Asian Beef Bowl

My husband and I started our marriage open to the idea of a baby.  We talked about it, as all fledgling couples do, and decided that yes, our family would be complete with a baby.

And then we started living together and working full time and running in parallel circles that only infrequently overlapped and I made the executive decision that I would no longer like a baby.

And when one person doesn’t want a baby, the other can’t exactly force one upon her.  And luckily, my husband heard me out, and we made the decision that WE would not like a baby.  Sure, we like your baby.  We love your baby.  We’ll babysit your baby.  But we don’t want a baby.

I want to sleep and wake on my terms.
I want to go on vacation with ease.
I want to go on vacations of my choosing, not the baby’s.
I’m too selfish.
I want to drop everything and go get ice cream.

We enjoyed our life with our two aging dogs and two horses.  And the cat.  Sometimes his cries sound like a baby but he’s no baby.

Sometimes we’d look at each other, while we doing barn chores like scooping poop and medicating horses, and mention, “Man.  If we had a baby, this would SUCK.”  I mean, either someone would be in the house, alone, with the baby while the other did the dreaded chores, or all three of us (me, him, the baby) would be out in the barn doing the chores.  Now that’s certainly not sanitary.

So we may or may not have elevated the 9 year old pooches to baby status.  I think we can all agree that they didn’t mind.

They became known as the ‘granddogs’ to my parents and the family felt complete.

But sometimes you can’t predict where life takes you.  And you might end up with a baby despite your precautions preventing it.

Meet Vinny: our baby.  Oh, you thought I was talking about a human baby?  No.  I was talking about a puppy.  They are serious business – a business I never wanted to be a part of.  But like I said earlier, sometimes you don’t have a choice.  And we welcome this baby into our family with open arms.

We began teaching our old dogs about the concept of a baby and being gentle to the baby.  The family began getting up in the middle of the night to take care of the baby.  We all began running out of the door when we heard the trademark piddle of the baby indoors.  We began taking the baby to the barn, just like we always said we wouldn’t, and snatching horse poop out of the baby’s mouth.  But somehow, we loved the baby.  Despite all the trouble.  We loved this baby.

And having this baby means that dinner time preparation just got cut even shorter.  This recipe for Asian beef bowls is certainly baby friendly – quick to whip up!

The Omnivore commented that the flavors were subtle and I found that to be true and untrue at the same time.  The thin ribbons of carrots were sweet and flavorful.  The bites of cilantro were bright.  The beef was tangy and tender.  It was healthy and cheap – using only about 3/4 pound of beef for 4 servings and cups and cups of vegetables.

Asian beef bowl (adapted from a recipe seen on Adventures in Home Cooking)