Food Friday: Thanks Heston

On our flight to Boston we had the good fortune to experience Heston Blumenthal's "Height Cuisine" concept.  If you are unfamiliar with this (and the only reason we know about it is because we saw a BBC documentary about it last year), Michelin starred chef Heston Blumenthal, renowned for molecular gastronomy, while attempting to improve airline food discovered tht out taste buds actually don't function fully at altitude.  Combine that with the fact that an airline cabin is several times dryer than the Sahara desert and it's no wonder airline food is tasteless.

Our dear Heston discovered that there is a certain flavor, umami, the 5th taste after sweet, salty, bitter and sour, that works really well at 30,000 feet.  Umami is a savory taste in seaweed, tomato and Parmesan cheese. the wines and cocktails offered are also chosen because their favors work well at altitude.

My starter was a pheasant, duck and pistachio terrine with plumb and baby onion confit.  It was delicious, but admittedly I like that sort of thing.  It was served with a salad that had an intense peppery flavor thanks to the baby rocket and red pepper flakes.  It also had green and black olives, red peppers and something mild that I could not identify.  It was so flavorful that I didn't use any salad dressing although I didn't love the flavor.

For my entree I had a seared fillet of beef with a Parmesan crust with celeriac dauphinoise and cabbage and carrot.  I mistook the celeriac for potatoes au gratin but did genuinely enjoy them.  Maybe it was some parm migrating from the beef?  The beef had a nice flavor (although a little salty, even for me--Ms. salt Tooth).  It was also way overdone for me, but I reminded myself to get a grip.  This was, after all, airline food.  Cabbage was also worth a mention.  Chiffonade, and knowing what I do about umami, I suspect with a little seaweed in there.  I finished it all

All served with a 2007 red Boudreaux (my choice).  I don't know anything about wine (except that I don't like sweet wine) but the menu explained that fruity reds and crisp whites work well at high altitude. I normally don't like cheesecake, but it had a lovely crisp, buttery crust so I finished every bite.

Our little boy had chicken nuggets and mashed potatoes and a whole plate of fruit.  I suspect the kids meals aren't part of the "height cuisine" menu, but he ate a reasonable amount.  Plus, he ate while watching Madagascar so I was happy to have some peace to enjoy my nice meal.

The Dentist

Even though I've lived abroad before and traveled a fair amount, I have never seen a doctor in a foreign country.  This weekend my retainer broke (yes, I'm 14), and after investing considerable money, time and discomfort in straightening my teeth last year I wanted to get the problem addressed as soon as possible.

Luckily, I live above a dentist office.  I had actually taken M there a couple of months ago so I was somewhat familiar with the office.  I also have insurance, although I'm not sure how much it will actually cover.  But, we failed to provide insurance coverage when M was seen and his appointment cost 25 Euro, or about $100 less than it would have in the US, so I'm pretty confident that my appointment won't break the bank.

What was most remarkable was how the procedure was exactly the same, but all the instruments looked a little different.  For instance, you know that little tube that sucks up your spit?  Well it was closer to a vacuum cleaner hose here.  But, I really like our dentist and he was able to fix my retainer, give me a full dental exam (but not a cleaning) and pronounce my teeth and gums in such great shape that he didn't need to see me for another year in about 30 minutes.

Food Friday

Thanks to everyone who provided suggestions and inspiration to get me out of my rut.  Please, keep them coming!  I think my mojo is slowly creeping back as evidenced by googling "baked scotch egg recipes." Thanks to Cheryl's suggestion, I used some of the leftover Thanksgiving turkey stock and some chicken breast and mirepoix to make a nice soup. Perfectly timed because we are all in various stages of the first cold of the winter.

Surprisingly, M really likes soup. I can remember being served a lot of soup as a child and pretty much only eating bread for dinner those nights, so I find it really surprising that M not only likes soup, but after he picked the chicken out he told me he only wanted the broth. OK, fine, it was made with turkey, fresh herbs and potatoe water, so it's basically a meal in itself. There wasn't a huge amount of soup so Peter and I supplemented with some simple sandwiches of camembert that Peter brought back from Paris last week on baguette from our awesome local French bakery.

This weekend we've planned a pork roast for Peter's birthday celebration. We only have a few short days before we head home for Christmas so I'll have to build on My mojo in the new year.

Work Wednesday: The Work Wheel

Before we had a kid, Peter and I would spend every Saturday morning cleaning the apartment.  It didn't take long--it was under 800 square feet and there were 2 of us.  I also worked about a block away, so occasionally I'd head home to do a load of laundry or clean the bathroom on my lunch hour.  We had plenty of time to do what we needed to do and didn't need to be particularly organized about it.

That all changed when our little boy arrived.  Suddenly I realized that before I had a kid, I had a ton of free time.  Like, enough free time to write a book or win the Nobel prize.  And I never noticed how much free time I had, what with all the hanging out with friends and TV watching, but that's another blog post...

So after M arrived, and especially after I went back to work 7 months later, we needed a much more organized approach to housework.  Suddenly, dropping everything for 2 hours to clean the house just didn't work.  I'm a huge fan of fly lady, but felt that her zoned approach wasn't the right one for us.  Borrowing from her idea to divide work up into manageable chunks I decided we could do a little bit of work every day and always have a clean house.  With a little bit of thought we came up with a plan that wasn't overly burdensome on any one day and made logical sense (laundry done the day after sheets changed; dusting done before sweeping and sweeping done the day before mopping day).  Plus, our house never got too dirty.

We stuck with this work wheel for three years, adjusting it for different chores as we moved and different chores were necessary.  (And I remember people in college having work wheels for taking turns with chores, so I don't think this is a work wheel in the traditional sense, but I like the alliteration and it is a wheel in that it's never complete).  When we moved to Amsterdam I knew I wouldn't be working so I thought we didn't need a work wheel.  I was wrong. After about a month here the necessity of the work wheel made itself known.

The work wheel is all about a logical approach to housework.  If you don't have to spend time determining what to do next you can just get the chore done.  Or at least I can.  I suppose I'm not so great at the determining what to do next.

So, after a couple of weeks of working with it, we settled on this, our current work wheel:

• Monday:  Wipe bathrooms, plan meals, write grocery list, swiffer dust
• Tuesday:  Grocery shop, vacuum
• Wednesday:  vaccuum upholstery/wash floors (these chores alternate between weeks)
• Thursday:  clean bathrooms, clean kitchen, change beds (alternating between Mairtin's and ours each week)
• Friday:  Swiffer floors

So, there you have it.  I never have to mix "wet" and "dry" chores (for some reason that bugs me) and related chores follow logically.  This plan works for us.  Since I'm not working we don't have assigned chores on the weekend (although I'll occasionally put in some laundry or get a jump on meal planning).  We have our own laundry facilities once again, so that chore doesn't need to show up on the wheel.   The heavy-duty chores are scheduled for days M has school.  Sure, it's not perfect (Thursdays are a bit heavy and the one chore that is piling up is ironing, so I think that needs a spot on the wheel) but the beauty of the work wheel is that you never wake up and say, "gee, we are knee deep in cat hair," or, "my sheets kind of stink; when was the last time I washed them?" two problems I had pre-work wheel.  It's also completely customizable based on what's important to each individual household.  It changed my life.  You're welcome.

The Museum Monday That Wasn't

No museum trip.  This was the day Sint came to Mairtin's school at 10:00 a.m., and we usually try to get the museum while he's fresh.  In the afternoon we had a friend come over for lunch, then we went to a local petting zoo.  Sorry, forgot the camera.

Food Friday: The Rut

Help!  My menu plan looks much too much like it did in New York.  You know, when I had a full time job and we ate the same 12 meals over and over again?  Here it is:  burgers, chicken stir fry, eggs, pizza, pasta and tacos in various orders with the occasional fish or roast dinner thrown in there. 

Plus, I want to drum up some comments on the blog. 

So, I'm making an appeal for your favorite dinner.  Please leave a comment below indicating a meal we should try. 

Bikes, Redux

Last weekend I wrote a post about bikes in which I mentioned that there are two infrastructures layered one over the other here in Amsterdam.  Today as I was cycling back from the "winkels" (shops--the local shopping mall) a traffic light was out.  A police officer was directing traffic.  When it came my turn to go, he pointed at me, then made a cycling motion with his hands.  This made me think about how this dual infrastructure would make being a traffic cop doubly complicated.

Sinterklass Continues...

OK, so, Sunday M and I went to pick up a few things at Albert Heijn.  Whenever Peter travels M and I always eat dinners that Peter doesn't like.  On our shopping list Sunday were chicken nuggets, so we bought the "Sinterklass Letters" (Letters are a big part of this holiday).   Then, on Monday, we stopped by M's school for Sinterklass's visit.  But now it should really be over.

Our Sint chicken nuggets.
This holiday just gets more and more interesting....

Sint's visit to M's school.  

The Blue Piet giving M his gift.
The Piet's were "color Piets" today, perhaps in an effort to update the story.

Not gravel near a curb, but the hail that fell in my gutter
at 8:00 tis morning (when it was still dark).

Museum Monday: Rijksmuseum

M and I recently visited the Rijksmuseum.  The museum is in a massive building, but because of a renovation only a small portion of the collection is currently on display.  This worked to our advantage, since M's attention span for museums is about 45 minutes.

The Rijksmuseum has some cool programs for kids.  I thought that M would be a good candidate for the "Family Treasure Trail," but when we inquired we were given "Gordon the Warden."  Gordon is supposed to be for kids 6-9, but with a little help M was able to do most of the activities.  It highlighted about 5 works and asked questions to engage children.

The first work was a model of a 17th century sailing ship.  After that we moved on to a 17th century doll house, then Jan Steen's The Merry Family and finally The Night Watch.  After our visit, and thanks to the booklet, M was able to recall:

1. The boat was powered by wind
2. A long time ago doll houses were for grown ups, not children, 
3. The Night Watch shows a very noisy, active scene

I wish all museums had self-guided tours specially designed for children.  

Sinterklass Overkill

Sunday night is the last night of Sinterklass.  That is, the last night for most children.  We told M that the last night was Friday night for a couple of reasons.  One is that Peter is going to be out of town on Monday for the feast day.  The other is that we are sick of Sinterklass.  Our original plan to only have Sint come on the actual feast day was disrupted by an early burst of holiday spirit.

Sinterklass is a festival that runs from the feast of St. Martin on November 11th, when Sint arrives from Spain, to the feast of St. Nicholas on December 5th, when he heads back.  Children clean their shoes, set out a bowl of water and some carrots (the carrots are either for Amerigo, Sinterklass's horse or the Zwarte Piets, his assistants (who need to see in the dark).  Kids then sing a song to call Sinterklass (who keeps a record of kid behavior in his book) and he sends his Piets to bring them kadootjes (small gifts).  Depending on a kid's behavior and how busy they are with other kids the Piets don't come every night.  And sometimes they mess up the house.  Naughty children may receive a stick or a little bag of dirt, and particularly naughty children may be transported back to Spain in a sack.  If you run into some "Piets" on the street, they might throw some pepernoten at you.  On the last night it's a somewhat bigger gift.  We learned all of this as we went along.  If we are here next year we'll be Sinterklass experts.

M's final Sinterklass gift:  a Playmobil Sint playset.
You can see his shoes in the background and part of the water bowl

This year we got a little overloaded, even thought most of the gifts were quite small (like small candy bars or small bags of pepernoten, little kibble-like Sinterklass cookies).  If we had to do it over again we probably would have only asked Sint to come every three days or so, and probably would have required M to do the preparation (bowl of water, song, carrot) every night.  We probably would have had the Piets mess up the house more than just once, since that was as big a treat as the small gifts M got.

So, Sinterklass has been exhausting, and now Christmas is starting.  So, we'd better get our holiday energy back up.

Bikes

Over the past couple of weeks I have been trying to step up my game regarding bike riding.  I have been traveling further afield and generally getting more used to traveling by bike.  And I love it!  I've never been a huge fan of cycling in traffic, but here in Amsterdam there are bike lanes and bike paths everywhere;  two infrastructures layered one over the other (one for cars, the other for bikes).  Bike lanes even have their own traffic lights.  It's time for us to take better advantage of this means of transport.  I still plan to buy the awesome Nihola, but not until the new year.

Peter took M to Vondelpark on my bike the morning I prepared Thanksgiving dinner.  It was an incredibly windy day, and given my experience taking M on the back of the bike, I was concerned about how this would work, but Peter did fine right from the get-go.  You can see in the video that he wobbled slightly as he first set off, but was immediately able to handle the bike with the extra 40 pounds.  When they returned M told me that Peter rode the bike much faster than I do, and that he is a better bike rider than me.  He also asked Peter to ride around the whole of Vondelpark, whereas he has expressed some fear about being on the back of the bike with me.  What we learned from the experience is that we should move the bike seat to Peter's bike so we can have some family outings together.

Last year I got a balance bike for M free from one of my neighbors.  I took him out on it once, and he wasn't really into it.  He tired quickly and I got annoyed.  We never took it out again.  However, we have it in Amsterdam, and I had been thinking that we need to take advantage of it before he outgrows it.  The beauty of the balance bike is that it gives kids an opportunity to master balance at their own pace.  The idea is that kids first figure out balance, then are able to transition very smoothly to a two wheeler with pedals.  M is growing really quickly and I saw the window for using the balance bike closing so I knew I had to act.

I had read that the key to successful balance biking is a properly adjusted seat and well inflated tires, so I was pretty encouraged when he wanted to come on the "recon mission" to find a bike store with an air pump.  Then last Thursday we brought the bike to pump up the tires.  West Coast L and her mom came with us.  M was pretty disheartened when L zoomed off.  He even wanted to use her bike because he thought he was faster on it. I explained to him that it wasn't that L's bike was faster, just that he was 5 minutes more experienced when he tried her bike.  And the learning curve with the balance bike truly is that fast!

I told him that if he stuck with it he'd be riding a real two wheeler in no time, and that once he was ready, in couple of months, we'd buy him one.  The next day, I scooted along on my own bike.  M showed an interested in my bell, so as he reached each corner on the block he could ring the bell.  We also struck a deal that if he practiced his bike every day for a week, he could pick out whatever bike bell he wanted.  My idea is that if he practices every day for a week, it will start to be fun for him, then he'll practice all the time.

So far my plan has worked. We are three days in and he's doing great.   The first video shows M scooting along, and the video below shows him easily mounting the bike and actually steering the handle bars (although I admit I turned off the camera just before he wobbled and fell).

But you can see the progress only a few days make.  The videos above are after about 3 days of practice and below it's one week of practice (on the way to get the bell!).  He's still a little wobbly at first but can balance the bike standing (and with no hands) and has found a nice stride.  From time to time he even glides on it (although usually followed by a huge crash). But, he always gets back on and, thanks to my bribe, he has decided the bike is fun.

Food Friday: Thanksgiving!!!

Last Sunday I made Thanksgiving dinner.  It was a huge success, mainly because my wonderful husband took M to Vondelpark for several hours.  It's not every guy who will ride a bike decorated with pink tulips just so his little boy doesn't have to walk.

The kalkoen (turkey) was 4 kilos, or almost 9 pounds and ridiculously expensive at 12.50 Euro per kilo.  It also required a fair amount of prep, including pulling the lungs out.  My Thanksgiving gratitude surrounded the fact I had recently watched an episode of Masterchef:  The Professionals in which they prepared a wood pigeon, so I could identify this organ.

At the price of prime rib, I was terrified I would ruin the turkey, but it turns out I cooked it beautifully.  I prepared it by rinsing it thoroughly and pulling out all the gross bits, rubbing it with a lemon, stuffing it loosely with a red onion, some sliced leaks, celery tops a couple of cloves of garlic and a few slices of lemon.  Then I rubbed it with olive oil and a mixture of course salt and paprika.  I placed a piece of british bacon on the breast and back and trussed it.  Thankfully the legs fit nicely in the little flap of skin on it's bottom and the wing tips were already missing, so trussing it was really easy.  I cooked it breast down, started it at about 450' F, then roasted it for a couple of hours at 350' F, then turned it over and convection roasted it for about a half hour.  It was moist and juicy and flavorful.  Sorry, no photos.  I was a little busy with the cooking and totally forgot!

I also made cranberry sauce (this was supposed to be an activity for M and his friend West Coast L, but they basically snubbed me when it was time to make the cranberries, so I ended up making it myself.  It came out really nice despite the fact that it had a very strange smell during the cooking process (maybe this is normal--I had never made cranberries before).

The stuffing came out great, especially since I totally winged the recipe.  Mairtin also made a special "kid stuffing" from the base of sausage and bread, adding nuts, raisins and apples, but no seasonings.  The sweet potatoes I bought weren't really sweet potatoes, but the mash peter made was great.  I was challenged by oven space, even in my huge oven, so I only cooked part of the pumpkin, and improvised a microwave recipe.  It was OK, but a bit underdone.  The green beans were good, seasoned with a little lemon zest.

I served it with a pinot noir.  One of the bottles broke as I opened it, but there was plenty for the four of us in one bottle, especially since one guest preferred white wine.

For desert we had HEMA appelvlaai (pictured)  with some cream that Peter whipped by hand.

Work Wednesday?

Having recently identified two new themed tracks to this blog (Museum Monday and Food Friday) I had to chuckle to myself when I thought of a third:  Work Wednesday.

I'm only half serious about this idea, which came to me as I thought about my new relationship to work and what it means to me.  It's probably more of a one-off post than a regular feature but I'll see where it goes...

I have always worked and always enjoyed working.  I started babysitting at age 10, helping out my much-more-responsible older sister.  When I was 13 I looked forward eagerly to getting my working papers so I could have a "real" job.  Why, I don't know, because by that time I was already pulling in a decent income with my own babysitting jobs.  I have had all sorts of jobs over the years:  mowing lawns, retail, the hired companion of an elderly lady, event photographer, photography editor, department store product demonstrator, pub quiz score keeper, office worker, model, ice-cream scooper, and life coach.  And that doesn't even begin to get at the jobs I've held in my professional career of librarianship--including jobs in libraries as well as editorial and writing jobs, teaching in graduate library programs and facilitating workshops. Then, of course, there's being a mom.

Suffice it to say I like being productive.  When asked how I felt about taking a leave from my job I would always explain to people that I've basically been working since I was 14, and was looking forward to the break. Now that I have actually made the break I realize that that's not exactly true.  I am still working, just in different ways from how I have before.

I'm not just talking about keeping a household, but that is part of it.  I look at keeping a household differently now, certainly.  I look at it as more of a job.  And, since I'm more focused I definitely do a better job at it.  I'm talking more about categories of work beyond the work for pay/work you don't get paid for dichotomy.  Currently, I'm not getting paid for any of my work in the traditional sense.  I make sure we eat and have a reasonably clean home and clothes to wear, and sure, I guess in exchange for that I don't want for anything.  But I don't think Peter would chuck me out if I suddenly gave up doing the laundry or grocery shopping or started buying prepared foods exclusively.

Perhaps it's a "work that's intellectual/work that's not intellectual" dichotomy I'm contemplating, as opposed to thinking about work as only something you get paid for. There is also other work I do, work that's infinitely more satisfying than the household stuff.  Work that is intellectual.  For instance, I recently submitted some proposals for online learning modules sponsored by a library organization.  A lot of proposals.  It took a significant amount of mental bandwidth to organize my thoughts and pull the proposals together, not to mention navigating the technical glitches of the online submission process.  Then I applied for a part time temporary job in in the library of a local international school.  And then there's the reading I'm beginning to do; both background reading for an organization which will hopefully have some work for me come the new year, but also just keeping up with my field so that when I do return to the States I'll still be effective in a field I love.  I was compensated for none of this, but it was all pretty satisfying.

My new relationship with work has more to do with pursuing a meaningful contribution than pursuing money.  I feel really fortunate that I have the opportunity to discover that.

Museum Monday: The Rub

The only problem with Museum Monday is that many museums are closed on Mondays. Last Monday we attempted to visit the Royal Palace. After a very difficult time convincing M that it was time to leave the house (I actually started to write the blog post in my head about how there was no Museum Monday because Mairtin refused to cooperate...) we finally made it to Dam Square only to find out the Palace was closed. I had checked this specifically online but was foiled by the Euro calendar which has Monday as the first column as opposed to the more familiar Sunday.

So, I took a disappointed boy out for ice cream anyway, we went to the Magna Plaza mall, and we stopped by the library on our way home to read a book and get a video.

Food Friday: The Gear Up to Thanksgiving

So, Thanksgiving came and went here in Amsterdam.  I used the day to do a little prep for our Thanksgiving feast for Sunday.  Turkey ordered, roasting pan purchased, INSTANT READ located.  Yes, that's right, the very same cooking store in which the guy told me that they didn't sell instant read thermometers had an Oxo Good Grips one.  So, I'm now reasonably sure I won't poison my guests.  Plus, I found a really nice rasp at Blokker.

I'll be making roast turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, baked sweet potatoes (M has been asking me to make the potatoes "sweet" every time I make them lately, so I was really happy to find sweet potatoes at the local Asian grocer), stuffing, corn bread and green beans.  For desert I'm buying an apple pie at HEMA, which is better than anything I could make, and Peter will make some whipped cream.  I have everything organized and even bought a nice pinot noir.

One good thing about making Thanksgiving dinner after the fact is you can be inspired by everyone else's meals.  I've seen countless plate photos posted to Facebook and also have some extra time to read the tips posted on my favorite blog, Lifehacker.

We didn't have a very exciting week food-wise, I think because all my effort is going into planning Thanksgiving.  We ate burgers & fries, eggs, and chicken stir-fry (seasoned like the low-mein I did) and frozen pizza with salad.  Tomorrow we are having haring (Dutch salt-cured herring) or Kibbeling (glorified fish sticks) from the fish market.  So, nothing worth photographing (although maybe I'll do a post on the Kibbeling, which is awesome) until the turkey comes out.

Zoo

A Last week we went to the zoo with M's friend from school.  We'll call her West Coast L to differentiate her from M's cousin L.  West Coast L is a lovely little girl with a great imagination, just like M.  She is also one of the older kids in a class of kids with birthdays in both 2007 and 2008 and when M started school and there were only a handful of English speakers, she was there for him.  She also doesn't go to school on Fridays so it works out well.

It was freezing cold but that was OK.  The zoo has plenty of inside places:  reptile house, primate house, butterfly house and one we'd never been in, the small mammal house.

This past Friday we also hung out with West Coast L and her mom.  M had suggested a swim, so we took a trip out to Amstelveen to the hotel pool we used when we came here for house hunting.  The previous two times we went to the pool we were actually registered guests but nobody checked.  On Friday were weren't, and they checked, so as you might imagine M was pretty disappointed.  But we decided to go to West Coast L's house for lunch and when I later apologized to M for swimming not working out, he said, "That's OK, going to [West Coast L]'s house was even better!"

M's love of swimming is another motivator to get the bike situation sorted out.  There's a great pool not to far away from us, but it's too long a walk, especially with a little kid.  Public transport is kind of a pain, but it would be a very easy, fast cycle.

Museum Monday: The Diamond Museum

The reviews I read of the Diamond Musueum described it as more of a big exhibit than a museum which I thought could work well with the spirit of Museum Monday (short visits).  But I was a little concerned because we entered into a diamond polishing area, then walked forever (through some small exhibits, a gift shop and the world's lamest cafeteria.  Finally we got to the museum and I realized I had entered through the wrong door.

The museum itself was good, not great, meaning had I paid for entry I would have been disappointed.  We watched a short video on how diamonds are made and mined, M got to sit at a polishing table and  we saw a number of crowns on exhibit.  M learned:

1. Diamonds come from volcanos, and are sometimes washed downstream.
2. Diamonds aren't shiny when they are found
3. They are polished to make them shiny

Not bad for a 30 minute visit.  We also learned that vending machines aren't a good enough snack bar, but luckily the Museumkaart makes it possible to pop into any museum for free, so we decided to return to the Van Gogh museum for lunch since it was right across the street.  We were excited to see a new acquisition in the entry lobby:  Van Gogh's "the Bedroom" painted with characters from Sesamestraat (yes, that's the Dutch version of Sesame Street and the only noticeable difference is that Big Bird is blue).  If that wasn't exciting enough for a 4-year-old, when we entered the museum we saw Ernie, Bert, Elmo and Rolf!  They must have been there for the unveiling, and we must have missed the unveiling by about 5 minutes.  Even though he isn't a huge Sesame fan, M was pretty thrilled. 

Food Friday: Instant Read

So, evidently there is something about Amsterdam that's inhospitable to instant read meat thermometers.  Mine died the moment I moved here.  Peter insists it just needs a new battery, but there's something about the way it doesn't change temperature reading that makes me think it's more than that.

I tried to find one at Blokker, which is my source for nearly everything, kind of like the Dutch answer to Bed, Bath and Beyond.  No luck.  So when I finally went out to Gelderlandplein, our local mall, I was pleased to see they have a cooking store.  I am so desperate for a new instant read I dragged a very reluctant M into the cooking store with me.  I clearly asked the guy for an instant read, and he showed me thermometers with giant faces, circa 1970.  You know, the type that would dry the s*%t out of your roast?  One of those. I clarified INSTANT READ.  They didn't sell any.  (despite this fact, the store looked great.  I didn't get a very thorough look because M was a little distracting, but I did see a little rotating stand for decorating cupcakes which looked kind of interesting, and I'm looking forward to going back on my own).

I suspect it may be that the Dutch don't make roasts .  Either they don't make roasts at all, or they favor more of a pot roast.  I'm also having a similarly difficult time finding a roasting pan or roasting rack.  Having the proper cooking tools is so important. I don't know how I thought I'd make cooking my "project" this year without them.  Peter returns from New York tomorrow, hopefully with a few of my non-electric cooking tools!

Happy Sinterklaas!

Here in Amsterdam, Christmas seems to take a backseat to Sinterklaas, the feast of Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of both Children and the city of Amsterdam.  In the past week I have learned a lot about Sint, although I am by no means an expert (for more authoritative info, check out Wikipedia). The season starts with a very Haloweenesque type of carroling (kids go from house to house singing Sinterklass songs in exchange for sweets).  He arrived in Amsterdam by steamship from Spain, on Sunday.  Children dressed as the Sint himself, or as his able (yet mischievous) assistant Zarte Piet--a character whom Peter and I still can't believe--to welcome him to town.  Here he will stay until December 6th, the  feast day, when children who have left out their cleaned shoes will receive small gifts in them--a clementine, a chocolate letter, etc.  

I love all holidays, including those I have no business celebrating, plus the whole point of being here is to learn about another culture, so Sint will be visiting our house on the evening of December 5th.  M will receive the little wooden flute he coveted from Hema (but could not get the day it was originally a possibility because of naughty behavior in the store), a CD of Sinterklass music, and a little Hema chocolate bar.

In honor of the season, the dress-ups box at M's school has been stocked exclusively with holiday-themed apparel.  This morning, he and his best mate dressed up as a couple of Zwarte Pieten.  

Museum Monday: Vincent van Gogh

Last week M and I began our first true "Museum Monday" visit at the Van Gogh museum.  I picked this for our first art museum visit for several reasons:  interesting art, story appealing to children, and close to home.

Sure, M has been to art museums before, but this would be  little different from his infant visits to the Met and his more recent visits to the Cloisters.  The Cloisters has more objects than paintings, plus the cool knight theme going on.  Looking back, I think his many visits to the Cloisters (as well as countless visits to libraries) helped him to understand "museum etiquette":  quiet voices, no touching, etc.  I set some low expectations for the attention span (30-60 minutes of art looking, then on to the cafe and we could quit whenever M indicated he was done).  It actually went pretty well.


We looked at art for about 45 minutes.  A lot of this involved moving among the different galleries, so the actual art gazing was more like 10-15 minutes, and involved M making up a lot of stories, like, "this is a picture of flowers, from when they first invented flowers..."  But, later that day I was really pleased that, when asked some questions about our day M could recollect:

1. We went to the Vincent van Gogh museum
2. Vincent van Gogh was an artist who painted
3. One interesting thing about Vincent van Gogh was that he cut off part of his own ear.

I'm also fairly certain M could recognize Van Gogh's self portrait, since we spent a lot of time looking at both the oversized version by th entrance and the picture on the brochure.  And he thoroughly enjoyed the giant ice cream he got in the cafe.  I think we will go back at some point.  They have an audio tour specifically designed for children (6 and over, but I'd like to try it in a few months with M).

Food Friday: My Kingdom for Some Parelgort!!

The weirdest things can make you homesick.  On Saturday, I almost started to cry in the middle of the grocery store because I couldn't find barley.  And I was in the big Albert Hein, too, and I asked for help and probably the worst part about it was that the 3 people who helped me didn't know what I was talking about (they kept bringing me to the frosting aisle) even thought I had google translated barley (gerst) before I went to the store.  I realized later what I should have been asking for was parelgort (pearl barley).

I make a killer lamb stew, and the barley adds a lot of body the dish.  So I persisted.  I went to 4 stores looking for Barley, including 2 health-food, organic type stores.  I finally gave up when one [helpful] person at Marqt told me he used to buy it at a restaurant supply store and one [unhelpful and, frankly, bitchy] person at Food for You told me it was a very old fashioned thing to be looking for and I wouldn't find it in a city [as cosmopolitan as] Amsterdam.  Old fashioned? Uncosmopolitan?  You can find it in any bodega in New York, which I dare say is a bit more cosmopolitan than Amsterdam.  But alas, I was reminded of something my brother-in-law David recently said:  he thinks that in 50 years no one will know how to cook anymore.  I see signs of that here like I never saw in New York:  people purchase an unbelievable amount of prepared food. I'm sure the signs were there in New York as well, I just didn't notice them.  

Mini-Yorkshire puddings I made for a recent Sunday roast; probably the best I've ever made.

Alas, in desperation I purchased something in the Jewish/whole grain aisle at the big Albert Hein that ultimately did the trick.  According to the package it was some type of wheat, maybe bulgar, and it definitely cooked a lot faster than pearl barley but it did the trick, and my stew really came out nice.  M even ate a big bowl and there is enough left over to have another dinner.

Last night I made an excellent chicken chow mein that both my boys loved.  They love it from the Chinese take-away, too, but unlike New York, here in Amsterdam, Chinese food doesn't seem to be a cheap take out, but rather a pricey treat.  I was drawn to this recipe because one review said it tasted just like take-out.  It does.  I had some pad-thai type noodles in the house (which I bought one day when I couldn't find regular egg noodles at Albert Hein...) which were a little too linguine-esque for this dish, but still pretty tasty.  As a side note I am determined to cure M's (normal 4-year-old) pickiness by not catering to it and involving him in food preparation, both of which appear to be working!

In other food news I recently learned of the new USDA guidelines on nutrition.  Evidently, they have ditched the food pyramid for a simpler "plate."  It's simpler because it basically indicates that half of your plate should be vegetables.  Half?  Yes, half.  Well, USDA, you have thrown down the gauntlet and I have accepted the challenge.  Living in Europe's garden has its advantages and (perhaps to the utter confusion of my meat-and-potatoes loving husband and son) I am serving half-a-plate of veggies at dinner.  Basically, this means that I'm serving two veg at every meal instead of one.  So far, so good.

Museum Monday: NEMO

Peter recently took a day off and we went to NEMO, Amsterdam's science museum, as a family.  While there, we bought our Museumkaarts, a card that for 40 Euro provides access into 400 museums in the Netherlands.  Having a card like this changes one's relationship to museums.  Instead of feeling like you have to see everything to get your 12.50 worth, suddenly you can go to a museum for an hour, anytime you want.  This was a relationship that I also enjoyed living in Washington, D.C., where most of the museums are free of charge.

I have decided to get the most out of our Museumkaarts, taking M to a different museum every Monday since he doesn't go to school on Mondays.  It's a tall order, taking a 4-year-old to a museum, but I figure we'll start slow, spending a half hour at the museum and then hitting the cafe.  M gets introduced to museums and a new feature on My 'dam Adventure is born:  Museum Monday.

So, our trip to NEMO was exhausting.  It's a long-ish tram ride from our Neighborhood and a long-ish walk from the tram stop.  Once we got there M was so stimulated he bounced from exhibit to exhibit like a pinball.  The museum itself was interesting, if aimed at a bit of an older audience than the preschool set.

There were a couple of really interesting exhibits, including a hands-on one about water that M loved.  We also spent some time in the Wonder Lab, first doing an experiment about color, which kind of bored M, then experimenting on the absorbancy of kitty litter, which was VERY difficult to clean up.  There's a great cafe on the ground floor, and a really crap one, albeit with an amazing view, on the top floor.  In short, the day was exhausting, but M loved it, and I'm sure he'd want to go back.

Happy Halloween!

M and his cousin L are best friends.  They dream of experiencing the trivialities of childhood together:  riding in a wagon at the grocery store, traveling in the same car, etc.  So, we planned several months ago that M and I would travel to Boston for some cousin-bonding-cum-trick-or-treating this year.

The kids all had a great time.  L and A gave M an Imaginext Robot Police Headquarters and Deep Sea Robot for his birthday, which was a huge hit with all the kids.  In fact, it was at the heart of our first gender discrimination play (A and M played, L got a little bored and felt left out) which was an interesting dynamic to watch.

Our plans were somewhat disrupted by a freak snowstorm and resultant power failure.   

Grandma tortured the kids to get a photo for her Christmas cards. 

A is crazy for Papa, and at a mere 20 months of age clearly expressed that he wanted Papa to be his grown up at gymnastics.

M joined L at gymnastics and did a great job following directions.The class had a Halloween theme and he's still practicing his Frankenstein walk (his "favorite monster").

A with his favorite grown up.

M and L having fun in the snow.  It's amazing how much they hug each other.

M messing around when the snow began to fall.

L messing around when the snow began to fall.

A also loved the snow.

It was pretty chilly when we woke up to no power.  S, L and A are pretending to be asleep.

And the snow just kept on falling!

Sledding before Halloween!

After 24 hours, record low temps and no heat we gave up and headed to Grandma & Papa's, who had power.

Trick or treating in L's neighborhood would have had more kids (uh, any other kids) but they still made the best of it!

Papa very kindly drove us to the airport.  We were there in plenty of time (no lines or waiting anywhere)  and we conveniently forgot the sandwiches I made, so we had dinner at Legal Seafood and found a new airport playground.

Legoland

A couple of weeks ago we took a trip to Billund, Denmark, home of the original Legoland.  I'll let the pictures tell the story...

Denmark seemed incredibly expensive.  At one of our very overpriced dinners Grandma and M planned our Legoland visit.

 

One of the highlights of Legoland was the Bob the Builder 4D movie.  The 4th D was basically weather--it snowed and rained in the theater.  We all enjoyed the fill so much I don't think we noticed that it was in Danish.

When the movie started, M asked, "Why do things keep sticking out of the screen?"

The Duplo playground was the only Legoland attraction M asked to go back to. 

I can see the appeal of visiting Legoland in the summer; there are a lot of water-park type attractions.  M and Daddy had fun pretending the giant dryer was a space ship.

M and Daddy (AKA the Unabomber) on the Lego safari ride.  All the adults spent a lot of time cramming their bodies into kid-size vehicles.  Apparently, the Danish put their preschoolers on these rides unattended.

Legoland had a really cool aquarium.

A tired M (who held up remarkably well) trying on a crown at the end of the day.

 

I still can't decide if I loved or hated our resort.  It had a Las Vegas style fake outdoor "square."

We stayed at a Danish "campsite" which was a little 3 bedroom house.  The resort included a massive indoor water park and indoor play space for kids.

M playing at the indoor play space.  He loved this as much as Legoland.

Not sure how much P loved the play space...

Grandma and Papa watched us in the playspace from afar...

M and P enjoyed playing on the motor scooters.

When we returned, M saw his first rainbow.