Meals for New Moms and Dads

A lot of my friends and family are embarking on parenthood. Most recently, just a couple weeks ago, my co-worker and her partner had their first child. Babies are amazing little creatures and talk about a whirlwind of a change in your life. At our office, we've taken to partnering up to provide the new parents with homemade food once a week to give them more time to bond with and learn about their baby. From what I hear, you need all the time you can get especially in the early weeks.

At our office, we used a google spreadsheet to lay claim to a week and plot out our menus to give the new parents variety. Then we write on note cards the menus and delivery dates as a gift. There are fancier websites for coordinating the meals, but we use the google platform at work so it was easiest. This week was my turn, and I made a variation of swiss chard and potato enchilada casserole (recipe here) and a variation of my Asian jicama-mango salad (recipe here.)

 Jicama, mango, radish and red cabbage with a vinaigrette provides a
refreshing and quick alternative to standard coleslaw. 

For moms who are breastfeeding, you're supposed to go light on the spiciness for the wee one's sake, so I omitted the habaneros and cut back on the chilis. I wasn't sure what else was to be avoided for the benefit of the baby, but this was a helpful resource (not only vegan.) The casserole lends itself well to freezing to give the new parents options.

Swiss Chard and Potato Enchiladas with homemade sauce
and topped with Go Veggie Mexican Blend Dairy Free Cheese

After a busy weekend, it was nice to spend some quiet time cooking and thinking about sharing food with friends. The brightly colored veggies in the pan was a kaleidoscope of positive wishes for the new family and hopefully would be a welcome break from what I can only imagine is a stressful time of learning about life with a baby.

Onions, zucchini, red bell peppers, potatoes, swiss chard stems
(greens added later) make for a colorful filling