Whatcha Got Cookin'???
Cooking with a baby is near impossible. Considering we practice attachment parenting, Finn just doesn't get put down that often. This is a significant challenge when it comes to making a meal.
Breakfast isn't hard. Cereal. I manage to make a batch of muffins every few days. Toast.
Lunch...uh, do we eat lunch? Mostly we grab something out.
Dinner? Holy shit, it's 9 pm and we haven't even thought about dinner between feeding the boy and getting him to sleep. Cereal. Toast. Add a glass of milk, maybe....
It's a pathetic nutritional existance.
Considering that I love to cook, it's been hard accepting that I really can't like I used to. At the same time, I'm just not ready to give up and go for pouring cans of things into a pot or the ultimate in desperation...the frozen dinner.
My new goal...at least one dinner per week that will provide left overs. We can do that. And pasta is our friend, as horrible as that may be. Last week it was this delicious rice and chickpea dish from Deborah Madison I've been planning for weeks. I ate it with naan from Trader Joe's and it was heavenly. It tasted even better the next day. Take that little baby who is turning our lives upside down. I can still somewhat function like I used to. Ha.
This week...kale and potato quiche.
Other Random Food Thoughts
When I was pregnant I picked up The Vegetarian Mother's Cookbook then promptly discovered I couldn't be pregnant and eat vegetarian...thank you food aversions. I've picked up the book again and I really like it. The recipes are geared toward people with kids, meaning they're not too difficult. They're very nutritious...full of whole grains and lots of KALE.
I'm also finally experimenting with using coconut oil in place of butter. I've found that you definately lose some browning properties without butter, but the texture is good. The cookies were pale. But I made the most delicious, moist muffins with it. My next task is a pie crust.
Lastly...OVEN RICE. How did I never know about making rice in the oven. I love brown rice but I absolutely hate cooking it. To the point where I've considered purchasing a rice cooker but really don't want another appliance in the kitchen. Then I read in The Vegetarian Mother's Cookbook about how to cook it in the oven. Holy crap, batman...rice in the oven!!!!!! You put rice in a casserole dish, pour boiling water and olive oil over it then bake it for 50 minutes. It came out chewy and perfect.
And I thought I'd discovered a modern miracle when I figured out how to do bacon in the oven.
posted by Sacha @ 9:40 PM
7 comments
7 Comments:
wow- oven rice! Who woulda thunk? How much water and oil to rice, and what temperature?
I had never cooked a roast before I had a baby. It's SO easy. Rub some garlic and dijon mustard on it, put it in the oven and ignore for an hour. Perfect for new moms. ;-)Delish for sandwiches for a few days too.
1.5 cups rice, 2.5 cups boiling water, 2 tsp olive oil. Put rice ein casserole, pour boiling water and olive oil over it (and salt). Place in preheated oven at 375 for 50 minutes.
oh, I forgot to mention that those measurements are for BROWN rice.
You feel better about buying AMY's Frozen meals. They're quite yummy, and EASY.
Once Malka is napping on Sundays, I try to make food for the week, but here am I, a fellow foodie, telling you it's OK to go frozen. NO one will take away your gormande card - I SWEAR! ;)
Your TIME is SO much more precious, and LIMITED, you know? In time, Finn will help with the coking, just like Malka "helps" me to garden.
And our rice cooker is SO great for other thngs, too - it's really the only asppliance that gets such frequent usage, I leave it OUT! ;)
Do you have a bumbo chair? My absolute ESSENTIAL piece of baby gear. We were able to sit Julia in it on the counter as early as 2 months... she could sit there for about 10 minutes at a time and we could talk with her, make eye contact, be right there with her AND cook. It was a miracle.
Bacon in the oven?
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