Hi everyone and please click on the title of this post to read more. Well, you will see in the photo posted that there is a woman in an office with an oven. Her name is Pam, she is the President of a software company AND cooks for all her employees. She cooks for them so frequently that they installed an oven in their new Newark office. I asked her a few questions to see what this was all about:
TBK: Why do you have an oven in your office?
PAM: We have an oven in the office because when we were all working at my house in Montclair everyone got quite spoiled by getting home cooking for lunch and sometimes dinner. They wanted to entice me to keep it up.
TBK: Many women would feel that cooking for all the men in the office would affect how they were perceived as an authority or a leader in a “man’s world” of business. What are your thoughts on this?
PAM: Rubbish! I don’t see it that way at all – my passion for cooking is like any hobby – oddly its all the men in my office that do all the cooking in their homes –so we all share recipes.
TBK: In addition to cooking in the office,why do you take the time to cook at home when you are obviously very busy?
PAM: First of all everyone needs an outlet – some workout. I get my relief by cooking. It was also important to me when I had the kids that they would like good food – so at an early age I had them eating foods that most kids won’t touch. Favorite meat for my kids — Lamp Chops with Mint Jelly! We all move very fast and it is easy to do take out – but I think that is going to have some negative long term affects!
This discussion reminds me of an article in the NY Times by Leslie Kaufman last year http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/11/dining/11batt.html that discussed how she, as a working woman, set aside time to prepare meals for her family. Her reason for doing so was that she felt it was a way for her to care for and nurture her kids from afar. What was so surprising were the negative comments she received on line stating that the article put pressures on women to be everything, at work AND at home. Such controversy!
As Pam states, cooking is a hobby like any other but is also important for the emotional and physical health of our kids. I am preaching to the choir so let’s move on to my hummus recipe that my two year old will eat because I have given it to her since she was a baby. Maybe one day she will make it for everyone in her office…(check out the video below to see how I stretch a can of chick peas beyond your widest dreams)
Hummus:
1 cup Chick peas, cooked
6 TBS olive oil (more if necessary)
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp salt
pepper to taste
1/4 tsp ground cumin
2 TBS tahini (can get at most supermarkets, Whole Foods)
1-2 TBS lemon juice
2 TBS water (more if necessary)
optional: a little cayenne pepper or 1/2 a roasted pepper or 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes)
Puree all ingredients in a food processor. Add more water or olive oil if too thick and adjust spices. Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/get_player
3 Responses
Alma, can you freeze hummus? I am the only one who loves it in my house and so it often spoils before it is all consumed?
Thanks so much for this post. Just to add my two cents – at my house, we think hummus, baba ganoush, and tabouleh are fantastic for lunches for kids and adults alike!
A few years ago, I purchased several very small plastic containers with lids – each about 4 ounces. I fill the three of them with each of the Mediterranean delights listed above, then send either pita/flat bread (cut in eighths) or a bag of carrots for scooping up the yumminess. (I sometimes send along a plastic fork for the tabouleh.)
My children get excited when their lunch is NOT another sandwich. And so do I!
Yes, you can certainly serve for lunch or snacks, etc! Also, as for the freezing question, you can definitely freeze hummus. You run the risk of it separating a little but that’s better than throwing it out, right?
Alma