be still

You're probably thinking, what? I have 700 things to do, and hello, it's December!  I get it.  This is an invitation to "un do" certain things.  Think about the birth of Jesus, in a stable with some hay.  Is that what all the holiday hype is about? Is that why your calendar is crammed?  I dare you to join me this season and un do the things that steal your joy.

I am simply having a wonderful Christmas time in the kitchen.  If it is the cooking that is stressing you out, here are some quick week night meals worth warming up to.

Baked Farro and Butternut Squash
Winter Minestrone
Maple-Glazed Chicken

and a side I love!
Roasted brussel sprouts with bacon

you will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out

I love my neighbors.  On one side a family of 5=3 playmates for my kids, on the other side fill in grandparents since ours are in NY and FL, across the street the kindest most thoughtful neighbors/friends a girl could ask for, and, when my at the time 4 and 6 year old were laying down in the middle of my driveway playing dead (I didn't see them) they were nice enough to let me know before my husband pulled in and ran over both of them. 

I stole an idea from my bf to have a neighborhood breakfast.  She calls it her "Come as you are Christmas breakfast," the idea behind it, get the neighborhood women together, share life, good food, come in your pajamas, have a mimosa.  It is one of my favorite events to attend, I don't have to get dressed, I don't have to bring anything, and I can relax, something that does not often happen during the holidays.

I hosted a breakfast at my home last year, I did one in the studio where I teach cooking classes and I'm now writing about it, that is how much I love it.  As I prepare for this year's brunch I am collecting recipes and sharing my favorite article also given to my by my bf about entertainment vs. hospitality. 
My hope for the breakfast is that the women in my neighborhood will come and enjoy it at my house as much as I enjoy it when I go to my friends and that it would be a sweet thing to look forward to as we usher in the Christmas season.

Holiday Breakfast
Overnight blueberry french toast 
(too much sugar in the sauce cut by 1/2)
Best breakfast potatoes ever 
Spinach and artichoke egg casserole 
Apple oatmeal breakfast bake
Ham & Cheese Strata

stir up love

It is a busy Monday morning.  I have microwaved the same cup of coffee 4 times.  I have made the snacks for the week and before I move on to the next thing I wanted to share a few thoughts and recipes.

Last week my best friend from culinary school was here with us.  She was visiting from Charleston SC.  Everything I ate and drank with her tasted so good.  It's funny how food tastes better when you experience it with someone you love in a positive atmosphere.
Even my kids love her culinary influence.  Aunt Em's purse always had plenty of LARA bars.  So after she left I tried to make our own.  Success.  I love the blueberry muffin and the pb&j.  For pb&j I went nut free and used sunflowers instead of cashews, sunflower butter instead of pb, and dried cranberries instead of cherries.  I also threw in some flax seeds, optional.  I used the same instructions and amounts.  The pb&j ones I made were too crumbly for bars so I made them into balls.

On my daughter's 3rd Birthday we had already celebrated because I knew we had a busy day, a morning food talk, taking real estate pictures in the afternoon (another love) and now dinner time.  My pastor's wife gave me lemongrass so I combed the food network until I found the perfect use.  Shrimp in a coconut, ginger, and lemongrass broth.  I promise this was truly perfect.  It got better, the friend I was working for came to pick up the zip disc of pictures I took and joined us for dinner.  My husband's Sous Chef came to drop off something to my husband and he joined us for dinner.  Another friend sent a gift home for Eden so we had this fabulous meal with friends and a birthday celebration all unplanned.  And I will never ever stop raving about this dish.  I also substituted left over pork loin one time and cut it up and another time left over chicken.  I just completely omitted the shrimp part of the recipe and added the meat to the broth at the end and made sure it got to temperature (165 degrees).

nothing new under the sun

I am talking about kids lunch, tired of the same ole ?

Me too.  Here's what I am serving these days

our weekend fave, snack lunch cheese, crackers, popcorn, carrots and ranch, and fruit
hard boiled eggs and bacon
diy lunchables crackers, pepperoni, ham, cheese
cucumber & hummus sandwiches
pasta salad
lentil & quinoa salad with tortilla chips
cowboy cavier with tortilla chips
deli meat rolls with cheese or cream cheese
jelly & cream cheese roll ups in a flour tortilla
almond butter & apple butter (not really butter just concentrated apple puree) sandwich
Nutella, peanut butter & banana
grilled chicken strips with ranch dip or honey mustard
soup
chili
mac & cheese
pasta
quinoa with veggies
cream cheese and ham stuffed peppers
rice bowl with veggie flowers and hoisen
bagel with cream cheese

And what are you eating for lunch?  Their leftovers, whatever you can shove in your mouth by the time their done eating and ready to move on to the next thing?  I can honestly say I know a lot about lunch, but, not because I was eating it.  For the first time in 7 years I actually think about what sounds good to me for lunch, what is healthy, and I make it, sometimes!
salad, smoothie, snack lunch (veggies, fruits, cheeses, crackers, dips) or sandwich.

Here's how to keep it exciting.  The reason I know this I use to work in upper management for a restaurant group.  Every day I had to eat lunch in an upscale French Restaurant for 3 years.  Poor me, but do you realize the two main ingredients in French Cuisine?   Cream and butter.  How did I not gain 30 lbs a year?  Salad.  Did I get sick of it, yes.  How did I deal with it?  I would march myself back to the kitchen everyday and make my own "new" salad dressing concoction.  Also their are a million different ways you can make up a salad.  Need some protein so it sticks with you for the day?  You can throw chicken, quinoa, farro, nuts, seeds, cheeses, in it to fill you up.

As the bible says, there is nothing new under the sun, so we have to serve things we have in new creative ways.  I found this great resource on glorious grains, check it out for some new ideas to add grains for salads and sides with dinner.

Also, if you make a dressing on Monday make enough for the week, I store mine in a canning jar.
 I also try to put seasonal ingredients in my salad
pumpkin seeds
roasted butternut squash
apples
roasted sweet potatoes
bacon, pancetta, or prosciutto
candied walnuts
pomegranates
pears
clementines

fall dressing lesson 
maple Dijon vinaigrette
equal parts, apple cider vinegar, vegetable oil (1/2 cup each)
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 teaspoon dijon
S&P
 Directions: add everything except oil, slowly wisk in oil

If you want to be able to whip up simple genius foods in a hurry have a well stocked pantry!

My new favorite smoothie
1 cup cabot vanilla greek yogurt
3/4 cup orange juice
1 cup kale
1/2 avocado
1 apple or some kind of fruit, peach, pear, banana
ice
(if you need more liquid add milk or more oj)
chia seeds to garnish (optional)

redeeming the time

Since I now have more time, I wonder, isn't their something more important I should be doing than thinking about what nut free snacks to send to school with my kids?  Yes, thanks to my amazing friend Anna Goodworth, who wrote the book LESS.  I can't stop thinking about the kids who have nothing to eat when mine complain about the nutritious meals prepared with love by their parents.  If your sharing my frustrations I encourage you to check out the dirt cookies Haitians are eating.  My kids have seen this video.  The book LESS also discusses exposing and educating our children about world hunger and gives tangible acts to respond to what you read with your kids.

I  do think about feeding my kids healthy nut free snacks too, because I want to raise children with good eating habits.  I am thankful daily that we can purchase healthy ingredients.  This is the best recipe that I have made for kid snacks, why?  It tastes awesome, I like to eat these for a snack too,  it is super healthy, and it doesn't have nuts!

Pumpkin Butterscotch Oat Bars 
2 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup oat flour (grind up oats in blender or food processor, make sure to measure AFTER grinding)
1/4 cup flax seeds (optional)
1/8 cup chia seeds (optional)
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
15 ounce can pumpkin
1 tablespoon 1 + 1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons honey
1 cup unsweetened almond milk or any milk
2 cups butterscotch chips or chocolate chips (you can also sub craisins, raisins, diced apples,
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F

• Place all dry ingredients in a bowl stir with a whisk
• Add wet ingredients stir well with a spoon
• Spray a 12x9 pan with cooking spray
• Press it evenly in pan
• Bake 20-25 minutes
• Let cool completely
• Cut into 24 squares

These freeze well :)

I also make the following muffins in small muffins tins and freeze them for school snacks.  I hope you and the littles enjoy!
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip muffins
Gingerbread Muffins
Apple Banana Carrot Muffins
Banana Crunch Muffins

I also make a ton of trail mixes myself.  I make a big batch one day and then portion it out for the week.   I try to put something neutral (a grain of some sort), something sweet, and something salty.  And yes that is ridiculous I used culinary training to come up with that :)

Here are some of my combos
mini pretzels, popcorn corn, candy corn

cheerios, craisens, chocoate chips

rice chex, raisens,  pretzels, m&m's

pumpkin seeds, popcorn, chocolate chips

dried fruit, rice chex, popcorn

A few other suggestions
Brown rice crispy treats, I add and subtract what I like don't like
chips & salsa
carrots & hummus
cut veggies
applesauce
mandarin oranges from a can
whole fruit, oranges, grapes, apples, bananas travel well
cinnamon sugar apples (add lemon juice if sending to school)

there is a time for everything

I started this food blog in 2012, I think.  I made no posts and forgot the password.  Why am I back at it?
Reason 1. time, reason 2. passion. in no particular order 
 


In 2012 I was pregnant with my 3rd child, had a 2 year old and a 4 year old.  Right after baby #3 was born I got a call that the house we were renting went on the market.  We spent the next year looking at homes, showing that house, and to add some more excitement, homeschooling our then 5 year old kindergartner.  In 2014, we landed the best house our family could ask or hope for, it just needed a complete renovation.  So, we moved in with friends, yes with our three kids, worked and waited as our new house became a home.  I cooked everyday during that time, some nights simple nachos, some nights beer cheese soup with garlic crostini, a lot of nights pasta or chili.  If I wanted to impress maybe caramelized apple stuffed chicken breast with fontina and bing cherries.


I should enter in the fact, my awesome husband Todd, is a Chef too.  My delusions of grandeur over our fabulous family dinners grew quickly dim.  People, when you have three kids five and under, I don't care how good you can cook, it is chaos.  And if your table isn't please tell me your secret!  First problem, two of my kids can barely keep their buns seated in a chair.  I could bore you with stories that you would not believe about my picky eater, or brag to you about the my kid with a  perfect palette.  I am going to skip all that and say don't put so much pressure on yourself, do the best you can, and trust me it does get easier.
 

One thing I have always tried to do, not dependent on my free time, is add some new recipes to our dinner rotation.  You can always grab a food magazine or a cookbook for inspiration.
This week I picked up two awesome books, Dinner, A Love Story by Jenny Rosenstrach (thank you Sarah for the recommendation) and The CSA Cookbook by Linda Ly.  New recipe ideas make for easier meal planning and add some excitement to the dinner table.  Next time you find yourself at the library (for mom's you can make it out of the children's section, bribe with gum or whatever) take a two minute peak in the Cookbook Section and grab something that interests you.  This is one way I manage to include new recipes in our dinner rotation.

Last year I went back to work part time.  It was a nice creative outlet.  I was then homeschooling both my boys and the creative culinary mental stimulation was therapeutic.  I am in yet another new season, both boys are in public school, I am still working part time, and I have little Eden at home with me.  Things look different now, and I have a few extra minutes to share some of the things I love to stir up in our kitchen.