Wait, it gets better.
I would also make sure we ate well balanced meals every night. We ate a variety of foods: one night each for pasta, chicken, beef, fish, and maybe even a vegetarian meal if I could sneak it by Mike.
Then Jack came along. Since his arrival, I havn't had the time, energy, quiet or patience to sit and plan a week's meals. Therefore, I go to the store a lot and we eat whatever I can think of making last minute. It's all a big waste of time, I know, but that's how it ends up working.
It dawned on me that for the past nine days of Home Cook Challenge, we haven't eaten any fish. Luckily, I had some frozen salmon in the fridge (see above, I no longer plan in advance). One quick trip to the store and I had everything I needed to make a healthy dinner.
This recipe comes from my Old No. 3 cookbook, a collection of family recipes Karla Wilkerson gave us as a wedding gift. The recipe is actually my parents' contribution. I can remember my mother discovering this recipe when I was in high school. She liked it so much we had it twice a week for a year. Of course, this turned me into an opponent quickly. Once I grew up and tried it myself, though, I really liked it.
It's pretty darn easy to make. Just whip up a little sauce of tarragon, dijon mustard, white wine vinegar and olive oil.
This was easily accomplished while I threw the salmon filets in the sink to defrost (another problem with not planning ahead... I always forget to defrost the frozen food!). Meanwhile, Jack hung around in the kitchen enjoying a fruit snack.
He even offered to share his coveted snack with the cat, Penny. She gave it a good sniff, but declined.
Once dinnertime rolled around I heated up the oven to broil and brushed some olive oil and lemon juice on the salmon.
The salmon broils for five minutes per side, so it was ready quickly. I just had time to make some noodles, spinach salad, and open up a can of pears. When the salmon came out it just needed a few swipes of the tarragon sauce.
What do you know? We had a balanced meal tonight! Fruit, vegetable, protein, carb... it's all there! I was very proud of myself. Nothing was more pleasing than seeing Mike clean his plate.
You're probably wondering how Jack liked the salmon. He gave it a big no and several decisive shakes of his head. He loved the noodles, which was a success in itself. These were the same noodles from the chicken noodle soup which he refused. Jack also liked digging through the salad bowl to find the Craisins. He gobbled up his pears.
After all that eating Jack proudly displayed his belly button.
We were all feeling good after this dinner. Mike cleaned up the kitchen and even shooed me away when I tried to help. That gave me more time to work with Jack on his fine motor skills by ripping paper. Goodbye, Pottery Barn Kids! Take that, Williams Sonoma!
This was a deeply satisfying activity for all involved. Jack spent most of the time bouncing between ripping paper with me and jumping off the chair onto the cushion. Fine motor, gross motor... the kid likes balance. When Mike saw our big mess, he remarked that he was happy his clean up duty was finished.
The next few days will be interesting, because I will be teaching Spanish classes at night. Mike will be responsible for Jack tomorrow night, and Thursday they will be coming to class with me. That means a carseat dinner for Jack and parents who will be wishing for take-out. We shall see how we fare...
