The Naptime Chef

(Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Mirum, and all the opinions expressed and photographs are my own. Thank you for supporting the sponsors that make The Naptime Chef possible.)

Halloween is ovah and it’s time for the real holiday season to kick into high gear! For most of us busy parents that very sentence strikes mild panic into our hearts. Are we really read for hosting relatives/decorating/wrapping/socializing and the like? How on Earth will be handle it all? Don’t get me wrong, I love and adore the holiday season, but it is definitely not the most laid-back time of the year.

So! Today I’m here with five easy ways to relieve holiday stress. These are some easy peasy quick-fixes that will help the next two months go off without a hitch. Promise!

1. Plan Menus NOW: I know menu planning is not necessarily everyone’s favorite topic. However, planning menus for Thanksgiving, cocktail parties, Christmas Dinner, kids parties and more makes such a difference. Can you envision the difference between “oh, I’m making potatoes and cocktail nuts for Thanksgiving!” and opening your cupboard and fridge for the ingredients…versus running to the store the day before, sharpening your elbows and hoping for the best while you sweat it out in the crowds?! Advance planning helps you get ingredients in the cupboard, the right cookbooks pulled from your shelf, and all the worrying out the way. Ahh, now doesn’t that feel better?

2. Pick three simple recipes for breakfast and lunch and put them in rotation. Planning the big celebratory meals is fun, but planning breakfast and lunch can be an afterthought. Yes, leftovers are always an option, but what about the kids? And your great Aunt who just came to town? Many mouths to feed! Pick three recipes everyone likes, buy the ingredients, and get them in heavy rotation. Soups, hearty salads, and paninis are popular choices in our house!

Here is an ongoing list of our Cookbook Gift Guide for 2018!

Fantastical Cakes by Gesine Bullock-Prado, ideal for the the aspiring cake baker.

High Alpine Cuisine by Marla Meredith. Perfect for those who love mountain food!

The Ultimate Kids’ Cookbook by Tiffany Dahle. A great family cookbook, especially for young kids!

The 30-Minute Mediterranean Diet Cookbook by Deanna Segrave-Daly and Serena Ball. The best collection of healthy, delicious recipes we’ve ever seen!

Keto Soups & Stews by Carolyn Ketchum. A collection of tasty soups any eater would love, but are great for those on a keto eating plan.

Cooking with Scraps by Lindsay-Jean Hard. A fascinating book full of enticing recipes that can be made with food scraps!

Pie Squared: Irresistibly Easy Sweet & Savory Slab Pies by Cathy Barrow. A charming collection of sweet and savory square pies that are perfect for the whole family.

Everyday Dorie: The Way I Cook by Dorie Greenspan. Dorie’s lovely collection of recipes from around her home table.

Israeli Soul: Easy, Essential, Delicious by Michael Solomonov & Steven Cook. An amazing collection of Israeli-inspired recipes anyone can make.

It’s been so much fun having Katie Workman as one of our fall features for Cookbook Club! Today Kelsey & Katie settled in for a little chat about food blogging and all that it entails!

Kelsey: What inspired you start food blogging?

Kelsey: Do you ever order take-out or do live in the world of the “merry home cook” all the time?

Katie: PLEASE!  If I don’t have sushi at least a couple of times a week I start vibrating. I think I might be made of mercury at this point, there is so much raw salmon coursing through my veins. And I live in NYC, with teenage boys and their friends, so thank god for take out pizza.

Kelsey: Fess up – what’s your favorite and least favorite thing about food blogging?!

Katie: My favorite thing is hearing from readers, with a question, a comment, and in the best moments people telling me that they loved something and so did the people who ate it.  That’s amazing, and I never tire of it.  The best thing that happened to me lately was that a reader asked me if I could fix it so they recipe intros would be printed out along with the recipes because my writing was very important to them.  I almost wept.

What is annoying is trying to understand what the hell google wants at any given moment in terms of SEO (Search Engine Optimization) so that my recipes come up at the top of search when people are looking for a lasagna or whatever they are searching for.  The wisdom always changes, the search engine gods change their minds all of the time, and most of the time I just focus on the writing and the food, and let the cards fall where they may (but there is still a whole lot of tagging and back end stuff to deal with).

Thanks, Katie!

We are thrilled to feature Katie Workman for the next few weeks for The Snack Cookbook Club. (Sign up here!)

Today we are sharing the first of three features… and don’t forget to sign up for the newsletter to enter the giveaway which will be running all week!

Here are our picks for 7 weeknight dinner recipes this week!

Steak Frites by Mardi Michaels on Simple Bites Simple Bites

Blue Cheese & Cranberry Stuffed Pork Tenderloin by Peanut Blossom

Pressure Cooked Eggplant Involtini with Tomato-Basil Sauce by Alexandra Cooks

Baked Chicken with Tomatoes & Garlic by Brooklyn Supper

Grilled Salmon with Avocado Chopped Salad by goop

Lasagna Stuffed Peppers by Recipe Girl

Cacio e Pepe Alla Colu via The Washington Post (probably our ultimate hail Mary dinner recipe!)

Eggplant Involtini photograph via Alexandra Cooks

I am so happy to be back in this space I love so much and today I’m delivering an old family favorite, Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies.  These are listed on my age-old, yet still popular, 10 Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies List. In fact, I think I need to brush up that post with a few updates and additions! I’ll save that for another time.

Each week I’ll round up my favorite recipes from around the web just for you. I hope they give you new ideas, a fresh outlook, and maybe even help you explore new culinary territories!

Lunchbox ideas:

The Sandwich-Free School Lunch by Weelicious (all of her lunch ideas are amazing!)

Lunch on a Stick by One Hungry Mama

29 New Lunch Ideas by Simple Bites

30 Days of Lunchbox Recipes with No Repeats by Peanut Blossom

Dinner ideas:

Easy Roast Chicken and Shallots with Mustard, White Wine & Thyme by Alexandra Cooks

Pasta with Prosciutto & the last Summer Tomatoes by Dinner a Love Story

Chickpea Tikka Masala by A Sweet Spoonful

Spiced Yellow Squash Soup by Always Order Dessert

Meatballs with Orzo & Lemon by Giada De Laurentiis

Please let us know if you made anything amazing lately, we’d love what it is and where it came from!