Kristin van Ogtrop's Blog, page 406

Day 2: Penne with Tomatoes, Eggplant and Mozzarella

Today's recipe comes from associate research editor Claudia Bloom. She's one of the editors in charge of making sure that the information we publish in the magazine has been fully verified and is 100% correct at press time.

I like to cook pasta (especially since my growing, athletic, teenage son craves big bowls of it), but I often run out different ways to prepare it. We don't eat red meat. And, while I will cook tofu or fish, I prefer using vegetables only. I've never been a fan of eggplant, it's just seemed like a boring heavy vegetable so I've stayed away from cooking with it. So that's one of the reasons I chose to prepare the Penne with Tomatoes, Eggplant and Mozzarella recipe.


I also liked that there were only a few ingredients to use, and only four that required cutting—any more than that and it's too involved for me.

Once I gathered the ingredients; washed and cut the eggplant and tomatoes; reserved 1/4 cup of the pasta water; and measured the oil in pan; there wasn't much else to do. Easy. I especially liked creating my own sauce instead of opening a jar. I would have liked more detailed instructions on how to cut up the eggplant, since I'm unfamiliar with preparing it.

The finished pasta is light and clean and not too busy. Both the mint and the red pepper flakes added a nice layer to the dish. And the eggplant was flavorful without being overpowering.

 Works for me. The real test was my son's reaction.

One bite: "Delicious!" (He did have some questions about the eggplant: What are those seeds? How come it's brown, not purple?) But all in all a successful meal.

Have you tried this recipe? Let us know how you liked it in the comments, and share your photos by following @RealSimpleFood on Twitter and using the hashtag #OctDinner.

Organizing for an Allergen-Free Life

Learning that you or your child is highly allergic to something can be a stressful time, and a time that demands extremely organized behavior. I recently learned that my son has a peanut allergy and can't even tolerate non-peanut foods that were packaged in the same processing plants as peanuts. And, after witnessing the nasty allergic reaction that started us on the process of having him tested, I'm more than happy to make our home and his life as peanut-free as possible to keep an allergic reaction from happening again.



Allergies can be frustrating, but the road to an allergen-free life doesn't have to be. If you or your child has recently been diagnosed with an allergy, take an organized approach to reducing the allergens like you might any other project:


Identify the problem. If you find out you have an allergy, be sure to be tested for other related allergies as well. You won't want to go through this process multiple times. Labs can often run multiple tests on a blood sample they have already taken from you, so request these tests upon confirmation, and skin tests can easily be done in batches.
Educate yourself. Talk with your doctor and allergist, check out the best books on the subject from your local library, and go online to learn as much as you can about the allergy. Take copious notes and store the notes in an allergy-related folder for others in your home to read.
Remove all of the allergen from your home, car, and office. Read every label on every product in your life -- cleaners, soaps, food, etc. Make the places you live as allergen-free as possible, as quickly as possible. You want your home to be a safe haven.
Educate others. By e-mail, Twitter, Facebook, letter, phone call blast the message about you or your child's allergy. The more people who know, the more people can keep out a watchful eye in their homes, cars, and offices.
Have the right supplies. Obviously, get an epi-pen and Benadryl to treat any reactions that might happen in the house and on the go. Additionally, get a convenient carrying pack to transport these objects with you every time you leave the house. For young children who can't speak or don't fully understand their allergy yet, get "I'm allergic to X" stickers or make your own for those times you won't be together (playgroups, playgrounds, stores where free samples are distributed, etc.). Also, I recommend ordering cards from Select Wisely that identify the allergy in English, Spanish, and French. These cards are great for handing to servers in restaurants so they can ask the kitchen staff about the food ingredients.
Retest at least once a year. Not all allergies are life-long afflictions. Be tested regularly to see if conditions improve or worsen.


This same approach works even if you're not allergic to something, but simply trying to remove it from your life. If you're interested in eating more healthy foods, remove all of the unhealthy foods from your life so you're not tempted to eat them. Tempted to call someone who is a toxic element in your life? Delete their number from your cell phone to make it as inconvenient as possible.



If you or your child is recently diagnosed with an allergy, know that you'll be okay in your allergen-free life ... it just might take awhile to feel comfortable with it. Feel welcome to share any tips or tricks in the comments you've learned if allergies are a part of you or your child's life.

BCBG For BCA (Breast Cancer Awareness) Month!

It's that wonderful time of year again where many of our favorite companies roll out their "pink" products for Breast Cancer Awareness month!

Although we only observe finding a cure of this pervasive disease in the month of October, the threat and effect it has on many of our lives is something that stays with us everyday of the year.

With that said, here are some amazing products from BCBGMAXAZRIA that will help in the efforts of finding a cure....but don't forget to give both your money and time throughout the year.

BCBGMAXAZRIA in partnership with ClearVision Optical will be launching special limited-edition "Dream" sunglasses, silk scarf & notebook in support of breast cancer awareness and benefiting Susan G Komen for the Cure.  With a guaranteed minimum donation of $50,000, twenty-five percent of the sales from the "Dream" Collection will
be donated to the fund. 

The "Dream" sunglasses retail for $120 and will be available in select optical stores, BCBGMAXAZRIA boutiques and on bcbg.com. The "Dream" silk scarf and notebook retail for $48 and $15 respectively and will be available exclusively at BCBGMAXAZRIA boutiques and on bcbg.com.

 

 

 

Stay tuned throughout the month for more awesome BCA products!

Happy Curing!

A Few Words From Jane Ziegelman

Hello, Bookies:

We got a very nice e-mail back from 97 Orchard author Jane Ziegelman, who was kind enough to answer a few questions we passed on. Here's what she had to say:

Where did the idea of describing the immigration experience through food come from?

I became interested in the connections between food and culture when I was a graduate student at NYU studying anthropology. It seems to me that food provides a very particular kind of window onto other cultures or historic periods. Because of our elemental feelings about food, looking at food customs and traditions gives one access to some of our most deeply held beliefs and assumptions. So much of who we are is tied up in what we eat.

Did she identify particularly with any of the families?

I really came to identify with the Moore family. This was partly because I had access to letters written by 19th-century Irish immigrants, and reading those letters was a kind of wake-up experience. It allowed me to imagine the feelings of dislocation, the fear, the loneliness—and to admire the women in these stories who scrambled and scratched and clawed their way through life. They were real fighters.

What was her own family's history in terms of foods and customs?

My own background is Jewish/Eastern European. My father was born in Poland and came to the US just before WWII. My mother is of Russian/Hungarian descent. To tell you the truth, food was not a big deal in my immediate. My culinary hero was my paternal grandmother, who made traditional Jewish food—chicken soup, stuffed breast of veal, rugalach, honey cake. Contrary to stereotype, everything she cooked was extremely delicate and refined. Though she is still alive at 104, her cooking days are behind her. Luckily, I have and use many of her recipes.

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Hey, Bookies, We'd Like to Know. . .

Our friends down the hall on the print side would love to hear your answer to this question: What book is your favorite guilty pleasure? Answer below, with the title, the author, and a little about why the book does it for you, guilty pleasure–wise, and you could see your answer in the February issue of Real Simple. Thanks, Bookies!

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Day 1: Roasted Tilapia, Potatoes, and Lemons

Our first recipe comes from Lori Seto, Real Simple's reader services editor. She's the one who responds when you send emails to letters@realsimple.com.

I was so excited to be assigned the Roasted Tilapia, Potatoes, and Lemons recipe to prepare and blog about. Amidst all the kid-sanctioned meals that I usually make, this is more of a grown-up dinner, and resembles my husband's all-time favorite dish (eaten in Venice, but never successfully replicated back home).

 

After fending off two curious boys and making one last trip to the store—I forgot the olives—we broke out the white wine (a Vinho Verde, a crisp and inexpensive wine from Portugal) and started cooking. He was my sous chef and photo stylist, and we had a lot of fun.

The recipe is simple and I followed it to a tee, though I inexplicably ran out of pepper midway and added a little extra thyme because it smelled so good. My husband and I had different definitions of what "nestling" the fish meant (typical!) and eventually decided to "recline" the fish on top of the mixture, so that the top of each fillet would be completely exposed to the heat. It smelled great while it was cooking. The end product looked and tasted fresh and healthy.

A few tweaks for next time: I'll finish the fish under the broiler to give it a crispier top (personal preference), and I'll cut the lemons into thicker slices, since they ended up a bit mushy this time. Also, I'd "scalp" the leaves off the thyme for easier eating, though it looked very pretty as a stalk. The potatoes were heaven—perfectly browned and moist. Overall, a healthy dinner with pops of flavor that tasted even better the next day.

Have you tried this recipe? Let us know how you liked it in the comments, and share your photos by following @RealSimpleFood on Twitter and using the hashtag #OctDinner.

Lovely Gifts From Bell'occhio

Looking for a charming gift? I found this lovely gem of a place online where you can shop for the sweetest antiques, curiosities and rare finds. Bell'occhio in San Francisco has been in business for over twenty years and has always paid careful attention to curating only the best merchandise as well as presenting it in the loveliest of ways. Here are just a few of my favorite things from this gorgeous shop.

They stock lots of trims! Weee! Perfect to add to boring pillowcases for some edging with a feminine touch. Gold and silver thread, bottle brushes (I have these and can't live without them), mercury glass (so pretty for tealights), dainty spoons for tea time... So many nice things to bring home and enjoy!

(images: bell'ochino)

It's October--Hello, Everyone!

I am Noelle Howey, deputy editor at Real Simple, where I work on everything from our Life Lessons essays to the larger features about women's lives to the food content (which explains why I'm hungry so often).

I'm happy to be leading this month's book club—though it won't be for long, since the winning book, Rebecca Stead's award-winning young adult novel When You Reach Me, is a pretty quick read: about 200 pages total. (And from what I've heard from my husband, who has already read it, it will be a challenge NOT to devour it all in one sitting.) I'm thrilled that this book won; it occurred to me recently that a pretty high percentage of the books I've connected with the most emotionally over the years have been, in fact, young adult novels (Deenie, by Judy Blume; S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders; The Pigman, by Paul Zindel, just to name a few). And so I've been trying to read more of them lately. (I also have to admit, as a working mom with two young children, a short YA book is a lot easier to sneak in than, say, the new Jonathan Franzen. Though I do want to read that too.) I'd love to know: Which YA books are among your favorites—whether you read them recently or back in your teens?

And while you cogitate on that, here is the upcoming schedule, short and sweet:

Part one: Pages 1 to 99 (Things You Keep in a Box through The Third Note)

Part two: Pages 100 to 199 (Things That Make No Sense through Parting Gifts)

Read part one for our first discussion, on Friday, October 8.

And one last goodie before you start reading: Check out this audio excerpt from the book, narrated by Cynthia Holloway:

When You Reach Me clip[2]

—Noelle

Are you reading this via an e-mail or RSS feed? If you wish to comment, please click here.

It's October—Hello, Everyone!

I am Noelle Howey, deputy editor at Real Simple, where I work on everything from our Life Lessons essays to the larger features about women's lives to the food content (which explains why I'm hungry so often).

I'm happy to be leading this month's book club—though it won't be for long, since the winning book, Rebecca Stead's award-winning young adult novel When You Reach Me, is a pretty quick read: about 200 pages total. (And from what I've heard from my husband, who has already read it, it will be a challenge NOT to devour it all in one sitting.) I'm thrilled that this book won; it occurred to me recently that a pretty high percentage of the books I've connected with the most emotionally over the years have been, in fact, young adult novels (Deenie, by Judy Blume; S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders; The Pigman, by Paul Zindel, just to name a few). And so I've been trying to read more of them lately. (I also have to admit, as a working mom with two young children, a short YA book is a lot easier to sneak in than, say, the new Jonathan Franzen. Though I do want to read that too.) I'd love to know: Which YA books are among your favorites—whether you read them recently or back in your teens?

And while you cogitate on that, here is the upcoming schedule, short and sweet:

Part one: Pages 1 to 99 (Things You Keep in a Box through The Third Note)

Part two: Pages 100 to 199 (Things That Make No Sense through Parting Gifts)

Read part one for our first discussion, on Friday, October 8.

And one last goodie before you start reading: Check out this audio excerpt from the book, narrated by Cynthia Holloway:

When You Reach Me clip[2]

—Noelle

Are you reading this via an e-mail or RSS feed? If you wish to comment, please click here.

Fall Fashion Finds For Under $75

Fall is my absolutely favorite time of year! I love the brilliant colored Autumn leaves, apple picking, the crisp cool air and that amazing feeling of renewal.

It's also the perfect time to revitalize your style! I enjoy taking my favorite spring/summer basics and layering my comfy Fall knits. And let's not forget about all the fabulous accessories for the season--from shearling lined boots to moccasins and all the muted metal jewelry. So much fun!

I surfed the web and handpicked a selection of fun Fall fashions and they ALL retail for under $75...gotta love that!

Sporto duck shoe: $49.95, Old Navy double-buckle boot: $39.50, Audrey Brooke Roxy bootie: $49.95, Rebels Sam suede boot: $39.99, Minnetonka suede bootie: $48, Newport News lace-up ankle boot: $49

Spiegel sweater and scarf set: $49, Splendid striped-knit sweater: $74, Aeropostale printed drape-front cardigan: $39.99, Wet Seal jacquard sweater: $22.50, Aeropostale hooded wrap sweater: $24.99, ModCloth stripe cardigan: $59.99.

 

Topshop leaf earrings: $15, RJ Graziano crystal stretch bracelet: $45, ModCloth beaded necklace: $49.99, Blu Bijoux petal necklace: $28, Sequin resin post earrings: $40, ModCloth cardiography ring: $12.99.

Happy Gearing Up For Fall!