Category Archives: Food and Drink

A peek Into My Kitchen: Stuffed Acorn Squash with Israeli Couscous, Apples and Cranberries

Also posted in A Peek Into My Kitchen, meatless monday . by jessica on February 20, 2012

I love stuffed vegetables and my kids love eating them because they’re so much fun to dissect on your plate. A lot of recipes take a lot of work, a lot of time or both. This one requires neither! It could be served as a side dish, but we eat as a main dish with some roasted vegetables (like cauliflower) on the side.

Stuffed Acorn Squash with Israeli Couscous, Apples and Cranberries

1 acorn squash

1-2 Tbsp olive oil

2 small onions, chopped (about 1/2 cup)

1 small apple, chopped (about 1 cup)

1/2 cup dried cranberries

Babyccino? No No NO

Also posted in Current Affairs, NY, Parenting . by jessica on February 20, 2012

I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that such a thing exists…and that it has a super-annoying cutesy term to go along with it.

It turns out that there are a whole bunch of cool coffee shops in Brooklyn at which the most-hipster-y of hipster parents can order a mini-decaf cappuccino or steamed milk for their little ones…so many, in fact, that the term ‘babyccino‘ was coined and can be used to order such off-the-menu craziness.

Let’s set aside the issue of giving your child actual coffee, which aside from an occasional taste of the milk foam from atop an adult’s drink is a pretty terrible idea. I actually love steamed milk. I love it even more with cinnamon or honey, and I’m sure that my kids would love sipping some in a coffee shop as well, assuming I could get them an ice-cube to go along with it.

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A peek Into My Kitchen: Pink Lemonade Bars (No Dye!)

Also posted in A Peek Into My Kitchen, meatless monday . by jessica on February 7, 2012

Ah, the insanity that is Pinterest.

I am developing a love-hate relationship with this fabulous new time-suck…but, when it comes to finding new food inspiration, the feeling is generally one of love.

When I clicked on the original pin for this recipe, I fully expected the bright pink color to be a result of Jello, cake mix or insanely large amounts of food coloring that would’ve sent me clicking away. Instead, I was amazed to find that freshly pureed strawberries added to the lemon-sugar mixture result in a shade of pink so super girly vibrant that it would Pinkaliscious smile

I actually want to play with this recipe some more, maybe trying a few different types of berries to get different colored bars. And maybe a thicker crust–I’ll keep you posted.

A peek Into My Kitchen: Creamy Carrot Soup (dairy-free, GF)

Also posted in A Peek Into My Kitchen . by jessica on January 30, 2012

The parsnips in this simple to make soup, add creaminess and another layer of flavor to this soup. Even if you’ve never tried parsnips before, don’t be scared of them…and don’t assume that your children won’t like them either!

While you can definitely halve this soup so that you aren’t making so much at once, I prefer to make a big pot. I either give half to a friend (makes a great soup to share with a friend who’s just had a baby!) or stick half in the freezer.

A great way to freeze soup is to wait until it cools and seal individual portions in microwave-safe containers or in ziploc bags. If you have an older baby at home, freeze some in ice cube trays for baby size portions.

A peek Into My Kitchen: Sweet & Salty Caramel Apples (nut-free)

Also posted in A Peek Into My Kitchen, Products, Uncategorized . by jessica on January 20, 2012

To be honest, it has never really occurred to me to cook with pretzels. Every once in a while, I’ve seen a recipe for Pretzel-crusted this or that and I’ve definitely watched an episode or two of Chopped in which pretzels were one of the mystery ingredients…but I don’t generally think of them as more than a snack food staple in my pantry.

That’s actually one of the reasons that I thought it would be fun to do this post–to stretch my culinary imagination a bit.

Trying to figure out what to make, I had a “eureka!” moment. My nut-allergic son rarely gets to eat fun, frivolous carnival food like Caramel Apples because they are generally coated with peanuts. I threw a handful of pretzels in my food processor, dipped some apples in melted caramel and then in the pulverized pretzels. Voila! Nut-free caramel apples which still have the salty-sweet element which is generally provided by roasted peanuts.