Once a month I am put on notice. It’s time again for me to join my daughter for lunch in the classroom, and she wants to know — will I bring something special?
Ideally, I will have the morning free to do all I want and need to do and I will still have time to make homemade pizza for you. Maybe madelaines, too. And how about a milkshake?
Really, Mom? No, I’m yanking your chain. I will be lucky if I can get something pulled together from what we have in the fridge and get it to school in time. Won’t just me being there be special enough? Maybe I should just do what so many other Mom’s smartly do — just grab something palatable at New Seasons or Whole Foods and dash it over. (What they bring in looks great.)
But this time I promised something homemade. And let’s face it — presentation isn’t everything but it is a lot. Amazing how nice something packaged like bulk candy can look when in a mini-mason jar mug on a cute napkin.
Okay, but man can’t live on M & M’s alone (although I sure tried first year of college) so time to round out the menu. I had a big package of fresh udon noodles and I thought it was time to put them to good use. I whipped up a peanut dressing and tossed that with the cooked noodles. Cut-up tofu (with individual soy sauce container), a tangerine and our favorite chocolate treat and I was done. Was it fancy? No. But the noodles were damn tasty, and the aroma of fresh garlic and ginger ensured that she was the envy of her table mates. The tray and napkin made it all look pulled together. Success!
Leftover noodles fed my hungry teenager after school, my husband at night finishing up a good read, and provided a late breakfast for me the next day. Noodles for breakfast? Hey smarty pants — don’t knock ’em til you tried it.
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