food, and pictures of it

I always seem to figure things out much later than, well, everyone else. Or, I'll read/hear about something, think it's a good idea and then take years to implement it. Such is the story with weekly menus. It is amazing how easy it is for us to actually stick with eating at home when we have a menu, no matter how rudimentary or boring it may be. And, now that my student loans are coming due and I'm not working this year, we really need to be able to stick with an eating at home routine.

Of course, there are other benefits. I love to eat at home. I can eat in my yoga pants, slippers and an oversized t-shirt, as I did tonight. We like to cook together, which is a nice experience for me. I've been getting Pic to try more foods (although, she still usually tries the food, declares it either 'yummy' or 'blech' and then declines another bite no matter how it tasted). Our food is healthier than most restaurant food. And, yes, we spend less money. Much, much less. When we do eat out now, I notice that I'm often disappointed in the food. It just doesn't taste as good as I used to think it did. And, I also always wonder, 'Couldn't I have made this at home?' Of course, though, I do still like to eat out on occasion, given the restaurant.

Anyhow, tonight's dinner? Sincronizadas (with turkey, not ham) and roasted zucchini.



As I said: rudimentary and boring. But, I enjoy it. Cardo hadn't eaten at all today (!), so I had the zucchini in the oven and the ingredients for the sincronizadas ready to go when he walked in the door (he's the sincronizada-maker here...otherwise I would have started making those too). Shortly thereafter, we were sitting at the table, discussing our day while Cardo and I ate dinner and Pic ate apples. Of course. Actually, pretty much all she had to eat today was fruit. Ah, well. I know it could be much worse. I've always tried to be really careful about getting into power-struggles over food with her. I just don't figure they'll be very productive. So, there are lots and lots of nights where she tastes dinner and then eats fruit or crackers or toast. I don't cook something else for her and I don't voice my frustrations (because, believe you me, they're there...now I know how my parents felt about my very own incredibly picky eating habits).

When Cardo isn't home, Pic and I usually have even more basic fare. Sunday night, for example, we had oatmeal. (Here I go with the oatmeal pictures again. Yes, even though Peecho has told me it looks like vomit. You're welcome for that mental image.



I do have to admit that Pic's looks better than mine here...I had already stirred mine all up. Steel cut oats, chunks of apple*, maple syrup, pumpkin pie spice, toasted almonds, a bit of milk and some Craisins. (Does anyone know how to dry cranberries with no special equipment? I'd like them without the sugar.) Pic's a big oatmeal fan. She's also a big fan of almonds. I made the exact same thing again for breakfast Monday morning, except that time I chopped the almonds before I toasted them.

This morning, we had fruit and toast. I bought a sourdough round at House of Bread, which I haven't mentioned in forever, but which I still love, love, love. I kind of burnt the bottom edges of the bread and Pic's face when she tasted that part was hilarious! (No pictures, sorry.) I asked her what was wrong and she told me, 'I don't like the black part. It's disgusting.' I told her she could just eat the rest of it.

Finally, my decluttering item. It's food also, if you consider hard candies to be food.


We've had this little plastic container of sugar-free hard candies for so long I can't even remember when we bought them. There're also some caramels in there and I don't know when they joined the party. The original occupants of the container went incredibly quickly. Trader Joe's dark chocolate-covered caramels. Mmm. (I didn't give the candies away. I trashed them.)

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* When I make steel cut oats, I add chunks of apple because the cooking time is so long. When I make old-fashioned (rolled) oats, I add applesauce because there isn't enough time for the apples to soften.

I've also topped oatmeal with some jam and once I tried mashed bananas (I'm not a fan of bananas and I definitely don't like them in my oatmeal.) Does anyone have any other tasty oatmeal topping ideas to share?