to try my hand at them. This was my chance and boy am I glad we did! I savored every bite and can't wait to make them again! We didn't make the remoulade because we didn't have all of those ingredients, but I would next time. I think it would definitely add to it. We served it with mixed greens tossed with a balsamic vinegarette and avacado slices.

Recipe from Cooking Light

Crab cakes:

• 2 Tbsp. finely chopped chives
• 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. mayo
• 1/2 tsp. grated lemon rind
• 1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp. ground red pepper
• 1 large egg
• 1/3 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1 lb. lump crab meat
• 1 tsp. olive oil

Remoulade (best made one day ahead to allow flavors to marry):

• 1/4 cup mayo
• 1 Tbsp. chopped shallots
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. capers, drained and chopped
• 2 tsp. creole mustard
• 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp. ground red pepper
• 1/8 tsp. kosher salt

1. To prepare crab cakes, combine first 8 ingredients. Add panko and crab, tossing gently to combine. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes.
2. Fill a 1/3 dry measuring cup with crab mixture. Invert onto work surface and gently pat into a 3/4-in thick patty. Repeat, forming 8 cakes.
3. Heat 1 1/2 tsp. oil in a large skillet over med-high heat. Add 4 crab cakes to pan. Cook 4 minutes, or until bottoms are golden. Turn cakes. Cook another 4 minutes. Remove cakes and keep warm.
4. To prepare remoulade, combine 1/4 cup mayo and remaining ingredients in a small bowl. Stir with whisk.

Bon Apetite!

Happy Anniversary!

Funny...all of our wedding pictures are on a couple of CDs in a safe deposit box. I have 5 in iphoto to look at today. Oh well, good thing I remember the day clearly! It was wonderful! I loved everything about it. I soaked in our vows and listened to the singers. I tried to get around to all of the guests and ate from the candy bar. I danced with my Dad, new husband and all of our friends and teared up at my sisters speech.

Thinking about the events of the past 4 years is a little overwhelming. We have changed jobs, traveled to 3 countries and 8 states, moved to Orange County, fought cancer, welcomed a nephew and a whole lot more. What a blessing it has been to be married to Matt. He leads with dignity and strength and loves me with his whole heart. He encourages, exhorts and is so creative with showing his appreciation for me.

We do the traditional gift thing. Fruits and Flowers for year 4. I groaned when I saw it - fruits and flowers for a guy? I ended up with this. It is a botanical print of a gardenia from an antique Botanical Register. It was drawn in May of 1826. Why gardenia? It reminds us of our honeymoon of course!

Matt surprised me with the wreath in Napa made from grape vines, but showed up yesterday with more goodies. See we Poladians have a tradition. NEVER give a gift on the actual day of the occasion. We are always too excited and can't wait to pass on our treasures. So we exchanged gifts yesterday in an effort to keep with tradition. I got the complete set of Julia Childs cookbooks - Mastering the Art of French Cooking and Blood Orange Olive Oil all in a flower box. So fun! Maybe de-boning a duck is in my future?