Everyone loves a parfait. Isn’t that what Donkey says in the Shrek movie? And just think, you can use the movie tie in to actually get your kids to eat the healthy yogurt parfait.

But what exactly is a parfait?

Behold, the layered goodness that is the parfait. Read the rest of this entry »

Have you ever noticed how quiche is always a staple at brunch? All it really is is scrambled eggs baked in a pie crust. And yet it seems so much more fancy schmancy, like you went through a lot of trouble for your guests.

But why does quiche have to be a breakfasty food? We are going to be eating ours tonight for dinner with a large green salad and a crusty baguette. I will also be at the baseball field (I KNOW, what a surprise! because I haven’t been there every other night this week!) until 7:00pm and this is perfect for staggered meal times. And will require nothing of me to get it on the table. Everything will be done in advance.

I used to love quiche. Back before I found out I was allergic to everything that is not cardboard. So technically I probably still do love quiche, I just love living more. Read the rest of this entry »

Aren’t these so yummy looking?

I call these cream cheese and jelly turnovers for the lazy among us who are feeling wracked with guilt and trying to buy their children’s love via their stomachs. But that seems a little long for the name of the recipe so I will just call them cream cheese and jelly turnovers for short.

This is actually the first time that I am away from my kids for something that is solely work related, with no fun factor built in. No catching up with friends. No drunk karaoke. No sightseeing. No subtext of I deserve a break from my children.

I was also just away last week and when I returned home Sunday evening my daughter gave me a drawing she made. It was of her crying because I was away. It would have been less painful had she reached into my chest and torn my heart out.

So when my kids requested this yesterday morning as I was tossing random crap into my suitcase packing, I couldn’t refuse.

This recipe is fun for kids to do themselves. It uses premade pie crust (I know. But let’s just all get over it.) You certainly can make your own pie crust if you are so inclined, but then it becomes a much more involved recipe that might not be accessible to the 6, 7, 8 year old set. It also would take much longer. The entire recipe from taking the ingredients out of the refrigerator to putting it on a plate to eat is under 30 minutes.

It is a nice addition to brunch or even just as an afternoon snack. Read the rest of this entry »

I have one son who is not a big fan of sweets. I know, I don’t understand where he came from either. He likes the idea of sweets, but more often than not he will pass them by.

Every year for his birthday he requests carrot cake. The past few years he has baked it himself. Everyone loves this cake.

This is his recipe.

Read the rest of this entry »

I have a pet peeve.

Really, Chris? Just one?

Okay, I have more than one pet peeve. I have a whole trunk of them, but the big one is my disdain for junk food pretending to be “real” food.

The granola bars, breakfast bars, “fruit” snacks, “made from 100% fruit” juices, go-gurt, to name a few. Those tubes of yogurt make me want to gouge my eyeballs out. No really. Those and the single serving sized soups that you drink out of the can. Personally I think if you can not find time to use a spoon that you don’t deserve to eat. No soup for you!

I have no problems with eating or serving my children the occasional donut, candy, ice cream, or even Oreo. But the difference is I harbor no illusions that it is anyway good for us.

I read a great article by Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, in the New York Times recently where he wrote:

Once, food was all you could eat, but today there are lots of other edible foodlike substances in the supermarket. These novel products of food science often come in packages festooned with health claims, which brings me to a related rule of thumb: if you’re concerned about your health, you should probably avoid food products that make health claims. Why? Because a health claim on a food product is a good indication that it’s not really food, and food is what you want to eat.

But we are all busy. How do you fit the time in to make healthy foods a priority?

Last year I had undiagnosed food allergies and episodes of anaphylaxis that forced me to be a more vigilant label reader and in the process learn how to cook. If you had told me a year ago that I would enjoy cooking, I would have laughed at you. But now I do enjoy it.

Along the way I have discovered that making good foods also nourishes your soul. And that children already know this. They love pouring and mixing. They delight in handling fresh produce. It all seems magical to them that seemingly random ingredients come together to form food. Getting over the feeling that it is an awful chore that must be suffered through is difficult.

And so I am choosing to view the past year as a gift. Although now that I have learned my lessons I am so ready to pass the gift one. Any takers? No? I’ll throw in a couple of Epi-pens? No takers, huh?

Breakfast is always one of those meals that gets the short end of the stick. Lots of sugars and prepackaged, processed foods. Most of us don’t have the time to make healthy home cooked food in the mornings. Read the rest of this entry »

Do you hear the heavenly angels singing? Read the rest of this entry »