Kids have particular tastes when it comes to food. My kids' preferred taste is BLAND and FAMILIAR, and one of the side effects of being the only adult in the house has turned out to be that it is just *far* too easy to give in to the tastes of the kids and "cook" to their preferences alone. Except, keep it up long enough and you just can't call it cooking anymore! We've still been hitting the food groups, but in the *most* boring way possible. I'm talking bland chicken with ketchup on the side, corn, and plain white rice. There's dinner. Four times a week. Shoot me, please.
I was having lunch with Chris over at the farm last week and commiserating about how hard it is to keep the kitchen interesting - she has my problem with the kids (hers are the same age and can be just as picky) compounded with a rotation of adults at her table who all have different tastes and preferences. We ended up going through her cookbooks on the hunt for new, interesting, and EASY recipes and I stole two home with renewed excitement and a plan -
From now until September, we're going to be doing at least one new recipe every week. From a cookbook. I love cooking, I love being in the kitchen, I love experiencing new foods...but it's just so frustrating to put the effort into a real meal and have the household turn their noses up without a bite. So, one of the rules of our new project here is that the kids don't have to eat it - they just have to help make it. Rebecca in particular is exceptionally difficult to introduce new foods to, and I've learned over the years that it's sincerely not worth the effort to force her. So, on new recipe nights, chicken nuggets or a sandwich are also an option. BUT, if they want to taste the food they made, it'll be there. :)
In an effort to keep this project going (and because the few of you I've mentioned this plan to seemed interested in the recipes), I'm going to post our weekly culinary adventure to the blog. This way, if I get lazy and let the project drop, you can all yell at me to get cooking again!
We've already done two new recipes - both smash successes - and their posts are coming up next!
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