Locally Grown

So sorry that I seem to have been on hiatus for the past week and a half. I had a video to do for the New York Times so it's been insane around here. But, hopefully it will all pay off this weekend. The story is scheduled to run on Sunday. Take a look at nytimes.com and check out the video player.

I have a few recipes I would like to share from last week -- Damien is actually the one who did most of the cooking -- but I will get to that in the next post. First, for all of you who read about my experience with the Coconut Grove Farmers Market, I wanted to point out this interesting Miami Herald article about how Publix is going to start identifying local produce with a Redland-Raised label. It also explains a few reasons there is not as much locally grown produce as you might expect from South Florida.

Again, apologies for my lack of posts. Video is finished so I'll start cooking again.

Baked Brie with Apricots in French Bread

We are up in Vero Beach this week visiting with my parents. I savor these weekends because not only do they get to see Baz for a few days, but we get to take much needed breaks to just relax with the peace of mind that someone we trust is watching after our little rascal. It's a treat. For instance, today Damien and I both got facials. Tomorrow we'll go out to dinner and see a movie. And as an added bonus when we go back to Miami Beach we'll be taking home 13 frozen meals that my mother has prepared for us. Her prepared meals were a godsend after Baz was first born. When I couldn't even tell what day it was, never mind if it was time for dinner, I could just pull out some lasagna or the best chicken parm I've ever had from the freezer. About an hour later, a home cooked meal. And she's a great cook.

So it comes as no surprise that my mom made a wonderful appetizer tonight that I'd like to share. It's very easy to do and has a real "wow" factor to it if you are looking for something to impress guests.

It's Baked Brie topped with Apricot Preserves in a french bread crust. I have to give props to our family friends, the Goodwins, who introduced my parents to this recipe while they were visiting them last week in the Adirondacks.

Baked Brie with Apricots in French Bread
1 full wheel of brie
1 jar of apricot preserves
1 container of Pillsbury Crusty French Loaf

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Spray a baking sheet with a non-stick spray like Pam. Place the whole brie in the center. Stretch the french bread dough around the outer edge of the cheese leaving the top exposed. Pinch the two ends together so that it is securely joined in a circle. Pour the apricot preserves into the center, completely covering the top of the brie, but not the dough.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes (or according to the french bread instructions). Remove from the oven and let stand for 10 to 15 minutes.

Then you can just slice the bread and spread a little cheese and apricots on it as it oozes out from the center. Man, I wish I had remembered to take a picture.

Thanks, Mom and Mrs. Goodwin!

Babies Make You Better at Work

I was just catching up on the Motherlode blog on the New York Times web site and saw this post that I found pretty inspiring.

It's about how having a baby can actually make you better at work. Watching the little guy trying to walk -- how he gets up, falls and then gets right back up again with the same happy enthusiasm as the first 100 times until one day he finally takes that first successful step -- is a good lesson in how we should approach our work.

Pork Loin for a Whole Family

With Damien's family here visiting, I had to come up with something for a bigger group. When I couldn't find the McCormick pulled pork packet, or a boneless pork shoulder for that matter, I decided on a pork loin that I found at Costco last time I was there. It was a huge 4 pound pork loin that was already in a onion and garlic marinade. It was so super simple. I just put in a roasting pan and cooked it for about an hour. I covered it which may have helped keep it moist. I used a meat thermometer to make sure it was fully cooked and then I sliced it and put the slices back into the roaster so that I could coat the individual slices with the juices that had pooled in the bottom of the pan.

I served it with some Yukon Gold mashed potatoes and steamed (well, microwaved really) broccoli. It was actually really tasty and good. Comfort food. We paired it with a nice bottle of La Crema Chardonnay, one of our favorites, and had a lovely dinner with Damien's siblings.

This is how I made the mashed potatoes and they turned out really well:

Yukon Gold Mashed Potatoes
(for 6 people)
7 or 8 medium or large Yukon Gold potatoes
1 tablespoon of olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, pressed
1/2 stick of butter
1/2 cup of milk (more or less to taste)
salt and pepper
1/4 cup Asiago cheese, shredded

Cut the potatoes into chunks and place in a pot of water so that all the potatoes are covered. I don't peel the potatoes, but if you prefer you can peel them. Cook until soft (about 20 minutes). Pour the potatoes into a strainer to get rid of the water.

Put the olive oil in the emptied pot. Add the garlic and saute until lightly browned. Add the butter and pour the hot potatoes back into the pot. Add milk and coat the potatoes with the butter and milk. Use a masher to mash the potatoes in the pot. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add the cheese and mix.

I use Yukon Gold because they really are the tastiest for mashed or roasted potatoes. Check them out.

We top off our simple meal with some ice cream for dessert and everybody seemed happy. It was a great visit and I can't wait for them all to come back again.

Flu Vaccines

Last week was a busy one with Damien's two brothers visiting. It became a full house on Friday when Ryan's wife, Samantha arrived. Then Dani, their little sister, joined us on Saturday for a great beach day -- and their timing was perfect since a bit of a cold snap came through last night and we were in the low 70s today. For us Floridians, that's cold!

It was a reminder that flu season will soon be in full force and, of course, the crazy H1N1 flu is all over the news. Since people seem to be talking so much about it -- in fact, I just watched a good segment on 60 Minutes -- I have gathered a bunch of articles I've read about it. Most of the links below are from the New York Times, a source that I wholeheartedly trust. Hopefully this will help inform and also ease some of the anxiety people have about the flus and vaccines. And please remember that pregnant women and children are particularly vulnerable. Take care of yourselves.

I found this Q&A to be particularly useful.

This one is one of the more recent articles that talks a bit about anti-vaccinators.

The New Yorker had this Michael Specter "The Talk of the Town" piece in their Oct. 12th, 2009 issue.

And if you want to dig even more into vaccinations and immunizations, one place to start is the New York Times Topics Page on the subject -- their H1N1 page is pretty good too -- that has a good list of links, including the Vaccine Education Center at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia that I found particularly informative.

Frontier and Pull Pork Sandwiches

Hilton Head 1996

I had an absolutely fabulous weekend traveling to Denver, Colorado to visit with four of my best college friends. My friend Kita perfectly summarized why it was so great on her blog here.

There are seven of us girls who were and continue to be especially close and we do our best to see each other as often as we can. Whenever we do get together, even when it's been years, it feels like just yesterday we were hanging out in our Ignacio Hall dorm room. It's just so easy to be with them and I feel more myself with these women than with just about any other people in the world. They've seen me at my best and at my worst -- and I them : ) -- and I grew into the adult that I am with their unconditional friendship and support. Of course, I have my family, but they have to love me. These girls have stuck by me even when they weren't legally obligated to - and believe me, sometimes I made it hard. And they are the compass that leads me back to the idealistic, independent, simple college student I was when life gets complicated.

Of course, these days life is a lot more complicated. I was sad and nervous to leave my little guy behind. But I think the time with his dad and his two uncles (who happened to come for a visit) was a very good thing. The pictures that were emailed to me (one is to the left) put me at ease, although I was a little hurt he looked so freaking happy that he didn't seem to miss me at all. But I do think that Damien has a better understanding of how challenging it can be to be the only one responsible for the baby. So that's good.

I wanted to recommend the fantastic airline that took me away to Denver with on-time flights and Direct TV entertainment to distract me from what I was leaving behind. Frontier Airlines is a Denver based company that was similar to JetBlue or Southwest. Casual, inexpensive, no-frills, but well done.

I'd also like to share what we had for dinner in case anyone is looking for ideas to feed a larger group. One night Kita made a delicious pasta sauce that included ground beef (that I think was organic beef she got a Whole Foods and she hadn't even read the NY Times article.) She served it over spaghetti. And the other night, as an homage to a few debauched nights we spent at a BBQ joint in our old neighborhood called Brother Jimmy's, our host Jen pulled out a slow cooker (yay! - another recipe) and made pulled pork. It was so tasty that I also had it for lunch before I left for the airport.

This is how she did it:

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork
3 lb. boneless pork shoulder
1 packet McCormick Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Seasoning
1/2 cup ketcup
1/2 brown sugar
1/3 cup cider vinegar

I think she just mixed everything but the pork in a bowl and then pour it over the pork shoulder that was placed in the slow cooker. Then she set the slow cooker to low for 8 hours. When it was done, she shredded the meat and returned it to the slow cooker until we were ready to eat. Cole slaw is almost a necessary side dish for this meal. I mean, you can't really have pulled pork without cole slaw!

I couldn't find the McCormick packet at the Publix near my house. I have one other to check. And Jen ordered the pork shoulder from her fancy butcher which I think I'll have to do too.

Anyway, this was fantastic and it's one of those dishes that is almost better leftover. When I ate some for lunch the next day, it made having to leave a little less bitter.

Denver bound and The End of an Era

I usually don’t write on this blog on weekends because I’m try to be out and about and not cooking much on Saturdays. And this weekend is no exception, except that it’s more exciting than just eating out at local spots because I am traveling to Denver for a little reunion with my nearest and dearest college friends. So I am sitting here at Denver International Airport waiting for my friend Karima’s flight to arrive from New York before we get picked up by my other friend, Kita – of Enchilada and Tortilla Soup fame – and they have free wi-fi so why not write in.

I am very excited to see the ladies, but it also means leaving my baby behind for the first time in his short life. While I have enjoyed the hassle-free experience at the airport sans baby gear and unpredictable child, I’m definitely pining for the little guy. Damien emailed me a video of his morning – thanks for showing me that he hardly knows I’m gone by the way, Damien (you can see a small video below) – and I am sure he is in very capable hands, but I miss him. So I have gotten myself a large latte and need to distract myself a bit so that I am not thinking about him this whole wait.

It’s also a major milestone for me because it officially marks the end of my first breastfeeding experience. Breastfeeding was something I really struggled with at the beginning. I mean, really, really struggled. And I feel a lot of pride about the fact that I made it 8 months. It was a rough start and I thought about quitting a million times. But, I somehow managed to exclusively breast feed him through his first few months despite incredible pain and bleeding nipples, the nadir of which took place in a very warm, badly lit J. Crew dressing room, store clerks jiggling the door handle, when I pulled him away from me to see that there was blood mixed with the milk he had running down his chin – my blood. Sorry if that’s too much information, but it was even more traumatic for me.

But then, around 3 months, it very suddenly got better. Everyone had told me it would. It was so hard to believe. I mean, it was terrible. How could it possibly get better? Then, I don’t know if hormonally things started to even out or what, but just like magic, at 3 months Baz seemed to get his latch right and my poor tender boobs stopped aching. It was a miracle! In fact, I actually started to enjoy it. It was nice to have some quiet time, and there is nothing like your baby needing to eat to make you stop what you are doing and take a break to cuddle with him for a few minutes as he gets what he needs.

Toward the end I had gotten it down to once a day – in the mornings when he first woke up. It was a really nice ritual. He’d start to talk to the monkeys hanging from his mobile when he woke up. Damien would go pick him and change him and then bring him to the bedroom where we’d hang out, I’d feed him and we’d get ready to face the day.

I suppose we can still hang out in bed and Damien or I can give him a bottle, but that will require a trip upstairs and mixing of formula – just enough effort and technology to disrupt our peaceful, natural morning.