Cooking with Elli: "Repurposed" Cheesy Bread

"Repurposing content" is a big buzz word at my work. Basically it just means that we take content from one area of the Web and use it in another area for a differnt purpose. This saves us from duplicating our efforts to create the same content for more than one use. My mom had a similar principal; it was called "use what you have." She used to "repurpose" leftover mashed potatoes into potato pancakes and a leftover roast chicken went into a boiling pot to make chicken noodle soup. The concept came in quite handy the other night when I was facing another weekday meal with little time to prepare it. Spaghetti and meatballs was on the Weekly Family Menu. With sauce from a jar and meatballs from the freezer, it is a simple, quick meal. The only thing was Elli was champing at the bit to help me "took." I've never seen my toddler try to grab a pot of boiling water and, honestly, it's something I never want to see. Some meals just don't lend themselves very easily to having Elli help me cook. So, I racked my brain for something she could help me with. I asked myself, "What would Mom do?" In my bread basket sat an abundance of leftoever, quickly-staling hot dog buns, a lingering reminder of the opportunity cost of being a loyal Costco shopper. "Ah hah!" I said. "Cheesy bread." Individual Cheesy Bread 5 hot dog buns, bottoms and tops split 1/4 cup butter, softened 1/2 cup shredded co-jack cheese Italian seasoning Spread butter on each half of the hot dog buns and arrange buns on a cookie sheet, buttered side up. Top buns with cheese and seasoning. Bake at 300 for 5-7 minutes or until cheese is melted and edges of bun are beginning to brown. As the pasta boiled and the sauce warmed, I helped Elli up onto her "steps" (step ladder reacing up to the counter) and brought out the bag of buns. "Bed!" she said with delight. She likes bread because she is the product of me. "Yes, bread," I said. "We're going to make some cheesy bread." I had Elli help me split the hot dog buns and arrange them on the cookie sheet. I suppose I should have been more specific with her about what we tear, how many times we tear and when we stop. She commandeered one of the buns and willfully ignored my pleas not to harm it. "Terr," she said as she tore the bun to small bits and dropped them on top of the other, neatly arranged buns. "Terr. Terr." Eventually I just surrendered and let her continue tearing the bun, and then shove the bits into her mouth like marshmallows in a solo game of Fuzzy Bunny. I used that distraction to my advantage, quickly spreading the butter on the surviving buns. Right about the time she consumed the last bite, I brought out the jar of seasoning. For some reason, I could not find my garlic powder, nor could I find my Italian seasoning. I improvised with a jar of dipping oil seasoning that somewhat resembled Italian seasoning blend. We held the jar together and shook to the rhythm of my, "Shake, shake, shake."

And of course, she wasn't about to miss out on the spreading of the cheese. No, never. That's her favorite thing to do ever, besides maybe eating bread.

And with that, in the oven went the buns. Just a few minutes later, supper was ready. The buns did turn a little more brown than I would like, so next time (and if I continue to shop at Costco, there will be a next time), I'll probably turn the oven down a bit. I will also note that Elli did help at other junctures during the cooking process. For instance, she helped me break the dry spaghetti noodles down.

I gave just a few noodles at a time and showed her how to break them. She also helped me with the meatballs by pressing the buttons on the microwave to warm them up and by throwing away the empty bag.

Thanks to Susan G. for letting me "repurpose" that idea of hers on how she lets her little ones help her in the kitchen. All said, it turned out to be a pretty good meal. Spaghetti is a staple meal at our house, and just maybe the Cheesy Bread will become a staple too. Things Elli Could Do