The real-time note on facebook from my cooking friend Katrina popped up as I was posting about some food adventures. Katrina, in her first trimester with her third child, asked if sometime the month before the baby is due I could come over and big batch cook and freeze with her, stockpiling her freezer. What a great idea! Of course I will, and there’s nothing more helpful, especially for this soon to be family of 5, as they enter the baby-days again.
It reminded me of when I was on bedrest for three months and my friends put together a food delivery plan that kept us healthy and fed during a difficult time. I’ve often made dishes for friends in need, many times with other friends who also wanted to help. But I love the idea of helping a friend ahead of time, when she is about to have an incredible lack of time to cook. If you also know a soon-to-be new parent, someone who’s living alone and doesn’t like to cook for themselves, or a friend who’s about to need some kind of aid (maybe her child is going into the hospital, or her husband is about to go on a long trip for work), give her a call and set up a cooking date. You’ll enjoy the time together, and lift a big weight for your friend.