My Girls Play with Food- A Dinner Surprise


A full time job, a blog, freelance work and now the renovation of our rental property has depleted my energy resources, and it is no more evident than when I walk in the door and have to decide on and fix dinner. Imagine my surprise this evening when I walked in the door and smelled the aromas of cooking food and caught Bridget and Molly preparing a surprise dinner for the family! The dinner table was set, and the counter and the stove were full of the fruits of their preparations. (Chefs pictured right on a recent trip to Washington, DC!)

First of all, I have to say this was quite a challenge, since we have not taken time out to go grocery shopping in the past two weeks, just picking up a loaf of bread or hamburger buns as necessary. The girls on their own looked for recipes, searched for the ingredients in our "mother hubbard" pantry and made substitutions as necessary so their dad wouldn't have to go to the store (he spent the entire day pulling down and hauling the plaster ceiling that started falling in!)

I have to say that almost as much fun as eating their food was watching them cooking together in the kitchen- the horseplay, giggling, teasing, (loud music and dancing). But also the teamwork, Molly working independently and Bridget knowing when to help out without being controlling (like frying the fritters in hot oil!) And the pride that they had it what they achieved, both individually and together!

So here is the menu that we had. As an appetizer we had bruschetta with sun-dried tomatoes and garlic, the entree was pork chops with a spicy peanut sauce (this after Bridget tried a cream sauce that sounded good, but ended up "tasting like butt" in Bridget-ese) and mashed potatoes, and for dessert, banana fritters with honey. Now, I took pictures of each course because I wanted to post the results, but in transferring them, I somehow lost the pictures (somewhere in cyberspace, I guess), so the food pictures here are from other sources (the banana fritters pictured are from Allrecipes.com).

So, for all moms (and foodies) out there, you know the pleasure I took in this meal and the consideration that it showed by my daughters. And for young people who are still living at home (or even young adults living near home), consider what it would mean to your parents to come home and see that their children took the time to make a meal for the family (even if that was just homemade tuna salad!) by playing with food!

Comments

Anonymous said…
I once cooked dinner for my whole family when I went home for summer vacation. hehehe...my mom can't wait to have her kitchen back. She couldn't stand having her kitchen in a mess. hahaha
Deborah Dowd said…
Ninja- It was a mess, but how else can they learn to clean up as they cook! And it's the thought that counts! When I think about the things my stepdad ate in the interest of my culinary experiences(I posted about this in my food memories post), I consider myself very lucky!
Anonymous said…
What sweet girls! I love that photo of them.
Deborah Dowd said…
Kristen- Thanks! I think they're pretty special too!
Glenna said…
That's wonderful! Good for them and you.
Anonymous said…
Sweet! I love it when my sons cook for me. The food always tastes wonderful as it is filled with love.