Curried Chicken and Apple Wraps

Wrap It Up
School started this week. Part of me is beyond relieved that we can get back to a normal routine and that the kids will now have their time occupied. The other part is trying to wrap my mind around the reality that I now have two middle school students. Whoa, when did that happen? Wasn’t it last year when one boy was crying at the door to kindergarten because he didn’t want me to go? (By the way, that’s changed…I now have to drop them off a few blocks away, while wearing a wig so no one recognizes me, or them, or me with them.)

Another thing that’s changed? Lunch.

Apparently, the usual is no longer cool. Until now, lunch for my boys has always been turkey and mayo on wheat. That’s it. Every Day. All year. (Zzzzzzzzzz…Sorry, fell asleep there for a minute.) However, when I asked what they wanted for their first day, I got, this as my answer, “Turkey and mayo but only if you have avocado. If not, I’ll have Roast Beef with lettuce and Havarti cheese” Umm…ok. Sure. I applaud their willingness to try something new, especially while channeling characters from When Harry Met Sally. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised.

Full Disclosure: I must give some credit to my nephew who spent quite a bit of time at our house over the summer. He has a more refined palate, and his influence has prompted change. He prefers such bizarre things as sliced red onion on his sandwiches. Rebel.

I know these changes are not ground-breaking concepts in terms of sandwich sophistication—iit is a major step up though. This gives me hope that I can try more stuff like the recipe below which, funny thing, is something I would prefer to make for my own lunch thus cutting down morning kitchen time.

They are growing up, which is both good and bad. Good because I can’t wait to see the adults they become, and bad because I miss the squishy, drooling kids that used to laugh when I blew on their tummies. Oh well. I still have The Rocket Dog…she still likes that…

Curried Chicken and Apple Wraps
Adapted from the Giada De Laurentis and The Food Network
Makes 4 servings Read more…

Streamlined Baked Manicotti

Easy Peasy Manicotti

The temperatures as of late have had all of us feeling as if we are living on the face of the sun…and pasta is probably the last thing you want for dinner. But I’m making this tonight for a couple of good reasons.

My mother made Manicotti when I was young—it was super-tasty. We loved it. It was also a pain in the butt to prepare. You gotta boil the noodle tubes, keep them from sticking together, make sure they don’t break, fill them carefully with the cheese, set them in the dish…yada yada yada. When I saw this streamlined recipe (while living the life of leisure up at Tahoe), I knew I had to give it a try. No-boil lasagna noodles turn this time-consuming task into something that can be done mid-week for dinner. Crazy!

The other bonus, and the real reason I wanted to make this Manicotti dish, is that it is easily freezable. Make two batches, and freeze one for later. Perfect! As our back-to-school days rapidly approach, and the schedule goes wonky, it is nice to know that I will have something for dinner that has at least some redeeming nutritional value. (No. Cereal does not count.)

This recipe comes from a collection that Cook’s Illustrated put out for Fall called All-Time Best Make-Ahead Recipes. It’s on newsstands now, and I am planning to try a number of possibilities, for stocking our freezer.

Streamlined Baked Manicotti
Adapted from Cooks Illustrated All-Time Best Make-Ahead Recipes Read more…

Clam Chowder with Root Vegetables and Thyme

Under the Boardwalk…Down By The Sea

When I was a kid we had family friends with a vacation home in Santa Cruz, so we would stay with them during the summer. It was great. We would wake up and hit the beach, then hit the Boardwalk and ride the roller coasters ‘till we puked. Of course it’s possible that the roller coasters were not to blame. It’s possible that it could have been the amount of food (and sugar) that we ate.

There are an amazing number of dining opportunities at the boardwalk. From fried chicken to deep fried Twinkies—you can pretty much get whatever heat attack on stick or sugar bomb you desire. For me, I always liked the old time candy shops like Marini’s. salt water taffy, caramel apples and fudge. Those were my favorite food groups. Corn dogs are another good choice…and bowls of clam chowder on cooler nights.

My family is headed down to the boardwalk this weekend for, you guessed it, more baseball. There is no way we would go to Santa Cruz and not go to the boardwalk. What kind of parent would I be, after all, if I didn’t introduce my kids to the wonders of chocolate dipped bacon and the Giant Dipper? It’s going to be a good time out…

One thing we will be avoiding? The water. Maybe because this week was Shark Week on Discovery Channel. or maybe because of the recent beach closures due to Great White shark activity near Capitola, you will not find this chick frolicking in the surf. Thank you, no. I’ll hang back on the beach with my bacon. Mega Shark can get his own.

Clam Chowder with Root Vegetables and Thyme
Adapted from Taste Food Blog Read more…

Spinach Cobb Salad with Bacon, Blue Cheese, Avocado & Derby Dressing

Salad Daze

I make no excuses for the fact that I am not a salad kind of chick. It is more accurate to say that salads are generally not my first choice. I like veggies. I like lettuce. My issues are not flavor driven—they are calorie driven. I don’t want to be hungry twenty minutes after I eat. I will eat a salad. I just have to have something else to go with it…preferably a double cheeseburger…and some onion rings. (See what I did there? Vegetables!)

If I do make a meal out of just salad, a Cobb Salad is perfect. You have your lettuce and tomatoes, a little avocado, plus some bacon (always a good idea), add eggs, and so on, and so on. The bonus is that Cobb Salad is not only a family favorite, but a perfect hot weather Wednesday night dinner. Simply pile everything on a platter and serve it up family style. Or, even more fun, do a make your own Cobb Salad Bar. (This is best when I’ve reached my I Literally Can’t Even… stage.)

This recipe stopped me in my tracks while skimming through a magazine called Fresh from the Farm in the checkout line. My mind told me that I need to make that. Like, now. Maybe it was one of those right place, right time, right marketing strategy things, but I bought the magazine and this is what’s for dinner tonight.

Spinach Cobb Salad with Bacon, Blue Cheese, Avocado & Derby Dressing
Adapted from Susie Middleton in
Fresh From the Farm Magazine published by Fine Cooking Read more…