Kid Vs. Produce

Sweet Red Corn

Jenny — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 00:37:29 +0000

This year, my mom picked up some sweet red corn, something we hadn't tried before. We're all corn fans, so it wasn't a real challenge-worthy choice, but certainly, it was novel. There was some discussion over how to cook it - we could have grilled it over the fire, but we were hungry and didn't want to mess with trying to time it right, so we opted to remove the husks and steam them in large pot over the cookstove.

New Carrots and Leeks

Jenny — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 03:26:42 +0000

Carrots and leeks are both familiar and one of those things I'm negating the try-it-three-times rule on. The Boy was not that excited about it, but hello? Look at how cute these carrots are!

Okonomiyaki (Cabbage Pizza)

Jenny — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 19:26:13 +0000

I spent a few weeks in Japan when I was 15. I stayed in the suburbs of Osaka with a lovely host family, who introduced me to Okonomiyaki. In train stations and little restaurants all over the place, you can point to a bowl of ingredients displayed in a glass case, and then take your [...]

Cabbage and Ramen Noodle Salad

Jenny — Fri, 14 May 2010 04:33:00 +0000

One of my favorites, precisely because it is complete trash, is a salad made from shredded cabbage and some other stuff, topped with crunched up ramen noodles and almonds that have been sauteed in butter and then sprinkled with that packet of death that comes with it. Ramen isn't so bad you say?

Cherimoya and Star Fruit

Jenny — Thu, 06 May 2010 02:46:58 +0000

Since we started this challenge of ours, we find ourselves poking around a bit, looking for odd shapes and colors. And okay, I'll admit my first real exposure to the idea of either of these fruits was through some sort of Baby Einstein knock-off video. In any case, I'll admit that up until this point, I've never been all that curious about strange looking fruits. The basics, available year-round, more than filled my personal needs. But when a kid says "Mom, we should try THAT ONE!" it seems like a pretty good thing to do.

Cauliflower & Cheddar Soup

Jenny — Wed, 05 May 2010 02:21:45 +0000

The Boy was underwhelmed by this soup, as you can tell from the chipper expression he offers up here. The girls both liked it "okay" but The Boy just wouldn't eat it. He had a few spoonfuls, making hairball noises, and declared it completely busgusting.

Miso Soup (eating out)

Jenny — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 01:19:28 +0000

So, naturally they brought me a lovely, steaming bowl of miso soup, I thwapped it onto the lazy susan and sent it over to The Boy. He calmly pulled it off the lazy susan and tucked in. Seriously, even with me over on my side of the table making hairball noises about it, he slurped up the juicy seaweed and ate the tofu. He loved the broth, too.

Rice Paper Salad Rolls

Jenny — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 04:58:18 +0000

Do you see what I see? That is lettuce on The Boy's plate, and he's not making the barf face. How did this happen? Is my campaign for Pleasant Salad Eating paying off? Or is it all about novelty?

Spinach Salad with Bacon, Red Onion and Egg

Jenny — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 18:58:17 +0000

One of the things The Boy has complained about with regards to salad is he doesn't like the crunchy pieces. I don't even get that, considering he'll eat croutons until his palate is shredded. Being that this is the case (for now, bwahahaha) I figured a nice, tender, baby spinach would be a good starting point. And then I remembered this salad that my mom and her girlfriends used to have when they'd gather to catch up on life while the kids ran around half-naked in the backyard. Granted the ladies never served theirs with boxed stuffing mix, but they also weren't trying to appease The Boy.

The Salad Wars

Jenny — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 23:51:31 +0000

As I recently wrote about on our family blog, we're having a bit of a shifting of the rules over here at Kid Vs. Produce. I'm realizing that barring an allergic reaction or some sort of other extreme aversion to a particular food, this whole "try it three times and then reject it forever" rule was pretty ill-conceived. For some of our What The? Foods or seasonal oddities, sure. But for the vegetables and fruits that we use frequently as part of our meals, I'm not willing to give him a pass just because he has turned his nose up at something three times.