7/21/13: In order for us to make time to go to the gym regularly we are having to re-arrange our schedule and priorities. Our weekly grocery shopping tends to be pretty elaborate, typically involving Stop & Stop, BJ's, and a stop at a farmstand/co-op/Farmer's Market. Throw bimonthly weekend research visits on top of everything else and it's really hard to get everything done. We made it to the gym both Friday and Saturday this weekend, but today we needed to split up in order to get stuff done for the week. The heat wave finally broke last night so I also really wanted to get the kids outside. We decided that Derek would do food shopping while I took S&Z to our favorite spot, Hale Reservation.
We pulled into the parking lot for Noanet Pond and there were zero cars. My dad makes fun of me because I count how many people we see when we go to Hale. Today's count was 12.
This meant we had the beach to ourselves.
The kids had a blast with their buckets. They watered the plants,
and scared away the fish.
Meanwhile, I sat on a blanket and read a food magazine,
taking note of fun food and cocktail ideas.
The only downside about Hale is that public restrooms are few and far between. Thankfully there were no people so we could pee in the woods (I figure this is good preparation for camping in two weeks!). While in the woods S&Z found some big sticks.
We took a break for pb&j and cut up veggies.
We recently borrowed the Dr. Suess book, "Sneetches and Other Stories" from the library. Zoe is obsessed with a story called "What was I Scared of?" which is about a character who frequently meets up with an empty pair of pale-green pants. At one point in the story the narrator hides in a Snide bush. Before we left Silas "found" a Snide bush; they had fun plucking "Snide berries" and putting them in buckets of water.
Another fun morning spent at my favorite secluded spot.
*****
Cook's Notes: I wanted a home run for dinner tonight so I went with a recipe both kids have liked in the past. The version pasted below is adapted from Weelicious. Tonight both kids said "YUM!" as they sat down at the table, but only Silas ate the meal in its prepared form. Zoe announced that she didn't like the noodles, so she ate the broccoli, tofu and mushrooms sans noodles. Next time I will offer her a deconstructed version prior to mixing together all of the components.
Sesame Udon Noodles with Broccoli and Crispy Tofu
INGREDIENTS
- 1 10.5 ounce package udon or soba noodles (I use 2/3 of a package for this recipe)
- 1 10 oz. package cremini or shitake mushrooms, thinly sliced
- 1 crown of broccoli, cut into florets
- 2 T. soy sauce
- 1 tsp. sesame oil
- 2 T. toasted sesame seeds
- Vegetable or chicken broth
For crispy fried tofu
- 3/4 block firm tofu, cubed
- 2 T. flour
- 1 t. garlic powder
- Salt and pepper
- 1 T. sesame oil
- 4 sliced scallions
INSTRUCTIONS
For crispy fried tofu
- Coat tofu in flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper
- Over medium high heat sesame oil in a large skillet. Add the tofu and cook on one side until crispy (~4 minutes). Flip tofu and cook until other sides start to crisp up. Throw in scallions at the very end and combine.
For noodles
- Cook noodles according to package directions (about 4 total minutes). Cook the noodles in chicken or vegetable broth for even more flavor, or combine water and broth.
- Add the mushrooms and broccoli to the noodles for the last two minutes of cooking.
- Drain the noodles. Toss with the remaining ingredients and serve.
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