On December 31, my mother eagerly asked what resolutions I was going to make for 2010. Honestly, I hadn’t even thought about it yet. Sure, it was New Year’s Eve, but I just wasn’t ready to resolve anything yet. I didn’t really give her an answer.

Now, it’s January 15. Whew. I guess I am off to a lateish start, eh?

Actually, I really am not. See, one of my resolutions (or goals, if you will) for this year is to focus. So, since the beginning of the year, I have been doing just that: focusing on the things that really matter. Resolutions? They fall pretty low on that list.

But, today I have a few minutes … so, away we go!

Read the rest of this entry…

A local deli makes this massive, delightful sandwich called Amanda’s Big Mouth. It’s pastrami, cheddar, bacon, onions, lettuce, tomato, hot sauce and thousand island dressing (I skip the dressing)—and it’s amazing. It’s the kind of sandwich you eat when you are starving … or when you just want something amazing when you are enjoying a few minutes to yourself.

But it’s also massive and not at all diet friendly.

Isn’t that how it always works? You find a food you love, only to discover that it’s making your hips expand at a rapid pace? And it can only be blamed on your adoration, which is leading you to indulge in said sandwich a little too often. What? Do I speak from experience? Um? What?

Anyway, if you’ve resolved to be healthier, then that sandwich probably isn’t practical. Seriously. Does anyone need that much meat? Nonetheless, you don’t have to completely skip the deliciousness of your favorite stuffed sandwich. Just lighten it up a bit instead by making it at home with the same ingredients in moderation.

How? Toss the hard roll and use a whole wheat one or trade it in for a whole wheat pita or wrap. Cut the amount of meat down to 2-3 oz. To make the sandwich look fuller, don’t just lay the meat on. Instead, drop the meat on so that it sort of crumples and curls on itself (don’t put too much thought into that! The technique works best when  you don’t think). Use only about an ounce of cheese and consider switching higher fat cheeses for lower fat ones. If the sandwich has other ingredients like bacon, use it! But just a little to get the flavor.

So, I applied these principals to my favorite sandwich. Guess what? It was at least as good as the original, and I didn’t feel weighed down after eating it (that’s a huge plus!). It’s a little spicy-sweet with the sriracha, with notes of saltiness and pepper. And it’s divine. Absolutely divine. Just try it.

See, you really can lighten up a sandwich and still enjoy it.  What’s your favorite sandwich? Share! Read the rest of this entry…

Do you know where your food comes from?

Yes, you probably know where you purchased it. But do you know where it was before it entered that store? Some people do, but many people do not. I am not even sure if the majority of people think about these things. But I do. These are questions that I ponder a lot. After seeing Food, Inc. last month, I knew I needed to know these answers for the food in my house.

A few short years ago, I shopped by price point only. We were on a tight budget and staying within that budget was essential. But then, the budget got looser and the fears got greater, so I started to pay more attention. Do you remember the recalls of spinach and other tainted foods? They scared me. A lot. So, I researched my local foodshed. It was hard because a few years ago there weren’t as many resources to help with this task. But it was worth it. Today, I am lucky to know of local bloggers like Sophie at Late Bloomer’s Farm, who has put together a great foodshed resource for my area.

Last summer, I tried my hand at growing our own food and had reasonable success. This summer, we will do it again. Bigger and better. Will and I have been talking about what we will grow (he’s requesting watermelon-that will be interesting). I am debating between ordering seeds and buying starter plants … I am just not sure which way we’ll go. But either way, we will be growing more this summer.

The more I learn, the more passionate I am about eating local food bought from local places. We have a wonderful array of farms around here. With minimal effort, we can have delightful grassfed beef from a few towns over, mouthwatering smoked cheddar from New York and other wonderful foods. Yes, I spend more on food now than ever. Yes, I still go to the grocery store and Trader Joe’s. But I also feel good about what we eat and worry less.

How do you feel about eating local? To me, it encompasses so much – being gentler on the environment, eating well, truly knowing my food (and those that grow it). Read the rest of this entry…

Tacos hold a very special place in my heart. Serious. Ever since I was little, something about the crunchy little shells filled with spicy meat, cheese, lettuce, tomato and hot taco sauce just made my mouth so darn happy. I mean sure, you can have better, more authentic tacos — and I enjoy those too — but it’s the totally Americanized version that I adore. No food snobbery here.

My kids really like tacos too, but for a two-year-old and a four-year-old, they can be a challenge to eat. Plus, I always worry if they are actually eating enough on taco nights. Paige usually doesn’t eat the shell (and gets tired of the spiced meat pretty fast) and Will stops after one, maybe two, tacos. How could their bellies be full? It’s with that thought that I usually whip up a side salad and yellow rice too.

There has to be a better way, right? A way that I can have the flavor of tacos that I love but in a form that is more kid friendly. Enter the Taco Burger.

Burgers have been on my mind lately. A friend mentioned them a few weeks back and I said that I usually don’t cook them in the winter. No sooner did those words exit my mouth then I developed a hankering for a good, homemade burger. Go figure.

Anyway, the other day while I was trying to figure out dinner, I got the idea to take the seasonings of a taco and use them in burger patties. It was a simple thought (and one that took advantage of ingredients we had on hand!) but it seemed like worth a shot. So, I mixed, we cooked and we ate. The result? A lip-licking good burger that everyone in the family enjoyed. It was everything that I was hoping for.

These juicy burgers are perfect topped with taco-inspired toppings like salsa, guacamole and sour cream. Delish! And if your kids want in on the salsa action without the spice of your favorite hot blend, try spooning on a little jarred bruschetta — it looks very similar without any of the spice.

Are you a taco fanatic too? Read the rest of this entry…

In thinking about today’s post, I thought it was a little ironic that I wrote about getting your kids more active on Friday and am writing about sweets today. But irony aside, these things can really coexist. Afterall, raising a healthy family and leading a healthy life is not about deprivation. It’s about moderation, balance, joy … all wonderful things. So, yes, you can have a delicious cookie bar and a slim waistline.

When I decided to have a healthier 2010, it never once crossed my mind to stop baking things like these bars. My kids love to cook and I love to cook with them. Seems like a win-win, right?

Last weekend, Will and I made Chocolate Covered S’mores Grahams and they were dessert for most of the week. He actually wanted to make them again, but I spied a recipe for Butterscotch Blondies in Gorgeous: The Sum of All Your Glorious Parts, a book that I reviewed a few years ago. The idea sounded good, but I wanted a bar that was just a little different. So, I got out my trusty notebook, made some alterations to the recipe (adding chocolate, taking out nuts, trading half of the all-purpose flour for whole wheat, etc).

When the time came to bake on Sunday, I got out an big bowl for Will to mix in. The ingredients filled only a small portion of the bowl, but using an oversized bowl is one of tricks of cooking with kids that makes it easier and more stress-free. Yes, the smaller mixing bowl would have been perfect for this recipe, but the larger bowl gives him room to move the whisk around in. That way, he learns how to work in this confined space, while allowing margin for error. The result? Far less flour spilled. And I noticed as he mixed that his movements are becoming more fluid. He really is learning how to sift gently. How awesome is that?

There are so many opportunities for kids to help with a recipe like this. I’ve notated in the recipe the sections that are perfect for kids to help with. And working together like that, to create something, is a great experience for them.

Anyway, back to the recipe. Once we finished mixing, pressing and baking, we were left with sweet cookie bars that are brimming with buttery richness and chocolatey goodness. I liked them. Shawn liked them. The kids adored them … What more could I ask for?

These will make a fab dessert for the kids this week. And for the adults too. Read the rest of this entry…

Dear Readers, as I mentioned last week, I plan to write more about raising a healthy family this year (see my interview with Dr. Oz from last week). This week, I have tips on getting active from Missy Chase Lapine and Larysa Didio, authors of the new book Sneaky Fitness: Fun, Foolproof Ways to Slip Fitness into Your Child’s Everyday Life. Back to the food on Monday!

I don’t know about you, but I’m still learning how to keep my two young kids active all year. Sure, it might sound like a reasonable expectation that we’d go outside whether it’s cold and snowy or warm and sunny, but the truth is that isn’t always possible. In fact, there are times when going outside isn’t smart or doable (think sub-zero temps or sick kids).

But having a fit family one of my goals for the Ten in 10 Challenge, so I am working on solving this problem for my family.

The good news? You don’t need to go outside to be active. Really, you don’t. And there is even a new book to help you figure out how to have an active family, no matter what season or temperature it is. Sneaky Fitness: Fun, Foolproof Ways to Slip Fitness into Your Child’s Everyday Life is written by Missy Chase Lapine (of The Sneaky Chef fame) and Larysa Didio, a celebrity trainer. It is filled with all sorts of fun activities that you can do with your kids. Read the rest of this entry…

If you are what you eat, then my four-year-old Will is a moist pancake with berries. To say he loves pancakes is like saying that the sun is lukewarm. Will’s devotion to pancakes is unreal. If we let him, Will would have a big stack of pancakes every single morning. But, that wouldn’t be good for him to have every day (and the rest of us aren’t quite as fanatical about pancakes as he is) so we don’t.

That said, we do eat a lot of pancakes. I swear, Shawn and I can practically whip up batches in our sleep.

But while pancakes aren’t that bad for you, they have some room for improvement. Do they really need the oil? Nah. The good old applesauce in place of oil trick works great — and delivers moist cakes. Do they need refined sugar? Nope. Agave nectar, a natural sweetener made from the same plant used to make tequila, works fine and supposedly is a little better for you. You could also trade the egg for egg substitute, but I prefer real cage-free eggs.

The result is a moist, light, fluffy pancake with a nice contrast of ever-so-slight sweetness from the agave and tartness from the raspberries. I like mine topped with a drizzle of Grade B maple syrup from a local farm, but a sprinkle of powdered sugar could be delicious too.

How do you like your pancakes? Share!

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What do you eat for lunch? People always talk about how important it is to have a good breakfast, but it’s also really important to have a good lunch — one that is filling, satisfying and healthy. For me, lunch is sometimes a sandwich or pasta, but more often it’s a salad. Salads served topped with warm proteins, like this salmon, are comforting, waist-friendly and can be really easy to make. Seriously. I mean it.

This particular roasted salmon is so ridiculously easy that I almost feel bad calling it a recipe. You basically toss salmon in a pan, drizzle just a bit of olive oil, sprinkle some salt and pepper and lay some thyme across the top. Toss it in the oven and 20 minutes or so later, you are ready to sit down and eat a healthy lunch. Easy peasy.

But I am sharing it because some people don’t realize just how easy and simple it can be to cook fish — or how unscary it is. (Yes, I really did just make up that word. Shh!)

I used to be scared to cook salmon. I also used to be scared to feed it to my two-year-old daughter. Earlier this week, while I was writing about salmon for my Tablespoon column, I reminisced about a year ago when I was so freaked out to give Paige fish that I couldn’t bring myself to do it. She was just over a year old, and it was time to try. But the threat of fish allergies (the ones I read about in some parenting magazine) had me downright terrified. It’s funny how in this information age, too much information can make us question our instincts.

I turned to mom friends and asked advice. I read more about it. Then I finally bit the bullet and just made fish. She loved it. No more fear necessary.

These days, we typically have fish about twice a week. Since Shawn isn’t a fan, we either have it when he’s working late (henceforth known as “fish night” in our house) or for lunch. It used to horrify my mother that I actually cook at lunchtime, but that’s one of the perks of being a work-at-home freelance writer. And really, why shouldn’t you cook when you have a chance?

Frankly though, when the fabulous lunch is as easy as this one, it needs no justifying.

So, spill! What’s your favorite lunch? Do you ever cook at lunchtime?

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There is something amazing about biting into the crispy coating of fried chicken. It crunches between your teeth, revealing layers of flavors. It’s salty and wonderful … Before you know it, you’re biting into juicy chicken, just below the skin. Well, at least I hope it’s juicy. I’ve had a lot of flavorless meat on fried chicken in my day. Haven’t you?

This chicken is the total package: crispy and packed with flavor inside and out.

In 2010, I am focusing a lot on healthy, budget-friendly dishes. Chicken drumsticks are definitely budget friendly, and since these are baked, this is lightened up. (Don’t worry … only a portion of the 2 tbsp of butter actually makes it onto the chicken). Perfect for a night when you are craving comfort food … but not willing to break your healthy resolutions.

Psst … are you participating in the Ten in 2010 challenge? It’s a community effort to support each other to a healthier, happier 2010. Don’t worry — you don’t even need a blog to join. Click here to learn more.

Read the rest of this entry…

Ever since Will was old enough to stand, he’s been helping me in the kitchen. Paige too. They can spin salads to remove water like nobody’s business. They know how to tear lettuce into bite-sized pieces, measure ingredients and sift. They can mix and fold. Will knows how to add the flour mixture to wet ingredients s-l-o-w-l-y and without making a mess.

They love to cook, and so do I.

One of my goals for 2010 is to share more about cooking with kids, including recipes that lay out how kids can help you. Cooking with kids is a great way to spend quality time … and it gives them a great sense of accomplishment when they can say that they helped make it. You should see how my kids beam when they’ve made something delicious.

This first recipe is easy, easy, easy and totally kid-friendly. Kids will love being able to help make it, and then will love being able to eat the sweet, crunchy, chocolate-coated grahams too. Does it get any better than that?

First, you break graham crackers along the perforated lines into rectangles. If you have grahams that break easily, then this could be a kid-step, but mine weren’t easy to break. In fact, this was the hardest part for me. It took a whole sleeve of grahams to get the 24 that we needed for this recipe. Will didn’t mind though … he got to eat the causalities.

My advice? When you are breaking the grahams, take your time and be gentle. Really. I mean it.

Next, you line a baking sheet with waxed paper. You aren’t going to bake anything, but this is a good staging area for the grahams at all the stages of making them. If you tear off the paper, then your child can do the lining (and almost certainly ask “What’s next?”).

The next step is a kid-step too: spreading marshmallow fluff on the crackers. Will used a training knife, that came with a toddler silverware set. If you don’t have one, don’t worry — a dull plastic knife will work too. Don’t worry if they get a little overzealous with it — more is better. And bonus: for preschoolers, this is a great fine motor skill building exercise. We all know how important that is.

Also, you might want to have a spoon handy to let your child lick a little marshmallow off. They will probably want to lick the knife … and that just isn’t a good habit to get into.

The last step is for adults. You melt up some milk chocolate (I use the Trader Joe’s Pound Plus bar — about half a bar is perfect for this) in double boiler set over water. Don’t have a double boiler? Use a nonreactive metal bowl over a pan of water. Just don’t let the water touch the bowl.

Finally, you coat the grahams in chocolate, let them cool and then refrigerate them. As you are coating them, be careful not to touch the area where the marshmallow fluff is. It’s way easier than that sounds. I swear. Also, these actually get better with age, so make them the day before you want to serve them (don’t worry, it’s okay to snack on a few in the meantime!).

How do your kids help in the kitchen? Share! Read the rest of this entry…