Naptime Everyday: Recipes for Everyday Cooking and Baking

Even though our postponed Halloween celebration just took place on Saturday I am in Thanksgiving mode. This year we’ll have a small family celebration in Boston. It will be nice and easy which is just what I’m in the mood for since I am definitely slowing down a bit. Next year I am sure we’ll happily host a huge family bash, but this year I need a little break. In light of this I’ve had some fun spacing out some of our Thanksgiving favorites over the past week. Just because we aren’t having a huge feast doesn’t mean we should skip our favorites for an entire year. Last week I made some of Gwyneth’s Caramelized Brussels Sprouts with Lemon & Olive Oil and they were as delicious as ever. Over the weekend I made a classic Roast Chicken and paired them with these Scalloped Potatoes with Thyme. Next week I plan to indulge in our favorite Thanksgiving dessert so stay tuned!

Feeding my family from Whole Foods Market for $100 a week was not easy but we managed to do it. After my tour of our local store I learned all the ways to save while shopping and devised a menu plan to fit the deals that were available that week. I also had to make a few assumptions in order to make the budget work. I did not buy basic staples like olive oil, salt, pepper, and flour since we already had them on hand and I generally don’t shop for them weekly. I also did not include lots of beverages in our budget since we usually drink water, iced tea (made from scratch), milk, and hot tea. My husband also eats his lunches at work so that cost was not included.

Last weekend was our first weekend at home in three weeks. You can imagine my relief at not having to get in a car or on an airplane yet again. Not that I don’t love a good trip – but my ankles are begging for mercy! I did my best to keep our schedule generally free and clear to allow for a nice amount of down time. I wanted to focus on some very necessary pre-baby nesting and some fun baking with my daughter. To kick off our weekend we made this orange cinnamon coffee cake. Moist, delicious, and easily made in just one bowl, it was the perfect cozy breakfast treat to celebrate some time at home.

Two weeks ago I had lunch at Island with my friend Barbara and we both ordered the lunch special: turkey burgers with gruyere and arugula. I make turkey burgers now and then, and they are pretty good, but these burgers were exceptional. The meat was juicy and moist and they were spiced up with black pepper and something hot, we think it might have been chili powder. Each burger was topped with a generous slice of melted gruyere, a handful of arugula, and some yummy tomato and shallots. Then, as if that wasn’t awesome enough, the towering burger was served on a warm brioche bun with french fries on the side. In short, it was heaven on a plate.

The funny thing about baby on board is that I’ve eliminated snacking in favor of bigger meals. When I am not pregnant I usually am content nibbling on some baked oatmeal for breakfast, having a poached egg on pesto cheese toast for lunch, and a container of Greek yogurt between meals. However, when I am pregnant this is simply not enough. For lunches I’ve been making two soft boiled eggs and eating them with whole wheat toast and just last week I made this awesome caramelized onion grilled cheese.

I love making big family breakfasts on the weekend. I find it so relaxing to wake up on Saturday morning with nothing particularly urgent to do except making something warm and cozy to eat in our pajamas. With the weather in full fall mode the other morning I decided to make an awesome baked oatmeal to start off the weekend right. I had a fresh bag of McIntosh apples on hands, plenty of cinnamon, and everything I needed to whip up this easy breakfast.

Earlier this month on Facebook I asked what you would like to see on The Naptime Chef this fall. I am so grateful that all of you wrote back with the most terrific answers! There were requests for everything from more chicken and vegetable oriented slow-cooker meals, family breakfast food and kids snacks, to toddler finger food, entertaining ideas, and easy Mexican dishes. I promise I am going to do my best to fulfill all of your needs this fall and, given my current obsession with all things spicy, today I am starting with this simple family-friendly make-ahead meal.

Last weekend a huge front of thunderstorms rolled through and took away the god-awful tropical rain forest-like weather and replaced it with normal crisp, cool fall breezes. To mark this long-awaited turn of weather events I celebrated by making our first roast chicken of the season. For us roast chicken is the king of cold-weather cooking comfort food. I’d take it over mac and cheese any day, especially when paired with some crispy rosemary potatoes and marinated green beans.

We always seem to celebrate a new school year with eggplant. With the season in full swing I’ve been cooking up some of our favorites lately and dreaming of new eggplant recipes in my sleep. (Next on the list is Phoebe’s Grilled Eggplant Baba Ganoush – holy yum!) For this year’s first school night meal I decide to riff on a favorite baked eggplant and gnocchi recipe that is in my book, and is entirely make-ahead, and pair our favorite homemade ricotta gnocchi with a simple eggplant pan sauce.

It’s hard to believe it is back-to-school time again – but it is! I know a lot of people get stressed out thinking of back to school food ideas but I actually find it kind of fun. It gives me a reason to break out old favorites, bake a few loaves of zucchini applesauce bread, and get ready for cold-weather cooking. This year I’ve also been inspired to give my sweets a healthier twist. Part of this is due to me keeping the baby weight gain in check, but part of it is because I’ve come to really love the earthy sweetness of whole wheat flour.

Last week we went to visit Uncle Will, my little brother and home cook extraordinaire. As I pointed out in the acknowledgements of my book, Will and I frequently exchange recipes on a shared Google Doc sheet. He usually posts a few recipes a year for things he has mastered in his own kitchen and is ready for me to try. Recently this amazing recipe for breakfast wraps popped up. Knowing that we were visiting him in less than a month I wrote ahead to specifically request he make his delectable recipe for breakfast. I couldn’t wait to try them in his kitchen before attempting them in my own. Now that I’ve eaten them I can honestly said that one request was probably the most important thing I’ve ever asked of him. They are that good.

This summer I’ve been all about peaches. I’ve always loved peaches but this year they seem especially ripe and appealing. It also helps that my daughter has started enjoying them – the past few years she has had no interest in them whatsoever which was a bit of a bummer. When we were at the Cooperstown Farmer’s Market on Saturday I picked up a big bag in anticipation of a fresh peach almond galette and a savory peach salad with blue cheese and toasted almonds.