No matter how well I plan every month, the last day ends up being a hair-pulling busy-fest, where I race to get the last of the month’s assignments in before deadline — as in midnight, and the new month. No matter how well I do at planning, I end up so busy I can barely see straight.

Do you know what today is? The last day of the month. And today is so busy that I contemplated skipping ELB just to have these extra few minutes. But, I don’t want to do that, so this is going to be a short post.

This week’s topic is portions. And to be quite frank, I watch my portions but don’t go crazy doing it. Typically I make dishes as four servings, so naturally I won’t eat much more than my one serving. I also usually eat off of lunch plates. It works. (Have you seen my portions control video? Check it out, along with some portion control tips on Tablespoon.) Read the rest of this entry…

Like most people, I learned to love pierogies thanks to the frozen section of the grocery store. They were easy to heat up and eat fast, which made them all the more desirable. I never even thought of how the potato and cheese filled pasta was made, until I was working at the newspaper years ago and heard about a local group’s pierogi making party.

Even then, I never thought I would make them myself.

But I did decide to try making pierogies. Now, these probably aren’t as amazing as a polish grandmother’s time honored recipe, but they are easy, delicious and even better than the frozen ones that I fell in love with years ago.

The filling is a mix of potato from a baked potato (save the skins for potato skins!), cheddar, salt, pepper and milk. The pasta outside? Premade round wraps from the grocery store. You can find these in the produce section near the wonton wrappers. They are pasta, and are super easy to use.

Have you taken the Family Meals Survey 2011 yet? If not, please do! I am researching the topic for some writing assignments, and would love your input. It only takes a few minutes. Thank you!!
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When Paige and I went to the grocery store yesterday, we emerged with a selection of fruits and veggies, a couple pounds of my favorite bacon (the price dropped from $3.99 to $0.99/lb!) and four different yogurts. And I don’t mean four containers, I mean mass quantities of four different kinds of yogurt. If you are doing the math, that comes out to a different variety of yogurt for every member of my household.

The funny thing is that we’re not all big yogurt eaters.

Paige loves it, and could polish off several in a day, if we let her (which we don’t, because we are trying to teach her moderation). Shawn really, really likes Greek yogurt for breakfast, so he’s definitely in the goes-through-it-quick club too.

But Will? He’s more like me. He likes it well enough and enjoys it now and then, but he’s not a huge fan. Still, it makes a great snack for school, so I try to pack him a yogurt several times a week – and I know that if I do, he’ll definitely eat it. Paige insisted on getting him his own yogurt because “it’s his faberit!” (Faberit=favorite).

For me, yogurt is something that I eat, and like well enough. But if I want to enjoy it, it needs to be more than a silky smooth spoonful. It needs to have dimension.

That’s where a sprinkle of some good granola comes in. It gives it that crunch that I crave without totally abandoning the healthy benefits of yogurt. Heck, adding a sprinkling of granola adds something to it too — a little protein from the nuts, a little whole grain.

But premade granolas? They are pricey. Making it at home? Much more cost effective. Seriously.

This recipe is a little sweet and definitely crispy, making it perfect for topping yogurt, ice cream or whatever you want. And I especially love the hint of cinnamon — one of my favorite spices.

It’s simple to make. You start by piling all the oats, nuts and coconut on a baking sheet.

Then you drizzle it with a mixture of honey, oil and cinnamon. Toss it together and then bake.

Once it’s all golden and toasted, you take it out of the oven and add the cranberries. Mix it up, let it cool and then store it an airtight container. it’ll be good for up to a month.

Are you a yogurt fan? What’s your favorite kind or type?

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Today’s post was planned, started and scheduled in my planner. The photographs were taken and edited, just awaiting uploading. But then something happened. This morning, Paige pulled out a vintage Barbie cookbook I picked up at a book sale last year. She carried it around the house. And after reading a thick stack of Dr. Seuss books and doing two three puzzles, she asked to make something out of the cookbook.

Before I could even say yes, she was skipping to the kitchen with the cookbook tucked under one arm and her stool dangling from the other. How could I deny her? So off to the kitchen we went to make something. I leafed through the book until I found a simple, but delicious sounding recipe for grilled cheese. Paige was all for it.

The sandwich was fabulous – sharp cheddar, salty bacon … that perfect combination of crunch and melted cheese. And yes, it came from a Barbie cookbook.

What’s your favorite cheese to have in a grilled cheese sandwich?
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Once upon a time, what feels like a bazillion years ago, I interviewed for a job at Taunton Press, publishers of Fine Cooking. But the job wasn’t for that fabulous magazine, it was for another of their great enthusiast titles – Fine Woodworking.

I’ll pause for a second while those that know me personally snicker a bit. It’s okay. I totally understand.

Now, don’t get me wrong. Fine Woodworking is a wonderful magazine for woodworking enthusiasts. But I am not one of them. I walked into the interview knowing very little about woodworking. Fortunately, I was plenty qualified for the position, which was working in editorial/web development — so they could look past the fact that “dove-tailed corners” was about the only woodworking phrase I could think of.

In the end, it came down to me and one other applicant and I didn’t get the job. That was okay too. I ended up working at an awesome children’s publisher instead. Ironically, I was later interviewed for a grad school project on blogging by the woman who beat me out for the job.

Anyway, I digress. While interviewing for Fine Woodworking, I fell head over heels in love with Fine Cooking. I had seen the magazine before and enjoyed it, but that was when I really embraced the title and its amazing recipes. From homemade tortillas to fabulous cookies, they’ve never disappointed me. (And I harbor a not-so-secret dream of working there some day. Just sayin’.)

So, when I saw the recipe for Tomato Bisque in their Soups & Sandwiches special issue, I knew I would love it. Moreover, I knew it would be perfect for the big Sunday family dinner that I hosted this week. I couldn’t have been more right … everyone adored the soup, and the leftovers made a fabulous lunch yesterday. And when I was digging up the links for this post, I discovered that Abby Dodge, who actually founded the Fine Cooking test kitchen, wrote the recipe. I’ve admired her work for a long time, as someone to look up to in the food writing and recipe development field.

The Tomato Bisque starts with caramelized onions — the original recipe calls for a small white onion, but I used a large Vidalia one, since I turned the soup for two into soup for 12 and wanted the inherent sweetness of the Vidalia. Paige, of course, was quick to mosey up with her little pink stool to watch the progress as I made the soup.

Anyway, once the onions are caramelized, you add the thyme and garlic and stir it for just about a minute. Then the remainder of the ingredients, except for the cream are added. It boils, reduces and then you finally mix in the cream and serve.

All in all, it was really easy to make too. The recipe instructs to make cheese toasts with it. But I decided to serve this with my Gorgonzola Bison Sliders, and that was an awesome combination.

Try this Tomato Bisque. It’s amazing.

What’s your favorite cooking magazine?
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Breathe in. Breathe out. That’s something I have been saying a lot lately. It’s a cleansing breath, a reminder to be still for a minute and relax and so much more. And with a challenge that’s all about changing your life, it’s important to remember to do that.

It’s Eat. Live. Be. For a Better 2011 day again, and this week’s topic is Go-To Snacks.

There couldn’t be a more perfect topic for me. I am a snacker. Though I have improved (by that I mean having fewer, better snacks), I still love a good snack. But the snacks I crave — cookies, chips and the like — really aren’t good for me, so I’ve been avoiding them and trading them for better snacks. Once that deliver those elements of sweet, crunch or salt that I love, without the empty calories.

As a result, I have largely overhauled our snack cabinets, choosing really smart snacks to keep handy instead of the ones that taste good but aren’t that nutritious. Read the rest of this entry…

Happy Saturday! I am working on a project involving family meals and would love to hear from all my parent readers. Would you mind taking my survey?

When my husband and I moved to our town, I didn’t realize what a small town we were moving to. I mean, in theory, I knew. The main street is a small drag with a few well-frequented businesses. The school district has neighborhood schools, which all seem a stone’s throw away from where the kids live. And everyone told me that it was a really small town mentality. But it wasn’t until I started working at home, frequenting our local businesses and the kids started school that it sunk in. This is small town life.

This morning I was working in a coffee shop in town, a welcome change of scenery allowing me to really focus on the edit/rewrite assignment I was working on. While there, I ran into a local parish priest, my daughter’s teacher and I saw several other women whom I recognize from various school and town activities. And it was a slow day there.

That’s how it is in a small town. Forget six degrees of separation — it’s more like one degree of separation here.

Living in a small town has taken me way beyond my comfort zone. Back when I lived in New York, which was eons ago now, it was easy to just blend in and be one of the masses, getting from point A to point B quietly, alone. Here, a visit to the farmers’ market is punctuated by hellos. It’s not a bad thing. Just different.

A part of me loves that wherever you go, if you welcome the small town thing, there is someone you know, someone to talk to. But, of course, the private part of me still wishes for anonymity. There has to be a balance of the two.

Balance is something important to cooking as well. You can’t have too many soft textures together, because it will just feel like mush in your mouth. Likewise, too much crunch is too much. You need a little softness, a little crunch, a little sweetness and a little salt. Sometimes, a little heat too. It all keeps a dish interesting.

This Brussels sprouts recipe walks that line between tastes and textures. It’s delicious with the creamy melted blue cheese and salty bits of bacon. But if you want to take it up a notch, sprinkle a little hot sauce in too.

Either way, it’s delicious.

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The kids and I love shrimp, but I think I’ve told you that before. I also think I’ve already told you about how they cheer when they see that I am making a shrimp dish. Clearly, we like ‘em. And lately, we’ve been eating a lot of shrimp. I buy frozen raw shrimp and defrost it under running cold water (takes about 10 minutes) and then peel. I usually remove the tails, if the kids will be eating with me, since it’s easier for them not to have them on. But you can totally enjoy them with the tails on too.

This particular shrimp dish cooks fast on the stovetop with a bit of olive oil, garlic and parsley. It’s infused with flavor and finished off with just a bit of salt. The shrimp are flavorful, but not overwhelming — perfect for eating with crusty bread and a crisp green salad. I highly suggest that you use the bread to sop up some of the juices from these. It’s that good. Read the rest of this entry…

The sun is shining. I know, it doesn’t sound like much, but the first six or so weeks of winter here were marked with gray skies and ever-impending snow. The harsh weather was unlike anything I’d experienced before, and for the first time, I understood the winter blues.

I was frantic — trying to harness what little natural light we were getting for my photography. Trying to hold everything together when deadlines loomed and the kids were home on yet another snow day. Trying to keep our driveway clear, so that a much-needed oil drop could be made. Trying to keep the kids happy and occupied when I was going in 50 directions myself. It was hard.

But the sun, today and over the past week or so, has melted away that frustration (along with a lot of the ice and some of the still-way-too-deep snow). I am starting to feel human again. Thank goodness.

Now, I am counting down to spring. Yesterday, we got a little preview. It was so warm here that I shed my coat and went without it all day (can you say bliss?). Today it’s cold again. But yesterday’s little respite from the cold and chill of winter, left me thinking all day about the glorious months of farmers’ markets and fresh veggies and sun-filled beach days. We’re getting there (a few weeks ago, it felt like we never would).

Until spring comes, I am making the most of what my local grocery store carries for veggies at this time of year. And when I saw big heads of snowy-white cauliflower recently, I had to buy some.

You probably hear me say this a lot about many different veggies, but I love cauliflower — especially roasted. The kids? They can be a bit of a harder sell. But when I tossed the florets from this head with garlic, parsley and oil, they were all over it, and asking for more. I think that’s a good indication of how tasty it was.

Roasting cauliflower brings out a wonderful, subtle sweetness. It’s amazing. Though I have no problem with boiled cauliflower (one of the few veggies I can say that about), roasting it is just so, so better. Have you tried it? You should.

And given the kids’ reactions, I guess I am not the only cauliflower fan here anymore.
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