Little Beans for my Little Beans

We eat a lot of lentils in our house. They are insanely healthy, and no matter what kind of day I'm having, I always feel like a pretty great mama when J and N dive into a bowl for dinner. And they're so delicious, versatile, and easy to cook with, that I find myself making a huge batch of them about every other week and having some every day that week. Which means my family eats lentils about 180 days a year. Ok, I may be exaggerating a little, but really, we do eat them a lot.

Here's my simple lentil recipe. I adapted it from my mom's verbal directions on how to turn these little dried beans into stewed goodness. Keep in mind, the veggie quantities don't have to be exact - I've made it without carrots one time and without celery another, and it tasted just fine. J and N LOVE these, and so do Evan and I. Extra yummy sprinkled with Parmesan...I mean, what isn't?

2 tbs olive oil
2 celery stalks
1 large or 2 small onions
2 med carrots
1 yellow bell pepper (or whatever color you have in your fridge)
1 16 oz bag green lentils
2 tsp oregano
1 bay leaf
1 28oz can chopped tomatoes
4+ cups of veggie or chicken stock
Salt and pepper

Dice all veggies, roughly the same size. Or, if you're like me and for some are reason physically unable to chop carrots and peppers nicely...leave those veggie a little bigger.

Heat oil in a Dutch oven or large/wide pot over med heat. Add carrots, celery, and onion. Cook for about 7-8 minutes, until they start to soften, but don't let them brown.

Add peppers, cook for another 5-10 min until all veggies are relatively soft. Onions and celery should be translucent.

Season veggies with salt and pepper. Stir in oregano.
Add the lentils, toss with veggies, cook for 2 minutes.

Add tomatoes, stock, and bay leaf. Stir to combine. Add a bit more salt and pepper.

Bring to a boil over med-high heat. Reduce heat to low, cover the pot and simmer for about an hour. Check and stir in 15 minute increments. It's done when lentils are soft and have soaked up all the liquid. If the liquid is gone and lentils are still chewy, add a cup or two of water and cook till soft.

This makes a TON. It also freezes well, so if you don't have two growing monkeys to share it with, you can make it last a little longer. Enjoy!!!

Twin Tuesdays - Jack's Helmet Story

When Jack and Nellie were born, we noticed almost immediately that Jack always turned his head to the right and tilted his head to the left. Whether lying in crib or sitting propped up on our laps, he had this crooked little look about him. 

Jack was the lower of my full-term twins; at around 35 weeks, Nellie, resourceful even in utero, turned and nestled her enormous head under my rib cage. But Jack's head was deep in my pelvis, so he got a little squished, and his neck muscles got a bit tight. Because he favored his right side, by four months, he had a flat spot, and by six months, the pressure on his little head had started to move the right side of his forehead forward a bit, distorting his face - you can kind of see below how the left side of his face looked a little smaller. It wasn't so obvious but it was definitely there.

Our pediatrician was part of the "wait and see" camp, which is something I generally like about the practice - as a new mother, I don't really need anyone to be more alarmist than I am. But at four months, she recommended we see a pediatric neurosurgeon to rule out anything serious; funny head shape can also be attributed to craniosynostosis, a birth defect that causes the baby's skull to close up too soon (babies are born with spaces in their skull to help it grow and accommodate the rapid brain growth during the first year). 

Thank goodness it was not that: Jack was diagnosed with torticollis and plagiocephaly, two easily fixable issues that are very common in twins. Torticollis is defined as "a twisted neck in which the head is tipped to one side, while the chin is turned to the other" - it happened to Jack because of his position in my uterus, the muscles on the right side of his neck were shorter and tighter than the left side, making it uncomfortable for him to turn left. Plagiocephaly is the flattening of one side of the skull. These days it happens a lot in the back of the head because parents put babies on their back to sleep; Jack's was, of course, on his right side.

We began physical therapy right away. It was not the most fun part of their first year, by any means. Although the physical therapist was fantastic, he gave me a few exercises to do with Jack - three times a day, every day - that usually resulted in Jack screaming his little funny-shaped head off and me crying because I felt like the worst mother in the world for causing him pain. After about six weeks, we saw some improvement in the torticollis, but he still had the flat spot.

We met with the neurosurgeon again and he suggested, and approved Jack for, a helmet. For about a month, Evan and I went back and forth about helmeting our kid. I had a lot of trouble with it, thinking, are we that shallow that we're going to put our sweet six month old baby in a helmet for months? But in the end, we decided we wanted to give him the best start in life, and if this seemingly simple procedure could fix something that could incite teasing or feelings of self-consciousness later on, I was all for it. 

However, I was a nervous wreck until, literally, our first meeting with the orthotist. I was crying in the waiting room, still unsure of our decision. But I have to say, I am 100% happy with our experience. We went with Hanger Prosthetics and Orthotics, their office is on the Upper East Side. Not exceptionally easy to get to from Clinton Hill with two babies in tow, but luckily we always managed to find parking on that block and the drive was totally worth it. The orthotist there is Michelle, and she was just amazing to work with. Jack loved her and she was so sweet to him and Nellie. And she allayed all of my fears immediately. So, about a week before he turned six months, Jack started wearing a helmet 23 hours a day, 7 days a week.

How did we all manage with the helmet? Jack didn't notice it at all. He slept fine, he didn't fuss, he was his normal, happy, laid back self - and he learned to crawl, pull up, and cruise while wearing it. Nellie loved to tap on it and sometimes grab it if she was feeling really feisty. It took a few weeks for Evan and I to get fully assimilated to life with a helmeted kid, but eventually it was like changing diapers or washing bottles - it was just part of the routine. (During the hour "off" each day, you have to clean it and air it out...it starts to smell pretty quickly, a smell I can only compare to my brother's dirty high school football pads. It's gross.) 

We also thought it looked too clinical, even though we ordered a blue one with a picture of a NY Giants helmet on the back. So, of course, I had to give it a little character; I dragged Evan to Utrecht to buy some acrylic paint, and with some taping and tracing (and a lot of patience), we turned it into a "real" NY Giants helmet. After that, people on the street thought he was just wearing it for fun.

Jack wore the helmet from the end of August till right before Christmas. We'd make the trip to the orthotist about every other week; she would record his progress and make any necessary adjustments to the helmet, mostly to accommodate for head growth (Jack's head grew A LOT in four months). The end results were incredible. At the first appointment, they take a 3-D picture of the baby's head, as well as a number of measurements. They do it again at the last appointment, and we were in awe of how much had changed. But best of all, it was obvious in how he looked. 

A few months later, it seems like a dream (like so much of their first year does!), and his head is round and beautiful. We keep the helmet on our bookcase, it's now just a cute artifact of Jack's time as a funny-shaped infant.

Yasmine's Wedding Shower

Three of Evan's best friends got engaged last year to three wonderful women, and on Saturday, I attended the bridal shower of Yasmine, who's marrying Dan at the end of May. It was such a lovely way to spend an afternoon.

The low-key-yet-elegant party was held on the top floor of an apartment building in midtown Manhattan, and the view was pretty spectacular.

We lunched on bagels and lox, orzo salad (which I have to make for J and N, it was so so good), tomatoes and mozzarella, baby spinach salad with avocado and mango, and delicious cheese and crackers.

The desserts, which included rugelach, homemade Momofuku Milk corn cookies, mini cupcakes, and cake, were incredible. Yasmine's sweet friend Nora baked the cookies and the beautiful cupcakes, she's so talented.

There were these gorgeous little flower arrangements all over the room. They made everything feel so fresh and spring-y.

We played a hilarious game where we split into teams and designed a dress for Yasmine to wear on her wedding day - out of toilet paper! My friend Emily (who's marrying Evan's friend Mike in September!) was our team's dress model. But it was Dan's too-adorable-for-words niece who won the challenge - you can't beat a three year old in a wedding dress, even one made out of Charmin Ultra Soft.

As we left, we were handed these girly, indulgent favors - brown sugar body scrub in little jars with tiny wooden spoons attached. Awesome favors are key; in my opinion, if you can't come up with something great to give out, just forgo the favors. I was so happy to receive this, and I can't wait to use it!

Evan and I are so looking forward to celebrating with this super cute couple. If their wedding is anything like the shower, we're in for a treat.

What about you guys? Any wedding festivities coming up this spring and summer?

Jack and Nellie's First Birthday Party

We sort of went all out for J and N's first birthday (which I can't believe was almost two months ago!). It really wasn't our intention; I initially thought we'd do something small with just our families because that's all our apartment can fit. But then Evan's parents offered up their amazing Noho loft...so of course we said yes, and thus began a crazy month of Pinteresting, Etsying, etc.

I didn't want a strict theme, I just wanted to make it like the parties Evan and I used to throw before we had the monkeys (except at 1p.m. and with a lot less wine). I wanted it to be cute, kid-friendly, vibrant, with a beautiful sweets table, and lots of special details. I said rainbows, Evan said "how about...colors" and so a first birthday party was born.

The great thing about my in-laws' loft is obviously, the space. It's perfect for a party. And the ceilings are so tall! We hung homemade pom-poms and giant colorful balloons from the ceiling - with help from my best friend, Kara, and my best brother-in-law, Greg (who I yelled at during the hanging of the "happy birthday" banner...sorry, buddy).

We had a simple lunch: sandwiches, pasta salad, sweet potato chips. I wanted to have baby-friendly food, or at least a twist on baby-friendly - finger foods, sweet potatoes, bananas, etc.

The banana pudding was a hit. I used this recipe from Magnolia Bakery - I was initially just going to buy two containers of it since Magnolia is right up the street from Evan's parents', but it was so much cheaper to make. And it was everyone's favorite dish of the day.

The sweets table looked wonderful, exactly as I'd imagined. I combined homemade goodies with treats from my favorite Brooklyn bakers and some sentimental desserts. The Italian cookies my mom made are from a recipe passed down from my grandmother, whom Nellie is named for; and the cake pops we had were the same ones a good friend brought us in the hospital after J and N were born!

Here's a closer look at those mini cupcake flags, before they became flags. I printed little sayings out on sticky paper, cut them in strips, and then wrapped them around a toothpick and cut a triangle out of the end to make the flag. Easy peasy.

For paper products and utensils, I did most of my shopping on the cheap at Party City, but I couldn't resist these super cute napkins and plates for desserts. Look closely, doesn't it look like Nellie and Jack?!

We also supplied guests with personalized milk bottles from Shop Sweet Lulu, complete with colorful nametags and straws. We urged the grownups to make pear bellinis, using organic pureed pear baby food pouches!

We were so excited to unveil the cake, which went from this:

To this:

To this!

We made sure the kiddos were having a great time as well. We had a pull-string pinata, filled with little bags of Goldfish crackers, applesauce pouches, and yogurt bites. Our good friend Arthur, who also sang at our wedding, serenaded us with a couple of songs...including Smelly Cat from Arthur and my all-time favorite show, Friends.

We supplied the kids with pinwheels and paper crowns, which Jack and Nellie thought were pretty cool.

They also enjoyed eating with Grammy (Evan's mom) and Grandpa (my dad).

When the festivities ended, our guests took home leftover cake pops and cupcakes, and of course, Girl Next Door brownies.

It was a perfect day, and Jack and Nellie were great little hosts. I wish I'd taken more photos of them, but they were busy running around being cute, as usual. Here they are on their actual birthday, a few days later:

Wondering where I got all the goods to make this party happen?

Cake, banana pudding, brownies: made by me at Girl Next Door Baked Goods
Sandwiches and fruit kabobs: Lassen and Hennigs
Pasta salad: homemade by Nanna (my mom)
Italian cookies and pizzelles: homemade by Nanna and Grandpa (my parents)
Cake pops: Stick and Pop
Mini cupcakes: Butter and Scotch
Brownie labels: designed by Rick Orlosky
Tented food cards, cupcake flags, and milk bottle labels: designed by me...using PowerPoint (eek!)
Paper crowns, milk bottles and straws, "Happy Birthday" banner: Shop Sweet Lulu
Dotted plates and cutie napkins: Meri Meri, but they have them at Shop Sweet Lulu now, too!
Wooden "Happy Birthday" forks: Sucre Shop
Chevron bags for sweet potato chips: GlitterDaisyShop
Giant balloons, colorful utensils, lunch plates and napkins, tissue paper for pom-poms, pull-string cupcake pinata: Party City
Dot banners: Any Occasion Banners
Dot table runner, silver platters, cake stands: my own "collection"
Cake pop glasses: Bonne Mamman preserves jars

Boston, you're my home(town)

I had planned on launching this blog last Friday, but instead I was glued to the television all day, watching the surreal events unfolding in my hometown of Watertown, Massachusetts. I wasn't going to write about what happened in Boston, it seemed inappropriate for this blog. But I was so touched by the May cover of Boston Magazine, as well as the story behind it, that I had to share.

Many people will talk about the toughness of Bostonians, the "don't mess with us" attitude and yes, there's a lot of that. But Boston also has plenty of heart, and Bostonians have passion and strength like no other citizens I know. I love living in New York and I loved going to college in Chicago, and I truly believe that the reason why I connected so well with these cities is because every time I took the train into Boston as a teenager, I fell for city life a little more. Boston, you were my first love and I know you'll come out of this even better than before. I look forward to catching up soon. xo

Semi-homemade stromboli

I've recently become obsessed with Dinner: A Love Story, a blog that celebrates the nightly family dinner and gives great tips on how to do it without losing your mind. It's inspired me in a lot of ways, most notably to not be so insistent to do everything "from scratch." Sometimes dinner shortcuts are necessary with a busy schedule...and they are almost always ok.

Last night, I made a version of stromboli the DALS family writes about here. (Another thing I love about their site is that most recipes come with a story. So great.)

In the words of Macklemore...it was f*@#ing awesome. I followed their step-by-step process almost down to the letter, and we ended up with one tasty dinner.

Stretch the dough (I used Freshdirect's frozen pizza dough; DALS swears by Trader Joe's) to make it fit in a half sheet pan and spread some sauce on it (it was the first time I've used Don Pepino pizza sauce. It definitely won't be the last. And I am a tomato sauce snob.)

Add some fillings - I used sandwich pepperoni, spinach, and onions. I think it would be fantastic with just spinach. Or maybe some sausage crumbles instead of pepperoni.

Add grated mozzarella (I used fresh), grated Parm, and a few dollops of ricotta. I didn't get a shot of the cheese because I was so eager to roll it all up. But when I got to the end of the roll, I realized I should have left a little more of an "edge" one side - some of the filling didn't make it in the roll.

Once rolled, I stuck it in the fridge for a few hours because I started the process during J and N's morning nap. When I was ready to bake it, I rubbed it with olive oil and sprinkled some salt on top, then put it in the oven at 375 degrees (DALS says 350, but I know my not-so-great oven, and 375 worked better). 50 minutes later, it was done.

Yum, right?

And it's toddler-friendly, too - I cut it up in small pieces and took out the pepperoni, and Jack and Nellie couldn't get enough of it. I served it with a side of halved grape tomatoes and honeydew melon (their absolute favorite) for dessert.

Evan and I ate ours with a side of Harpoon Summer Beer.