I photograph my meals on pretty placements, but please – do not let that fool you.  Most of my meals are, in fact, eaten in the baby cage. 

And when I say baby cage, I am referring to the more politically-correct playpen.  But we do call it the baby cage. 

(My friend Sara and I have swapped jumpers – I gave her my Rainforest Jumperoo and she loaned me her Baby Einstein jumper.  I’ve started doing ‘toy swaps’ with all my mom friends so our kids can play with more toys without spending more money.  Henry was totally over his Jumperoo and will tolerate the Baby Einstein one for about five minutes; I just think our days of using the jumper are behind us now that he can crawl.)  Anyway, we eat in the baby cage because now that he’s mobile; it’s the only way that I can safely trap him while I eat.  And if I try to eat outside of the baby cage while he’s in it, he loses his mind.  So I sit on the floor, put my drink and plate out of reach (on a dog crate right outside of the gate), and hand him a Baby Mum Mum to buy myself ten minutes.  Then I eat as fast as I can!  Before I had Henry, I used to wonder things like:  How do moms find time to go to the bathroom?  How do moms shower while watching the baby?  How do moms get enough peace to eat?  And now I know.  The answer:  any way possible!   Regardless, this was worth the baby cage dance:

A reader gave me this idea.  It’s a twist on the Quiche Cornbread concept (and it’s endless variations, as seen here, here, here, and here) – there’s a layer of refried  beans in between the eggs and cornbread.  And it’s so tasty.

Refried Beans Quiche Cornbread

Ingredients (for 3 servings):

• 1 and 1/4 cup dry cornbread mix, which should then be prepared according to package directions (i.e. with all the egg, water, milk, oil, etc.)
• 3/4 can vegetarian refried beans
• 1/4 cup sundried tomatoes
• 1 handful raw spinach, shredded
• Dash of olive oil
• 5 eggs
• 1/4 cup soy milk
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Prepare the cornbread mix according to package directions.  Make enough mix for 1 1/4 cup dry mix.   Pour into a greased cast iron dish and bake for 15 minutes at 350.
• Remove cornbread from oven. Using a spoon, evenly spread refried beans on the top of the cornbread.
• Combine spinach, tomatoes, eggs, soy milk, and salt and pepper in a small bowl.  Beat thoroughly.
• Pour egg mix on top of beans and cornbread.
• Put back in the oven and bake for 15 minutes at 350.  Increase temp to 400 degrees and bake for an additional 5 minutes.
• Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes before slicing.
• Enjoy!

Where do you eat most of your meals?  I hate to say this, but most of my remaining meals are eaten in front of the computer.  Sometimes, I gotta multitask!