Bentos for my guys – and a recipe!

Despite a total lack of sleep the past few days (I’m really having a hard time falling asleep at night, despite lots of exercise and low amounts of caffeine), I was up early enough to make The Boy GF pancakes this morning. (I can’t say enough great things about Pamela’s Pancake Mix — I just bought three 5-pound bags thru Amazon the other day!)

I’m dealing with a fog of emotions today as this is the anniversary of The Boy’s diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes.

So, when it came to making his lunch, I was struggling to put together something he’d like that would also assuage the guilt I was feeling for giving him my cruddy auto-immune genes. The easiest thing I could think of (that I knew he’d totally devour) was a PB&J unlunchable bento.

Ugh… now I feel guilty that I sent him to school with so many processed food items. GoGurt, Snickers, Yoohoo AND a stick of beef jerky?!

But I have to say that I was charmed by his happy reaction to seeing celery in there — and he cheered when he saw that I’d given him a double-dose of peanut butter to go along with it. No wonder he’s doing so danged well with his T1D and Celiac since he loves his veggies so!

As for The Hubster, he wanted more of the ham and potato soup I’d made for dinner last night:

As I went to snap a picture from my seat at breakfast, I saw Kenzie eyeballing the food and had to capture it.

This soup is the simplest thing to make and the smell that permeates the house while it’s cooking always reminds me of my mom (who was, admittedly, a terrible cook, but even she got rave reviews when she made this.)

5 potatoes (I like russets for the extra starchiness)
2 onions
1/2 pound green beans
1/2 pound ham
salt & pepper
white vinegar

Add peeled and cubed potatoes to a heavy stew pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil while you cube the onions, adding them to the pot when ready. Boil for 15 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste (I like it VERY peppery.) Cut green beans into “bite-able” pieces and cube the ham, setting both aside. Ten minutes before serving, add more water — enough to cover the potatoes by two inches — and reduce heat to a simmer. Add the green beans and allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Add the ham just before serving and allow to heat up. We grew up splashing a teaspoon of vinegar over each portion and I can’t eat it without this addition — but The Boy won’t do it.

This is easy, delicious and very inexpensive. Best thing of all is that it freezes well and gets even better when reheated — the starches come out of the potatoes and makes it extra yummy. I grew up eating this soup with peanut butter bread.

Half the time I make it, it’s because the smell of it cooking makes me feel all cozy and warm.