I get giddy whenever I spy breakfast polenta on a brunch menu. It seems so glamorous, so luxurious… so Italian! But, the truth is, polenta takes all of 10 minutes to make. It’s even quicker and easier (and, dare I say, more delicious) than its down-home American counterpart, oatmeal.
Polenta isn’t quite as nutritious as oatmeal, so I riffed off of a breakfast polenta recipe from Martha Stewart to include blueberries and almonds, making a nutrient-rich start to the day. In short order, the ChowBaby and ChowPapa were gobbling down bowls like there was no tomorrow. All while I imagined myself sitting in an outdoor cafe somewhere in Rome, my favorite city of all time.
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Graphic: Next Generation Food

Food News, Things We Crave, Green Your Eats, Tips, Tools & Techniques, and the Weekly Roundtable (a roundup of our most recent posts). For those of you celebrating Rosh Hashanah, Happy New Year! The rest of you—have a great weekend, too!
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Photo: Phil Romans

Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, begins tomorrow at sun down. Truth be told, the ChowPapa and I aren’t big on celebrating either of our religion’s holy days, but we both we have a strong cultural identity that we hope to pass to our children. One simple, concrete way to do that, especially when they are young, is by celebrating cultural (which often overlaps with religious) holidays. It’s never very intense, but we enjoy taking the time to honor our cultures. And we especially enjoy making and eating festive foods with friends and family.
While brisket is often served at Rosh Hashanah, the holiday’s core culinary tradition revolves around honey, apples, fish (heads, to be specific), rice, spinach, tzimmes and round challah. (Read more about the symbolic meanings of these foods here.) But, again, we’re far from traditionalists. And we love any excuse to make a brisket, so that’s what we’ve got cooking for Saturday.
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The ChowBaby recently got this Giant Play and Learn activity book from his Grandma. I thought it was yet another “‘pecial present” that would, after 5 minutes of excitement, sit on the shelf collecting dust. And I certainly didn’t think it would make its way onto ChowMama. But days into Isaac’s obsession with this book, I realized I was wrong.

It’s no secret that (despite the stress it causes this clean freak) I am a proponent of allowing kids to play with their food. This book won me over with its games that prominently feature kitchens, vegetables and gardens. Isaac loves the wide variety of fun and creative activities (which are contextualized by a loose through line—great for younger kids), but especially loved making characters out of veggie stickers. And, the best part for me: no mess!

It’s recommended for kids 4-8, but I think my 2 1/2-year-old is getting lots of value out of this wonderful activity book. Check it out and let me know what you think. And while your ChowBaby is occupied with her new Play and Learn book, you can remind yourself of the value of self-feeding and allowing kids to play with food while putting your money where your mouth is with these super easy, outrageously scrumptious Homemade Cheese Crackers. (Also a great back to school recipe.)


Brooke’s Homemade Cheddar Crackers
(can be served to kids 10+ mos)

1/2 cup organic butter
1/2 lb organic sharp cheddar cheese, grated (the sharper, the better)
1 1/2 cup organic flour
1/2 tsp salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cream together butter and cheese.

3. Mix flour and salt. Then add flour mixture into cheese and butter mixture. Mix well.

4. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten and prick top with a fork.

5. Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Photo: Lissalou66

I used to be a kitchen gadget freak. I still am, I suppose—perusing stores like Williams-Sonoma makes me giddy—but in more of a window shopper kind of way. I just can’t justify getting more tools when my kitchen storage is already jam packed with stuff I barely use (like my handy-dandy panini press which makes yummy sandwiches like this Ham, Chicken & Cheddar Panini with Apricot Mustard).
The truth is, I cook differently now that I’m a mom. Instead of giving up good food, I’ve sacrificed complicated recipes, time intensive techniques and the kind of finishing details that barely make a difference when dinner comes at the end of an utterly exhausting day spent with a 2-year-old. Today, the kitchen gadgets that I continue to use  have to meet three main criteria:

• Easy to reach: I can’t be bothered grabbing a step stool or unpacking a cabinet to get something in the way back
• Easy to clean: I can’t be bothered cleaning up a million separate pieces, especially by hand
• Cut down cooking or prep time: flourishes are nice when I decide—and arrange—to take the time but, otherwise, it’s all about saving time

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It’s officially autumn here in Brooklyn. At least it was this weekend. And I’m slowly moving into fall food mode. I usually try to drag the summer meals well into Sept, but I’m feeling apple season, cozy days inside, and comfort food. Maybe it’s the fact that I’m so close to my due date. Or that life has been a little stressful lately. Either way, I pulled out an old favorite this weekend: Roasted Poblano Cheesy Rice.
I’d normally take the word “cheesy” out of the recipe title. It makes it sound, well, cheesy. Like a recipe from an old school ladies magazine. But I like calling a recipe exactly what it is and to skip “cheesy” in the name is to leave out a primary descriptor! This stuff is creamy, cheesy goodness that everyone will love. It goes with most any mexican meal (if you ask me) or you can lighten it up (and keep the spirit of summer alive) by serving alongside simply grilled meat.
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