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I had some gorgeous olives and thought what a wonderful tapenade they’d make. My husband told me that he usually only uses Kalamata olives because they’re so easy to pit and after trying to pit the nicoise and green olives, … Continue reading
The other day I was reading my friend’s fabulous baking blog which showcases her amazing gift with such beautifully photographed details. She said she started it because my blog had inspired her. She wrote about making rhubarb ginger jam which in turn inspired me to go to the fridge and finally use that rhubarb I had bought at a local farm. I made a strawberry rhubarb compote because I didn’t have enough of either to make a pie. It is so easy to make and takes as much time to cook as it does to chop. I don’t have any jars for jam so didn’t even consider it.
Strawberry Rhubarb Compote
Just chop one large stalk of rhubarb into 1/2 inch pieces and heat over med-high heat with water and sugar for several minutes, add strawberries (about 1/2 inch pieces) and lemon juice. Stirring constantly simmer for couple of minutes until soft. You want the strawberries to retain their color. Take off heat and cool. Perfect stirred into yogurt or over vanilla ice cream. My eldest son would eat a whole bowl of just it alone, if allowed.
Amanda had made strawberry scones to serve with her rhubarb-ginger jam. It brought back memories of scones. Like my first trip to Wanaka, New Zealand when I was 16. I had asked, looking up at a menu in the maze snack shop, “What’s a scone?” (I pronounced like you would “cone” in a thick American accent). My friends thought it was hysterical because there they pronounce it “scon” (as in “gone”). Well, however you say it, I have enjoyed scones ever since, but I’ve never made myself. Eating some in Devonshire with real clotted cream and fresh jam is another stand-out memory.
Anyway, Amanda is such a fabulous baker, she even sells her delicious and beautifully decorated cakes and cookies now, and I was thinking what a treat it would be to eat her scone with her jam. I dished out my strawberry-rhubarb compote, a poor substitute, but delicious anyway. I had just put some on vanilla yogurt when the doorbell rang, which I answered it, bowl in hand. It was Amanda with a jar of her jam! What a great surprise and nice treat! And without as much as a “hello”, I just handed her the yogurt/compote for her to eat.
I wanted to taste the jam in similar manner as she wrote about. So, the following day, I used her scone recipe, but made some with strawberries and some with blueberries. Since the strawberries were fresh, those scones tasted best. My scones didn’t look quite as scrumptious as hers, probably because I don’t have anything near the baking talent that she does, but they were yummy. My children loved them! Funny how full circle it had come. We’d inspired each other to do something we may have previously felt was daunting, but not that difficult once we began.
© 2010 mykidsreallyeatthis.com
Tonight I came down to the kitchen, having fallen asleep reading to my sons hours before, to the dishes and pans piled up from tonight’s dinner. Ugh. Last thing I felt like doing was dishes. The dishwasher was full of clean things I put on this afternoon and the pots and pans still needed to be washed. The funny thing about my love of cooking is that I am anything but a domestic goddess; I hate cleaning the house and doing laundry. I am constantly battling piles of papers that I need to weed through. But that never stops me from cooking, especially for others. I remember at university I’d rather cook a spectacular Indian/Japanese meal for my 7 flat mates (it was really 5 but we had one live-in girlfriend and an exchange student staying with us for several months), than go to my lectures. Messed up priorities.
I mean, I love in the summer that we often grill, just so that clean up is easier. Or in the winter a crock pot meal is perfect for the ease of cleaning and also that the prep time is not during the kids’ witching hour. Marinating a food for grilling later can also cut your stress when you’ve planned that day’s dinner beforehand. Even if we are pressed for time, I usually make sure my kids have healthy meals. I will take short cuts but won’t skimp on vegetables.
Today, I was reading a Parent & Child magazine my son brought home from school and saw a recipe for chicken satay. I love satay, and though I haven’t made it before, thought my kids would love it too. I had time this morning so I made the recipe. But I thought about the satay that was made in a restaurant I worked at during senior year of high school and thought they made it without the peanut butter in the marinade, so I adapted it in another marinade as well.
Annabel Karmel’s Satay Marinade:
My version had above without the peanut butter and I added a Tbsp of OJ. I pretty sure the restaurant I worked at used pineapple juice but I didn’t have any.
Annabel Karmel’s Peanut sauce
I cut the chicken breasts into strips and marinated them in two different containers in the
fridge for 8-9 hours.
So, this evening, after I started the grill, I made my vegetables and grains. I used the Trader Joe’s Harvest Grains. It’s a mixture of Israeli Couscous, orzo, baby garbanzo beans and red quinoa. It takes 10 minutes to cook, very easy. My eldest loves it so much, we always make enough for leftovers so he can take it to school for a snack.
We had baby spinach from our CSA and broccoli. Those are probably our go-to vegetables. All three of my kids love them and I can store it more than a couple of days if need be. If you’ve read my other posts, I did my usual preparation— steam, shock, reheat with little butter, sea salt and pepper. Tonight I added a little garlic powder to the spinach.
My kids loved the satay but didn’t care too much for the peanut sauce because they supposedly don’t like coconut at the moment. News to me. But they cleaned their plates of all their vegetables and most of the grains. 
Now, I have dishes to do. I washed up the pots and pans, rinsed the food off the plates and cutlery, and will unload/reload in the morning. Now it’s time for bed. Priorities.
© 2010 mykidsreallyeatthis.com
Thank you! I love food, love my kids and love writing. I just wish I could get my laundry done! Something’s got to give!
Dry Sea Scallops (Day Boat Scallops) are large, sweet flavorful scallops that have no water (or other liquids) injected into them. You can tell when you cook them because they won’t release any water. My family loves the sweetness of the scallops when they’re seared, which also retains the soft juiciness.
Blanch or steam your vegetables first. Prepare rice, grains or potatoes. When they’re done or 5 minutes away from finished you can cook the scallops.
Heat pan then add one Tbsp of grapeseed oil (doesn’t impart contradicting flavors and has a high burning point -won’t smoke and turn brown at higher temps) until hot. Put the scallops (can season with salt and pepper if you wish but be careful if using salty sauce) in the pan starting with largest ones first (lay out on plate first to see the sizes). Flip over once nice and brown (like above). Once second side is browned and they look whiter, less translucent, they should be ready to serve. It only takes a few minutes. You can always cut into one to check for doneness if you’re unsure. You don’t want to overcook as they’ll get tough and rubbery. 
We served ours with a Ponzu (citrus soy) sauce my husband made (but you can find a decent bottled one from Trader Joe’s). Usually made with yuzu juice, which is hard to find, you can substitute oj, lemon and lime juices with the tamari soy sauce, bonito flakes and rice wine vinegar. Careful though as a little goes a long way! If you’d like the measurements just ask me.
We also served rice, avocado salsa, spinach, cucumber salad and corn— in a method many friends have adopted. It’s kind of like lazy lobster but with corn. Boil the corn until done then shock in cold water. Cut the corn kernels off the cob (just don’t go too far into the cob center or you’ll get the harder parts that hold the kernels onto the cob) and put in a pan with a pat or two of butter, sea salt and pepper. Everyone loves the taste and kids who are loosing their front teeth can still eat one of their favorite vegetables! 
If there are any recipes or methods you’d like to know, just ask me!
© 2010 mykidsreallyeatthis.com
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Roasting Fresh Beets. Use foil to keep the moisture in, roast in skins for about an hour, peel afterwards. Don’t need any salt or pepper, just slice if need be and pop them in! My son was so excited when I told … Continue reading
a post by “sailingallegro”
One of the best ways to get children to try new foods is peer pressure. My boys have often ventured out of their food comfort zones based on their friends’ diets. Likewise, visiting friends will test out some celery sticks (or whatever) when my boys say, “These are really great!”
My response:
We’ve tried that with the vistors before and it once ended with a boy throwing up the food on the table. I felt awful and that I had traumatized him. So, I try not to get my kids to put too much pressure, just persuasive suggestions. My eldest is always telling his friends, “Try it, it’s great!” but we’ve found it has mixed results.
Last week I mentioned my desire to make bread for the kids (and me, love my carbs!) but didn’t have the time to make the no knead recipe I’d seen by Mark Bittman in the NY Times. It comes from the Sullivan St Bakery and found on their site. Since I had planned it out this time around I could make it.
I am not a huge baker and like to cook because I can improvise; in baking it’s very important to follow directions. I guess I just have a hard time doing that, even here. So, I decided to use 1/3 Spelt flour and 2/3 unbleached wheat flour. I also looked up some yeast starter recipes too becuase I love a good sour dough. I didn’t have the time to let the yeast ferment but I started it ahead of the rest of the mixing. I took 1/3 of the flour mixture, the yeast, one cup of water and a teaspoon of organic cane sugar. I let it sit in a warm place in a glass container for a couple of hours. Then I mixed the rest of the flour, salt and water in with my starter. For the first 8 or so hours the day was warm and I let the dough rise in the calphalon dutch as directed, but when I woke up the next day to turn/pull it I noticed how the sudden temperature drop affected the rising, it had sunk a little.
This is the pre-oven state. It never regained that really puffy state because it wasn’t as warm, but when I got it out of the oven, saw the golden top, cut it, and smelled the waft of fresh yeasty bread, I was so thrilled. The taste totally lived up to the sight and smell. And my kids loved it! So did everyone lucky enough to have a taste—a friend I brought a taste to, my husband and I. 
If you see from the recipe, it does not take a lot of hands-on time. Plus you can give your kids the most wholesome hard-crusted, soft-centered bread without the unnecessary vitamins (if they eat well, you don’t need fortified bread, cereal, oj, etc, etc.) and other ingredients.
© 2010 mykidsreallyeatthis.com
I put Penzy’s Mural of Flavor on my drumsticks too. The kids love the ability to pick them up with their fingers and not have me say, “Use your fork please.”