The Key to a Family's Heart

I knew when I decided to cook my way through another cookbook that it might be a bit hard on my family. I didn't ask if they wanted to participate last time around and I didn't really ask them this time either. Some would say that they are reaping the benefits of these projects but I know sometimes they are a bit skeptical. (Don't tell them but this next journey involves liver and onions. Yikes!) I knew that the first meal needed to be something that would win them over. Maybe it is no coincidence that the first meal in the book involves pasta and dessert so who can go wrong with that, right? So, there you have it, the key to my families heart is PASTA! 

Here's our first menu:

Broccoli Orecchiette
Zucchini & Bocconcini Salad
Prosciutto & Melon Salad

Now, my family has gotten a bit older since our last revolution. "The Kid," my adorable daughter, is now nine years old. At age nine, she has always been a fabulous and adventurous eater, which is awesome! She is also really starting to like to help out in the kitchen so I'm excited that this next phase of my Food Revolution will include her being by my side in the kitchen quite a bit. She may not always like unique foods but she is always willing to try new things and she still will pick asparagus over a banana any day. Getting green vegetables in this kid is never a problem. I always thought this was the work of good parenting but then the second child came along. Known as "the baby," in Amy's Food Revolution part 1, he is not a baby anymore. When my first Food Revolution started he had only been walking a few months. He is now a strapping young man at the ripe old age of, "Three AND a half, halfway to four" he will tell you. He has given me a run for my money when it has come to food. If I'd let him, he would eat "peanut butter no jelly sandwiches" three times a day, seven days a week. Like "the kid," he must try everything we are trying. Now, they say kids must try things several times before they will accept it. I remind myself of that over and over again, but I swear this little boy is on at least 100 tries with some foods. He has recently decided that he will tolerate broccoli (a victory for mommy) and that maybe peas aren't that bad. He will eat bananas now and freeze dried strawberries (because astronauts eat them) and he will eat grapes only during his sister's horse lessons. Honestly, it makes my head hurt. His doctor laughs at me and tells me she will remind me of this in 10 years when he is a teen and eating me out of house and home. He is like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde when it comes to pasta and I never know if he will eat it or not. Guessing which one will join us at the table makes me go insane so I don't even try to predict it anymore. 

Despite my amazing new mudroom my kitchen counter is not having a good day. Husband takes the two kids outside to play so I can get a jumpstart on dinner and it takes me a good 20 minutes to move the Transformers from under my feet, get the math homework off the table, put away some dishes, set the table so that it is ready for dinner and get out all of the pots, pans, ingredients and gadgets that I need. I'm already feeling good about this new method of cooking and I haven't even gotten started yet! 

As I thought, things move really quickly and you really need to keep all three recipes going in your brain and be able to jump from one to the next, something I am not usually good at. I can tell that there is going to be a learning curve with this way of cooking but I'm already excited about what the next 52 weeks have in store for me! I love how this cookbook is written, Jamie is right, he tells you exactly what to do and when. Everything is on one page, which is handy, and headings tell you which recipe you'll be working on next. The pasta is brilliant. It is like a pesto but instead made with broccoli! The zucchini salad and the melon salad are huge, huge hits. I had never had raw zucchini before and it was delicious and so easy. Using a peeler and doing long peels makes it look like something out of a chef's kitchen and I know I'll be using this to impress guests in the future. The Melon Salad with the prosciutto is a huge hit (except for the picky little boy who I guess has only tried cantaloupe 98 times in his life so I guess isn't ready to "accept" it.) I even go back into the kitchen to scoop out the other half of cantaloupe because they have devoured the first one. I would never have put balsamic vinegar with melon but it’s amazing!

As everyone leans back in their chairs with full bellies (even Dr. Jekyll ate his pasta), I know that I've won them over and that this was a great beginning to Food Revolution Part 2.

Meals cooked: 1
Meals left: 49
Weeks left: 51

Next up…
Piri Piri Chicken