We Still Cook When We Can

Mom's Apple Cake from Smitten Kitchen

Things around our house have been go go go ever since Uli arrived. We have wanted to make the most of this impressionable time in his life so we can reap the rewards later on. It was necessary to be in that mode for a while, but when my schedule is so full, it is hard to find the time to cook for myself in the ways that nourish me best. I end up eating faster, easier food or takeout, which doesn't feel very good on many levels. Cooking for myself helps me feel balanced. As does spending time with my family and creating things. When I realized things had gotten out of hand, I made a point to lighten up on the plans and refocus on what brings on those better feelings.

On a recent weekend, Paul and I took some time to create a labor-intensive meal together that involved us both learning new skills. We made pasta from scratch! It was about time, too, since that shiny pasta roller was part of Paul's birthday present last July!

photo credit to Paul

And, as you might have guessed, we enjoy making things with eggs from our backyard pets/employees (their roles vary, depending on who you ask in this house).

We made a really basic durum semolina egg pasta for our first attempt.

We also cooked up a vegetable heavy, tomato sauce for the pasta.

Making pasta is not very hard if you have the right tools, but it sure is time consuming! I got a bit impatient when waiting for the sheets to be dry enough to cut, which meant we cut them when they were too wet and the noodles stuck to each other too much. Lesson learned!

Our meal was very satisfying in the nutritious way and also in the soul-filling way. And, truth be told, in the wine way, too. I am very glad to have been able to bring wine back into my diet.

In further attempts to bring things back into balance, I have also been trying to reinstate my weekend cooking spree. During these sprees, I make multiple dishes with multiple servings that have the ability to be transported to work and a decent shelf-life. It is my strategy for setting myself up to eat well throughout the week without spending each night cooking.

During one of these sprees, I made a beet slaw with preserved lemons. I am not sure why I have gone so long without preserved lemons in my fridge! They are super easy to make and amp up the flavor of every dish they are in. There are easy instructions on this site, although I don't usually rinse my slices when I use them. I have found the flesh and the peel are both useful. Try blending some in with a batch of hummus. Snappy!

PS The cake in the first photo was amazing and very big! I made it for a dinner party we hosted and it was well received. We had enough to all partake at dinner, send some home with our guests and still have leftovers for ourselves.