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What’s On My Plate?

I know…Summer’s still in full-swing, but many of you are already thinking about back-to-school.  It’s been a lot of years since I was deeply involved in back-to-school, but I remember it clearly.  

After all the new teachers, new lunchboxes, and new sneakers, I’ll never forget the challenge of DINNER. Suddenly, the relaxing evenings of summer were over! And with after-school sports, clubs, play dates, etc., dinner had to be easy and fast. 

My own memories involve Moosewood Cookbook, lots of tofu, and the occasional pancake dinner. Making dinners that were actually consumed by both parents and kids was the first hurdle. And that’s probably the case today. 

During one of our frequent family dinners, I asked my kids, Nina and Eli, what they remember about those dinners…

NINA SECTION

Weeknights in my house are super busy. My two kids have after-school activities most days, so we spend a lot of time running from work to home, to activities, and back home again. We pack a lot into a day, but we like it that way! AND we really value sitting down together for dinner as often as possible, even if we only have time to prepare something simple. 

My secret sauce is what I call “intentional leftovers.” I like to make extra of pretty much everything I cook so that I can quickly turn it into something else another night when time is limited. 

For example, I will make extra potatoes and then turn them into a potato hash or potato cake another night. If I’m making grilled or roasted chicken, I make extra so that another night I can chop up the leftovers, cook it up with onion, spices, corn, etc. and make taco filling or taco salad meat. Leftover rice easily becomes a super-fast rice and beans dish—put a piece of fish on it and make a simple cabbage slaw dressed in lime juice. 

There are so many cool things you can do with leftovers, and since they are already cooked, you often don’t need to do much more than heat them up—maybe add some new spices, onion, or other simple ingredients.

ELI SECTION

As a kid, I can barely remember school night dinners. My mom was (and still is) an amazing cook. She made great things. My dad only made breakfast for dinner, so I remember that more because it always involved maple syrup, fruit, pancakes, etc. My dad crushed “breakfast for dinner.”  

Now, I’m the dad and have to come up with great weeknight dinners for my three wild boys, and my lovely lady (who also does a lot of cooking, even though neither of us are particularly good at it).  

Some nights it’s a fire drill to get all the food on the plates, make everyone happy, get some degree of protein into each human, and make the adults happy, too. I commend every parent for how much work it takes to shop, prep, cook, and try to make happy all the different taste buds that all the different types of human beings have.  

And if you find yourself feeling like a failure because your kid had crackers and cheese or a PB&J for dinner two nights this week, remember that tons of us are right there with you, doing the same thing and trying our best as parents and chefs.

BACK TO KATY

As I walk down the Healthy Living aisles this morning, I’m once again amazed at the huge selection we offer and hope that it inspires great dinners, loved by both big and little humans.  While online shopping is still a “thing,” I’m told over and over by Guests that they love being IN our stores. I ask why and they tell me it’s about our staff, our standards, our fresh house-made food, our magical sparkle that makes us different!  

Come on in! And then go home and cook something awesome. 

KATY