Smart phone

When I realised the postie had just delivered a box containing my very first smart phone a few weeks ago, I was like a child at Christmas. I ripped apart that box like it contained the future of my communication and social life with friends.

It felt awfully light & small though so I was a little uncertain that perhaps it didn’t contain everything I needed; phone, battery, charger, user manual etc. It did. Wow, I was impressed before I had even turned it on.

It was smart. It told me what to do and how to do it. In fact the user guide was only a small bit of paper that was in fact called a ‘quick guide’. Great, a quickie for my investment. I was petrified. I am not scared of technology, but don’t loooove change. I liked my old Nokia N95, but after dropping it for the eleventeenth time, it finally bust a gut & the battery wouldn’t stay on. Sad but true, I actually had electrical tape hugging it all together until I decided to ‘get with it’. Heck, I only joined facebook this year. Now I am officially cool, smartphone & FB. Watch out world.

So I have been playing with my little pocket rocket here and there and realised how easy it has been to stay in touch;  I can check emails, comment in FB, surf the net..wow, I could play on it for hours. But I always say how I wish I had more time to do things, like play with my kids. Not just be in the same room as them as I am doing something else, but be present & play. I think my smart phone has robbed this generation of kiddies some of that undivided attention that we had when growing up.

The phone is great, don’t get me wrong. I think the way forward is with technology but I also worry about how much this phone can do for me.  I didn’t need to read a manual for God’s sake to learn to use it, it told me. It had its own little big brain and I didn’t have to use mine. And when I am spelling a word in a text message that I always get wrong, always (disappoint or restaurant) it means I am saved by not having to think about the correct spelling, as long as I am not a total idiot & know the first 3 letters, I am presented with an array of options to choose from. I don’t need to think anymore.

One thing’s for sure, the phone sure is smart, but I’m not sure I can say the same for what it’s doing to us.

Zucchini

Not long ago I accepted the 7 day challenge from a dear friend or two who were having issues with vegetables. No, the vegetables were not bullying them or causing problems at work, but more so were creating havoc at dinner time. Some of them kids, some of them adults, seem to have a ‘dislike’ to my good friends the veggies.

It’s quite common for parents to complain about finding new ways to hide vegetables in meals, but I unfortunately don’t agree with this thinking. It comes down to informed decisions that even a young pre-schooler should be afforded to make. I totally agree that a 3 or 4 year old won’t always choose the right thing in any situation, but when it comes to food and eating I think that if you are hiding the veg, then you are setting the example that it’s ok to not eat them (even if you know they’re in there).

There are a few ways we can get the kids to enjoy them; let them learn about them. Talk about them at the supermarket, plant them and so on. You don’t have to be a brain surgeon to know these are often good ways to introduce something, but also eating them yourself in every meal sets a good example.

As for our adults who aren’t keen on them, I know my friend eats them anyway, but as a passionate food loving wog, I ask the question; how can you eat something you are not enjoying? The vegetable that I was asked to deal with was Mr Zucchini (mister for obvious reasons) (because you have to change it before you can really enjoy it, he he..)

Okay here are my recipes that involve around, are based on and are special guest stars in recipes.

-          Moussaka

-          Fritters

-          Casserole

Try these... And for God’s sake, don’t commit my numero uno sin of steaming them & serving with butter!!! Be adventurous with your veggies & try something new with them, just like you keep telling your kids to do : )

Moussaka:

Notes

I use & recommend Barilla Basilico sauce) this has no additives or preservatives of any kind, just real ingredients, and no, using a jar sauce is not another one of my cooking sins in cases like this where there are already enough things you are prepping from scratch (& only if they contain whole ingredients.
I haven’t included any exact quantities as it will depend. I use a large rectangular baking dish for this meal & always have enough for seconds plus a serve or two for lunch. Use the amount of veggies it takes to line your baking dish in a single layer for each veg. The amount of meat shouldn’t really be increased for a family of 4 as this is meant to be an addition to the meal, not the star. After all this blog is about veggies ok? And no seasoning required (put that salt down & step away from the bench). I know MKR is all about sauce & seasoning but trust me on this one. Go cook already : )

Large eggplant
2-3 med zucchini
1 lge potato                                                                       
Beef mince 500gms                                                        
2 x jar sauce
Tasty or Motzerella or both     

Milk
Flour
ButterNutmeg

Preheat oven to 250C. Char grill all veg which have been sliced thinly lengthways. I use no oil. The veg don’t have to cook thoroughly, just tinged in color. The baking in sauce will cook them through. Set aside. Cook mince in some olive oil, then add both jars. Allow to heat through. No boiling or simmering for hours required : )

Place 1/3 of sauce in your baking dish. Layer this with potatoes first, then zucchini. Top with remaining mince. Follow with eggplant.

Make the béchamel the way you know how. Cover eggplant with the béchamel. Top with your choice/s of cheese lightly. Bake for around 15 minutes to heat through again & complete cooking process for veg. Serve w crusty bread & yummy salad.

Fritters

3 med zucchini grated                    Parmesan (lots)
1 egg                                    Water
1 cup flour (plain or SRF)               Garlic crushed, 3 cloves
Fresh chopped parsley

Mix everything gradually. Add more or less water & flour as needed. Should resemble a pancake batter.

Shallow fry in  olive oil. Serve with saganaki & spicy tomato pasta. Mmm. Oh, & strongly suggest a big dollop of yoghurt on the fritters for serving. (Zucchini’s best friend)

Casserole

4-5 med Zucchini sliced in circles                chicken stock powder
500gm beef mince                                  boiled water
tomato paste                                                    

Very lightly fry zucchini both sides. Set aside. Cook mince.

Place both into casserole dish & top with enough water for it to appear about 7cm’s ish under water. Add 2 heaped teaspoons chicken stock powder & 1 – 1 ½ tablespoons tomato paste.  Mix together gently so as to not squash zucchini.

Bring to the boil, then high simmer for 15 minutes.

Serve with bulgur on the side & salad. Top zucchini with....yogurt (told you they were friends).

Mother hen

As a mum (Happy mother’s day ladies) I am protective. I instinctively want to protect my kids from things that can harm them. Some of these things are semi controllable, like bad food, swearing (for the time being at least), the shitheads on our roads and even some home accidents. But what about the things I can do nothing about? And what about those parents not protecting their own kids from some of these things?

As I walked out of the shopping centre yesterday, I saw a couple of women standing around smoking. Whatever. No newsflash moment. But then saw a little girl aged around two or three standing in the morning’s frost looking up at her mum (I suppose) and her friend sucking on this cigarette while she had to stand around waiting for them. Bored, freezing, being influenced. Granted they were outside...but can’t that cigarette wait until the girl is home in a warm place with the smoke not being passively inhaled or even exposed to her? Such a bad role model for that little girl, it made me literally shake my head. And I realised I was doing this with a look of disgust when my eyes met the mothers and she was taken aback by my outright disgust. Woops. As I walked away I thought I should practice my subtle face a little more. But then I thought hell no and I turned back for another look. And then one more as I drove past in the safety of my car. Heh, heh.

I thought of my daughters.

To this day they haven’t even asked about smoking as I try to not let them see adults doing it. Not yet. I am not a fool who thinks non-exposure to things is the best protection but I do think some things should be guided by age appropriateness. This leads me onto my other issue. Social networking sites like FB. When used properly, I think they are great tools for spreading news, sharing photos, having a laugh with friends - my friends, and some of my friends’ friends. But what about the kids?

Most kids have their own profiles set up these days...they are a little more ‘with it’ than me who only started using FB recently. It also makes sense that they friend their parents. Great! Parents can see what their kids are posting. I think this is known as stalking but too bad, I’m the parent and you’re not. But what about kids who are then exposed to their parents/brothers/sisters/cousins friends comments who don’t know or don’t care that some of their friends have younger siblings as friends?

We often complain about this generation of kids being so different from our childhoods but it’s up to us to do what we do best; love and protect our kids, allow them the freedom that innocence brings, let them be kids and treat them as though they will get a chance at being adults ...when they are one.