Abby’s design (“Teeshee”), left; Phoebe’s design (“Bat”), right. Bring on the Milky Way Darks!
Monthly Archives: October 2010
Friday Round-up
…to have family dinner: When my kids are 16 and 15 (instead of 8 and 7) and we are dealing with friendship dramas, SATs, sexting episodes, and God only knows what else (Parents of teen-agers: please refrain from telling me what else) dinner will be so firmly established as my family’s 6:30 Magnetic North, that my kids’ hormone-raging, eye-rolling, parent-resenting… Read more »
Baked Sausages with Apples and Potatoes…Hold the Mess
I’ve only watched The Simpsons a few times in my life, but I vividly recall an episode where Homer stands in front of his bathroom mirror shaving. As soon as he puts down the razor and towels his face dry, his six-o-clock shadow emerges as gray and shady as it was before he began. I mention this here because I,… Read more »
Shrimp, Meet Angel Hair
My daughters are 20 months apart in age. When they were babies, people would take one look at the hollowed-out shells that once housed our functioning selves and say It’s tough now, but you’ll be so grateful later when they play together. I thought these people were lying just to make me feel better. We were so in the thicket… Read more »
Get Your Game On
The party officially began at 6:00 and ended at 8:00, but at 5:58 I had already checked my watch twice, counting down to its finish. Why do minutes feel like centuries during birthday parties in your own house? Or at least they do for me. But its sorta like having a baby, I guess. Because I forget the pain as… Read more »
Girl Crazy
As far as omens go, it doesn’t get much worse than this. On a Wednesday evening a couple weeks ago, at about 7:30 pm, I proposed something radical: how about we eat on the couch tonight, while watching… Game One of the American League Division Series! This was greeted with surprising enthusiasm. Abby and Phoebe marched over with their plates… Read more »
Guaranteed Crowdpleaser (For the Under-10 Set)
It’s a miracle if I bake something from scratch even once during the course of my child’s birthweek. And if I’m going to do it, it’s going to be Rosa’s Mud Cake for the actual birthday party. But for the classroom party? No chance. A few years ago I debuted this Dunkin Donut Cake at school and was actually embarrassed… Read more »
Fish & Chips
I was thinking of adding a new category on the right over there called “Meals That Are Impossible To Photograph Because My Daughter Can’t Help But Eat The Subject.” Because don’t you think it’s saying something about the deliciousness of a meal when I have to instruct my poor, hungry, 8-year-old model “Stop eating your dinner!” as she mauls what’s… Read more »
Fave Five
Five Books We Love Right Now An evolving list Last Updated: 8/5/12 Click here more details on Fave Five. Chew on This, by Eric Schlosser Back in my magazine editing days, I used to work on a column called “What the Writers are Reading,” and we were lucky enough to feature Michael Pollan in one of them. One of the books… Read more »
A Picky Eater Taxonomy
The Mikey Pollan Ideal meal: Heritage chicken stir-fry with kohlrabi, heirloom bell peppers, and buckwheat soba noodles. Overheard at family table: “Mom, this kale is a little more delicate than I’m used to — are you sure it isn’t Tuscan? Did you massage it?” Overheard at playdate with less food-aware friend: “No, thanks. My mom says real Parmesan doesn’t come in… Read more »
Can You Start Dinner?
If you are in a commuting, two-working-parent relationship, the IM correspondence with your spouse between 4:00 and 5:00 PM probably reads something like this: d: train? m: 5:41 hopefully. u? d: 6:27. hopefully. m: dinner? d: dunno. what do u think? m: not sure. pasta? d: had pasta for lunch. chili? you there? hello? m: S#%T !!!!!! sue just called… Read more »
My Real Food Movement
I think it’s so awesome when readers come up to me and say “I love your blog. You sound like you have the greatest life.” This conclusion is based on the fact that I regularly…eat porcupine meatballs? That’s a joke, but it’s also kind of serious. I need to back up for a second. My first job out of college… Read more »
More Reasons to Pick up Time for Dinner…
As if you need more than the Potato-Chard “Lasagna” in Chapter 4???!!! For real: I’m pleased to report that Time for Dinner continues to get some nice ink. (Pixels?) Here is a recent Q&A I did with ivillage, and my co-author Alanna’s write-up in Martha Stewart’s really fun new living-with-kids blog The Family Room and a review from my hero, Corina at Nonchalant Mom…. Read more »
Cure for the Common Thursday
Do you guys suffer from Thursday Syndrome like I do? Symptoms include dry refrigerator, a shriveled vegetable supply, and feelings of guilt-fueled resistance to ordering in or going out. (That’s what Friday is for, you weakling!) Lucky for all of us there is a cure, and it involves a combination of the six magical grocery items below, all of which you… Read more »
Butternut Squash Soup with Apples (or “I Don’t Know Yet”)
At around 6:00 the other night, six-year-old Abby made her way into the kitchen to ask what she usually asks at 6:00 when I’m in the kitchen. “Mom, what’s for dinner?” Even though Andy had started hacking up a butternut squash about six hours earlier, even though I was standing there over a stock pot, wielding an immersion blender, minutes… Read more »
On Anniversaries
I’ve been thinking a lot about anniversaries this week. Exactly a year ago today I retired from full-time working-mom life. (Doesn’t that sound so much more empowering than…”Exactly a year ago I was let go” or “Exactly a year ago Cookie folded.”) The staff drowned its sorrows at Scratcher in the East Village, which just so happens to be the bar… Read more »
The Six-Kid Crowdpleaser
A few weeks ago my friend Vanessa invited my family to her house for dinner. She and her husband cooked the most delicious meal — not to mention presented a perfect starter plate (prosciutto-wrapped bocconcini and halved fresh figs) that I’ve already stolen and passed off as mine in my own house. Twice. But the real highlight of the evening… Read more »
Transition Inspiration (Plus the Key to Happiness)
I have a hard time with transitions. Going from elementary school to middle school was a nightmare for me. I was completely lost when I moved from Brooklyn to the suburbs seven years ago. And, perhaps just as dire as these First World predicaments, I can never figure out what works for dinner in late September/early October — when summer… Read more »
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A LITTLE BIT ABOUT ME
Welcome! I’m Jenny, author of Dinner: A Love Story and The Weekday Vegetarians More
