Veg*n Mamas
This weekend for our birthday lake getaway we have four vegetarians, a vegan, a changeling (constantly going from vegan to meat-eater and back) and an omnivore scheduled to show - so far.
I will be making soft tacos with fixings: lettuce, tomatoes, roasted jalapenos, chile sauce, rice, sour cream, cheese, cucumbers - and either black beans, Hogaboom's Dipping Tofu (sans soy dipping sauce of course), or Fantastic Foods Taco Filling (thanks again, EC!). A chile relleno and simple slaw accompanies.
I love cooking for people with special food requests or needs. I love people asking me to try to cook something. One of the ways to hurt my feelings is when I say, "What would you like for dinner?" when you say, "I don't care" (OK, that doesn't really HURT my feelings, but I do feel a twinge of sadness). I am currently trying to master hamburger buns. The last batch I made worked well enough to eat last night for (boca) burgers (my son calls them Krabby Patties and some of you know what that's all about) but they aren't good enough for me to gloat about.
Topic for today's discussions - how do your kids behave in restaurants? If your children are old enough to have at least decent manners, how do your kids order and eat in restaurants?
"Macaroni - let me finish! - salad."
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I refused to eat "thin spaghetti" which really ment any long noodle. At resturants I would only ever order ravioli, steak, or lobster for meals though I was pretty adventurous with shared appitizers, maybe commitment issues? Salads were strictly cucumber tomato with italian dressing. My parents were pretty lax with the rules, they did the 'try one bite' and 'before you had kind of asparagus you didn't like, this is the kind you like' I am still amazed that there was a time that I didn't like asparagus. At dinner parties I knew from a young age to try it, don't bitch and if I hated it, slip it to my mom or dad without anyone seeing.
I am swisterland...switzerland? fuck it, I am swiss.
on martha s's 'everyday food' show that I so want to try but I don't think that it well work without a food processor. I am dieing without that thing, though I can still use the mini one for my favorite breadcrumb & tomato pasta dealie. I have been unhappy with the store veggie burgers, I don't like the taste but I love almost all other veggie meats & I like the burger crumbles (I'll be doing tacos too, tonight or tomorrow. I bought a cheesy taco hell brand set with everything included but the beef. Yay for kool~ade & not store brand "punch" mix). I love the fantastic tacos, I should have gone to the health store and got that instead.
I am feeling food~happy today, I made my own trail mix. I made a giant tub for about $10 when I was paying $3 for tiny pouches and I didn't even like everything in the store mix. It's natural almonds and salted peanuts with dried blueberries, cranberries, and raisins then tossed in a big bag of dark chocolate m&ms. This well hopefully satisfy my crazy chocolate cravings and be healthier then eating forty bite sized 3 musketeers in one evening. When I fell off the vegan wagon I fell hard 
how do your kids behave in restaurants?
I was surprised, he did great. We were at denny's so it wasn't a high pressure situation (this is the third resturant trip, first he slept through and the second he ate on my lap & was very little). I ordered him a grilled cheese with a little plate of grapes and pineapple. Not too much choice for veggie kids there but he loved it, mostly ate the fruit. He did "feed the dog" like he likes to at home. Even with the post meal grape collection, I was thrilled with how great he was behaving & pleased that he remembered the dog who was stuck moping at home
I am swisterland...switzerland? fuck it, I am swiss.
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I am not sure what behavioral expectations to have for my children in restaurants. Sometimes my son in particular stands or kneels in his seat and wiggles about a little. I don't think he's old enough (3) to sit with his hands folded in his lap, however! Otherwise, my children are very well-behaved. They don't complain about the food. They order their own meals (after we tell them what their choices are). They say "thank you" to the waitperson. They wash their hands before every meal, because I've always made that a requirement even when I'd rather just stay seated than take them to the bathroom.
Oh yeah - one idiosyncrasy with my children is they are cuddle-eaters. They get closer and closer to you as you eat - esp. if you are a loved family member or friend. It's annoying (to me) but it's also funny to watch as by the end of a meal Sophie is *leaning* on Grandma.
Today my children and I went to a taqueria with very authentic, spicy, rad Mexican food. I gave my children a few choices and they chose a steak burrito. This is a big, fat burrito filled with meat, rice, cheese, onions, guac, and rice. They both ate it all up, holding it in their hands and not picking it apart.
I never want to be the parent that makes a separate meal at home; similarly I never want to be the parent who frantically looks for chicken fingers or burgers at the Thai restaurant either. I want my children to appreciate food of all types, especially food like our great Mexi restaurants here! I have tried to help them appreciate and enjoy different foods in the following ways (in relative order of importance): to eat and enjoy many types of food myself (no problem!), to learn to prepare them properly (fun!), to keep snack foods out of my house (easy), and to be mindful of my kids eating between meals so they are hungry at mealtimes (doable, with concentration and forethought).
One of the reasons this is important to me is I was a "picky" eater as a child and I was picked on for this. This was a problem as I was often getting the cheeseburger at the Chinese restaurant and my parents would diss me for being picky. P.S. my father is the least adventurous eater ever, so why were they bugging ME about this? At the same time, they ignored food preferences that really are preferences, ones I carry even now. My mom TO THIS DAY insists I "like" cooked onions. I have never, ever, ever liked them. I am thirty. How many more decades would I have to not like them before she'd at least acknowledge this? (I'm not asking her to cook differently for me although, interestingly enough, I am happy to cook according to my guests' preferences). So as a child my food preferences were simultaneously denigrated while attempts to widen my scope were not pursued in any positive way.
It's been really fun to experience all kinds of food with my children and know we are not having food battles unnecessarily.
"Macaroni - let me finish! - salad."