Welcome back to Scrolling & Snacking. If you're new here, hi. This is my monthly roundup of what I'm reading, shopping, and snacking on. Read it during a contact nap, a late-night feed, or in the carpool line. This month has a theme: things I love from founders I think are great.
xx Rebecca
My Shopping Cart
Way more than a diaper bag.
The hunt for the perfect diaper bag is a common theme of rec roundups and conversations, I believe only one is truly transitional, and it’s this one. I’m still using it with a 5- and 7-year-old. The five accessories it comes with travel with me from bag to bag, which makes it feel like the deal of a lifetime. Founded by two incredible moms. Love my Puiu Mamei.
Best Smells
Who doesn’t love a great-smelling soap? Even I, someone who doesn’t really do scented, can’t help but keep a couple of good ones in a few bathrooms. Element’s story is so great: a lawyer turned soap maker who makes everything in Brooklyn. And the quality is incredible. They also have a scent exhibit running at the South Street Seaport. Kiso Forest FTW.
Stay Moist
If you don’t know about The Fatty, I’m about to let you in on the one thing you’ll want in your bag from now on. For me, it’s the upgrade to Aquaphor. Cuticles, elbows, heels, arms: wherever I’m dry, the Fatty rescues my skin. Female-founded, it’s the answer to what women actually wanted.
One Last Thing
There is a chill in the air but I also live in Miami so the fall shoppies are being satisfied by … socks.
My Open Tabs
There is a lot of talk right now about iron and ferritin, and for good reason: like so much in the women’s health lexicon, it was a mystery that is only now coming to light. Ferritin is our iron savings account, the stores our bodies draw on for energy, focus and recovery, and pregnancy and birth draw them down fast. Here’s what we’re eating to rebuild our iron stores.
Late-night snacking gets a bad rap, but when your body is working overtime, whether you’re healing, nursing, or just running on empty, that hunger is real and worth answering. The question isn’t whether you eat, it’s what you reach for. Here’s how to make those midnight bites actually work for you.
Spoiler: there's a pouch on my nightstand for exactly this.
On My Nightstand and Bookmarked
We just started compiling a book recommendation list from our community of avid readers. One book that kept coming up is The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett (yes, The Help author), so naturally it’s now on my bedside. I haven’t read historical fiction in a while (it used to be my favorite). A female-driven story of unexpected sisterhood? Very on brand.
Nosh of the Moment
Not to be a broken record but IT'S FALL so it’s Acorn Squash time - crowd pleaser!
1 acorn squash
2 tablespoons butter, melted (or olive oil)
1 tablespoons maple syrup
0.3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
0.3 teaspoons salt
0.5 cups whole-milk ricotta
1 teaspoons maple syrup or honey (for ricotta)
1 pinch ground cinnamon (for ricotta)
1 pinch salt (for ricotta)
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Soften in oven: Place whole 1 acorn squash in the oven and preheat to 400°F. Leave it in while preheating to soften the skin (10min)
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Cut the squash: Let it cool a couple minutes (2min). Line a sheet pan with parchment. Slice a thin sliver off one side so it sits flat, halve top to bottom, scoop out seeds, then slice into 1/2 inch half-moons. Leave the skin on; it gets tender and edible.
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Toss: Toss slices on the pan with 2 tablespoons butter, melted (or olive oil), 1 tablespoons maple syrup (for roasting), 0.3 teaspoons ground cinnamon (for roasting), and 0.3 teaspoons salt (for roasting). Spread in a single layer.
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Roast: Roast until golden and fork-tender, flipping halfway. (12min side 1, 12min side 2)
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Make the ricotta: While the squash roasts, stir 0.5 cups whole-milk ricotta with 1 teaspoons maple syrup or honey (for ricotta), 1 pinch ground cinnamon (for ricotta), and 1 pinch salt (for ricotta) until smooth and creamy.
Serve: Let squash cool a few minutes, then spoon a dollop of ricotta on each warm slice so it softens slightly.