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Friday, November 16, 2007

Fun with Food!

Inspired by someone--an imaginary friend, I think?  (Whoever you were, sorry I forgot your contribution) We've started having a Cuisine of the Week.  Each week, we will have the foods of a different land.  Because on Monday I had to go to a meeting and needed to just throw some spaghetti on the table, we started with Italy.  I drew a map of Italy, showing the different regions and each night I've written the food we've had on the region from which it has come.  So Monday was plain ol' sketti with red sauce.  Thought to have originated in the central regions.  Tuesday night,  we had a broccoli and cheese risotto (northern Italy) and a tasty lentil dish I can no longer locate online. Lentil dishes were popularized by Roman Jews.  Wednesday night was parmesan polenta from Vento and a Tuscan Bean dish that was aMAZing for lunch two days later.  Thursday was a meeting day, too so we had pizza--Campania! (I know, American pizza is not Italian pizza.  But I was busy).  Tonight we had Sardinian hard boiled eggs (yum) and Pasta a la Norma from Sicily.  Also yum.  Tomorrow will be Gnocchi (Calabria region) al Pesto (Genova).  Next week we're only here two days.  I think we'll do two days of British food and then flee to a Thanksgiving feast.  Just like the Pilgrims.

ETA:  Yes, this does make me a cooler mom than you.  But you can do it too!  And the best thing is my kids are so much more willing to try new food this way.  Just like with Cheese Night.  On an ordinary night, if I'd said, "It's pasta with eggplant!" they'd have looked at me like I had utterly lost my mind.  But when I say "Pasta al a Norma is from Sicily, this little island that it appears that the boot is kicking!"  They're all "mmm, this is really good!"  Now, I wasn't able to get my non bean-eaters to eat beans or lentils, but they at least are trying the stuff and are game.  So lets see where this goes, shall we?

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