lkb's Profile

Thank you for this! I was so excited to see it, and it gives me some ideas (and hope--also very important!). My son is only 16 months, so I can't reason with him yet (e.g., "you won't have to wear glasses like I do..."). I'm going to have to try the burrito idea, and the quiche! I haven't had great luck with pasta--very hit or miss; no idea why.

Our go-to foods go through cycles. "Bean dip" is generally successful (mashed black beans or refried beans mixed with some tomatillo sauce), and I like it because I can overload it with veggies (red pepper, tomato, carrot, onion, etc.). I mean, anything with cheese in it tastes good, right? My other go-to food is mashed banana with greek yogurt and peanut butter; if he's refused everything else, sometimes this will give him a least a few calories before bedtime.

My biggest problem is getting him to taste something... if he doesn't like it, fine, I'm not going to make him eat it. But I wish he would TRY it. Many things he looks at when I put it on his tray, and then pushes off the side or just completely ignores. I think presentation goes a long way, at least with him. Scrambled eggs? Nope. But eggs mixed with a little mexican rice and cooked into a little patty? Sure!

Kids are strange.

I will echo the request for menus. I almost need a "here's a couple of days of menus, including entree, salad, etc. and here's the shopping list" kind of post. That way it's not just a delicious fish recipe and then me hemming and hawing about what else to serve with it, and then giving up and making quesadillas. Again.

Also, I recall that at one point you posted about doing a series concerning kid-friendly foods. I know there were a lot of negative comments about it, but I just want to say that I'd still be interested! I read so many of the recipes here with the question in the back of my mind "will my 15-month old eat that?" (The Savory Oatmeal Cookies are a big hit with him, and I like that they have so little sugar). Just hearing about other people's successes in feeding their toddlers/kids would be very helpful for me.

I'm curious: when does the attitude about greens happen? I have a one-year old who will eat cooked spinach by the clump (and eschew strawberries, papaya, etc.). I know it'll be a challenge to get him to eat greens sometime soon... and I'm taking advantage of his willingness now.

In terms of a "sneaky strategy", a pile of refried beans (or mashed beans from a slow cooker) and cheese is a GREAT way to pile on the veggies. His dinner last night involved beans and cheese with carrots, red pepper, tomato, onion, etc. I'm sure spinach/"green stuff" wouldn't have even been visible...

Funny, I discovered this recently too. I'll peel a clementine (or Satsuma orange--even better than clementines where I am) to give my 1 year old, but he doesn't eat all of it. So half of it sits on the counter until I'm grazing the counters... and yep--the slightly dried out skin just bursts in my mouth. I love it!

@EXDEVLIN: I don't have an ice cream maker either, but my mother made mango sorbet the last time she visited me, using a similar general recipe to that described above. She just put the pureed liquid in the freezer and one of us stirred it every couple of hours (whenever we happened to remember, or when we wanted a little taste preview...) It worked perfectly and was delicious...

Chocolate mayonnaise cake is my father's favorite. Anyone I've ever mentioned it to looks utterly disgusted, but when they taste it (not knowing what it is), I get rave reviews. It does taste a little different from your typical chocolate cake, but in a good and interesting way. And the best part: it's super moist. Delish.

We just finished ours (central PA)--it ran us on the order of $22K, maybe a touch under. But we gutted the kitchen--I think some of it was original to the 1945 house (like the metal corner cabinet--beyond disgusting). We tore down a wall, replaced a window, replaced the exterior door, moved the range and installed a hood (which we didn't have before), switched to gas (we already had gas service though), replaced the floors to match the rest of the house (oak), and we had to have our electrical service box upgraded.

We got our undermount sink free from the granite company (local), so sink and counters were ~$2800. New cabinets (Aristokraft maple, not super-high-end) were ~$4500. But everything else added up--we needed new trim and moulding cut and stained to match the rest of the house. We had the ceiling re-hung and recessed lighting installed, along with new wiring and switches. Lots of new outlets were installed too. The backsplash was done in tile--cheap ones from Home Depot (~$5/square foot). We also had to have the heating vent altered into a toe-kick under the sink (before it just heated up the sink cabinet--not useful).

I'm thrilled with the outcome--this was desperately needed. But sure--lots of money. Considering the overhaul we did though, I think it could've been a lot worse. Of course, if we'd done any of the work ourselves, we could've saved a lot, but well... we just didn't have the time/expertise.

general info about different kitchen knives, what the different types are, and what they're best for. what's a good general base set of knives to have? i'll admit--i just use a paring knife for almost everything, but i recently got a nice chef's knife. i love it, but truly, i don't know how to use it. from there, i think it's probably obvious that i would also benefit from a knife-skills tutorial. (forgive me if you've already done one of these; i just don't remember seeing it)

seriously? no one's mentioned feta yet?

even just avocado, tomato, hummus and feta. yum.

there was (is?) a great sandwich place in berkeley when i was in college, and they made a seriously stacked veggie sandwich with tomatoes, avocado, sprouts, probably some hummus, lettuce; i can't remember what else. it was big. but the best part was the 1/4 inch-thick layer of feta. just divine.

I could eat candied ginger all day, but my favorite ginger recipe, by far, is the ginger tea from the Moosewood Restaurant. It's incredibly strong, but SO good... just the right amount of spice. I found a recipe online once. If I recall correctly, it involves about a cup of grated ginger, a cup of sugar (I use less), maybe 1/2 C of lemon juice (I use more), and some cinnamon sticks and cloves. Then you pour 6 cups of boiling water over it and let it sit for an hour. I like it really gingery, so I let it go for many hours... Then you filter it and drink it hot, cold, as a mixer... whatever. It's wonderful.