In the Meantime

Please excuse my absence from food writing.  I am expecting baby number two, and frankly, most food just sounds, well, unappetizing.  That being the case, I don't think you want to hear about endless bowls of cereal, pickles, or whatever other bizarre foods I am eating to survive right now.

Never Too Early

I love to cook.  I have for a long, long time.  After I made up my first recipe at 7 years old, I only loved it more.  Now I have a daughter, a beautiful two and a half year old daughter, and she too loves to cook.  "My help, Mama!"  "My cook, Mama!"  "My do it!"

Last night, we made brownies, and Penelope learned how to lick the spoon, and she learned how wonderful it is to lick the spoon.

I love her, even if I didn't take her up on the offer to share the brownie battered spoon after she had had her way with it for awhile.

A Positive of Winter

One of the few things that I enjoy about the coming winter months and nightfall happening earlier is the ability that gives to have candlelight dinners.

I have so many memories of candlelight dinners.  Birthdays, my parents anniversaries, and those begged for candlelight dinners for no reason at all.

The soft light.  The cloth napkins.  The playing with fire.

Have you had a candlelight dinner lately?

Why I started Buying CSA

Community sponsored agriculture: have you heard of it?  I am very excited about it right now.  Now, I am not as hard core as some people I know, but I do like the idea of locally produced food, and of at least leaning towards eating more organic.  So this seemed perfect.

Once a week, I order a 25 dollar box of produce from a local farm.  And they exist, even here in the L.A. area... who'd have guessed?  So anyway, I get a huge box of seasonal, freshly picked, ripe or ready produce that I can enjoy.  And before you ask, no, I don't get to pick what I get, and yes, sometimes even I get things that I have to look up, but that is part of the fun.

I like experimenting with new ingredients.  Now how does this work with meal planning?  Well, I just don't buy many vegetables from the grocery store anymore.  And it is nice!

Convenient pickup, new ingredients, locally grown produce, organically grown produce for cheaper, and a refrigerator FULL of healthy veggies that I feel obligated to incorporate into my meals-- way too many reasons to participate in such a wonderful program.