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• Strollerderby Playdate: Mama Says Clean Your Plate

  Forgive me if I unbutton my pants. I've just been on a Playdate with The Cleaner Plate Club. Man, that Mama can cook. Plus, she and I are both attempting to make the food that we serve in the house better both in a nutritional and an environmental sense. Read More... Posted Mar 03 2008, 02:30 PM by Adrienne Martini with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: cooking for kids, oscars, cheese, playdate, hobbits, clean plate

• No More Sugar Mama

  When I was a kid, Valentine's Day was a great excuse to overdose on sugar, chocolate, and red dye #40. School parties featured cupcakes and punch and candy hearts while my parents usually had some kind of treat for us at home. It was second only to Halloween in terms of the deliciousness level, not to mention the sugar high.  How times have changed. Last night, for my daughter's preschool party, I made not cookies, not cupcakes, but plain, lightly salted popcorn. Other choices on the sign up sheet included red apples, snap peas, strawberries, and bagels. All perfectly wonderful and tasty food, but party food? Come on now. Read More... Posted Feb 14 2008, 06:03 PM by AmyinMotown with | with 5 comment(s) Filed under: preschool, cooking for kids, children's parties, Valentine's Day, chocolate, cookies, chemicals, public schools, kid friendly foods, sugar

• Jessica Seinfeld Woes Keep Getting More Woeful

  Soooo, what happens when a celebrity-by-association puts out a book on hiding veggies in otherwise innocuous foods? Well, at first it's all Oprah love (sez FameCrawler) and interviews, and then...the backlash. Critics of the covert food strategy pointed out that camoflaguing foods could keep your kids from developing good eating habits that include appreciating stuff with seeds, and leafy greens, and so on. (And by the way, my child will be eating all her meals at CityMama's house from now on.) And then on Friday the NY Times and other places reported that Ms. Seinfeld's book bears an uncanny resemblance to another book on the market, The Sneaky Chef, written by Missy Chase Lapine and published in April. Ooops. Now here's where it gets extra bad... Read More... Posted Oct 22 2007, 04:29 PM by Kelly Mills with | with 14 comment(s) Filed under: picky eaters, cooking for kids, scandal, plagarism, hiding vegetables, jessica seinfeld

• The Dark Side of Seinfeld’s Sneaky Veggies

  While Jessica Seinfeld single-handedly ups the Vitamin A and antioxidants intake of our nations’ children with her stealth veggie offerings, some damn celery-crunchers are exposing a darker side to the chocolate-zucchini muffin. By tucking peas in here, spinach in there and watching her children unwittingly lap it up, experts warn that the wife of comedian Jerry Seinfeld is ... Read More... Posted Oct 16 2007, 05:52 PM by Madeline Holler with | with 19 comment(s) Filed under: Seinfeld, picky eaters, cooking for kids, vegetables, Madeline Holler

• Peanut Butter Sandwich Can Send Your Kid To College

  As the school year starts I'm facing about 250 days of making peanut butter sandwiches, I'm thinking this is a contest I need to get my daughter into. Jif brand peanut butter is running the Most Creative Peanut Butter Sandwich contest and the award is a $25,000 scholarship fund. Read More... Posted Aug 11 2007, 04:04 PM by Melissa Summers with | with 2 comment(s) Filed under: contest, cooking for kids, peanut butter, scholarship, Jif, kids cooking

• Kitchenista: Mac and Cheese Revisited (Yet Again)

  For awhile now, I've been pondering The Mac and Cheese Question. Between facing the truth about "natural" macaroni and cheese products, reading The Omnivore's Dilemma, and just a general consciousness-raising about food processing and production in general, I'm just not so crazy about putting a box of bright-orange noodles on the table and calling it lunch. Come wintertime I'm more than happy to undergo the process of making a big pan of baked mac from scratch, but my kids want their cheesy noodles year-round, and finding an alternative to the Blue Box (or the purple one) that's quick and easy, that both tastes good and is good, has been a trick: bechamel sauce takes time, grated cheese alone is too stringy. But I think I've got it now. Ladies and gents, your lunch is ready: Mac & Cheese Boil your choice of pasta according to the package directions (any shape that floats your boat, and may I suggest spinach-filled tortellini or ravioli?). When the pasta is cooked, drain it and return it to the pan. Then add a generous spoonful of plain yogurt—whole milk for the littlest diners or the skinny minis, reduced or nonfat for everyone else—and stir it up. Add your favorite grated cheese to your taste and stir until melted (thin with a little milk if necessary). If you like, add peas or other leftover vegetables, shredded chicken or chopped ham, or whatever your favorite mac and cheese add-ins might be (I'm a purist myself). This is definitely a meal that's ripe for child-participation, too. Vegans and the lactose-intolerant need not despair, this works with soygurt and cheese substitutes. Try soy feta, it doesn't really melt but if you throw some chopped tomatoes in at the end, you'll have yourself a delicious Greek-ish flavor. Is it really quick? As fast as making Kraft according to the package instructions if you use pre-grated cheese or do the grating while you wait for the pasta to cook. I timed it. And you can control where the ingredients come from, how they were manufactured, and what their fat and nutrient contents are. Gotta love being in control in some sense, even if you're serving up mac & cheese by request for the fourth day in a row.   Posted Jul 11 2007, 02:00 PM by Patti with | with 2 comment(s) Filed under: cooking for kids, kitchenista, cooking with kids, macaroni and cheese

• Father's Day Gift Guide: For The Dad Who Cooks

  The carnage of Mother's Day is barely cleaned up, and it's already time to think about Father's Day. Cooking.com's got a selection of gift ideas for dads, complete with free shipping code. It's kind of an unsurprising list, heavy on grilling accessories and barware. Add a nice omelet pan to the list and it's pretty much tailor-made for the kind of kitchen activities my husband gets up to, so I guess there's a reason for the stereotype.  There are also several knives on the list, for which I assume we can thank Alton Brown and his magical way of making men, at least my man, think it might be fun to chop some shit up. What would I add to this list? Well, one of the best cooking-related gifts anyone ever gave my husband was a set of leather gloves for grilling, which he uses several times a week and which have also come in handy for stoking the logs in our little outdoor fireplace thing. But I'd hate to give my husband the impression that I just want him to cook for me more often. I'm thinking about getting him a nice grill pan or finally giving him the gift of a Kitchenaid mixer, two things that would ensure him a long life of having things grilled for him for a change, and having tasty things baked on his behalf. I'm thoughtful like that. Posted May 16 2007, 01:39 PM by Patti with | with 3 comment(s) Filed under: products, shopping, gift ideas, cooking for kids, online shopping, father's day, father's day gift guide

• Four Culinary Moms Share Tips on Feeding Families

  "Mom what's for dinner?" Hate that question? Then you'll want to read this, because just in time for Mother's Day, four culinary professionals that also happen to be mothers share their tips and tricks for feeding their families. Cooking delicious and nutritious meals for my family is a passion of mine, so I devoured this article when I saw it in the paper this week.  Speaking with writer Tara Duggan, San Francisco area mother Joohee Muromcew, mom to four kids and cookbook author, says dinnertime is all about feeding kids before they become "puddles of neediness, melting all around my feet." Sound familiar? She cooks with her kids as much as possible, and thinks they eat better when they are involved in the process. Single mom Sara Deseran tells Duggan that her family eats "lots of 'hybrid' meals: a combination of purchased rotisserie chicken and home-cooked vegetables, for example." Hybrid meals are popular in my house as well.  I might buy a rotisserie chicken and serve that alongside rice and sauteed green beans, or I'll use it to make the main dish (like enchiladas or Chinese chicken salad) quicker. And let's not forget the convenience of bagged salads and steam-in-bag veggies. Read More... Posted May 11 2007, 05:06 PM by Stefania Pomponi Butler (CityMama) with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: feeding kids, cooking for kids, recipes

• Family Dinner Time Is a Crock

  I have no idea why I didn't think of this earlier. It seems so simple. So easy. So ... lazy? I don't know -- and I don't care. I think I'm falling in love with the crock pot -- even though I've never used one. Heather at Rookie Moms offers a great solution for families with their hands full: the all-day cooker. Throw the food in when you can, and at dinner time -- voila ... gruel! Or stew. Or vittles. Whatever. It's done. Our family just survived a round of flu that passed from one to the other faster than David Brooks can shout, "You kids! Slow down!" So the idea of spending precious down time at the stove for the rest of the week has me feeling ill all over again. I can finally see now why my mom insisted on casseroles for what seemed like every. freaking. meal. I don't blame her. I'm just wondering if there are any other quick and easy family dinner tips I'm missing? Posted Mar 21 2007, 10:07 AM by Mike Adamick (Cry It Out!) with | with 5 comment(s) Filed under: food, cooking, cooking for kids, dinner, rookie moms

• Kid Food Hacks: Top-Your-Own Pizza

  With places like high-end supermarkets and Trader Joes's selling ready-to-bake bags of pizza dough, it's pretty easy to make fairly healthful pizzas custom-tailored to your kids' personal tastes.  And you don't want to do that you can grab a Boboli, slap on some sauce or olive oil and go that route. But what if you are really short on time (or just plain don't feel like cooking)? How can you bake a pizza that will satisfy a family's diverse tastes? The idea came to me this weekend as I was shopping for  "date-night dinner" (the dinner my kids eat when we go out). I was looking at take-and-bake pizzas at the grocery store and trying to decide which one to get.  My preschooler likes salami on her pizza (as opposed to pepperoni) while my garbage-disposal of a toddler will pretty much eat everything.  It occurred to me that if I just got a cheese pizza, we could top it with whatever we wished. So a pie, a package of salami, and a few assorted veggies later, we had our custom-made pizza. Now mom and dad can have their linguisa-jalapeño-anchovy special, while the kids eat plain cheese or JUST pepperoni. Such a simple idea, I don't know why it didn't occur to me sooner. Posted Feb 19 2007, 10:04 AM by Stefania Pomponi Butler (CityMama) with | with 2 comment(s) Filed under: feeding kids, cooking for kids

• Raising Gourmet Kids Is Next Parenting Trend...Because Experts Must Label Everything

  An article in today's New York Times had me rolling my eyes just a bit. These Kids Never Say 'Yech! outlines the growing trend of foodie parents raising kids who appreciate "good food." These parents take their kids to "regular restaurants," order off the adult menu (because there is no children's menu), and sign up for kids' cooking classses. I roll my eyes not because preschoolers are eating manchego and membrillo, but at the fact that this being called a trend. For many parents like me, where eating well is a way of life, the fact that our choices are being called "trendy" seems ridiculous. My parents love good food and made sure to expose us to a wide range of culinary experiences from hand-made pasta to sashimi to arugula salad fresh from our garden. "Slow Food" wasn't a culinary trend, it was the only way my parents knew how to cook be. I'm falling back on what I know to raise my kids the same way. Read More... Posted Jan 29 2007, 11:03 AM by Stefania Pomponi Butler (CityMama) with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: parenting, cooking, cooking for kids, new york times, gourmet kids

• What's Cookin'? Weekly Menus, That's What

  The Zero Boss (Hi Boss!) thinks they're BS, but I am a huge fan of weekly menus. Everyone knows that organizational junkies get off on making yet another list each week, and weekly menus are perfect for that. I'm not that "together," so I like meal planning for a different reason: they help me avoid having The Dreaded Leftovers. Which I haaaaaaaaaaaate. When I was a kid, I am positive I drove my mother to pour her nightly glass of Carlo Rossi full to the top by asking her what was for dinner as soon as she picked me up from school. Every. single. day. Whenever she responded "leftovers," I was pissed. Fickle is my middle name. I'm sure that particular childhood experience was the catalyst behind my wanting to cook something deliciously different every night, and my weekly menus help to accomplish that goal. Weekly menus mean you don't have to cook seven nights a week. We have sandwich night one night a week and we usually go out or have take-out one night a week. Only five nights left to cover. W00t! When I know what I am cooking for the week, I cook exactly those things.  I go to the store with my list of ingredients and buy and cook pretty much only what's on the list. (Another benefit of weekly menus is that they help you stick to your budget at the grocery store.) Sometimes a particular ingredient like a beautiful piece of fish or brilliant tomatoes will inspire me to change my mind mid-stream, but for the most part, I know what I feel like eating that week, I know what my family favorites are, and my weekly menu helps me not to have to think about what to make for dinner. It takes a bit of getting used to, but once you get in the hang of sitting down on Sunday to think about what to cook, you'll become addicted. If you need a little push, these sites are here to help. Posted Jan 09 2007, 08:02 AM by Stefania Pomponi Butler (CityMama) with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: cooking, cooking for kids, meal planning, weekly menu

• Yummy in Your Tummy: Top Food Blogs for Family and Kids

  Cooking is an issue near and dear to my heart, and cooking for my family is an even nearer and dearer issue. I chronicle my family's food exploits on my food blog, and am always on the hunt for new inspiration. The Well Fed Network is asking people to vote on their favorite family- and kid-focused food blogs, and there is plenty of inspiration to be found among the top candidates, especially if you are at your wits' end dealing with a picky eater.  The nominees are: Vegan Lunchbox Sweetnicks Cooking with Anne Daily Tiffin Gastro Kid All great choices, but they left off a couple of my faves: Foodmomiac (now with video!) and our own Patti Nichols' new food blog Cookin' (In The Kitchen of Love). As Jacques Pepin would say, "'appy cookeeng!"    [photo credit: BBC]  Posted Jan 05 2007, 11:01 AM by Stefania Pomponi Butler (CityMama) with | with 2 comment(s) Filed under: foodmomiac, food blogs, cookin' in the kitchen of love, cooking for kids