Post by Mark T. Locker.

Listen. Don’t judge. I know I am about to review a movie about a talking bird which leads a boy to pirate treasure. This happens to be the last movie I’ve seen. I have a three-year-old! Like I said, don’t judge.

Surprisingly, there are a couple big names in this movie: Jason Robards as the eccentric grandpa and John Goodman as the voice of the Macaw who leads the boy to treasure. The story is as old as time: a 150-year-old parrot who was once owned by a pirate reveals to the grandson of an ailing and deeply in debt adventurer that not only can he talk—and I mean talk—but he knows the location of a secret pirate treasure in the South Pacific! Off they go on an adventure, bad guy from the museum hot on their heels. I’m sure you can figure out how it ends. It’s a totally harmless movie that kids who are too young to be critical will enjoy.

Tags: bed, bedroom, Charles P. Rogers, Children, family, Movie Reviews, The Real Macaw

Post by Alison Hein.

It all started when my friend Chiharu visited. She is originally from Japan, but now lives in Bermuda, where it’s hard to buy Japanese products. So she gets very excited when she shops at Mitsuwa, the largest Japanese supermarket in the U.S.

It’s invigorating to accompany Chiharu on one of these expeditions. The multitude of colorful, enticing packages that line the shelves is almost thrilling. And Chiharu is a fantastic cook, so I take my notebook and camera with me to record details for future kitchen experiments.

We can spend a whole day at Mitsuwa – the aisles are bursting with unusual foodstuffs; there’s a bakery, a food court, and lots and lots of unique, appealing Japanese products. That’s where I first spied yudetama gokko – what looked to me (thanks to the package illustrations) like little molds for cooking eggs. Fish and car, rabbit and bear, or heart and star!

Yudetama gokko, according to Chiharu, translates to “boiled egg makebelieve”. Fortunately, Chiharu also translated the cooking directions. The eggs must be cooked before they are placed in the molds. The trick is to get the boiled eggs into the molds as quickly as you can, without burning your fingertips, before they start to harden into regular egg shapes. If you’re interested, but aren’t near a Japanese store, you can find yudetama gokko for sale on the internet. Be sure to shop around a little for a good price (I paid $3.99).

I was so excited to make my yudetama gokko, that I may have gotten carried away with my other purchases – red bean-filled wheat cakes, vibrant pickled vegetables, sweet plums, and of course a perfectly-sized bento box for my little stash. Because my cute fish and car would make excellent little additions to a school lunchbox, or in this case, an appealing, makebelieve breakfast in bed.

Ingredients
2 medium eggs

Special Equipment
Yudetama gokko egg molds

Preparation
Place eggs in heavy pot and add water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat. Continue to boil for 10 minutes. Remove eggs from water. Run under cold water until cool enough to handle. Crack and roll eggs to make peeling easier. Place eggs in egg molds and latch closed. Cool in ice water for 10 minutes until set. Remove eggs from molds and cool in refrigerator until ready to serve.

Makes 2 cute eggs.

Tags: Breakfast in Bed, Charles P. Rogers, Children, family, Recipes

Post by Mark T. Locker.

As both the movie and bedtime story reviewer, it is kind of fun to find a great crossover piece that I can write about. I have read The Gruffalo more times than I care to remember with my son. When I saw that there was a animated movie version, let’s just say I wasn’t running out to get it. But when it happened across my eyeballs, I watched it and was pleasantly surprised. Being derived from a picture book, it was ridiculously easy to stay true to the text and I dare say the movie is actually an improvement.

The story is about a little mouse that is trying not to fall prey to the hungry animals in the woods. Whenever “invites” the mouse over, he declines, explaining that he is to meet with the Gruffalo, a terrible monster who is sure to eat the predators. But the mouse has invented the Gruffalo as a clever ploy to scare off his enemies; he isn’t real! Or is he? For who should the mouse encounter but A GRUFFALO!

The movie is short (about 30 minutes) and rather charming and cute. And the Gruffalo is about as scary as the monsters from Where the Wild Things Are. (Which is to say not at all.) A great movie to watch with the family, especially if you are short on time.

Tags: bed, bedroom, Charles P. Rogers, Children, family, Gruffalo, Movie Reviews, Movies

Post by Alison Hein.

Rich decadent chocolate, thick cheesy fondue, even healthy fruit-filled muesli – all culinary gifts from our friends in Switzerland. Now, consider rösti, a traditional farmers’ breakfast, the Swiss equivalent of hash browns. Full-bodied potatoes (either cooked or raw) are grated, seasoned, shaped into thin patties, and fried to a crispy golden brown.

Potatoes in any form have a satisfying addictive quality. And I’m pretty sure that once you try rösti, you’ll be hooked. While the basic recipe is simple, the personalized variations are endless. In this case, I’ve cooked the potatoes in advance (which makes grating easier and cooking time faster) and added some piney rosemary and fragrant thyme for a flavorful accent.

Skip the herbs and add some chopped sautéed onion or garlic, if you like. Add cooked bacon, ham or mushrooms to the grated potato before frying. Or melt a little cheese on the rösti in the last minute of cooking, and consider different toppings. Smoked salmon and a little crème fraîche looks and tastes wonderful, and is perfect for a light dinner.

Rösti, which has no egg to bind the grated potato, can be difficult to flip. You must firmly press the potato down with a spatula while cooking. And when making a large size, you may need to turn the rösti onto a plate, then carefully slide it back into the frying pan to finish. Individual portions are easier to prepare and make a beautiful, personal presentation.

Merzi, Switzerland, for a crispy, golden brown, potato-y breakfast in bed!

Ingredients
1 medium Yukon Gold potato (about 6 ounces)
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, leaves removed from stems
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 egg (optional)

Preparation
Place potato in heavy saucepan and cover with water. Bring to boil over high heat and cook until cooked through, but firm when poked with fork (about 20 minutes). Cool and place in refrigerator overnight, or at least 2 hours.

Peel and grate potato; place in small bowl. Add rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper and mix well. Add butter and olive oil to a small (6-inch) heavy frying pan and heat over medium heat until melted and mixed together. Add potato mixture to pan. Stir and cook for about 1 minute, then spread and shape potato mixture to fill pan. Press down firmly with back of spatula to form a solid cake. Continue to cook on medium to medium low heat until golden brown, about 5 or 6 minutes. Flip rösti*, press down again with spatula, and continue to cook until golden and crispy, about 5 minutes. Remove to plate and keep warm until ready to serve. If you like, fry an egg sunnyside up. Place egg on top of rösti and serve immediately.

*NOTE: If the rösti is small, you can flip carefully with a spatula. For larger röstis, place a plate over pan when cooked halfway and carefully flip over onto plate. Gently slide rösti back into pan to continue cooking.

Makes 1 rösti.

Tags: bed, Breakfast in Bed, Charles P. Rogers, Children, family, Recipes

Post by Mark T. Locker.

Sometimes, the best movies to watch in bed are the old classics from childhood. I had not seen Peter Pan since I was a very small child and recently picked it up from the library to watch with my son. When it comes to movies to give you exciting dreams (and who doesn’t dream at least once in a while about flying?) Peter Pan is hard to beat. Pirates! Eternal youth! Fairies! Flight! It’s pretty exciting stuff. There is the rather uncomfortable issue of the Indians who are depicted exactly as you’d expect a film of this era to depict them. But other than that, there’s much to love. I especially liked realizing that Smee’s voice is the White Rabbit, Wendy is the voice of Alice and, slightly more obscure, Captain Hook is the voice of Thorin from the Hobbit animated cartoon. What fun!

So get out your tights, tie on your shadow, and head to Neverland tonight!

Tags: bed, Bedtime, Charles P. Rogers, Children, family, Movie Reviews, Peter Pan