new feature: meal of the day

about a month ago i implemented a new routine to our day. family dinner. before then D and i had eaten our dinner after the kids were in bed. this was really nice. it was a great time for us to chat and cook up something that we like. the reason for the switch was diet related. i started to feel like i may never get anywhere with losing this baby weight if i continue eating dinner at sometime 8, even (*gasp*) 8:30 at night. 

i knew it would be much more work to try to make a pleasant dinner at 6 and eat all together, but i need to lose this weight! it turns out that after some adjustment, i am enjoying the new dinner. we were never lacking in "family meal" time. we always have breakfast and lunch as a family every day, but it is nice to spend more time together. it feels different at the end of the day.

part of the challenge has been to prepare a meal that is satisfying to all of us, including the adults. this challenge has ended up being very fun for me. on good days i spend from 5:30 to 6 semi-alone in the kitchen doing my best rachel ray, listening to martha stewart radio and usually surprising myself with something nice. on extra good days i have done some cooking ahead and it's easy as pie. but no matter what, most days have found D and i sitting down to a nice meal.

the bonus has been all that extra time after the kids go to bed. having dinner done, we are free to do projects, mow the lawn, read or just hang out together. i know it is probably what everyone else does, but we like to learn things the hard way.

on to the new feature... with all these fun meals i've been cooking up, i've decided to keep a record here of the "meal of the day". i have been known to provide a mid-day culinary delight, so it may be lunch or dinner. whatever i deem the best, and have the foresight to take a picture of. and maybe some days it will be all sandwiches and leftovers, so we will just forget about it on those days. we'll see how this goes!

yesterday's meal of the day:

for dinner we had grilled tofu (drained, squeezed and marinated in tropical teriyaki sauce), grilled portobella mushrooms, spinach cooked in a pouch on the grill, on a bed of boston lettuce and topped with green onions, a sprinkle of gorgonzola cheese and a sweet little nasturtium from our garden. it was delicious and no dishes!!

(i know that i need to get better at photographing food... i'll work on that!)