Happy Halloween!!!

The Face or Body Dilemma

There comes a time in every woman's life (generally it occurs shortly after her 30th birthday), when she has to choose between her face or her body.  As Lainey puts it, "as you age, you have a choice: stay a size 2 but look like a crypt keeper or go up a few sizes, preserve a pretty face, but concede that the ass might not be as perky."  It's depressing and sexist, but kind of true.  Just look at Claire Danes' transformation over the past year:

2012 Emmys

2013 Emmys

Sure, she's a lot skinnier now, but didn't she look great in the first picture (without her chest ribs showing)?  That was right after she had her baby.  Her face was full and glowing.  Now...it's a little gaunt. And I think she's aged.  Which look do you prefer?

A more extreme example is Demi Moore.  The top picture is of Demi right before she went to rehab in 2011 (so yeah, there may have been more to her Skeletor face than just being too skinny).  The bottom is of her in October of this year. 

Doesn't she look great now?  I'm sure she's had plenty of help from her plastic surgeon, but still.  An extra ten pounds on her makes her look ten years younger.

At this point, I'm six months pregnant, so the choice has been made for me, at least for a while.  And I'm really okay with it.  I'd rather be healthy and have it show in my face than look great in a pair of skinny jeans.  I'll just wear more dresses.  And eat more chocolate.



 

The Best Pumpkin Muffins (and they're vegan!)

I have been meaning to post a link to this recipe for weeks now.  We are big muffin lovers in my house.  As soon as the thermometer hit below 90, it felt like a good time to make some pumpkin muffins.  The BEST recipe I've found is this one.  Seriously, even my dairy and egg loving husband has been scarfing these vegan muffins down.  I've made two batches of them now, and they've both turned out amazing.  Last weekend, C and I had a blast baking them together.  I let her put the baking cups in the muffin tin, scoop the dry ingredients (with plenty of help), dump in the wet ingredients and stir everything together.  I think she loved the muffins even more because she made them herself.  :) 

I made a few substitutions to the original recipe, and the muffins still turned out amazing.  Here are the changes I made: (1) I used King Arthur's White Whole Wheat Flour instead of white flour; (2) I cut down the sugar to 1 cup (but I think I will try to reduce it to just 3/4 cup next time); (3) I used organic full-fat coconut milk instead of soy milk; and (4) I used maple syrup instead of molasses (I didn't have any molasses on hand).  They turned out really light and moist, and the spices are perfect.

You should definitely try these soon!

Dealing with Eczema

Eczema is no fun.  We've been fighting my daughter's eczema battle since a couple of weeks after her birth.  We first noticed an issue when she was about three weeks old.  My beautiful baby's face suddenly broke out in baby acne, and she got angry red welts in all her chubby baby creases: behind her knees, in the crooks of her elbows, and under her sweet baby chin.  Sometimes they would get so bad they would start oozing.  It was horrible, she was uncomfortable, and I felt like the world's worst mother because I must be doing something awful to make her skin look like that.

Our pediatrician was a huge help.  While he definitely wanted to prescribe her something to heal up the open wounds, he didn't want us to remain dependent on steroids to keep her skin clear.  He gave us lots of really helpful suggestions, and we found a lot of other helpful advice from the Ask Dr. Sears website. 

While C is always going to have sensitive skin (we refer to it as "crappy Irish skin" in my family), we have learned some tricks that make all the difference in terms of keeping her comfortable and rash free.  Surprisingly, the most helpful things do not involve bleach baths or steroid creams. 

1.  Identify Food Allergies

Source

 

Dr. Sears says that there are two distinct components of eczema: (1) food allergies and (2) dry, irritated skin.  The first step for us was figuring out whether allergies were contributing to C's eczema.  There are six common foods that make up nearly 90% of possible allergic foods:  milk, egg, soy, peanuts, fish and wheat.  I was breast-feeding C when we first realized there was a problem, so that meant that I had to eliminate certain foods from my diet.  I was already hungry all the time and struggling to figure out what to eat, so I decided against doing a full elimination diet, and started with the most common allergen, which is dairy.  I eliminated all "obvious" dairy from my diet.  Basically, that meant I stopped eating ice cream, yogurt, cheese, and drinking milk, and I cut down on my cupcake habit and didn't butter my bread anymore.  Eliminating obvious dairy in and of itself helped clear up 70% of her rash.  Once she started eating solid foods, it was easier to identify the remainder of her allergies.  It quickly became obvious that she couldn't have ANY dairy (even if it was cooked or baked into foods).  I once  gave her a piece of pancake and she erupted into angry red hives that covered her entire body.  Scary stuff.  We also figured out that she is sensitive to egg whites and peanuts, because she would immediately get a rash around her face after consuming them.  By eliminating these foods, we've helped improve her eczema by leaps and bounds.  

2.  Probiotics

The next most helpful thing that we did we start giving C a probiotic every morning.  We open the capsule and mix it into some apple sauce, and she eats it right up.  We discovered this trick by accident, as her pediatrician recommended we give her a probiotic to help any digestive discomforts while she was on antibiotics for an ear infection.  Her skin became almost perfect.  At first we assumed it was the antibiotics, but quickly realized that it was the probiotic that was doing the trick for us.  A couple of weeks ago, C was sick and had no appetite, so she didn't take her probiotic.  Her skin broke out almost immediately, and cleared up again within a day or two once I started mixing it into some juice.  We use Jarro Dophilus Allergen-Free formula, which we get from the refrigerated section of our health food store.  They seem to be more potent than the Culturelle that you can find at the drug store, and the allergen-free formula is important for obvious reasons. 

3.  Laundry

One of the first things our pediatrician recommended we do to help C's irritated skin was to switch our laundry detergent.  I had been using Dreft, the supposedly sensitive, deliciously baby-smelling detergent for all of her clothes.  He told us to switch to fragrance-free EVERYTHING, especially laundry detergent, and add an extra rinse for any load with her clothes to make sure all the soap is removed.  So we switched to free and clear detergents for all our family's laundry and even I noticed a big difference in terms of my (lack of) skin itchiness.  For the record, I would not recommend Tide Free and Clear.  For whatever reason, it is still really harsh.  I really liked using the Martha Stewart Free & Clear detergent back when I was able to find it at Publix, then I switched to BioKleen Free & Clear (it was pretty cheap on Amazon) and Seventh Generation Free & Clear (not a bad price at Target).  None of them work particularly well in terms of removing stains, but I've found that if I let C's stained clothes dry in the sun, that it tends to at least lighten the stains substantially, if not completely remove them.  I also have learned that toddlers should not own any white clothing. 

4.  100% Cotton and Flame Retardant Free Clothes

This one is really important.  For some reason, clothing manufacturers seem to think that babies and toddlers are prone to spontaneously combusting into flames.  That is the only reason I can think of that they put super harsh flame retardants in virtually all of their baby pajamas.  I don't know about you, but if the only thing preventing my daughter from being consumed by flames is her pajamas, we've got bigger problems.  If you look hard enough, you can find 100% cotton pajamas that do not contain flame retardants (Old Navy and Gap are our favorites).  I also don't put C in any synthetic fibers...not even during the day.  The cotton allows her skin to breathe, and is non-irritating. 

5.  Fragrance Free Shampoo & Body Wash

As conditioned as we are to love Johnson & Johnson's heavily fragranced baby shampoos, it's just not a good idea if your little one has sensitive skin.  We tend to buy whatever fragrance-free baby shampoo is on sale...I've had good luck with Babyganics Extra Gentle/Fragrance Free line, as well as Earth Mama Angel Baby products.  Although I typically love Aveeno, their baby shampoo, even the kind meant for eczema-prone skin, contains a pretty heavy fragrance that irritates C's sensitive skin. 

6.  Moisturize!!!

Okay, maybe this one belongs at the top of the list.  One of the most important things you can do to prevent skin irritation it to keep your baby's skin constantly moisturized.  At least twice per day, we cover C in Aveeno Baby Daily Moisturizing Lotion.  It's fragrance-free and non-greasy, and is just a good, every day lotion.

Then, if she has any redder or more irritated spots, we'll top it with our secret weapon: L'Occitane Mom and Baby Balm.  It is crazy-expensive, so we only use a little, but it seriously works miracles.  It helps that it's 40% shea butter.  It's also ranked a "0" on the EWG Cosmetic Database (0 being the best and least toxic). 

I hope some of these tips help those of you unfortunate enough to be battling the eczema battle.  Good luck!

Everyday Food Roasted Salmon with Kale and Cabbage

My dear friend Amanda (of From the Desk of Amanda Zika fame) gave me a subscription to Martha Stewart Living a few years back, and lucky for me, she keeps renewing it for me. :)  Lately, there's been included with that subscription a little Everyday Food booklet filled with lots of yummy and fast recipes.  The other day, Publix happened to have some fresh Coho salmon, which is vastly superior to the farmed stuff they usually have.  I picked some up, along with a big bag of organic kale.  I planned to just bake the salmon (we typically sprinkle some of Chef Paul Prudhommes Magic Salmon Seasoning on the salmon and bake on foil - I just can't quit you - for about 12-15 minutes at 400 degrees) and sauté the kale with some olive oil and garlic, when I vaguely recalled reading a recipe in Everyday Food that looked like it would work with other ingredients I already had on hand.  I didn't have any cabbage, but it didn't matter, this recipe turned out great with just the salmon and kale, and we only had ONE pan to clean at the end of this.  Of course, when I say "we" had a pan to clean, I of course mean D.  In our house, the cook doesn't clean . :) 

The only tweak I would make to the recipe is to cook the salmon for less time, or maybe keep your salmon piece whole, instead of cutting it into portions. I found that 10 minutes was a little too long and the salmon ended up a little over-cooked.  Maybe check it after about 7 minutes. 

Here is the recipe: Roasted Salmon with Kale and Cabbage, and here are some pictures of our dinner:

Before going into the oven

All finished and ready to eat.

(I left the sauce off C's portion in case she wasn't a fan.  I needn't have worried.  It was really, really good). 

Slow cooker pot roast and lots of fun activities

Whelp, it's been a while since I've posted anything...sorry to my two dedicated readers. :)  Things have been pretty busy in our neck of the woods.  Since I last posted, I took a trip to DC for a dear friend's wedding:

 Packed up C and the hub and visited the Golisano Children's Museum of Naples:

Went to a family friend's wedding in St. Pete with D, my parents and brothers:

 

And took a trip to the Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa.  C was SO excited to see the elephants.  It was like she spotted the Beatles.  She was a little more timid when it came to feeding the giraffes (clinging to her Daddy for dear life):

 

 

But she liked hanging out with the zebras. 

With all these fun activities, I haven't had much time (or desire) to cook.  For that reason, I'm really glad that I took the time a few weeks ago to prep a pot roast for the slow cooker. 

The art of slow cooking has been a work in progress for me.  We never had a slow cooker when I grew up.  My Mom thought it just made everything taste like mush, and so it wasn't worth the waste of food to make something that no one enjoyed eating.  I have tried my fair share of slow cooker recipes that left me with bland mush, so I know where she's coming from. 

I have learned the key, for me anyway, is to sear my meat in advance.  It adds so much flavor and structure to the dish that it doesn't taste like you slow-cooked it; it tastes like you braised it, which is essentially what you're doing.  Of course, if you have the time to sear meat in the morning, you probably don't need a slow cooker because you have all the time in the world to cook and relax and drink wine and play jazz and luxuriate in a bubble bath while watching the Today Show.  This is what I imagine retirement will be. 

I know, however, that the chances of me waking up early to sauté meat and chop veggies to throw in the slow cooker are about as good as the chances of me waking up early to work out (ha!), so I need to find another way.  So, one Saturday when I didn't have a lot going on and Greenwise roasts were on sale, I decided to experiment with pre-searing and sautéing my ingredients, then freezing them all to use in my slow cooker on a less-relaxed day.

So I seasoned the meat, added some olive oil to a pan, and seared it on both sides.

 

Then I added a little more oil, and added some chopped onion, celery and carrots.

Once those were done, I figured I'd throw in some sweet potatoes, just because I had some and I like them.

 

Then I rinsed and tied up some fresh rosemary and thyme:

 

Then I let everything cool down, stuffed it all into a freezer bag, and stuck it in my freezer until I was ready for it.  Then, one frantic morning, I dumped the entire frozen contents into my slow cooker (note - I did NOT thaw first), added about a cup of beef broth and maybe another one-half to one cup of red wine, set it on low for 8 hours, and came home to perfectly braised, perfectly delicious pot roast.

I know the lighting is weird and makes the sauce look really greasy, but I promise, it was not.  The whole family scarfed it down, and I was a hero.  I usually like to eat my pot roast with mashed potatoes, but because I had thrown in the sweet potatoes, we didn't need them.  Since this recipe was so successful, I think that I'm going to try the pre-searing then freezing then slow-cooking technique with some other recipes.  I'm sure beef stew would turn out great, and probably plenty of chicken dishes would too.  You could also skip the freezing step if you make this early and want to eat it right away.  I usually make pot roasts on a winter weekend day, and I don't really use a recipe anymore.  I think my recipe is based on this one from The Pioneer Woman though. 

Slow-Cooker Pot Roast

Ingredients
1 3-4 lb chuck roast
1/2 to 1 onion, chopped
1-2 cloves garlic (or, if you really like garlic like me, 4-5 cloves), minced
3-4 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
3-4 stalks celery, roughly chopped
1-2 sweet potatoes, well scrubbed and chopped (optional)
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
1 bunch fresh thyme
1 bunch fresh rosemary
salt
pepper
1 cup beef broth
1/2 to 1 cup dry red wine (I typically use cabernet)

Directions
Prep
1.  Heat a pan on medium-high heat. While the pan is heating, season the chuck roast with salt and pepper.  Once the pan is hot, add about 2 tablespoons olive oil.

2.  Wait for the olive oil to get really hot, then add the roast and let it sear, undisturbed for maybe 3 -5  minutes on each side.  The length of time it takes to sear will really depend on how hot your pan is.  You want it really  hot, but you also don't want your roast to turn completely black and burnt.  Just check it and use your best judgment.

3.  While the roast is searing, I chop up my veggies.  Once the roast is done, remove it to a plate and let it cool down.  Then add another 2 tablespoons or so of oil to the pan, and add the onion, carrots and celery.  Let them cook down for a few minutes, and add the garlic.  I probably sauté them all for a total of about 7 minutes, but again, just watch them and don't overcook.  They're going to spend a lot of time cooking in the slow-cooker, so you just want them to develop a good flavor.   

4.  Once the carrots, celery, onion and garlic are done cooking, remove them to a plate and set aside.  Then add another 2 tablespoons or so of oil, and sauté the sweet potatoes. You could probably even skip this step altogether...I don't know if it really added much or helped the potatoes stay together any better.

5.  Rinse and dry the thyme and rosemary, then tie them together into one big bunch.

6.  Once your meat and veggies have cooled down, dump the herbs, veggies, and meat (in that order)all together into a big freezer bag.  If the bag is still pretty warm, stick it in the fridge for a few hours to cool down, then flatten everything out as best you can, and stick it in the freezer.

Day of
1.  Dump contents of bag into a slow cooker.  If it's frozen too solid to get the lid closed, leave it alone for 15-30 minutes and go blow dry your hair.  Then take a wooden spoon and bang the frozen mass into submission.

2.  Add the broth and wine.  You want it to come up about half way in the pot.  If it's too low, add some more broth.

3.  Cover and cook on low 8 hours (or longer), or high for 4 hours.  Remove the bunch of herbs, and enjoy!

Falafel, etc.

So, unfortunately my falafel experiment did not go over as I'd hoped.  I thought it was delicious, but Sunny repeatedly told me "I don't like it" and the husband ate a couple patties before making himself a peanut butter sandwich.

The cilantro-avocado sauce was a success at least.

Since that failure, I have a cooking hangover I just can't shake.  For that reason, I have not cooked one thing this week.  Thankfully my husband is an excellent cook, and he has totally picked up my slack.  I am also very grateful for the makers of Applegate chicken nuggets and Amy's Kitchen frozen dinners.

So we had a busy weekend...we were up in Central Florida visiting family and friends.  We stayed with my husband's parents on Saturday and on Sunday we had the baptism of our friends' sweet little boy.

Sunny had a blast with her grandparents

Sweet baby getting baptized (D is the Godfather)

We had a great time, although the trip was just too short.  

This weekend I'm so excited to be heading to DC for my friend's wedding.  It will be my first time leaving Sunny and my husband alone together for a weekend, and I know they'll do great (even though my husband has warned me that they're going to be "eating like frat boys."  Oh boy).  I just can't wait to see all my college friends!  I haven't seen any of them since before I was pregnant with Sunny, which was almost three years ago.  It's just not right.  Why can't all my friends live within a two-block radius of me???