Ready to Pack It All In

By the time you read this I will either be pureeing food / wiping down surfaces / doing laundry in Florida, or – depending on your speed – sitting with my children and a couple of hundred very annoyed fellow passengers somewhere over the Atlantic.

For the moment, I am taking a break from The Packing.  In the olden days – before I was made got old – packing was one of the best bits about going away:  the anticipation, the shopping, the discovery of scrappy bits of clothes I’d bought the last time I went away...  Now it’s Hell, in a hand-basket suitcase.

I started five days ago, making lists.  The List of Things to Carry On is itself half a page long (for the kids, obviously;  my own list comprises one word:  passport.) It’s a TEN HOUR flight, which breaks down into about 300 separate concentration-span units.  So I need to bring at least 20 different activities.  So far I’ve got:  crayons + paper;  stickers; books (3); cars (3); other automobiles (3); portable dvd player and dvds (6); finger puppets (2). (And that’s just for the Man. Hohoho)

Then there’s the food.  Food for her, emergency food for her, bottles for her, emergency bottles etc.  And we can’t really rely on him to eat the airplane food, so food for him too, juices, treats (any time he even looks like he’s going to shout he’ll be getting a gummy bear stuck in his mouth;  wonder how long it’ll take him to turn into Pavlov’s Boy?) Then nappies, wipes, cloths, soothers, teddies, changes of clothes, emergency changes of clothes...

I haven’t even started on the main packing yet – apart from the Easter eggs, (ironic) Royal Wedding commemorative mugs, Union Jack bunting, and – get this – travel black out blinds.  It is insane, and I’m panicking as I type.  People say “Oooh, lucky you”, and all I can think of is: “PACKING FOLLOWED BY TEN HOURS IN A PLANE.” 

Once we get over the jet-lag it’ll be fantastic of course, but by then I’ll be just about to start on the homeward-bound packing. FOR THE TEN HOUR – OVERNIGHT! - FLIGHT BACK.

And so I bid you all a Happy Easter.  May it be filled with the laughter of little ones, and the groaning of over-cholcolatified older ones.  And eggs of course.  I’ve just cleared out my fridge (anything to avoid The Main Packing) and made a great frittata / tortilla / solid omelette from some eggs and grey, limp food-stuffs (I think  it was food – it didn’t move when I prodded it) I found in the bottom of the fridge. If the Boy and the Girl don’t scoff the lot, I plan on cutting any leftovers into teeny squares, piercing them with  toothpicks, and serving this evening with many glasses of chilled white wine, to toast the start of our holidays.  And (hopefully) the end of The Packing.

Tortilla / Frittata *

You need (for 2 very hungry / semi-drunk people):

• 3 eggs, beaten, with a splash of milk**
• Some cooked vegetables, chopped.  (I used some boiled, grey potatoes I found in the fridge, a handful of cherry tomatoes, and a bowl of sliced carrots I caught trying to escape into the bin.  You can literally use anything, including frozen vegetables which you should first cover with boiled water for a few minutes.)
• Some olive oil
• A handful of grated cheese (any old cheese).

I probably don’t need to tell you what to do next, but I will (in case, eg, the Man is reading...)

Heat a good few glugs of the olive oil in a wide frying pan (at least as wide as a dinner plate). 

When it’s hot, add the chopped vegetables.  If using onions, add these first, and allow to soften before adding anything else.  Potatoes should be added next, if using, so they can brown.  If using tomatoes, wait until you’re about to add the eggs.

Keep the heat on medium and stir from time to time to stop it sticking.

When they have a bit of crunch, or are heated through, add the eggs, and stir like a mo-fo.  You want all the vegetables to be covered in egg.

If you have a lid for the frying pan, put it on now (otherwise just ignore this), and turn the heat down low.  Go off and wipe surfaces / hands / faces for abut ten minutes. 

Put your grill on high, sprinkle the cheese over the top of the frittata, and stick the pan under the grill until the cheese has browned, and the frittata has risen slightly.

Remove, and leave to cool for at least 10 minutes.  Cut into wedges and eat warm / cold / while packing.   

As the Boy says – “Happy Eater”. 

*Mrs Google tells me that the difference is that a frittata is Italian, and usually made with vegetables and/or meat; whereas a tortilla is, of course, Spanish, and usually made with onions and potatoes. Who knew?  (Most people, probably).

** 3 eggs will make a largeish, but not terribly thick,  omelette which will be enough for a couple of slices for a toddler, a slice for a not-yet-toddling-baby to squish and smear all over her face, and a couple of large slices for over-wrought parents to wolf down as they neck a bottle of wine.  Or else for only those same parents to have for a main course.  Add more eggs for a thicker omelette.