why moms blog, or why this one does

§ March 9th, 2010

I’ve heard rumblings lately. Not from my stomach. Okay, from there too. But mostly from folks about my blog and why I write it. I’ve heard several speculations: that I’m bored, that I’m lonely, that my kid drives me crazy and it’s my escape. That I’m nuts, want to make money, or want to be like Pioneer Woman and Orangette.

I’ve gotten a few laughs out of these speculations. A few tears. A few swallows of pride. And a few swallows of wine.

But more than that, it really got me thinking: do all mom bloggers have to hear this sort of thing? Do our gainfully employed friends read our posts and then gossip about us at the water cooler, not about our content but about our sanity? Do our neighbors think, “oh god, she has to get out of the house more often”? Is the supermarket check-out guy secretly judging me when he rings up my bananas at 10 am on a tuesday?

Probably. But frankly my dears, I don’t give a damn. I can’t clear up the rumors about all of the stay-at-home mom bloggers out there, but I can start with myself. So here goes:

Did I start blogging on that blustery fall day because I was bored? No. I hope people don’t tackle a project like this out of sheer boredom. Am I a lonely, desperate housewife just looking to communicate with the outside world? Um, I hate to break it to you, but I’ve got a kick-ass husband, friends, family and a life outside of four walls and a laptop. Does being a stay-at-home mom drive me so crazy that I reach for the computer at every chance I get? Nope. It’s the best job in the world. And having the time (well, sometimes having the time—usually late at night after Lu goes to bed) to blog is certainly a nice bonus.

Am I nuts? Well, that’s debatable. I did just make cookies with potato chips in them. Do I want to make money? If you’ve got some lying around that you want to give me, I wouldn’t turn it down, but that’s not the goal of this blog. Do I envy P-Dub and Orangette so much that I’m being a copycat? If my blog were ever as beautiful and well-written as theirs I would be one friggin happy gal, but I’d like to think that I’m somewhat original.

With all the flack I’ve taken for writing this teeny tiny blog that gets read by a total of 5 people (and HUGE thanks to those dear readers—I love ya), I can’t help but wonder: do all mom bloggers have a bad rep? Are we painted as lonely women, destitute of adult contact, reaching out into the interwebs in hopes of communicating with somebody, anybody who can speak in complete English sentences and doesn’t throw Cheerios at us? Do people write off our blogs as memoirs of an old-fashioned, antiquated lifestyle? Do they think that we should dump the blog, stick the kids in daycare, grab ourselves a cubicle and fall in the new modern line? Is blogging perceived as the new “mother’s little helper”?

Personally, I feel incredibly lucky to be able to stay home. As I should—very few women have this choice. But with all of the flak that I’ve taken, it makes me feel like there is something wrong with just wanting to be at home with the kids. I’ve been asked several times, “so, going crazy yet?” “Want a job?” “How can you do that?” But I have the feeling that if I did go out and get a job, the questions would be reversed: “How do you spend any time with your kids?” “Don’t you wish you could just quit and stay home?” “Doesn’t this job just drive you crazy?”

Whew. I’m going to stop my crazy ramblings now, or else you will all think that I have gone off the deep end. And thank you for letting me have my Carrie Bradshaw moment :)

To all of you mom-bloggers out there: mad props. Keep up the good work, no matter why or how or when you do it.

For all of you speculators, I’ve got a new water cooler topic for you: Snooki’s boobs. Discuss.

To all of my dear readers, thank you so much for your continued support. It makes me happier than you will ever know. And if you’ve ever met me, you can attest that I’m not crazy, bored or lonely—just a writer with a camera and a kid.

-RDG

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simple roast chicken

§ March 8th, 2010

I like to get back to basics sometimes. I pick a recipe, strip it down to its core, and start fresh.

That’s what I’ve been doing with roast chicken lately.

There are a crazy amount of choices when it comes to roasting chicken. Do you truss? Brine? Stuff? Season? Baste? Butter? All of the above? None of the above?

When it comes to food prep I always lean toward the easy side. I stuff with simple aromatics. Nothing crazy, and I don’t insist on a bed of onions, carrots and turnips. I season the skin. I brine. And I purchase organic, free-range and local (when possible) chickens. Hippie chickens. Do it. I promise it makes all the difference in the world. (Or if you’d like to be scared out of your factory poultry ways, watch this.)

So let’s make a completely easy, delicious meal.

First, let’s make the brine. I use equal parts sugar and kosher salt: 1/4 cup of each.

Add a little warm water and whisk until dissolved.

Rinse your chicken inside and out, removing any innards what may be hiding in the cavity, and stick it in a large zipper bag. Pour the brine starter in and fill the rest of the way with water. The logic behind brining is simple: leave the bird in a flavored water long enough and it will absorb some of the liquid, keeping it moist during cooking.

Stick it in a bowl (in case, heaven forbid, your bag leaks and raw chicken-infused liquid tries to spill all over your refrigerator), and stick it in the fridge for at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours.

The next day? Our little chickadee is retaining some water weight. Must be that time of the month.

Ready to season?

Chop up one lemon. I like to do it in eighths.

Also grab some cloves of garlic. Peel and skin.

And finally, rosemary. Or, if you have something else in your garden—sage, parsley, or thyme, for example—use that instead.

Rinse your bird and pat dry. And I mean dry. The skin will get crisp without adding any butter or oil if you get that sucker perfectly parched before roasting.

Go ahead and stuff the lemon, herbs and garlic into the cavity of the chicken.

Season all over with salt and pepper and place in a baking dish (or roasting pan with rack—whatever you prefer). I go the lazy route and line a pan with foil for easy cleanup.

Simple and really pretty to make. If you’re a trusser (yes, that’s a word—just trust me) now would be the time to tie this bird up. I’m lazy. I don’t truss. Plus, I all out of butcher twine, so there ya go.

Preheat your oven to 450F and stick in a thermometer. If you have an electronic one that you can read outside the oven, that would be ideal so you don’t have to open the oven door at all.

50-60 minutes later (or when internal temp has reached 160-165)? Perfectly roasted. No basting, no muss, no fuss.

Bird boobies.

Remove from oven and let rest for about 10 minutes before carving.

Oh, that skin looks perfect. I know I shouldn’t eat it.

But I will.

Moist, tender meat. Crispy skin. A hint of lemon, rosemary and garlic.

Is there a better, more simple meal? Saute some veggies and you’ve got dinner.

Get back to basics and roast yourself a chicken this week. You’ll wonder why you stayed away from this simple dish so long.

Happy Monday!

-RDG

Simple Roast Chicken

  • 2-3 pound whole chicken, innards removed
  • 1/4 cup kosher salt
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 lemon, washed and cut into eighths
  • 6-8 cloves garlic, peeled and skinned
  • 2 sprigs rosemary
  • salt and pepper to taste

Combine kosher salt and sugar in a bowl. Stir in one cup warm water and stir until salt and sugar are dissolved. Rinse chicken and place in a large zipper bag. Pour sugar/salt/water mixture over chicken and fill bag the rest of the way with water. Place in refrigerator for at least 4 hours and up to 24 hours.

Preheat oven to 450F. Remove chicken from brine, rinse and pat very dry inside and out. Stuff lemons, rosemary and garlic cloves into cavity. Season all over with salt and pepper. Roast for 50-60 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 160-165F. Let rest 10 minutes before carving.

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