Q: Why are babies like keyboards? A: You wouldn't want your taco drippings to fall on either one.
OHT stands for One-Handed Typing. It's an acronym used by new moms on a message board I frequent. OHT reflects a fact we all learn quickly, the hard way: Newborns don't like to be put down. Ever. You spend the first few weeks of your baby's life with one arm locked into a sweet-smelling, cuddly handcuff, so it's no surprise that there's a related acronym: OHE. One-Handed Eating.
Although it felt endless at the time, my son's newborn phase didn't last long. But I still find myself needing to eat one-handed at least twice a week. On Tuesdays and Thursdays my former newborn has to be picked up from school at 2:45. And like so many freelancers, I excel at procrastination. When those two facts bump into each other, I'm often left with just a couple hours of actual work-time. Once the adrenaline starts pumping and I finally dig into an assignment, I ain't stopping to eat nicely at a table, with silverware.
That's why I still rely on the recipes I created during Junior's first few weeks, all easily eaten while multitasking. Think savory handpies, turnovers, empanadas, even baked ravioli. On a (relatively) lazy Sunday I'll make a batch and freeze them for working lunches.
When my freezer stash runs out, I've got a bunch of one-handed, no-cook, no-fork lunches in my repertoire. Assemble any of these in about ten minutes--they're perfect for bento boxes--and enjoy a simple, sophisticated meal while you work your butt off catch up on Facebook:
- Deli turkey, Peppadew peppers (the small, sweet & spicy red ones; you'll find them in jars or at the supermarket olive bar), whole grain crackers, and cheddar
- Whole wheat mini-pitas, stuffed--but not overstuffed--with goat cheese and prepared chutney, and red grapes
- Ricotta drizzled with honey, topped with almonds and berries. Scoop it up with whole-grain crackers, or just use a spoon
- Party-sized rye bread topped with roasted red pepper strips and deli-sliced salami and provolone
- Whole wheat mini-pitas, prepared hummus, baby carrots, and grape tomatoes
- Bocconcini (bite-sized mozzarella balls), black olives, whole grain crispbread like Wasa, and seckel pears
Got a favorite muss-free lunch to eat at your desk? Share in the comments.
Debbie Koenig is a food writer and the author of Parents Need to Eat Too: Nap-Friendly Recipes, One-Handed Meals, and Time-Saving Kitchen Tricks for New Parents (Morrow, 2012). Find her at her blog, Parents Need to Eat Too, or @debbieharry on Twitter.
(Images: Debbie Koenig)
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I mastered one handed eating and one handed typing from eating while working and eating at my desk. I'm actually having a rare moment right now where I'm typing with both hands because I'm chewing. I've also mastered one handed eating and one handed smartphone typing.
Hello! Are you point to post the recipe for those lovely hand pies? Thank you!
Sorry, jdbknits, I should've included that! They're Chicken (Pot) Handpies from Parents Need to Eat Too, my cookbook. Epicurious has the recipe: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Chicken-Pot-Handpies-51100030
Thank you! Those hand pies look divine.
I find these "like a mom" posts on your general interest food site to be weirdly retrograde and exclusionary. Of course parents need to eat; we all need to eat. The pies look delicious to me, but I have no interest in eating like a mom (whatever that means). I'm happy to eat like the adult woman that I am.
haha maybe it should just be titled: "For the busy person", which would be much more inclusive. Or, "For the busy and/or lazy"...
@SaySchnicklefritz - As a decidedly Childfree woman, I'd have to agree with you. And I agree with KpieS comment that they could just as easily have been described in terms of being busy for any reason, but I think the guest author's cookbook is a likely reason why these posts make reference to busy mothers (interestingly, that excludes not just those of us who do not have or want children, but also busy fathers). I'm sure the intention isn't to imply that those of us who have no children don't know what it means to be busy, which of course wouldn't be true anyway. Regardless, I'm with you: I don't think I really want to "eat like a mom" either. ;)
I don't have kids either, but am not offended by the title. And I'm even going to agree that moms are busier than I am. I have a hard time walking the dog and eating breakfast before getting off to work - I can't imagine how moms do it. I guess they eat like this! Love these posts, and hats off to busy moms everywhere.
Um. I am currently eating lunch at the keyboard while the newborn is sleeping in the sling, so hurray, two hands. But...um...I don't need "mom" posts either. Seriously retrograde.
I do want mini hand pies though...
A lot of advice for "mothers" is really advice for "parents" also advice for "people." So once you're aware of how these gendered terms are being used, you just roll your eyes and gently attempt to correct the assumption.
Try this on-the-go yummy food - http://7th-taste.com/2011/10/30/ecuadorian-style-potato-pancakes-with-jalapeno-cheddar-and-tempranillo-rose/
I like these recipes and ideas even though I'm not busy in the evenings or a mom. I like to sit in the lounge and nibble on finger foods and these fit the bill wonderfully -- and if you want seriously retrograde, try dressing your female child in anything other than pink or purple or your male child in anything other than blue or the occasional grey! At least the food is adaptable to multiple situations! :)
I may not be a mom, but I love OHE because I'm always multitasking while studying or working these days. There are some great ideas in this little article - I love the handpies in the image at the top :D
I love these posts and am not at all offended by the use of the term "mom". I guess I can see how dads are left out, but that would be my only quibble.
I understand "eat like a mom" to be referring to a specific set of circumstances: little time for meal prep that's probably broken up into 5-10 minute chunks, priority on stuff that can be done with one hand, etc. (This article didn't touch on it but I would add that another aspect of that circumstance is a high priority on nutrition, esp. if the said mom is breastfeeding.) What this article is doing is offering tips for feeding yourself lunch if you share those circumstances, whether due to parenthood or some other reason. The breakfast article did a better job of explicitly spelling out the inclusiveness but it still applies here.
I don't see how this is any more offensive than an article called "eat like a farmer" (away from home all day, no access to refrigeration, needs a lot of calories) or "eat like a teacher" (gets up early, has very little time to eat, needs energy throughout the day).
Ummm... When did "mom" become an offensive word?
I really enjoyed this post and will be using some of these ideas to create creative lunches. As a busy SAHM with a active toddler I totally know what it means to create quick meals that you can eat with one hand. I was quite annoyed by a lot of the comments about not wanting to "eat like a mom". I don't quite know what that means, but I like what Aunt Cake says, why is using the word "Mom" offensive? If you like the recipes and you're a busy person, try them..you don't have to be a mom to be included in this post!
I am a mom who goes to a job 2 days a week where I work furiously and eat at my desk while working. I do remember the baby days and one-handed everything. My favorite work lunch is a rosemary raisin scone, plain, with a hunk of cheddar and an apple. I go round-robin with bites. Fabulous.
It was when I was a new mom that I discovered I liked cold lasagne. Much easier to eat.
I, for one, love the eat like a mom posts. I'd also really dig Anna K.'s suggestion of an eat like a farmer post. It isn't that those who choose not to have kids aren't incredibly busy. It's just that when you're done being busy you're more or less top priority and don't have needy little humans hanging on you.
I don't think my husband ever held the baby and had to juggle eating, or whatever with the free hand. I however did. Why is the reference to Mom gathering heat?
Those hand pies look yummy!
Can't babies be put down for half an hour or so whilst you prepare yourself something and eat it?
@pearmelon Sometimes, you can put the baby down and get in a good lunch. Sometimes the baby even naps for a full half hour. I fondly look back on the days when my baby was a newborn and he would sleep most of the day but now that he's eight months old, teething, and going through separation anxiety (meaning if he can't see me he assumes I've abandoned him), I have to bring him with me to the kitchen and use one hand to prepare myself something while I bounce him on my hip and sing to him. When his papa comes home from work, I get a chance to feast though in case you were concerned. :)
Oh, and I've found the best, quickest things to eat one handed and cold/room temperature is toast with hummus, avocado spread, or kashke bademjoon (a persian eggplant dip). I figure if you pack a lot of nutrition/protein into a spread you don't have to worry about sandwich toppings. After all, who can slice a tomato when you've got a baby screaming from his high chair?
Cracks me up people -- chill -- she's just saying if you have a friend with a kid -- here is a nice meal you can bring them. Obviously ANYONE can eat it. She is just pointing out for those who may not know that often new moms have to navigate one handed. Maybe her title should have been CONSIDERATE COMFORT FOOD FOR AMPUTEES. That would be very exclusive. lol.
Why are people so offended by the title of this post? I clearly remember my non-mom days, and I must say that I never had to think about foods easily eaten with one hand back then. Oh, sure, I sometimes worked and ate at the same time, but I could always stop typing and pick up a fork. Once my baby came along, I had to give my food choices some serious thought. Could I prepare it quickly, during those brief naps? Could I eat it with one hand, since the other hand was holding a nursing, burping or fretting baby? I used to joke that it wasn't the breastfeeding that took my baby weight off, rather it was not having time to eat or not being able to eat much in one sitting!
I read this post even though I'm not a one-handed mom. But I don't get the impression that these suggestions would freeze well, plus they still need a couple steps of preparation. I tend to get focused and busy and forget to eat until suddenly I am ravenous and will eat anything I can eat with zero prep. In order to avoid eating a bag of tortilla chips for lunch, my freezer is packed with Trader Joe's hand pies, rice bowls, etc. And I have a fruit bowl. When I get that hungry, I can barely spread peanut butter on bread but I can eat an apple while the microwave does its magic.
I'll add breakfast burritos to this list! I was STARVING in the morning and breastfeeding and needed to scarf something one handed with a newborn. I'm due any moment now with #2 and spent all day yesterday wrapping breakfast burritos and freezing them for that one handed morning eating.
So moms are the target audience for the article because that's the target for the book, no biggie... I agree it can be a turn off, but that's the marketing they chose, and I appreciate the gesture to target moms with helpful advice now that I've been there. I never used to buy into the moms being so busy thing, but discovered it's true that with some babies, you practically can't ever put them down - unless you want to listen to them scream the Entire time, which is more stressful and upsetting than just eating fast, etc.
Oh geez. Not everything has to be about everybody. Why would anyone feel offended? Like someone mentioned, it's basic marketing. Who cares? There are people starving in the world and who have incurable diseases and people are wah'ing because of their feelings were hurt because their subset wasn't included in an article header? Take the advise or leave it. I'm sure the title made some moms chuckle.
How boring would the world be if everything was genericized?