Mother’s Day Brunch Round-up By Edan Goode

Happy Mother’s Day!

Now, moms, we all know that if there is something we are wishing for on Mother’s Day, giving a little hint never hurt. If you are hoping for a nice Mother’s Day Brunch, but don’t have time to research a place to go (Who does, right?) we’ve done the work for you.

Here’s a round-up of area restaurants doing something special in honor of you, on Sunday, May 12. Make those reservations now – or rather, tell the person who needs to know this information to call right now to get a table or else! Happy Mother’s Day!

Where: Zengo Denver/1610 Little Raven St., Denver. http://www.richardsandoval.com/zengodenver/index.php
What: 10:30am-2:30pm. Mums & Mother’s Day Brunch celebration. Each mom will receive a mum (flower) with their brunch.
Cost: $35 per guest, $10 for children, and includes unlimited small plates and free flowing brunch cocktails.

Where: TAG Restaurant/1441 Larimer St., Denver. http://tag-restaurant.com/
What: A special Mother’s Day Brunch, 10am-2pm.
Cost: $40 per person. $15 for children.

Where:  The Corner Office/1401 Curtis St., Denver. http://thecornerofficedenver.com/
What: Sexy Mama Disco Brunch, 9am-3pm. Regular brunch a la carte menu but with the addition of a 10-minute chair massage, champagne and photo booth.
Cost: Depends on menu items chosen. Not fixed price.

Where: Tamayo/14oo Larimer St., Denver. www.richardsandoval.com
What: Bottomless Margarita Brunch and Mom’s Day chrysanthemum flower.
Cost:  Brunch includes unlimited small plates and breakfast cocktails for $35. Discount for those not drinking and for kids.

Where: Second Home Kitchen + Bar/150 Clayton Lane inside JW Marriott Hotel. www.secondhomedenver.com.
What: Mom receives a complimentary mimosa during the Mother’s Day Pajama Brunch from 7am-3pm or dinner from 5pm-10pm.
Cost: Order off of regular menu. Kids age 8 and under, free when wearing their PJ’s during the brunch. They get to eat and be entertained in a separate room.

Where: Gaetano’s/3760 Tejon St., Denver. www.gaetanositalian.com
What:  Noon-4 pm. Special Mother’s Day brunch items in addition to the regular menu. Also, a Prosecco-sicle, a liquor popsicle dropped into a glass of prosecco for $9.
Cost: Varies with menu items chosen.

Where: Altitude Restaurant at the Hyatt Regency Denver/650 15th St., Denver. http://www.downtowndenverhyatts.com/altitude-mothers-day-dining
What: Brunch from11am-3pm.
Cost: $42 per person 13+, $17 ages 6-12, 5 and under dine free.

Where: Garden Terrace at the Inverness Hotel/200 Inverness Drive West, Englewood.  http://www.invernesshotel.com/denver-restaurants.php
What: Buffet brunch. 9:30am-3pm.
Cost: $49.95 per person 11+, $23.95 ages 6-10, 5 and under dine free.

Where: Beatrice and Woodsley, South Broadway No. 38, Denver. http://beatriceandwoodsley.com/special-occasions-menus/
What: Table service brunch with multi-course options. 10am- 2pm.
Cost: $36 per adult, $20 per child.

Where:  Café Terracotta, (5649 S. Curtice St., Littleton. http://www.cafeterracottalittleton.com/.
What: Brunch 7:30am-2:30pm.
Cost: $29.95 per person, $14.95 children 10 and under.

Where: Cool River Café,  8000 E. Belleview Ave. , Suite C 10, Greenwood Village. http://www.coolrivercafe.com/reservations.php?c=1&id=4
What:  Buffet 10am- 3pm.
Cost: $36.95 per person, $14.95 children under 12.

Just a reminder that buffets do not include tax and gratuity. Be kind to your server. They may be a mom or have one.

 

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A Different Kind of Snack

If you’d told me that my children would be asking to eat seaweed, I’d have said you were insane! There’s no way I can get them to eat spinach. And I can barely get them to eat lettuce. But they love seaweed snacks!

Maybe it’s because they are like eating paper, which seems like something kids would want to do. Or, because it’s crispy kind of like a chip. Or maybe it’s because when you hold the sheets up to the light, they are like emerald stained glass. Or maybe it’s because it tastes really good. Add some flavorings to the sea weed and it’s almost addictive.

SeaSnax ® were created by Korean American mom Jin Jun who was inspired by her daughter to create a snack she could feel good about feeding her everyday. She was ahead of her time in doing this in 2010 because two years later, the National Confectioners Association touted seaweed as a hot snacking trend.

Seaweed is said to be healthy for you because it is nutrient-dense with essential amino acids and vitamins A and C with potassium, iron, calcium, iodine and magnesium and it’s a good source of protein.

SeaSnax® are Non-GMO Project verified and come in varieties such as original, chipotle, wasabi and onion. All of the flavors are subtle and delicious. They have been known to get me through the Arsenic Hour when life is getting crazy and dinner’s not ready yet.

They also have a new product that is really clever, SeaSnax® SeaSprinkles. These are roasted seaweed clusters that can be eaten out of the bag or sprinkled on soups, salads or rice. I sprinkled some of the Vegan Cheese ones in our salad and no one even noticed the additional, nutritional boost. What I haven’t had the guts to try yet are the Toasty Coconut sprinkles as they suggest them over vanilla ice cream. It could work because they are really good just on their own and are kind of sweet.

The seaweed snacks are already available nationwide. The SeaSprinkles will be available sometime in June. It’s a new way to get your kids to eat their “greens.”

 

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A Grown-Ups Brunch…with Kids By Edan Goode

Recently, we had a date night dinner at Second Home Kitchen + Bar in Cherry Creek, inside the JW Marriott Hotel. We were really impressed. But we were even more impressed when we found out that they have a brunch where kids eat free and are entertained so the grownups can really enjoy their meal. Brilliant! Read on to find out all about it.

A leisurely Sunday Brunch can be such a wonderful thing. Taking your time eating, lingering over a mimosa…so relaxing. Unless your

Kids having their own, fun brunch at Second Home’s Pajama Brunch.

kids are in tow. Then it can be something not quite so wonderful or relaxing. Second Home Kitchen + Bar in Cherry Creek has our backs, parents. They have a Pajama Brunch on Sundays from 7am – 2pm. Kids ages 8 and under eat free from the Brunch Menu which includes a pancake and waffle bar with toppings like sprinkles, candy, cereal and fresh fruit. In a special kids lounge, kids do arts and crafts such as Fruit Loop necklaces, play games and watch age-appropriate movies. The lounge is surrounded with sleeping bags and pillows with a grown-up overseeing the activities. Even the wait staff wears their PJ’s during this brunch.

While the kids are occupied, parents can partake of the grown-ups menu that includes Crab Cake Benedict, Chicken-Fried Steak, Bread Pudding French Toast, Steel Cut Oatmeal, bottomless mimosas and a Do-It-Yourself-Bloody-Mary-Bar.

Reservations are recommended and valet parking is free at Second Home. For reservations, call 303-253-3000 or visit www.secondhomedenver.com. Second Home Kitchen + Bar is located at 150 Clayton Lane in Cherry Creek.

Sweet potato “Couch Potatoes” (l) served with White Cheddar Sour Cream & Chive dip and russet “Ranch Potatoes” (r) served with French Onion Dip are served at brunch as well as at dinner.

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Burgers, Fries and Kids By Edan Goode

A hamburger and fries are basic and essential to American cuisine. Think about it – they are easy to prepare at home, can be purchased and consumed in ones’ car on the run and can also be ordered in a nice, sit-down restaurant. They are one-size-fits-all good! Of those three ways to enjoy a burger, I like going out to a restaurant best. I recently discovered a great place for a burger, fries and much more that also had a great kids’ menu that was more than your basic meal for the young ones.

For adults, you can create your ideal burger starting with what type of patty you want including angus beef, turkey, lamb, salmon,

Burgers for grown-ups but russet and sweet potato fries for everyone – so delicious!

bison and veggie. Then add the kind of toppings you want from cheeses, greens, sauces and even what type of bun you want. Oh, the infinite power of getting just what you want!

The russet fries are great but the sweet potato fries are over the moon delicious! Get a small order of each so you can go back and forth deciding which you like better until they are all gone and the decision is out of your hands.

There are other, non-burger choices at TAG Burger Bar too if, for some odd reason, you don’t want one. There’s also a Sunday Brunch that looks awesome.

Even though we parents deserve dinners away from the kids, this is one of those places where you can feel like you’re having an evening out, but it’s also okay (and encouraged) to bring the kids too. TAG Burger Bar’s children’s menus are more extensive than the usual with nary a dinosaur-shaped chicken nugget in sight. Instead, for lunch or dinner, kids can choose from items like two angus sliders with fries, a pizza bagel, a PB&J, a quarter of a rotisserie chicken and a side of fruit. During the weekend brunch, it’s all of those choices plus scrambled eggs and bacon, french toast and pancakes. Meals range from $3-5!

Top off the meal with a milkshake and add in 50-cent scoops of old-fashioned candy like Whoppers, Reeces and M&M’s. Kids will have a heyday deciding what they want from the old-fashioned candy jars located behind the bar. Yum!

Shake it up. The Mint Chocolate is made from real mint at TAG Burger Bar. Imagine mixing in scoops of candy into these! Heaven.

Tag Burger Bar is located at 1222 Madison St. http://tagburgerbar.com. This place is popular. I’d recommend making reservations.

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Funny Name, Fast Snack By Edan Goode

When I got Odwalla’s three new snack bars, aimed at kids, the intention was to slice them all up into bite-size pieces so my kids could sample each flavor and tell me their favorite. Well, I turned my back for five minutes and the bars were GONE! Three different kids had made off with the bars headed in three different directions. I yelled “At least share them with each other so you can each give me your opinion!!!!” They shared the bars about as well as they share anything.

They did come back with empty wrappers in hand and gave me their rave reviews. “Can you imagine eating one when you’re in a rush in the morning? When you’re travelling to a soccer game? When you need something to tide you over until dinner?” I asked. They all said “Yes!” Okay, good enough for me. They liked them and would want them again.

What they didn’t know, in their haste to claim them was that each flavor contains 11-12 grams of organic, whole grains which is equal to about 25 percent of the whole grains needed, per recommendations from the Whole Grains Council (which I didn’t even know existed, frankly). Each bar is also between 130-140 calories and contains calcium.

I know that between all of my kids’ schedules, they are not apt to grab an apple or some whole grain toast. But, let’s face it, they are going to grab a colorfully packaged, good tasting, packaged thing they can take on the run. Our whole family already relies on Odwalla’s green drink to get us through the beginnings of a cold so I feel good about Odwalla (and the name amuses me) so I’m okay with the kids grabbing these bars on the run.

Note: Edan was provided with a sample of the product to help facilitate the review. However, her opinions are completely her own.

Go-To Recipes, Part 2 By Edan Goode

Finding myself nearing the end of the day with no dinner plans in mind is becoming more the norm than the exception. Although I consider myself a planner (or maybe that’s the image that exists only in my head), I can’t always get my act together enough to plan dinner menus ahead, shop for everything, defrost, etc. so that a fabulous, nutritious meal comes together quickly that the whole family loves. Oh, that’s such a foreign concept to me anymore it makes me laugh (and cry a little) just thinking about it.

So, with your help, readers, I’m trying to put together a repertoire of Go-To meals that can, indeed come together quickly with a minimum of extra shopping, time or stress. Please keep those suggestions coming and I will share them in a future blog. If you are sending a recipe that belongs to someone else, i.e. from a book or website, I’ll need the link so that we can give them proper credit. To send your go-to recipe, email to Edan Goode at ingoodtastedenver@gmail.com. Thanks!

For now, I’ve come up with another Go-To recipe involving very few ingredients and only two dishes.  It was a big hit at my house.

Edan Goode’s Half-Way There Chicken Enchiladas – Serves 6 or more

I call these Half-Way There because I took shortcuts by buying a rotisserie chicken plus a couple of canned items (instead of making them from scratch) and a bag of pre-shredded cheese. The whole thing came together in about 15 minutes, plus cooking time.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Ingredients:

• Rotisserie chicken

• 2 cans enchilada sauce (green or red)

• 8-12 tortillas (burrito size) – the number varies depending on how large your pan is and how full you fill them.

• 1 can bean of your choice such as kidney, black bean or pinto, drained and rinsed

•  2 cups of shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided in half

• 1/2 onion, diced and sauteed

Directions:

1. Take apart the chicken, putting half of it in a zipper freezer bag for another meal. Chop the remaining half into bite-size pieces.

2. Put chicken, the can of beans, one can of enchilada sauce, the onion and half of the cheese in a bowl and mix to get everything coated in the sauce. This is where you can add variations like quinoa, rice or other grains to add bulk.

3. Spray the bottom and sides of a 9-1/2 X 11 baking pan with non-stick spray.

4. Lay a tortilla in the pan and place a couple of spoonfuls of the chicken mixture in the tortilla and roll, with the seam side down. Repeat with as many tortillas as will fit in your pan snuggly.

5. Pour the remaining can of enchilada sauce over the top of the rolls, coating as thoroughly as possible. Use a spatula to help you spread it out evenly if necessary.

6. If there is any leftover filling, spoon it down the center of the enchiladas, lengthwise.

7. Sprinkle everything with cheese.

8. Spray the non-shiny side of a sheet of aluminum foil with non-stick spray and gentle lay that over the top of the dish, sealing the sides.

9. Bake for 20 minutes or longer – until the sauce is slightly bubbly and the cheese is melted.

10. Serve topped with avocado slices and dollops of sour cream or plain yogurt and a cool salad on the side.

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Mix the ingredients in a bowl.

Start filling the enchiladas right there in the pan to avoid another surface to dirty.

Sprinkle any leftover filling and cheese over the enchiladas.

The finished product.

 

Go-To Meals, Part 1 By Edan Goode

When I’m able to be really organized, I plan a week’s worth of meals on Sunday, shopping for ingredients, defrosting in stages, etc. It’s a beautiful thing and I’m very proud of having my act so together. That scenario doesn’t happen very often.

At best, I scan the fridge, freezer and kitchen cabinets in the morning and come up with a plan for that night. Even then, I still feel pretty good about myself for knowing what I’m going to make that night.

Now, the reality is more like this: no Sunday planning, no time for a quick plan in the morning and suddenly it’s 4:00 and the kids walk in the door asking what’s for dinner. “Um, I haven’t decided yet” is my usual response. I hate that. It takes an already busy, stressful day and tops it off with even more stress. I scramble to come up with something (often the scrambling of eggs ends up being involved, ironically) but it’s haphazard and a tense situation.

What I need to do is come up with a list of Go-To meals (as opposed to To-Go meals!) that I can keep the ingredients on hand for and assemble quickly when need be. In the next few blogs, I’m going to share with you what I’m coming up with in hopes that some of the recipes might help you too. I know I’m not the only one with this problem. I invite you, dear readers, to share your recipes with me as well. I’d love to share them in this blog space so we can help each other out.

Here’s my first recipe, a beef ragu sauce that can be made in the crockpot (which, yes, requires planning from the morning but then it

Beef Stew Ragu doing the hard work for me, in the crock pot. Steamy goodness!

comes together quickly at dinnertime) or it can be made using a pressure cooker in about 20 minutes. Please share your recipes in the Leave A Reply area below. Thanks!

Edan’s Go-To Beef Ragu Sauce                           

Note: This can be served over pasta, polenta or mashed potatoes

1 large carrot, diced finely

1 medium onion, chopped finely

Go-To Beef Ragu

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 can tomato paste

2 14.5-ounce cans tomato sauce

1 tsp. each thyme, oregano and basil

Salt, pepper and sugar to taste

2 pounds beef stew meat cut into bite-size pieces

Pasta, polenta or mashed potatoes for the sauce

Grated parmesan for serving

In a crockpot:

Combine all ingredients except pasta/polenta/potatoes and parmesan in a slow cooker. Cover and put on low for 6 hours or on high for 4. Check the liquid levels periodically to make sure it isn’t reducing too much. If it is, add ¼ cup water at a time. But no more than that you don’t want to make the sauce too runny.

The sauce is done when the meat and carrots are fork tender. Ladle over whatever base you choose and sprinkle with parmesan.

In a pressure cooker: 

Brown the meat and onion, adding the minced garlic after the meat has started to brown. Add enough water to just cover the meat mixture. Put the lid on and cook over medium high heat until the pressure has clearly started to build up (how and when this happens depends on your pressure cooker). Lower the heat to medium and simmer, with lid on, for 15 minutes. Follow the directions for how to release the steam and open the lid. Drain off most of the liquid.

Put the pressure cooker back on the stove and add the tomato sauce, paste and seasonings. On medium heat, simmer until the sauce is heated through. Meanwhile, prepare your base and prepare as above.

Share your Go-To recipe under the Leave A Reply section below.

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Bring Some Love to the Table By Edan Goode

I readily admit to my lack of food decorating skills. Me and my pastry tip kit will never see eye-to-eye.  However, I do love Valentine’s Day with all my heart and have come up with some delicious, DIY ways to bring some love to the table.  Try making a day-long menu of edible Valentines on February 14th:

Breakfast

Lovely Pancakes:  Make my no-fail, healthy pancake/waffle batter (recipe below).  Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  This part will take some practice so allow for some abstract shapes at first. Pour the pancake batter into a heart-shape using whatever method you prefer.  Try pouring batter from a measuring cup, a small ladle or a plastic squeeze bottle (I got one cheap at Bed, Bath & Beyond and cut the top a little more to make a bigger hole).  Make the outline of an exaggerated heart-shape, then fill in the middle. Flip the pancake when the edges start to look dry.  Serve with strawberry slices cut lengthwise, which naturally look like hearts.

Lunch

Sandwich Some Love:  With a good, sharp-edged, heart-shaped cookie cutter, turn just about any sandwich into a Valentine.  Avoid ones made with veggies which won’t cut well.  Cold cut, cheese, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches cut the best.

Dinner

Pizza Pie of Love:  Make your own pizza dough (surprisingly easy) or buy some at the grocery store (Whole Foods makes a great one).  Roll it out on a floured baking surface like a greased cookie sheet or pizza stone. Using a table knife, cut it into a heart-shape (this works for individual pizzas too).  Top with your favorite toppings. Be sure to show off the pizza before cutting lest your heart-shaped efforts go unnoticed.

My Heart Beets for You Salad: Even if your family doesn’t like beets, they’ll still appreciate how pretty this is.  Open a can of sliced beets, draining any liquid.  Laying the slices on a cutting board, use a sharp knife to cut heart-shapes out of the beet slices (or use a cookie cutter if it’s the right size).  Make a tossed salad and place one or two hearts on top (or to the side if you know the beats will be violently rejected for merely touching the salad – it’s the thought that counts).

A Passion for Brownies:  Before you bake your favorite recipe for brownies, line the baking pan with wax paper or parchment paper with excess extending beyond the edge of the pan. Bake per directions and allow to cool. Instead of cutting them in the pan, grab the edges of the paper and lift the slab of brownies out of the pan and onto a cutting board. Take a sharp cookie cutter and cut out heart-shaped brownies.  Avoid brownies with nuts because they can interfere with cutting a clean shape.   Put on a pretty plate and dust with confectioner’s sugar.

OLIVIA’S SUNDAY MORNING PANCAKE & WAFFLE BATTER

2 1/4 cup flour (half white and half whole wheat)
4 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 TBS sugar
2 beaten eggs
2 1/4 c. milk
1/2 c. olive or canola oil
Mix dry ingredients with wet ingredients, beating only until moistened. Makes 10-12 waffles or up to 18 pancakes depending on size. 

 

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How to reduce waste and stress over family meals

Yesterday’s dinner becomes tonight’s “reinvented” dinner with the addition of some new ingredients.

I put a lot of pressure on myself to prepare a “real” meal every night. I go for the whole shebang – a proper entrée, lots of vegetables, prepared well and on time.

The end result of all that cooking is that I make too much and we often have leftovers that no one wants.  We end up being like so many Americans, throwing out perfectly good food! Yet to my children,  you’d think “leftovers” meant I’d “left” it outside for a few days to let bugs run “over” it.

Unwilling to continue wasting food, or my efforts, I set about making two nights a week “Dinner Reinvention Night.” Yes, it’s having leftovers, but it sounds better than that and even better than “recycling dinner” which conjures up visions of plastic and cans.

I’m talking about taking bits and pieces of leftover meals and making something completely new with it. It’s working! Here are some examples:

Original meal:  Herb-coated pork chops and cubed, broiled potatoes.
Reinvented meal: Greek Salad – Thinly sliced pork chops plus the potatoes atop lettuce greens, adding feta cheese, Greek olives and a lemon and oil dressing.

Original meal: Baked chicken with roasted carrots, celery and onion.
Reinvented meal: Chicken & Noodles – chop up the chicken and veggies, put it in a pot of chicken broth and, when boiling, add lots of wide egg noodles so that it’s more noodly than soupy.

Original meal: Grilled steak
Reinvented meal: Fajitas – Slice the meat thinly, sauté multiple colors of peppers plus onion. Add things like refried beans, guacamole, chopped tomato and cilantro.

Original meal: Pot roast with roasted root vegetables.
Reinvented meal: Pot pies or Shepherd’s Pie – layer diced meat and veggies (plus additional, frozen veggies) and any gravy you might have made and top with a pastry crust for pot pie or with a layer of mashed potatoes sprinkled with parmesan cheese for Shepherd’s Pie.

This way, I’m really only doing major cooking a few nights and then some “rearranging” of ingredients the other nights.  I’m also using my crockpot or pressure cooker when I can to make even those original meals a little less work.

So far, it’s working. There’s no more waste. The kids see it as an entirely new meal. And I get to feel like I delivered on a good meal for the family with a lot less pressure on myself.

Please share your ideas for making the most out of leftovers by leaving a comment below.

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Take a “bite” out of these recipes By Edan Goode

Classically-trained French Chef, Ludo Lefebvre, knows what it means to be a parent on-the-go.  His  restaurant on wheels, LudoBites is literally on the move around California. Chef Ludo is also a father of twins and loves to take his wife and children with him on outings to spend time together outdoors, promoting a healthy lifestyle. And now, he’s even busier as one of the hosts of  “The Taste” on ABC.  We spoke to Ludo Lefebvre, Chef Ludo, last year. We wanted to reminisce a bit and share his recipes and some of his tips for family meals.

At the time, Chef Ludo had partnered with stroller manufacturer Bugaboo, to create Ludo Baby Bites,  a 12 webisode series focusing on fresh, healthy family eating that can be prepared fast!   The webisodes are still available.

We’ve posted the tips Chef Ludo shared with us for feeding the family in a healthy way, in a hurry.   He shared some of his recipes with us in the E.A.T. Blog. Thank you, Chef Ludo!  Click on recipes to enlarge.

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