Category: that food life

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Two-ingredient pancakes to make anyone smile

At 10 months old, Margot is well into eating solids, and it’s safe to say she is such a happy eater. Despite not having any teeth yet, she has been enjoying bites of table food as well as her purees for the last several months.

When Stella was first getting into solid foods, I discovered a recipe for quick and easy pancakes in a mommy Facebook group. The best part about them is that they only require two ingredients: banana and eggs. They were a great option for introducing eggs (gotta get that protein in) with the sweetness of the banana, and strangely enough, they basically look and taste like regular pancakes! I also loved having an option for using up an overripe banana that didn’t involve banana bread.

I continued to make them for Stella even as she got older as a healthier and easier alternative to regular pancakes. But now her diet mostly consists of peanut butter sandwiches, applesauce, yogurt, cheese sticks, and bananas, so our little miss picky hasn’t wanted to have anything to do with the pancakes in the last year.

This week I decided to make them for Margot, and it looks like our family is 2 for 2 when it comes to the two-ingredient pancakes!

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How do I put this delicately? I’m addicted to delicata squash

As I’ve gotten older, it has amazed me how many of the foods I love now that I used to absolutely despise. How does this happen??

I used to think cilantro tasted and smelled like dish soap. Now it’s one of my favorite herbs to eat in the summertime. And in the last several years, I’ve grown to love a variety of root vegetables, particularly when they are roasted together.

Which brings me to squash. Years ago, you couldn’t convince me to try it. Now, it doesn’t feel like fall without butternut squash soup, squash in pastas, roasted squash with meat, even squash on salads!

And if you’ve been around me in the last few weeks, you’ve probably heard me talk about my new most favorite: delicata squash. I’m addicted to this beautiful, sweet, and easy-to-work-with ingredient.

Delicata squash and I were introduced by Blue Apron, which has been a culinary yenta for our family when it comes to discovering new and special ingredients.

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My breakfast uniform

There’s something very comforting about a routine, particularly when it removes all need for making decisions. I’ve been experiencing nights of varied sleep interruption for the last 18-plus months, as an uncomfortable pregnant person and then of course as a nursing mom. Decisions are the last things I want in my face first thing in the morning.

Breakfast is my favorite meal, whether it’s a sweet stack of 49ers from the Original Pancake House or any combination of potatoes, meat, and runny eggs on a plate.

The problem is, I hardly have the patience or the pantry for a yummy chorizo breakfast skillet topped with poached eggs and sliced avocado day in and day out. For a typical day, I want my breakfast to be fairly quick, easy to assemble, warm and hearty.

For the last two years, I’ve fallen into a consistent routine with my breakfast of choice, and I’m still not sick of it. In fact, I crave it every morning. And as long as I’ve gone grocery shopping and stocked up on the key components, I’m in for a yummy breakfast each morning.

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Roasting root veggies and eating my colors

One of the easiest ways I’ve found for my family to enjoy eating vegetables is by roasting a pan full of root vegetables. I enjoy a variety of combinations, but my go-tos are sweet potatoes, Yukon Gold potatoes, and baby carrots, sometimes mixing in cubed butternut squash and parsnips.

Roasted root vegetables are my favorite side dish to accompany chicken thighs, flank steak, meatloaf… basically anything! I could eat a plateful of roasted root veggies and nothing else and be completely happy.

For tonight’s dinner, I used sweet potatoes, Yukon Gold potatoes, and rainbow baby carrots.

To prepare, I lined my large baking sheet with foil to make cleanup easier and also keep the veggies from sticking to the baking sheet. I also sprayed the foil with nonstick spray. I washed and cut the veggies up into similarly sized wedges, and then tossed them with olive oil and sea salt in a large bowl.

My favorite olive oil for this is Filippo Berio, which can handle the hotter temperature in the oven. For sea salt, there’s nothing better than Maldon sea salt flakes. Trust. Get some at Williams Sonoma.

I always make way more veggies than we need at dinner because they make great leftovers for breakfast or lunch the next day, and if I’m already going through the trouble of cutting and roasting the veggies, it’s so easy to make extra.

I roasted these veggies for around 40-45 minutes at 475 degrees, although the cook time always ends up depending upon the types of veggies I’m using and how big the pieces are.

Tonight’s veggies ended up cooking up perfectly with nice, crispy edges. YUMMMM.

I made chicken thighs tossed in Trader Joe’s Everything but the Bagel Sesame Seasoning Blend, which was one of those impulse buys the last time I was in a TJ’s. I’m still needing to experiment with the seasoning, but so far it has been delicious on chicken.

With all of the Blue Apron meals we’ve been making lately, I had gotten away from this simple go-to in my dinner rotation. It really hit the spot tonight, and gets me excited for some cooler fall nights and a plate of yummy, seasonal root veggies.

Give them a try!

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Four highlights from the Detroit Free Press Food and Wine Experience

Zack and I love to watch Top Chef on Bravo. Of all of the cooking shows out there, it’s the one we watch religiously for every season and every incarnation. And it has always been our dream to be one of the goofball members of the public who get to try the chefs’ food during the challenges.

When I first read about the Detroit Free Press Food and Wine Experience, it sounded like the type of event that would live up to our Top Chef dreams. A Saturday in September, just days after Zack’s birthday? The perfect birthday present. Dozens of restaurants from around downtown Detroit and other parts of the state were going to be convening in Campus Martius Park for an afternoon of delicious food and wine, as well as panel discussions and cooking demonstrations.

But the crown jewel was the announcement that lifestyle queen Martha Stewart would be the headliner. CAN YOU IMAGINE? For decades, Martha has been an icon. My mom has always told me how much the Martha way impacted how she entertains, and I think all would agree my mom is an A+ entertainer through and through.

The event was held yesterday on one of the most gorgeous days of the summer, and we couldn’t have been happier with how everything went. I enjoyed seeing so many people downtown and celebrating the innovative food options all of the restaurants had to offer.

Here are my four highlights of the Detroit Free Press Food and Wine Experience:

  • MEETING MARTHA. FLIPPING. STEWART.


Part of our tickets was the opportunity to have a book signing with Martha and also receive some fun Martha swag (craft paints and a square ladle – Martha says it’s perfect for making jams because the squared-off edge allows you to pour it into a jar without spilling so obviously I will be making jams very soon while using it). I barely spit out that my mom adores her and that I wanted one of our books made out to her and she gave me this smile and it gives me life. It will keep me warm through the next dozen Michigan winters.

I’m also kicking myself that I didn’t bring her a present from Michigan, like one of the Kalamazoo Candle Company Pumpkin Patch candles I’m obsessed with and will be blogging about in the near future. Maybe she would have talked about them in her blog or in Martha Stewart Living. I’m still kicking myself for this blown opportunity. Martha and I might have been real friends and she could have invited me to her farm in Bedford.

Alas, she was lovely and our time together was too short. Until next time, for your 90th cookbook.

  • THAT DELICIOUS FOOD, OBVIOUSLY.
    It was lunchtime when we went through the gates of the festival, and we were ready. At first we thought we’d do a lap before committing to eating things, or start in the back and work our way forward like you do in Cedar Point (pro tip right there), but the early tents enticed us and it was a free for all. Some of my favorite things I had were the cold brew float with cake batter ice cream (!!!!!!!) from New Order Coffee, the pork belly slider from Wright & Company, a chicken schwarma on a steamed Chinese bun from Grey Ghost, and this salad from Gold Cash Gold:
    I wish I had taken more photos of the food, but truthfully I didn’t want to be that person, and I was gobbling things up before I even had a chance to set up a photo. We also received stemless wine glasses to try different wines, ciders, and other drinks, so there was a lot to juggle.As someone with a shellfish allergy, I appreciated that I was able to try more than 90% of what was being offered by the restaurants. One of the only things I couldn’t try was the shrimp and grits.
  • THE AMBIANCE.

    I had only been to Campus Martius Park during the holidays, which was very magical even though it was freezing cold that day. I remember the ice skating rink and doing Christmas shopping in a pop-up shop, and despite the cold there was a nice amount of people enjoying Detroit.Yesterday was textbook perfect as far as the weather went, and the areas of shade were a welcome reprieve from the sun, especially after sitting through Martha’s cooking demo in the bright sunshine.
    I love that Martha wore shades for the whole demo.

Because we were able to get into the park an hour ahead of the general public, we had the opportunity to walk around before it got very crowded. A jazz band did a few sets, and that music paired with the food and the wine and the cute little green metal tables made it feel like Detroit was the most happening place alive.

The book signing (and some of the other add-on events) was held at Parc, which is an absolutely gorgeous and very cool restaurant. I loved the light fixtures, the large portraits of Michael Jackson and John Lennon, the way the glass doors were slid open to the patio and created an open-air feel. I’m definitely dying to go back there for lunch or dinner. It was the perfect setting for the book signing and a place to lounge as we waited.

  • ACCIDENTALLY CRASHING MARTHA’S FACEBOOK LIVE TAPING.

Yes, it’s true. As we were getting ready to walk through the Martha Stewart tent, we saw Martha walking right toward us with an entourage of cameras and people. She was filming a Facebook Live video, and if you go to about the 11:25 mark in the video, you’ll see us in the background and me freaking out about it.

Hi, Martha!

I’m not sure if subsequent years will be able to top this fantastic event, but I’ll be happy to find out next year if they do it again. A sunny afternoon of eating, drinking, and people watching was a wonderful way to celebrate Zack’s birthday. It’s a good thing!

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For the love of apple cider and donuts

September is my most favorite month for a litany of reasons. First and foremost, I was born in September, so from birth it has always been a magical month. September is also home to my husband Zack’s birthday, my dad’s birthday, my sister in law’s birthday, and several special sapphire friends’ birthdays.

September weather can bring some of the most delicious Michigan days of the year. Back to school excitement is in the air, as so wonderfully observed by Tom Hanks in “You’ve Got Mail”:

And September also means a very special time: CIDER MILL TIME. Michigan apples are bomb, and everyone knows it. So, naturally, apple cider from Michigan apples is the nectar of the gods.

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