Winter Is For Oatmeal

And I mean the real McCoy, as in John McCann's Irish steel cut oatmeal from where else, Trader Joe's. Yes, it takes a long time to cook, but it's worth it. I recommend starting it when you put the coffee on, then putting it on a simmer while you shower. By the time you're dressed, a beautiful pot of hot oatmeal will be waiting for you. I'm wondering if I can make this in my rice cooker? I'll have to try it and be prepared for cleaning up a potentially very big mess. I like dressing it up with all kinds of fruit, cinnamon, black strap molasses, and nuts. A morning snack becomes unnecessary. The kids love it!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup John McCann's Irish steel cut oatmeal from Trader Joe's
• 4 cups water
• pinch salt
• fresh or dried fruit
• black strap molasses, brown sugar, honey or maple syrup (Trader Joe's grade B is fantastic)
• nuts
• cinnamon

Preparation:

1. Bring 4 cups water to a boil, add a pinch of salt and then sprinkle oats over water and stir. Follow package directions and boil until the "porridge is smooth and beginning to thicken".
   
2. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Serve hot with fresh or dried fruit, sweetener, nuts and cinnamon.
   

PBBG - Peanut Butter & Banana Grahams

My four-year-old clamors for this snack almost daily. It's tasty, crunchy, sticky (read satisfying) and healthy too. To make it portable, top with another graham cracker, using a little more peanut butter as glue. Apples or pears can be used instead of the bananas.

Shopping List:

• 1 container Trader Joe’s cinnamon grahams
• 1 jar Trader Joe’s organic peanut butter
• 1 bunch Trader Joe’s ripe bananas

Preparation per serving:

1. Wash, peel and slice banana in half lengthwise.
2. Spread a teaspoon of peanut butter onto one graham cracker.
3. Top with a slice of banana cut to fit the cracker.

Jessica Seinfeld & Missy Lapine Are Taken Down a Notch

Raymond Sokolov of the Wall Street Journal's Eating Out column stabbed a few forks into the recipes Jessica and Missy published in their respective cookbooks and what he found wasn't pretty. Playing With Their Food questions the entire premise of hiding pureed vegetables in kids' food. He points out that many of the recipes are for breakfast and dessert and have sugar in them. Is it a good idea to serve a kid scrambled eggs or mac 'n cheese with pureed cauliflower in them? Having been classically trained, I cringe at the thought. I tried Missy's mac ' cheese with pureed chic peas in it and it was a sorry sight because the sauce neither looked nor behaved as it should have. The kids ate it anyway, but I'm making them real mac 'n cheese to show them what it should look and taste like. And there will be emerald green broccoli florets adorning it.

Sokolov argues that vegetables should be seen and discussed, not hidden. I kind of agree. On the other hand, I think sneaking an extra vegetable in every now and again isn't a bad idea, as long as it's not a culinary atrocity. One of my favorite moves is to puree roasted red peppers and add them to tomato sauce. Some of the most delicious sauces in the world are made with roasted red peppers. Think rouille, the classic spicy mayonnaise served with Bouillabaise, but it's great with any fish. Yep, I'll have to make it soon.