by Anna on January 5, 2012
If there is one thing that Don and I really disagree on, it’s how many kitchen props and gadgets I need. The answer is more than I have. And then there’s the storage of said gadgets. So I guess it’s really two things that we disagree on. If I had it my way the counter tops would be clear but I could magically press a button every time I needed my food processor, blender, kitchen aid, toaster, soda machine etc to appear. This is clearly not an option. Instead I keep the most used items out on the counter and the rest I pull out the stepping stool for, climb up and lug them out of high up places, unravel cords and then attempt to place them neatly back after wards. If they aren’t neatly put away one runs the risk of cords getting tangled and a food processor-caused concussion. This was a chore when I wasn’t eight months pregnant…now it’s just a bloody hassle. Don would rather the counters were always clear too (except maybe for his keys, his hat, his ID card, his water bottle and yesterdays lunch Tupperware that uses our counter top as its dumping ground). It’s a big problem for those of us who live in small spaces but demand a well-equipped kitchen.
Recently I’ve been wondering whether my blender deserves a priority spot on the counter top. I’ve been making so much soup it seems to be all I use these days. Unfortunately I haven’t been very good at the writing down the recipe as I go part….nothing but pure laziness on my part and perhaps a pinch of pregnancy brain, which happens to disable ones ability to multi-task. I now know what it feels like to be a man. Perhaps I’ll stop giving Don such a hard time…
Last night I had a moment of clarity and managed to do both. Hurrah! I made potato and bacon soup and then grated cheddar on top because when I woke up yesterday it was 13F in NYC and Don had painted the heating switch shut. Even my neighbours rising heat couldn’t keep me warm and so on days that cold, new years resolutions or not, everyone could do with a little extra padding on their hips to keep them warm. It’s actually really not all that unhealthy- but eating a bowl of potato soup with bacon and cheese makes me think i’m eating a bowlful of creamy mashed potatoes, which gives me feelings of equal parts pleasure and guilt. Lets hang on the pleasure part though. The soup is creamy but sans cream. There is bacon fat but no butter- and really this has got to be better for you than french fries.
With most soups I like to blend everything together- maybe its just how I grew up eating soup but I like how a blended soup brings together all of the flavours in every bite. Unblended soups can have a cleaner, healthier taste but that’s not really what I’m always after. Having said that with this soup I decided to leave a third of it unblended so that there was some bite…more hearty stew than soupy mashed potatoes but still creamy. I threw a handful of spinach in the bottom of my bowl because well baby needs greens but it’s perfectly delicious on its own…even without the cheese.
Keep reading for the recipe….
by Anna on December 5, 2011
My belly has become prime real estate. There’s a bidding war going on between my ever growing baby and the space in my stomach to feed said growing baby and baby is winning hands down. He/she is a ruthless negotiator and as my stomach gets shoved into a tight corner eating has become more of a challenge than a pleasure. It’s a good lesson in pacing myself. Us Helm’s and our days competing at the boarding school dinner table have not made us genteel feeders but pregnancy has taught me how vital it is to slow down. Otherwise what goes down will get kicked (quite literally) back up.
Gone is the joy of the first trimester and the glow of the second- the third trimester has hit like a ten ton truck full of ugly sticks. My back hurts, my right hip hurts and my life has become one long kegal exercise as I try to ward off any unfortunate incidents resulting from a surprise left-hook from my little real estate tycoon. Ahh pregnancy….you were so wonderfully uneventful up until now. Which brings me to my real point of being here today.
Millionaire’s flapjacks. Hello.
Now before you start questioning how I could take a perfectly healthy flapjack and smother it in caramel and chocolate- let me remind you of two important facts. 1/ I am a hugely pregnant woman with raging hormones and 2/ don’t delude yourself, flapjacks were never healthy in the first place. Sure they mostly consist of oats but sugar and butter weigh in at a close second and third place so really what’s a little caramel and chocolate too?
It’s pure joy- that’s what. Fortunately, I was destined to share these at the second annual NY cookie swap supporting Cookies for Kids Cancer or else baby might have had something to say about them. Or perhaps more likely, would have kicked up a fuss about how many I was trying to squeeze in my stomach. I’m telling you, It’s a war in there.
Keep reading for the recipe….
by Anna on November 21, 2011
There are many over-achievers one comes upon in this world. Some are commendable and the others are just plain annoying. These sprouts fall into the latter category, I hope you’ll agree. I’ve decked them out with so many good extras you might be wondering if they still count as eating a vegetable (look if the government thinks pizza is a vegetable then these definitely are). Think of these as Superman rather than Clark Kent. Your average sprout…pretty plain looking, pretty bland, uninteresting. Toss in some superpowers though…in the form of pine nuts, bacon, caramelized shallots, a squeeze of lemon and a little parm and they may as well be flying through the sky in a lycra suit saving us from the baddies. Please feel free to step in and stop me at any time…..
What I’m trying to say is that there are vegetables and then there are pimped out vegetables and sprouts frankly need all the pimping out they can get. So this holiday season, help a sprout out, will ya? The process is remarkably simple. All you need is one pan- you could do it in three and multi-task but this will take all of twenty minutes to do from start to finish so you may as well save yourself (or the magic elves you live with) the washing-up. You can also make ahead all the add-in’s or exclude some all together…think superman without the cape but still the power to fly. If you’re serving this as part of a meal with all the trimmings….say Thanksgiving for example then you may want to omit the cheese. If you’re just serving a roast chicken with potatoes go the whole way and add in everything. Or if you’re the over-achieving guest who offered to bring a side-dish, bring this one. It may even outshine the hosts turkey. Hey if anyone can outshine the turkey, it’s superman…I mean super sprouts.
Keep reading for the recipe….
