Carbonara for Food Revolution Day 2014

My kids are frequently in the kitchen with me, and conversations about where our food comes from and how to prepare it healthfully and deliciously is part of our family fabric. Today is Food Revolution Day, and this year's message from Jamie Oliver really hits home: "I believe that it's every child's right to be taught about food, how to cook it and how it affects their bodies. Without this fundamental knowledge, they'll grow up without the skills or even the desire to eat better." Beyond the knowledge, I want food and food preparation to be fun for my kids. I'm excited for them to try new flavors and develop their palates and taste preferences. Experimenting in the kitchen exposes them to new flavors and helps to free them of inhibition to taste new foods. It also sends a message that setting aside the time to prepare real, whole foods is a family priority. I'm thrilled that Jamie Oliver has been so successful with Food Revolution Day; it is now celebrated in 117 countries! 

Today I've come across loads of events, recipes and blog posts recognizing Food Revolution Day. I absolutely loved this one by Bettina Elias Siegel of The Lunch Tray about home cooking as a political act and agree wholeheartedly with her when she says "I want them to learn by osmosis that we don't need Big Food to feed us, and that we can actually do a better job when we take back control of the cooking."

Today in honor of Food Revolution Day, my kids and I made Pasta Carbonara - a family favorite. This recipe has four ingredients. Three ingredients for my littlest one, who is dairy free and therefore eats the version without cheese.  

pasta, eggs, bacon, parmesan. 

First, we boiled the water to cook the pasta. The classic carbonara is all about spaghetti but my kids love this twirly shape best. Meanwhile, we fried up the bacon. I use Applegate's organic Sunday uncured bacon and I like to put it in the freezer for about 30 minutes before making this recipe so that it's easy to chop before frying. 

When the pasta is done cooking, I reserved 1/2 cup of the pasta water to use in the recipe (full recipe below). My daughter added it to the bacon and then added the cooked, drained pasta. 

I added the eggs and stirred quickly to incorporate them into the pasta without making scrambled eggs. I set a portion aside for my littlest one. My older kids then added cheese and stirred. Yum! Because the pan is still hot, the cheese melts beautifully. 

This dish is easy to make with kids in the kitchen. It uses simple, real, pronounceable ingredients. And it's a crowd pleaser! 

Pasta Carbonara
1 pound of dry pasta
4 large eggs
8 ounces of bacon, chopped
1/2 cup of finely grated parmesan
pepper to taste
salt for boiling water
 

Method
Boil the pasta in salted water as directed, until it's al dente. While the pasta cooks, fry the bacon in a pan over medium heat for approximately 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat. In a small bowl, crack the eggs and lightly beat them. Set aside. In another small bowl, grate the parmesan. When the pasta is done, reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking water before draining. 

Turn the heat back on to medium on the bacon pan. Add the reserved pasta water and stir. Add the cooked pasta and continue stirring until the water has evaporated and the bacon is evenly distributed. Take the pan off the heat again. Let sit for one minute. The pan will still be hot. Add the eggs slowly and mix quickly to thicken the sauce and to prevent the eggs from scrambling. At this point, you can add black pepper to taste for a dairy free version of carbonara. Otherwise, add the grated parmesan and stir well to combine. The cheese should melt immediately into a rich, creamy delicious sauce. 

Serve immediately. (this recipe serves 4-6 people)

Happy Food Revolution Day! 

Easy Spinach Pie (Dairy Free)

My husband declared that he was going to be meat-free for the month of May. Why? I don't know, maybe just to shake things up a bit. We don't eat a ton of meat around here but I'll admit, it's been both challenging and fun to design completely vegetarian dinners for us a month. Here's the rub: dinners also have to be nut-free (my allergies), dairy free (my preference) and pasta free (my husband's preference).

This spinach pie recipe is based on a classic recipe that I got from my mom. It's a family favorite. My adaptation of her recipe has no crust and no cheese and just five ingredients. It's the kind of thing you're going to want to make in bulk not only because it's delicious and you'll plow through it but also because it freezes beautifully. Having one of these tucked away in your freezer is like a goldmine on those days when you're too pooped to make anything. 

Popeye would be delighted! 

I use frozen spinach for this recipe. Most of the produce that I buy is fresh but I've read numerous articles like this one from the Washington Post suggesting that green leafy vegetables like spinach are "so nutrition-dense that it's good for you either way you eat it" (i.e. fresh or frozen). Spinach is like the superhero of greens. It has vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, iron and fiber. The eggs in this dish hold it together and give it added protein and the sautéed shallot and dill round out the flavor. This recipe can serve 4 people as a main course but my husband and I ate 2/3 of a recipe for dinner. I had the rest for lunch the next day. 

Leftover Spinach Pie for lunch.

Spinach Pie (Dairy Free) 

Ingredients
20 oz chopped frozen spinach (two 10 oz packages) 
2 whole shallots, chopped
1 tablespoon of olive oil
3 large eggs
2 tablespoons of fresh chopped dill
Salt and pepper to taste

Method
Preheat the oven to 375. Cook the spinach as directed on the package and drain as thoroughly as possible. Place in a bowl. Sauté the chopped shallots in olive oil until translucent. Let cool for a few minutes and then add to spinach. Mix well. Add the eggs and dill and make sure everything is well combined. Add salt and pepper as desired. Place in a baking dish (I use an 8x8). Bake for approximately 30 minutes. 

Best Beans

I spend all winter long dreaming about that stretch of weather between Mother's Day and Father's Day. I look forward to being outside as much as possible during those days, which leaves me with less time in the kitchen. Despite the iffy weather we've been having, I have faith that soon enough, we'll be able to spend more time outside. In preparation, I've been experimenting with batches of black beans using dried beans instead of canned beans and just like everything else that 's prepped in advance, having a big ol' container of delicious black beans on the ready in my fridge makes life easier and frees up time for outside adventures! Making beans from scratch initially felt like a luxury to me; I never figured that I had the time for such an undertaking but I've come to realize that the low-maintenance set-up of beans (hours of soaking followed by hours of simmering) is much less stressful and time consuming than I initially thought. And the result? More time with my clan plus a giant container of phenomenal beans for several days which actually means less time sweating the dinner meal planning. Score. 

My first go-to for how-to was TheKitchn. I read this fantastic post about cooking dried beans and have pretty much committed it to memory. Making a delicious pot of black beans is literally no more than beans + water + salt + time.  I have experimented with this formula by adding fresh garlic or fresh shallots or a bay leaf. My kids had the most compliments for the batch using fresh garlic (recipe below). Seriously, I am bowled over by how easy this has been. Armed with my pot of beans, I have a world of possibility at my fingertips. 

Though some people consider a pot of black beans to be just a cold weather comfort food, we eat them year round. The list is endless: Roasted black beans, DIY black bean wraps, black bean tacos, black bean soup, feijoada, black bean dip, black beans and rice, black bean burgers, black beans without anything else in a bowl with a spoon. I am a big fan of canned beans, don't get me wrong. But I feel like a rockstar these days for making my own. 

Here's the recipe for amazing black beans, slightly adapted from TheKitchn: 

Ingredients 

1 pound dried black beans
Water
1 tablespoon salt, plus more to taste
2 small garlic cloves, cut into large chunks

Instructions

1. Cover the beans in water and soak them for at least two hours, preferably longer. I've had amazing results when I soak them overnight but have also produced delicious batches with just a couple of hours of soaking. 

2. Drain the soaked beans. There may not be much water left, as the beans have absorbed  them and grown. Rinse the beans with cool water. 

3. Place the beans in a sturdy pot or Dutch oven. Add the garlic. Cover with an inch of salted water.

4. Bring the beans to a boil. Give the beans a gentle stir and reduce heat to a simmer and cook with the lid on for at least an hour, potentially up to three hours. Stir occasionally and taste for doneness. If the beans are quite al dente and the water is mostly evaporated, add a bit more water. 

5. When beans are nearly done, add the salt, stir and taste. Adjust salt as needed. Continue to simmer until beans are tender. 

Best Black Beans with rice packed for lunch with Spring Citrus Salad, baby carrots, dried apricots and sunflower seed cookies.

We feasted on black beans for days! It was a perfect companion to the April Citrus Salad. Let us know your favorite uses for black beans! 

LaLa Monster Body Art

We are beyond excited to announce the launch of our new store! For a limited time, you can purchase Tattly temporary tattoos of three of our hungry little LaLa Monsters: Eva, Jules and Pearl and accessorize your skin! There are two packages available: the Trio and the Dozen. 

Each LaLa Monster Tattly is safe and non-toxic, printed with vegetable based ink, made in the USA and FDA compliant and fun for all ages. We love Tattly! We hope you and your hungry little monsters do too. 

Meatballs, Deconstructed

You know that person who always has a cold? I'm the opposite of that person. I am never sick. It's a point of pride, if you must know. 

But I've been put in my place this winter. Any whiff of smugness that I once had about my ninja ability to stay healthy is over. Winter has smacked me in the face with two stomach bugs and now a virus with fever that has basically flattened me.  

I'm not alone in this; my babysitter had it and my girls have it. Misery does not love company. My mission is to keep my son and my husband fever free and care for my girls and myself in the meantime. I'm unbelievably grateful that my babysitter is feeling better! Last night, with super low energy, I decided that instead of going through the steps to make meatballs (originally the plan before the fever hit), I'd make them deconstructed - which really just meant I'd use all of the intended ingredients but throw them together instead of carefully construct them. So I threw the ingredients in a frying pan and served them with spinach linguine, deconstructed. You know what? It was tasty. And fast. And it's something I'm going to keep tinkering with. I realize I'm posting this recipe and have only made it once, which is not typically something I like to do. But I've done it, so there. 

Spinach linguine with deconstructed meatballs, sautéed spinach and strawberries. A really fast dinner! 

Deconstructed Meatballs
1 clove of garlic
1/2 pound ground meat (I used ground pork but anything should do the trick)
1/4 cup of plain unseasoned bread crumbs
1 large egg  
1/2 teaspoon salt
olive oil for frying
Grated parmesan to sprinkle on top

Serve with pasta (we used spinach linguine) 

Method:
Place olive oil in a frying pan on medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes. Add the ground meat and stir, breaking it up into small bits. Add the breadcrumbs, egg and salt and combine well, using the side of a spatula to make it piece-y. 

Continue cooking until the meat is fully cooked. Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to boil and prepare pasta as directed. Serve the meat on top or combine as I've done. Garnish with grated Parmesan.