March 2015 - NY Foodie Family

Crepes by Suzette

Posted on March 31, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

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Crepes by Suzette
Written and illustrated by Monica Wellington
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

In this picture book, readers are taken on a whirl-wind journey through the streets of Paris, France, as they accompany Suzette. Suzette sells all different kinds of crepes from her little cart. We first go to the market with Suzette where she buys the fruit for her crepes. We then travel with her to the Luxembourg Gardens, along the River Seine, to the Louvre Museum, the Tuileries Gardens, the Opera, and the Eiffel Tower as she sells her crepes. This book has so many layers that it takes more than a quick reading to appreciate them all. First, the pictures in this book are mixed-media collages that consist of actual photographs, memorabilia including stamps and maps, as well as illustrations. The kids really enjoyed looking at the pictures and all that was going on. There’s a French phrase on each page with a glossary at the end that tells what the words and phrases mean. While my high school French finally came in useful, the book unfortunately does not provide a pronunciation guide for those unfamiliar with the language. The scenes in all the pictures of this book are based on real places in Paris, which are noted in the back of the book. The illustrations of Suzette’s customers are all based on figures from famous paintings and sculptures by French artists and artists who lived and worked in France. These include Vincent van Gogh’s “The Postman” Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa” as well as Pablo Picasso’s “Three Musicians” among many. A recipe for crepes is also included if you are interested in trying out these delicious treats! The author was clever with the title of her book, naming the main character Suzette, one would assume after the famous French dessert Crepes Suzette. This book really takes the reader on a cultural tour of Paris in a fun and engaging way. The whole family read this book together and really enjoyed it.

*This book was borrowed from the library.

Disclosure: This post contains an affiliate link.

Pretzel Crusted Chicken Fingers with Curried Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce

Posted on March 30, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

Chicken fingers are a staple children’s food. It’s rare to find a restaurant kid’s menu without them. When doing the weekly menu planning I try to find at least one recipe that I know the kids will really enjoy. I’m not always successful in my endeavors. However, when I made these pretzel chicken fingers a couple of weeks ago they were a big winner! These are super kid-friendly and tasted good. My daughter helped with the preparation of these and enjoyed banging the pretzels into crumbs. The pretzel coating gives the chicken a nice salty, crunch. The combination of flavors in the dipping sauce helped make the dish a little more adult friendly, although the kids enjoyed it as well. I served these with some fries and veggies to complete the meal.

Pretzel Crusted Chicken Fingers with Curried Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
Recipe adapted from Mika’s Pantry

Ingredients:
1 lb. boneless chicken breasts, cut into
1/4 cup flour, for dredging
Salt and pepper
4 1/2 cups pretzels, crushed
1 egg, beaten
oil

Curried Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce:
½ cup mayo
2 tablespoons yellow mustard
½ teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon white vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
½ teaspoon curry powder
Salt and pepper, to taste

Combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl, mixing well.

Directions:
1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

2. While oil is heating, place flour, eggs and pretzel crumbs into 3 separate bowls.

3. Dip chicken pieces into the flour, the egg and then the crushed pretzels.

4. When the oil is heated, place the chicken pieces in the pan and cook 3-4 minutes. Turn chicken over and cook 3-4 more minutes until heated through.

4. Place the chicken on paper towels to drain. Serve warm with the dipping sauce.

Friday Favorites #9

Posted on March 27, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

Happy Friday!! I have been battling a cold here which has not made for a fun week. Besides a birthday party that my daughter is going to and the town Easter Egg hunt, that will hopefully not get postponed due to rain (and even possible snow flurries?!!!) we have a free weekend! I LOVE free weekends since they happen so rarely! Our son has requested sushi, so we will be getting some of that. But otherwise, I plan to catch up on some reading and relaxing! Here are some favorites this week:

1. How do I forget to add almond milk to the weekly shopping list?!!! Well, it happened this week. The Weekend Chef did the weekly grocery shopping Sunday morning and didn’t come home with almond milk…..because I hadn’t put it on the list! We cannot live without milk in the house! So, I ran to the grocery store the next morning and while getting the almond milk I also picked up this cream cheese (Because who can walk in and out of the grocery store with just one item?!!!). This is not new to us. We’ve had it before and I forgot how much we enjoyed it! Roasted pecan and sweet honey cream cheese on a bagel has been my breakfast and lunch for the kids this week!

2. Favorite bookmarked recipe of the week: This Chicken Strawberry Salad with Goat Cheese and Roasted Strawberry Vinaigrette from blog Sumptuous Spoonfuls. With the warmer weather hopefully arriving soon, I have had salads on my mind! I cannot wait for grilling and salads! This salad sounds divine! Though I’d use cooked or grilled chicken, rather than chicken nuggets or tenders.

3. Kids Favorite: We are definitely late on the Minecraft bandwagon. If you have kids anywhere from probably 5+ they have heard of this….even if you haven’t! As part of the kids Valentine’s Day presents we FINALLY got them Minecraft for their I-pods. They are obsessed! We limit video/I-pod time to 30 minutes each day. They would play ALL day if we let them!

4. Watching on Netflix: “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” This is a Netflix Original series produced by Tina Fey and Robert Carlock. The show stars Kimmy, (Ellie Kemper from Bridesmaids) who is rescued from an underground (literally!) cult and who decides to live in New York City. She gets a job as a nanny for the wealthy Voorhes family (mom is Jane Krakowsi) and rooms with Titus (Tituss Burgess), an unemployed, Broadway actor hopeful. She’s stuck in the 90’s and is trying to find her way. The series premiered March 6. I’m only through the first 3 episodes, but am enjoying this show a lot and highly recommend if you are looking for a quirky comedy!

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5. Wonder by R. J. Palacio. We read this book as a family read-aloud last year and loved it! Lisa from blog expandng hosts Page Turners, a monthly online book club. Wonder was this month’s book pick. I will be stopping by to chat about the book with her and the other readers. If you’ve read this book feel free to stop by and leave some comments/thoughts/reviews. If you haven’t read it, I definitely recommend. This a middle school, realistic fiction chapter book. It stars Auggie, a ten-year-old boy who has a facial deformity. It’s told through alternating chapters and perspectives of several different characters, including Auggie, as he starts public school for the first time.

Hope you all have a GREAT weekend!

Linking up with Amanda from Meet @ the Barre, Andrea from Momfessionals, Tif from Bright on a Budget, Jenni from The Diary of A Real Housewife.

Foodie Movie Review: Chef

Posted on March 26, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

Chef

This week, we’ll be trying to add more regular reviews of food-related movies. The Weekend Chef is handling this review:

We are regular patrons of our local library for books, music, and movies. There is usually a great selection of recently released movies on DVD as long as you’re patient and wait your turn on the hold list. It can sometimes take a few months to receive a popular movie. We received Chef on DVD a few weeks ago and were excited to watch it. Wouldn’t you know, Netflix made it available the same weekend the DVD came in so we ended up watching it streamed anyway.

The first thing you notice about Chef is the all-star cast. Starring Jon Favreau, Sofia Vergara, Jon Leguizamo, Scarlett Johansson, and Dustin Hoffman, among others, this is truly an ensemble cast where everyone gets to shine. In my opinion, though, the real star is the 10-year-old Emjay Anthony who plays Percy, the son of Jon Favreau’s chef Carl. Carl is a chef that, even though has a top job at a popular restaurant, has lost his way with his family and passion for cooking. Certain events cause Carl to leave the restaurant and travel across the country with his son and sous chef, cooking genuine food that he can feel good about making again.

The kitchen scenes seem very believable, looking behind the gloss and glamour of the dining room into the real lives of people who work in the food business. Jon Favreau must have done a lot of training to make the prep and cooking scenes look effortless as if he has been cooking in a restaurant himself for years. Overall, the movie has a “feel-good” and “heart-warming” quality that will appeal to both genders. It’s a big-name film with a small-budget feel. Jon Favreau has been directing some recent mega films in the Iron Man series as well as “Cowboys and Aliens” but a lot of people (myself included) still associate him with the relatively small 1996 movie “Swingers”. I feel “Chef” brings him back to basics himself and really presents some great and natural characters with heart and humor. Check it out while Netflix still has it. It’s a great food movie.

Olive Potato Pizza

Posted on March 25, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

Pizza has been almost a Friday night staple in our house. Especially with Lent and us not eating meat on Fridays. Homemade pizza is super quick and easy and we all love it! When I have a little extra time, I try to make a more interesting pizza than just plain cheese. This pizza is a great no-meat addition to our pizza rotation. The potatoes, mixed with the slight heat of the crushed red pepper and the saltiness of the olives was a flavorful combination. I made a plain, cheese pizza for the kids and the Weekend Chef and I ate this pizza up!

Olive Potato Pizza
Recipe adapted from Cooking Light, August 2001

Ingredients:
2 cups russet potatoes, peeled and sliced thin
1 store bought refrigerated pizza dough
1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons tomato sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup chopped pitted kalamata olives

Directions:
1. Place pizza stone, if have one, into oven and preheat to 450°.

2. Place the potato slices in a saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook 7 minutes or until tender. Drain.

3. Combine the potato slices, tomato sauce, salt, pepper, and garlic.

3. Roll pizza dough into a 12-inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Once oven is heated, carefully take out the pizza stone and place the dough on it. Spread the potato mixture over the pizza crust, leaving a 1-inch border. Sprinkle the pizza with cheese and olives.

4. Bake at 450° for 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Cut into 8 wedges.

Chocolate Themed Reads for Kids

Posted on March 24, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

(This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for supporting this blog!)

While February is National Chocolate Month, there’s never a wrong time to eat…….I mean, read about chocolate! If you haven’t realized it yet, we are a family of book lovers. Below are reviews of chocolate-themed books that we have read, as well as a list of additional chocolate-themed books that we found that may be of interest. Please share in the comments any other chocolate themed kids books you’ve read!

Beginning Chapter Books:

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Snow Monsters Do Drink Hot Chocolate (The Bailey School Kids series, Jr. Chapter book) by Marcia Thornton Jones and Debbie Dadey
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Liza, Howie, Eddie and Melody are sledding and snowboarding when they meet an awesome snowboarder named Harry Snowden. He’s covered in snow and ice and Howie thinks he’s an abominable snowman. To warm up, Eddie’s grandmother takes the four kids to get hot chocolate (thus the “chocolate” part of the book) where they see Harry Snowden drinking milk shakes. When sleigh riding another day, the kids test if Harry is a snow monster by giving him some hot chocolate. This book has short chapter and a lot of illustrations, which is appealing for beginning chapter book readers. Overall, this book did not really go anywhere but the kids enjoyed it.

*We own this book.

Chapter Books:

Cam Jansen and the Chocolate Fudge Mystery (Cam Jansen Mystery series #14) by David A. Adler
Illustrated by Susanna Natti
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Cam Jansen (real name Jennifer Jansen) and her friend Eric are selling chocolate fudge bars and rice cakes as a fundraiser (yes, a weird combination of items to be selling!). While walking around the neighborhood, they notice a suspicious looking woman and a deserted looking house. Of course the two end up being connected and with the help of Cam’s photographic memory (thus the “Cam” short for camera) Cam and Eric are able to help the police catch a bank thief. Cam Jansen is a mystery series geared for younger readers (grades 2-4). The series is over twenty years old though the covers have gotten an update. This book had little to actually do with chocolate fudge. As an adult, it seems unrealistic that two young kids would be able to stop a bank thief. Nor, would you really want them to attempt to do so, nowadays?!!!

*We own this book.

The Case of the Kidnapped Candy (A Jigsaw Jones Mystery, #30) by James Preller
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Jigsaw Jones is a mystery series aimed toward readers on a second grade reading level. This book takes place around Valentine’s Day. In celebration of the upcoming holiday and the end of their poetry unit, Ms. Gleason has a special surprise for the class. However, the Hershey Kisses that were in a gumball machine on her desk are stolen. Jigsaw and his friend Mila attempt to find the thief. Since the class is studying poetry, the reader is introduced to what goes into writing a poem (sounds, rhythm, ideas, rhyme, etc.), gets to see different examples of poems that some of the students have written, learns what a haiku is, and learns how songs are poetry are related. So, there’s more to this book than just the mystery. This series also has short chapters and lots of pictures which are appealing to younger readers.

* We own this book.

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Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This book is a children’s classic in which Charlie Bucket wins a ticket to spend the day at Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory where many adventures occur. We read this as a family at bedtime a couple of years ago, when the kids were about 4 and 6. While some of it may have been over their heads they enjoyed listening to the story. We then watched the original movie version together. We have also seen the updated version of the movie starring Johnny Depp. Since we own the book, the kids are able to reread this book if and when they want.

*We own this book.

The Chocolate-Covered Worms (It’s Robert! series) by Barbara Seuling (also published as Robert and the Chocolate-Covered Worms)
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

This short chapter book series is geared toward 2nd and 3rd grade readers. In this book, Robert’s teacher makes the class do projects on “The Weird and Horrible” after the class gets fascinated with weird and gross things. Robert does his report on werewolves, while classmate Lucy does a report on unusual food and brings in a box of chocolate-covered worms for the class to try.

*We own this book.

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Chocolate Dreams (Candy Fairy Series #1) by Helen Perelman
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

In this first book in the Candy Fairy Series, Cocoa the Chocolate Fairy has been chosen by Princess Lolli to care for the first spring chocolate eggs that will be used in the Egg Parade. But after meeting up with some of her candy fairy friends, Cocoa goes back to the nest to find that the eggs are missing. She has to get them back before the Egg Parade. With the help of Princess Lolli the two outsmart Mogu, the troll, who stole the eggs. While I wasn’t impressed with the book, I think young girls will enjoy reading about candy and the different candy fairies.

*We borrowed this book from the library.

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Chocolate Fever by Robert Kimmel Smith
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

This is another classic children’s book, first published in 1972. Henry Green loves chocolate and eats it at all meals. One day, he starts breaking out in chocolate spots. Of course no one has seen such a sight before and the doctors at the hospital are fascinated with Henry and diagnose him with “Chocolate Fever.”. Tired and afraid, Henry escapes the hospital and ends up catching a ride with truck driver Mac. The truck ends up getting hijacked by burglars but Henry and Mac luckily help get the burglars get arrested. Eventually Alfred Cane, owner of a candy distributing center, helps Henry cure his chocolate fever. Henry also learns to enjoy other foods without chocolate…..but replaces chocolate with a possible alternative ingredient. Reading this book I think you can tell that it’s somewhat dated in the language and scenes. However, I think the story itself has a good lesson.

*We own this book.

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Sweet Secrets in Pennsylvania (Just In Time series book #2) by Cheri Pray Earl and Carol Lynch Williams
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

This is the second book in the Just In Time series by Cheri Pray Earl and Carol Lynch Williams. We have not read the first book in the series, The Rescue Begins In Delaware, and this is one of the rare times with children’s books that I felt lost not reading a children’s series in order. The reader is missing a large chunk of the back story of what happened to the main characters’, twins, George and Gracie, parents. The parents are currently trapped in time and George and Gracie must return all the items that their parents had bought for the family museum, in order to help their parents get home. In this book, George and Gracie must use the time machine to travel to Hershey, Pennsylvania in order to return a rug to Milton Hershey. They must do this while avoiding the evil Mr. Crowe, who is following them and needs their help to get back to his time of 1879. Unfortunately, if the kids help him, they may not be able to have their parents return. The chapters are told through the alternating perspectives of George and Gracie. George is turned into a rat in this particular story (why?!!!) and in returning the rug they accidently help Milton Hershey come up with the recipe for his milk chocolate. Although this is the first book in the series that we’ve read, this reminds me of “The Magic Tree House” series for older kids. In the first book the kids traveled to Delaware and in this book the kids travel to Pennsylvania. The end of the book is filled with information and facts about the state. My eight year old daughter read this and found the book “interesting and exciting.”

*This book was borrowed from the library.

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Thea Stilton and the Chocolate Sabotage by Thea Stilton (Thea Stilton series #19)
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

This book is the 19th in the Thea Stilton series. As I mentioned in a Friday Favorites post, my six year-old son is a big fan of this series and the original series Geronimo Stilton. In this book the Thea Sisters, Nicky, Colette, Violet, Paulina and Pamela travel to Ecuador to visit Paulina’s old school friend Antonio. He runs a chocolate factory, Cocoa Loco, and invited Paulina and her friends down to visit. The chocolate factory is in the running to receive the prestigious Chocolate Cup award. But while the sisters are visiting, it appears that someone is sabotaging Antonio’s factory. The sisters help Antonio and his cousin Hector find the culprit. If you are unfamiliar with the Stilton books, I recommend you check a couple out. Each page of text has words in different colors and fonts. In this particular book, there were informational pages about the country of Ecuador, the market town of Otavalo and the city of Quito. Another plus of this book is that children become familiar with organic farming, as Antonio does not use pesticides on his cacao beans. And did I mention that in these books the characters are mice?!!! Parents may roll their eyes at all of the mouse/cheese/cat humor. My son enjoys it though and it’s fun seeing him identify the author’s play on words (ex. from another Stilton book that he was reading “Mom, they said paw-cuffs since mice have paws, not hands!).

*This book was borrowed from the library.

Non-Fiction Books:

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No Monkeys, No Chocolate by Melissa Stewart and Allen Young
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

This picture book gives an in-depth look at how chocolate is made. Starting with the cocoa beans, the authors show how the survival of the cocoa tree is dependent on all different parts of nature, including monkeys, maggots, fungi, roots and leaves. The text goes into detail that may not keep the interest of younger readers, however, two little talking worms at the bottom right corner of the pages offer humorous commentary. Colorful illustrations accompany the text.

*This book was borrowed from the library.

We have compiled a list of other chocolate themed books below. However, we have not read these books and have listed them for reference only.

Board Books:

Lilly’s Chocolate Heart by Kevin Henkes. Lilly tries to find the perfect hiding place for her one chocolate heart.

Picture Books:

Chocolate Moose by Maggie Kneen. Moose starts working in little mouse’s bakery but makes a big mess. He ends up finding a better job with little mouse instead.

Curious George Goes to a Chocolate Factory by H.A. Rey and Margret Rey. George goes on a factory tour to see how chocolates are made but gets into trouble.

Max’s Chocolate Chicken by Rosemary Wells. Easter-themed book where Max wants to eat the chocolate chicken that has been placed in the well. His sister Ruby wants him to go on an egg hunt first.

Chapter Books:

Cherry Crush by Cathy Cassidy (The Chocolate Box Girls series #1). Set in the United Kingdom, Cherry moves with her dad to Somerset. He has a dream of inventing artisan chocolate named The Chocolate Box and currently works in a chocolate factory. The book focuses primarily on Cherry and her struggles with friendship and family.

Chocolate-Covered Ants by Stephen Manes. Adam receives ants for his birthday and his older brother Max bets him that people eat chocolate covered ants. While carrying out the bet, problems occur.

The Chocolate-Covered Contest by Carolyn Keene (Nancy Drew series #151). At an amusement park, Nancy’s friend Bess opens a candy bar with the million dollar prize. When they go to collect the prize they are told someone has already won and are accused of counterfeiting the wrapper.

The Chocolate Sundae Mystery by Gertrude Chanlder (The Boxcar Children series #46). When ice cream and other items start disappearing from the ice cream parlor, the Boxcar Children investigate.

The Chocolate Touch by Patrick Skene Catling. A twist on the tale King Midas and the Golden Touch, John Midas loves chocolate so much that he is thrilled when he gets the ability to turn everything he touches into chocolate. He realizes this may be more of a curse when he accidentally turns his mother into chocolate.

The Whizz Pop Chocolate Shop by Kate Saunders. Twins Oz and Lily move into the family inherited Whizz Pop Chocolate Shop magical adventures await them.

Non-Fiction Books:

DK Readers: The Story of Chocolate by C.J. Polin. (beginning reader – Level 3) Facts and information about chocolate with photographs and a glossary.

Totally Triffic Chocolate by Alan MacDonald. (chapter book) Chapter book filled with everything you wanted to know about chocolate.

Have you read any of these books? Or do you have more chocolate themed books for us to add to our list?

Hash Brown Bake with Eggs & Smoked Salmon

Posted on March 23, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

The kids love breakfast for dinner. I make a lot of egg casseroles, french toast and pancakes for quick, easy weeknight dinners that I know the kids will eat. I had saved this recipe for awhile from an old Every Day with Rachael Ray magazine, debating whether or not to make it. The kids like cooked salmon and my son loves salmon sushi rolls. I wasn’t sure how much, or even if, they liked smoked salmon. I decided to try it and figured, if anything, they could pick off the salmon if they didn’t like it. This isn’t a quick meal to make, as it bakes for 50 minutes. However, it’s pretty easy in the preparation part. I am fortunate enough to work from home, where I can prep this early enough, get it in the oven to bake and still help the kids with homework and get them showered before we eat. We all enjoyed this meal. It took the classic cream cheese and lox and elevated it to a new level with the addition of potatoes and eggs. While it’s a bit heavy, especially with the warmer weather approaching, it’s a great recipe to bookmark for cooler weather!

Hash Brown Bake with Eggs & Smoked Salmon
Recipe adapted from EveryDay with Rachael Ray magazine (issue unknown)

Ingredients:
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup almond milk
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 36 ounce bag frozen hash browns, thawed
1/4 cup thinly sliced scallions, plus more for garnish
Salt and pepper
6 eggs
6 ounces thinly sliced smoked salmon
2/3 cup sour cream

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees . Grease a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. In a large bowl with a hand mixer, blend the cream cheese, milk and butter until smooth.

2. In another large bowl, combine the hash browns, cream cheese mixture and 1/2 cup scallions. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to the baking dish and smooth the top. Using a large spoon, make six shallow indentations in the hash browns. Bake until the edges are brown, about 45 minutes.

3.Remove the casserole from the oven. Preheat the broiler. Crack an egg into each indentation and season. Broil until the whites are set, 3 to 4 minutes.

4. Place a slice of salmon and a dollop of sour cream next to each egg. Garnish with scallions.

Friday Favorites #8

Posted on March 20, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

Happy first day of spring!!!! We are expecting 3-6 inches of snow today. Mother Nature is so cruel! If you don’t have snow and can get out to your local Rita’s, they are giving away free Italian ice today to celebrate the first day of spring! Work has been super busy this week and I am so glad the week is over! Here are some favorites of the week!

1. While I’m still watching One Tree Hill, my other favorite Netflix series is Private Practice. I had started watching this when it first debuted but then stopped for whatever reason. It’s a little bit like Grey’s Anatomy except at a medical practice. I’m enjoying it but of course I decide to pick shows that have 100+ episodes each! I have so little time to watch television as it is that I’ll be watching these shows for awhile!

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2. Favorite bookmarked recipe of the week: These S’mores Blondies from blog Crazy for Crust. I love all things S’mores. Growing up camping with my family and being a girl scout….I was raised on s’mores! If you’re a regular blog reader, you’ve noticed that I haven’t been posting any dessert type recipes. That’s basically because I haven’t been cooking any! The kids gave up all sweets and treats for Lent. They’ve been impressively good with sticking with this and I am NOT going to tempt them. (I think next year they’re going to stick to one specific thing, like ice cream or candy….not EVERYTHING!!). So hopefully, after Easter, I will be trying these S’mores Blondies out!

3. My Panera salad. If you follow me on Instagram, you saw that I had the Chicken Cobb Avocado salad for lunch yesterday! Before I started working from home, I’d alternate between this salad and Chipotle for lunch on Fridays. Since I started working from home, we usually have leftovers that I can eat and it’s so much easier to just eat at home, rather than drive somewhere. But yesterday, I was craving this salad and succumbed to the craving…..YUM!

4. My brother was watching the kids last weekend and introduced my daughter to this YouTube channel “Kids React.” She has been binge-watching these videos. I saw this one with her about kids trying escargot. They have tons of videos with kids reacting to different topics from VCRs and typewriters to caviar and SPAM.

5. Booking our vacation! You will probably be hearing A LOT about our trip from now until August, when we finally go. But this week we booked our vacation to Disney! We decided to drive this time to save on airfare. We’re going to spend 6 nights and 7 days at the actual hotel! It’s been four years since our last trip and we’re sure the kids are going to have a blast!

We’re Going To Walt Disney World!

photo credit: The Disney Moms

Have a great weekend!

Linking up with Amanda from Meet @ the Barre, Andrea @ Momfessionals, Jenni from The Diary of a Real Housewife, Tif from Bright on a Budget and Michael from Rattlebridge Farm.

Blue Apron Not For Us

Posted on March 19, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

I’m sure by now many of you have heard of meal delivery service Blue Apron. You may have even tried it. And if you are like the majority of people I know who have tried it, you like it. A friend of ours, who uses and loves the meal delivery service, gave us a coupon code to try out a week for free. Blue Apron offers two plans, a 2-Person Plan or the Family Plan, which is supposed to feed a family of four. The 2-Person Plan costs $59.94 for three meals. The Family Plan costs $139.84 for four meals a week or $69.92 for two meals a week. You can see the menu online a week ahead of delivery and can opt out that week if you’d like. The 2-Person Plan lists six meals on the menu and Blue Apron will deliver three of them, based on your food preference choices. From the couple of times that I’ve checked out the menu, it appears that three of the meals are vegetarian options. You don’t get to actually pick the exact three meals that you want though. The Family Plan only lists four meals a week, so if you order the four meal plan, then you will get all four meals listed.

My coupon code was going to expire and it just so happened that the kids were going to spend a few days with their grandparents. Since the coupon was good for the 2-Person Plan, or a credit towards the Family Plan, it worked out perfectly for me to try out the 2-Person Plan while they were away. The box was delivered by about 8 AM on Thursday, my delivery day. I opened it up and took out the meat and fish which I put in the fridge. I also put the baguette, which had a “refrigerate” sticker on it, in the refrigerator. I left the vegetables and bags of Knick Knacks on the counter and then proceeded to my office to begin work for the day.

Later that afternoon, after working I came down and started going through the vegetables and recipes. When opening up a knick knack bag I noticed there was a small bottle of cream and a plastic container of butter!!! There was no note that there were things in the knick knack bag that needed to be refrigerated! I ended up throwing those out and used milk and my own butter, for the recipes instead. I ended up contacting Blue Apron to let them know that they might want to improve their labeling of what needs to be refrigerated and was told that the ingredients in the knick knack bags are listed on the recipe cards. Sorry I didn’t read through the recipe cards while unpacking the box! They ended up giving me a $10 credit towards my next delivery…..but unbeknownst to them, there wasn’t going to be another delivery.

The three meals we received in our box was a Bouillabaisse-Style Fish Stew with Fennel, Potatoes & Castelvetrano Olives, Pan-Roasted Chicken with Mashed Potatoes & Maple-Glazed Carrots and Steak & Miso-Roasted Vegetable Salad with Ponzu Dipping Sauce. The recipes provided are easy to follow. There are pictures that accompany the instructions that I think are easy enough to follow for even those who are not familiar with cooking.

I was a bit disappointed with the recipes. First, all three had some type of potato in it. Yes, they differed between Yukon Gold, Japanese Sweet Potatoes and Fingerling Potatoes…..but in a normal week, I would never cook three meals with the same starch. We didn’t enjoy the Bouillabaisse-Style Fish Stew (pictured above) very much. It was very heavy on the fennel flavor, which I am not a big fan of, and there were exactly two Castelvetrano Olives (with pits) so there wasn’t much salty, briny, olive flavor. The chicken and steak weren’t anything special and dishes that we often cook. I was hoping for dishes that were more unique and interesting. We did enjoy the miso-roasted vegetable salad that was served with the steak and there was plenty of salad that we had leftovers.

Overall, we were not impressed with Blue Apron and cancelled any subsequent deliveries. When I checked out the upcoming week’s menu, the Short Rib Burgers on Pretzel Buns sounds awesome! However, even if I did sign up, there would be no guarantee that I’d get the burgers in my box.

I’m still trying to figure out who this service is for. It’s not for people who don’t like to cook. While you get all the ingredients to make the recipes, you’re still spending approximately 30-40 minutes in the kitchen cooking. It’s definitely not for those on a budget. $60 for three dinners for two people is not a bargain in my book, unless you tend to eat out frequently. For our family of four, for three meals a day for a week we spend approximately $150 a week give or take. For me to spend almost that whole amount for four family size dinners just seems unreasonable to me. Especially when I’m not even sure the kids will eat the meal. The upcoming week’s family meals on Blue Apron include Chicken Rollatini alla Cacciatore with Radiatore Pasta, Panko-Crusted Mustard Salmon with Roasted Potatoes and Waldorf-Style Salad, Lamb & Beef Tagine with Swiss Chard, Date Molasses & Whole Wheat Couscous and Vegetable Tortilla Soup with Hominy, Avocado & Queso Fresco. These don’t seem like the most kid-friendly meals I can think of! I don’t mind meal-planning. I try almost five new recipes a week and we often end up with leftovers for lunch. There are so many awesome recipes out there from blogs, cookbooks and food television that I enjoy picking out the meals that I want to cook. This service just isn’t a good fit for our family.

So I guess I’ve concluded that the service is for couples (roommates, relatives, basically any combination of 2 people) who like to cook but don’t like to go grocery shopping or meal plan and don’t mind being semi-surprised (since you don’t know for sure what will be in the box!). If you are busy family and don’t want the hassle of meal-planning and a $140 for four dinners for your family doesn’t seem like a bad deal, you may enjoy a service like Blue Apron.

I highly recommend that you check out the Blue Apron site here to learn more about the service and see if it’s a good fit for you.

If you’ve tried Blue Apron, what are your thoughts and experiences with the service?

Mexican Rice

Posted on March 18, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

In our house we eat a lot of Mexican food. It’s a cuisine that I know the kids like and will eat. Tacos, enchiladas, quesadillas, burritos….they love ’em all! Sometimes I’ll serve the main dish with a salad or some veggies and sometimes I’ll also make rice to go with it. The original recipe for this Mexican Rice called for a cup of corn, 1/2 cup of frozen peas and 1/2 cup diced carrots. I hate having small portions of leftover ingredients which I never end up using! So instead of having leftover unused portions of veggies, I bought a box of frozen mixed vegetables. So, this rice might of had some string beans in it, which I wasn’t going to pick out! This is a pretty quick and easy side dish that the kids enjoyed. It definitely beats those boxed rice mixes!

Mexican Rice
Recipe adapted from Damn Delicious

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 onion, diced
1 1/2 cups basmati rice
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 (10-ounce) box frozen mixed vegetables
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cumin
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Directions:
1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and onion, and cook approximately 2-3 minutes, until onions become translucent. Stir in rice until toasted, about 2 minutes.

2. Stir in tomato sauce and vegetable broth, and bring to a simmer, about 2 minutes. Stir in frozen vegetables, chili powder and cumin; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat and simmer until rice is cooked through, about 13-16 minutes.

3. Serve immediately, garnished with cilantro, if desired.