Watermelon popsicle

It can't get simpler than that.
Blended frozen watermelon.

Watermelon popsicle - no added sugar

Simple and refreshing.

Have more watermelon that your family can eat? Blend and freeze.

I used BPA free plastic molds and Vitamix blender.
Paper cups and wooden popsicle sticks will work well too.

Cream cheese hemp seed sandwich

"I'm late!
 I'm late! 
 For a very important date!
 No time to say hello, goodbye!
 I'm late!
 I'm late!
 I'm late!"                    
                            White Rabbit's song, from "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" by Lewis Carroll

Sometimes this is how I feel. Many parents, working and not working may relate. But do I really have to be pressed with time in order to prepare easy lunch? Making something quick will allow me to spend time on other things that really matter - reading, taking a walk or playing one more chess game.

Sprouted whole grain bread with cream cheese and hemp seeds, cherry tomatoes and cucumbers

Really, there is no recipe.
My 6 years old daughter asked to make it for her dinner today.
It was entirely her idea.

Cream cheese sandwich with hemp seeds and vegetables can be excellent speedy lunch.

Take good sandwich bread. I have used sprouted whole grain bread from Trader Joe's.
Spread cream cheese you like - I prefer whole milk to reduced fat.
Wash and cut some vegetables.
Sprinkle hulled hemp seeds on top for added taste and nutrition. Hemp plant has many uses and using hemp seeds for food surprised me first time I have heard about it. And hemp seeds considered to be super food. They are rich in essential fatty acids, vitamin E and minerals. Hemp seeds have pleasant nutty taste that can enhance many dishes, especially fresh salads. 

To pack lunch for yourself or your child, fold the sandwich over, cut it to fit into lunch box, add fresh vegetables and it is ready.

How to steam asparagus?

Steamed asparagus and broccoli

Steamed asparagus is perfect just as it is and asparagus leftovers are such a great addition to lunchbox and to any other dish. I cut them to pieces and add to scrambled eggs. I use them as pizza topping. I add them to chicken soup.

Steamed asparagus

Ingredients

asparagus - about 1 pound
water

Tools

Steaming basket
Large pot or wok

Asparagus before steaming

Method

Wash asparagus. One by one bend the bottom part till it breaks and discard hard chewy ends. Place asparagus in the steaming basket. Fill water in pot or wok almost to the bottom of the steaming basket. Cover and bring to boiling. Steam for about 3-4 minutes depending on thickness, till asparagus softens a little. The asparagus will change it color from raw green to bright green.  Run under cold water to stop cooking. Serve with or without dressing of your choice or refrigerate for future use.



I

Packed for lunch - asparagus, beets and pineapple

Easy finger food - just hold and bite.

Mama's turkey meatball soup. With vegetables.

Similar to Italian wedding soup, there are many variation on meatball soup with vegetables in many traditions.
My mom makes this incredible,  warming, soothing soup. I loved it as a child, I love it now.

Pot with turkey meatballs soup with potatoes and carrots

Different types of meat can be used for this soup. My mom uses turkey or chicken. Italian classic version is a mix of pork and beef.

My mom came and cooked. I asked her to add more carrots. Kids love soup with carrots. I am happy.

Turkey Meatballs Soup with potatoes and carrots
(суп с фрикадельками)

Ingredients for meatball soup, before mixing

Ingredients

For the meatballs
- ground turkey, dark meat, 1 pound
- onion, 1 medium chopped
- parsley, 2 tables spoons chopped
- egg, 1
- sea salt, 1/2 tablespoon or to taste
- black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon or to taste
- turmeric, to taste 1/2 teaspoon or to taste
- paprika, to taste 1/2 teaspoon or to taste

For the rest of the soup
- carrots, 2 small, peeled
- parsnip, 1, peeled (optional)
 - potatoes, 5 medium, peeled and cut to bite size cubes
- sea salt, to taste
- bay leave, 1-2
- parsley strings (optional)
- oregano, dry, 1/2 teaspoon or to taste

Method

In a large pot, boil water. Put in carrots and parsnip. Place all the ingredients for the meatballs in large mixing bowl and mix well with your hands. Wet your hands and form small balls. As you form, gently drop each meatball into boiling water. Lower the heat to low. Add the spices - bay leaves, oregano and parsley strings and let the soup simmer to 15 minutes. Add potatoes and salt and cook till potatoes are soft. They can be easily pierced with fork. Turn the heat.

Use thermos to send to school for lunch. The soup can be refrigerated for up to 5 days.

When I reheat meatball soup for lunch for myself, I like adding leafy greens. Kale or collard greens compliment this soup really well. Try it!

Turkey meatball soup with potatoes and carrots. With green kale.

Pan fried wild salmon. With soy sauce.

Another take on wild salmon preparation. Wild salmon is really a super food. Since I cook it only for David, individually packed frozen wild salmon fillets work the best.

On the skillet, cooked and ready

This easy recipe has two advatages over the steamed version. The first one is that my son leaves no leftovers and the second is the amount of dishes, just one small skillet.

Wild salmon, pan fried with soy sauce

Ingredients
wild salmon fillet, 1
soy sauce, 1 tablespoon (I used gluten free tamari sauce)
oilve oil for frying, about 1/2 tablespoon
salt, to taste (needs very little, if at all, depends on the saltiness of the soy sauce)
black pepper, to taste
lemon juice, optional

Method
Heat skillet with lid on medium heat for about 30 seconds. Add  olive oil. Place the fillet skin side up. Close the lid and let it fry for about 1 minute. Open carefully and add soy sauce. Let it simmer and cook the salmon with the lead closed for another 3 minutes. Flip salmon fillet skin side down, season with black pepper and salt and cook for about 4 minutes. To be sure it is cooked properly, use food thermometer to check the internal temperature in the thickest part. It should measure 145F. When ready squeeze some lemon juice, if you choose.



This wild salmon is delicious hot or cold. For my convenience I have cooked it day before school and packed cold. With plenty of vegetables. 

Lunchbox with pan friend wild salmon, beets salad and steamed broccoli

The lunchbox came out completely empty.

Making popcorn together.

It was a celebration when my grandmother popped popcorn for me. It was long before microwaves made their way to the modern kitchens.

Popcorn from scratch

It was a magic ritual. She got this strange looking corn dried on the cob  from the market and popped it for me. With me! The sounds it made - tra-ta-ta-ta-ta! The special attention I got. Priceless. 

Invite your child to join you in making popcorn. Explain everything - to stay away from heat, to listed to the sounds, to pay attention to the interval between the sounds. Invite him/her to examine the size of popcorn before and after popping. Bring their attention to few grains that won't pop - make sure they don't eat it. This whole popping ritual is an adventure.

Popcorn from scratch

Ingredients

popcorn, 1/4 - 1/3 cup  (preferable organic, since corn is usually heavily sprayed)
coconut oil, 1/2 tablespoon (or other heat resistant oil of your choice)
sea salt, optional
seasoning of your choice, optional

Method 

In large pot heat the oil on medium heat for about 1 minute. Add popcorn. Lower the heat to medium low. Stir or shake the pot to cover the grains in oil. Close the lid and wait together. One pop, few more, an artillery... And here is continues. When the interval between the pops starts to get longer and longer, remove the pot from heating element completely. Wait few seconds for it to stop. Transfer to serving bowl. Season, mix and enjoy. 

Easy dinner. With hard to get farm fresh eggs.

There are so many interesting patterns in a human nature. Let's take a closer look at this one: the greater the effort or risk it takes to acquire something we desire, the greater the value we tend to assign to the object of our desire.

Farm fresh eggs

Things we invest more money, time and/or energy into. Bring to your mind marketing messages - "hard to get", "ends soon", "limited quantity". They all designed to deliver a message there is a great value offered. And those messages do string a chord somewhere inside our human soul. 

For me, it is farm fresh eggs. Yes, those eggs are really hard to get at Drumlin farm. In the last 4 years my family goes there, I was able to get my hands on the eggs 3 times only.  Only 3.

What is so special about those eggs? Since they are so hard to get, my mind immediately assigns them almost magic properties. But, trust me, those eggs are the best. They are super fresh. They come in different sizes and colors. They come from pastured egg mobile - the chickens eat live worms and insects and spend their time under the sun. So the eggs are rich in vitamins, minerals and omega oils.

The taste is incredible. I like to use fresh farm eggs for omelets, eggs sunny side and mayonnaise. My kids love scrambled eggs.  I add sour cream or yogurt to create silky, custard like texture. I prefer fermented dairy to regular milk that usually used.

Scrambled eggs made with yogurt

Ingredients

2 eggs
sea salt, pinch
whole milk yogurt, 2 tablespoons (or sour cream)
butter, for cooking
parmesan cheese, grated, 1 tablespoon (optional)

Method

Break the eggs into bowl. Add salt, yogurt and whisk.

Eggs whisked with yogurt

Preheat the pan on medium heat for a couple of minutes. Add butter to cover the pan. Add the egg mixture. Spead parmesan on top, if using. Cook for 2 minutes and flip. It is fine to flip separate pieces - easier for the kids to eat. Cook till it is not runny or to your liking.

Omelet served

Serve warm.

Easy green beans. With soy sauce, garlic and curry.

How would you trim your green beans? With scissors! There is something meditative in taking one string at the time and cutting its tail. Green beans make fast and healthy Asian flavored side dish. 

Green beans, cooking; garlic and oil, getting ready with scissors

Curried green beans with soy and garlic


Ingredients

garlic, 2 gloves, minced
olive oil, 1/2 table spoon

chili flakes - 1/4 tables spoon or to taste (optional)

green beans, 1 pound, washed and trimmed

curry powder, 1/2 tea spoon or to taste
soy sauce, 1 tablespoon or to taste (tamari sauce can be substituted)
water, 1/4 cup or more
rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon or to taste (umeboshi or other vinegar can be substituted)
roasted sesame oil, 1/2 teaspoon or to taste (optional)
no salt

Note: for gluten free, check labels

Method

Place garlic, oil and chili flakes on medium skillet and turn heat on low medium heat. Cook for about 30 seconds till fragrant. Add beans, curry powder, soy cause, water, vinegar and stir. Cover and let cook for about 5 minutes covered. Steam will cook the beans.

It is your choice to make beans crisp or soft. My family likes them on a softer side. If you prefer them softer, add splash of water, cover and cook for few more minutes. When done to your liking, turn off the heat, add sesame oil and mix.

Note, that if the beans remain in hot skillet, they are subject to heat and get softer.

Cooked!

Those green beans are great addition to lunch box, either cold, by themselves or warm, mixed with rice in a thermos.

Mixing cheese casserole. With broccoli.

Making casseroles was in my list of things to do for a long time. It has always appealed to me. One dish meal, loaded with vegetables and easy. Yes, easy. I was thinking - just mix it all, bake and the meal is ready. Finally I made it. And it was easy. 

broccoli ricotta cheese casserole

There were ricotta cheese, sour cream, grated parmesan and broccoli in my fridge. I have mixed it and the result over performed any expectations. The result was record amount of broccoli my daughter ate. Ever. She gobbled the casserole with the broccoli and asked for more and more.


Broccoli Cheese Casserole
Ingredients
ricotta, whole milk - 10 ounces or 300 gram 
sour cream - 5 ounces 150 gram
eggs, 2
semolina flour - 2 tablespoons (or other flour) 
broccoli, steamed - 1.5 pound or 700 gram
parmesan cheese - 3.5 ounces or 100 gram cheddar cheese - 2 ounces or 60 gram 
mozzarella cheese - 2 ounces or 60 gram
salt, 1/2 tea spoon or to taste
black pepper, to taste
thyme, dried - 1/2 tea spoon or to taste

Method

Mix everything besides broccoli. Add broccoli and mix.
Butter baking container. Spoon everything in. Grate some mozzarella over.
Bake for 1 hour at 390F uncovered until golden and set.
Serve with salad and fresh vegetables. Pack cold or warm for lunch.


I have made this recipe using steamed cauliflower. Delicious. Another record amount of cauliflower for my daughter.  Spinach is next. 


This is a great solution to help picky children to eat more vegetables. With cheese vegetables taste better. 

Preheat or pack cold for lunch.