McDonald's

My oldest son is 7. He is in first grade at a public school in Broward County, Florida.

Not surprisingly, I have many opinions on how the issue of food is treated in this school. Of course the lunches are pretty gross. Candy is used as a prize in the classroom, a concept I really do not support. Every time I have been to the school, the kids are offered only sugary, brightly-colored drinks, never water.

Last week even I was shocked. My son came home and told me that the class had a vote on what to eat at their end-of-the-year party. The winner? McDonald's. ok. I just listened to him. I didn't react. It's like I feel like I live on a planet with a population of one. What is McDonald's doing in the school????? Doesn't anyone else see that this is the epitome of so much that is wrong with this country?

My son was so cute. He said 'mom, I didn't vote for it. And I want you to send me lunch that day because I know it's gross and I don't want to eat it." I told him he can eat it. It's ok.

In over 7 years of being a mom it would be a lie to say I have never fed my children McDonald's. It did happen once. We were stuck at JFK airport in what ended up being a 27 hour flight delay. We went to the food area and I caved. I bought McDonald's. That, however, is the only time that has happened. No McDonald's, BK, Wendy's, nothing, nada, nicht. And I just do not understand how it is that an educator of small children can think it's ok to feed them such garbage AND to associate it with a fun activity.

On a related topic, I think there should be no corporate presence in the schools whatsoever. I know there is no money and these companies give money or proceeds or whatever, but just raise taxes like a civilized society and have the schools be a sanctuary. Don't feed my kids garbage, don't discuss religion, don't send messages favoring certain businesses. Teach them, keep them save and send them back to me. Thank you.

Does anyone agree with me??

hot dogs

This weekend we didn't cook much. Last night we had tickets to the baseball game courtesy of my husband's work. We each had a ticket (we being me, my husband and our 2 sons. The baby stayed home) and a food coupon good for one hot dog, one bag of chips and one soft drink. no substitutions.

Now I don't eat hot dogs. As a matter of fact I don't eat any 'red meat'. Personal choice. So I bought myself a boca burger at the game and that was that. Everyone else enjoyed their hot dogs. The American way, right?

Today we went to an organized picnic. What was there to eat? Hot dogs. Oh, and pb&j for those crazy non-hot dog eaters. So I, who usually pride myself on trying to feed my kids real food, especially on the weekends when we tend to eat together as a family for lunch, watched my sons eat more hot dogs. But I'm flex. I try to go with the flow. So they had hot dogs last night and today for lunch. They'll survive and they had a great time.

Thing is - - - - WTF that the assumption is that everyone likes and wishes to consume hot dogs? Or are they the only option sometimes because they're cheap and are they cheap because they're gross and if you saw how they were made you probably would not want to eat them? Ew. I know most people like them. And even though they may not consume them on a regular basis, they will at the occasional ball game or bbq. It's just really amazing to me that I found myself in the situation twice within 36 hours.

So I had pb&j and cole slaw for lunch.
And next time I go to a baseball game I just may pack a sandwich.

But tofu hot dog stands at the stadiums or the streets on NY?? Now there's an idea.

Any takers?

recipe ideas for dinner (or whatever)

I was making tilapia for the kids the other day and I realized that the method I was using is not one I have seen here. I learned it from my sister-in-law in Spain.

It's very simple - - - flour and then egg.

Cut the fish - tilapia, snapper, whatever boneless fish - - and make it thin. You know how a double piece of tilapia has one side thin and the other thick? I take a big knife and open the thick one so it's 2 thin ones.

once you do this what was not too much fish seems like a lot more.

Now cut them into pieces around 3-4". Not bite-size exactly, bigger than that, but also not a whole big piece.

have one dish with a beaten egg and another with flour.

put salt on the fish first.

heat oil in a pan - any oil you want, really.

then put the fist first in the flour on both sides, then the egg then directly into the hot oil. should cook quickly.

I like to use chopsticks to flip the pieces of fish (trick from dad - works great) - -

when the pieces are looking good on both sides put on paper towel for a few minutes and serve.

Guaranteed people will like it. It's like breaded but not so bread-y. And relatively low-carb except the flour. Nobody's perfect : )

try it - you'll like it.

Paella Sunday

We have decided in my home to introduce "Paella Sunday" - not every Sunday but, well, often. As most of you know, my husband is from Spain where it is common to have paella for the big meal on Sundays. This past weekend my parents joined us and my dad, who grew up in Cuba, said that in Havana the popular Sunday lunch was arroz con pollo - a paellaesque dish. Good stuff.

Paella 1 and 2 have been successful. First one we did was seafood paella. I'll admit that I was superexcited once I bought all of the fun ingredients at the seafood market. I debated the Florida lobster tail ($14.79) and ended up going for it. My husband could't believe I bought such an expensive ingredient, saying that in Spain they don't put lobster and that it doesn't add anything. To each his own but it was awesome!!

This past Sunday my husband was the cook. He made the paella on the charcoal bbq.





Now on to the chicken paella, something I suggest you all try out. It's not expensive and it's fun to make and eat. Few ingredients:





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one chicken - cut up small (the guy at the market said he cut it up as he would for a curry)


one onion - cut up


frozen cut up pole beans (this ingredient is from my brother-in-law's recipe. He makes a mean paella). you can substitute string beans.


one red pepper - cut up


short grain valencia-style rice (the star of the show)


chicken broth or water

small amount of tomato sauce - like the kind from a can - - very plain


saffron or 'bijol'-type color


salt



that's it.


and olive oil of course.


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You'll need either a paella pan or a big heavy sautee pan.





Heat the oil and sautee the onion, red pepper and pole beans till soft.





Add the chicken and salt - - - - cook for a while until the chicken is almost all cooked.





Now the tricky part - - - for one chicken, we used a big paella pan and 2 14-ounce bags of rice. For some reason my brother-in-law puts the rice in a vertical line in the pan. Don't ask my why.





Let the rice hang out and get a little bit toasted in the yummy oil.





Then add the liquid - more that 2x the amount of rice.


Also add the bijol or saffron and the tomato sauce.





Let it go for at least 20 minutes. at this point the cook is standing by the paella, hopefully with a fun bevvy in hand, chatting with hungry guests who are oohing and aahing.

You'll know it's done when the liquid is basically gone and the rice is done.

Once it's done, cover with foil or a kitchen towel for a few minutes and serve.

Our Sunday paella fed 4 hungry people with plenty to spare. Could definitely feed six, and for about $10. Served with baguettes, salad and sangria.

Try it out. You won't regret it!!
Next I'm going to try vegetable paella - artichokes essential for that one - will keep you posted.

Food in today's economic climate --- and turkey meatballs

some Philosophy...

In today's economic climate, I see food as interrelated with finances, stress and overall happiness. I guess this is the case always, but particularly when we are really watching our expenses. I know I am not alone in going through some tough times, and I have realized that being in control of well-selected, economical menu choices for me and my family gives me a sense of calm and of empowerment. Generally I have found that the more natural the ingredients are, the better and more economical the meal will be.

During the past year I have found myself in the position of stay-at-home (unemployed)-mom. And as much as I enjoy cooking I am not a great housekeeper and the constant disarray in the house is a huge source of stress for me and something I am trying to control. Of course making a major dinner also makes a major mess. It's funny - the other day I told my 7-year-old that the only time I really clean the kitchen is when I'm about to cook and make it all messy again. I am making an effort to try to do the bulk of the cooking for midweek dinners during the day since I'm home anyway with a napping baby. Worked out well last night.

Some food....

Last night's menu is a good example of yummy and inexpensive - - - classic turkey meatballs, pasta and homemade pizza. I use all ground turkey thigh for the meatballs since it's moister and way cheaper. Also in my household we don't eat a lot of red meat - I don't eat any and therefore don't cook any. Once in a while my husband will make steak for him and the boys, but that's maybe once a month.

Instead of the usual bread crumbs in the meatballs I used a combo of oatmeal and matzah meal (leftover box from passover). Grated onion, grated garlic, ketchup, egg & salt. That's pretty much it for me. I do small-ish meatballs and cook them in a mixture of olive oil, tomato sauce and water in my big oval rachel ray pan. The sauce cooks down and the whole thing is great.

So yesterday I did all that in the afternoon and put it in a glass dish with a cover in the fridge, washed the rest of the stuff and was done with it. Even made the pasta early and had it in a tupperware.

As for the pizza, I bought pizza dough at the supermarket bakery section. Totally fun and the kids had a great time rolling it and putting the sauce and cheese. We made one plain one and one fun one (which meant adding meatballs and ricotta cheese).

All in all a great crowd-pleasing meal. Today I will freeze the leftover meatballs which will make for an even easier dinner for the kids one day in the future.

I know everyone out there has their secrets with meatballs and also maybe some tips on how to manage the stress - - - please comment and share!

recipe - - - string beans with tofu and tomato

My first recipe on this blog is something I came up with while eating low carb in an attempt to rid myself of pregnancy weight at some point after one of the 3 pregnancies. Turns out it's really delicious and healthy. It has become a regular dish in our home.

I have experimented with different kinds of protein (fish, egg and chicken) but tofu is by far the best one. If you don't like tofu, well, don't use it. Omit it or try something else.

You will need:

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Extra firm tofu

Whole stringbeans - about a big bag - maybe a pound or pound and a half? washed and trimmed.

One onion - yellow or white

One small can of fire-roasted diced tomato. (if it's not fire-roasted it's fine. we'll all survive)

mozzarella or smoked mozzarella - for melting on top - optional

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NOW

Firstly press the tofu. What does this mean? Take the block and cut it into thirds that are each a third of the depth of the original (got it?). Then figure out a system to press and let the water come out - what I do is put a wood cutting board at an angle going into the sink - I put something small under the far end - - then I take the tofu and put it in a piece of foil folded. On top of the tofu-filled foil I put a plate and heavy stuff - cans of tomatoes, beans, cast-iron pans, whatever, and leave it for about 15 minutes.

Ideally after this step the tofu is frozen in these bricks and then defrosted in the microwave prior to use.

Why do all of this? To extract the moisture.

I still have yet to get tofu the way I really want it but this is the closest so far.

SO on to the recipe, right?

Aha - first step is actually to put a pot of water to boil and overcook the stringbeans. Boil for about 10 minutes. Trust me.
You can actually use frozen if you want, but in that case don't boil for 10 minutes, just defrost but make sure they are whole ones.

Now cut the tofu into about 1 inch squares - bite size pieces.

While the stringbeans are boiling, heat oil in an ovenproof sautee pan hot and put the tofu in there. Let it get a sear on it and flip it. When it looks nice and crispy, take it out and reserve.

In the same pan, lower the heat to medium and sautee the onion cut into thin semi-circles. Cook the onions for a few minutes until they get soft but not caramelized.

Now the fun part - - - add the (drained) stringbeans, the tofu and a can of fire-roasted tomatoes. Raise the heat a bit and it will bubble. Lower the heat and let it hang out until it doesn't look so watery. (very scientific, right?)

Now - - - this part is optional. If you are vegan skip it. If you don't want cheese skip it. If you don't have cheese in the house skip it.
Cover the whole thing with shredded or thinly-sliced mozarella and put it under the broiler for a minute. WATCH IT. IT WILL BURN.

Voila!

Guarantee you will like this dish.
Unless of course you do not like stringbeans or tofu or tomatoes : )

Delicious with brown rice or pasta as an entree or as a side with protein (last night we ate it with tilapia)

Time-saver: do the stringbean part in advance and have them waiting, boiled already, in the fridge.

Alone it is virtually carb-free, right?

If somebody tries this please let me know if you like it.

let's talk food: a couple of shout-outs to Fresh from Florida Kids and Jamie Oliver

I would like to mention two websites that I have found to be inspirational, one on the state level and the other national.

First for all you Florida residents there is a state-run program called "Fresh from Florida Kids". I don't remember where I heard of it since it was not mentioned to me at the hospital when I had my daughter last year nor at the pediatrician ever since. That being said, if you have small children you can register and they send you a fun box with tons of fun things related to healthy eating, from recipes to a small food mill. The website also has some good information.

Without further ado here is the link to register:
www.freshfromfloridakids.com/participate.htm

Now onto bigger stuff, I have been a fan of Jamie Oliver for about 10 years now. If you are reading this blog you probably know enough about food issues in the U.S. to know that he is trying to start a "Food Revolution" in this country and has a reality show documenting his efforts in West Virginia. Now he just rocks in general and his revolution starts with the issue of how we feed our kids. I will have many posts about such issues including public schools, advertising and restaurant kids' menus.

But back to Jamie Oliver. His website has an online petition. He is planning on going to the U.S. government in an effort to make some changes.

Here is the link to his petition:

www.jamieoliver.com/campaigns/jamies-food-revolution/petition

Watch the show.
Sign the petition.

Till next time...