A moment of inspiration presented itself to me tonight as I was cleaning up the dinner mess. Mealtime with the family......Certainly blog-worthy. I should give credit where credit is due. As far as American children go, my kids are really, very good eaters. Sure, they'd gladly accept chicken nuggets and french fries every day and I am sure that you can find a petrified french fry on the floor of the car, but as that's not an option in our house, they really go with the flow most of the time. I recognize that the fact that my kids fight over the last pieces of asparagus or broccoli is downright enviable.
There are, however, obstacles that I have to overcome feeding 7 people. For starters, it's difficult to find one exact food that all 7 of us can agree upon. Once again, a fast food such as pizza is a safe bet, but I'm talking about a good home-cooked meal. I gave up most fast food, myself, a few years ago. I think it may have been the two BK breakfast sandwiches with sausage, egg and cheese that I would eat daily while pregnant with Luke. They were, ironically, the only thing that didn't make me ill during the first 3 months. I will treat the kids about once a month (much to my husband's chagrin which is ironic as he exists on coffee and ice cream.) but we barely ever eat fast food.
Fortunately I love to cook. Unfortunately, I love to eat more than I love to cook. Which means that to me grilled cheese and canned tomato soup, although my husband's favorite, does not constitute a dinner for me. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a food snob, I just see meals as an adventure for the pallet, not as a mere necessity. I use lots of resources to explore new and exciting recipes. Whether it's the internet, cook books or food magazines, I am constantly searching for something new to try, or the best recipe for a favorite dish. I've been known to be seen jotting down recipes in Dr.'s waiting rooms on the back of business cards.
Now, my kids would be divided as to whether or not having a gastronomically adventurous mom is a good thing. We've had some wonderful successes. I can remember Luke at 2 years old asking for more, "Rock-n-Roley please!" Guacamole, needless to say, has become a family staple. Some of our other adventurous successes have been grilled fish, calamari, pesto linguine, fish tacos and vegetarian chili. Then, there are evenings like tonight.......
Let me back -track a second and mention that my husband is a vegetarian. This not-so-simple fact has forced me to research and try many meatless meals. It has actually been a really positive influence on our diets as in the case of the vegetarian chili or the vegetarian tacos that my family loves. The real challenge with cooking vegetarian is trying to include enough protein in your diet. We do eat meat a few times a week, but on the other nights I really try to find healthy and tasty alternatives.
On the menu tonight was a new recipe that I got from Whole Foods, Soy-Ginger stir fry with winter greens. I love stir fries as they cook up quickly, and they're a great way to get lots of veggies into a meal. I took the recipe and added a few family- friendly veggies. In addition to the kale, I added sugar snap peas, carrots, sweet red peppers and broccoli. I made some chicken for us carnivores, but I really wanted to add a big kick of protein to the dish so I made my favorite soba noodle bowl. Soba noodles are made from buckwheat and are chock full of protein. This is where the adventure begins......My son Jason walks into the kitchen and observes the dry soba noodles as they're about to be immersed in the boiling water, "Cardboard for dinner, mom?" Yes son, cardboard has lots of fiber, you now get to have an extra serving of it. Charlotte and Luke come in the kitchen making sure that they add their special ingredients to the meal, which is running under my feet so that I practically kill them and myself while navigating my kitchen. They then catch sight of the Kale and announce that there is no way they can eat that because - a. "My tummy hurts from my medicine, b. "My tongue is still salty from the Scarlet Fever", c. "It smells like fart Mommy." Gee thanks for the vote of confidence guys. Taking into consideration the antibiotics in their systems and the fact that after having a sick husband home today I was in no mood for crying at the dinner table, I caved and dished out mandarin oranges and jello for Luke and Charlotte. Don't judge.......
Since I don't have a large metal triangle to ring, I shout, "Dinner!" and the rafters begin to shake as they all run downstairs to eat. Visions of The Sound of Music run through my head, if only I had that whistle.....I digress.....the exuberance that the kids had while running to the feast diminishes almost immediately as the 3 older kids see the mound of veggies and foreign-looking pasta. After a moving prayer of grace by Luke that started out with, "Now I lay me....whoops, I mean..", Gwen pushes her bowl away and asks if she can also partake in the mandarin oranges/jello feast. When you're 3 and 5 and just coming off of strep and an ear infection, it's OK. When you're 8, (and yes I know she had a thorn in her eye, but that was Monday!) it's not OK. The general rule of thumb in my house is that I am not a short-order cook. What I make for dinner is what you eat for dinner. If you don't, it will be sitting there waiting for you to get so hungry that your stomach is eating your back and you absolutely cannot stand it anymore so you begrudgingly choke it down. I might microwave it for you after it's been sitting there for an hour or so. I might not. Anyway, Gwen is informed that she must eat it, or can go right to bed. Upon hearing this, Maddie begins to compliment my meal as if it were the best thing in the world. Whether she really feels this way or not, we all doubt, but Maddie will never miss an opportunity to brown- nose while her twin sister is down. Jason silently, but slowly eats his cardboard and vegetable dish, then thanks me for dinner and honestly, I haven't seen him since. I'm not sure if we're on speaking terms or not. Gwen takes her sweet time moaning and groaning with every bite so that a deal is made that if she eats all of her chicken, all of the carrots and broccoli and some of the noodles, she can be done. Maddie once again, tells me how it's the best meal she's ever had. Not so ironically, Gwen actually eats more than Maddie does. Charlotte and Luke quickly devour their Dutch-side dishes that are now dinner. Hubby is sick so he's munching on toast in the other room. I am left with my culinary masterpiece. I would like to say that I can understand where the kids were coming from. But I can't. It was delicious! Bon appetit!
Sara, you are amazing!
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