We’ve all been bumping into each other as we make our way around the kitchen. We’re all scrounging through the fridge and cupboards looking for breakfast and lunchtime options — trying to find something to eat that is just a little bit different than our usual.
I did try a few new dinnertime recipes – which either didn’t turn out the way I wanted them to (Raspberry Pâtes de Fruits, which were not firm enough), or just weren’t a hit with the family, (Thai chicken soup with dumplings that had too much fish sauce for our liking.)
Lunchtime is a free-for-all around here. I typically find leftovers, or make a salad, using up bits and pieces of veggies that would most likely be left to go bad. I call it the Kitchen Sink Salad. Greg does the same thing – and is so much better at eating leftovers than any of us.
When it comes to the kids – it’s mayhem. They descend on the kitchen, seeking frozen potstickers, ingredients for quesadillas, preparing avocado toast way too often, and often complain that there is nothing to eat for lunch. In my defense (because I’m the one that does the shopping), I keep the kitchen stocked. The problem is, they don’t want to work at making lunch. Instead of thinking, “Oh, what should I prepare for lunch,” they roam around complaining that there isn’t anything for them to eat (because they will actually need to prepare it).
The Tides are Changing
This week, however, I’ve seen a little more interest emerging from my youngest two to prepare new foods. While they both love being in the kitchen, which is where I often find them, lately they’ve been branching out and finding more confidence to try new recipes.
It was lunchtime, and Keely was looking to have something different than just plain pasta for lunch. She inquired about making a tomato sauce. Since we don’t keep tomato sauce in the house, I suggested ways she could accomplish this quickly during her lunch break — starting with making garlic infused olive oil. She was all in for that, but still wanted a little tomato taste –not necassarily a full-on sauce. I told her that she could just add bit of tomato paste mixed thoroughly with the olive oil. From there, she then wanted something with a bit more liquid, but not more tomato taste, and inquired if heavy cream would do. I let her know that it was a fabulous idea and that she should add little by little until she had the consistency and flavor she preferred.
It was a hit, and she has prepared it several times since.
On the sweet side of things, one Monday afternoon, Addie declared that she was making fried donuts. I tried not to show the disappointment on my face. Not because I don’t like donuts, but because she was undertaking a big task that would last several hours – and would most likely involve my help. She was determined, and since she had announced her intent to make donuts with the entire family, there was no way I could say no.
She confidently embarked on the process, without any of my help. But, when it came to the frying, I took the time to give her the ins and outs of doing so.
She breezed through frying, and was impatient to frost, but held out. In my mind, fried donuts are something I would make for an occasion, not just a regular old day. But, we were all thankful that Addie took the initiative, and provided us something sweet on a Monday eve!
The Confidence to Try Again
While I didn’t have the result I wanted with the new recipes I tried, at least I know what I would change the next time I embarked on making that specific recipe. I have a bit of kitchen confidence to know that for the Thai Chicken Soup, it would definitely be less fish sauce. And, as for the Raspberry Pâtes de Fruits – I’ll be working on the gelatin ratio.
Hope you are all gaining the confidence in the kitchen to prepare new recipes – even if they fail the first time around.
If you’re inspired, here is Addie’s recipe for donuts.
