Play Food

I meant to make a bunch of food to go with L's kitchen this past Christmas, but it just didn't happen. Sometimes, especially when things are busy, the idea of learning another new thing is just one thing too many. Plus, I know there are a lot of talented people already devoting all their creativity to play food. So if you can't make it yourself, letting someone else do it is the next best thing.

I got this play food from OneNOnly on etsy, and really it's absolutely beautiful. I bought it for L's birthday, which is still a couple months away. Mine is still packed away, so these photos are from her product listings. In person, they are even more lovely - just smaller than life size and carefully hand stitched.

There are lots of things to choose from on Etsy, but I wanted to get items that I thought L would be able to combine together in several different ways. The bow tie pasta will be perfect for her soup pot, the sandwich stuff can be combined to make a dozen different kinds of sandwiches, plus some fun stuff on it's own. I'll be setting aside a couple of bananas from the pancake set for J's birthday with lofty dreams of sharing in our future

L's Kitchen

I labeled this under "stuff I made" only because I don't have a category for stuff John made. Perhaps I should.


We talked this out together, but John built it for L for Christmas with very little help from me. My contribution was the little curtain, potholders and apron.


He used an old picture frame for the oven window, and made little shelves to hide all the kitchen toys.


The oven rack slides in and out. He made it from dowel rods.


I forget where we got the idea of using a mixing bowl for the sink, but I think we saw it done several places. We have a bunch of milk glass knobs we're saving for our house that worked nicely here.


John, with his affinity for gadget making, made little fire bits that come up on the stove when you turn the knobs - using dowel rods, paint sticks and hinges. L was very impressed - and so was I.


I found an old set of kids tupperware at a rummage sale and was giddy with excitement. I like to arrange the dishes and food neatly on the shelf, but L likes to throw it all in the sink. I get to play with it my way during nap time.

We have some plastic dollar store food, but really L likes to make rock and money soup. I've ordered some lovely play food for her that I'll share soon...

Springing Forward

I just realized I've hardly posted about anything but food for months. I guess I've been on an extra long break. Last year, I completed several exciting goals, and I think I just wanted to step back and enjoy that for awhile without a lot of new pressures.



With Spring approaching, we've been enjoying playing outdoors, we celebrated our 5th anniversary, and I've begun a new fun project. So, I wanted to assure you I have a new pattern coming soon. Here's a little sneak peak. I'm taking my time, so no promises on when it will be ready.


Happy {almost} Spring!

Sweet Potato Pancakes

Another attempt at meals all three of us can eat during the day. I got this one from Wholesome Baby Food. There website is a great resource for baby food recipes, as well as good information about when to introduce what foods. Most of the information is available free on their website, but you can also buy a downloadable cookbook, which I think is a much easier way to browse and save the information.

This one was exciting for us, because J has just started eating wheat, which is making our lives much easier. L and I had ours with cinnamon and sugar on top, and we just ate them with our fingers. Awesome. The recipe is meant for baby, so if you wanted to make it a family meal, you'd need to double or triple it. As is, it made about 10 cookie sized pancakes.

You'll find the recipe on this page if you scroll down a bit. We haven't introduced eggs or dairy yet, so I used substitutions for those. Their book also has lots of information on varying recipes based on your child's needs, with a long list of egg substitutes for different needs, as well as chapters on other common food intolerances.

Garlic Bread

John likes this Garlic Bread Sprinkle he buys at the store, but I like to make my own. So, okay, I cheated a bit, and read the ingredients of his little bottle before I mixed up mine. His had corn syrup and vegetable oil solids that I was happy to exclude.

Here's my version:
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp parsley
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp turmeric
Add ingredients to small bowl and stir.

Don't you just love learning new ways to use seasonings? I usually only use turmeric when I make fried rice or Indian food. But this was really great. And it made it a pretty yellow, too, which doesn't hurt.

I fix my garlic bread like my mom taught me:
Place french bread on foil and slice. Brush each slice and the top of the loaf with a little olive oil (or butter), then sprinkle the garlic seasoning on each slice. Wrap it up in the foil and place in oven around 200. Leave it until your dinner is ready and then it's hot and ready to serve.

Soup!

A couple of recent watercolors of girls in the kitchen:

Rosemary Garlic Apples

During the last 48 hours, J has had a peanut butter sandwich, fish sticks, and chocolate chip cookie in her mouth. She's 8 months old.

After, a big sigh of relief that she didn't explode with some kind of deadly allergic reaction, I've taken this as a prompt to be a little more vigilant parent. With one very mobile baby, and a toddler who is very eager to help, I also have decided to try to fix more foods that are safe for both children to eat. I thought I had posted my favorite breakfast before, but can't seem to find it. But basically it's this:

Rosemary Garlic Apples (And Sausage)

Slice apples and saute them in a pan with minced garlic and rosemary (I used dried). When cooked, take them out and cook your sausage as usual (I prefer smoked, but you can use any kind) with a little apple juice. Once the meat is cooked, add your apples back to the pan, and heat through. Then serve hot. Or skip the sausage all together and just serve the apples.

This makes the best savory/sweet breakfast combo, yes, even better than chocolate meat. I made this for L and I recently, and decided to let J try the apples. She has been the most eager eater, and these apples are definitely her favorite. I've taken to fixing the apples alone, as a quick meal for the three of us.


I was recently asked somewhat incredulously, "You make all J baby food, don't you?" And it caught me a little off guard. It's a little odd to me that even though most people "make" most of their own food (by make, I mean prepare, of course), it's so unusual for someone to make baby food. So, let me just clarify. I don't slave away, pureeing lots of little jars of goo. At dinner time, I make sure I include something in our meal that J can eat. And when we sit down at the table, I take some lima beans out of our soup, or rice from our stir fry, or apples or carrots or whatever, and drop it in the little baby food mill, and voila.

This does mean, that she gets seasoned food, which is fine by me. I don't give her anything too spicy or salty, but the girl loves garlic. Of course, we are also big fans of those puffs that dissolve in your mouth - which is so convenient when you go out. I'm not opposed to pre-made baby foods, but I definitely think this simple little food mill is worth more than it's very low price. (Thanks, Tara!)

Lap Quilts

I'm a little late posting these pictures of the lap quilt project. Some friends from church and I made a bunch of quilt blocks, that we assembled into two lap quilts for ladies at our local nursing home. It was really fun for me to see all the different styles of blocks from all of the different women. We had a theme and color motif, so it's always exciting to see how people interpret an idea in many different ways. I think having a set of limitations can sometimes be one of the best creative prompts.

Besides having fun working with the women I knew, I also got to meet two very sweet ladies in town, who I'm looking forward to getting to know better.

Pate Choux

John gave me Mastering the Art of French Cooking for Christmas. I was inspired, as was half of the population, by Julie and Julia to give it a try. At first, I thought the book was a bit intimidating, but I think it's just because there are illustrations instead of photos. It makes it seem very scientific. Once you get going, it's actually really excellent because she tells you everything, so you can't go wrong.

I made the puff shells (pate choux) stuffed with cream of quail as well as these cheese puffs (pate fromage). I love popovers, and these are similar and very satisfying. I made them back in January, and am only getting around to posting it now, so I whatever profound thoughts I had, I've forgotten. How's this: these were really cool, but make sure someone is watching the kids while you're cooking!

I am eager to try them again filled with ice cream - perhaps that will be a fun summer treat!

Romanian Cheese and Ethiopian Coffee

The first year we were married I asked John what was the best thing he'd ever eaten. He told me that when he was in Romania many years ago he had some really wonderful fried goat cheese. Thanks a lot, I thought to myself. But after a little googling and a trip to Ada's, it turned out to be a simple recipe - now our Valentine favorite. The recipe is below.

But what is in my lovely Hazel Atlas mug? African Skies fair trade coffee from Just Love, a company that uses proceeds to help an Ethiopian orphanage and families adopting not just from Ethiopia, but from anywhere in the world. If you buy from this shop, you can support our friends in their Ethiopian adoption.

Romanian Fried Goat Cheese
11 to 12 oz Goat Cheese, chilled
1 tsp garlic
1/4 tsp rosemary
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup flour
1 large egg beaten
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs (I always use the cornflake kind)
1/4 cup olive oil

Our cheese comes in wedges which I sliced into about 8 or 9 thick slices. Mix the garlic, rosemary and salt and pepper. Put this in a bowl, and then put the flour, egg, and bread crumbs each in their own bowl. Dip the cheese in the garlic mixture, then the flour, then the egg, then the bread crumbs, coating evenly with each. Chill in the refrigerator.

Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a skillet on medium high heat. When heated, cook the goat cheese about 2 minutes per side or until a pretty golden color. It's best to eat them hot, but they reheat pretty well, too.