If you’ve been reading ChowMama for a while, you may have noticed a slow—but steady!—increase in sweets recipes over the last few months. I’d like to say it’s my “everything in moderation” philosophy in action as Isaac gets older but, really, it’s all about my pregnancy! Isaac and the ChowPapa have just gotten lucky as a result!
Most of my recent baked goodies made use of seasonal fruit, like my Sour Cream Peach Pie and Cinnamon Cardamom Cherry Crisp (both of which can be made with frozen fruit now that summer is over). Others, like these Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies, are simple classics that are fun to make and enjoy with young kids. After all, once you know the deliciousness of homemade chocolate chip cookies, who wants the processed packaged kind?!
In contrast, my latest concoction, this Apple & Candied Bacon Upside Down Cake, is totally over the top. All I have to say is: I’m carrying in my uterus a child who could easily live on the outside. I want what I want and my appetite knows no bounds!
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The ChowPapa threw out his back on Sunday. He was Completely. Laid. Out. That means I was Completely. In. Charge. Now don’t get me wrong—I like being in charge—but at 8 months pregnant, I’m not physically (or, truth be told, even emotionally) capable of handling the responsibility with my usual enthusiasm and grace. So, needless to say, by dinner time, I was completely wasted. A goner. Useless.
Thankfully, I’d thrown together a simple vegetable stew during the ChowBaby’s nap time. The plan was to make some chicken to accompany the stew, but that wasn’t happening. So vegetable stew for dinner it was. No meat. No rice. Just vegetables and some leftover chickpea curry for the boys.
Now, before you start feeling bad for them, there was a LOT of stew. Plenty of food to fill all of our bellies. But despite their valiant attempts (or, at least the ChowPapa’s attempt) to appear satisfied, I think they felt like something was missing. Maybe it was the fact that Isaac said, “Mmmm. I’m thinking of meatballs,” as he wolfed down string beans.
I’ve been sitting on this recipe for a little while. Didn’t seem summery enough to post yet. But, in honor of my carnivores, today, I give you a stick to your ribs meal of pulled pork over cheese grits.
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Photo: Muckster

I never do this—write a post immediately after eating dinner. I’m usually way too tired. And tonight was looking to be no exception. Well, except that I’m still thinking about dinner. Not only was it incredibly tasty and satisfying, but there’s something about the relationship between this meal’s deliciousness and ease that compels me to tell you about it. Right away.

For all of the yumminess that I churn out of my kitchen, it’s these quick meal inspirations that make me most giddy. They save me on even the most exhausting day. And while you can’t always keep from ordering take out, when you do, feeding your family feels like a joy no matter what ends up on the table. Especially when you are on the brink, as I was tonight.
Here’s how it went down:
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Photo: Andy Castro

Call me provincial, but I had never heard of a Monte Cristo sandwich before the Disneyland leg of our California vacation (although I had to wiki it when I got back for the fully story). And now that I’ve tried the deep fried, hammy, cheesy miracle of cooking, I don’t know that I’ll ever order it again. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t amazing. It was. The “New Orleans” cafe served up the perfect combo of sweet and savory. And the ChowPapa and I devoured it while our ChowBaby napped in his stroller.

Yes, this dish is an artery clogger for sure. But Stacie and I stand by our “all things in moderation” motto. So even something as unhealthy as this, because it is also so ridiculously delish, deserves an audience with the ChowBaby at some point before he turns 41 years old. Here’s the recipe I plan on using… once I’ve fully digested the sandwich I ate 10 days ago.
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The fam and I recently enjoyed a great dinner at General Greene, a lovely neighborhood restaurant. In a rare (when it comes to food) accommodating mood, I left ordering—for all of us—to the ChowPapa. And, though I had no doubt he’d take good care of us, it paid off beyond my expectations.

One of the many delicious things that he ordered—that I wouldn’t have—was chicken paillard. While sure to expertly cooked at General Greene, paillard just never sounds all that exciting. But this one was delicious! Crunchy, tasty, and perfectly paired with an arugula, orange, and olive salad. It was the kind of dish I’d normally try to dissect and recreate at home, but I was too busy enjoying our first al fresco dining experience of the season. So, instead, I made a mental note to try making a tasty paillard at home.
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Photo: Annie’s Eats

You’ve heard us say it before, and we’ll say it again (and again and again): the world’s a great big place, and eating is the perfect way to learn all about it! This usually comes to mind while experimenting with a new cuisine or cooking up a dish “from the old country” shared by a friend’s grandma. While eating, we talk about cultural flavor profiles, wonder about the relationship between the ingredients, culture and geography, and ponder the connection between the spices used to those used in other cuisines. But this past weekend, I remembered another way that food opens up the world: it exposes us to our own cities, towns, neighborhoods, and the wonderfully diverse people who live in them.

The obvious way to use food to teach our kids about other cultures is to use cuisine as a springboard for discussing the larger cultures and peoples of faraway countries. But our lessons don’t always have to be so far flung. They can be as simple as learning about our closest neighbors or discovering new nooks of our hometowns.

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