Bringing Up Bobbin

Who are you, and what have you done with my carnivore daughter?

Getting Bobbin to eat meat has never been a problem. From hot dogs to taco meat by the spoonful, from meatloaf (meatballs, meatfillintheblank) to steak-on-a-stick (the sophisticates among us will usually refer to these as "kabobs"), meat has never been a problem.

I do have to say that fruit likewise has been a hit. any kind of fruit. As long as it comes from a tree or a bush, she eats it. Bananas, pears, apples, peaches, plums, kiwis, melon of every variety, cherries, oranges, pineapple, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries. There isn't a fruit or berry she has met that she hasn't loved.

We've been fortunate that she hasn't developed much of a sweet tooth. Her choice, not ours. We offer the stuff because part of my philosophy has been that if it's forbidden it becomes wanted and there's no harm in tasting and sampling. She won't drink juice or soda, eat chocolate or candy of any kind. Even cookies and cake only get a couple of nibbles. Her one exception has been strawberry ice cream. The kid would eat an entire quart if left to her own devices.

Yup. Getting her to eat meat and fruit is like giving candy to any other child. Easy as pie (which she also doesn't eat). Veggies, however, have been a different story.

She'll eat veggies at school for lunch. Cooked carrots, green beans, corn and peas. She always comes home with an "ate all her food" circled on her daily report and the list of veggies that she consumed written next to it. At home we've been able to get her to eat corn on the cob, but absolutely nothing else with any ease or regularity. Including corn off the cob because what's the fun in corn then?

Until recently. Despite the fact that I expect her to decline, I always continue to offer the veggies at every meal and I always have a bowl of fruit at the ready in case she declines. I know what you're thinking... she's holding out for the fruit. And I would have agreed with you. Except for tonight!

Tonight we had hamburgers and hot dogs and with it I served a bowl of cherries (pitted; have you ever used a cherry pitter? man they are fun), raw baby carrots, and peeled sliced cucumbers. She chowed down on carrot after carrot, cucumber slice after cucumber slice, leaving ample cherries for Tim and I to enjoy, and even left some of her hot dog. Bobbin NEVER leaves hot dog on her plate.

I think we're onto something.

---

Comments

Add a Comment

Super quick and yummy salad

I've come across a new favourite salad this weekend. I cannot take credit for the recipe - found it on the back of a bag of pre-washed organic greens. It's really yummy though and takes all of 5 minutes to prepare from beginning to end and is a nice change of pace from the standard dinner salad(and all the chopping that goes with it), so thought I'd share.

Baby Lettuce Salad with Caramelized Onions, Toasted Pine Nuts & Feta Cheese

- 1 bag (4.5) ounces Organic Mixed Baby Greens (the brand I bought was Fresh Express, which is where the recipe came from)
- 1/2 large red onion, cut into thin wedges
- 4 Tbsp. pine nuts - I found organic ones at our grocery store
- 3 Tbsp. Sherry vinegar (I actually used balsamic vinegar instead because it's what I had and I love the taste)
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 2 oz. Feta cheese, crumbled
- Salt & Pepper to taste (I actually use none)

Optional: 4 oz. dried currants (approx. 2 Tbsp.)

Coat bottom of large skillet with olive oil and put over medium heat. Add red onion and pine nuts, and stire gently for 5 minutes. Take pan off heat and mix in sherry (or balsamic) vinegar. Pour over baby greens in large boal and toss well. Top each salad with crumbled Feta cheese and serve immediately.

Serves 2-3.

---

Comments

Add a Comment

It's official - it's grillin' season!

We actually broke out the grill for the first time this season last week with... what else... steaks. Which were scrumptous. There's almost nothing better than a good grilled steak. And Tim's grilled steaks are always good.

However I have a weakness when it comes to grilled hamburgers. Big, juicy, thick hamburgers - not the pre-made patties you can buy in the store. The hand formed patties rich with real onions inside them, brushed generously with bbq sauce while on the grill, smothered in freshly sliced cheddar cheese, and served on a perfectly fresh hamburger bun sized appropriately of course. Mmmmm mmm. And that's precisely what we had for dinner tonight.

So I inhaled a burger and a half (the half was without bun for me)and then settled in on the couch to stretch out and digest. It was a lotta beef. Even Baby Girl cut her usual post-meal kicking MARATHON relatively short and settled in to a nice beef-induced coma. Like father like daughter, I'm thinking.

---

Tryptophan Blogging

tryp·to·phan: An essential amino acid, C11H12N2O2, formed from proteins during digestion by the action of proteolytic enzymes. It is necessary for normal growth and development and is the precursor of several substances, including serotonin and niacin. (www.dictionary.com)

I'd say we all did a little growing and developing this evening. Mostly around the stomach area.

The feast was a success! The turkey was absolutely stunning - perfectly cooked, and so moist. Well done, Tim! And my stuffing - oooh baby. Did I outdo myself this year. My stuffing ROCKS. I bake my stuffing - I don't do it in the bird (I'm too paranoid).

Patti brought her infamous deviled eggs, and we had the rest of the usual accompaniments - mashed potatoes, gravy, green bean casserole (also from Patti), and of course pumpkin pie (courtesy of Tim's mom). I even remembered to put out the cranberry sauce before the meal started, despite my genetic predisposition to the contrary.

It was a little crowded with 11 of us, but it was really good to have everyone together. We're looking forward to next year though when we'll actually be able to sit down around a table :-)

---

Comments

Add a Comment

Thanksgiving

American Thanksgiving is tomorrow. We're hosting this year - so we're cooking up a nice 21-pound turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberries... the usual fare!

Now - Canadian Thanksgiving is celebrated in October on the 2nd Monday of the month, which this year was October 11th. So my folks and my sister had their Turkey Day a while ago. And judging from Sarah's photos it was quite a sumptuous feast!

I've always wondered how it came to be that Canada celebrates thanksgiving in October, and the US celebrates in November - aside from the fact that Canadians just like to be different from their American neighbours. So I've done a little research, and will share my findings here with you - since I know you've all wondered the same thing ;-)

According to Thanksgiving-traditions.com (what a great site!), the first North American thanksgiving event occurred in Newfoundland in 1578. Yet another reason why the great "Tropical Island of Newfoundland" is THE coolest (figuratively and often quite literally). Half my family hails from Newfoundland which is reason number 1 why it is the coolest, of course. Anyway - I wonder what they ate. I would be shocked if it was turkey. Haven't seen a whole lotta turkeys running around the island the times that I've visited. Perhaps it was moose or carabou. Someone must know. Family - if you're reading, see what you can find out and get back to me :-)

Thinking of moose meat reminds me of the summer that we went to visit my grandparents in Newfoundland. And because this is my blog, I'm going to digress and tell you about it. My mom, sister and I took a train up one summer to visit the relatives. Dad was on exercise somewhere and was going to meet up with us later. It had been several weeks I think since he had left, and I was feeling homesick, and missing my Dad. So Grandma decided to cook a special dinner for us. She knew my favourite meal in the world at the time was my Dad's lasagna. So that's what she decided to make. I was pretty excited. I'm Garfield when it comes to lasagna.

So we all sat down to dinner and my mouth was watering in anticipation as Grandma serves up the lasagna. And as soon as I got my serving I dove in and took a nice big mouthful.

And it was DISGUSTING. I think I may have even gagged.

I don't know if it was because ground beef in Newfoundland at the time was less in abundance (at least where my grandparents lived?) or more expensive than it is on the main land... or if was because Grandma just decided she wanted to try something different. I do know that moose meat, in Newfoundland, is relatively easy to come by. So for whatever reason, Grandma used ground moose instead of ground beef in the lasagna. And if you're expecting to taste beef and get a mouthful of moose instead it is quite a shocker, let me tell you. Even with tomato sauce and melted cheese mixed in.

Anyway - back to Thanksgiving. So the celebration in Newfoundland in 1578 was the first North American thanksgiving event. The first Canadian Thanksgiving was celebrated on April 15, 1872 in thanks for the recovery of the future King Edward VII from a serious illness. After that, the next thanksgiving didn't occur until 1879 - and it was celebrated on a Thursday in November then, and every year through 1898, just as the American Thanksgiving is.

Then in 1899 for some reason those wacky Canadians decided to celebrate on a Thursday in October instead, and continued to do so through to 1907 (with the exception of 1901 and 1904 when it was held on the traditional Thursday in November). It flip-flopped a couple of more times between October and November, and between various days within October until 1957 when Parliament issued a proclamation to fix permanently the second Monday in October as "a day of general Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed".

So that's Canada. What about the US? Again, according to thanksgiving-traditions.com the history of a "Thanksgiving Day" in the US can be traced back to 1789 when George Washington declared Thursday, November 26th as a day when "we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks". Before 1789, from 1777 to 1783 Thanksgiving Day had been celebrated in December as mandated by Congress.

Apparently other Presidents declared days of thanksgiving in various years at various times but none fell in the fall season.

In 1863 President Lincoln issued a declaration making the fourth Thursday in November a National Day of Thanksgiving. Apparently it didn't really go over well - especialy in the South (the general sentiment there being that those Damn Yankees were just trying to force their way of life on everyone). Today's Thanksgiving Day actually derives from the New England harvest festival, which by the late 19th century, was celebrated nation wide.

So far in neither the Canadian nor the American thanksgiving histories has there been any mention of pilgrims or native americans. So what's up with the goofy hats and images of pilgrims sharing food with the native americans? Apparently the association of pilgrims and native americans to Thanksgiving Day occurred around the 1800s - when a description of a feast held in 1621 was uncovered in a group of lost memoirs. However it wasn't until 1841 that the writer Alexander Young made the connection between the 1621 harvest celebration and the American Thanksgiving.

And there you have it! I've gotta go get my stuffing ready now. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

---

Fall Season is Soup Season

Today was gloomy and grey and rainy. Perfect for soup!

Those of you who know us well know that when we do cook in the house (something other than making mac & cheese, boiling hot dogs, heating up canned soup or leftovers), Tim is generally the primary chef. The exceptions are: Lasagna (a skill genetically inherited from my Dad), Spaghetti (make that pasta in general), Tortiere (my Aunt Sheila's recipe), Apple Pie (Mom's recipe) and desserts in general... all of which are my house specialties. And I'm pretty darn good with prepping a roast beef (I leave Tim to do the cooking; but I slit little holes in the roast beef and stuff them with slivers of garlic mixed with various herbs and it tastes really good). And finally, there is my Cheesy Chicken Chowder.

I got the recipe from a Better Homes and Gardens cookbook that I think my parents gave me while I was at University. It's pretty quick and easy and cheap - all key requirements for college student cooking.

So I thought I'd share with you.

Cheesy Chicken Chowder (from Better Homes and Gardens)
Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 10-ounce package frozen mixed vegetables (you could use fresh - but I have no problem with buying a bag of frozen organic veggies - they're just fine)


• 1 1/4 cups chicken broth


• 1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)


• 1 teaspoon prepared mustard


• 1/4 teaspoon pepper


• 1/3 cup corkscrew or other small pasta


• 1 3/4 cup milk


• 1 cup cubed cooked chicken


• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour


• 1 cup sredded swiss or sharp American cheese

To Prepare:

• In a large saucepan stire together frozen veggies, chicken broth, onion, mustard, and pepper. Bring to boiling.


• Stir in pasta. Reduce the heat. Simmer, covered, for 7 to 10 minutes or till pasta is tender, stirring occasionally.


• Stir in 1 1/3 cups of the milk and chicken. Stir remaining milk into flour till smooth. Stir into chicken mixture. Cook and stir till mixture is thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 1 minute more.


• Add cheese. Cook and stir till cheese is melted.

---

Comments

Add a Comment