Future Foodie Friday Tip -- Pick Three

I know my boys are happiest when they feel like they have a say in what we do.  I've noticed since we have started school, they are craving more control since they are in a more structured environment more often again.  We have started having pick 3 nights for dinner and the boys always eat great on these days. 

Here's how it works! You know how by the end the of week you have a lot of left overs and partial servings of items?  Get them all out and put them on the counter.  Only get out items that you are ok with your child having for dinner, then ask them to pick three of the items.  We will get out fresh fruit, veggies, left over meat, etc.  The boys get to pick what they want and they feel like they are getting their choice. Now they don't realize Mommy already made the choice when she decided what to put out, but that's my little secret!

Try a pick three night at your house and let me know how your family likes it.

Happy Friday!

Future Foodie Friday Tip - Kids in the Kitchen

I apologize for the delay in posts but summer fun has prevailed the last month.  This week's tip is a little lengthy, so hopefully it will make up for the gap in posts.

A great way to get kids excited about food is to get them in the kitchen with you.  It's never too early, place infants in the kitchen when you are cooking so that they can take in the sights, sounds, and smells of your food. This will help prepare them for these flavors when they are  ready. The smells will be familiar when you introduce them to these foods as they get older.

Let your toddlers help as soon as you can.  Now maybe it's not the best idea to have a toddler help when you are trying to fix dinner in 10 minutes or less, but pick a time when you aren't rushed in the kitchen and let them help.  Start with easy tasks like outing cut up veggies in a bowl or handing you ingredients as needed, then work your way up to letting them measure and pour in ingredients.  Sure it's messy and it will take time and patience, but the provide and ownership your child will feel will be totally worth it.  They may be more likely to eat the food and enjoy it if they helped make it

Our boys have worked up to being quite the sous chefs.  We find that if we get all the ingredients, tools, and bowls ready before we bring them in to help, it makes things go smoother.  The boys can now make zucchini bread and cookies with Mommy just reading the recipes to them.  They measure, level, and pour in the ingredients all by themselves.  Lucas has even graduated to being Andy's assistant for cutting fresh pasta.

Having your kids help in the kitchen is a great way to have teach your children life skills of cooking and math, encourage excitement about food and above all have some family fun!

Happy Friday!

Modernist Cuisine

With a background in engineering and a naturally scientific mind, I love to experiment with different cooking methods (much more than my wife, who is concerned over our family's health and diet).  I find myself always salivating over the next piece of kitchen equipment I need to own:  ISI foamer, sous vide temperature controller, vacuum sealer, etc.  (all of which I have acquired in the last few years).

I have really been wishing long and hard for a copy of Nathan Myhrvold's Modernist Cuisine cookbook.... Its not even fair to call this item a cookbook.  Its a 6 volum set of books with over 1600 recipes and 2400 pages.  It covers everything from how to cook the perfect hamburger to hydrocoloids and emulsifiers.  To give a little back story, Nathan Myhrvold is the former CTO of Microsoft and is now the co-founder of a company called Intellectual Ventures.  Part of what Intellectual Ventures does revolves around cooking and the culinary "arts" (read food science).   Wired Magazine recently wrote a great piece about Modernist Cuisine in its recent issue.  Check it out here.

But ALAS... Modernist Cuisine is not within my humble budget for more cookbooks.  This one MSRP's for over $500.  (That won't stop me from asking Santa again for it this year.)

But today they announced the sale date of October 8th, 2012, for "Modernist Cuisine - AT HOME".  I'm so excited!!!  If this thing was a software package, it would be the "lite" version.  Its only $115 at Amazon.  Still a lot for a cookbook, but for a 465 page "kitchen manual'"  that might be more my price range.  Check out the link to the overview on modernistcuisine.com.  I've already added it to my Amazon Wishlist.

What is a Foodie?

Andy and I were asked by a friend to write an article for a local magazine, Evansville Living.  The article was included in their food edition and inspired the creation of this blog.  Here's a link if you are interested.

http://www.evansvilleliving.com/articles/raising-future-foodies

Since the article has been published we have been asked by others, "What is a foodie?"  It's a very subjective term, so below you will find my best effort at defining the term "foodie".  Check it out, you may find out you are one too!

Wikipedia defines a foodie as an aficionado of food and drink. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foodie

 

Webster defines a foodie as a person with an avid interest in food fads.

Foodies may enjoy cooking, trying different foods, cookbooks, following restaurants openings and closings, following chefs, wine tastings, and current food trends or all of the above.

Foodies are amateurs. They make a hobby out of food. A foodie doesn't just like food, they are interested in it and study it.  Foodies don't have to be interested in only the finest food, they can also be interested in ordinary, everyday food. 

 

In the style of Jeff Foxworthy, if you......

• Watch Top Chef and recognize the guest judges 
• Own more than 5 cookbooks
• Subscribe to a food or cooking centric magazine
• Read books about food that are not cookbooks
• You can match up chefs with their flagship restaurants
• Your idea of perfect afternoon is cooking dinner 

You might be a foodie!

So are you a foodie?