It’s official, both kids are back in school!
I’m always in favor of celebrating the little things in life, so the kids and I made a back-to-school cake. How great is it to come home after school and have a slice of cake with a glass of milk?
Pretty great!
We made a vanilla boxed cake mix and frosted it with homemade frosting. This strategy makes baking quick and easy but also gives it a yummy homemade taste.
I highly recommend the “Not-So-Sweet Whipped Frosting” from Sally’s Baking Addiction, which is light and fluffy buttercream made from cream cheese, whipping cream and powdered sugar.
Although school is back in session for many of us, summer weather isn’t even close to being over. Even after Labor Day, a lot of us are going to be sweating through summer weather well into October.
Which is only to say that it’s way too early to stop embracing summer recipes. Instead, let’s keep leaning in to grilled meats and cold pasta salad and strawberry-watermelon fruit salad for dessert.
The good news about endless summer weather is that there’s still plenty of time to make BLTs.
Did you forget about BLTs this summer?
I’m only asking because somehow I always forget how simple and delicious a bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich is until our garden starts pumping out tomatoes.
BLTs
If you haven’t made BLTs for dinner lately, you need to get on it. It’s a really easy weeknight dinner. Your side dishes for a complete meal are watermelon and corn on the cob, or consider frozen French fries or potato chips.
Here’s the easiest, hands-off way to cook bacon - in the oven
How to cook crispy and delicious turkey bacon.
If you don’t eat bacon, just add avocado instead. I’ve also been enjoying tomato, mayonnaise and basil on toasted sourdough for breakfast.
BLT Chicken Salad with Creme Fraiche Dressing
If you’re in the mood for salad, then toss bacon, lettuce and tomato into a bowl with chicken salad and croutons. Instead of mayo, this BLT chicken salad is dressed with creamy and slightly tangy creme fraiche dressing. So satisfying!
Dinner Last Week
I’m always curious about what other families are eating. Aren’t you? Here’s what my crew ate last week.
Monday: One of my kids loves rice paper wraps for dinner. It’s one of her favorite dinners because it’s a choose-your-own-adventure meal. I put out bowls of ingredients and she gets to make her own combination of flavors.
Rice paper wrappers are the thin, translucent wrappers used for fresh spring rolls, but they can be used to wrap up just about anything. You briefly soak the wrapper in water, then fill it with noodles or rice, shredded meat or tofu, and raw veggies (like shredded carrot, cabbage and sliced cucumber). I also like adding fresh herbs (mint, basil, cilantro) and green onions.
The kids don’t like sauce with their rice paper rolls, but I really like the peanut sauce from Feasting at Home (I make it with almond butter and add slightly less maple syrup. It would probably be good with nut-free sunflower butter too).
Our rice paper rolls are always a bit messy and never rolled neatly, but it’s a fun hands-on dinner.
Tuesday: I tried a recipe for miso-marinated cod that sounded good but ended up tasting too sweet. I plan on trying more miso marinades, but next time without any sugar added. Unfortunately, on this night I ended up with a main course that no one wanted to eat (including me). We also had roasted broccoli and rice.
Wednesday: I’m working on a new vegetable soup recipe for my blog, so we had the soup for dinner plus pasta with pesto.
Thursday: Fish tacos, made with store-bought battered fish.
Friday: Fried rice, Trader Joe’s egg rolls and pot stickers, and green beans. The rice was more fluffy than fried because it was made from freshly made rice, not leftover rice that sat in the fridge overnight. I sautéed green onion and ginger in sesame oil, scrambled eggs in the pan, then added the rice. I seasoned it with soy sauce, Trader Joe’s coconut aminos and a drizzle of rice vinegar.
Reading
Dinner for Everyone by Mark Bittman has 100 classic recipes, like caesar salad, chicken noodle soup, risotto, cacciatore, beef stroganoff, etc. Each recipe includes three very different variations: easy, vegan or “all out.”
The “all out” recipes are for people who have time and energy to invest in cooking meals (not us). However, I think you’ll find quite a few winners in the “easy” category. There are a lot of dinner recipes to choose from and they are truly easy recipes. I didn’t see too many vegan options that would appeal to my family, but if you’d like try more vegan recipes this cookbook might be a good place to start.
I checked this cookbook out at my library - I almost always borrow cookbooks from the library first before deciding if I want to buy them. It’s a great way to try out new recipes and cookbooks.
The best part about the new school year has been walking my 3rd grader to school each morning. This is new for us and is a lovely start to the day. We are lucky to live in a neighborhood with scenic view points and winding staircases that make the walk feel like an adventure.
Before you get too jealous, we’re also juggling a middle school drop-off and pick-up that involves a 20 minute drive each way and a car pool line.
My plan is to use the afternoon driving time to learn Italian by speaking along with the Coffee Break Italian podcast. By the end of the school year I should be ready for a trip to Italy! (We don’t have a trip booked, but a girl can dream, right?)
I regularly set aspirational goals like this, so will someone please check in with me next month and make sure I’m actually doing it? No promises, but I really am going to try.
Hope you have a great weekend!
Jenny
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