Don't burn up during the reentry.

Hi, blog. It has been MONTHS. So good to see you! Have you lost weight?

Ha.

Lots of topics I'd like to cover. What I have been cooking. The continued joys and travails of nursing. Difficulty of integrating a child into my schedule. Hired help: guilt at working and having hired help, dread at not having hired help. Difficulties of managing hired help. Division of labor within the house. Fun milestones like pulling up to stand, bouncing, crawling, shouting "birthday" randomly, when you can't even talk. And of course, solid foods for my kiddo. That makes me smile.

Should I start with solid foods? This blog is supposed to be about eating. Actually, let's briefly discuss what the adults in my life have been eating. Since we cannot go out, we have been eating a lot of homecooked meals.

* In fall, I'm addicted to the following things: roasted vegetables. parsnips, you've got my number. beets. brussel sprouts. tiny onions. garlic. broccoli. i even sliced up and roasted an orange the other day, to eat with some irish sea trout. (slice through skin and rub a bit of good quality olive oil on the orange. into an enameled cast iron gratin dish. into the oven for about 10 minutes at about 400 degrees. SCORE. skins and burnt bits were the best part. nice over the fish. served with some broccoli with whole coriander seeds, cumin seeds, a dash of chile powder, and salt.)

* slow cooked meals. recently I did a braised short rib recipe a la giada. short ribs are fantastic. for the uninitiated, season and sear; add ground savories, tomato products, broth and wine; braise until the meat is falling off the bone. then remove the bones and cartiladge, and return to the sauce. over fresh linguini. and giada's twist is to grind a bit of bittersweet chocolate over the top, to bring up the flavors. hoy hoy umami!

* Another slow cooked meal -- indian lamb with lentils, from "the complete meat cookbook." This book is one of the go-to reference books in my kitchen. I'm linking to Amazon so you can buy if you don't have. I'm so happy to finally live in a house with cardamom seeds. Those plus cumin and coridaner, and this curry had coconut milk in it. Sometimes, i think my own mother must've been a coconut, is how soothed and wonderful coconut milk makes me feel. And i made some saffron rice, albeit with shorter than called for grains. Still, good stuff. Oh, on the Indian thing but not on the slow-cooked thing: i tried a superfast and easy tandoori shrimp, too with a yogurt marinade and served with a cilantro chutney. (Was inspired to buy the chutney at the crazy "Eastern Market" emporium of treasures and rotting fruit near my house. Then had to find something to serve it with.) Loving the foray into indian flavors, which is totally new for me.

* Brownies. They replace the summer's ice cream obsession. But it's not like i don't think about brownies a lot when it's summer, too. I try not to make that many of them, though, because they are one thing that I eat until they are gone. I like the kind from the box, but i also like the kind that you make with ghirardhelli sweet ground chocolate. Those taste like brownies from a box, just richer. For what it's worth, I have absolutely no interest in getting brownies at a bakery. They don't approach what I like, which is a total harkening back to childhood. I believe that they are a primal comfort food. I have a crystal clear memory of a very special evening: January 29, 1976. It was the night the muppet show debuted. My mom, knowing that something special was on deck, made brownies, gave me two hot from the pan with a huge glass of milk, and sent me into the den to watch TV. What happened next amazed me, but it is the brownies that I remember the most. I had just turned 4. I still need a huge glass of milk with them.

* Pizza. I got some dough at Fairway (I know, I know, I could make it myself, but the joy is that I didn't, and that dinner was done pretty much right after baby was in bed.) I made a pancetta, thyme, and onion topping. Just used ground tomatoes from a jar, made less brusque with a little cinnamon, and then a combo of fresh and "nonfresh" mozz. Husband asked me to put on the "delicious so make a lot" list that we have on our fridge.

That's all for now! As always, I am interested in hearing what people who love to eat make for special, but, but also, for delicious midweek meals. Do you have a list on your fridge?