Foodmomiac

Fancy Mac & Cheese (with no-cook sauce!)

Hot enough for you guys out there? Chicago has actually been just beautiful this week, but I know that many of us in the US are sweltering in 90+ degrees weather. Ugh. Now that I have air conditioning, this doesn't affect my cooking like it once did (our Toledo home had no A/C), but slaving over a hot stove in the summer isn't much fun for anyone.

The solution? No-cook pasta sauces! There are many ways to do this (one of my favorites is to just chop up a bunch of fresh tomatoes, add garlic, salt, pepper and olive oil and enjoy!). However, the method I'm going to share here is by far my favorite (and most decadent).

The ingredients (this will serve 4 with leftovers):
One box pasta (penne or some other tubular shape is best)
One wedge brie (or a small round, but the wedge is easier)
Bunch of fresh basil, sliced chiffonade-style (stack leaves, roll up lengthwise, then cut into thin strips)
Handful of cherry tomatoes, cut in half
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Cook the pasta al dente. While it's cooking, grab a big pasta bowl for the rest of your ingredients. Remove the white rind from the brie and cut it into 1/2 inch cubes. Place in the bowl along with the basil and tomatoes. Just before you drain the pasta, grab about 1/2 cup of the pasta water and reserve. Drain the pasta and dump it into the pasta bowl, on top of the other ingredients. Toss well, adding pasta water as necessary for great texture. Salt and pepper to taste, and enjoy!

Rocco and Foodmomiac: Kindred Spirits

Rocco
Originally uploaded by Foodmomiac

I went to the Bertolli-sponsored Rocco DeSpirito lunch with a VERY cynical attitude. Yes, he is an attractive man, so I was looking forward to the eye candy, but quite frankly, I've always found him to be a bit of a tool.

I first saw him in person at an IACP conference in Baltimore. The panel he spoke on was all about branding. He sat up there with Ina Garten (perhaps the most real food personality out there) and talked about "his brand." It was a little much. I mean, I'm all about "my brand," but I don't usually talk about it in front of a full room. Tacky!

Well, then I went to the lunch. As you can see from the photo, he is still very attractive, and has clearly been working out. The funniest line of the lunch came from Kristen. As Rocco was working the audience, he asked if we had any questions. Kristen muttered under her breath, "Yeah, can you cook with me on your lap?"

While I was certainly impressed with his, um, pecs, I was more impressed with his words. Kalyn, one of the food bloggers in the audience questioned him about his new promotion of kitchen shortcuts. She wondered if by promoting shortcuts (such as creating a shrimp pasta dish using pre-made Bertolli sauce), he was hastening the death of from-scratch cooking in America. Great question, but Rocco's answer was even more impressive.

His response was that we had already experienced the death of from-scratch cooking. If his promotion of shortcut cooking helped bring families back into the kitchen (and out of fast food restaurants), that was a victory. It was a great answer, and I have to say that I agree.

I have so much guilt about not doing things the gourmet way. I don't have a lot of free time, and sometimes it's just too much for me to bake a loaf of bread from scratch or to spend hours in the kitchen making the perfect sauce.

My guilt often keeps me out of the kitchen all together. I feel so terribly that I'm not doing things the RIGHT way, that I end up not doing them at all. No time to make homemade sauce? We might as well order in or go to the neighborhood restaurant. But, I think Rocco (or his media trainers) might be right. If using a pre-made sauce gets us all together around the kitchen table, isn't that the better choice?

Dispatch from BlogHer

Love this shot!
Originally uploaded by Foodmomiac

Haven't been blogging for a variety of reasons. As always, it's just so overwhelming to be surrounded by so many amazing, amazing women. I also seem to have caught Mr. Max's cold, which is REALLY a bummer.

Yesterday, late afternoon was the community keynote. As I mentioned the other day, one of my blog posts was selected, and I stood up in front of nearly 1,000 people to read it. I wasn't nervous ahead of time, but when I walked off the stage, hugged Eden and then made my way into the wings, tears started rolling down my face. It was only after I spoke and saw people respond to my writing that the nerves bubbled up and out of me.

The tears didn't stop at that point. The posts that were read were AMAZING. I sat on the floor of the stage, just inside the wings, and cried and cried. Posts about addiction, parenting, body image, suicide attempts and even bra shopping were read to a giant group of women, and the electricity in the air was palpable. Every year, I love being here at BlogHer, but never before have I experienced something that manifested that feeling more than this keynote. It was a briliant idea, and it came off perfectly. I am so unbelievably honored to have been a part of it. I think I've typed this word 5 times in this one post, but the only way to describe it is overwhelming.

Yes, I'm feeling fine. Why do you ask?

Weiner Mobile
Originally uploaded by Foodmomiac

Yesterday, my mother-in-law called me on my cell phone and asked me if I was OK. I assured her I was, and asked why she was worried. Ah yes, I hadn't updated the blog in a while. Oops.

I am indeed feeling fine, but just a weeee bit overloaded. The weekend was filled with activities, which was great, but just busy! We are making a concerted effort to actually do things on the weekend (versus sitting around watching the kids act up). On Saturday, we went to the local community pool. It's a giant pool that is actually very clean and well-maintained (in fact, it was just rebuilt this spring). It is free to anyone and is just 2.5 blocks from our house!!!

On Sunday, we went to the beach, and I'm pleased to report that we have finally found OUR beach. It's not filled with drunk twenty somethings who make me feel like a crotchety old woman. The water is safe for swimming, in terms of both bacteria and depth. There is a sand bar about 10 feet out that has the net effect of creating almost 30 feet of shallow water for playing. This place was just made for kids and families and we loved it.

So, that was the weekend in a nutshell (fascinating only to the grandparents, I'm sure). This week hasn't been any less busy. Yesterday featured a 6 hour round trip road trip to Madison, WI to visit my BOCA client. They share offices with Oscar Mayer, which led to the above-pictured highlight of our trip; THE WEINER MOBILE! I also snagged a Weiner Mobile Hot Wheels for Mr. Max and a Weiner Mobile whistle for Dylan. The whistle is a bit, um, shrill, but all were happy.

Last night I had a one hour turnaround before heading to my new "thing;" art class! I'm taking a glass fusing/metalworking class. It's three hours every Tuesday evening, and I love it.

Of course, tomorrow I leave for BlogHer, and the craziness will continue. I have two of my own clients there (BOCA and 3-A-Day), and then a bunch of other Edelman clients who aren't mine personally, but who are still very important to me. :-) So, lots of running around.

Oh, and did I mention I'm speaking at the opening keynote? In front of approximately 1,000 people? ACK!

Yes, I'm feeling fine. Why do you ask?

Weiner Mobile
Originally uploaded by Foodmomiac

Dylan dancing to "Girl Talk"

Dylan dancing to "Girl Talk"
Originally uploaded by Foodmomiac

Based on a recommendation from our buddy Howie, Michael downloaded a new CD by the DJ Girl Talk. The language is a little, um, rough for the kids to listen to, but when he put it on for the first time, Dylan went NUTS. The dance is so funny that we keep making her do it. Here she is demonstrating.

Standard summertime breakfast

Standard summertime breakfast
Originally uploaded by Foodmomiac

This is my favorite breakfast when local berries are in season. Strawberries, blueberries and raspberries (all from Michigan, purchased at the Logan Square Farmers' Market), Heritage flakes cereal (I prefer the Heritage O's, but they didn't have any at our local market this week), and vanilla soy milk.

Yum.

I want to be "that mom"

(p.s. yes I missed posting yesterday. la la la can't hear you!)

When I was in junior high school, I babysat for a family that always had chopped up veggies in the fridge. It was usually just carrots and celery, and they were kept in an ice bath in a Tupperware. I spent many Saturday nights munching on veggies while watching Love Boat.

I've always wanted to be that mom. The kind of mom who has fresh fruits and veggies ready to go in the fridge for healthy and nutritious snacking. Sadly, I rarely have the time to do this, and even if I did, I find I'd rather curl up on the couch with Mia Michaels and Twitch and the rest of the So You Think You Can Dance Crew.

Somehow, though, I became that mom this weekend. When Max wanted a quick lunch yesterday, he was able to grab two hard boiled eggs from the fridge. There is also a container of clean cherries and blueberries. A quart of wild strawberries. A quart of Michigan raspberries. I have one plastic container filled with celery sticks and another with sliced purple kohlrabi (that link will provide you with a recipe for cooked kohlrabi, but I always just eat it raw and sprinkled with lots of salt - yum!) We also have a giant bag of pistachios, a big tub of homemade chicken salad, and some convenient tubes of yogurt.

I am so impressed with myself.

Oranges in beer

Last year, Chicago bars stopped selling Bell's Oberon beer. This is one of my favorite beers, and it's kind of a bummer.

Bell's is a wheat beer that is served with an orange. Last week when we were in Michigan, we stocked up on Oberon. It's the perfect summer beer, and it's been great to have it in the house.

Word is that Oberon is making its way back into Chicago under an assumed name. We are at our local bar right now for a pre-dinner beer, and they don't have Oberon yet. Apparently the higher profile bars are getting it first.

I did get beer with orange though. It's Allagash White and is quite tasty. But it's no Oberon. Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Happy 4th

We are sitting in the backyard right now, with our patio hearth going full steam. Good thing we had so much wood left over from the winter!

For dinner, we had some friends come over with their two kids. It was the perfect get together. Potato chips, onion dip, tortilla chips, guacamole, raw veggies and homemade ranch dressing started us off. Dinner was chicken and ribs on the grill and some potato salad.

For dessert, we had s'mores, of course! So good, and it was fun watching Paty and her friend Ane eat them for the first time. I guess they aren't a classic in Brazil.

Time to get back to this fire and the incessant fireworks being set off in our hood. It's so loud out here!

Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile