The Naptime Chef

My mother made these recipe when we were visiting Cooperstown in October. It was so warm and hearty I couldn’t wait to share it with you. It isn’t an original of mine, my mom mined it from the depths of Google and gave it her own tweaks. She has such a well-trained eye for good recipes! I am always looking for new ways to make mushroom soup. My old favorite is delish, but we all need change now and then. I promise, you’ll love the smooth silky flavor with the undertones of nuttiness from the barley. It is easy to whip up during naptime and put away in the fridge (or freezer) for later. Stay warm!

Where there are families, there is snack food. No two ways about it. I’ve long advocated for generally healthy eating habits in our home and that includes an assortment of store-bought products we love. Some things are just better purchased than made at home! One of the things I buy are Stacy’s Pita Chips. They are made in small batches by hand and I never worry about giving them to my kids. We eat them plain or with hummus, or sometimes even with a caramel dip for dessert. To spice things up this holiday season my friends at Stacy’s came out with a delicious limited edition flavor. Salted Caramel Pita Chips! Seriously, they are as amazing as they sound.

Let’s face it, it is tough to get healthy dinners on the table every single night of the week. But it is even harder during the holiday season. If your family is like ours, there are tons of after-school activities, late nights for work travel, and all sorts of holiday-themed homework. On top of that there is spending every extra spare minute getting things organized for the holiday season. Every so often I give myself a break when this craziness rolls around and order a box from Blue Apron. This smart service cleverly makes healthy meals easy to make by delivering the pre-measured ingredients straight to your door.

When I think baking, I think Dorie Greenspan. Over the years she has been a guru, mentor, and friend, and for that I am so grateful. Lucky for us, Dorie continue to write amazing baking books. I’ll admit, I didn’t think there would ever be a book quite as awesome as Baking: From My Home To Yours, but now there is. Baking Chez Moi is Dorie’s latest book and it is such a treasure. In it she features family-friendly French baking recipes that are neither finicky nor complicated. In fact, they are downright homey!

Sandwiches are my go-to lunch and, sometimes, my go-to dinner. They are perfect in so many ways because you can layer in all sorts of delicious ingredients and not have to worry about turning on the oven. In honor of National Sandwich Day today I am thrilled to be sharing one of my all-time sandwiches. It is my version of the basic BLT, but with a tasty twist including a fried egg and creamy Arla Dofino Dill Havarti.

Happy National #SandwichDay! Treat yourself to a delish Dilly BLAT with Fried Egg and Dill Havarti from @arladofino for lunch, dinner or both!

A video posted by Kelsey Banfield (@naptimechef) on Nov 11, 2014 at 10:14am PST

As you’ve probably noticed, I don’t go overboard with Halloween food. Yes, I go crazy with pumpkin flavored things, but that extends throughout the fall well past Halloween. Anyway, this year my daughter and I had a blast with all of our favorite Halloween crafts. When it was time to bake we decided on a simple orange and brown swirl cake which we called “Witches Cake.” The idea came from the thin chocolate lines which reminded us of creepy trees, and the dark chocolate glaze flecked with gold.

I’ve noticed a waffle trend around the web recently and I am enthusiastically jumping on board. We love using our waffle maker and the idea of using it to make savory toasted sandwiches is the coolest thing ever. Sure, we make Paninis at home, too, but the waffle sandwich is just so interestingly savory with a touch of sweet. To get use to the process, we made our first batch with slices of Arla Dofino Creamy Havarti and regular smoked deli ham.