Filed under: Thinking Out Loud
At about 3:30 AM on Friday morning, February 26 we lost our electrical service during a heavy, long-lasting snow storm. And we have been without power — or heat — since then, until 4:30 PM yesterday. That’s four days of no utilities in the middle of winter. We spent Friday night in the house, sleeping around our fireplace, but then had to jump ship and go to J.’s parents. It was just too cold. I’m back now, in my warm house with every convenience around me, and a very big smile on my face. Look for a meal plan posting later today.
March 2, 2010
The other day A. was feeling a little under the weather, so I let him choose dinner and he asked for noodle soup — my homemade chicken soup, strained until clear, with thin egg noodles cooked in the broth. Luckily I had one more container in the freezer, and he (and G.) happily slurped up those noodles as if he knew they’d make him feel better.
That virus is still lingering, so he stayed home from school today in that weird in-between where you’re not quite well enough to go to school, but you certainly don’t feel sick enough to stay in bed (or even nap, dammit). He had plenty of energy to act like a loon with his brother, scarf down three full meals, and still have room for ice cream.
I started a fresh pot of chicken soup at noon today, and let it simmer all afternoon so that he could have noodle soup for dinner again (his request). And now I’m restocked. I keep these containers in the fridge overnight, skim off the fat, and then freeze them. Hopefully I won’t need another noodle soup dinner as medicine anytime soon.
February 2, 2010
On Friday, I went in to G.’s school to help cook for that night’s school-wide family dinner. I actually didn’t do much cooking, just prep work — skimming the fat off the top of four vats of chicken soup, slicing eggplant, lining enormous baking pans with foil, and so on. It’s fun being in that huge commercial kitchen — everything is stainless steel and you never seem to run out of room.
In addition to the 160 pieces of barbecue-sauced chicken you see above, there were also plenty of chicken nuggets, pigs in blankets, and this:
Yes, that’s 8 lbs. of tater tots, times two. We also made 12 eggplants-worth of chatzilim, an Israeli eggplant salad:
The school’s director uses one medium onion per large eggplant. Slice and fry the eggplants and onions until soft and golden, then drain well. Mix with tomato paste, salt, and pepper, then throw everything back on the stove to cook down for another 30 minutes or so. It is delicious! Here are the eggplant frying, along with three of the five huge ovens in this kitchen:
With all that oven space we were able to make enough rosemary-roasted potatoes for the group:
And we baked twice this amount of challah, the dough of which had been mixed and then shaped by the kids and teachers:
Just like with my morning of latke-cooking last month, it is no surprise I smelled like oil for the rest of the day. Thankfully there was another mom there who was able to chop all the onions without a problem, because I’d forgotten to bring my goggles.
January 23, 2010
Since this past September, I usually make a travel mug of coffee in the house before I leave for the morning, rather than stopping at Starbucks. (I never thought I’d get to the point where I felt stopping at Starbucks was inconvenient, but that’s how my schedule has played out recently.) I used to use a simplehuman pod coffee maker, but I could never get a strong enough cup of coffee out of it. I occasionally use our 12-cup Krups automatic drip brewer. But most often I boil water in a kettle, and then use a Melitta filter cone.
After I’d already boiled the water this morning, I realized my filter cone was in the dishwasher, and the dishwasher was in the middle of a cycle. So I jerry-rigged the set-up above, using a chinois, a bottle of olive oil to balance its handle, a filter, and my travel mug:
Not bad for something so ridiculous-looking! I was feeling pretty pleased with myself, and my mug was about half-way full before… (more…)
January 5, 2010
I spent some time over the past two weeks looking at Chick in the Kitchen site statistics for 2009, and thinking about ways I’d like this blog to grow in 2010. It was particularly interesting to me to see that my top five posts (by the amount of direct traffic they received) in 2009 were actually written in 2008!
They were:
1. Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins
2. Slow Cooker Italian-Style Turkey Meatballs
3. Unstuffed Cabbage with Ground Turkey
4. Spinach & Cheese Muffins
5. Slow Cooker Ratatouille
I feel like those were really good dishes that, with the exception of the savory muffins, I come back to again and again. But it was still surprising to me that something more recent didn’t make the cut.
If you take the 2008 posts out of contention, the top five 2009 Chick in the Kitchen posts actually written in 2009 were:
1. Have You Tried Truvia?
2. Dimer Dalna (Egg Curry)
3. Chicken and Figs
4. Slow Cooker Coq Au Vin, First Try
5. Chicken Scarpariello, Take Two
I do love the egg curry and have made it several times. I feel the same way about the Chicken & Figs. See the Coq Au Vin post reminded me that I want to try it again with boneless, skinless chicken thighs. And the Scarpariello, well, it’s still not for me.
The most popular keyword search used to find my site was “chick in the kitchen.” I hope they found exactly what they were looking for here! Second and third place go to “slow cooker ratatouille” and “quinoa pudding.” And while simplyrecipes.com refers the most direct traffic to me, Facebook is (not surprisingly to me!) in the top five.
Most of all, my site statistics remind me that although I’m looking at anonymous numbers, all those digits represent real people worldwide who, even if just for a moment, came to read something I wrote. The thrill of that can’t be measured.
January 3, 2010
I have a dealer up North… my friend from Canada who likes to send me and the boys boxes of treats every now and then. The reason behind this package was that Jodi wanted me to taste CheeCha Puffs. These airy chips are gluten-free, and are basically hot-air puffed potato flour and starch. Mine are the Sea Salt & Pepper variety, and they’re really tasty. Plus, they’re not bad nutritionally: 2 cups is less than 100 calories, and no fat. Unfortunately, you can only order them online in the U.S. at this point, and that’s where my personal Canadian supplier stepped in!
In addition to the CheeCha Puffs, we received enough chocolate to last us for months: Kinder Surprise (oh, G. is heaven and asks for them all day long), Smarties (two kinds), Cadbury Mini Eggs, Cadbury Popping Mini Eggs, mini Kinder Chocolate bars, some additional Cadbury chocolate bars and chocolate-covered sunflower seeds.
Although I’m not a chocolate fiend (the Puffs are more my style), I can’t help but want to eat it if it’s around! Thankfully I am very good at the whole out of sight, out of mind thing when it comes to chocolate. It’s tucked away in my pantry and will be doled out to the kids in reasonable amounts. G. has tried to argue that one Kinder Surprise for breakfast is reasonable, but I’m not buying it. At least not until vacation…
December 17, 2009
I was prepared to make Baked Huevos Rancheros tonight, but ditched at the last minute. (See all my ingredients on the counter? I was going to make guacamole too, which J. wound up doing when he got home.)
But, there’s no way the kids would have eaten it — probably not even the rice I was going to make on the side (rice is very hit or miss for my boys, mostly miss). Renee and I wound up being the only adults that would be eating, and it’s a big recipe: a dozen eggs, and a pound of cheese! After a rough afternoon with assorted tantrums, I didn’t have it in me to deal with the outcry from boys who want to eat yogurt for every meal. We ordered pizza instead, and dinner was peaceful. But now I’ve got to fit this meal in some other time.
October 22, 2009
I am always interested in processed foods that use whole, recognizable ingredients and avoid artificial flavoring. This new line of refrigerated cookie dough from Pillsbury promises “simple, wholesome ingredients you and your family know and love.” I was surprised to see wheat flour is the first ingredient! There’s no trans fat, and no high fructose corn syrup. The package makes 12 cookies, and it was on sale at my grocery store for $2.50 — I had a coupon that brought it to $1.50 per package.
Unfortunately, the cookies weren’t particularly tasty. I thought they had a prominent artificial butter flavor, even though they are all-natural. And the chocolate chips had none of the silky, gooey goodness that I want in a warm cookie. They baked up flat and looked like something that came from a factory, not my own oven.
For me, these are a skip. I make my own break-and-bake cookies by freezing homemade cookie dough in measured balls — just plop them on a cookie sheet straight from the freezer and bake. I suppose if you made cookies from store-bought refrigerated dough often, it would be nice to rely on a product that was made from pronounceable ingredients. But for the rare times I buy break-and-bake cookies, I won’t worry too much about them being healthier, too.
Edited 10/21 to add: As I look around online I see that lots of food bloggers received a package from Pillsbury in exchange for a review of these cookies. I didn’t! (I would let you know if I had.) I just stumbled upon the coupon and felt like trying them.
October 20, 2009
Cravings Eats & Treats, at 549 North State Rd. in Briarcliff Manor, NY, was just opened by my friend Erica a couple of weeks ago, and already G. is hooked on the frozen yogurt. In fact, I’m sure it’s the yogurt that had everyone buzzing about Cravings before it even opened. Aside from baked goods, sandwiches, salads, and soups, they also offer up to 6 flavors of Frogurt at a time, including the elusive slightly-sour, slightly-sweet “plain” — the same kind Bloomingdale’s serves. A small yogurt, which is more than just a kid-sized portion, starts at $3, with a long list of toppings (melba sauce, M&Ms, dried cranberries, etc.) for 50 cents each or fresh fruit for a dollar.
I’m most interested in going back for the Hale and Hearty Soup — Cravings offers three kinds a day. The Sweet Corn Chowder (gluten free, surprisingly) smelled delicious, and I like that the soups are all-natural, with ingredients I’d use in my own kitchen. A 12 oz. portion starts at $3.95, going up to $9.50 for a quart.
There were a number of guys buying salads to go the last time I was in the store. You build your own, starting with a choice of iceberg, romaine, spinach or mixed greens. Then top it with everything from hearts of palm (a favorite of mine) to mushrooms to roasted red peppers. A small salad, which includes 2 toppings plus dressing, starts at $6.95. You can add some protein on top if you’d like: roasted turkey, chicken, and tuna are available. Unique sandwiches, like a Greek salad in a pita, and paninis round out the light meal offerings.
Don’t forget the bakery — I can give you a rundown though I haven’t sampled any of it yet. Cravings has muffins, cookies, brownies, cupcakes, scones, and more. Plus, they do special orders and seasonal items — they had honey cake for Rosh Hashanah, for example.
I like the vibe of this place, shabby chic but with crisp, clean edges. You’re instantly comfortable when you step inside:
That’s my little guy eating Frogurt at the back of the store (vanilla with rainbow sprinkles). You can see that in addition to all their food offerings, Cravings is something of a gift shop as well. What caught my eye were a range of cute baking kits from Sassafras. I’d never seen them before and thought they’d make an original birthday gift.
Cravings is really a take away cafe, although there are a couple of benches with small tables. They’re right across the street from Terra Rustica, and on the way to Club Fit — I expect they’ll get plenty of business from people going to and from the gym. You can reach Cravings Eats & Treats at 914-944-4622.
September 21, 2009
It’s Sunday night, and my thoughts automatically turn to meal planning for the week. I sat down with my calendar and looked over the next few weeks, and made an executive decision to put my formal meal planning on hiatus until we get back into a more regular schedule in September. With our scheduled summer activities over and some travel on the horizon, I’m going to play dinner by ear.
I’ll still be cooking and posting, but in the meantime be sure to check out two of my new favorite blogs:
Savory But Sweet, written by a blogger I’ve known for years and years through many different blogs of both hers and mine. Cristen, a self-described cheese addict, writes about eating out and cooking in Queens and the surrounding area, always with good humor.
Follow My Bliss is Jen’s blog, and her site description only partly sums it up: “I eat something sweet every day and I write about it!” Jen is an open, engaging writer whose “bliss” is to one day open her own bakery. She is well on her way, and I love that she is letting her readers in on the journey.
August 16, 2009
Previous page
I'm Dara, the Chick in the Kitchen. Living in the suburbs of Manhattan with my two boys, ages 4 and 6, and husband. Trying to feed my family something more diverse than a different shape of pasta each night. Read more 