Deva by Definition

Convenience Food and Cooking at Home

I found this article from The Atlantic through a friend - about how convenience foods at dinnertime (and in general) don't really save you time. As a food blogger, it struck a chord with me and got me to start thinking about how much convenience foods we do or do not use in our own household. We have come a long way, from when we first moved in together and ate a lot from boxes and jars, to now, when more than seventy percent of our meals are scratch-made.

The article explores a study done of Los Angeles families to show the impact of convenience foods on the lives of parents and children, but I am looking at it from a different perspective - that of a twosome household. The one paragraph that stuck out most to me from the entire article was when the author says:

The home-cooked meals took an average of 34 minutes of hands-on time and a total of 52 minutes to prepare. As the term suggests, preprepared "convenience" foods should take less time to prepare than cooking from scratch with fresh or raw ingredients. Heavy reliance on commercial food did reduce hands-on time significantly, but the difference was only 10 to 12 minutes.

In a world dominated by fast meals, this was intriguing to me, and it made me take a step back and look at what we cook on a regular basis, where it comes from, and how I can simplify (or de-simplify) those food. Thinking about it, I am not surprised that commercial food only reduced hands-on cooking time by about ten minutes. When we cook using pre-packaged foods, it's mostly to reduce prep time. I will the the first to admit that I don't think that removing all packaged foods is the answer - I for one quite like jarred pasta sauce. I like to buy frozen fries for how they taste, but I do realize that in the time it takes for my oven to preheat, I can make my own by slicing potatoes and tossing them with olive oil, salt, and pepper before baking them for an extended period of time.

There are many days where reduced prep time is important to me - days when I want to spend less time standing in the kitchen. Those are the days where I am tired, sore, crabby, or wanting familiarity without having to overthink the ingredients. In the past, I would make pasta sauce from scratch, but lately I've been using jarred. It's a set-it-and-forget-it meal (well, you do have to pay attention to the timer but overall, it prepares itself).

Of course, that is another benefit I have found in pre-made foods: they don't involve a lot of skill to complete. For a new cook, it may be a great way to increase confidence in the kitchen to start with quick or convenience foods. They are easy to prepare and consistent in flavor, texture, and quality, so the results are basically the same every time. It's a great benefit, as long as you realize that made-from-scratch foods, while consistent, may not be exactly the same. What I think of most when saying this is mashed potatoes. I love mashed potatoes, and we make them at minimum twice a month. We also like to buy refrigerated mashed potatoes for convenience, and often pair them with a refrigerated pre-cooked entree when we are short for time. The whole meal comes together in about fifteen minutes and is always great.

In addition to pasta, I will often use frozen vegetables to start a meal. From the article, I am not sure where that falls in the realm of premade foods. Because they are typically flash-frozen, I think they cut out some prep time in terms of washing and chopping, but take time to heat up and cook through. I also love using refrigerated mashed potatoes instead of making my own when making shepherd's pie. They cook quickly and involve less overall work, and let me focus my attention on making a very good meat-and-vegetable filling for the dish.

Another paragraph that caught my eye within the article was this one, near the end, which came after a discussion on the family dinner:

Although heavy reliance on convenience foods does not predict a scattering of family members at dinnertime, their individual packaging and low-skill (but not significantly less time-consuming) preparation may encourage family members to eat at different times and places, even when the whole family is at home.

I have found, at times, this is true. When we have convenience foods in the house, it is more likely that one of us will snack and not be hungry come dinner time. Incidentally, we will be together, in the same room, but we will not be enjoying a meal together. At times this can be disconcerting, but because it happens so rarely, it is not something that concerns me. It is something I am filing away for our future, in hopes of reducing the amount of snack-foods we have on hand for our future children. At the same time, I want to encourage independence, cooking, and freedom in the kitchen. My love for cooking got started with scrambled eggs, boxed macaroni and cheese, and canned soups and grew from there to made-from-scratch pancakes, cookies, fajitas and taco seasoning and more. It's a love I hope to pass to my future children.

Convenience foods and premade foods have their place and time, and I think it depends on each family to determine when and where that is. In my household, it often is a pre-cooked microwaveable dinner on nights we aer going to be out late - something we don't have to think about in terms of cooking or prep time, but it delicious every time. Someone else's household may be different. However, after giving the article multiple reads over the past day and a half, I can say I agree with its overall premise regarding snack foods, premade foods, prep time, and family dinners. And that is food for thought.

A Simple Saturday (Recipe Post!)

It has been a little while since I've posted anything on a Saturday, but I made some kick-ass French Toast this morning and wanted to share my how-to. Now, I know everyone makes French Toast, but this was honestly the first time I really got my French Toast to be dense, firm, and eggy. Normally, my French toast comes out of my skillet a little soggy, and while good, isn't so great when I want to sprinkle it with powdered sugar (or in this case, douse it in butter and pancake syrup).

 

This French toast was quite tasty, and held up to being sliced into triangles quite easily. It also was incredibly simple to make. The recipe as written makes two slices of French toast, but if you want more, double or triple the recipe!

Cinnamon French Toast

You Will Need:

2 Slices Whole Wheat bread
1/2-2/3 cup of 1% milk
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 tablespoon of butter

What to do:

1. Heat a medium-sized non-stick skillet over medium heat. In a large shallow bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, and cinnamon until very thoroughly combined. Working one slice of bread at a time, coat both sides of the bread until it is soaked through with the egg mixture. I do this by allowing each side of the bread to rest in the egg and milk mixture for about thirty seconds. 

2. Once the bread is thoroughly doused, melt the butter in the skillet. Heat the French toast once side at a time, for approximately 3-4 minutes per side, until the toast is golden brown and firm throughout. 

3. Remove the toast from the skillet, turn the stovetop off, and if you wish, cut into triangles. Serve with your favorite toppings, such as powdered sugar and lemon juice, or butter and maple syrup. Enjoy!

  

Related articles

All About Food

Make it: A Recipe for Jalapeno Cream-Cheese Stuffed Wontons

Make it: A Recipe for Jalapeno Cream-Cheese Stuffed Wontons

Recently, I had a potluck to prep for. With a busy weekend ahead of me, I wanted something I could prepare ahead of time, and that could double as a Super-Bowl party snack. I wanted something crunchy, savory, and portable. My mind immediately went to egg rolls, but I am inept at rolling them and wasn't sure I had the time to devote to making a tasty filling. After some googling, I found a few recipes for crab Rangoon. There was just one issue: I don't eat crab.

Then I remembered that in my hometown, there is a restaurant that serves cream-cheese stuffed wontons with sweet-and-sour sauce. They are delicious. Crispy, chewy, creamy. Yum. That in mind, I decided to make cream-cheese-stuffed wontons with a twist: jalapenos.

These were a little time-consuming but simple to make. I chose to bake the wontons over frying them, and had only a few small explosions in the oven. Of course, I am sure I am not the first person to try this, but thought I'd share what I did since it was so easy (EDIT: I am not the first person to try this, or post a recipe online. Please note that I did come up with this on my own and probably should have googled more)! I hope you enjoy these wontons as much as I did!

Jalapeno and Cream-Cheese stuffed Wontons.

You will need:

1 8-ounce block of cream cheese, softened

1/4-1/2 cup diced jalapenos (I used about a half cup, but it's up to your spice preferences). I ended up dicing up some of the pickled jalapenos I bought for a different recipe a while back

1 Package Wonton Wrappers (I bought Nasoya, which are kept in the refrigerated natural foods section at my kroger)

1 tablespoon olive or canola oil (you can substitute cooking spray) and a pastry brush.

A cup or bowl full of water.

What to do:

1. In a large bowl, combine the cream cheese and jalapenos until the jalapenos are evenly distributed.

2. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Working one at a time, place a wonton wrapper with a corner facing you onto a cutting board. Into the wonton, place a teaspoon of the cream-cheese filling. Moisten the two edges of the wrapper that are closest to you and fold the opposite points of your square together, to make a triangle. Pinch the edges together until they are sealed. Repeat until you run out of cream cheese or wonton wrappers.

3. Place the sealed wontons onto a non-stick cooking sheet. Lightly brush each side with the olive oil, and bake them for 7-10 minutes, until they are golden brown and crispy. When they come out of the oven they will be very hot. Allow to cool for a few minutes before serving and enjoy!

Is There Pressure to Eat a Certain Way?

Recently, I was browsing through xo Jane and came across an interesting article in which staffers discussed foods they would never stop eating, regardless of how healthy those foods might or might not be. I chuckled as I read through the list because many of their food pics (Kraft Macaroni, for example, though I prefer the shapes) were foods that I enjoy eating on occasion, even if it's not all the time.

As a member of the Healthy Living Blogging community, this got me thinking about certain pressures we are under through society and ourselves to eat a certain way. As an HLB, I can say that I sometimes feel pressure to not eat fast food, no matter how much I am craving it, because of the perceived unhealthfulness of it. After watching Super Size Me and reading "Fast Food Nation," I understand the perceptions, but I am inclined to say that I, personally, love, say, Taco Bell. I have a real Mexican restaurant in my neighborhood, but sometimes, I want the gooey bright orange cheese, and the soft, familiar tacos of my childhood.

That isn't to say that I eat fast food all the time. Nor is it to say that I will eat ice cream daily (wait, yes I do). Back when I was doing the daily food blogging thing, I was less likely to sit down to a big brownie sundae, in part because of accountability, but also because of what felt like societal pressure as a "healthy eater" to not eat foods that decadent, especially not on the regular like I am inclined to do. Seriously. Right now I have all-natural vanilla ice cream in my freezer and I can almost promise you that if it isn't a bowl of ice cream for a snack later, it will be a chocolate chip cookie or a few pieces of bite-sized candy. What can I say, I like sugar?

Lately, however, it seems like there is a societal pressure to eat a certain way, in addition to looking a certain way. There is no way for me to type this next sentence without sounding like a humblebrag, so I am just going to come out and say it: I am thin, I like to eat healthy, where for me, means a lot of fruits, vegetables, fresh and local foods, and lean meats. I also like to workout. In my circle, it feels like there is a lot of pressure on me as a slender person to not want to eat the ice cream, because how else can I maintain my weight if I can succomb to brownie sundaes and pepperoni pizza every once in a while. 

Additionally, in the "war" on obesity, there has been a push toward more healthful foods, and in that push, a wider variety of food options in our fast food restaurants, sit-down restaurants, and even at the grocery store. My favorite fast food restaurants now offer more salads than before, in addition to milk and fruit (but when I want fries, I am going to have the fries). The pizza parlors I order from have whole wheat crust available on the menu, and my grocery store's organic and fresh produce sections are ever-expanding. And don't get me started on the Greek yogurt explosion I have seen over the past few years, too (which I love. More brands, more flavors, more options, what isn't there to love about the Greek yogurt explosion?). 

Of course, that means that there are foods that are demonized, as well. Sweets. Soda. Pizza. Burgers. All of which I feel (and please note that I am not trained in any sort of dietary anything so take this with a huge grain of salt) can have a place in moderation in anyone's diet. Sure, I can go out to dinner and order water or iced tea as easily as I can a tall glass of Coke or Pepsi, but when I am out to eat, I want the fizzy carbonated beverage with my dinner. It's something I like, and probably could be considered one of my vices. The way I see it, I do my best 80% of the time, which in theory balances out the 20% of the time I'm not doing my best. If you tell me that my favorite hamburger (which is probably from Five Guys) is bad for me and I shouldn't eat it, my thought is that I should eat that burger less, and not to remove it from my diet completely. 

In our society, I feel there is definitely pressure to want to eat a certain way, and a taboo surrounding the enjoyment of fast food, whether it is a daily salad from a fast food burger place, or a hamburger. I don't think that any food should be taboo, and that we should all enjoy the foods we love the most, without worrying about perception. I mean, I love my burgers and fries, but I know that for me, eating them all the time is probably not what will make me feel my best long-term. I think we should all strive for balance over demonisation. 

Now, if you'll excuse me, I am going to go have some of that ice cream I was talking about earlier.

Related articles

All About Food

All About Food

Can I just take a moment here to babble a bit? I mean, I guess that is what the blog is for - a place for me to babble. What I want to babble about today is FOOD because, well, I love food. I don't share as many recipes as I should here because everything I make is so simple and basic, but it's all so delicious.

You see, I LOVE food. A lot. I enjoy getting into the kitchen at the end of my day to chop, sauté, roast, and simmer and make delicious meals for myself and The Boy. My favorite meals are the simple ones: crispy pork katsu, crock pot pulled pork, pepperoni rolls, maybe even some chicken with Dijon mustard sauce. These are the meals that are quick to make but full of flavor in every bite.

My biggest challenge when it comes to food is snacking. I have a weakness for sweets. I try to mitigate that with high-quality chocolates and homemade baked goods, but sometimes all I want is a snack cake from the vending machine. What can I say? They're good for a few bites, at least to me. Lately, I've been eating a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables. Lots of carrots dipped in ranch and clementines. My fingers smell like orange oil from how much citrus fruit I've been enjoying, but it is so fresh and so delicious.

Lately I have been enjoying breakfast at home, instead of rushing through a cup of yogurt and some banana bread at my desk at work. I've been savoring this time as best as I can. Cooking steel-cut oatmeal with a sprinkle of cinnamon, making fresh egg sandwiches, or enjoying a simple English muffin with butter and preserves. There is something so enjoyable to me about sitting down to breakfast while catching up on the news, petting the cats, or enjoying the quiet in the house (often punctuated by cats chasing each other up and down the upstairs hallway).

I hope in the future to share more recipes, or to just share reviews of cookbooks I have found and love. I currently have two out from the library, and have spent a good deal of time poring over the pages to find new recipes to try, to adapt, and to enjoy.

What about you – what’s your big obsession?

Lifting + Eats

This year, I've been pretty regimented in training - mostly where it concerns running - but I've let weight lifting fall to the wayside in a big way. A year ago I was able to lift pretty heavy weights, and was on track to deadlift pretty close to twice my body weight. When I made the decision to run the half marathon, I ended up putting weight-training onto the back burner to focus heavily on running. 

As we moved into fall, I found that I wanted to do more than just run all the time. I missed my defined biceps and ability to lift boxes of kitty litter with ease. Mostly, I wanted to satisfy my hunger for change, and to do so, I've been working pretty hard at balancing running with weight lifting, along with healthy, higher-protein meals. 

What this has meant is preparation. I noticed on days I was prepared to go to the gym and lift weights I was getting there. I finally decided to stream line my process by packing a gym bag every night to keep in my car. When I know I have a change of clothes, a written out plan, and a true plan to get to the gym, I actually end up going. In fact, every day I have my gym bag in the car I am there, whether it is a lifting workout or running on a treadmill. 

The preparation has been aided by my digging out my copy of The New Rules of Lifting for Women. I actually went through this book once in 2008, and went through several of the plans in the New Rules of Lifting, too. When I want to do something fun in the weight room, those books are typically where I start, primarily for motivation. I've been doing this for just a few weeks and I've already noticed marked gains in strength and stamina. 

Additionally, I've been working on eating better - less junk and carbs and more protein. This has meant changing it up, but not by much. I actually got into the habit of eating more protein while lifting weights a few years ago, and it was easier to slide back into that habit when I started training for the half-marathon earlier this year. I haven't really stopped eating the higher protein meals, having Greek yogurt as part of breakfast or for snacks, enjoying more leftover chicken and beef dishes, or my favorite lately: breakfast tacos.

I am not going to lie, I have had these for breakfast and lunch, and even once for dinner. They're full of protein, and the corn tortillas add fiber and carbs. In place of sour cream? Greek yogurt of course!

Some of this is because I want to look toned in my wedding dress, but most of it has to do with how I feel. I feel better when working out regularly and when eating healthy, higher protein foods. This may not work for everyone, but it's what works for me.

What are your favorite foods or workouts that keep you motivated?

A Recipe for Homemade Taco Seasoning

Taco seasoning. We all have used it at one point or another, whether it's from a canister at the grocery store, or in a little packet. I used to use taco seasoning from the store until the night we ran out - I forgot to buy some. I had a pound of ground beef cooked, sitting on my stove, waiting to be seasoned, and since I was in a pinch, I used Google. 

That was at least four years ago. I don't remember where I found my first taco seasoning recipe, or the second, or third. what I do know is that the seasoning recipe has evolved through the years to a recipe I feel comfortable calling my own. I always use the same ingredients, but the ratios always vary - sometimes I like it with more spice, sometimes less cumin, but the basic recipe will always remain the same. Recently I've been cooking without measuring the seasonings, but today I decided to measure my ingredients so I could share the recipe with you.

This seasoning is simple to make and use, and can be made with ingredients that most of us have in our spice cabinets. The cumin gives it a warm smoky flavor, while the cayenne pepper and chili powder add spice. Each recipe makes enough for one pound of cooked meat or vegetarian taco base. 

Homemade Taco Seasoning

Makes 3 tablespoons seasoning

Prep time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

1.5 Tablespoons ground cumin seed

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/8 teaspoon chili powder

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. To use, cook one pound ground beef, diced chicken, or sliced beef until cooked through. Drain and return to heat. Add seasoning mix along with 2/3 cups water, mix until all of the meat is coated with seasoning and simmer until the sauce is reduced, approximately five minutes. Enjoy!

What is a recipe you make all the time?

Menu Planning and Grocery Shopping

I've been sitting down to write this post for a while. It's about meal planning, which is something I do every week. It's a hard one to write because I only know my method of meal planning, which may not work for everyone, but I have a few friends who have asked me how I do it: go shopping once a week, get everything we need, and make it last until the next grocery day. To me, it's become second nature, so this post has been edited and re-edited in hopes of making sense. Hopefully you'll find it helpful!

When I sit down to write my grocery list, it's often with an inventory of what we already have in our fridge and pantry. Our pantry staples are simple but helpful: pasta, flour, sugar, butter, eggs, and frozen chicken. I don't use these weekly, but I like to have them on hand to make meal preparation easier. This week we have a surplus of frozen chicken, as well as some leftovers, so I know those are going to be key players in my week's menu.

The next thing I look at while writing my grocery list and planning my menu is what we are doing throughout the week. For example, when we have tickets to a baseball game, I may want to ensure I plan for either a packed dinner of sandwiches or dinner out, instead of buying ingredients to fill gaps and make a full meal that night. I also flip through my Everyday Food magazines and cookbooks to see if anything stands out as something I would like to make. I don't factor leftovers into my grocery list unless I know for sure that a recipe is going to make enough food for two complete dinners. Otherwise, I run the risk of not buying enough.

Once I have all of that information available, I start planning my menu. This week it's easy: I have a package of bacon in my fridge that needs to be used up, along with frozen chicken and rice. The Boy asked me last week why I haven't made enchiladas in a while, so I know that will be on the menu, and I bought a package of ground beef over the weekend so we could have tacos or meatloaf. I know the leftovers we have will be perfect for dinner one night and if I am lucky, I'll get a packed lunch out of those, and after looking at the store circular, I have a good idea what our lunches are going to look like this week, too.

Then, I start writing, and this is what my menu (at least for this week), looks like:

Dinners:

-Leftover pulled pork
-Tacos with chips
-Barbeque baked chicken with mashed potatoes
-Turkey pepperoni rolls
-Grilled cheese sandwiches (with or without bacon) along with fruit or salad
-Enchiladas
-Turkey with gravy and corn

Lunches:

-Turkey sandwiches with fruit and salad
-Almond butter sandwiches with fruit
-Soup
-Leftovers (pepperoni rolls and enchiladas).

Once the meals are planned out, I write the grocery list, double checking to ensure I have all the ingredients I need on the list and then checking to make sure that any ingredients i have written down are not already in the house. I add in an assortment of fruits, vegetables, snacks, and hot lunches for the weekends, which tend to be quick and simple. Once that is done, we go shopping! the meal plan is kept either on the fridge or in my notebook until the next week, when I start over. After doing this for five years, we've gotten it down to a pretty quick science, and our menu and grocery list typically come together in about fifteen minutes.

What about you - do you menu plan?

Dinner for one: A recipe for Tofu stir-fry in a ginger-soy sauce.

The Boy, as I type this, is heading home from the airport. He was gone overnight on a business trip – which meant that tonight I got to fix dinner all for myself. Normally, this can be a challenge, and when he goes out of town I often find myself living off of leftovers, soup, and grilled cheese sandwiches. However, when he went to Japan last fall, I made a stronger effort to get creative in the kitchen when he goes out of town, and tonight, my dish was a winner – one in progress, but still very delicious.

When we went to Niagara-on-the-Lake last month, we stopped in a small shop that sold all sorts of spices, sauces, dips, and jams, and while there I stumbled upon possibly the best form of ginger I have ever eaten.

The ingredients: ginger and vinegar. It’s hot in the way that ginger is hot, and I thought it would make a delicious addition to a tofu stir-fry for dinner, so that’s exactly what I made.

Tofu, veggies, ginger and soy sauces, and just a touch of brown sugar served over rice. It was delicious. A little milder than what I expected, but still fantastic. I looked online to see if the SoHot sauces are available in the States, and they appear to only be available in Canada, so next time I make it I may experiment a bit with fresh ginger. This made a LOT of stir-fry – I have leftovers for at least one more meal, if not two. It’s still a work in progress, but this is the recipe.

Serves 2-3

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

1 block extra firm tofu, pressed and cut into 3/4 inch cubes

2 cups assorted fresh or frozen veggies. I used carrots, broccoli, and mushrooms for this one

2 tablespoons grated ginger, or 2 tablespoons ginger sauce

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon brown sugar

2 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon oil

To Make:

1. Heat a wok or skillet over medium-high heat. Add the oil and when it’s warm, carefully add the tofu. Allow the tofu to cook, stirring frequently, until it is golden brown, approximately 8-10 mins. Add the vegetables, tossing them with the tofu until they are heated through and crisp-tender, which will take 3-5 minutes

2. While the tofu is cooking, combine the ginger, soy sauce, and brown sugar in a small dish. Once the vegetables and tofu have finished cooking, add the sauce and toss to coat. Add the water to thin the sauce slightly if you need additional. Stir frequently until the sauce is mostly thickened and evaporated, two minutes. Remove from heat and serve immediately over rice.

The sauce will be mild, sweet with hints of ginger and soy and is superb. For stronger flavor, you can add more soy or more ginger. I like eating mine with a little soy sauce sprinkled on top.

Enjoy!

A Simple Recipe for Chicken and Noodles

As soon as the weather begins to get cold, The Boy and I start craving hot and home style meals. One of our favorites is chicken and noodles. It's warm, comforting, and delicious. Being easy to make, it stays in our meal rotation throughout the winter months. I love to serve it on blustery cold days in the dead of winter’s cold, but it is also perfect during those crisp and bright days in October, just after the leaves have begun to change.

This recipe is simple, and you can make it as soupy or noodle-filled as you would like. I like to add peas and carrots to mine, but you can add any vegetable you feel would be at home in a bowl of hot chicken soup. The recipe as written makes six servings, or four with leftovers.

Ingredients:
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed
3 14-ounce cans of chicken broth
2 carrots, cut into 1/4 inch thick rounds
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
2-4 cups dry egg noodles
black pepper, to taste.

How-To:
1. In a large stock pot over medium-high heat, combine your chicken, sliced carrots, garlic powder and broth. Bring to a simmer and cook for ten to fifteen minutes, until the carrots are tender and the chicken is cooked through.

2. Reduce heat to medium and add your noodles - up to 4 cups, depending on how soup-like you want your dish to be. Remember the noodles will absorb the broth as they cook, so ensure that all of the noodles you add are able to be submerged in the broth. Allow to simmer until the noodles are cooked through, approximately five to seven minutes.

3. Remove from heat and add pepper to taste. Serve hot with a side of buttered rolls or crusty Italian bread. This is fantastic on frigid days, or after an afternoon spent playing in the snow.

Enjoy!