April - May 2002 Edition

Family Time and Dinner Time   By Jeanne Baratta (Fair Lawn's Kitchen Elf)   Growing up in Fair Lawn I have many fond memories of my family life. The majority of them took place around the family dinner table. This was sacred ground in our home. There were some rules, no one started eating until everyone was seated and no one left the table until everyone was finished. These rules were rarely broken because this was our family time, this was when we found out about everyone’s day, the latest family gossip, and where we just had a great time talking and being silly.    My Dad sometimes worked strange hours, but we still always ate dinner together. This would sometimes mean getting right off the school bus and on to the dinner table, but we didn’t mind. At that time, my family was living in the apartments on Sperber Road, there were many young families just starting out there back in the early 60’s. Between the hours of 5 and 6 pm you would always hear parents calling from the stoop “Supper’s Ready, Come on in”.   I have a family of my own now and we continue this tradition of the family meal in our home. It’s not always easy, my husband is sometimes away on business trips, the kids have various school and sports activities, but with some juggling we usually manage to enjoy our evening meal together every night.    I have noticed though that we are the exception to the rule. American families have gotten away from the “family meal”, everyone is running in different directions and they just can’t seem to find the time to sit down together anymore. It is a shame because they are missing out on so much. This is how we keep in touch with our children’s lives, who their friends are, what their interests are, what subjects they are struggling in at school.   It is also how they keep in touch with us, find out about our jobs, our bosses, our struggles! This is where we teach values, get into heated debates with our head strong teenager (who by the way knows everything), where our 6 year old teaches us a new song she learned in music class and where my 12 year old son tells the silliest stories that only his mother could laugh at.   If you think your lives are too complicated to let this work, you don’t have time to prepare dinners every night, think harder about it, give it a try, make it work. Some people prepare all their meals for the week on the weekends, refrigerate or freeze them and then re-heat during the week. I know some people that do this once a month and have all their meals for the entire month sitting in the freezer!    There are lots of resources on the internet for this very concept, do an internet search for “once a month cooking” and you will be bombarded with recipes and tips.    Let older kids help with the meal preparation while you are at work. Have them prepare vegetables, or fix a roast the night before and instruct them to pop it into the oven. Younger children can set the table and prepare salads. My kids enjoy helping with food preparation and I find that they are more likely to eat a food that they have never eaten before if they have helped prepare it.    You don’t have to create an elaborate meal every night, and who said we can’t have a “family meal” using take out food? It doesn’t matter who cooked it as long as you eat it together! Of course after that hour or so of family bliss, we go right back to our hectic lives. My son wants to be dropped off at the Recreation Center, someone always needs to be at the Fair Lawn Library, then there is softball and baseball practices, parent organization meetings, well, you get the picture. But for one hour, we were all together, sharing a meal and making some memories.   Below is a recipe I prepare often for my family especially in the spring and summer months, when lighter fare is welcome. It has become a favorite with everyone especially me, because it takes less than a half an hour from start to finish to prepare and cook. Don’t be afraid to change the ingredients to your families taste.   Montreal Chicken Salad 2 ½ lbs. Boneless Chicken Breast (or for more convenience frozen chicken breast tenders) Salad Mix, already prepared 2 tomatoes, cut into wedges 1 cucumber, peeled and sliced 1 Red or green bell pepper, or a combination of both, cut into strips 1 Mango, peeled and sliced ½ cup olive oil 4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons Montreal chicken seasoning (available in spice section of supermarket) 1 cup your favorite Italian salad dressing, (we like roasted garlic vinaigrette with this)  Note: I cook the chicken outside on the grill, if you do not want to grill the chicken you can prepare it in the broiler of the oven.   Preparation: Pre-heat grill on high heat. Cut Chicken in to large strips. In a shallow baking dish combine olive oil, balsamic vinegar and chicken seasoning, stir to combine. Add chicken to dish and toss to coat, let this marinate while you prepare the salad. In a large salad bowl combine salad mix, add sliced tomatoes, cucumber and peppers. Arrange mango slices around the edge of the bowl.   Cook chicken on grill about 8 minutes per side. Be careful, the grill will flare up due to the oil in the marinade. When cooked, arrange the chicken atop the prepared salad, add salad dressing and toss lightly. This is nice served with instant couscous and some crusty bread. Serves 6. Enjoy!       Kitchen Elf in Fair Lawn News      What To Give (And Not Give) Your Wife (February 2001)    Kitchen Elf on Staying Fit  (December 2001)   New Market and Gourmet Apples  (October 2001)