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Mahi-Mahi with Mango Salsa

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Today I was at Whole Foods and got so many wonderful fresh foods. I chose the Mahi Mahi for dinner and picked up a mango to make a salsa to go with it. Years ago, before kids, we used to shop regularly at Hay Day (now Balducci’s) and once got their tropical fruit salsa to go with Red Snapper. Since then we’ve been making different combinations of fruit salsas for certain fish. I love the firm sweet-tartness of mangos, but sometimes we add cantaloupe, honeydew and /or pineapple. With a little red onion, cilantro (try mint if you hate cilantro), lime juice, orange juice, hot pepper (habanero goes nicely with fruit, but be careful as they can be extremely hot. Use a surgical glove as I previously suggested so you don’t burn your eyes later if you forget you’ve got hot pepper juice on your fingers!), it makes such a great topping for fish, pork or chicken. We add the hot peppers last, so that we can separate some for the kids, then have ours as hot as we’d like. Prepare salsa before the fish or vegetables as it should sit in juices and pepper — for the flavors to come out. Basmati Rice, green beans and beet greens rounded out the meal.

I try to always buy my beets with the greens attached, but they don’t always sell them that way unless they’re really fresh. I lop the greens off the top the day I purchase them but the roots (beets) can stay another day or two. Chop the greens with stalks attached into one inch strips and steam until wilted. You can do this anytime during the meal preparation, as you will reheat when it’s time to serve. You also probably want to leave the leafless stalk for a juicer if you have one (unfortunately right now I don’t). Once you are ready to serve, just reheat in sauté pan with pat of butter, pinch of sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste. (You’ll see a pattern here with veggie preparation). Beet greens are similar in texture and color to chard but less minerally and sweeter. My kids really love them.

For the Mahi-Mahi preparation: cut into approximately 5-6 oz size portions, discarding any bloodline (the dark colored section in the middle of the filet), then season with sea salt and pepper. On high in a sauté pan get canola oil (or other mild vegetable oil) hot then add the Mahi-Mahi and reduce heat to med-high. Turn over when fish is nice and golden brown. Reduce heat further to med-low so it’s not getting blackened, but cooking through. It is a bit messy with the splatters, but it only takes a few minutes to cook this way. If you are cooking rice, time the rice and when you see there’s 8 minutes left, it’s a perfect time to cook the fish.

©2010 MyKidsReallyEatThis.com

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CSA

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“What is a CSA?” some might ask, others might already be in one.  Community Supported Agriculture (fruits, vegetables and even meat, eggs and dairy) is one way to reinforce your children’s healthy food habits, help our local economy and the environment.  By buying local you help reduce the impact of transporting the produce to your supermarket; decrease the harmful chemicals used and ingested; and can teach children where food comes from!  We belong to one at a local farm and our first “shared harvest” is ready this week.  I’m so excited!  The amazing flavors of freshly picked produce will convert anyone.  For instance a strawberry from the supermarket tastes bland and like cardboard compared to a freshly picked organic one from our CSA- it’s juicy and bursting with rich, strawberry flavor. 

At most CSA’s you pay a portion before you receive anything— you are actually paying for the seeds, etc. and then pay the remaining cost half-way through.  You share in the bounty from May/June until October/November depending upon the weather, blight, pests, etc.  Last year the wet weather wreaked havoc upon the crops, so we’re hoping for a better year.  It’s the chance you take when going “all natural” and not relying upon hot houses or pesticides to control the outcome.  But what you receive is so much better in nutrition and in taste. 

Each Wednesday we go to the farm, collect our bin full of fruit and vegetables and create our next week’s meals around them.  The kids love to see the cows, sheep and chickens.  They see the gardens with the plants growing and this year will help weed and maybe even harvest.  On an episode of Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution a classroom of children didn’t recognize any vegetables (potatoes, tomatoes, etc) but how many children have seen broccoli before it’s harvested? It’s really a wonderful experience all-round.

Even though I’d grown up with a garden and my mother cooked great foods, I had never cooked Swiss chard, kale, beet greens and some squashes until they came in our bins a few years ago.  So my children had never eaten them before either.  Now they are a regular part of our diet, even when we’re not receiving our bins.  I believe it’s helped them want to eat the food when they’ve seen it grow or discovered a new one in our bin. We also plant a few herbs and vegetables in our garden (tomatoes, chives, mint, basil, potatoes, peppers).  This year I’ve cleared away more of our ever intruding weeds to make room for some beans and salad greens.  I’m not the best gardener, so I hope we get lucky!  At least the kids have fun!

Rainbow chard is an excellent vegetable to introduce.  The colors and textures are great for kids. The stems, unlike kale, can be chopped and served with the leaves.  I wash and chop the leaves and stems into one inch strips, steam for a few minutes, remove from heat and when we’re just about to serve, reheat in a pat of butter, couple of pinches of sea salt and twists of fresh ground pepper.  My boys love the earthy flavor and the rich colors.  

From my reading about foods over the years, I’d learned that certain nutrients from vegetables cross over to your blood better if they’re served with a little bit of fat.  So fat-free salad dressing is not the best way to go.  A tiny bit of butter, a little olive oil, or even some cheese… actually a better way to eat those veggies.  I stick with butter most times because the vegetables flavors aren’t masked.  And kids will eat it!

http://www.newpondfarm.org/shared_harvest

©2010 MyKidsReallyEatThis.com

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Even at parties with pizza, my kids chose…

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Pizza!  Not really a surprise.  Butmy eldest had a piece of broccoli white pie and my youngest had me add some of the shiitakes that I’d sautéed for the appetizer I prepared.  Funny thing was that other kids were saying “yuck”, “eeww” and such at my eldest eating his broccoli pizza, but he didn’t care.  He just told them how ”yummy” it was.   

My middle son was just into the plain pizza and all three had huge ice cream sundaes with Swedish fish, sprinkles (jimmies) and chocolate sauce.  They are very much like other kids with sweet tooths and love of junk food.   

I went to Trader Joe’s today and knew I had some upcoming gatherings to which I’d have to bring something.  The nan is so easy and delicious. I came up with the idea myself for my book club when I didn’t think I had much to serve.   I sautéed the shiitakes and garlic with olive oil and butter, sea salt and pepper.  I wilted the spinach and added a pinch of sea salt, pepper and pat of butter.  When I arrived at the party, I used the oven there to heat the nan at 425F for 3 minutes, spread the goat cheese on it and then add the shiitakes or spinach or both.  Put in oven for another 2 minutes, remove and cut into 2 bite pieces.  Less than 10 minutes total.  A sprinkle of nutmeg might be nice on the spinach too. 

 

Tomorrow I am going out so I got Bool Kogi, a marinated Korean beef dish traditionally served in lettuce leaves, at Trader Joe’s for my babysitter to make for the kids.  It takes just a couple of minutes in a really hot pan or on a grill.  They’ll have string beans and broccoli with it.  I know those are the babysitter’s favorite vegetables.  I’ve known her since I was born and I’ve learned a lot of cooking techniques from her— besides many other wonderful things, including how to feed your kids the right way.

©2010 MyKidsReallyEatThis.com

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Chicken & Mushrooms

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My youngest, 3, loves mushrooms and even asked me to sauté him some the other day for lunch.  Just mushrooms, nothing else.  But my middle child would often say, “I don’t like mushrooms unless they’re in your cream sauce.“  The last few times I’ve served mushrooms in anything besides the cream sauce, he exclaims that he “does like them!“ 

Actually most dinners are accompanied by a whine (from him) of “I don’t want this” and/or “I don’t like …” but every dinner he sits down with the rest of us and eats.  And tonight was no exception, “But I don’t want mushrooms, I don’t want chicken, I just want plain pasta.”  He ate everything on his plate.  He did try to sneak a piece of broccoli onto his brother’s plate so he could have dessert faster, but I caught him before it could happen.

So my tip here is don’t pay any attention to those whines.  I’m not saying don’t ever feed your kids what they want, just that it has to fit in with what is good for them as well.  I am not going to stop what I’m making and cook them something they’d rather eat instead.  And I am not going to cook 2 separate meals, one for me and my husband and one for them.  (Exception is when we’re having something extremely spicy and it is just too hot for their palates.)  My children get to make recommendations for what they’d like, just not after the meal is made. My eldest is craving sushi lately and it even got into a story he wrote today about a raccoon trying to steal his picnic dinner.  After the sword fight he tossed some sushi to the raccoon who had a great meal.  So, I’ll be making or buying some sushi soon.  Oh, and some seaweed salad too because he loves it and likes to bring the leftovers to school as a snack.

 A friend asked me recently what chicken nuggets I’d suggest because she wasn’t sure the brand she was buying was “real” chicken or at least good cuts.  I didn’t know one because as I stated before I don’t really buy them.  I have bought some from Trader Joe’s and I have purchased some from the supermarket, but it’s so rarely and not at all in the past 6 months so I just can’t tell anyone what/who to buy.  Instead I told her about my homemade ones and how delicious they are and how she and her husband would enjoy them as well.  Then she went on to tell me she doesn’t have time to do that.  After I told her how quick they were, and pointed out that she’d save time by not making 2 different meals (which is what she does daily), she agreed but said she won’t change.  Oh well. 

I digress. Often. So, chicken with mushrooms in a white wine cream sauce.

I got d’Artagnan organic chicken thighs with the bones and skins.  You can buy boneless and skinless or remove either, but I didn’t.  You’ll need one container of mushrooms, sliced. (I prefer baby criminis and/or shiitakes for this dish.) Fresh thyme, 1/4-1/2 cup heavy cream, 1/2 cup white wine, 1/2 cup chicken stock or base, 2 cloves garlic, shallots (optional), salt and pepper.  Sauté garlic and shallots in tsp olive oil, then add chicken (if it’s skin is on) until browned, add white wine and chicken stock, reduce heat to med-low and cover (stirring occasionally).  (If it’s boneless/skinless you can add the chicken after the liquids.) In a separate pan sauté the mushrooms with tsp olive oil and butter.  Add some fresh thyme leaves (strip at least 2 stalks and crush in fingers or chop to release aromatic), salt and pepper to taste.  Remove from heat when cooked through. Cook chicken for 25-30 minutes in liquids, add mushrooms, black pepper to taste and heavy cream, stirring well. Cook an additional 5 minutes.  Check for doneness especially with thigh bones.  Taste it before adding more salt as stock or base can be salty.

I served mine tonight over fusilli pasta, but you can use rice, other pastas, noodles, or grains.  And my kids loved it!  I served a side of fresh broccoli, which I steam and shock (run cold water over it to stop it from cooking) then reheat with pat of butter and tiny bit of sea salt and fresh ground pepper (Trader Joe’s organic butter is my favorite— and there is NO margarine in this house, ever). 

I do recommend everyone watch Food Inc and Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution and sign the petition for healthful school lunchesI want to get people to pay attention to what they’re feeding their kids and see that it’s doable to feed them well.

©2010 MyKidsReallyEatThis.com

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Chicken “Nuggets” with Homemade Bread Crumbs

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Necessity is the mother of invention… I was watching a girl friend’s children and it was near dinner time.  I’ve had unfortunate experiences trying to feed one of them (and that child was probably traumatized as well) so I thought, how can I compromise— good food I know they will actually eat without gagging?  Chicken nuggets!!  Well, I don’t often have prepared ones on hand (it’s just not our thing) but I did have some gorgeous fresh Bell & Evans chicken breasts and thought, this should be easy enough.  Well, sometimes we have bread crumbs in the pantry, but they were used.  Boy am I glad.  I made the most delicious bread crumbs to coat the chicken, that not only did my kids and her kids gobble it up… I had enough to feed both parents and their friend when they came to pick up.  And everyone loved it- kids included!

In a Cuisinart I took yesterday’s baguette, a few end pieces of whole grain sandwich bread, olive oil, salt, pepper, and Penzy’s “Mural of Flavor” spice mix.  Mural of Flavor is a combo of Western Mediterranean spices and herbs, which is perfect for chicken.  (I often coat drum sticks in it and roast them for an easy meal), it can  be purchased online http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/shophome.html if you don’t have a store near you.  We have one in Norwalk near Stew’s.  If you can’t do either— a blend of dried oregano, thyme, marjoram, garlic salt, dried onion, lemon pepper and chives would produce a similar product.

I pounded the chicken breasts so they were about 1/4-1/2 inch thick, soaked them in milk and coated them with the rough breadcrumbs.  I cooked them in the oven, turning once, at 350 F until done but still moist, only 10-15 minutes (it depends on the thickness, you can always take one and slice it, if it’s no longer pink and solid its done).  I cut them into nugget size and served them with buttered noodles, spinach and broccoli. You can cut them smaller before you coat them for a more traditional nugget.

Tips for spinach: Baby Spinach only takes a few minutes to prepare— one of the easiest fresh veggies to serve!  In sauté pan add 2 teaspoons water and organic baby spinach.  Heat covered on high until wilted. (Steaming is fine too!)  Drain any excess water.  Keep off heat until ready to eat, then add pat of butter, pinch of sea salt and a couple of twists of black pepper.  Reheat, stirring in the added ingredients until coated and serve.  You can also sauté garlic in a little olive oil and/or butter then add spinch(Garlic powder for those really quick meals).

http://mykidsreallyeatthis.tumblr.com/recipes

©2010 MyKidsReallyEatThis.com

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PEI Mussels

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I love all seafood and my children like most kinds.  I’ve told most people that my “go to” meal for them (one I know they will finish happily) is salmon with rice and veggies.  But mussels became a regular dish two years ago when we were in New Hampshire with a girl friend and her two girls.  All five kids loved the mussels we moms ordered, that now we get them/prepare them often when we’re together.  My three year old is the biggest fan.  He orders them out at restaurants too.   He was the one who pleaded with me to buy some the other day.

  • One pound, cleaned and de-bearded PEI mussels
  • 1/2 TBSP olive oil
  • 1-2 cloves garlic chopped
  •  1 shallot chopped
  • handful of chopped fresh chives, parsley and/or basil
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 1 plum tomato chopped

 Lightly sauté shallots for two minutes over high heat in olive oil.  Add the garlic and cook another minute or two until just done but not brown.  My husband’s trick: add the white wine and take it off heat it stops it from cooking further  – esp. if you’re not ready to eat quite yet.  I always just added the mussels and everything else but the garlic and oil got too brown (it changes the flavor).    I usually use the NZ Sauvignon Blanc we’ve got around (hint: Black Box wines have great value and taste and keep wine fresher than an open bottle.  It’s 4 bottles in one box, so easy for backyard bbq’s!) but any drinkable white will do.  About 1/2 cup for 1 pound of mussels.  Add mussels, fresh herbs and tomato.  Cook covered on med-high, stirring once or twice, until open and cooked through- about 8-10 minutes.  Serve in large bowl with crusty bread on side for dipping.  Amazingly you won’t need salt!  The mussels are usually salty enough.

My kids eat them and several of my friends’ children do as well!  If you like seafood, but think they won’t just introduce it to them… have them try yours and see if they’ll bite!

©2010 MyKidsReallyEatThis.com

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Arugula, Beet Salad and Haloumi Cheese

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A friend asked me about Haloumi cheese.  I posted a photo of a salad at the beginning of this blog.  A goat and sheep’s milk cheese from Cyprus, I found Haloumi on almost every restaurant menu in Sydney, Australia and Wellington, NZ when I was there in February.   It is very similar to Greek Feta in texture and you can grill it or sauté it without it really melting; it caramelizes on the outside and is easy to handle.  It’s quite salty and goes so nicely with beets, nuts and a slightly bitter green like arugula (rocket).  It comes in an odd shaped block and I slice it first then sauté it. 

As far as the rest of the salad: I usually buy several fresh beets (I use the greens steamed with a little butter, sea salt and pepper as a separate side dish) and chop the tops and fringes off, give a little rinse and then wrap in foil. Roast for 40-60 minutes at 350. I poke with a skewer to see if it’s done. Once they’ve cooled for a few mintues, I take a paring knife and paper towel to peel off the outer skin— it just slides off.  You might want to don rubber gloves (we get surgical ones for chopping garlic too – keeps the smell at bay) so your hands don’t turn red. I like them slightly warm like the cheese on the cold greens. My eldest son usually won’t let all of them actually make it to the top of the salad, he will gobble the slices up as quickly as they’re sliced. I used pecans or walnuts and a light mustard vinaigrette.

One short cut– Brianna’s French Style Mustard Vinaigrette (it has the artichoke on the label). It is so yummy- a little peppery and not over-seasoned.  I buy it at my local supermarket (a family run chain of 3 stores) along with the Haloumi.  I’ve found the cheese, near the Feta, in the larger chain stores too. 

I like arugula for the contrast of peppery-ness to the saltiness of the cheese.  Then add in the sweetness of the beets, the nuttiness of pecans or walnuts and lastly the sharpness of the vinaigrette… a perfect combination.  And I swear my kids eat it!

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