a peek inside the fishbowl

The other night I tweeted a plea for a new macaroni and cheese recipe. Our usual from Joy of Cooking is a household staple around here but I was in the mood for something a little different. Not TOO different, of course. The family wouldn’t tolerate the sudden inclusion of pureed squash or lentils. But I have been feeling restless lately so why not take it out on dinner?

I got some good feedback, which was awesome (and made me very hungry). I wanted to share a bunch of the recipes here for reference:

• @Jvanderschee recommended a mac and cheese recipe at Serious Eats. There are a bunch listed there, including ones for a 15-minute stovetop mac and cheese and mac and cheese waffles. (Yes, you read that right.)
• @scarbiedoll wrote that she likes @emmawaverman and @eshun‘s recipe from Whining and Dining: Mealtime Survival for Picky Eaters and the Families Who Love Them but sometimes just makes a bechamel with 2 cups of cheddar.
• @AnatheaT shot me a link to this Mac n’ Chili recipe posted on the Today’s Parent website
• @Farfbaz recommended Alton Brown’s baked and stovetop versions
• Local cheese expert @savvyvanessa tweeted a link to this Alpler Macaroni and Cheese
• @Mariedouville shared a vegan macaroni and cheese recipe (!)
• @MichaelSuddard sent along this link with the caveat that I should look at the recipes at the bottom of the page. Smarty pants!
• @bitofmomsense shared a favourite from her own kitchen as did @scatteredmom. Her recipe included leeks and bacon! (Yum.)
• @offhandremarks and @atomicnoggin cast their votes for a recipe from Canadian Living. They recommended using old cheddar and adding cauliflower if we could afford it. :)

I ultimately used this recipe for a classic baked macaroni and cheese that @Tarahcm shared. At first glance, I assumed it was a little too close to my Joy of Cooking version, but I was wrong. Not that mac and cheese is an overly complicated dish, but this version was easy to pull together overall, and in the end, it was delicious. It was just the thing my tummy needed! I added a dash of paprika to the cheese mixture and topped the whole kit n’ kaboodle with a layer of panko (panko has pretty much changed my life) I had tossed with a bit of melted butter and one clove of minced garlic. The recipe is a keeper for sure, although the recipes listed above may still come into play later on. Woot! There will never be a shortage of great mac & cheese recipes in my life from now on! :)

This is the time of year that many Ottawa parents start to think ahead to school enrollment for their kids. September seems very far away, but in terms of school planning, it isn’t. Choosing a school is a big consideration and I know how stressful and overwhelming it can be.

I asked Derek Rhodenizer, Assistant Head of Joan of Arc Academy*, to tell me what parents should look for when they attend a school’s open house. What kind of questions should they ask? (I tend to focus on the artwork on the walls, but there’s more to it than that!)

Derek says parents often ask these two questions: How do you quantify the difference from one school to another and what makes your school different from other schools?

“Class size, curriculum, facilities, teacher and administration qualifications are probably the most obvious, and are very important,” says Derek. “After that, it’s hard to get a tangible understanding of what a school is and what makes it the place for your child or not.”

Derek says a great way to kickstart your research process is to visit the school during the day when students are in class. You want to see how the school works on a day-to-day basis.

“A school is a community, and it is the intangibles that you will notice right away,” says Derek. “How do people interact in the school? Look to see how the students interact with each other, with adults they know (teacher and administrators) and adults they don’t (you). Do you notice that a lot of pride is taken in the school? Are the display boards well put together? Are there creative projects happening? This is a great chance to get a feeling for the atmosphere. It should be busy with learning but not out of control.”

It is very important to get a good understanding of the overall program. In terms of questions to ask at the school’s open house, Derek says your list should include the following:

• What courses are being taught, what educational experiences will my child get outside of the curriculum?
• How do you approach discipline?
• How do you foster a positive attitude towards learning at your school?

“I believe that last one one sums it up,” says Derek. “If you have students that are comfortable at school then they will be prepared to take risks. If they are prepared to take risks, then they have the chance to succeed.”

Talk to the administration. They should be able to explain how the school fosters positivity. If it fits with your own philosophy perhaps this is the best school for your child.

So, to summarize: get into the schools you are looking at, walk the hallways with the administrator, and make sure you meet some teachers and students. When you find the right school, you’ll know!

*Joan of Arc Academy is a Fishbowl patron. (You can read a previous post about JOA here.)  For the past 60 years, Joan of Arc has provided an outstanding enriched bilingual education for girls from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 8. JOA is hosting an open house on January 28. It’s a great opportunity to visit, ask questions, and see what they’re all about!

‘They take over your life and then, one day, they walk off with it’: life before and after children https://t.co/VPwJye0xPx

— The Guardian (@guardian) January 23, 2016

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On the bookshelf: River of the Brokenhearted