THE MAMA CHRONICLES

Mama on Demand

Here's the first sneak peek at a series of cooking webisodes Mama and the Mr. have been working on. (psst.. give it a few seconds to load or just press the arrow if you're too excited to wait).

Love watching fun, informative cooking demos like this? Want to see more? Then help send Mama to the Blogher '09 conference in Chicago this July so she can mix it up with other like-minded influential bloggers. As with most of these contests I'm supposed to tell you why I love blogging and how it has impacted my life. Anyone who's been following me since this endeavor started more than two years ago knows why I do this. I love motherhood (yes, even on my bad days) and cooking. The Mama Chronicles has given me the opportunity to marry these two passions. Sure the juggle gets to me as it does every mom, and sometimes, I'll admit it—dinner feels like a chore. I'm human and would be lying if I said I smiled all day long, happy as June Cleaver. What matters is that there are more good days than unbearable. Blogging here and at The Daily Juggle and my newest baby, In Jennie's Kitchen, lets me share my loves with the rest of you.

So who's sponsoring this contest I so want to win? Product review, and consumer advocacy and research blog Z Recommends is giving away a free registration to one winner at random, so go show them some love for doing such a nice thing. And while you're there, don't forget to check out their parents' giveaway and sweepstakes hub PRIZEY.

Friends know I'm a gal who shares and share alike. Since Kim over at Hormone-colored Days was kind enough to pass this info along, I'm paying it forward and letting fellow bloggers know how to enter to win a ticket to BlogHer '09. Hope to see you in the windy city this July—keep your fingers crossed for me!

Until then, visit In Jennie's Kitchen to get started on that yummy lemon blueberry muffin recipe.

Brownies Made Better

These yummy brownies were part of a feature I did for Parenting magazine last year. One bite and you'd never know they're made with greek yogurt instead of eggs. They make a great guilt-free treat to pack in the kid's lunchbox, or snack while catching up with Lost or Big Love on the DVR.

Get the recipe.

The Taste Test

For many of us, our early flirts with flavor were a mashed up bit of whatever our parents were eating. These first bites are stepping stones that develop our taste preferences, but the experience actually begins before any food touches our tongues.  That mouth-watering sensation you feel when you walk into a restaurant is triggered by your olfactory sensors, making smell and aroma the first part of tasting something.  It’s like your brain is taking a bite before you’re mouth does. 

I've been enjoying cooking for my nine-month-old. Sure it required a bit of extra time to make simple purees for her first foods but now she's a full-fledged member at our dinner table. Most nights, I chop up a smaller portion of our dinner and let her munch away. Rachael Anne Hill's Baby and Toddler Cookbook: Deliciously Natural Recipes for Happy, Healthy Kids (Ryland Peters & Small) is a great starting point. You'll find yourself adding recipes like Salmon, Sweet Potato and Broccoli Chowder or Creamy Tomato and Basil Pasta to your roster of quick and easy meals for the whole family.

Let me know your baby's favorite homemade meal in the comments below for a chance to win a free copy of Hill's cookbook. One winner will be chosen at random on Wednesday, February 25th. Good luck!

Baby and Toddler Cookbook by Rachael Anne Hill is available at Amazon.com.

Congratulations to Liza and thanks to everyone for joining the discussion! Stay tuned for next week's giveaway.

Fun with Food

 
Pancakes have been my five-year-old's favorite food ever since she started feeding herself. So much so, that we we picked up a copy of Eric Carle’s Pancakes, Pancakes a few years back. Smart storytelling is mixed with science, math and most importantly fun.  Carle's story of a boy, Jack, who asks his busy mom for this simple meal takes kids through the journey of making flour from grain, feeding the hen for eggs, milking the cow and making butter from the cream on top.  It's a great farm-to-table lesson. Bring the story come to life and head into the kitchen after you read it to your little Jack or Jill.

Oh, and if you want to make the heart-shaped cuties pictured above, just spray a heart-shaped cookie cutter with cooking spray and place in a heated skillet. Fill one-third up the sides with batter and follow the recipe headnote for flipping them. Whatever way you shape them, they're guaranteed to be gobbled up!

BUTTERMILK PANCAKES
The key to making pancakes is a hot pan and patience. The skillet is ready when water sprinkled on it immediately forms tiny bubbles and evaporates. Patience is a crucial virtue to making a crisp, golden pancake. Don’t flip them until bubbles appear on the surface of each pancake.

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 Tablespoons canola or vegetable oil*
½ teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

1. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium-size bowl and whisk for 30 seconds.  Set aside. 
2. In a small glass bowl or measuring cup, combine buttermilk, egg, oil and vanilla extract, if using.  Stir with a fork, using the same motion as scrambling an egg until liquid ingredients are mixed. 
3. Pour liquid ingredients into dry and stir, gently, using the same form until mixture is just combined.  It will be lumpy, and that’s okay, just make sure there are no pockets of unmixed dry ingredients.
4. Heat a skillet over a medium flame. Coat pan with a pat of butter and add circles of batter.  Use a teaspoon to make kid-friendly silver dollar style or a tablespoon for dad-size cakes.  Flip when bubbles form on top and continue cooking for 45 seconds to 1 minute or until done. 

*An equal amount of melted butter can be substituted for a richer flavor or if you don't have oil on hand.

Will PB&J Be Able to Bounce Back?

I might not have survived elementary school in a world without peanut butter and jelly. Seriously, it was my lunch du jour for at least five years running. While Isabella, thankfully, eats a more varied diet, it's still disconcerting to hear the development in this peanut butter recall. According to the Centers for Disease Control, more than 800 products are involved.

I thought a simple enough answer would be to make my own. Alas, I was wrong. During a conference call this week, the CDC confirmed that whole peanuts are also cause for concern. The best way to know if what's in your pantry is safe is to a) check the list of products recalled at the CDC's website and b) even if it's not on the list, ask your grocer if they know the manufacturing source —the Blakely facility of the Peanut Butter Corporation of America is at the heart of the investigation.

For more information, check out these resources from the CDC:
http://pbrecallblog.hhs.gov
http://www.cdc.gov/nczved/blog

Recycled Breakfast

Sundays are usually family breakfast day with the works. Bacon, eggs or waffles, fruit salad, juice ad much needed coffee for mama and papa. It’s followed by watching the weekly political shows and topped off with listening to Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell me on NPR.  This past week, though, we had a busy day with a birthday outing planned smack in the middle of the day. Instead of the full spread, I eyed a leftover baguette from the previous day’s lunch and decided to give a makeover to one of my own original recipes featured in Kiwi magazine last February.

This recipe is easy enough to get going on a busy school day but will also wow guests, so don’t be shy to serve it for brunch. Enjoy and happy Monday!

-Jennifer

Don’t forget to check out The Daily Juggle!

Eggy French Toast Bread Pudding
Serves four

This breakfast uses bread left over from last night’s dinner. It’s easy enough for weekdays, yet elegant enough to add to your next brunch menu. Feel free to lighten it up and use all milk instead of adding cream.

1/2 loaf baguette other crusty bread, cubed
4 large egg
1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease an 8-inch round cake pan; arrange bread cubes evenly in pan and set aside.

2. In a deep bowl, beat the remaining ingredients together with a fork or whisk. Pour over bread cubes in pan, pressing down to make sure top pieces are coated. Bake for 30 minutes, or until puffed and golden. Serve hot with fresh fruit or warm maple syrup.