My kitchen musings!

As you may have noticed, this blog is about food. And the beach. And Gabi. And our day to day. A smorgasbord of you will. So this post will be about two things near and dear to me: food and Gabi!

From before she was born I had already decided that I was going to be making a majority of her food. I wish I could go 100% homemade but realistically I don’t think it’s feasible. For me at least. And since she was around 7 months I’ve been pureeing, roasting, and preparing  her ‘meals’. 

I’m a little fanatical scouring pinterest and Instagram for new and exciting recipes and also seeing what momma’s and daddy’s are feeding their lil munchkins. And can I just say http://www.amazon.com/Baby-Toddler-On-Go-Cookbook/dp/1616284994WOW– this is going to be a generation of foodies! And can I also mention the fun gadgets/plates/mats/etc that are out there??!!?? 

So I’ve been using this cookbook now that she’s older for more substantial meals and also foods that are more portable. It’s pretty good and so far the food has been yummy and Gabi seems excited about all the new flavors. (I must note that she sometimes eats what I make for the whole family, too.) 

For some reason I’ve had croquettes on the brain and I’m sad to say that 1. I’ve never made them and 2. My toddler cookbook didn’t have a recipe for one. What? So off to the Internet I went. I didn’t use one specific recipe but rather a combo of a few with some modifications on my end. 

 

I try to add in as much flavor as possible while trying to utilize as little salt as possible. For these I added in fresh thyme and tarragon from our garden. I also added some potatoes to give them more bulk. The next batch I’ll definitely substitute a sweet potato and maybe add in some shredded veggies such as zucchini or squash. To make them more healthful I baked them rather than frying them. 

 

After forming the croquettes I refrigerated them for about 30 minutes to hold their shape better. I popped them in the oven for 45 minutes and then flipped on the broiler to give them a golden color. And they passed the Gabi (and my father’s) taste test! Success!
 
This definitely is going into our dinner rotation with new modifications!
Nothing gives me more pleasure than watching Gabriela eat yummy and healthy meals that I make for her. Happiness really can come from feeding people. 

Bon appetit! 

This week’s posts may get a little photo happy because my little baby girl is turning a year old on Friday! I know it’s very cliched, but it does really seem just like yesterday when she was my itty bitty newborn. These last (almost) 12 months have been one heck of a roller coaster that I can only imagine what the future will hold. But more on ‘looking back’ in a later post. But first, some newborn cuteness…

   

 

With her bday coming up my mind has been swirling on memories, Bday ideas, and making a smash cake. I’m not a baker. My sister, Natalie, is our resident baker, along with my niece, Maya, so I’m a little nervous about this whole thing. But I figure it’s sugar, sweet, creamy, and messy so Gabi won’t be too critical of how it looks or tastes. So more on that to come, too!

With my mind occupied I haven’t been as faithful blogging. Going-dad gave me some great advice in that I shouldn’t try to push it; to just let it flow otherwise it’ll become ‘work’. Over the weekend I felt like I was just trying to pull something out of the air to write about that I actually got frustrated. So I decided to step back and really evaluate what I’m capable of doing. While everyday would be amazing, I just don’t think that’s me. So look for me a few times a week! 

  

I am also slowly but surely going through my kitchen. Baby steps, right!?? I’ve decide, in an effort to maybe downsize my cookbook collection is pick a cookbook to cook for the week. If I find good things I’ll keep it. If I dont, then I’ll let it go. So I’m starting with Lucinda Scala Quinn’s Feeding men & boys. I figured I have two men to feed so this should be quite appropriate. So look forward to some recipes from here. But not tonight. 

  
 

 
Tonight…we’re trying out a portable grill. My dad, Gabi, and I go to the beach weekly and instead of buying food we figured we’d start grilling our own. The husband and I used to primitive camp in Dothan so we have a little propane grill that we’re going to try to utilize while beaching. So tonight is our trial run of some chicken pinchos (because no one wants to look like a fool trying to grill or set up a tent in 30 mph winds in the middle of the beach. People: practice at home!). So I recently received this link of Grilled chicken recipes and thought I’d try one a week. So tonight’s is a mix between a lemon and oregano marinade with the squash. 

Ps. Soak your skewers so they don’t catch on fire. 

Pss. One more.