056 - Meal Planning Made Fun with Kate from Naptime Kitchen

May 1

- May is for Mamas -

Our guest today is Kate Strickler:

Known to the internet world as Naptime Kitchen, Kate is a stay at home mom to three wonderful little people. While they nap, she cooks! She lives in the beautiful Charleston, SC.

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Resources from this episode:

Show Notes:

**UPDATE** When this was recorded, Kate wasn’t planning to release her new Meal Planning Guide until this fall, but given the current situation, she has released it early! You can purchase this super helpful resource here ($12 people, honestly a no-brainer!!)

This is the first of an entire month of episodes to celebrate motherhood! We’re calling it ‘May is for Mamas’ here on the Work & Play Podcast. You can expect two episodes per week, and we’re kicking off the series with a special guest: Kate, from Naptime Kitchen!

Let me just say, Kate is my cooking mentor and she doesn’t even know it. I always go to her blog and watch her IG stories (she’s SO real and SO funny!), but when I’m in need of some good recipes and some motivation and inspiration, and I don’t know where to go—I go to Kate. She’s practical, she’s funny, and she’s all around just helpful and enjoyable. If you don’t follow her, go now. You will not regret it!

We’re talking all about meal planning today, and I think that’s something we could all use some help (and GRACE) with right now! Click play to listen in, or read through our conversation below.

Nancy Ray: Kate, thank you so much for coming on the Work and Play Podcast. I am so honored and excited to have you here.

Kate Strickler: Thank you. It's great to be here. I am a fan of the Work and Play podcast. Thanks for having me.

Nancy: You're very sweet. I have to tell you the story before we get into meal planning, because I have a million questions for you. But when I had my third baby, a little over a year ago, I had a meal dropped off to me by a dear friend and it was your honey butter chicken recipe, and she dropped it off with all of these sides and I literally... I can't even tell you... I'm sure you have been raised of certain meals when your kids are newborns, but like that was my meal that I remember after I had Beaufort my little boy, because it was so good. When you're nursing and you have a little baby, it's like you eat so much, and food tastes so good, especially when friends are dropping them off for you.

But I remember texting her and being like, "Katherine, What in the world is this meal? This chicken is so good. I ate like three plates of it. My family loved it. You have to tell me," and she sent me your recipe. I had heard of you and had tried some new recipes, but that recipe did it. I was like, "Okay, from now on I'm trying to everything that Kate recommends. It's so good, it's so easy." That's my intro story about how much I love your food and the one meal that did it for me. Everybody who's listening, you have to go try the honey butter chicken recipe. Now I'll leave it in the show notes because it is literally one of my favorite meals. It's like a standard in our house now. It's so good.

Kate: Thank you! And it's a crock pot—it’s easy.

Nancy: Exactly.

Kate: I'm sure you could do it in the Instant Pot too.

Nancy: Oh yeah, I've only done it in the crock pot. But yeah, I'm a big fan of the Instant Pot too. Well today I really just want to ask you so many questions about meal planning. Before we get to that, I just want to learn more about you and your family, and how Naptime Kitchen came to be.

Kate: Yes, so I'm Kate, my husband is Nate, we have three children, John Robert, Scout and Milly. They are four, three and one. Naptime Kitchen started when John Robert was seven months old, I remember because he was taking two naps a day, and I just found myself to be bored and so I was cooking a lot. I come from a family that loves to cook. My mom is an incredible cook, my grandmother is a wonderful cook, all of my siblings also cook. It's just always been where I drifted when I had free time or spare time I was in the kitchen, and my mom is the same way. On a Saturday, you can find her in her kitchen cooking with a cooking channel on.

It became a hobby and it's really funny to see how Naptime Kitchen has morphed, because at the time I was making more involved recipes, because I had the time. It was like I have a two hour block this afternoon, so I was... Well I was learning, I was trying out recipes but then also I was learning how to cook during nap time because it was impossible to cook at the actual time before dinner, because I just learned very quickly with a baby, you can't really cook at 5:00 to eat at 6:00. There's just normally a nursing session in there, it's the witching hour. I was learning how to cook between like 2:00 and 4:00 and then reheat it or have it be ready at dinnertime.

Naptime Kitchen was... well really I had a personal Instagram and I was posting food there, and then I was like, "Maybe I should make an Instagram that's just for food, because I don't want to be constantly posting recipes for people that could care less about it," so I started Naptime Kitchen. That was in 2015. It's funny to see how it's morphed because I had a lot of time, a napping baby. Then now what is it? Really, Five years later, It's way less time and more babies. It's funny to see how the recipes have gone from a lot more involved to “What can I dump in a crock pot?”

Nancy: Yeah, totally. I feel like I'm still learning the lesson to cook during naptime or like cook earlier in the day, because it's something you have to do as a mom of young kids, because you're exactly right, there's no way I can whip up a meal an hour before dinner like I used to. Gone are the days that you can do that. But I totally agree, I feel like my cooking—and every mom right?—our cooking, our meal planning it all morphs and changes as we have kids, and then the more kids we add. It's like what can be the most simple, effective, delicious dinner that is stress free and healthy? It has to check these boxes for us, but that's hard to do.

It can get frustrating and hard and I don't know, I feel like sometimes I just throw up my hands and I'm like, "I can't do this. I want to order pizza." Of course there are those days, but I love that it started then, when you had one kid, and he was napping twice a day. How has that changed do you feel like, now that you have three little ones? Because mine are four, two and one, and yours are four, three and one did you say? Yeah.

Kate: Yeah.

Nancy: So our kids are right there together. How do you feel like it has changed or what are some really good tips or things that you've had to learn as you have added children?

Kate: Well, I think that the main thing I have learned is that not every meal needs to be a banquet. Not every meal has to be. I think that really helps me keep my sanity. Because I cannot really provide... we say five meals because like the weekends feel a little bit more like a free for all. But really, it's feels more like 15 meals because at the ages of our children, we're providing breakfast and lunch as well. It's more than just dinner when you're really thinking about how many meals you prepare. I have a lot of grace for myself in this area of what they eat for dinner. I'll have maybe three nights a week that feel like a good planned dinner, and two nights a week that feel way more like you're having a peanut butter and jelly with a pickle and some applesauce.

I think it's so great because they don't care. They could care less. Last night I actually made chicken nuggets out the freezer, and a box of macaroni and cheese and my son John Robert came in and was like, "Oh mom, you made a special dinner." It was like my gift to them to give them the most convenient food. They were so excited, because they're... I said, "What makes this special?" And he's like, "Well, a lot of your meals, we don't like..."

Nancy: Isn't that the truth, the meals that we work the hardest on, spending hours in the kitchen, and we make it and we're so excited to give to our kids, and they're like, "No, I don't like it." Like "Oh, why?" Why not just grab the bag of frozen chicken nuggets, but that's too funny.

Kate: I know. I think that that has probably helped a lot. I don't have the pressure on myself that every meal needs to be wonderful. But I have gotten to the point where I really feel like the good meals are for me. It's sort of for them, but it's really not. It's for me. It's because I'm not going to eat the same boring food every night. Life is too great and I like to cook too much to eat just boring food. If they want to complain about the chicken and rice dish that I made, and they're going to just complain, and I'm going to enjoy the heck out of it, because it was delicious and I got to make it.

Nancy: I love that.

Meal planning for me Kate, is the worst. I can even tell you I feel stressed and anxious when Sunday rolls around and I realize we're low on food. The kids are wild and crazy and we're all home. I feel bad sometimes taking time away from the family to sit down and make a meal plan. I literally, I just want you to tell me your ways. Like I want Kate to mentor me right now and tell me how do you do it? I want to know practical stuff like, when do you do it? What time of day? How often do you meal plan? Do you do it once a week? Do you shop for the whole month? Do you have a standard set of recipes that you rotate through?

Because for me, I'm not a super passionate chef—I'm not cooking in the kitchen. My mom was a great cook. I enjoy cooking. It's not that I hate it by any means. I really do enjoy it, but I think that I just have a standard handful of meals, I get stuck in the rut. I feel like a lot of moms probably feel this way, and I just start to get anxious when I'm like I literally can only think of five meals and we had those five meals last week. How do you go about meal planning to where it's not so heavy and anxious and stress inducing, but it actually can be fun? Can you just tell me your ways, I want to learn?

Kate: Well I guess one thing I would say to start is that meal planning is just not a morality issue. I think for a lot of women especially it can feel like one. Like, "If I do not enjoy this task of feeding my family, I am in some way not a good mom." But it's just, it's very untrue. I think if you are someone that is like, "This is just not something I really love and I'm passionate about." It is totally fine to let that not be a strength. It doesn't have to be. You might be incredible at playing Legos with your child, which is something that is difficult for me. I sit there and I'm like, "Oh, I really don't enjoy doing this." And some mom's are so good at play. They're so good at play. I think I would start there. It's just, it's really not a morality issue.

To start, I have seen this to be a really huge question, so it is something that I am creating a guide for, that will be out this fall (, that I'm really excited about. It is not going to be a meal plan, it is going to try and teach people how to do it best for their lives. For someone like me that is passionate and loves cooking, meal planning is probably exciting because I love to cook. I'm excited to try something new or riff something, but I know to a lot of people it's not, so for someone you, I'd say it's totally fine if you had a list of... Maybe your list would be 30 recipes, that if you could sit down one day and think of 30 recipes that you love, it would feel a lot easier to plug those in because then your family's only eating something again once a month. It wouldn't be because you're not going to make 30 meals a month, you're going to have pizza nights and you're going to go out to eat some.

But if you had probably a bigger pool of recipes to pull from, that you just know are things you and winners in your household, that is a fine way to do it. I don't know, I think a lot of this too comes back to... Sorry, I will get to the nitty gritty I promise. But...

Nancy: No, you're good. This is all great.

Kate: But generally speaking, again from the morality perspective, odds are pretty high that most women listening to this podcast, most women that follow Naptime Kitchen, they're probably feeding their families so well, better than 99% of the world eats is how they're probably feeding their families. I just think if your child is having a rotation where they're getting exposure to some fruits and some vegetables, they are doing so well. If your child isn't eating Doritos and Pepsi for breakfast, you're probably doing such a better job than you even realize. If you are waking up and hand making anything, I mean putting a toaster waffle in for your child, that, you're doing a great job, like you really are.

I just think if you're sitting there thinking, "Man, I make the same 30 things." The fact that you are actually cooking food for your family is huge. It's just huge. I just think there's so much pressure that can be taken off there in terms of fear, "Is my child getting the right nutrition?" Odds are they are probably doing just fine. They really probably are, which is something I have really come back to time and time again.

Nancy: I think that's such a good perspective because it's a first world problem that we anguish about, and we have so much anxiety over, and if we just take a step back, look at the entire world and how crazy blessed we are, how we have full pantries and full freezers. Yeah, I just love that you said that, because I think that can free somebody from the guilt. Honestly, it's just encouraging. I'm like, I need to tell myself that every week and just let the pressure off myself, because I put it on myself. Nobody else is putting this pressure on.

Kate: Yeah, it's true. I think in terms of social media, you have to remember who you're following. They're going to be people you follow that making incredible food for their family, but it's probably their passion. Let them inspire you in ways that they can, but they're not setting a standard that you have to reach. I think about that for me a lot. It's like you’ve got to understand that I love to cook, and I love having people share recipes, but that doesn't mean that you have to cook as often as I do—I like it. So that'd be like a professional runner. I can love that they are a runner, but that doesn't mean I am expected to run as much as them. It doesn't need to equate to, "Oh gosh, I need to be doing exactly that.” I think you can take what inspires you and helps you, and if it's hindering you on social media—let that stuff go.

Sorry, down to a few practicals. I tend to meal plan once a week. I do grocery shopping online. I do Whole Foods delivery, their Prime Now app. I have just... It'd be a whole separate podcast, but I just love it. It's an Amazon runs system and they just do it so well. They have it figured out. The grocery shopping is easy. I'm adding things throughout the week to my grocery list, because I'll just see we're out of something and I'll quickly add it to my grocery list through the app. But I sit down once a week and I assess the pantry and the fridge. From there, I make a list of five to six meals that we could have.

So, I'm assessing the pantry and the fridge to see what we have. Then I am also at the same time making a grocery list. If there's a meal I really want to have, I'll see what we have in the pantry and the fridge, if we don't have all the aspects, I'll add those to the grocery list.

Nancy: Quick question, are all of these meals that you're talking about, just meals that you create out of your brain because you like to cook, or do you have a list of meals that you pull from?

Kate: I don't have a physical list but I do have probably 10 meals that are just a no brainer recipe for me. So like the Greek-ish Crock Pot Chicken, it's on my blog as a no brainer. There's a lot that are just elements coming together. I'll make some quinoa. I'll make some chicken. I'll cut some veggies and use those throughout the week. Maybe one meal a week for me would be a recipe that I have found on the internet that requires some ingredients that I need to purchase from the store because I don't always have them. I think a huge way we save money is we've found our rotation of just foods we like and then we throw them together in a million combinations, in a million different ways. One week we'll have Greek-ish chicken which is chicken with oil and vinegar. Then maybe the next week we'll have pasta salad, which is pasta with oil and vinegar. Just a cuisine that we like is probably the best way to describe it that we always have the essentials on hand.

You are not going to find me in my house without olive oil. It's just not going to happen. We cook with it a ton, and use it in a ton of things. There are definite staples that I just am using constantly. Something I do, I will talk about in the meal plan guide is kind of identifying your family's preferred cuisine. Maybe your family loves Asian food. It would be hard for someone to find your house without soy sauce or fish sauce. You know on any given night you probably have the staples in your pantry to throw together a really easy stir fry. In my house, it would be harder to find that stuff, we don't eat it a ton, but more of like a Mediterranean-Italian meal? I always have pasta. I always have pasta sauce. I always have those elements.

You might find your family drifts toward Mexican, you always have black beans, you always have sour cream. You always have some of the staples that are easy to throw together your fast meals that your family likes. I think sometimes people can try in a week to make an Asian meal, and a Mexican meal, and an Italian meal. Next thing they know they're buying 19 rare ingredients, because they're trying to make a million different things, which is fun, but it's... I think it's a lot of work, and then you end up having to buy a lot of ingredients.

Nancy: Then a year later you have all these really weird things that are expired, that have been taking up space in your pantry.

Kate: Exactly. Whereas you might start to learn more of ingredients that are really easy in a million different things. I was trying to think of one. We always have cans of diced tomatoes because I can put them in a million different things and they just work.

Nancy: I love that, because I would never just buy a can of diced tomatoes, unless there's a recipe that calls for it. But just reframing my thinking to what does my family like? I would say we're definitely Mexican, Italian, and then sometimes Greek. I would say would be the cuisines that we really go to. Mexican, Italian for sure. But just to think about it in that way, have the things on hand so that I can throw something together, I love that.

Kate: Basically, I'll have a list of five to six recipes that we could have that week, but I don't plug them in for the day of the week. I really do... I have a sheet of paper that on the left hand side says Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and on the right hand side has the six meals listed out. But I don't write them Monday through Friday, because I do not personally want to be pinned down to what day that recipe is made, because I just might not want it on that day. For me, it's more so on Tuesday morning, if I'm, "Oh gosh, I don't know what's for dinner." I just look at the six meals and I say, "Which one of these do I feel eating tonight?" That's the one I end up cooking. It's like I've done the prep work but I haven't pinned myself down to, "Oh, it's Tuesday, spaghetti's for dinner. I really wish we were having something other than spaghetti."

It's like great right don't make spaghetti tonight, like push... "I'll choose a different meal on the list." There's almost always one that is pulled from my freezer, and there is almost always one that I am making enough of to put one in my freezer. The freezer is an easy way to get new meals out there and to double up a recipe to have some in the freezer.

Nancy: When you do freezer meals, yeah, you just make the meal but double portion and then freeze half of it so that it's an easy pull out for a couple weeks from now.

Kate: Yeah. Once a month my mom and I will get together and do a bulk freezer meal, where we'll make a ton of something and we'll make it for ourselves and we'll package them in foil and label them to be able to gift when people need a meal. But normally on a normal basis, I'll just take a recipe and double it so that I have... And really anything. If I'm making muffins, I never make one batch. I am always going to double it, because there's no way I'm going to get out that stinking mixer and only make 12 muffins.

Nancy: Yeah.

Kate: Anything I see that I'm like, "This is easily doubled," I'm going... Because it's just, there's really no extra work involved in doubling, but you get twice as much food. One thing too with freezer cooking that I think people can forget, is just because something says it's for a nine by 13, you can make it for nine by 13 or you could double it and you could make three eight by eights of it. There's a lot of flexibility in your size. If you have a small family or it's just you and your husband and one baby, an eight by eight might be enough for you. So you could double it and make three to four meals out of it, instead of having this giant lasagna to eat.

Nancy: Then you feel bad because you're not eating the leftovers and you end up throwing them all away because you're sick of lasagna by the end of the week.

Kate: Exactly. I think that would be my biggest... the way that I meal plan is thinking for meals and then... but not pinning them to a certain day. Because especially in Charleston, the weather dictates a ton for us. We get pulled outside and I'm like, "There's no way I'm making chili right now, it's beautiful." Again, going back to that grace and flexibility piece, I just have no problem scrapping dinner and making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Nancy: Yeah, I love that.

Kate: It does not bother me at all. I remind myself a lot too that my kids eat really great breakfast and lunch for the most part, and I'm like, "Man even if they don't eat dinner frankly, they have eaten well." I do not have guilt over what they're eating. And they do, I mean they eat well, but you know...

Nancy: Yeah. No, I feel you there, because a lot of times my kids will do the same thing. They eat great breakfast, lunch, and then they will eat two bites of their dinner. I get all worked up about it, but I'm also like, "If they don't want it, then they don't want it and this is dinner." There you go. Are you one of those moms that's like, "This is what we're having for dinner, you can eat it if you want to or just leave it," and that's it. Or do you make an extra kid plate for them?

Kate: It's so funny. I think when I shared this on my Instagram once, I think I called it being sensitive to the Spirit. But I feel like I know my kids well enough to know what's going to go over well and what's not. From a very practical standpoint, we have those replay plates that are a square, and they have one big compartment and two smaller compartments. If we're having something that's new to them, I tend to put it in one of the two smaller compartments. Then usually they have a fruit or a vegetable side. Then, depending on what it is, I might make... I might serve something that's just very familiar. I'm trying to think if we were having maybe some form of Quinoa with chicken or something that I wasn't sure if they would like, I might make naan. I'm talking the Trader Joe's frozen naan. But I would make that as a side because I know they love it and it's really familiar. I know they're going to get something to eat but they still have the new thing on their plate to try.

But it's not like I give them this heaping portion of the new thing and I'm like, "Eat this." It's more so just like, "Hey, you can try it," and a lot of times they'll like it. I made sesame chicken pasta the other night, I did not know if it was going to be a winner and every one of them cleared their plates, and I was like, "Wow, great to know."

Nancy: There you go.

Kate: I mean next week they may not like it.

Nancy: Yeah.

Kate: I tend to think more. "Okay, is there a side item that I could put with the meal to aid them?" I think when I made the sesame chicken pasta, I cut up apple and cheddar cheese. I put cheese and apples on their plate as well. Because I was like those are two things they love, it'll help fill them up. If the pasta is just a fail, they're getting something but I'm not going back to the kitchen to make them a special meal. They are very aware like what is for dinner is what's for dinner, but they don't realize that I'm giving... I'm trying to help them out by giving them sides that I know will be winners.

Nancy: I love that. I feel very validated right now because I definitely do something similar if not the same thing, where it's like I give them their plate, but what's for dinner is what's for dinner. But I do try to make it as appetizing and appealing to them as possible. Yeah, always putting something on their plate that I know that they'll like. But I love your idea of putting the new thing in one of the smaller partitions instead of the big one, because it feels like, “Ahh Mom, I'm going to hate this meal." They get very dramatic about it. But that's super helpful. That's awesome. I feel like yeah, like kids... It's just hard. Sometimes I get so stressed out when they don't want to eat what I cook them, and I've spent hours cooking for them.

Nancy: So just putting it out there and also just reminding yourself they ate breakfast and lunch too today, they're going to be fine. We’re good. They're going to be fine. While also giving them nutritious food and introducing new things to them so that they don't live off of mac and cheese for the rest of their life or whatever.

Kate: Yeah.

Nancy: Okay, so what are... You said you love Whole Foods, ordering delivery. I love that. What are some of your favorite... I know you're big into Trader Joe's too.

Kate: Yes.

Nancy: What are your favorite grocery stores that you shop at Whole Foods, Trader Joe's...?

Kate: Whole Foods, Trader Joe's and Costco are probably our three. This is kind of funny but I loathe Harris Teeter. I just don't enjoy it. It bothers me. I think Whole Foods gets this rap for being really expensive but I'm like, "Harris Teeter is just as expensive as Whole Foods." Oh my word.

Nancy: It's true.

Kate: Same with Publix. And I just really don't large grocery stores. I just hate it when you forget one thing and you have to walk the whole way back across the grocery store and you're like, "Ugh!"

Nancy: Yep.

Kate: That's a very first world problem. I used to go to Trader Joe's a lot more, I don't just because it's across town for me now. We do a lot more of the Whole Foods delivery, but probably once a month I'll go to Trader Joe's for my Trader Joe's staple items, and then Costco we'll do once a month, because you just can't beat there pricing on applesauce for kids, and a lot of things like that we'll go once a month. But really our main is Whole Foods at this point, which I've been... I've just been really impressed because they have a store brand, their 365 brand, which again I think part of the reason to maybe Whole Foods is rough, is because people are buying... I wouldn't say go there and buy Annie's brand macaroni and cheese, it's probably a lot, but Whole Foods brand macaroni and cheese is the same as Target brand macaroni and cheese. Their store brand is a great price.

Kate: So much of what we're buying is basics, that I'm cooking bulk brown rice and chicken and green beans. I'm not really buying specialty items very much, I'm just buying the same old same old stuff.

Nancy: Yeah. I love Trader Joe's so much, and ours is 40 minutes from our house Kate, it's such a far drive that I have yet to go shopping there. I think I've been once since I've had my three children not even kidding. Because it's just so far, and they don't do delivery. Also just schlepping the kids in there, and then also there's a learning curve with Trader Joe's, because they have their own brands and they're really unique stuff. But man when you find the good stuff at Trader Joe's, it's so good. I want to know what are your favorite Trader Joe go to items, that you get every time you go.

Kate: Every time I go to Trader Joe's I get... Well it's a no brainer if you're a Naptime Kitchen follower, I always get salsa verde and their tomato list corn salsa because I add them to a million recipes and they're just killer. I always get their dark chocolate honey mints, which are basically their version of a York Peppermint Patty. I always get their Vegetable Fried Rice, and we add scrambled eggs to it. Gosh, I'm trying to think of what else. So many things now I feel I have been able to find outside the Trader Joe's, if you look hard enough. I'm kind of blanking on my other...

Nancy: Well I'll share some of mine. I want to know if you've had any of these. Honey sesame cashews. Have you ever had their honey sesame cashews?

Kate: Never had them.

Nancy: Okay, that is going on your list next time you go. It's so good. It's my favorite snack, and then they're dark chocolate covered sea salt almonds.

Kate: Yes.

Nancy: Also delicious.

Kate: We have those, so good.

Nancy: The speculoos cookie butter. That means they just call it cookie butter right? Do you like that? What do you feel about that?

Kate: I've never really gotten into cookie butter. I love Nutella a lot. But I have never gotten super into the cookie butter craze.

Nancy: My husband really loves the cookie butter. We really love the cookie butter. And then their rolled oats. They come in these bags, and they're gluten free. I love their rolled oats. Their classic salsa, Trader Joe's salsa. Then they have this juice. What is it? It's like orange mango something else juice that's so good. Anyway, it's just fun. I love talking about Trader Joe's stuff because it's fun and I never get to shop there, so really this is pointless for me. I always love here. Like the naan that you mentioned, I'd never have gotten their frozen naan either.

Kate: Oh it's great. It's so great. It's so easy.

Nancy: Oh here's a tip that's really valuable that you taught me, is the frozen cubes of garlic and ginger. Lifesaver, that has changed a lot so, of how I cook and it's really, really good.

Kate: I don't think I've ever cooked garlic since I found this. It's just like I know it's better, but I'm like, "No, I just don't care enough. I just don't care enough."

Nancy: I totally agree. It literally is life changing, and it saves you so much time. I think Target has started to do it. Some Targets you can find it and now, which is kind of crazy. Anyway, that was a total tangent, but I just feel like it's really fun to ask people about that and to learn. Because you always are like, "Oh, I want to try that next time I go."

Kate: Yes.

Nancy: Okay, so what are some of your go to meals? I know you said that you have a cuisine, but maybe just share some of your... I know probably every meal that you blog about is a favorite because it's worth putting on your blog. But what are maybe three or four meals that are like no brainers. You said the Greek-ish chicken, that people can find on your blog and try.

Kate: The Greek-ish chicken because... Kind of a tip for chicken, we tend to always cook it in such a way that we can shred it. We never really eat a chicken breast on a plate. But the reason is, because well one, Nate actually prefers it this way and so do I. We're not huge meat eaters, but it goes so much further. Like if you take two chicken breasts and you shred them, you really can get double the chicken out of it, because it soaks up the juice. Maybe you have some other stuff in the crock pot, but it goes so much more further. The juice over rice is just divine. We do a lot in the crock pot for the sake of having some leftover. The Greek-ish chicken is a huge one.

I love the Adele's chicken sausage. I get it in a three pack at Costco. I will either roast that or saute that in a frying pan with peppers and onions, and we'll have it with brown rice, or we'll do the one pan meal, which is on my blog, and it is with the Adele's chicken sausage. It comes with a homemade honey mustard that is really easy. It is one of the most popular meals for Naptime Kitchen. It's just delicious.

Nancy: I've never tried that one. I cannot wait, I'm really excited about that now.

Kate: And the honey mustard is just really good. My black bean soup is really a popular recipe. I actually made it today. Scout asked for black bean soup. The kids really it too. It is so easy. That's what I use the Trader Joe's salsa verde for. Then we just do a lot of meals that are component type meals, where I'll make... We eat a lot of pasta. I should say that. I mean pasta is our favorite food, by far. It's always received well. Nate loves it, I love it. Pasta with some sauce is at least once a week. A lot of the times the sauce is olive oil and Parmesan cheese. Just-

Nancy: That's so simple.

Kate: It's just so good. We'll make tortellini or anything but with good Parmesan cheese and olive oil, it's really decadent if you just... It's just delicious, so...

Nancy: I love that.

Kate: Yeah, we eat pasta at least once a week.

Nancy: I love that so much. It's like just, yeah, simple easy...

Kate: Simple.

Nancy: I feel you're reframing my mindset towards meal planning in a really good way, because it's less pressure and it's more about looking at what you have, getting creative, piecing things together and not putting so much pressure on yourself to follow—like you said—five or six recipes every single week. But instead choose three, make them for you. Choose things that you enjoy and then just flex. I think that's my favorite tip you've given so far is not to assign them to a certain night of the week, but just do what you feel doing and let the weather dictate your meals, let your schedule dictate them, and let your desires, like what do you want that night, dictate it. I love that.

Kate: I think just as an encouragement to people with... because some people might be lik, "Okay, it's easy for you to dream up food, but it feels really stressful." The same way we were saying your kids are eating multiple meals a day, they will be fine if dinner doesn't go well. I think it's... I can't remember where I heard this. I can't remember where it was growing up, but it was somewhere where my family, maybe my mom told me this. I was hosting a baby shower or something like that, and whoever said it to me... I want to give credit to my mom, was like, "Hey, just remember, this is not the only meal people will eat that day." Really taking the pressure off of me hosting the baby shower. This is not the only meal people are going to eat. If they leave hungry, they can go to Burger King.

I think with your family as well, man just make some recipes that flop. They will be so fine. If you make a casserole that you try something new and it's just flops, it is one meal of three meals that day, 21 meals that week. It's just crazy how quickly it can just... It's just a meal. It's just a little bit of freedom.

Nancy: Totally.

Kate: So much grace if it flops, really.

Nancy: I feel that just gives me permission to try more things and get creative, and just mess up and have fun along the way. I think my favorite thing about following you on Instagram and on your blog is, and I mean this Kate, it has been such a burden on some days and some weeks with three small kids. Then I see you cooking and dancing in the kitchen, and sharing some fun recipes or sharing the kids plates. I'm like, "You know what? It doesn't have to be so hard. It actually can be fun." I think prioritizing meal planning, for me planning ahead a little bit more with it and not letting it get down to the wire removes the stress from it. Just knowing this can be fun, if I let it be. But if my mentality towards it is, "Oh, I have to do this," versus the mentality, “I get to, I get to try something new,” or “I get to see what's in the pantry and what I can create.”

Just flipping that mentality is really helpful. Then I wanted to ask you do you use, or have you heard of the “all out of” lists?

Kate: I have not.

Nancy: Okay, so this... I love this. This is one of the things... I don't know if you just hand write... Well, you just add it to the app I think, but for your grocery list shopping. We have this “All Out Of” notepad that's stuck to our fridge with a magnet and it has tons of staples. Basically a built out grocery list with empty check boxes beside them. When you run out of it, you just check it on the list, and that serves-

Kate: Oh that's nice.

Nancy: ... as your grocery list. It has been really helpful as far as grocery shopping and meal planning because I'll add... I'll check off boxes throughout the list, or throughout the week. Then whenever it's time to meal plan, I'll go back and fill in some of the things that I need to buy as well. Then I take that and make my online order because I also do a lot of grocery pickup. But anyway, that's just a random tip. For anyone who's listening I don't know if you've heard of the all out of lists, but you can get them for I think $8 on Amazon, and it's like a whole pack and you just stick it to your fridge, and that's been really fun.

Kate: I have never heard of that.

Nancy: Yeah, it's really fun.

Kate: I think you said the phrase, down to the wire. You could have three to five recipes that you even write out and take to the side of your fridge that you write a top down to the wire, and those are five things that are like, "Oh my gosh, it's 5:30 I just don't even know." And you go there and you're lik, "Oh yes." Just whatever those... The quickest things that you know how to make. Your 99% sure you have the ingredients for probably three of them always [crosstalk 00:42:52]. If that takes the pressure off. For me down to the wire is grilled cheeses or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Nancy: Yes. I think quesadilla and hot dogs.

Kate: And that is great. That is so great. Your kids probably celebrate that meal. They're like “finally, hot dog night!”

Nancy: Totally. Yeah, for sure. I love that. Okay, so what brings you the most joy when you're cooking? What are things that you do to just make it fun that we could maybe adapt and bring back into our meal planning and cooking?

Kate: I love listening to music. I take great joy in making playlists and listening to music. I think just... I really am just drawn to it. If I don't have anything to do, creating something in the kitchen brings me a lot of joy. Which I think when you have young kids one thing, this can be very hard because the eating part of it can feel really robbed. You're like I made this whole meal, everyone is eating in six minutes, people are complaining and wolfing down my food. That was so much work and the payoff is gone. Maybe, I guess one thing that can help me and maybe part of it is my Instagram has really helped, the process of cooking it.

Kate: I've started to realize the process of cooking it is enjoyable for me. Even if we eat it really quickly, the making of it was nourishing for me and enjoyable. And thinking about the recipe, and if it was a good recipe being like, "Wow, that was great. Okay, I can add that to the list. I could share that on my Instagram." All that stuff around it brings me a lot of joy. Probably the process of cooking it I enjoy, which I feel a lot of listeners are going to be like, "Yeah, I don't."

Nancy: That's okay.

Kate: That might not go over as well. But I just like it. I don't like it always. I do need to have that out there. I have a lot of meal planning sessions that are like, "I don't want to do this either. What is easy?" I would say if you get into those burnout phases, you should write yourself a big pass and plan that next week very easy. Like cheesecake quesadillas and hotdogs, and make it meals that are really fast and really easy. Give yourself some recoup time because especially if you have young kids, there really is never a break unless you go on vacation without your kids. Because even on vacation, you're having to deal with feeding them. There's never a break. There's never a weekend off from cooking if you're a parent.

You can almost create a break for yourself by just being like, we're doing convenience meals for the next four days. Just give yourself permission. Sorry, one other thing. For me finding joy a lot of times is making just something that is not a meal, but that I enjoy. Like peanut butter swirly cups are on my blog, or making Ghirardelli boxed brownies. I'm going to do that today.

Nancy: The best.

Kate: Something that is like, I'm just going to enjoy these. I'm going to make something, like a treat, I guess. That’s really fun for me.

Nancy: I think the takeaways I'm hearing that I need to implement in my life is not stress out about, "What does my husband want? What do my kids want?" But just take the reins, make some meals that I'm excited to make that are for me. Make some treats that I like make. If I'm the cook of the house, this is my territory, I need to just own it, and I need to do the things that I like. If it's a hard week, then I can just say, "We're doing easy meals because I'm the chef and I get to choose that." And just thinking, "Like hey..." And listening to music. What can I do if I really don't love cooking? Because I can promise you Kate I do not love cooking as much as you. I love your joy for cooking, but I do not love it as much as you do. What are some things that I can do to make it more enjoyable?

Listening to music, or listening to a podcast, or doing it a little bit earlier in the day so that I'm not stressed out, and I can go out and we can adventure with the kids on a walk or bike rides or whatever, later on in the day, right before dinner.

Kate: Yeah.

Nancy: Just all of those are just really encouraging to hear. Then just keeping a guilt free, loose plan to stick to but not feel tied down to.

Kate: Yes. One other point on that Nancy, when you're saying about cooking earlier in the day. The chances that anyone in your family has a sophisticated palate to where the reheating of food bothers them, I would say is probably low. So I know a lot of people don't the microwave. Man, we are ride or die microwave people over here.

Nancy: Yes.

Kate: I'll make food earlier in the day, and like, "Yes, this would taste better if it was coming out of the oven at six o'clock. But it's not. It's going to be cooked at 4:00 and then we're going to microwave it at 6:00."

Nancy: Yes.

Kate: You know, I don't think anyone in my family is any the wiser and it takes so much pressure off of me.

Nancy: I love that.

Kate: Utilize that microwave or that skillet, or just reheat stuff later on. Because sometimes 10:00 AM might really be the best time for you to cook a lot of stuff. So you just...

Nancy: Yeah, and I'm not thinking about dinner at 10:00 AM, but a lot of times I should be, because that's going to be less stressful for me later on that day.

Kate: Yeah.

Nancy: That's awesome. Oh, so much of this was so good, Kate, thank you. I honestly I'm excited to give my hand a try at this new frame of mind, or mindset towards meal planning, and yeah, it's going to be good. I'm really grateful. I want to end with three questions for you. These are totally unrelated to food. This is just anything that comes to your mind or anything that you want to recommend. I always end my interviews with these questions.

Kate: Okay.

Nancy: What is a book that you're loving or a book that you've read, that you have loved recently?

Kate: Nonfiction would be Loving the Little Years by Rachel Jankovic. I can't remember saying her name correctly, but I've read it probably five times. It's so short. The chapters are two pages, but they're just good hitters for moms. I just like, I really her book and it's... I've read it right as the COVID was starting and we were at home, and it was perfect timing of just, we are in the little years and we're home all day. Then This Tender Land, gosh I don't... I can't think of the author, but that was a fiction book that I just read and really loved.

Nancy: I love that. I have heard of loving the little years and I have not read it, this was just the kick in the pants I needed to actually go get it.

Kate: Gosh, it's so short, it's so easy. I just think she talks in a way that I'm like it's not over spiritual, but she is a Christian, so she is... I don't know. It's just well done. It's practical, and funny and light hearted, and she just has a lot of grace for herself.

Nancy: I like that. We all need that. Yeah.

Kate: Yes.

Nancy: Okay, what's a product that you're loving? It can literally be anything.

Kate: I would say the Beautycounter Cleansing Balm. It's my new face wash. And I've loved it

Nancy: Is this the thing that's almost like... It's not like Vaseline, but it's almost like that?

Kate: Yes. It's like you're rubbing it into your face. It is the most fabulous thing ever. I now sell Beautycounter, but I mean it's just fabulous. It's such an enjoyable products. I don't know. It feels a massage on my face every night, and it's just...

Nancy: Do you use that to take off your makeup too? Is it all in one? Or do you take off your makeup first?

Kate: All in one.

Nancy: And then do you put any moisturizer or anything on afterwards.

Kate: I use a face oil afterward.

Nancy: Okay.

Kate: I don't know how to explain it. It's so nourishing. It's like decadent. I don't know. It's a fabulous feeling. It really feels this little mini spa session at night. I love it.

Nancy: I love that. My sister sells Beautycounter and I... She sends me samples of these things all the time, but I have tried the cleansing balm and didn't actually get it. But I can't even tell you how many people have told me it about it and how much they're loving it. I'm like, "Okay, I think I need to go back and revisit it because it was really nice." I think my favorite thing about it is just the way that it makes your skin feel. It's like so smooth afterwards. Anyway. I love that so good. I also use Beautycounter stuff. I love their night cream. I think it's their Countertime line. Anyway, it's so good. Thank you for sharing that. That's awesome. I really want to go get some now.

Kate: That's great.

Nancy: Okay, last question for you. How do you maintain a healthy soul and a fulfilling life? That's a really loaded question.

Kate: I feel like my answer is going to sound stupid because I don't know if it's correct. I know there's no like correct answer-

Nancy: It's okay. There is no correct answer. Just give it to us. You're good.

Kate: I think for me waking up early has really helped my overall… I’m a pretty busy, high energy person by nature. In the morning I can be alone, and I can exercise, and I can read my Bible, and I can pray. I just have this protected time that I really think has transformed my days, because I'm not... I just feel like it starts me in a really healthy place. I don't know. I think meeting with God in the morning is really helpful for me because it is very easy for me to not do it if I don't do it in the morning. I think the way I start my day... Even with COVID, everything... We're stuck at home. I still wake up at the same time and do the same thing in the morning because I'm like it... Everything else about the day is unstructured and who knows what's going to happen? But that hour and 15 minutes in the morning is super grounding for me.

Nancy: I could not agree more. I feel that is the absolute right answer. I am right there with you. I even have this guide on my website just to give you an idea of how to become a morning person, because it literally is life changing. Like how to create a morning routine that you love. I've been in Beaufort for two weeks during COVID. It's just crazy. The kids are all sleeping in a tiny room together right attached to our room. We actually have to walk through their room to go downstairs. I can't get up early before them because I'll wake them up, and they're waking up super early because we're in a different house, and we're just off schedule. We're in family trip mode. But I miss it. I crave it. It is such a huge thing, and I think if you can just beat the kids awake and just have a few thoughts that aren't immediately directed towards their needs but your own, it makes a huge difference.

I just have to go on the record and say, that is an awesome answer. I could not agree more.

Kate: I want to encourage you, Nancy, because something I have added to mine, which I got from your podcast was the top three thing.

Nancy: Yes!

Kate: Like you did a podcast episode. That is now the last... My kids have a clock that turns green at 6:55 and they obey it for the most part. So really at like 6:51 I do my top three. I'm like, "Okay, what is..." And it really... I mean, it is just kind of the perfect segue into the day starting. I'm like, "Okay, so what are my three things for the day?" And I write them down and so I got that from you and I have loved it.

Nancy: I'm so glad that's been helpful. It is such a simple exercise that really can change the game, and it just makes you feel like at the end of the day. Okay, you at least have something to measure or look back on, or feel like you made traction on something. Because if I don't do those, if I don't write them down or say anything, I can look back and be like, "I did a million things, but I don't know what." But if you have those three things, it makes you feel better. That's awesome. I'm so glad that has been helpful for you.

Kate, you are awesome. I just want to say you are one of my very favorite people to follow on Instagram. My family loves your meals. Several of the ones that you mentioned today, I've tried. Like the black bean soup is fantastic. Obviously, the honey butter chicken that I started this episode out with. The Greek-ish chicken we love, and I'm really excited to try the sausage one pan dish now.

Kate: Yes.

Nancy: I know. If you guys who are listening have not tried to recipes, just choose one of those and you'll be a fan forever. But seriously, thank you. Thank you for just being the joyful person that you are, and being so honest and real. It has really been a blessing to me. I know that's so weird. Instagram and this whole world that we live in is strange because you can feel like you know people and you don't. But I'm glad to say that I do know you, and I have really been grateful just for the voice that you've had in my life via that platform and through your blog. My family loves your meals too. So thank you so much for being on today. I would love for you to share with anyone who's listening just where they can find you, your website, and on Instagram.

Kate: Yes, so I am... It's very easy. The Instagram is @NaptimeKitchen. The blog is naptimekitchen.com, so all the recipes will be there.

Nancy: Perfect. We'll be sure to link to you in the show notes, Kate. Thank you so much for being on the podcast today.

Kate: Thank you. This was wonderful, Nancy. Thanks for having me.

Nancy: Okay, it's time for the Work and Play Cornerstore, and I'm going to grab a book and a thing from my conversation with Kate today to fill up the Cornerstore. This is where we just recommend some things we love. Whenever I have a guest on, I always allow them to recommend something, and for it to be part of the corner store. I may get a small commission from anything bought through these links, which helps me continue to bring this podcast to you every week.

Today I'm going to be adding the book that Kate recommended Loving the Little Years. I'm really excited to read it. I'm really excited to read it myself. I'm also going to be putting in her Beautycounter cleansing cream as well as my all out of list, because it really has been a lifesaver for us.

I'm going to close with a quote by Julia Child who said,