Guest Post: Getting Dinner on the Table

I don't actually know any of these people.

One of my most stressful times of the day is that hour between 4-5pm, when the kids are antsy, I'm running out of steam, and I have to start thinking about dinner for the family.

Meet Karyn, my college roommate, BFF, and with the launch of Happy Eating Noises, fellow blogger! Karyn's blog is full of tips and recipes, but this isn't just another food blog. Her goal is to help anyone "learn to love cooking." 

Karyn has twin boys so she's no stranger to a busy schedule. I asked her for her top tips for getting dinner on the table fast.

Before I had kids, cooking felt luxurious. I would dig into a complicated recipe because I didn’t care if dinner hit the table at 6:00pm or 8:00pm. My husband and I could manage our hunger and were willing to wait for the delicious result of a long recipe. Now, it is a rare treat to find myself with hours in the kitchen. Having twins changed the pace of my cooking, as well as the requirements. Now, six years into cooking for kids I have a structure that works. I focus on meals that are at least one of these three things:

1. Make ahead

This is my favorite category. Now that my kids go to school full day (can we give a quick cheer for first grade?) I can make time to prepare dinner before they come home. So far this school year I have cooked Vegetable Strata, “Meaty” Vegetarian Chili, Parmesan Chicken Strips and Roast Vegetable Pasta during the day to serve that or the following night. These types of meals can typically be heated and on the table in under 15 minutes.

2. Quick

You have probably seen lists of 45, 30 or even 15 minute meals. These are wonderful choices for feeding kids because you can react quickly when they get hungry and have dinner on the table before a meltdown ensues. Some of my favorites in this category are various stir fries using frozen brown rice, sautéed vegetable quesadillas and breakfast for dinner.

3. Kids cook

This is a tough one for many parents and I get it. I want my boys to learn to cook because I think it is a life skill and one of my greatest joys. However, letting them help means opening up a well of patience that is sometimes dry by 5:00 at night. I have to be ready for the preparation to go slowly, be a mess and end up wrong. So I am choosy with how and when the kids help. The reward when they can help is a big increase in their patience and flexibility about what they will eat.

Hopefully as we gain cooking experience and confidence, we can incorporate more of these three types of meals into our repertoire. If all else fails, you can eat microwave bean and cheese burritos with salsa and frozen edamame. This is our go-to, last-minute dinner. It is nutritious, delicious and on the table in under five minutes. Perfect for those days when dinner just is not happening.

The Soundtrack of Your Life

What is the soundtrack of your life?

Is it a thumping bass, moving you forward with rhythmic precision? Do you dance through life with the rise and fall of a waltz? Or are your days filled with the hectic unpredictability of a jazz improvisation?

Like many of us, I formed my musical taste during adolescence. I preferred dark, sensual singers and bands like Morrissey, Depeche Mode and The Cure. Although I could dress the part for the occasional concert, my personality was never quite so dark, so my collection of records, tapes, and eventually CDs, also included plenty of livelier bands like Duran Duran and Erasure.

My iPod is now filled with those same sounds, as well as some newer additions I've discovered along the way. My kids have their influence there as well, with Music Together as likely as Ben Folds to come on when I'm shuffling songs in the car. I used to obsess on whatever album I was into at the time, especially if it was new, playing it over and over. Lately I always shuffle songs, but with one hand on the next track button in case the selected tune doesn't fit my mood (or meets with disapproval from a small person in the back seat).

I've read that smells have a powerful way of transporting people back to a certain place and time. But isn't it the same way with songs? A certain song comes on, and I'm instantly lying on the floor in my pink room, making mix tapes from the radio, playing and replaying my favorite songs so I can learn every word.

This post was inspired by Deborah Reed's debut novel, Carry Yourself Back to Me. The story follows 
heartbroken singer-songwriter Annie Walsh as she digs into the past after her brother is accused of murder. As a member of From Left to Write book club, I received a copy of this book for review. You can read other members posts inspired by Carry Yourself Back to Me on book club day, October 3, at From Left To Write.