Week 126—Does this mean I have to make lunch?

Mon – Picnic sub-sandwich w/fruit and pita chips

Tues – Chicken fingers and squash

Weds – Shrimp Monterey (Taste of Home)
Thurs – Rigatoni w/Sausage and Peas (Viva Italia)
Fri – Mac w/Ham and Cheese Deluxe (Allrecipes.com)

Alts – Burgers; spaghetti

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Just realized that my daughter, who loved school lunch all year long, will probably be expecting me to actually make something now that she's out of school for the summer. Hm. Our mainstay has been butter and honey sandwiches (hey, at least the bread was wheat!), yogurt w/oats, and a piece of fruit. We'll see how that flies tomorrow. Happy cooking.

The Mom Files

Maybe I am a little too thrilled by my 20% savings via coupons at the grocery store last week.

Life priorities have shifted, not always for the more thrilling. What was once "going out money" is now "Ooh! I'll use this to buy paint for my decrepit garage" money.

Freaky Good

Wow. Made the Lasagna Bolognese from my New York Cooks cookbook yesterday, and am still having heavenly memories of its pure Italian deliciousness.

First, I'd like to thank my 2-year-old for performing the miraculous feat of falling asleep 30 minutes before I needed to pick up my daughter from school, staying asleep as I transferred him into my Boba carrier so we could walk to meet her (chest-facing to encourage slumber), then RE-transferring back to his crib once we got home 25 mins later. That gift allowed me to spend the next 2 hours cooking, which is what this recipe required. Not one for my average weeknight.

Both my other kids helped by chopping veggies and then watching a solid hour of a new DVD picked up at a garage sale of some "Ben10" character. I don't care what they say. TV is an AWESOME babysitter at times like these.

This is a recipe I had tried a few years ago and had written in a very average review. "Nice. Too moist--drain meat well before finishing the ragu." I have to say that I was completely off-base. Maybe I didn't use pancetta last time, or maybe I didn't mix some 1/2 and 1/2 in with the skim milk to add some body since it simply calls for "milk." Maybe I omitted the wine before, because I don't often have a bottle of white on hand.

Anyway, whatever it was that made it come together this time has made this a new favorite. We all had multiple helpings, youngest to oldest. Ok, there was one hold-out (waaaaay too much mixing of foods with lasagna), but he made up for it in peas and buttered bread.

[Update: Thanks for finding this recipe online, Sylvia!] You'll feel like a real Italian Mama with 3 pots going on the stove and a nice beaded sweat above your upper lip. That is, if you don't have central AC and you're cooking on a hot summer day as I was.

Speaking of Italian things that are awesome, doesn't this place look fun? Next time you're on Marcel Street in Paris... Maison Momoni! I'm not even sure the taste of the items suits me. I just like how it's all displayed.

Week 125—No more school, no more books

Mon – Lasagna Bolognese (New York Cooks)

Tues – Grill steaks from Von Hanson's

Weds – Grilled chicken kabobs
Thurs – Pasta-Somethingorother a la Buttera (New York Cooks)
Fri – Pizza party

Alts – Groupon to Greenmill

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This marks the last week of school for 2 of my kids. Wooo! Summer vacation is exciting, even in the minds of soon-to-be graduated preschoolers and kindergarteners. So, this week we make a nod to the fresh start that summer vacation brings by trying some new recipes.

If you're in a reading kind of mood, check out my friend Julie's blog. She is an inspired and witty writer, no matter the topic. Her most recent post is about thank you notes -- her best and worst ever received. Good food for thought. Happy cooking.

Camping Cooler

Recent camping cooler: cheap beer, milk, salami, yogurt, worms. I'm not sure what else there is to say.