On the rind

I have prepared and fed my kids 1,327,965 snacks as a stay-at-home mom. Morning and afternoon, every solid-food-eating day of their lives. Fruit is my first choice, but sometimes the options just get tired, and the kids are less-than-enthused about eating snacks (then crankiness ensues from all involved). With budget and time constraints, I can only be so creative with snacks.

Sometimes I have to "sell" the snacks to them in Spin Mama fashion -- "We got these from the farmers, who grew them just for us" -- and I try to keep it interesting, by having snack outside or at the park.

I had a brainstorm one day that has definitely made snack time a win-win for the kids and me. I didn't want to cut up a whole cantaloupe and cube it into bite-size morsels (laziness prevails!) , so I made a big deal one day that our cantaloupe was "on the rind." I piled a bunch of slices on big plate and let them help themselves. You would have thought I had given them candy! They loved it. And they ate half a cantaloupe between them at one sitting.

I've done the same with watermelon, although that is almost exclusively and outside snack -- sticky pink goo everywhere, anyone?

And now that I'm picking Jellybean up at school each afternoon, and she's so, so hungry, "on the rind" is totally the portable way to go. You can walk and chew cantaloupe at the same time.

Millions of peaches, peaches for free

Does anyone else remember that song? Or maybe I'm the only one who sings it every summer in July when I have peach juice running down my chin.

Our new house has a peach tree. L picked one a day for about a week to taste, "for science," he said. He decided last weekend they were ripe, so we picked them! The picture doesn't do justice to how many there are. They're little, but they are yummy. And free, did I mention free? Well, free with this little thing we call a mortgage.

My freezer is full of peeled, sliced peaches. I'll be accepting your best peach-thing recipes anytime!

What's for dinner (in 20 minutes)?

Do you feel like you have the same 7 dinners in rotation every week -- like same stuff, different day? It's so easy to get in a rut of fixing the go-to, popular meals day in and day out. I'm hoping by sharing a couple of our favorites, maybe you can share your family's easy favorites, and then we can all shake up our routine a bit.

We are working very hard to make home-cooked dinners our priority. For the past 6 months or so, between our farm share and other meal planning, we have averaged almost six nights per week of eating at home. We've managed to create a rotation that includes many low-prep dinners and some decent nutrition. We always serve a vegetable, and we have a priority on whole grains -- sometimes difficult when we want to eat quickly and not spend all evening in the kitchen.

A while back, I wrote about some recipes that I love. I am not a gourmet chef, but I can follow a recipe. I'm also not terribly creative in generating new and exciting dinner ideas. Bear that in mind when you read our most popular meals -- for the kids AND adults in our house -- below.

1. Tacos. I have this one down to a quick science: brown the meat, heat some shells, and warm up refried beans. I have struggled to come up with the right vegetable to complement tacos. Nothing with much nutrition seems to mix well (read: lettuce on the taco doesn't count as veg!). But last week, it hit me: Sauteed bell peppers and onions.

2. Omelettes. Now that eggs are good for us again, according to the nutrition experts, I have no qualms about dishing up breakfast for dinner. They are quick to prepare, and often we can incorporate leftover vegetables as part of the omelette. And the girls shovel omelettes in like they're going out of style (but they're not). Toast on the side, and we're done.

3. Picnic dinner (veg and protein components pictured). I'm not talking about eating outside on a blanket. Instead, bring the picnic foods inside and put them on the kitchen table. This one was inspired by L's famous "snacky-snack" appetizer trays that he prepares for special occasions. Slice up cheese, salami, all the raw veg and fruit you can find, and put it on big plates. Add in whole grain crackers and/or whole grain bread. Everyone serves themselves. L and I agree that the girls probably eat more fruit and vegetables at this meal, wherein they select their food themselves, than at meals where we prepare their plates. The first time we served this, Jellybean exclaimed, "It's a picnic dinner!"

So, I showed you mine. Now you show me yours: What are your family's favorite quick dinners?

Farm to table

As I have mentioned before, I am a huge fan of eating locally, and I make both local and organic foods priorities for us. In that vein, this summer, for the first time in several years, we subscribed to a local farm share.

Going into the summer, I knew from the past a few things would be true with the farm share: 1. The fruits and veggies would be delicious beyond our imagination. 2. Cleaning and sorting the share would be a decent-sized project each week. 3. Incorporating everything in the share into our weekly menu would be a challenge.

These assertions all turned out to be accurate. The food has been SO good -- I didn't know salads could be so satisfying. However, I have come to appreciate when someone else (either L or the grocery store) cleans lettuce, spinach and potatoes for me. I spent more than a few hours leaning over my sink trying to rinse every bit of grit from the vegetables.

And I was glad to be prepared for allowing flexibility in our meals, because we only had a day or two's warning of what would be in the share each week. I am impressed at our creativity -- it was a team effort for L and me -- finding ways to fix even the most obscure of vegetables day in and day out. Along the way, we happened upon some delicious recipes and concepts.
But even with my previous experience with the farm share, nothing could have prepared me for how the kids would respond. I had no idea that they would eagerly anticipate our weekly trips to the farmer's market to retrieve the share. "When is it Wednesday so we can get stuff from the farmers?" they ask. We're talking about vegetables here, not toys. But it is approaching that level of excitement.

As we drive home from the farmer's market with our share box packed chock-full, they speculate about what might be inside. By the time we're home, opening the box on the kitchen floor is nothing short of Christmas, and I'm not exaggerating. "Finally, corn!" "Crunchy carrots!" "My favorite spinach!" (we call kale spinach for simplicity's sake) "Cucumbers to pickle!" Both Jellybean and Peanut now can identify almost every seasonal vegetable and fruit in its natural, raw state.

We have our farm share until mid-October. After that, we're on our own, I guess.

Now we're cookin'

Cooking blog posts are a bit "happy homemaker," but so be it, I am one! I'm not the sort to seek out new recipes and open up a test kitchen, but I've happened upon good recipes that are very easy to prepare and make a yummy meal. Thought I'd share them. They cover the range of food preferences, so there's something for everyone.

This one tastes elaborate and rich with a spicy kick, but it's SO easy. Thank God for Crock-Pots. I've had the best luck with this when I soak the black beans in water for an hour or more first. This is from Real Simple magazine.

Beer-braised pork and black bean soup

2 12-ounce bottles of beer (preferably lager)
1 tablespoon chopped canned chipotle chilies in adobo sauce, plus 1 tablespoon adobo sauce
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 large onion, chopped
1 pound dried black beans, rinsed
1 1/2 pounds boneless pork butt (pork shoulder)
Kosher salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup store-bought refrigerated fresh salsa
1/4 cup fresh cilantro

In the bowl of a slow cooker, combine the beer, 3 cups water, the chilies, adobo sauce, cumin, onion, beans, pork, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Set the slow cooker to high and cook, covered, until the beans are tender and the pork pulls apart easily, 4 to 5 1/2 hours. Using a fork, separate the pork into large pieces. Divide among individual bowls and top with the sour cream, salsa, and cilantro.

Here's another Real Simple recipe that takes 20 minutes start to finish (really!). The textures and flavors in this are restaurant quality.

Lemony shrimp with white beans and couscous

1 10-ounce box couscous (1 1/2 cups)
Kosher salt and black pepper
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic, chopped
4 scallions, chopped
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 15.5-ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed
1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

In a saucepan, bring 2 cups water to a boil. Stir in the couscous and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cover and let sit off heat for 5 minutes; fluff with a fork before serving.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and scallions and cook for 30 seconds. Add the shrimp and cook, stirring, until they begin to turn pink, about 3 minutes.

This soup, from Mario Batali, is thickened with bread -- hence, the name. You can use whatever vegetables you have on hand. It is much more flavorful than the separate ingredients would seem.

Bread Soup (Zuppa di Pane)

• 1-½ cup chopped mixed fresh herbs, such as marjoram, thyme, basil, mint, arugula, and Italian parsley • 2 medium zucchini, cut into ½-inch dice • 8 ounces green beans, tops and tails removed and cut into 1-inch lengths • 1 pound russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks • 2 ripe tomatoes, peeled and coarsely chopped • 1 spanish onion, cut into ¼-inch dice • 1 clove garlic, crushed • 8 cups cold water • Salt • Two 1-inch-thick slices thick Italian peasant bread, crusts removed • ½ small dried hot chile pepper or 1 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes • Freshly ground black pepper • ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

Preparation

1. In a large pot, combine 1 cup of the herbs, the zucchini, green beans, potatoes, tomatoes, onion, garlic, and cold water. Add salt to taste and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, covered, until the potatoes are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. 2. Meanwhile, soak the bread briefly in water to cover, then squeeze to get rid of excess liquid. 3. Crumble the bread and add it to the soup, along with the chile pepper. Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the bread has broken down and thickened the soup, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. 4. Ladle the soup into bowls, drizzle with the olive oil, and sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup chopped herbs.