My mini-chefs are back in the kitchen this semester, and we began our session with what has become a major favorite with our own family and our friends: Chilaquiles! As I explained to the kids yesterday, it’s like a Mexican lasagna, layered with tortillas and a vegetable and black bean mixture, and topped with cheese.

Both of my classes made the dish, and both the littlest chefs and the biggest chefs seemed to be sneaking a LOT of that cheese. So, perhaps while the official recipe says to use 12 oz. of grated cheese, you had better supply yourself with just a bit more. We all agreed that squishing the squash with a fork was both fun and therapeutic.

Use whatever vegetables are available to you.  In the summer time, we might add zucchini, fresh tomato, and a finely chopped bell pepper while in winter, we choose boxed tomato, pre-steamed pumpkin or butternut squash, and locally grown winter greens. You have a wide range of what would taste delicious in this dish, so swap out as you like, but always add the beans, the salsa verde, the lime, and the yogurt.  They are what really make the chilaquiles tasty.

Chilaquiles freezes well and could be make ahead of time for a pot luck or when you’re having guests for dinner and want to spend your time hanging out with them instead of whirring around the kitchen. It’s also such a great dish to add to a lunchbox if you happen to have leftovers and only gets better a day or two after it’s cooked.

In the afternoon class, except for one student who took immediate offense to the sweet potato while we were assembling the dish, everyone had seconds and a few asked for thirds. That, of course, always makes my day.

Black Bean and Vegetable Chilaquiles

• 10  eight-inch corn tortillas, dried out on your counter or in a low-heat oven 

• 6 c. black beans (or three 15-oz. cans)

• 1 cup diced tomato

• 2 c. corn

• 2 c. squash or pumpkin, finely chopped or steamed and mashed with a fork

• 1 c. very finely chopped or grated sweet potato

• 1-2 c. greens(Swiss chard, spinach, kale, bok choy, beet greens, etc.) chopped

• 1 1/2 c. yogurt

• 1 1/2- 2 c. salsa verde (mild or spicy depending on your preference), reserving 1/4 c. for topping the finished Chilaquiles

• juice of 2 limes

• 1 1/2 t. cumin

• 12 oz. Mexican cheese or Monterey Jack, grated

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Have your mini-chef tear the tortillas into pieces about the size of a tortilla chip; set aside

3. In a large bowl, pour all the rest of the ingredients and and stir until everything is mixed in well.

4. Begin Layering your Chilaquiles in a 9×13-inch pan: Spread a half inch layer of the black bean and vegetable mixture  on the bottom of the pan, then a single layer (with no overlaps) of the tortilla pieces, another layer of the gooey mixture, another layer of the tortillas, and finish with a last layer of the gooey mixture.  Top with a layer of cheese sprinkled all over the top of the black bean and vegetable mixture.

5. Big Person: Place the pan in the oven and bake for 30-45 minutes, or until the cheese is browned to your liking.  Let cool for at least five minutes before cutting into and serving.  Top with reserved salsa verde.

A week ago, as a friend who has no children and I were walking through the icy streets, I pulled her into Purl Soho with a specific fabric and color in mind.  My girls had set me to whipping up a pair of Little Pink Riding Hood capes for them, and the body and the shade of this hot pink canvas, I knew, would be just the thing.

When I pulled out the bright, bright pink from among the other fabrics in the store, my friend Lisa raised her eyebrows and commented, “That certainly is pink.”

What she does not understand is the Power of Pink.  The dearness and fabulousness and the joie de vivre!

Pink is once more the reigning color in our household now that Genevieve is 2 and Mira has gone through her too cool for pink  stage- no matter that we saw her secretly loving pink all along.  Liev will even wear it once in a while to make his sisters happy.

Each girl got to choose her lining fabric for her Red Riding Hood Cape from Oliver + S’s Little Things to Sew, and while Mira took nearly a week to decide, Gigi knew right away, with a sweep of her tiny finger what she was choosing: one of the prints from Sarah Jane’s Children at Play.  She was already letting us know who each girl and stuffed animal and baby doll on the print was.  This way she can have all of her best friends traveling along with her when she wears this.  How smart is that?

We’re still working on Mira’s cape, but Genevieve put on and styled her look with some hot pink rhinestone-accented sunglasses.  She instructed me to go get my camera and take a picture of her, “look”.  I mean, who wants to be Little Red when you could be Little PINK?

My niece, now nearly 5, received these Sailboat Pants as a 2nd birthday present.  When I make things for the kids in my life, I usually really try and find something that they-and their parents- will like and that looks good on them.  The fabric, which sports green tomatoes, popped out at me as soon as I saw it, and I knew that the print would suit my little niece.

As the clothing gets sent from New York City to Upstate to Chicago and back to Tribeca again, we get re-surprised with favorite pieces that have made it through the paces.  These pants are one of the first things that I made for one of the cousins before we knew we would have another girl, and it is particularly sweet to get a turn wearing them.

What’s more, these pants really seem to appeal to Miss Genevieve.  She was totally working it the other day when she picked them out to wear.

What about you?  Do you recycle your clothing?  Do you have a chain of cousins or friends that the clothing gets passed down?  Do you cut up old things and give them a second life?

This salad totally cracks me up.  Made first on a whim and unrequested for my step-aunt-in-law’s Rosh Hashana dinner, this salad has taken my friends and family by storm.  It is a version of what I made all summer involving peaches or nectarines or plums or….

It was devoured at Aunt Joey’s dinner, and one of her best friends in the world swore that, though she normally cannot stand kale-even kale chips-this was delicious.  Keep in mind that I served it vegan, without the parmesan cheese, to serve everyone with dairy allergies there.  Since it was such an unexpected hit yet so easy to swing, I made it again for various dinner parties and potlucks.  This little salad has given me clout with foodies and opened small doors to new friendships.

One friend even propositioned me to start a business around it: “It’s better than that kale salad that everyone says is the best at [insert fancy and delicious restaurant in our neighborhood that is famous for their kale salad but that I don’t want to diss here in any way].”

Ha!

So, after much haranguing about sharing the recipe, here it is, Yummies.  No biggie.  Crunchy, fresh, and totally simple to make.  I like it a lot but am not quite sure what all the fuss is about.

Chopped Kale Salad with Pomegranate and Apple

For the Salad:

• 2 bunches of kale, stemmed and cut into ribbons

• 1 pomegranate, seeded

• 1 crisp apple on the tart side (Granny Smith, Fuji, Honey Crisp), diced

• optional:  a handful of golden raisins, a few shavings of parmesan cheese, toasted slivered almonds, pumpkin seeds, etc.

For the Dressing:

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• the juice of one lemon

• 1 clove garlic, minced

• 1 t- 1 T. local honey

• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

• optional: 1 t. mustard powder, a t. of any favorite vinegar

1. Have your mini-chef squeeze half of the lemon over the apples.  Toss the juice and the apples together and place in the  bottom of your serving bowl.

2. Place half of the ribbons of kale over the apples.

3. Cut the pomegranate in half width-wise.  Hold one half of the pomegranate, skin side up, over a wide, deep bowl and, using a wooden spoon, beat the seeds down and out into the bowl.  Repeat for the second half of the pomegranate.  Place the seeds on top of the apple-kale stack in your salad bowl.

4. Next, place the other half of the kale ribbons on top of the pomegranate seeds.  Add any other ingredients: almonds, raisins, parmesan, etc.  You can cover and place your salad in the fridge till just before serving time.

5. Make the dressing: There are two options.  Either place all of the ingredients in a mason jar and shake, or if you like to be extra fancy, or don’t mind cleaning your blender, put everything in the blender and blitz.  As always, please make sure that the blender is unplugged until the top is secured if your mini-chef is helping!

6. Just before serving, toss the salad with the dressing.  Enjoy!

In New York City, Nemo brought us the perfect amount of snow to play and have fun.

Yesterday, after we’d been outside playing for a couple of hours or more, the wind coming off of the Hudson moved right through the many layers of clothing I was wearing.  I was shivering.  My son, meanwhile, took off his hat, happy as a clam to run around with his rosy cheeks and a big smile.

It snowed only a handful of times during my Georgia childhood, and one of those times my best friend and I, fifth graders at the time, encountered a small snow storm that shut down every single business in town.  We had no mittens or gloves- why would we, in general-so we put two pairs of socks on our hands and went outside to play.  By the time we came back in, my hands were absolutely florescent pink from the cold.

Here, the snow was magical this weekend.  The quiet and the freshness it brings to the City?  There’s nothing comparable.  Still, the phrase that kept popping into my own mind as I fought the good fight to stay warm in Nemo was this:  a fish out of water.