The Happy Working Mother

Growing Apart, or Simply Independent?

2009-07-05T22:31:00.005+01:00

I have recently "allowed" my husband to go on a holiday without me. It was a dream opportunity for him, so although he went through the motions of asking me if it was OK, it would have been unnecessarily cruel of me to forbid this journey. In short, I felt I had no choice. Now one might ask, is this the beginning of the cracks in our relationship, or is our ability to have separate holidays a sign of our profound love and trust of one another? Although we are undoubtedly accountable to each other and our children, I find the notion of interpreting marriage as meaning being joined at the hip completely unacceptable. I married a man who has some interests I don't share, and if I were to take our marriage as a license to stamp out those things in his life, then the things that make us different from one another and interesting to each other would be gone. I don't want to melt into a pot with him and lead identical lives.

Anyway the good news for me is I now have a trade holiday ahead to look forward to, and no, he doesn't want to come along...

I am so deep in BBQ mode I simply have to give you another couple of interesting salad recipes:

Crunchy Creamy Broccoli Salad

Roast a packet of sunflower seeds in the oven (190 C) for about 7 mins or until they turn a touch brown. Watch out, as they burn very easily. Chop a good sized head of broccoli into bite size pieces, including the stalk, and steam it all for 3-4 minutes, so not too cooked. It should be slightly firm and bright green. Once the broccoli has cooled, add the sunflower seeds and a large handful of grated cheddar cheese. Add enough mayonnaise to coat it all, plus a generous splash of white wine vinegar, salt and fresh pepper.

Borlotti Bean Health Salad

All salads are healthy, no? Drain a tin of borlotti beans and chop up half a jar of sun dried tomatoes. Grate 3-4 good sized carrots and chop up a large bunch of watercress or rocket. Mix all of these together with a good glug of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper.

The BBQ Paradox

2009-06-05T17:41:00.003+01:00

It's June, it must be summer! A time for your caveman to come out of his cave, light the fire and declare "I am cooking dinner Saturday night". Heaven. He's cooking dinner. Maybe we can even entertain? Yes. So here's how it goes in my house:

What I do:
Call the friends and invite them over. "It's a BBQ. Hubby is doing the cooking, lucky us". I then plan the meal (which does need a salad or two), go food shopping, shlep it all home and put it all away. On the day I wash the salad, chop the veggies, make a pasta/potato salad, put out chips and dips, count out the plates and the cutlery, set out table mats and napkins, fill the salt and pepper for the table, slice the bread, chill the wine, set out the glasses, slice some lemon, put out any condiments, make a marinade, unwrap all the meat, locate the BBQ tools, (don't you just love how a spatula, tongs and an oversized fork are called tools?), tidy up, get out the frisbees and suntan lotion, pop the potatoes in the oven and do a quick hairbrush/lipstick check before the doorbell rings.

What he does:
Opens a pack of charcoal, lights said charcoal, opens a beer an watches as charcoal very very slowly turns white (it takes an hour), calls for the meat, then cooks/burns the meat.

Yeeha.

So with all that labour in mind, I will propose a super easy kids dinner here:

Fake Pizza

My kids worship at the alter of Ask Pizza, and it's the one place where every morsel of food is eaten up, no tears or tantrums. So sometimes at home, I make "fake pizza". You need toasted english muffins (I use wholemeal to make them a touch healthy), smear them with some tomato pizza or pasta sauce from a jar, and top with cheese (I just use cheddar). If your kids stretch beyond marguerita pizzas, then add some ham or tuna before the cheese - whatever your kids are happy to eat. Pop them under a grill to melt the cheese, and call them mini pizzas.

The True Cost of Looking Good

2009-03-18T22:51:00.006Z

Tell me you have never lied to your husband about the cost of some clothing you have bought, and I will call you a liar. It seems so 50's and way out of synch with the power woman role a working mother might play, but I do sneak around and pay half cash, half credit card for those essential fashion must haves. Call me pathetic and out of control, but I do not share those dirty price tag details with the hubby.

And I know I am not the only one!

A friend said her husband freaked out at the credit card bill for a shoe store purchase. She said she just didn't have the heart to tell him she had paid the first £100 in cash. Another woman I know goes shopping with drycleaning bags, so when she gets home she is "carrying in the drycleaning".

I share all bank accounts with my husband. It's not how eveyone does things, but it works for us - except when I want that dress.... Mind you it works both ways, and when he decides to buy a car we end up having a grown up discussion about costs and budget (yawn).

So, as this is all about frugality, I will follow with my cheap eats ideas.

Day One - Roast a Chicken

Please buy organic chickens. Plump flavoursome meat from a happy animal far outweighs the watery shrivelled up battery alternative. My fastest roast chicken is seasoned generously with salt, pepper and dried or fresh thyme, with a quartered lemon shoved up its whatsit, together with 5 or so unpeeled garlic cloves (also in the whatsit). There is some unwritten law that says all chickens shalt be ready after 1.5 hours of roasting at 185C. Anyway, it works for me.

Carve and serve with vegetables.

Now chuck the remains in a big pot, cover with water, add 2 carrots cut into chunks, an onion peeled and cut into four pieces, 5 or so peppercorns, 2 tps dried or 3 stalks fresh thyme, and salt. Bring it to a simmer and let it all cook down for 2-3 hours. I leave mine to cool in the pot overnight as I can never face the washing up.

Day Two - Make risotto!

Using the stock (strain out the bones and muck) you made last night, you can now create a seriously yum homemade risotto, chucking in any leftover veg you have. See my previous blog, here, entitled, Are You a Martyr Mum, for my risotto recipe. Easy stuff.

Day Three - Drink lots and reheat the risotto
OR be an aspirational Italian and make risotto balls:

Roll some leftover risotto into a ball. Press a small piece of mozzarella into the middle and re-roll to cover the cheese completely. Dip the ball into beaten egg, then breadcrumbs mixed with grated parmesan, and fry until golden in olive oil and a little butter. Serve hot. If you do it right, the mozzarella should melt and form strings as you pull them away from your mouth, thus inspiring their italian name which has something to do with telephone wires...

Sneaky sidelines

2009-02-20T18:46:00.004Z

No I am not talking about affairs, but time spent at work NOT doing work! I confess there are some days where I spend way more time than is acceptable planning my next holiday, sorting my daughter's social life, booking babysitters, doing my internet shopping, booking a pedicure... Surely I shouldn't feel guilty about this? But I do. When will this mad rush of life get simpler, slower and easier? Who has time to clean out the front hall cupboard? I have enough children's clothing that mine have grown out of to start my own kid's charity shop! I guess the bottom line is that I do grab the time at work to do it all (except that cupboard). A happy working mother is a productive working mother, and there are only so many hours in a day...

Meat on a Stick

This may strike you as a bit obvious, but it always works in my house which is filled to the brim with fussy eaters. Putting meat on a stick turns a mundane meal into something that kids find fun to pick up and munch.

You will need 2 wooden skewers per child. Then I slice up a chicken breast, or a lamb steak, or a steak, and I skewer the little pieces (1/2 inch each) onto the sticks. I often drizzle on some chinese hoi sin sauce, or some barbecue sauce so they are well coated. If you have neither, then a little olive oil and a touch of salt flavours the meat just as well. Grill them on a very hot grill pan or frying pan in a bit of oil (or best on a BBQ outside) until they are browned and cooked. Serve with their favourite vegggies and some boiled potatoes.

How dirty are you?

2009-02-04T16:14:00.006Z

I'd love to be more mukky, but somewhere along the line it became unacceptable to go out without having had a shower, so I was surprised when I visited a working mother friend of mine and she casually mentioned that she hadn't showered in three days. I had a secret respect for that. I love going on the school run wearing my pyjamas under my coat. Add some track suit trousers and running shoes and voila, it looks like I've been to the gym at 6am like all power moms do, right? Ya right. We're all exhausted and filthy...aren't we?

This dish is so very elegant, and easy of course:

Gratin Greens

Chop up and cook enough spinach or kale or savoy cabbage for your gang. Drain it well and lay it out in a roasting dish. Bring a cup or so of single cream to a simmer with 2 cloves of chopped garlic and a sprig of fresh thyme. Watch it doesn't boil over! Let it cool before adding it to 3 beaten eggs, and stir in some ground nutmeg, salt and pepper. Pour the mixture onto the cooked greens, top with some grated parmesan and bake in an oven (190) for about 25 mins until it has just set. This creamy gentle side dish goes perfectly with roast lamb.

Danger: Husband in Grocery Store

2009-01-19T18:17:00.002Z

Bless him - he loves to go shopping for groceries but despite returning home with 15 bags of stuff (never less, oh no. Bulk shopping is the ONLY shopping for him) I have nothing to cook - especially nothing child friendly.

I have done a small and informal survey and I am not the only unlucky one. My neighbour's husband comes home with foie gras and pheasant, and a friend's husband buys nothing but frozen cheap shite TV dinners and tins of inappropriate sauce. So mine went shopping yesterday. He came back with a dozen hot cross buns which will go off in three days - 16 apples (and we already had about 6 in the house) - the biggest block of butter I have ever seen (we have plenty already) - beers, of course - 5 tubs of yoghurt which only he eats - and a year's worth of oatmeal. No meat, no vegetables, in short, no dinner. But he was so excited...especially about the hot cross buns which were on a buy-one-get-one-free deal. Can someone please teach my husband how to food shop?

Retro Beef Stroganoff

I realise my recipes recently have been a little more time consuming than what I, the Happy Working Mother, promises above. I think the problem is I mostly cook well on weekends when I have a touch more time, and this recipe is no exception. BUT, it is very simple and quite delicious.

Slice up half a rump or sirloin steak per person into even finger sized strips. Put them in a plastic bag with some garlic salt, hot paprika and pepper. Shake around the bag until all the meat is well coated and set aside. I left mine for 1/2 a day. Cut a generous amount of mushrooms into halves or quarters so they are still a good size and slice up one or two onions. Fry the onions in olive oil until they are translucent, then add the mushrooms. Cook for 2-3 minutes then switch off the heat. In a wok, or big frying pan, melt a fair bit of butter and get it as hot as you dare before adding the beef, stir frying it until it is browned but still rare inside. 2-3 minutes max should do it. Now tip the beef into the onions and mushrooms, add one big tablespoon of smooth french mustard and mix together. Add a pot of sour cream which should result in enough sauce to coat some noodles. I served this on papardelle (wide flat noodles) with some broccoli on the side. Yum.

Ahhhhh...January

2009-01-13T12:36:00.004Z

Yesterday for the first time in weeks, I had the house to myself. It wasn't planned, but following Christmas with my Maw here for a month's visit, plus a guest from New York for 3 weeks not to mention my immediate family and the cleaning lady - an empty house is a rare treat. It only lasted 1.5 hours but that's all I needed to recharge, de-stress and then I got lonely.

I like the chaos of my home and although we have a constant stream of guests and dinner parties and unexpected coffee or wine worshippers showing up at all times, I like it that way. I may not read as much as I might like to, but entertaining friends and family is my great hobby. It creates good memories.

During the holidays I cooked a lot. For me the memorable meal was this stew which I tried making for the first time. Easy and perfect for cold weather.

Irish Lamb Stew

Chop up a couple of white onions and fry in a slosh of oil in a big casserole pot (which must have a lid). While that is frying, put half a coffee cup of plain flour, with a pinch of salt and lots of ground pepper into a resealable plastic bag. Add enough cubed lamb to feed your crowd, close the bag and shake to coat all the meat. Add the lamb and all the flour to the pot and stir until the meat is getting browned. Add a drizzle more oil if there is too much flour though you should have a sticky gloopy mess. Add enough stock (vegetable or chicken) to cover the meat and then some. Stir it all together, turn down the heat to simmer, and cover.

Peel and chop into nice chunky pieces some carrots and some turnip and add these to the pot. Remove a generous amount of fresh thyme from its stalks and add that too. Then add a small handful per person of pearl barley to the pot. Stir and cover and let it simmer gently for 2 hours. Keep checking it doesn't get too thick and stir it from time to time to prevent the barley from sticking to the bottom. If it is too thick just add a little warm water or half a glass of white wine. Also check the seasoning and add as necessary.

I served this with boiled new potatoes and everyone had seconds.

A Control Freak's Guide to Christmas

2008-12-19T15:42:00.002Z

I almost broke out in a rash when I heard that a friend of mine had done no Christmas shopping, no food plans, nothing, and today is the 19th December! Do you know I ordered my Christmas turkey in October. I booked my grocery delivery in November. I finished my Christmas shopping by 11th November. I am almost finished wrapping my gifts. My tree went up on the 4th.

The thing about Christmas is it's terribly busy, and my approach is the sooner you can get things done, the easier these stressful times can be.

It is a personality thing though, I appreciate that. I am my mother's daughter (almost, as she used to Christmas shop in July).

I don't want to scare you with my Christmas lunch cooking plan - 2 pages of what to do in 5 minute increments. My solution to the Christmas question: "How can I drink lots all day and not burn the turkey?"

Good luck, and Merry Christmas!

As this blog is sadly lacking in good starters, I will share with you my best and favourite starter recipe. It's the best because it's easy, and my favourite because it's quite tasty and quick.

Italian Antipasto Salad

This is not really a recipe - it's more of a combining guide. Per person, put half a buffalo mozzarella cheese on a plate. Tear it in half, don't cut it! Finely slice a red chilli and sprinkle a few on top of each cheese. Now drape 2 slices of prosciutto across the top. Drizzle them with some olive oil - use the good stuff. In a bowl, dress some rocket leaves and torn fresh basil leaves with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper and mix well. Scatter that on top of the cheese and prosciutto mounds. You can sprinkle with toasted pinenuts if you like, for another texture. I find this salad will happily sit waiting for you and your guests, so it's great for entertaining.

You Should Have Said...

2008-12-12T15:26:00.006Z

I don't know about you, but any time I tell my husband a story about how I handled an explosive moment in my day to day life (usually dealing with a bank, or the builder, or a rude man at the bus stop), his reaction is often along these lines:

"well, you should have told them x"
or
"you should have given them y"
or
"I would have said z".

What I never hear is "wow honey, you handled that so well - you really told them off! I would never have thought of saying that!". But I bear this in mind. Years ago I read Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus. I received the book as a gift from a friend and initially I was insulted, but I tried it out and it was a pretty good read. A few things stayed with me and one of them was that when men listen to a story about confrontation or a problem, they offer help and solutions whereas women listen, nod and then often praise. So if your husband is like mine and piles in there verbally abusing the "esprit des escaliers" (literally "the spirit of the stairs", which so well explains that moment of genius you have after leaving the scene where you just blurted out something inappropriate, stupid and angry) then rest assured he is doing that not to annoy you, but because he is a male.

To thoroughly annoy you, I am going to break with tradition and suggest a recipe for something that is perfectly good, store bought - Hoummus. It's just so simple to make and very popular. If you're asked to bring a dip to a party, then this is the fast and easy route, trust me. And it does taste better!

Hoummus

The hardest thing about this recipe is finding the tahini, which is literally peanut butter made out of sesame seeds instead of peanuts. It's pale and splits into paste and oil, so stir it up before using. I use about 1 cup tahini to 2 tins of (drained) chick peas. Place both in a food processor with 1/2 cup of olive oil - and don't measure it all out! This is a real "hurl it in and taste as you go" recipe. Add one large clove of crushed garlic, a big pinch of sea salt, a tsp of cumin powder and juice from half a lemon. Puree it down to a paste, and check the texture. If it's very thick, add some more olive oil until it's like stiff icing, then instead of adding yet more (expensive and fattening) olive oil, add water until it's at a typical hoummus slightly sloppy consistency. Now taste. Chances are it's bland. Add more salt and more lemon juice, and if you're brave, another clove of crushed garlic. It will eventually come to life and taste wonderful. As you add flavour, stir and taste, think to yourself "you're cooking good looking!".

OK I know that was dumb.

What Knickers are you Wearing...?

2008-12-08T13:15:00.007Z

I recently read an article about the woman who started Spanx, which, for those of you who don't know, is THE brand of what I call "Grannypants". We're talking about those big, beige, hold-yer-flaws-in pants. And if you don't need or own a pair, then GO AWAY - this blog is not for you (just yet).
So, I share with you my secret - I wore some on my wedding day and my husband doesn't know to this day. I had bought a pair of divine lacy wedding knickers, sure to inspire him even after all that partying, booze and smiling, but with my style of wedding gown, the desired effect was only to be achieved with the big pants. Before we got back to the hotel room I did the quick switch, and hey presto, none-of-your-business...
The thing is, my husband knows about these pants. Not in any great detail, but he knows I own a pair (it's more like 5 or 6 now). Last week I had lunch with a friend. She said she would never ever let her husband know that she wore grannypants. So, am I the odd one out?

Butternut Squash Soup

It's that soup time of year, and although this recipe is for butternut squash soup, you can apply the basics of this to pretty much any vegetable.

Peel, deseed and cut two butternut squashes and two apples into cubes. Chop two onions into small pieces. Get your hands on some vegetable or chicken stock. I use anything - cubes, storebought and occasionally I have some homemade.

Choose a large pot and fry the onion in some olive oil for a minute or two together with two tsps of curry powder. Add all the butternut squash and apple cubes. You'll have to keep stirring as you don't want anything to burn. Once the squash is getting a bit mulchy, add a bit of stock to continue the cooking process (hot or warm is best but don't worry) and cook until the squash is soft. Remove from the heat and use a handheld blender to puree it down to a smooth paste. Add one cup of freshly squeezed orange juice and keep stirring. Depending on whether you like a thick soup that sticks to the spoon, or a thinner one, add stock until it's the right consistency. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. When I serve this I put a dollop of plain greek yoghurt in the bowl, and then add the hot soup.

Are You a Fake?

2008-11-12T20:06:00.005Z

I talk a lot. I talk to clients, I talk to friends, I talk to my family. So, I found it uncanny when within the space of a week, I found myself having the same conversation with two different girlfriends (who don't know each other).
One is a television producer, the other does special consultancy work for a bank. Both of them are working mothers, at the top of their game and really very successful, and yet, they both whispered to me, "one day I fear everyone is going to figure out that I am a fake...an imposter". Have you ever thought that of yourself? We struggle hard at a career over a number of years, we make sacrifices, we work long hours, we get promoted, we get headhunted, or we start our own companies. Is the end result a bunch of people who think that one day everyone will realise that they don't deserve to be where they are?
Ladies, if any of this resonated with you, have a hard look at your job title, your salary, your office (if you have one) and the snivelly kids who work under your direction. Know in your heart that if you are top of your game it's because your talent got you there. Don't forget that.

It's time I added a pudding to this blog. Roasted fruit might horrify you, but it ticks my boxes as it takes moments, it's idiot proof (I mean that kindly) and it can be prepped ahead of time.

Roast Fruit with Vanilla Mascarpone

The star of this dish is the mascarpone. It's italian cream cheese which I have been able to buy pretty much anywhere. You'll also need a fresh vanilla pod, some runny honey and the fruit itself.

First prepare the mascarpone: Split the vanilla pod lengthwise and scrape out the oily seeds with a teaspoon. Add that to the cheese together with a good trickle of honey or maple syrup. Stir it all together (a little effort needed here!) and taste. It should be vanillified (is there such a word?) and a touch sweet. Store it in the fridge. If you do this the day before, the vanilla flavour will become intensified throughout.

Now the fruit: I like to roast pears and peaches. Pit and peel the peaches and de-core and peel the pears (neither need to be ripe). Cut both into quarters and scatter in a roasting dish. Pour in some ginger wine so it's a quarter inch deep. Add a cinammon stick, some cloves and a sprinkle of ground nutmeg. Bake at 200C for 35 minutes or until the fruit is softened. Serve it hot with some of the juice and a generous dollop of the mascarpone.

Bonus recipe idea!
Sometimes I make just the vanilla mascarpone and serve it with fresh raspberries.

Are You a Martyr Mum?

2008-11-10T18:31:00.004Z

We all know a Martyr Mum. They sacrifice all their energy, time, thoughts, life, daylight hours and nighttime dreams and discussions to being a mother. For them it is all defining and all consuming. They go to bed early so they are on form for the next day, they play with their children for hours, they enjoy making puppets and home made easter cards, they volunteer for everything at school, they stay up late sewing little Johnny's Halloween costume/Dara's fairy outfit for the Christmas play and most importantly, they cook all children's meals from scratch. God Bless You All, I am not worthy. Granted, Martyr Mums are a little bit crazed, but hell some people are passionate about brewing their own beer and quite frankly I think children are a better cause... Ha. You thought I would be more controversial, didn't you? Just because I work doesn't mean I don't get it. The all consuming mom thing.

When I feel the love for my kids (and have the time) I make risotto!

Martyr Mum Risotto

Making risotto is neither scary nor difficult. It's an act of love. It's also a great way to use up an odd assortment of ingredients.

Get everything ready as once you start you can't stop: Heat some stock (cube will do) in a separate saucepan. Have lots to hand and it must be hot! Chop up an onion and all the vegetables you will be using. Choose a protein (I like cubes of chicken or tiger prawns). Grate some parmesan cheese. Now we start! Heat some olive oil in a deep frying pan and add the onion, a good shake of oregano and a handful of arborio risotto rice per person. Stir for a minute or so to fry the rice and semi cook the onion, then ladel in the first of the stock. It should sizzle impressively. Keep stirring the rice with a wooden spoon until the stock is almost all sucked up, then ladel in some more stock. Keep on stirring (this is the love part) and it too will be sucked into the rice, and so on. The whole process takes about 20-25 minutes, so if you are cooking hard veg like carrots or brocolli add them after 5 minutes and soft veg like asparagus or courgettes after 15 minutes. The hot stock and stirring eventually cooks the veg. Same for the protein. If it's chicken add it after 5 minutes so it cooks through by the time the risotto itself is done, and if you're using prawns, then add them only at the last 5 minutes to heat through or you'll have bullets. Add a generous handful of grated parmesan towards the end, and stir it in to melt. Taste the risotto to make sure it's not crunchy, and once it's oozy and soft, you're done. Serve with more parmesan on top.

Wrinkles - Do I Care?

2008-11-06T18:26:00.003Z

Am I the only person in my 40's who doesn't give a shit about wrinkles? Yes I slather on the cream day and night because it feels nice, but I feel so ready and able to face my wrinkles, current and future. To be honest I don't have too many which might make it easier, but anyone I know with wrinkles is simply who they are, not how wrinkly they are. Why is it the media fawns over some super shallow celeb who has had multiple facelifts and countless botox injections? I think they look like freaks. Raise a glass, tonight, to the thought of growing old graciously, the way our grandmothers were taught. And don't forget your face mask!

I ate these last night at a restaurant and they were so good I pretended they were french fries. It couldn't be easier, and really, when is the last time you cooked a humble parsnip?

Perfect Parsnips

Slice up a few parsnips into sticks, finger length and width. Lay them on a shallow baking tray and coat with olive oil, sea salt and a couple of sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves off the stalk. Roast in a hot 220C oven for about 20 minutes (I would think?) until they are cooked, even slightly burnt at the edges. Yum scrum.

I Haven't Got Time To Do.....

2008-11-03T17:21:00.004Z

I think it's a fair statement to say that a working mother is as busy as the President of the USA, at least, it feels like that sometimes. I do sympathise with part time working mothers though, because you're supposedly able to do your job and be a mother as you're only busy half the time... People often ask me how I find time to do anything that isn't work or mothering - things like going for a run, having a massage, throwing a dinner party, or writing a blog. The truth is I don't have the time at all. Not even close. And as I realised a long time ago that "free time" would never ever present itself to me one fine sunny day, I have resorted to taking it instead. I literally wrench it, wrestle it, hack it out and grab it for myself ignoring the phonecalls, emails and wails of children so that I can have some time that is spent on things that mean something to me alone. Life passes us by quickly, so the next time you think you don't have time to just sit down and have a coffee with a friend, think again.

As the weather is cooling off, I thought a warm and easy side dish might be useful.

Very Fattening Potato Bake

Thinly slice 1 1/2 peeled potatoes per person you are serving. Also thinly slice 1/2 onion or leek per person into rings. You will need some single cream, thyme (dried will do) and gruyere cheese. Grease a deep baking dish with some oil and spread a thin layer of onions followed by a solid layer of sliced potatoes, then drizzle on a coating of cream, a sprinkling of thyme, sea salt, pepper and then cover with gruyere cheese slices. Repeat this process until all the ingredients are used up, hopefully achieveing about 3- 5 layers. You can top the whole thing with grated parmesan cheese and lots of freshly ground pepper. Cover the dish with foil and cook it at about 200C for an hour or so. You can take the foil off for the last 10 minutes to brown the top. You'll know it's cooked if you can slide a knife point in easily. If you're in a rush, parboil the sliced potatoes (3 - 5 mins) before making the layers. Then the cooking time should reduce by approximately 30 minutes.

Do Your Children Bore You?

2008-10-10T19:26:00.003+01:00

I know I know, you feel guilty even reading this one! But let's face it - we're adults and they are children and we have different interests. Me, I like to flop down from time to time and have a quiet cup of tea, and my kids? They want action, action and more action. Not everyone is born with an innate sense of how to entertain children, I mean why else is there a thriving community of children's party entertainers? Now there's a strange lot... So, my hot tip on this one is not to go out and buy yet another book like "1001 Crafts to Make out of Household Garbage on a Rainy Day", but I have been made aware of a pretty useful book called "I'm Bored" by Polly Beard and Suzy Barratt. It's packed full of silly (and inexpensive) games and activities for all sorts of age groups and situations (travelling, outdoors, indoors, etc). After doing one of those you'll feel less guilty about switching on the telly and making that cup of tea...

This is a simple but very tasty side dish, and it's not rocket science.

Roast Squash with Cumin

I use butternut squash for this, but if you can get hold of gemsquash or really any squash, this recipe suits them all. Cut your butternut squash into eight pieces - I use a big cleaver for this and expel a little rage as they are tough to slice and dice. Scoop out the seeds with a spoon and chuck them out. Place the eight pieces onto a baking tray, skin side down. Drizzle all of the pieces with olive oil, then sprinkle them with plenty of sea salt, a generous grind of black pepper and a light coating of ground cumin. Roast in a 200 C oven for 35 minutes or until you can stick a knife in with ease, and serve with...well, anything! And yes, you can eat the skin too.

Do Your Kids Eat Too Much Crap?

2008-10-03T11:47:00.005+01:00

I am no nutritionist, but what I do know is the following three things:
1 If you make a small or large effort to cook something fresh for your children as often as you can, and if your kids eat some fruit and vegetables every day, then you're probably doing all right. I have heard that even repeating the same few items is OK, so if your kid only likes brocolli, and not beans or peas, well you can rest assured that you can still put a tick in the "green vegetable" box. Obviously a variety of fruit and veg is better, and use the colours of food to guide you, and feed them green things, orange things, yellow things, red things - you get the picture.
2 Another thing is I never made sweets a treat in my house. Sometimes they are there and sometimes not, and I try so hard not to reward good behaviour with a sweet, as the association of "I am good" with sweets can become ingrained and last until adulthood. Do you reward yourself for "being good and going to the gym" with a treat? Do you?
3 The last thing is that no child has never been known to starve itself, so if your child doesn't want to finish what is on their plate, it's OK. We are so conditioned to finishing what is on the plate that early on in life, we lose our ability to stop eating when our brain tells us we are full, and instead we stop eating when all the food is gone. Perhaps that's one reason there is a growing epidemic in obesity? Relinquish your control here and you'll end that "just three more bites" argument that makes many a meal end in tears.

Today's recipe is another stress free dinner party in a snap:

Mediterranean Lamb Slop

This recipe has such a strange start, but stay with me.

Take a tin of anchovy fillets and spread them out across a deep baking dish, oil and all. If there is not enough oil to coat the pan then add a bit of olive oil. Place 4 lamb steaks on top of the anchovies and season them with salt and pepper. Now add a variety of vegetables, cut into 1 inch chunks to fill the dish. I use courgettes, aubergines, red peppers, carrots, squash and mushrooms but any combination should work. Sprinkle on some pine nuts, fresh thyme (stalks and all) and a sprinkling of cinammon, salt and pepper all over. Add a couple of tins of whole tomatoes with their juice (never buy chopped toms in a tin as the seeds are often sliced and they release a very bitter taste into the tomatoes). Also add 1/3 bottle red wine and scatter on some pitted black olives if you like. Cover the whole thing with tin foil and at this point you can fridge it for later, or cook straight away at 190C for about an hour. If you undercook it you'll have slightly crisper veg, and if it's overdone you'll have a stew texture. Either is great so don't stress. I serve this with rice or cous cous, and if you're feeling fancy, add a tin of drained chick peas to the cous cous.

Don't Make the Bed Today

2008-09-30T10:59:00.003+01:00

A while back, I read a review of a book about how it's OK to be lazy. There were top tips to being lazy and the one that really stuck with me was "don't make your bed every day". So I don't! I don't think that makes me a slob, and although I like crisp, smooth clean sheets at night, there is equal pleasure crawling into a mass of rumpled duvet and pillows, pre-shaped and ready made into the way you want it during sleep. Me, I don't run a hotel...

Ooooozy Prawn Pasta Salad

This is a great summer supper, or side dish at a BBQ and I usually make it for any vegetarian (pescatarian actually) guests since a BBQ can be quite a carnivorous occasion. The essential ingredient is something called orzo, which is small, rice shaped pasta. It has the most wonderful texture once cooked, and I get it from my local Italian Deli. I usually cook 1/2 a pack for about 8 people. Once cooked, put it in a salad bowl and leave it to cool with some olive oil stirred into it to prevent it from sticking. Add 2 tubs of creme fraiche, a large bunch of fresh dill, finely chopped, 2 big tbsps of grainy mustard, all the juice of a lemon and two packs of cooked prawns. Make sure the dressing is enough so the dish is quite oozy and not stiff. If stiff, add more lemon juice and creme fraiche. If you like a little crunch, add a chopped red pepper.

Glass of wine = Mum's best friend

2008-09-29T14:59:00.005+01:00

You are not alone. It seems to me that there are MANY mothers out there who, upon getting their children to bed, go straight to the kitchen to pour themselves a glass of wine. This is no lecture about creeping alcoholism but a friendly (whispered) "pssssst...we all do it" moment. We love our children but they do, from time to time, drive us completely mad. And after a long frazzled evening (or day) together, only Chateau-take-moi-away will do! I know many a nutritionist who positively swears that a glass of red wine every evening does more good than harm, so it's the second and third that we should talk about...another time. Pass the bottle.

Not so Boring Potato Salad

This one is not reinventing the wheel, I know! But my cooking is all about the basics, with a lovely cheating twist to make people think you are a culinary genius. But it is with humbleness that I offer this very simple recipe. Obviously you boil some peeled potatoes which I always cut up before cooking as it cuts down on the cooking time. Drain and allow them to cool (never rinse them under cold water! It's far better to serve warm potato salad than the mulch this would produce). Add enough half fat creme fraiche (healthier than mayonnaise so please forgive my creme fraiche fetish) to coat the potatoes generously, 2 tbsps of curry powder, and some apricot chutney. I know "some" is not a measurement, but if it is about 1/4 chutney to creme fraiche, that should be about right. If the chutney you are using has chunks of apricot, either chop them up or leave them out. Mrs Balls Chutney has the perfect consistency for this, but any chutney will work. Add lots of salt and pepper as potatoes are so bland. Lastly, add some chopped fresh mint or parsley, for a cheffy flourish, if you can be bothered.

Are All Men Boys?

2008-09-26T15:32:00.003+01:00

Last night I went out with two MSM's (Married Single Mothers) after spending some time in the afternoon with Geraldine. I was particularly disappointed to hear that Geraldine, too, is an MSM as I thought of her husband as one of the more devoted and doting ones I know. She said she was terribly lonely, looking after their daughter every weekend while he went off sailing. He thinks that because he does all the cooking, he's off the hook! All I can say is jeepers, look at the mess we've got ourselves into. Does anyone out there have a truly involved husband? Do you get time off every weekend...?

I think of Guacamole as comfort food, so here's to you, Geraldine...

Cheat's Guacamole

When it comes to speedy cooking, you often have to cheat, lie or steal. Sometimes all three. This is a cheat's recipe for Guacamole as it is deeply unauthentic but delicious. Take one ripe avocado per person, and for each avocado add about one big tbsp mayonnaise, juice of half a lemon and 1/4 tsp of garlic salt. Mash all together with a fork - ta da! The mayonnaise can be any kind. I recently found a lime/chili mayonniase at Wholefoods which worked very well but I usually use Light Hellman's. Leave some lumps in so everyone knows you made it yourself.

We all know a Yummy Mummy...

2008-09-22T18:02:00.002+01:00

Who coined the phrase "yummy mummy"? It's such an unfair label which only olympic mothers can achieve. For the rest of us mere mortals, it's simply an annoying label to aspire to. You know the type - she shows up at the school gate with hair perfectly coiffed, full make up and painted immaculate fingernails. She's super slim, makes her own jam, plays awesome tennis, runs a book club, participates every year in a major marathon (for charity of course) and wears only the latest fashion. And the worst thing is she's probably really nice. Well guess what, it's OK to hate her.

In honour of all those yummy mummies out there, I present to you my most revolting recipe - the antithesis of anything they would ever cook as it contains mayonnaise (fat! horror!) and tinned soup (yuck!). But it tastes good...

Chicken Divan

I suppose this is an old 70's recipe and I have no idea where I got it from, but I have been making it for 20 years, honestly. Cook 4 skinless chicken breasts in a pan and slice them up into bite size pieces. Scatter into a deep baking dish. Chop up a whole brocolli, also into bite size spears, and scatter those on top, raw. In a bowl, mix together 2 tins of cream of chicken soup, 1 cup of Hellman's Light Mayonnaise, the juice of one lemon, 3tsps of curry powder, a good pinch of sea salt and lots of freshly ground black pepper. Add in some milk (1/2 cup), to loosen the mixture a bit. Pour this over the chicken and brocolli, it should cover them well. Cover the top with breadcrumbs, more black pepper and a generous layer of grated parmesan cheese. Cook in a preheated oven 200C for 30 minutes or until it looks golden and hot. I serve this with rice, apricot chutney and a green salad.

Are You Sleep Deprived?

2008-09-19T15:00:00.005+01:00

I think sleep is way overrated. The way parents obsess about their sleep or go to bed at 9pm is just plain boring. Sure we all like a good night's sleep, but if you just accept that us parents don't get to sleep as much as before children, you will enter a whole new world. But you have to truly accept and be at peace with lack of sleep, and never get angry about it again. There's a lot of interesting research out there about sleep and the only bit I believe is that kids need sleep as it's when they grow. The next time you see a runt of a kid, ask the parents if that kid sleeps badly, or never takes a nap and 9 times out of 10 they'll say yes.

Today's recipe won't put you to sleep, but it's one of my all time favourites. It epitomises everything that I feel my cooking represents: It's a bit unusual, it's tasty, easy to make and FAST. Happy working mothers don't slave for hours at a stove!

Warm Cannelini Bean Salad

Heat a large espresso cup's quantity of olive oil in a saucepan. Add about two tsps of (ideally) fresh rosemary pulled off the stalk, or the same quantity of dried. We're not looking to deep fry it, so just heat it gently until you can smell rosemary in the air above the pan. Stick your nose in there! Then add a tin of drained cannelini beans with a generous pinch of sea salt and lots of freshly ground black pepper. The beans shouldn't be swimming in oil, nor should the mixture be too dry, so add more oil if you need to. Heat through and then switch off as you can just leave it on the stove top with a lid until you need it. Don't overcook them as the beans will go hard. Serve it warm with some lamb chops and a green salad. It's a nice alternative to potatoes and healthier. I often make this in larger quantities for BBQ's too.

We are Always Late for School...

2008-09-17T11:13:00.004+01:00

I was one of the last of my friends to have children, so all my friends are the wise and experienced parents - very useful for me. But I do have a friend whose child just started school this year and today when I bumped into her I, for once, played the wise one. The topic: How do you get to school on time every day? She looked ruffled and perplexed. She had been up since 6:30am which is just when her husband leaves for work (I told her she's a Married Single Mother like so many of us) and she's barely making it on time.

Kids and rushing just don't mix. And no matter what time we get up, we're usually just barely on time, or late. I am still a teenager too, and getting up in the morning often causes me physical pain, so add a little grumpiness and the result is a typical morning scenario...rush...yell...tears...rush...forget stuff... As the stressed out starfish in Nemo says, "find a happy place, find a happy place!". I have no magic formula for mornings but I do have the fastest pancake recipe ever. I don't weigh flour for this...

Weekday Pancakes - Yes Pancakes!

My nanny taught me this - when you make pancakes be BRAVE and CONFIDENT. You'd think pancakes are a big production but with the right attitude, they take as long to make as a piece of toast. Kids love these, and they eat them quickly - key to a hassle free morning. Read on...

Break one egg per child into a large bowl. I actually have a plastic jug with a small mesh that fits just under the lid. I think we got it a long time ago during a mad health moment to make protein shakes, but it's perfect for pancake mix so use it if you have one. Add one heaped tbsp per child of plain or wholemeal or self raising flour - whatever you have will do. Then slosh in some milk, not too much and not too little (and you'll get good at this with practice).

Preheat your frying pan with a knob of butter, and then whisk, beat with a fork, or shake up the mixture until you have a thick-ish batter. If it's very runny, add some flour, and if it's quite thick, then add a touch more milk. Don't be scared. Runny batter makes crepes and will cook quickly and thick batter makes puffy substantial pancakes. Either result is perfectly acceptable, and you'll get well practiced re the consistency once you have done this two or three times.

If you cracked two eggs for two kids, then obviously use half the batter each time so you end up with two pancakes and no leftover batter. Fry the first side and peek under it - once brown, flip over and fry other side (this side takes much shorter). I serve them straight away with maple syrup, runny honey or a sprinkle of sugar.

Cooking Well IS for Wimps Like you and me

2008-09-16T11:18:00.008+01:00

My friends think I am a great cook, which makes me chuckle. I have worked around the edges of the food industry for years now, so I do know a lot about food, but that doesn't make me a great cook. I see myself more as a competant flavour combiner. This means you won't find fancy cookery methods, or homemade pastry recipes here and no! I don't make my own jam. I think the reason friends think I am a good cook is because I just get on with it, and I have lots of ideas. You might be freaked out or relieved to know I will rarely give specific measurements in my recipes. Use your eyes, your nose and your taste buds. And don't be scared of using salt. It has yet to be proven scientifically that salt is bad for you - honestly!

I often make this for a mid week dinner party as it's easy and tasty.

Thai Prawn (Shrimp) Curry

Fry two chopped onions and an (optional) chopped red pepper for a minute or two in vegetable oil. Stir in a big spoonful (or two if you like it hot) of Thai curry paste - red or green doesn't matter but I prefer red - and lots of pepper and a generous pinch of salt. Add one tin of coconut milk and some soured cream or creme fraiche to thicken it a bit (about 3 tbsps). Let the mixture get hot, and taste it: Too spicy? Add more of the cream/creme fraiche. Too bland? Add more curry paste. Just before serving, add some cooked prawns and bring the whole mixture back up to a good simmer, then switch it off and put a lid on it. If you overcook prawns they turn into nasty little ocean bullets. I use tiger prawns as they are quite hardy and retain their firm texture and please don't use tinned prawns - yeucchh! The trick is just to warm the prawns through and not to cook them anymore. Serve with rice and a spoon as it is a bit liquid.

Are you also a Married Single Mother?

2008-09-15T10:13:00.005+01:00

Since when is the care of one's children a one parent job? I just spent a weekend making pancakes for breakfast, going to the playground, lifeguarding, washing up, making lunch, changing nappies and spoon feeding my grumpy two year old, supervising homework, piano practice, doing laundry, serving hot chocolate and cooking dinners. My husband played tennis, had lunch with a friend, tinkered with his car, had tea at the neighbours... you get the picture.

As my profile says, I started an earlier blog called the Angry Working Mother. I have thought about this a lot, and even considered keeping both blogs going simultaneously, as, really, I bounce between being angry and happy. But overall I am happy, and willing to commit to this blog now because here I am, at my desk on a quiet Monday morning and with all love and respect to my children I am HAPPY to be here!

I made this last night for the kids - dinner in 4 minutes (if you have the right leftovers):

Healthy Pasta

I chopped up some cooked chicken, some cooked broccoli and grated some parmesan cheese. (Just use your best judgement and use portions your children normally would eat, plus about 1.5 tbsp of cheese per child). I heated a deep frying pan with a bit of olive oil, adding some leftover cooked pasta until it was warmed through. To that I added half a tub of creme fraiche (cream will do) - enough to generously coat the pasta. Heat through, then add all the chicken, broccoli and cheese and keep stirring until it's all hot. I added a 1/2 tsp of garlic salt too, but if you're a psycho-mum and avoid salt in all kids' food, that's fine too.