This is absolutely delicious:

Curry Tofu, sautéed with onions and garlic, fresh shredded kale and sea asparagus (pictured), on a bed of long-grain brown rice or quinoa. Trust me, it’s very tasty. Now... go ahead and try to get your kids to eat it! Forget about their undeveloped, prepubescent palates, the look of it alone sent my kids into fits of “Eeeeww”, “Disgusting”, “Gross!”. Imagine bright yellow cubes of bean curd, in a nest of lawn trimmings, on a bed of porridge. I have to admit, if it weren’t for the telling aroma, I might find it a bit uncomfortable to have on a plate in front of me for any length of time. So, for young taste buds, it becomes another meal of bite negotiations:

“I’ll have two bites, that’s all!”
“You’ll have as many bites as you’ve had birthdays”
“I can’t do it”
“Then make your own dinner”.

Even this last strategy is beginning to be an empty threat, since my kids are now old enough to muster up a bowl of cereal, or peanut butter sandwich on their own.

I don’t really expect them to eat yellow Styrofoam on pine needles. Heck, I wouldn’t have eaten something like that until I was in my early 20’s. But, now, I pretty much eat, or at least try, everything. I figure this is because my parents had the same dinner table battles with me over disturbingly unattractive menu items. More importantly, I figure it’s why I really enjoy making and devouring such meals as an adult. So, it’s my duty to ensure my kids have the same sophisticated sense of taste. That’s why the fight must go on.

“I’m not eating that, I don’t even know what it is!”
“It’s sea asparagus”
“What?”
“A type of seaweed”.

I may have lost a little ground in the bite negotiations at that point, but they’ll thank me in 20 years.

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