I got a terrific calzone recipe for the DS; my biggest get "whatever" problem eater. Plus, awesome advice on how to fix my sauce problem. Since the kid eats so few vegetables, I asked for ideas on serving green beans. I got several and 2 of them were deemed excellent by the kid and are still frequently served here.
Bolstered by the support I was receiving, I decided to get the teen involved in fixing some of his dinners last year. He learned cooking takes some effort while preparing a chicken breast for grilling.
I gave him the opportunity to pick green beans to go with that chicken and use one of those great recipe suggestions.
He even tried his hand at creating his own recipes. One of his personal favorites is hot wings so he decided to BBQ them with a side of seasoned steak fries.
I thought he was getting pretty inventive with the breaded proscuitto wrapped zucchini. Plus, they really were good.
Now back to finding that veiled victual aisle. Granted certain conditions presented themselves this summer so I can't really guarantee absolute success for anyone else but I still felt I should share what I found. After all, those of us that didn't take the proper measures early on to keep our families from asking for "whatever" or giving those annoying half hearted shoulder shrugs when asked for dinner ideas need to stick together! And I still highly commend those that have limited their family's choices to "take it or leave it" and "starve or fix it yourself". Maybe, just maybe, I should have been more like them.
I probably should mention the three things that I really think made my discovery possible. The DH got laid off so that left him with ample time on his hands this summer. The DS worked at a snack bar and learned that not all people do food prep or buy foodstuffs like his mother. I think, though,the most important thing was early in the summer I announced to both of them that I was going to have weed free gardens for my roundup ladies to see. Since the boys were sitting in the A/C most of the time, while I was slaving away in the scorching heat, I was going to give them the opportunity to discover the joys of cooking and grocery shopping.
Before we all piled into the car to go grocery shopping, I gave the DH the grocery ads and told him how much of our greatly reduced budget was available for food. I gave him all of our on hand items in both pantry and freezer. I also gave him several days to assimilate all this information. Didn't want to give him sensory overlaod and short hin out too early in the summer. The DS, I wasn't too worried about since the young seem to adjust to change more readily than the old. This time gave them both a chance to watch extra FoodNetwork shows while I was busy weeding. Frankly, I think the DH wasn't watching Giada for her recipes. On the other hand, he found some keepers from the Barefoot Contessa and Guy Fieri. He even got a good fish recipe from Paula Dean that didn't have a pound of butter in it. The kid wasn't as interested in the cooking shows and slunk off to another TV to watch that survialist dude and Anthony Bourdain. What he brought to the table to get fixed just goes to show even when they are 18, you still need to monitor their TV watching!
So the big grocery shopping day arrived and I have to say I felt vaguely uneasy taking everyone along. Then the scene when Harry Potter has to get on the Hogwarts platform for the first time flashed through my mind. Don't ask me why but at that moment Mrs. Weasley's advice seemed appropriate. So I grasped the shopping cart's handle firmly, got a bit of a run at the doors and it happened. Just like magic the family was pulled along in my wake and when we ended up on the other side of the doors it was as if a whole new world had opened up. The "whatever" that everyone wanted was readily available, easily found and then purchased. I'm telling you it was amazing. I'd like to say the meals that came from my guys cooking adventures were all as spectacular as finding the "whatever" aisle(s) but I can't. I'll give the DH credit, at least he tried while I was on hiatus from the kitchen. It's amazing how fast the kitchen reins were thrust back into my hands once the roundup was over,though. Now, the kid's attempt was another story and I know some of you might be curious as to how that all turned out. So I will conclude with that incident and a link to Pippin's latest blog.
http://thesensiblyorganiccook.blogspot.com/2011/09/would-you-try-and-put-leash-on-lion.html
Both of these kids have been having fun this summer but Ryan's food "pick" had a wicked Eeeeeewwwww factor to it. Yes, I was asking for snake recipes on the "buzz" because my kid shot what he thought was a rattler. The child had been telling me that if he ever shot a rattler he wanted to try cooking it. That will teach me to not encourage that boy to cook. I do not like snakes! In fact, if it hadn't been for Ryan's Grandma Jennie (she's an adopted grandma but who cares, she is still great)I'd still be killing all snakes that came near me. She educated me about snakes, even got me a book. I still don't like them. I think it is the sudden surprise factor they have. Hey, I'm not as bad as my sister, I think she broke out in a cold sweat when I called her to tell her what I was grilling. By golly, I was not going to waste that 4' long snake because I'd told Ryan if he shot a snake we WERE going to eat it. Deep sigh!
So there it was. Ryan cleaned it and I googled. YouTube is great! I found a video of a guy cooking snake. Evidently lots of people like snake If it is ever up to me to kill another snake to eat or eat something else, I'm eating something else! Actually, once I stopped cringing like a 6 week old kitten that had just discovered a mirror and managed to touch the cleaned snake, it wasn't so bad. Granted, I might have tossed back some of that whiskey the snake chef recommended to use in the marinade first. Thank heavens I had some Beam on hand!
I don't think my child thought I would woman up and cook it while he was at work. Good thing his father was in Springfield cause he wouldn't have tried it period. I don't think the kid liked it as well as he thought he would. NO, it does not taste like chicken. It has a delicate flavor all its own but boy is it boney. You can eat and pick your teeth at the same time. Not to worry, I was not about to waste my first attempt at snake so I made these.
Veggie & snake filled egg rolls and snake & goat cheese wontons. It took a long while to get all the bones out but it was worth it. Like I said, snake has a definite eeewww factor but once stuffed and deep fried the kid sucked it down almost faster than it came out of the deep fryer.
That's it for me today. I hope everyone had a nice day and enjoyed a nice normal meal of "whatever" :)(:
