Question for you.

What do you do when you need to make dinner, but…

…the dog won’t stop barking, and the baby won’t stop crying, and the toddler is driving you bonkers, and you’re super behind on work, and you haven’t showered since who knows when, and you just remembered your wet laundry is still in the washing machine from yesterday (ew), all your potted plants in the yard are still just sitting there dead from the winter and you just keep looking at them and being reminded of how low your standards have gotten, and you just… it’s just…

HOW DOES A PERSON DO THIS?

Welcome to the SOS Series, friends. My hope is that these easy, manageable, basic and delicious recipes are a lifeline for you as much as they have been for me over these last few weeks (months) as I’ve attempted to feed myself and my family fun, beautiful, and exciting food while surviving two kids 2-and-under during a global pandemic. Woof.

What Kind Of Recipes Will Be In This Series?

This series will feature 15 recipes that are made with 7 ingredients (not counting the pantry basics – olive oil, salt, etc.).

Some are vegetarian, some are extra-nutritious, some are Instant Pot-friendly, some are make-aheadable. But the one thing ALL 15 recipes have in common is minimal ingredient lists, short prep times, big flavor, and food j-o-y.

Also, importantly, ALL 15 recipes have my personal seal of approval as I have tested them in my own life (like, in my home kitchen, at 5:30pm) and filtered them through these two rigorous standards:

1. Is this recipe easy enough to make with a toddler underfoot, a baby in the wrap, and a dog following me around, without completely losing my mind?
2. Do I really love to eat this recipe?

Those are my two non-negotiables. If it’s a yes for both, then it’s in.

What’s So Great About Super Easy SOS-Style Recipes?

A few months ago, during the thick of my maternity leave, I found myself at the lowest of lows. Our toddler had just woken up from a nap and she wouldn’t stop crying because I was holding the baby. But every time I put the baby down to stop the toddler from crying, the baby would cry. So then I would pick the baby back up, which would lead to the toddler crying. And the high-pitched toddler crying (read: screaming) would be so intense that it would make the baby cry again. All three of us were at Stress Level 10. I get sweaty just thinking about it. It was a crying trap, and I was so stuck. I had no idea what to do to make it stop, so I picked up my phone and called Bjork.

He answered the phone, and I said, “Okay I know you’re working and I’m really sorry to bother you and all that, but this is an SOS moment. Both babies will not stop screaming and I can’t handle it right now. I really need you to come home.”

He came home, we got the tears to stop, and then guess what happened?

It was 5pm! Time to make dinner! Whee!

Sorry, but no. You can all eat crackers for dinner. This is just too hard. I don’t even have it that hard! and it’s still too hard.

That moment, that feeling of total desperation for some fast and easy wins that would help me feel not so completely out of control in my life, and my need to literally feed myself and my family something to avoid Meltdown Showdown 2.0?

That moment was the inspiration for this series.

Because, I thought, I can’t be the only one. There have to be more of us food-loving humans out there who:

• Are very exhausted
• Are hungry for some actually yummy food, I mean, as much as we love frozen veggie nuggets
• Want recipe solutions that feel actually manageable right now.

What’s great about SOS recipes is that they are fun and inspiring, but not stressful. And they are certainly not pretentious. They are not afraid to take some help from store-bought and pre-made shortcuts. They will not clutter your kitchen with dishes to wash. And yet they are super delicious, and maybe even beautiful enough for a quick post to the gram? and they help you feel like it’s all going to be okay. They are in your corner, keeping your belly full and your tastebuds happy, setting you up for the small wins. And the small wins ARE the big wins. We got this.

Who Is This Series For?

This series is dedicated to all the working-late-nighters, the weary quarantiners, the overwhelmed mamas and daddies, the huge life transitioners, the exhausted caretakers, the barely-holding-it-togetherers for whatever reason it might be.

If you are familiar with the SOS feeling of “it’s dinnertime and I have zero plans, zero energy, and zero time”, then this series is just right for you.

How Do I Get The Recipes In This Series?

We’re going to roll out our 15 new SOS recipes through April and May! We’ll be posting brand new recipes twice each week.

And follow POY on Instagram if you’re not already, because we’ll be sharing the new recipes (including videos) there as well.

And better yet: sign up for email notifications so you get every recipe dropped off right on your (virtual) doorstep.

Sign up here to hop on our email list!

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Let’s Do This!

I’m really, really excited about this series – not just because the recipes are personally SO SPOT ON for me right now, but because I hope they can be a little lifeline for many of you as well.

SOS recipes start tomorrow!

Ready, set, here we go!

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