Did I mention? I totally rock.

Right now there are five people in our family: 2 carnivores, 1 vegetarian and 2 nutritarians. One has peanut, sesame and chocolate allergies. One doesn’t touch any form of cheese with a ten foot pole. Several think salads are a creation of the devil himself. And everyone expects three nice meals a day. So…

Enter Chef Mama. For as long as I am given the gift of being able to work from home, I am happy to cook for this family of blended tastes.

Today, for example, I enjoyed a huge salad with beets and lemon juice, served one of my kids a gorgeous cheesy baked ziti (preceded by a generous portion of Romaine lettuce), while another got a bagged lunch with grape juice, an apple, popcorn, a sandwich and a home-made whole-grain blueberry-banana muffin.

Last kid needed a hot dish that could be eaten during a relatively short lunch break – no cheese, nothing too healthy, but filling and exciting enough for a teenager to enjoy with pleasure.

Here it is folks, my improv lunch: South African Smoked Faux Sausage Stir-Fry, served over a (boxed) rice blend with orzo.

Wish you could’ve smelled it. I sauteed small chunks of potatoes, carrots, leeks, celery, and Italian Tofurkey. I seasoned it with an awesome South African freshly ground spice mixture I picked up at Trader Joe’s. It’s got garlic, basil, paprika and sea salt. It’s awesome. Go buy it right now. You’re going to want to put it on everything.

Another cool grinder ‘spice’ they had at TJ’s was a blend of coffee, cocoa and sugar crystals. You can sprinkle it onto baked goods, into hot drinks, or just keep it in your pantry and wait for just the right use for it.

Our moment came when one of the kids butchered a chunk of challah dough while trying to make a six-stranded braid. I suggested said child roll it out, spray with olive oil, and sprinkle with this cool mixture. We then rolled it up, twisted it and baked it as a hot, delicious babka. Yup, that worked well for us.

It gets overwhelming sometimes, shopping, chopping, serving, washing, and then starting the whole process again. And sometimes I really blank when trying to come up with a suitable dinner to meet everyone’s needs.

But when I insert something new into the day, and present our kids with hot, delicious (custom-made) food, it gives me the kind of awesome pleasure which takes me gliding blissfully into the next shopping trip.