I cook up stock, B cooks up a bebe

Starting to cook a little bit more to keep my mind off things. B is sooooo pregnant!

B was complaining that her steel-cut oatmeal took too long to make, and that she'd rather get quick oats; it tastes crappier, it has a lot less nutrition, but it takes 3 minutes to make in the micro instead of 30 minutes on the stove top. Urrrrg! So last night I boiled 8 cups of water, tossed in 2 cups of steel cut oats and a pinch of salt, turned off the heat and covered. This morning I reheated and stirred to mix up the liquid at the bottom, and within 3 minutes perfect oatmeal -- and enough to serve up for breakfast all week and some for the freezer. Take that, over processed evil quick oats!

B tasted my smoothie this morning and swooned about how good it was. Then she asked if she could make one with her selection of fruit....and her fat free yogurt and fat free milk. AAAIGH! What is so hard about understanding that FAT IS GOOD?!

BREAKFAST: 9am, Smoothie Supreme, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Smoothies are something I started experimenting with when I first started consulting Ilsa, who inspired me to start cooking for myself and eventually go to c-school. Up until then, I did not like smoothies, my only experience being what they produce in smoothie shops. When you do it for yourself, however, and you choose the best ingredients, all the ingredients you like, well, it's something else. I also realized when the summer was coming to end that a smoothie....is HIGHLY seasonal.

In this smoothie, all in the blender, without measure: the good yogurt, the good milk, vanilla extract, a very ripe banana, fresh blueberries, cherries, red grapes and kiwi, freshly ground flax seed, a pinch of sea salt, a few tablespoons of sugar and a couple of ice cubes to adjust. MOST rocking and satisfying.

AM SNACK: 11:30am, scoop of cinnamon ice cream, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Why am I desiring this? Why am I hungry? I didn't eat this without thought, but I did eat it wondering why I'm setting myself up to gain a lot of weight.

LUNCH: 1pm, stuffed rigatoni in wine sauce, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
Went to the local market to pick up some cheese cloth to make a sachet d'espice for the chicken stock I'm making, figured I'd pick up something for lunch. Got a 10.5 oz bag of stuffed rigatoni, which are kind of like lined rectangular raviolis. It looked like a single portion to me, but according to the packaging, is 2.5 servings.

Upon consideration, while standing in the frozen aisle, of course, duh, this is two portions. My younger more gluttonous self would have regarded a 2lb bag as one healthy portion and one small portion, but this is sanity. So I got it, and made a small portion for pregnant B, and a larger portion for me. Even with eating maybe 1.75 portions according to the label, it wasn't a full bowl.

After draining the pasta, in the pot I heated some olive oil, tossed in some minced shallot and softened it, covered it in some old pinot grigio from the fridge and reduced until no more alcohol tickled my nose. While the alcohol was cooking off, dropped in a handful of sliced grape tomatoes. Pinch of salt, a few drops of Worcestershire sauce, 2 cloves of garlic straight out of a press, then a bit pat of butter. By the time the butter melted with stirring, turned off the heat, folded in the pasta, serve. No need for grated cheese, as it was already cheese stuffed. B thought it was great, I thought it was a bit too sharp -- a dose of stock or glace would have mellowed it out. Maybe too much acid from the grape tomatoes? Maybe too much wine?

PM SNACK: 4pm, cinnamon ice cream, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Woke up from a nap with B, needed a quick pick me up

PM SNACK: 5pm, baby carrots and a little hummus, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 6:30pm, popcorn, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5

SNICKLE DINNER: 9:15pm, falafel sandwich, cup of vegan peanut butter fudge ice cream, small bite of way too spicey chocolate truffle, grape fizzy lizzy, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Arepa! Arepa!

Did not eat well yesterday, but upon reflection, I am decompressing/recompressing. Decompressing from the go-go-go-go of the restaurant, recompressing for the go-go-go-go of the new iddy biddy bouncy bebe that is just around the corner. Can't wait to get my road bike back, now THAT is the supreme form of pressure release. Either that or drugs and infidelity, but homey don't roll like dat. Well, maybe and occasional special brownie...

BREAKFAST: 7am, half a toasted bagel & butter, baby carrots and cucumber, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5
A breakfast my momma would approve of.

AM SNACK: 10am, small ice cream, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

AM SNACK: 11:30, pork and bok choy dumplings, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
At my favorite dumpling joint on the way to the resto.

SNICKLE SNACK: 3:45pm, salad with seitan, dahl, peanut scone, water, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 7pm, baby carrots and small piece of Grayson cheese, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5
Funny how cheese that smells like farts actually tastes pretty good when paired with something slightly sweet. B got really upset when she got home, because her sense of smell is really sensitive right now and I can only imagine what she encountered when she got through the door. A big ball o' dirty socks, rancid poots and cheesy toes!

DINNER: 9:15pm, pork arepa, fish arepa, cheese and guac arepa, 1 beer, a few squares of chocolate, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
K expressed a whim for South American street food, and within 10 minutes we were sitting at the Caracas Arepa bar on 7th street. I love New York.

EVENING SNACK: midnight, scoop of cinnamon ice cream, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Pizza and burgers and donuts and ice cream and onion rings OH MY!

Picked up good donuts from the shop on my street, so I wouldn't have to deal with Starbucks or street cart pastry. From there, straight to the restaurant. L was in a better mood today than yesterday, we sat at the bar and went over several things, discussed new menu items, removing and revising old ones, designed an ad together for Edible Brooklyn, spoke in generalities about our future together. I pretty firmly said that until a few weeks after the baby comes, I want to strictly just do the graphics, light accounting and paperwares that no one else can do. After, we'll talk and see how we all feel. L invited me to stay for staff lunch, but it was still a few hours out, so I went home to be with the Big B.

After a few hours of nodding off and chilling, road my road bike up to Tudor City for an overhaul. The last time I took my bike in for this not-cheap procedure, my mom was dying, and by the time I got the bike back, she was gone. This time my bebe is getting ready to introduce itself, and in all likelihood when I get my bike back, it'll be all, "I LOVE TO SINGA!"



B joined me for a walk through Tudor City, we stopped at a crappy burger joint, took a bus home and picked up crappy ice cream from the CVS, in addition to newborn-sized diapers!! Blaaaag!

BREAKFAST: 8am, 2 donuts, water, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5

AM SNACK: 10am, madeline, half a croissant, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 2:30pm, handful of baby carrots, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Ha! Look! Vegetables!

LUNCH: 3pm, 2 slices, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5

DINNER: 6:30pm, burger, onion rings, Dr. Pepper, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5

EVENING SNACK: 8pm, 2 small ice cream cones, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5

Mo' Balance

Class in the morning, nice when you have enough sleep. Went to the resto after, knocked out a few tasks in an hour then split, as L seemed really busy, distracted and grouchy. He called later when I was shopping for dinner, we're meeting tomorrow to talk. I haven't been out shopping for dinner ingredients in many months, it felt really good. I need balance.

BREAKFAST: 7:15am, good yogurt with cashews, honey and vanilla, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

AM SNACK: 9:30am, apple fritter, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

AM SNACK: 11am, french bread, a few bits of cheese, a snippet of fish, 4 samples of wine, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 1:30pm, pickle, small piece of corn and spinach pizza, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 3:30pm, handful of cashews and chocolate chips, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

DINNER: 7pm, homemade chicken soup, mashed potatoes and roasted brocolli, water, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Yomomma and Yobro came over to shower affection on B, so I whipped up some homemade food, which I have not done in quite a while. Chicken stock outta the freezer, quickly grilled some cut up chicken breast marinated in oil, chili sauce, Worcestershire sauce, soy and sake, dropped in the stock after boiling some pastina in it for 4 minutes, threw in some mandolined carrot and scallion, finished with some Streit's soup mandlin. Mashed potatoes, straight up country style, heavy cream, lots of butter and salt. Made some broccoli, but the market's broc was not up to snuff and used frozen, which did NOT work well in my recipe. They liked it, but it wasn't good.

No, not quite yet

Yesterday, Monday, was bizarre. We got to sleep after B was contracting all day, and when we woke up after a fitful night and morning, B felt....fine. Back to normal. Contractions gone. Worried, blown out from the emotional roller coaster from the craziness at work Saturday, the labor scare Sunday, Monday was just a haze of appreciating the wonderful B. Barely remember what I ate, but I do know I ate a pint of ice cream, and it did a number on my G.I. tract. Sheesh, I can't pound ice cream pints like I once did.

This morning started with an 8:30am appointment with the doc, and as I suspected, both B and the bebe are perfectly fine and normal and healthy -- she had contractions yesterday, but not more dilation, therefore it was "false labor". It was very exciting and nerve wracking, and not looking forward to having to freak out all over again soon. After the appointment we took ourselves out to Balthazar for breakfast, then I took off to the restaurant.

The restaurant was closed today, but we were a finalist in a meatball competition at a local food expo, sponsored by a lower-level foodie magazine. Was a weird vibe with L, he kinda knows he pissed me off and has been acting extra nice to me. I helped make the balls, and I sat with him and made a bunch of revisions to our menus. It was a quick drive up to the convention hall in Astoria. I've been to several food shows, mostly at Jacob Javits, and this was a much smaller-scale affair, but still a lot of stuff to eat. Mostly Queens-based restaurants and alcohol distributors, surprisingly little Greek food. Most of the meat balls entered in the contest were surprisingly mediocre, but there were a few that were actually amazing. Still, the ball that won was laughably crappy, which makes one wonder what the judges were thinking.

B is now at home until the baby pops, and I'm looking forward to cutting back my hours drastically at the restaurant until then, too. I want the transition at the restaurant to be smooth, so as not to give my team a hard time. As for L, whatever, but my team deserves my loyalty.

BREAKFAST: 8am, banana

BREAKFAST 2: 10am, french toast, bacon, water, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 2pm, handful of mini meat balls, sprite, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

FOOD SHOW HAZE: 6-8pm, crunchy shrimp, several styles of meatballs, pastas, savory tibits, a few drinks of booze, a little gelato, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5

EVENING WATERING: 10pm, quart

All is Dream

Woke up late, 8:45am. B woke me up and said she didn't feel well, cramps, sweats, she didn't sleep at all. I run around the corner and get her some Mylanta and Gatorade, but she's clearly not just going to get better. After the day I had yesterday, I couldn't just not show up with out my professional reputation questioned, so I called my momma-in-law to come down and look after B, while I took off at 9:30 sharp to get to the shop.

Got rolling at 10 sharp, L was in church so didn't show up until after 12. Good vibes with the crew, feeling it was going to be a good day, enjoying the rhythm of making a bucket of lemonade. L shows up in a good mood, a nice change from the head-crackings he was dispensing yesterday. All morning I was exchanging calls with B. Her mom got in about 10 minutes after I split, she called the doc, doc said to come in to be checked out. Around 1 o'clock the verdict is in: B is in the early stages of labor, and she needs to go home and chill until it's closer, then she'll be admitted. When I was told this, I was in the kitchen, and I pretty much pooped myself (not literally, though.) B was being all nice and saying that I didn't need to come home, but after thinking about it for about 15 seconds, what was appropriate was clear. I pulled L aside and apologized, but I got the call and I had to leave. After a day like yesterday, it felt a little awkward, but I had to just man-up and be with my wife.

Rode my friggin' tandem at top speed home, got there only a minute after they got in. B was all shweaty and achey but good. We ended up falling asleep on the bed most of the afternoon. Ate horribly, must eat better tomorrow while waiting for B's belly to do its thing.

Yesterday doesn't quite seem real. Today, even less so. Tomorrow, I imagine it'll only go more pear-shaped.

BREAKFAST: 10am, Manhattan Special, a handful of Italian cookies, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

LUNCH: 2:30pm, shrimp chowfun, egg roll, water, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5

DINNER: 9pm, bagel and hummus, a little raclette cheese, pint of ice cream. 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5