How to restaurant-ify your kitchen

from a wannabe chef and starving pregnant lady

Hi! Happy 2025. I hope your holidays were restful and filled with love.

This year was particularly sentimental since it was Noah and I’s last Christmas as a family of two. We could not be more excited for our baby on the way. Like so many others, our story has not been without loss and heartbreak. My heart and prayers go out to everyone in that place.

Before I knew how humbling and out-of-my-control this experience would be, I couldn’t wait to write about what to wear while pregnant. However, I’m currently helpless on that topic. It is tough to lean into fashion when none of my clothes fit. Sometimes I wonder if my tight jeans are really due to the baby, or the box of cereal I average every 2 days. Either way, my fashion resolution is to start dressing to express myself again and not to hide (I shared more on this here in my lovely friend Sogole’s letter, alongside all my other favorites on Substack). Currently crowd-sourcing any and all maternity-dressing tips you might have!

the clothes either need to be huge or super stretch

For today I am going to write today about a topic that I am much better versed in at this moment: food! cooking! convenience!

Over Christmas I helped out in my parent’s coffee and bistro for a few days; they had some products and processes that just made sense, I had to incorporate them into my own kitchen. OG’s know I’ve got a soft spot for cooking and restaurant life.

Deli containers >

I am more sparing with where I spend my energy these days, and searching high and low for the right lid for my container does not make the cut. Deli containers stack effectively into my teeny fridge and rinse out easily. I love them.

this makes me happy

Food prep

I’ve begun doing ‘food prep’ on Saturday or Sunday afternoons. I make a big batch of overnight oats, a crunchy salad of some sort for the week, and maybe a couple other things depending on my vibe: last week I did a lemon dressing, chickpeas, and a blueberry compote for the oatmeal. It was a little more fancy than my usual vibe, but I was feeling it. Cambro has also become a favorite brand of mine because their 4qt containers are perfect for storing big batches.

Labeling is fun

I feel even more accomplished after doing my food prep if each container has a neat little masking tape label on it. Try it and let me know if you feel the same.

Recipes I’m into lately…

• Bakery style blueberry muffins

only 2 left :( time for another batch

• Almond butter overnight oats

• Avocado toast

art

This one is a bit short and sweet as I am just trying to rip off the bandaid and start writing again. I am so sad I’ve been so absent! As I was reflecting on 2024 and looking forward to 2025, Substack kept coming up as something I am so glad I started, and that I want to keep putting effort into. Thank you for sticking around. <3

Xx, elle