Unexpected Guests: Thank Goodness for Eggs

Over the weekend I wasn't planning to cook much because we were going to a wedding, and my sister and her family had to delay their arrival by a day. I figured I could take it easy, and use up a few of the leftovers in my fridge.

It didn't quite work out that way. My sister and her husband drove straight through the night, arriving at my house at 5:30 am on Saturday. I fed them toast for breakfast, and a LOT of coffee, as they straggled up the stairs at 9 am with their 9 month old baby in tow.

Lunch rolled around, and I threw all the leftovers from our Vietnamese summer roll feast (Chinese sausage, bean sprouts, shrimp, basil) into egg foo young. I used this recipe as a guide, but then just used what I had on hand, including homemade beef stock rather than chicken stock. I found a recipe for egg foo young sauce that called for beef stock—you add oyster sauce and soy sauce and then thicken. Not the perfect flavour match, but the kids went crazy with the sauce on their rice.

The next morning, my parents brought over muffins and fruit and the whole family (brother, sister, S.O.s and children) were all there. Everyone except my parents was still there at lunch, and I started wondering what to serve, since our kids were going to get hungry again. I realized I had everything I needed to make roasted tomato clafoutis, like a giant, savoury pancake. I mixed in cherry tomatoes from the Farmers' market, leftover goat cheese and lentil caviar from my book club meeting, and some more basil, stuck it in the oven, cooked some breakfast sausage from my freezer, and there was lunch. I used this recipe, and then adapted it to what I had, and prepared it right in a frying pan that could transfer to the oven.

All I can say is that I'm glad to have a few dozen eggs in the fridge at any given moment. With no microwave on the premises to thaw out food from the freezer, impromptu lunches would otherwise be a challenge.

The Joys of Soup

I decided on one of the many rainy nights recently to make some soup. I didn't want to go to the grocery store, so I chose a recipe for which (I thought) I had everything: carrots and chickpeas were the main ingredients.

After I started cooking the carrots, I went looking for chickpeas, only to discover I had none, and since it was nap time and I was home on my own with the kids, there was no going anywhere to buy some. While the recipe called for dried chickpeas, my only salvation was a neighbour who could offer a can of chickpeas. I decided to just use them, since everything was already started. It worked out, but the moral of the story is: make a meal plan, and then you won't be caught with half the ingredients for the recipe you've already started cooking.

The soup turned out wonderfully, which got me thinking about making homemade soup more often. Leftover soup came in handy the next day for lunch, when I was entertaining a friend and her kids. I would much rather heat up some of my own homemade soup for lunch than cook a package or carton of purchased soup. I will make it my goal to cook one pot of soup every week.

Next soup on the list is Fresh Corn Soup with Roasted Corn Guacamole.

Tomato Soup Even Babies Love

Check out this cream of tomato soup recipe. It tastes very similar to the canned stuff I used to love as a kid, but this time you control all the ingredients and know exactly what's in it. I love that you can throw in tomatoes with seeds and all, because you run it through a strainer when you're done. Baby G (just 13 months old tomorrow) finished off his little bowl, even picked up the whole thing and drank what he couldn't get with his spoon. Goldfish crackers were the perfect accompaniment, which pleased D to no end.

I've made this with canned tomatoes and fresh, and I was surprised to find that the canned tomatoes were actually a little more tomatoe-y. Both were good though!

Cool Lunch

I'm having leftover ziti with grilled gazpacho sauce and sausages for lunch, and just like real gazpacho, it's even better served cold! Delicious! And Baby G is hoovering it up. D, on the other hand, appears to lose his entire appetite when it gets hot. He reserves the right to eat only frozen juice pops and fruit. Can't blame him, really.

Quick Kid Lunch #2

I just pulled together a lunch using stuff out of my fridge/pantry, and left over ingredients from dinners earlier in the week. The results were a hit with a bleary, snuffly toddler who usually doesn't eat much when he's feeling under the weather. Very basic, but tasty:

Pasta Shells with Tomatoes and Beans
2 c. medium shell pasta (whole wheat if you can find it)
3/4 c. diced canned tomatoes
1 c. white beans (or whatever beans you have on hand)

Cook the pasta according to package directions. Once it is cooked al dente (still a bit firm to the bite), drain,  put back in the pot and add the tomatoes and beans. Cook on medium heat, stirring often, until the tomato liquid thickens and soaks into the pasta a bit, and everything is hot. Season to taste (I add salt and fresh ground pepper to my own dish and leave the seasonings out completely for D). Serves 1 toddler and one grownup.

The benefit of shell-shaped pasta, besides getting your child excited about eating 'seashells' is that they tend to gather beans and tomatoes into their little pockets. Even if your child thinks they're picking out just the pasta and avoiding the rest, they will be inadvertently eating a little of everything.

Quick Kid Lunch #1

When I've got nothing out for lunch and leftovers are lacking, I often go for this surefire winner:

Baked Bean and Cheddar Quesadillas

Open a can of your favourite baked beans and grate some of your favourite cheese (I usually have old Cheddar on hand). Mash beans onto one half of a whole-grain tortilla, sprinkle with cheese, fold over to create a half-moon and press firmly. Repeat as many times as needed (two tortillas means four to six wedges for mom and two to four wedges for toddler). Cook in a non-stick fry pan (preferably cast-iron), on a griddle (my favourite), or bake in the oven until tortilla is crisp and the cheese is melted (5-10 minutes). Cut each half-moon into four wedges and serve. You'll have beans leftover for a snack, or for the same lunch tomorrow.