cinnamon swirl bread, bok choy, ice cream...oh my!

Yesterday was a great day for Isabelle and I.  We walked all the way to Co-op Kids (it took us close to 25 minutes...she refused to let me take the stroller) and enjoyed making art with beans and grains.  After making her mosaic, Isabelle sat with her friend Maggie and they chatted over cinnamon swirl bread while I helped some of the other children and made sure supplies were fresh.

photo courtesy Melissa (Maggie's mama)

We then happily hitched a ride home with our friend Rebekka (25 minutes downhill would have been potentially a long trip back up the hill).  I harvested 5 or 6 heads of bok choy from the garden and prepared a lunch-to-go.  We jumped in the stroller (Isabelle decided it would be ok to take it this time) and headed to Maggie's house for a play date (yes the two are inseparable).  The girls ate their lunch, played with markers and jumped on the couch...and afterwards we went home for a well needed rest (by mama and Isabelle).

For dinner we made a stir fry, with what else...? Bok Choy!  And man it was delicious!  We love using veggies grown right out of our backyard!

Chicken stir fry w/ bok choy and shitake mushrooms

...served over buckwheat udon noodles...my mouth is watering just looking at it

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Recipe:

2 heads bok choy (about a 1 lb) sliced thin (looks like a lot but wilts down)

1 cup shitake mushrooms sliced thin

1 chicken breast sliced thin (pork, tofu, or tempeh would be equally delicious in this as well)

1 package of buckwheat udon noodles

Canola oil or vegetable oil for sauteing 

Sauce:

3/4 cup chicken or veggie stock

3 tbs oyster sauce

2 tbs honey

1.5 tbs rice wine vinegar

1 tbs soy sauce

1 tbs corn starch

1 tbs fresh minced ginger

1 tbs fresh minced garlic

Put on some water to boil your noodles and cook according to package directions.  Combine sauce ingredients and whisk together, set aside.  In a wok or large pan add enough oil to cover and saute chicken until cooked through.  Remove chicken, add a little more oil and add mushrooms and cook for about a minute.  Add bok choy and cook until wilted (stirring occasionally) about 3-4 minutes.  Add your chicken back into the mix, stir the sauce again and then pour it in.  Bring to to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally for another minute or so.

Serve over your udon noodles and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds if you have them. Yum!

This recipe has been adapted from a few different recipes I found online... so I think I can sort of call it my own...

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After dinner we headed to JoAnne's Fabric for a jean patch for aaron's pants - $3 dollar fixes...gotta love them.  And well since we were in the vicinity, we got some ice cream.  Apparently a double scoop means an ice cream the size of my face.... and for those who know me well that was no problem at all...

yum...