I know people who are Gluten Free. Some by choice, some because they have to. I eat and enjoy gluten. But, sometimes it’s fun to try something else.

One evening in June, I was in charge of snack for a group of friends and I wanted to make one thing that we could all eat, since one friend is GF. I had found a recipe for a Peach Sorbet that I thought would be really yummy with Cornmeal Pancakes. I made the sorbet (with my own variations, like adding basil, and making one batch with nectarines instead of peaches – both were wonderful ideas) and then nervously made up the pancake recipe.

I’m pretty good at making up or altering recipes. Except when it comes to baking. Baking, as you know, is an exact science. If you take out all the sugar and replace it in equal parts with honey, it’s just not going to turn out the same (trust me). All the ingredients do something. They’re not just there for looks. However, I’ve made enough pancakes in my day to have an idea of what should and should not go into them.

I was pleasantly surprised with the results. And my friends, gobbled them up almost as quickly as I could get them off the skillet.

I don’t think I have any photos… (I’m looking… nope, but I have pictures of cookies… now I want cookies), They literally lasted about 2 minutes.

Next time I make these, I might make one for my little friend, who lets me put crowns on him and sometimes sunglasses, and who comes running into my office as soon as I pull out my desk chair, to sit next to me while I work. And I might make them and have them with coffee drunk from this mug.

Cornmeal Pancakes

Last modified on 2012-11-15 01:35:54 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

These could be for breakfast (with some fruit and scrambled eggs), as an appetizer (top with jam and cheese and broil or toast until the cheese melts), or as a snack (with peanut butter and banana)… they’re just good. Eat ’em whenever you want.

We have friends who have kids. We’ve had the privilege to get to meet many of these new little friends at the hospital, or soon after. We cherish the relationships with these small ones. They are so precious!

Little Clara was born is 2008. We met her 4 hours after she was born. She was so small, so sweet. I’m sure I held her for the whole visit. We became good friends over the next few years. 🙂 To be loved by a child, what a wonderful thing. She lives in the town we moved from almost two years ago… I miss her!!

I’ve heard newborns help you to sleep less. I’ve heard this results in what’s called a “newborn fog”. It’s fun to be able to help out our new parent friends with food. When Clara was born I made a huge pot of Mashed Potato Soup for her tired Mommy and Daddy (and big brother, Liam).

The reason I’m writing this post, if you’ve wondered, is last week when I was working on my plans and our menu for this week I was thinking about meals to bring to a friend who has a new baby and two small children. I thought that maybe you’d like some ideas for yummy foods to bring to new parents. If you don’t have close friends or family with new children, feel free to file this away for another time… have a look at the cute photos, and enjoy the Enchiladas recipe at the end. :) (These foods would also work for friends who have just moved, who are going through a tough time… you know, people who could use a break from cooking.)

One thing that I was told by a new mom is that people tend to bring a lot of chicken dishes. (She was not at all saying that she didn’t appreciate them, please note. Simply something she’d noticed.) So, an idea would be to substitute beef or pork or make a vegetarian dish, just to change things up (of course it’s always nice to ask first if the family likes/eats things other than chicken). A fun idea (also from this friend) is to get new parents their favorite take out.

Some things to ask before making dishes: Are there foods that make baby fussy? Is there anything the new mom is craving? Are there foods the family dislikes? If they have other children, are there foods they won’t eat?

Here are a few meals I’ve brought to friends recently: When little Hudson was born, I brought Chicken Pot Pie. When sweet Mika was born I brought Enchiladas and Summer  Chili.

Other Ideas

Taco Salad (Sometimes a break from casserole-type dishes might be nice – just be sure they’re eating the salad that day, and send things separately so they don’t get soggy. Another salad that would be great is a Summer Veggie Quinoa Salad (freezes and can use leftovers as a soup by adding some veggie or chicken stock). Things that freeze and reheat well are good ideas. I’ve heard that sometimes you think you’re going to get to eat dinner, but then someone starts screaming and it gets delayed. It happens, so might as well make food that’s conducive to a more sporadic schedule.)

Some hearty, more wintery (but good all year round) dishes are Chicken Parmesan (reheats, freezes, can use used cold on a salad), Chard Wraps with Beef and Tarragon (reheats), Shepherd’s Pie (freezes and reheats).

You could make a few different pasta sauces (they freeze and reheat well) and send a bag of uncooked pasta (you could cook it for them, pasta reheats OK, but not great) – Rouge Sauce, Alfredo Sauce (it’s the sauce on the BLT Pizza), Spaghetteroni and Cheese sauces, Pizza Pasta (you could send the ingredients to make it with their leftovers from a double recipe of Extra Creamy Mac and Cheese). Caprese Pasta would be good too, as it can double as a Caprese Pasta Salad!

You could go for a Breakfast for Dinner menu and make a Mushroom Frittata (reheats), or Stuffed French Toast (best eaten right away).

You could make some Pulled Pork and Coleslaw and send them with some rolls so they can assemble Pulled Pork Sandwiches (Pulled Pork freezes and reheats well), or Burgers (freezes and reheats well) and Potato Salad.

Soups can be a good option (um… maybe not in this weather). Just be sure not to add things like pasta – send them in a separate container (cooked) or a package of uncooked (be sure there’s enough liquid in the soup if they’re supposed to cook them that way). Soups like Minestrone and Bean and Green Soup are full of healthy and hearty ingredients.

You could send along a whole, cooked chicken or a roast beef that they could use right away, or save for another day.

And there are always things like Basil and Summer Squash Risotto or Mediterranean Quinoa which are yummy and reheat and freeze.

If you enjoy co-ordinating meals for new parents, Meal Baby is a site I’d recommend. I’ve used it once when setting up meals for friends. It was quick and easy. If I’m in charge of meals for the next friend who has a baby, I’d use it again.

Since we don’t have kids, I’m sure there are ideas and tips from those who do. Feel free to share!

A few weeks after Clara was born I started working for her parents at their photography studio. One of my responsibilities was to play with her. Um, OK! She and I had so much fun together. She made me laugh a lot! She especially loved it when I roared at her (I don’t know why, kids just seem to like that). Here are a few photos of us taken using the camera on my computer, a few weeks before we moved. These bring back such great memories of my little Bugaboo.

This is one of my favorite photos, because I can tell from my expression and hers that she’s saying, “NO RA RA” (her name for me, since she couldn’t say “Auntie Rachel”).

Love her!

Enchiladas

Last modified on 2012-08-04 00:09:12 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

This recipe is also just yummy for a regular non-newborn dinner.

This was a full, yet fairly relaxed weekend.

It started with a practice cake made for our friends, Nolan and Joanna, who were in a styled anniversary shoot. I was asked to do the cake for it. Confession: I’m not really a baker. I mean I can bake if I need to, if I want to, but it’s not my forté. However, for a friend, I was willing to give cake decorating a try.

My mom is an accomplished cake decorator. Our birthday cakes growing up were always homemade, always amazing! I thought maybe I’d take after her, even a little bit?? Well, I did my best. I was happy with the results.

I used Joy the Baker‘s recipe for Simple Vanilla Cupcakes (made into a cake) and Vanilla Bean Buttercream Frosting (from her cookbook, pgs 127 and 143). I put a layer of raspberry jam between the layers. Oooh yum! I made just one cake and cut it into a square then used the extra pieces to make a second layer of a square. I felt like I was on Ace of Cakes… except my cake was way less cool than theirs are… I’m OK with that.

After the practice cake, came the real one… nervousing to be sure, but still really fun to make. It was different from the practice cake in style and decor: round and a bit simpler, but I was still happy with it. I tripled the recipe (Joy’s recommendation) and made a two layer cake.

I had fun. I may leave the cake baking and decorating in general to those like my mom and Joy, but it was sure fun to try!

The rest of our weekend was pretty much spent watching the Olympics and playing Skip-Bo and Scrabble… Joanna came over on Friday and we watched the opening ceremonies and ate homemade fish and chips (and the practice cake). It was yummy and fun! We went to an Olympics party on Sat. Our menu was British inspired (Shepherd’s Pie – yum!!)… we didn’t talk in British accents though. Guess we forgot.

The menu I planned for this week was inspired by the Olympics. I tried to include a few international dishes. Have a look, maybe there’s something fun for you to try for dinner!

Today I’m trying to avoid the couch… I might have the Olympics on, but I’m still trying to work. I’m also trying to keep myself from attempting too many gymnastics moves in the living room, or going to the pool to see if I can swim the butterfly (I can’t).