Sunday, October 4, 2009

Trickery

scroll to bottom of post for Greek lentil soup recipe
Here's a tip I've been wanting to share with all of you. It is just one of my favorite pieces of trickery I use to get my kids to try something new on the food front. I've been waiting to try "Fakeas" aka Lentil Soup on them until they were a bit older, and pulled out all the stops to get them to give it a good try. Because the weather was nice and cool last week, I decided to plan a Picnic dinner out in front of our house. All I did really was have Amanda Lily spread out a blanket and set the "table" while Steven and I poured the Lentil soup and milk. Amanda Lily brought along some friends in the way of my little ponies, while Steven brought his Star Wars figures, and we had ourselves a picnic dinner. Now by looking at the photos, you will see why I went to such lengths to get the kids to try it. The recipe I have is packed with proteins and vitamins, but it's nothing to look at. Most kids (and adults for that matter) eat with their eyes, and the look of this soup is admittedly not appealing, but it really does taste great! Steven ate the entire bowl, and Amanda Lily ate half of hers. She said she was full, and in our house that means you stop eating, so with that, she was done. Both kids said it was good, and didn't give me any trouble eating leftovers two days later for lunch. I know for a fact that Amanda Lily would have NEVER given it a try had we not had the picnic, so it was worth a little extra effort. So, if you are thinking of trying something new on your kids, give the "picnic" a try. If you are feeling really brave, here is my families Greek Lentil soup recipe.






Greek Lentil Soup
1 lb bag lentils
1 large onion, chopped
2 carrots, sliced
4 bay leaves (this ingredient is key)
3 tomatoes, grated, skins cut into bits
1/3 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Soak lentils overnight or for several hours. Drain. Cover with twice as much water as lentils. Add onion, carrots, bay leaves, and tomatoes. Cook until lentils are tender and mushy. This will take 1 1/2 hours, plus. Stir in olive oil. Cook an additional 1/2 hour.
*Serve with crumbled feta cheese and warm rolls.






1 comment:

Deborah said...

great idea with the picnic!!!