Strollerderby : eating

You Can't Scare Your Kids Out of an Eating Disorder

JeanneSager — Fri, 15 May 2009 14:00:00 GMT

They seem like the perfect mix of over-the-top drama and real-life cautionary tales to scare your kids straight. But all those books out there warning about the dangerous world of eating disorders?

Could be helping your kids advance their disordered eating.

A look at some books written for teens that fall in the "children's lit" category over on the New York Times' Well Blog hit home for me especially because I WAS one of those teen girls who, pardon the pun, but ate up the stories of teenage bulimics. I wanted to read about someone I could identify with.

But even as I read the horrors of girls whose bodies had begun to grow excess hair to make up for the lack of fat to keep them warm, of girls who landed in hospitals weighing what they did as elementary schoolers, I wasn't consciously thinking "ooh, can't wait until I land in a clinic for the eating disordered, wonder if my parents' insurance will cover the costs." What I was thinking was "interesting, she eats a brightly colored food first so when she throws up, she'll know by the color in the toilet that she's gotten to the bottom of her stomach contents."

It's why today I'm loathe to tell my daughter horror stories to scare her straight on anything. Because before you reach the awful ending, there are always the details that fascinate, that often overwhelm kids with their one-track minds, that are entirely more enticing than the sobering after-thought of a consequence.

Although I'm wary of blaming a book for a child's struggle with an eating disorder (ninety nine times out of one hundred, the seeds for that have already been sewn), just as I scoff at the idea that a video game is solely to blame for a child's violent tendencies, any book, movie, game, what have you, that shares intimate details of how someone navigates a dangerous path is a potential how-to manual in the hands of our kids.

It's why I read this warning about eating disorder books as just another reason parents can't pass the buck off onto a book, a movie, a CD. If you're going to keep your kid from disordered eating, get wise to what it means to have an eating disorder, find out the warning signs and then TALK to your kids. Let them read books, sure, but read them yourselves so you know what's in them. Then talk about them.

Because if all you're doing is trying to scare your kids into being good, it isn't going to work.

Image: UniversityofWisconsin

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Some "Baby Food" Less Healthy Than a Cheeseburger

Shannon LC Cate — Thu, 07 May 2009 16:30:00 GMT

The Children's Food Campaign has released a new report analyzing the nutritional value of some of Britain's most popular baby and toddler foods, finding them worse for health than the average cheeseburger or chocolate cookie, claims the Guardian.

Of the foods surveyed, only half were found to be low in sugar, sodium and saturated fat--some even contained the dreaded transfat. But the worst culprit for unhealthy baby food was the Heinz company, of whose surveyed products, only one quarter were deemed to have sufficiently low amounts of sugar, sodium and fat.

Two Heinz products were singled out for headliner status. Farley's Husks, were higher in sugar than chocolate digestives, while mini cheese biscuits were found to have more fat than a McDonald's quarter pounder with cheese. Both are foods aimed at beginning eaters and toddlers.

Okay, so these foods are unhealthy. Do they claim to be healthy? Do parents merely assume anything for a baby or toddler is healthy? I feel that while it would be nice to see the food industry regulated better in certain areas, determining what is a good diet for myself and my young children is my responsibility. In the line of this duty, I take nothing for granted. I read labels, determine what's in the processed food I give my children, then mete out such foods sparingly, focusing instead on whole foods in a nice variety.

Contrary to some opinion, this actually doesn't take a great deal of extra time or energy on my part. Washing and/or peeling and/or slicing a piece of fruit really isn't that much harder than opening a box of crackers and shaking a pile of them into a bowl. And even when the fruit is organic, it's usually cheaper. And it doesn't take a master's degree in nutrition to know it's healthier than the crackers.

So sure, shame on Heinz for marketing unhealthy food to parents. Shame on them for basically trying to get us to train our kids to expect food to taste sugary, salty, and fatty, so they'll have lifelong junk food customers. But ultimately? Shame on us for not taking the four extra seconds to read the back of a box before we throw it in the grocery cart. Really, it ain't that tough.

image: junkfoodnews.net

It's Not Swine Flu - Your Kid Has Whine Flu

JeanneSager — Tue, 05 May 2009 14:31:00 GMT

Replace coughing with sputtering. Upset stomach with lying on stomach and pounding fists. It sounds like your kid has a serious case of the pandemic whine flu.

Don't worry, we're here to help. With the help of the AP, we've put together an in-depth look at what you need to know about the whine flu:

Q: How easy is it to catch this virus?

A: It spreads easily among preschoolers, elementary age and teenage kids. Marked by the elongation of vowels and a particularly grating addition to their voice, you'll know it when you hear it.

Q: How dangerous is it?

A: To parents at the end of their rope, it is like nails on a chalkboard. Don't walk, parents. Run.

Q: Could I have some immunity?

A: Perhaps. Are you equipped with noise-cancelling headphones and a fully packed playlist for your iPod?

Q: Is it treatable?

A: Yes. Time out helps. Or if that's not your bag, the old "ignore them" trick works quite nicely. When in doubt, pack on those headphones.

Q: Is there a vaccine?

A: Not yet. But if there was, we promise it wouldn't cause autism. Pinky swear.

Q: Why does CDC stress hand-washing?

A: Because kids put their hands in their butts and in their mouths. Nuff said.

Q: Do hand gels work better?

A: I suppose - if you want them all over your walls. But getting back to the real disease at hand:

Q: How long do I have to worry if I just got back from Mexico?

A: That all depends. Did you leave the kids there?

Q: How long should I stay home if I get the flu?

A: Leave. Immediately, if not sooner. Separation from the whine will only strengthen your resolve.

Q: Why are so many schools closing?

A: Teachers can't handle it either. Something about iPods banned by administration.

Q: Can pets get sick?

A: Absolutely. Pushed outdoors to pay for turning your daughter's favorite doll into a chew toy, the dog will begin to show symptoms rapidly.

Q: Can flu spread on imported fruits and vegetables from Mexico?

A: If yours are the type to put up a fight over fruits and veggies, I'm afraid so. Tell them they're magic trees and coat them in cheese, and symptoms will dissipate.

Q: Is it safe to fly? How about the subway?

A: Are you bringing the kids? What about Joe Biden?

Q: Do I need a mask in crowded areas?

A: If you'd rather folks don't know you're the parent of that wheedling, cajoling voice, then you might want to make the investment.

Q: Why hasn't the U.S. closed the border with Mexico?

A: I don't know. I couldn't hear the TV over the demands for strawberry-flavored yogurt in a drinkable cup.

Q: I have a summer trip planned to a state with lots of cases. Should I cancel?

A: Funny thing, vacation seems to bring out the worst of this particular disease. Case in point: "are we theeeeeere yeeeeeeet?"

Any of these symptoms sounding awfully familiar?

Image: Parents

Source (of the questions): AP

Hannah Montana's Gone Fruity

JeanneSager — Sun, 03 May 2009 16:16:00 GMT

I'm all for a brand using its sway with kids for good, but do we really need Hannah Montana bananas?

What about Mickey Mouse apples? High School Musical avocados?

Disney has gotten healthy to face the childhood obesity crisis head on, cutting ties with McDonald's (you'll notice there are no Disneyfied happy meals on your summer road trip this year) and slapping giant mouse ears on good, wholesome fare.

So, is it working? According to a look by the Washington Post, yes. When supermarket chain Winn-Dixie linked its bagged apples to High School Musical, sales spiked by forty-seven percent. The Disney Garden line is now appearing in eighteen of the top twenty mass and grocery retailers in the states, and sales grew seventy percent from 2007 to 2008.

I can admit I've fallen victim. My daughter needed a grab and go snack, and she saw Mickey apple slices on the shelves. She asked because they were Mickey. I bought because they were apples. With the same characters in a different aisle on sugar-packed "fruit" snacks, the real thing worked for me. We've also been known to pick up Princess soup because she begged for princesses, and my first introduction to Hannah Montana came in the supermarket when my daughter started shrieking about the pop star on her yogurt. Again, yogurt, much better than potato chips! Trust me - their branding is working on my impressionable three-year-old.

But I'm not sure how I feel about Disney selling health food to my kid. Is it better than peddling the junk? Sure. But does it have to be either or? I shy away from Sesame Street's organic pasta and breastfast offerings too, because as much as we all love Cookie Monster, he's not making me feel better about a processed box of waffles. And I'm not ready for the forecasted Mickey whole wheat chicken nuggets to replace the homemade version I make and freeze in my own kitchen.

Frankly, I'd prefer my kid make her food choices based on things like "amount of whole grains included" or "no trans-fats." I'd like to think she'd pick up an apple because we live in New York and have raised her on some of the nation's best apples, not because there's a cartoon character stamped on the flesh. Ditto avocados. They're fantastically flavorful and you can't have guacamole (yum) withouth them - so do we really need Zac Efron's mug to get them in my cart and on her plate?

Disney is such a powerful brand, I'm happy to see it inching back from the heart attack on a plate foodstuffs its traditionally backed. For parents who have had to measure just buying a requested item over the tantrum in the middle of the supermarket, it's definitely good news. Trust me, been there, heard the screeching. But I can't help wishing food would just go back to being food, no Hannah Montana, no Elmo, no Mickey. It's why I've fought the organic branding too.

Because in fifteen years, she won't be picking food because it has her favorite superhero printed on the front of the bag. She'll just have to go with her gut, and I'd like to think it's one filled with healthy choices.

Image: Washington Post

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What's For Dinner Dad Week 2 - Wednesday

Brett Singer — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 01:20:00 GMT

Well, it happened.

I just couldn't bring myself to cook tonight.

That sounds too dramatic. I was up too late last night and now I'm tired and feel sort of blah. (My new mantra: "You do not have swine flu. You do not have swine flu.") So I decided that it was time to order in.

The cuisine of choice: sushi.

When it comes to Japanese food, Thing 1 eats cucumber rolls, edamame, and tomago (sweet egg on rice, very tasty). Thing 2 is much more fickle but he'll usually eat edamame and teriyaki chicken. I love sushi, sashimi, dumplings, rolls, whatever. I think I could eat Japanese food almost every night. I ordered the cuke rolls, tomago, extra edamame, and a dinner box that included some shrimp gyoza, salmon sashimi and chicken teriyaki for Thing 2.

Thing 1 ate like he hadn't been fed in days. A lot of cucumber rolls, two pieces of tomago, a ton of edamame, and then a couple of cookies for desert. Then he was still hungry, so he added an apple and a small bowl of grapes.

Thing 2 was more of a pain. He ate some edamame and chicken, then demanded cookies. I said no, not until he ate more chicken. Eventually I agreed to feed it to him (I know, not a good idea, but I was tired and I caved), and he had a couple of cookies and an apple. So not a great night, but it could have been worse.

One of the problems with ordering out is that it makes me lazy. Meaning that tomorrow I may once again not feel like cooking. We'll see if I can resist the siren call of the Menu File.

Reminder: I'm tweeting about my cooking all week; follow me at twitter.com/brettsinger. For just the dinner related tweets, search for the hashtag #dinnerdad. Or just click the link. (You don't have to know what a hashtag is in order to read the tweets.)

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What's For Dinner Dad Week 2 - Tuesday

Brett Singer — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 03:03:00 GMT

Not sure what the weather is where you are, but in New York today, it was hot. HOT. Fry an egg on the sidewalk hot.

OK, not that hot, but still. Hot. So I really didn't feel like cooking.

Thing is, I defrosted a nice package of lean organic ground beef. Very tasty. Grass-fed, if memory serves. The cows were treated to pedicures. Good stuff.

So I bit the bullet and made some burgers.

That's our George Foreman Grill, purchased during a period in our lives when we had no oven. (Long story, not very interesting.) It doesn't get much use, but for burgers it's great. The removable plates make cleanup a lot easier; I used to have one of the non-removable plate models and cleaning it was very annoying.

Going with my Monday meatloaf success, I mixed in some ketchup, a raw egg and a little matzo meal, along with salt, pepper, a tiny amount of basil and an even smaller amount of onion powder. That last item I thought could make the kids revolt, but to my surprise both ate without complaint. I myself had two burgers; I was hungry and they were good.

For a side, I made ravioli, these little shapes that both kids typically devour with almost frightening gusto. Not sure of the brand; I'll post it next time I cook 'em.

Menu for Tuesday:

- Hamburgers on potato rolls (not the healthiest bread around but, y'know, tastes good).

- Ravioli

- Raw carrots

Funny thing happened with the last item. Thing 2 said "no carrots." He metaphorically dug in his heels. He protested like the Ghandi without a cause that he sometimes is. So I went with the optometrist method of parenting (which is working less and less the older he gets): Do you want one carrot or a half a carrot? After some sleight of hand where I broke a couple of carrots in half, he informed me that he would eat TWO carrots, and then he did. Again, as far I'm concerned, I won that round.

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What's For Dinner Dad Week 2 - Monday

Brett Singer — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 02:12:00 GMT

Tonight I managed to remember to defrost something -- a package of ground turkey.

Three choices:

- Turkey burgers, which the kids never seem to like and even I have to admit I do a poor job with.

- Meatballs, which I love and the kids tolerate, but they require more attention since I have to keep turning them in the pan, not to mention the time spent rolling the meat into balls.

- Meatloaf. Mix up, throw it in a pan, bake it, eat.

No contest. Meatloaf wins.

One of the things that I've learned since feeding the children at night became my job is that usually it's not a good idea to announce the menu for the evening, unless said menu contains the words "pizza" or "french fries." So this time I just put the plates out and figured I'd see what happened. Both children ate everything. No "this is no good", "take the skin off" (even though there is no skin), "why is the meat blue?" (That last one hasn't actually ever happened -- yet.) Plus, between my mother, my wife, myself and the kids, the meatloaf was almost completely eaten. This is, I believe, a first. I think the reason is that I made a good batch.

I'm not good with recipes, but I do try to learn from past culinary mistakes. This time I put the ground turkey in a bowl and added a generous amount of matzo meal and ketchup. Then basil, oregano, a little pepper and a teensy amount of salt. Then an egg, and finally -- more ketchup. It came out moister (is that a word?) than usual, so I think I found the correct matzo meal-ketchup-meat ratio. We'll see what happens next time.

So here's Monday's menu:

- Meatloaf

- Tri-color Rotini (a fancy way of saying "pasta")

- Carrots (never let it be said that I don't read the comments)

More tomorrow, because one of the other things I've learned is that these kids want to eat EVERY FRICKIN' DAY. I mean, sheesh.

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Grow Baby, Grow!

JeanneSager — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 20:38:00 GMT

When pumpkins started sprouting out of my compost pile last year all of their own accord, I was probably even more excited than my daughter. I didn't have to figure out how to get those things to grow!

The top two things holding most parents back from growing their own food? Space and fear . . . fear that they don't have the money, the time, or the know-how.

Turns out you don't need much of any of the above.

A Georgia family made this video for Earth Day, but it's appropriate for all spring long - and for every family. Living in a city area, BreeAnne and Courtney (owners of one of my favorite clothing stores) show you don't need much land or much money to grow a few things. And their daughter has more fun than you can shake a worm at (no, really, watch!).

They're not growing much, but even just some tomatoes and peppers have the makings of some yummy tomato sauce (and if you've ever eaten a fresh-out-of-the-garden tomato, you have now lived long enough to die and go to some food heaven somewhere . . . seriously).

Inspired? Check out this great composting for kids how-to and this primer on gardening with kids and get eating.

Image: Kids Gardening

What's For Dinner Dad - Thursday

Brett Singer — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 22:45:00 GMT

Tonight I presented Thing 1 with a choice.

- Lamb chops (different kind this time, a sirloin chop)

- Chicken drumstick

He chose chicken drumstick. So that's what they're having.

I had already defrosted the lamb, so I broiled it with some olive oil, salt and pepper and a splash of Worcestshire sauce. It came out OK, but I overcooked it, which is something I do often. I have an irrational fear of undercooking meat. I've never done it, hence the "irrational" part. We have a meat thermometer that I've started to use, but I didn't this time.

One of the things I need to realize about cooking is that sometimes it's better to pay attention. Today I was talking to a friend on the phone while broiling the lamb and also making ravioli for the kids. That's not the craziest amount of multitasking I've ever done, but it did lead to overcooked meat. (Well, that and my irrational fear of undercooking.)

So! Tonight's menu for the kids is:

- Chicken: Thing 1 loves drumsticks (he became animated at the mention of having one for dinner), Thing 2 I cut up some chicken breast and put it on a plate. Sometimes he even eats it.

- Cucumber: They really prefer this to carrots, and I'm too tired today to argue.

- Raviloli: there's this brand of ravioli that comes in shapes and both kids could eat a pound of it at a time. I'm lactose-intolerant and avoid most dairy, so, you know, more for them. The smell of cheese makes me nauseous, but for them I'll make the sacrifice.

For me, I'm going to eat the lamb in a bowl with some pasta and marinara sauce. (From a jar -- I'm not ready to start making "Sunday gravy.") Later I'll eat a salad, because I need to do more of that. I've realized that I prefer eating small meals here and there rather than three big ones. Not sure if that will last, but I think that's healthier so I'm going to stick with it as long as possible.

Tomorrow I'm thinking take out, but we'll see. Maybe I'll get inspired.

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What Are Your Family's Favorite Foods?

Brett Singer — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 17:00:00 GMT

Today's Daily Babble email newsletter (which you can sign up for on our homepage, if you don't already get it) mentioned one of the users in the Babble Playground. One of the questions in her profile is "What are your family's favorite foods?" The answer?

The three P's...PBJ, Pizza and Pasta!

So I was wondering what you and yours are eating over at your house. And can I come over for dinner? (Just kidding. Although if you've got any leftovers...)

At my house, the three P's are definitely popular. Thing 1 also likes pastrami, but not on a sandwich. It's like a kiddie Atkins thing. Thing 2 lives on apple sauce, yogurt, and string cheese, preferably the "double" kind (Polly-O Twists). Both kids like apples, but only Thing 1 eats bananas. Cookies are popular, but that doesn't count.

But enough about me! How about you? What's popular over at your place?

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What's For Dinner Dad - Wednesday

Brett Singer — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 21:30:00 GMT

After two nights of cooking, it's time for.. leftovers!

I try to cook with a high leftover yield. Why? Because there are plenty of nights when I either don't have time to cook, or just don't want to. When it's just me, I can piece together a meal out of variants food remnants found around the house. (A comedian used to do a bit about a single guy at home who had corn and bacon for dinner. Because that's what he had. His reasoning was "I like corn. I like bacon. Why not put them together?" It was funnier when he said it.) For the kids I feel like I need to be a little bit more concerned about what they eat. Most of the time.

So tonight's meal will be the following:

- Last night's chicken: Batch #2 (see above), which was fried, went over much better than the baked version. I didn't exactly get a standing ovation, but I also didn't get any complaints, which I consider to be a victory. It's called low standards, people.

- Pasta: I'll make a fresh batch of whole wheat penne. My kids don't seem to care anymore what shape pasta they are served, which makes life easier. I always preferred shells as a young'un, but only in medium size - no large, no small. Neither child seems to notice that they are eating whole wheat rather than white noodles, which makes me feel better. It's also healthier for them. But it also makes me feel better.

- Carrots: they've only been eating cucumber lately, so its time to change it up. I also have this idea in my head that cucumbers aren't all that healthy. Not that they're UNhealthy. Just not particularly packed with nutrients. Like iceberg lettuce. I could be wrong about this of course.

That's it for tonight. Depending on time, tomorrow could be meatloaf, or turkey burgers. Or delivery. You never know.

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Kids Put Pregnant Women's Food Cravings to Shame

JeanneSager — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 13:03:00 GMT

I heard the pickles and ice cream wives tale through my pregnancy and never hit on it. But since my daughter came along, I've found out what the real wacky food combinations look like.

They're perpetually on my daughter's plate.

Ever notice your child would eat ketchup, not as a condiment but as a full meal if you let them? Ever get requests for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with some mayo on top? Or have them beg for you to put salt and pepper on their applesauce?

CafeMom did a run-down on the weirdest thing their kids have eaten, but those were truly scary (part of a plastic spoon? strawberry scented shampoo?). I'm not talking about "Aaaack, call poison control" accidental ingestions here. It's the foods that are perfectly acceptable for ingestion but mixed up in strange combinations that get me.

I'm sure some of my favorite foods would be considered off the wall to most folks, but I'm happy to report that I grew out of my strangest kid food cravings. Anyone up for a bowl of spaghetti, pretzels tomatoes and Crunch bars slathered in ranch dressing? Didn't think so.

So what's the strangest food combo your kids have cooked up? Will you let them eat it?

Image: SixWordstoChangetheWorld

What's For Dinner Dad - Tuesday - UPDATE: Photos added

Brett Singer — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 01:00:00 GMT

I went one for two with yesterday's lamb chops. Thing 1 ate them with no problems, although he was uninterested in the japanese apple pear I cut up as an appetizer. Thing 2 pitched a fit when I had the nerve to suggest that he eat lamb; after he calmed down, I told him he had to try it, which he did, and informed me that he didn't like it. Fine. He did eat the fruit, however. I ate two of the chops for lunch today, so that was a good thing.

Tonight: chicken breasts. Lots of them.

On Sunday we went shopping to an actual supermarket (we've been spoiled by order a lot of FreshDirect because it's, well, easier). We stocked up a bit, so I used that as motivation to clean out the freezer. Finding lots of things that weren't exactly purchased recently, I vowed to cook the old stuff first.

I broke that vow almost immediately by makng the lamb chops. Oh well.

I did make two packages of frozen dumplings for myself, since the kids don't like them. (For what it's worth, Stew Leonard's vegetable dumplings are significantly tastier than the ones from Trader Joe's, which seems odd.) Today I decided to tackle two packages of thinly sliced chicken breasts.

I find cooking chicken to be a more difficult task than cooking other meats such as lamb. Why? Unless you're making a whole roasted bird, you need some sort of prepartion and seasonings. (Actually, even a whole roasted bird should probably be seasoned.) Lamb chops I can, and often do, just throw into a greased pan lined with tinfoil and broil away. When I've tried that with chicken breasts the results are sligtly tastier than cardboard. Slightly.

Using a tip I learned from my mother, I put some water and an egg in a bowl. Then I filled a larger bowl (I used a pasta serving dish because it was nearby) with matzo meal, adding oregano, basil and pepper as spices. (We have a lot of extra matzo meal leftover from Passover. MUST. USE. LEFTOVERS.) Then I dipped the chicken in the egg/water mixture, smooshed it into the matzo meal and spices, and put it in a pan lined with cooking-sprayed tin foil. Oven at 375 degrees. Cook for ten minutes (while watching ESPN), turn chicken over. Cook for another ten minutes (also while watching ESPN -- NFL draft is coming up, need to be prepared). Decide that chicken needs another five minutes, so I do that. Ignore ESPN this time so I can prepare the NEXT batch of chicken. Since only one package fit in the oven pan, I thought I'd try cutting the other pack into smaller pieces and frying them in Mazola.

This is partly an experiment. I generally cook with olive oil, partly out of habit, and partly out of a notion that it's healthier (I don't know if it is and I don't feel like checking right now). The thing is, I think my children don't like the taste. So I'm going to see if using vegetable or corn oil makes a difference. Note that I'm not deep frying the chicken, just lightly simmering it.

This also gives me the opportunity to adjust the spices. The oven batch was a bit too peppery. I didn't mind that much, but Thing 1 currently balks at anything remotely spicy. I'll try adding more matzo meal and a little salt to balance things out.

So tonight's menu at Casa De Singer will be the following:

- Matzo meal encrusted chicken breasts, baked or fried

- Pasta with butter

- Cucumber

- Sliced apple (it makes the meal look more meal-like)

I'll let you know how it goes over.

Remember: I'm tweeting (grrr) about my cooking all week; follow me at twitter.com/brettsinger. For just the dinner related tweets, search for the hashtag #dinnerdad. Or just click the link. (You don't have to know what a hashtag is in order to read the tweets.)

UPDATE: at the moment, Twitpic seems to be down. I'll post the pics when and if it comes back to life.

UPDATE 2: Twitpic is back so here are some snaps of tonight's meal.

Good, but too much pepper. Kids won't like it. Since I was making another batch anyway I added more matzo meal and a little salt. It worked, both kids cleaned their plates without complaint. Whoo-hoo.

Batch #2, fryin' away. My mother reminded me of something that I'll try next time: add a little margarine to the oil to give it more flavor.

The second batch of chicken was greasier, but also tastier, than the first. Isn't that always the way? Not too greasy, however.

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What's For Dinner Dad - Monday - UPDATED With Photos And Tweets

Brett Singer — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 01:00:00 GMT

UPDATE: I'm going to tweet (I don't like the phrase but I'll use it) and also post pics via Twitpic from time to time.

You can follow my tweetering at twitter.com/brettsinger. For just the dinner related tweets, search for the hashtag #dinnerdad. Or just click the link. (You don't have to know what a hashtag is in order to read the tweets.)

Here are today's cooking pics:

The kids' plate of fruit...

vs. my plate of fruit:

The lamb chops, not quite done. They were tasty. Thing 1 ate it, Thing 2 pitched a fit but eventually tried one bite and decided he didn't like it. I declared victory. Small victory, but a victory all the same.

Original post follows:

*-*-*-*-*

Since this is Food Week here on Babble, I thought I would share what I'll be serving my children each day.

First up: Monday.

A little background: I'm not a great cook but I do my best. My kids have evolved from being fairly open-minded munchers into a pair of picky people when it comes to noshing. Thing 1 doesn't like anything with sauce or skin (he's actually asked me to remove the "skin" from a piece of steak, and while I admit to being only a so-so chef, my steak does not have "skin" on it), and Thing 2 will go through stages where he only eats yogurt, apple sauce and Oatmeal Squares. Oh, and mini-bagels. Very nutritious.

Because of pick-up schedules, I typically have more time on Monday than I do on other days. Today, however, something came up that took away some of that time. How does this relate to dinner? Because dinner requires cooking, and cooking takes time.

Tonight we're going back to an old favorite -- lamb chops. By "old favorite" I mean that both kids ate them a couple of years ago. Then they stopped. Note that I didn't change how I prepared the chops, they just decided that they didn't like eating them anymore. But we need more variety, so it's back. Here's Monday's menu:

- Lamb Rib Chops: I splurged; normally I go with the basic shoulder chops but these are tastier and hopefully the kids will, you know, eat them.
- Whole wheat pasta with butter: the only way my children will eat pasta.
- Raw carrots and/or cucumber: this is one thing that my wife and I have managed to achieve in terms of their food intake. Every dinner they eat some carrots or cucumber or both. That way at least some vegetable gets into their bodies every day.

More tomorrow, because these kids want to eat dinner every day. Sheesh. When I was young, we were lucky to have dinner once a month! And we had to walk uphill while we ate! In a snowstorm! Without shoes! (None of that is true.)

Image: SXC (my chops will proably not look this good but that's OK)

UPDATE: removed the stock photo with actual pics of the dinner I made.

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You Are What Your Mother Didn't Eat

JeanneSager — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 17:34:00 GMT

My mother always told me I was made of spinach - because that's what she ate during her pregnancy. Constantly. To the point where my father threatened not to come home for dinner again, lest he be presented with yet another plate of green stuff coated in cream sauce or sauted in olive oil.

It turns out, I'm only partially right. A new study says the genes of a fetus can mutate in the womb, based on what a mother ISN'T eating.

We all knew pregorexia was bad for baby, but this study points out that it's more than a lack of development that's being caused but actual development in the wrong direction.

The study at the University of Utah looked at pregnant rats to find how a lack of certain nutrients in the womb can create risk factors for certain diseases down the line. A mother rat whose fetus did not get proper nutrition was born smaller than his counterparts but also primed for heart disease, diabetes and other diseases. The researchers hope that this study could hold the key to helping develop a regimen for mothers to prevent health problems down the road for their babies.

Some of this is pretty common sense - you have to pack in the nutrition when you're pregnant (and when you're breastfeeding, natch). But knowing which nutrients are most important could be a lifesaver for moms like me - the moms who threw up for seven months. Did you eat differently when you were pregnant?

Image: CafePress

Playdate: High Fructose Corn Syrup Freak Outs Be Gone

JeanneSager — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 17:33:00 GMT

Does high fructose corn syrup send you into a tizzy? Not eating it, I mean, but avoiding it?

Linked to diabetes in kids and other health risks, high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) comes from corn (duh) that's been milled, made into a syrup then adjusted with the addition of enzymes. It's usually part glucose/part fructose. And all those freaky ads featuring the woman who convinces her partner that studies show HFCS is just like sugar come from the folks who do that refining. Which basically means you can't trust them.

Want a quick primer on how to avoid HFCS? A guest post by the writer of Life Less Sweet appeared on Food With Kid Appeal, highlighting the highest HFCS offenders. The scary ones? Breadcrumbs (we use a fair amount of those in my house), Children's Tylenol and sweet pickles. Throw in sushi (sorry, I'm going to ick that one - I'm a vegetarian), tonic water and Worcestershire sauce, and you're starting to hit a lot of families.

To find out what else you should avoid and pick out some safe eats (maple syrup, yum!), check out the piece.

Did it make you think twice about dinner tonight?

Image: Food With Kid Appeal

Who's Eating Kid Cereals? Us

JeanneSager — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 20:30:00 GMT

That silly rabbit and leapin' leprechaun are in for a surprise. It isn't kids they need to protect their sugar-coated cereals from. It's adults.

A new study says fifty-eight percent of kid-centric cereals are being spooned up morning after morning by folks who don't sit down to watch Saturday morning cartoons and the requisite Trix and Lucky Charms commercials.

The American Dietetic Association found that "adult" cereals are generally pretty healthy, and research has shown that seventy-eight percent of successful dieters eat breakfast on a daily basis. So are we figuring that it's parents who lose weight because they're keeping the "bad" stuff off of their shelves, leaving other adult Americans to bulk up on Boo Berry?

After all, remember all that news last year that two-thirds of kid's cereals are loaded down with sugar and are really bad for them. Considering the numbers, less than half of kid cereal eaters are kids, that means either the adults eating aren't parents or they're buying and hiding the sweet treats from the kids.

I don't know how things work at your house, but I can't get much by my daughter. Slip a box of Froot Loops in the grocery cart, and she's bound to be bouncing off the walls by the time we start unpacking those reusable bags, begging for a bowl of toucan treats. Do you hide food from your kids?

Image: Cereal Buzz

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Kitchenista: It's Chocolate Chip Cookie Week!

JeanneSager — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 14:07:00 GMT

When I was a kid, my tastes for chocolate chip cookies were almost sacriligious. I prefered them out of the box to fresh from the oven.

Boxed cookie were verboten in my house - making their soft, chocolatey goodness so much sweeter when I got my hands on a box. Because the boxed cookies, found at the end of the grocery aisle with the donuts and coffee cakes, were far and away THE best. No sleeves of Chips Ahoy for me.

Fortunately, I've learned the error of my ways. So my family can celebrate Chocolate Chip Cookie Week the way it was meant to be honored - muching on homemade goodies a la my old French friend Nes-lay Toulouse (yes, that's Nestle Tollhouse to you party poopers).

Because like Monica in one of my favorite Friends episodes, I have resigned myself to the fact that all my home tinkering can't improve on the original . . . with one exception. I leave the chips up to my daughter. She's allowed to pull anything I have in the closet out for CCC baking - the white chips, the caramel swirled chips, the half butterscotch, the semi-sweet, the dark, the milk chocolate - and they all go in one big batch.

Yes - it's my kid who has improved on the classic chocolate chip cookie recipe. It seems fitting - chocolate chip cookies are, after all, the ultimate kid treat. Is there any kid that WON'T eat them?

Are you ready to celebrate? Chocolate Chip Cookie Week is the second week of March, and courtesy of Nestle Tollhouse, here's their famous recipe:

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) chips - they call for Nestle Tollhouse, of course, but throw in EVERYTHING you've got
1 cup chopped nuts (with all the nut allergies, I leave these out)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375° F.

Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

Bake for nine to eleven minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for two minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

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Kid Foodies Annoy Food Writers Everywhere

JeanneSager — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 22:30:00 GMT

I have to wonder if Regina Schrambling has spent any time around a kid.

The food writer for Epicurious and the like ranted about what she calls the most annoying food craze since Rachael Ray in Slate this week. Her problem with kiddie gourmets?

For one, they rate texture over taste, she says. So kids give a big thumbs down to food that's slimy. Don't you?

Schrambling is also skittish about kids spending any time inside kitchens - because they're not nurseries. She's got a point, but then again, that's their parents' problems - not hers. Boiling pots of water? Food processors? Run just as much a risk of hurting kids who race around underfoot when their parents are making dinner as they do when a child is taught to teach them with respect and properly use them.

Her biggest problem seems to be that she just doesn't think kids can discern delicious from decent - while adults can. Considering some of the strange things my three-year-old will eat, I can't exactly disagree. But considering some of the strange things my twenty-one-year-old brother will eat, I can't exactly agree either.

What makes kid foodies unique is their honesty. They know what they like, and they're generally not afraid to tell you. They'll often tell you what they DON'T like about it too, even if - as Schrambling says - they don't have the "math skills" to quantify exactly what's off about the food. But put a piece of overcooked eggplant on a child's plate, and they have no qualms about telling you it tastes like rubber. And they'd be right. Their palates might be inexperienced, but they're still human, and they still have very definite things to say about what they like.

The question is whether anyone is listening.

Image: Slate

They Say: Kids Will Eat Carrots if You Don't Call Them Carrots

KeriF — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 13:33:00 GMT

A recent study by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation found that kids were more likely to eat vegetables with cool names. No, not cool like "rutabega," cool like "x-ray vision carrots."

"Cool names can make for cool foods," says Brian Wansink of Cornell University, lead author of the study. "Whether it be 'power peas' or 'dinosaur broccoli trees,' giving a food a fun name makes kids think it will be more fun to eat. And it seems to keep working--even the next day," Wansink said.

It took a research study and a handful of scientists to figure this out? We parents have been doing this for years.

I know my kids are partial to broccoli "trees" with "fairy dust" (grated Parmesan). And who can resist the classic "ants on a log"? Because a kid, of course, would sooner eat bugs than raisins.

Kids aren't the only ones so easily fooled. You know that Chilean sea bass that's so popular? Would you still order it if went by its real name, Patagonian toothfish?

What are your favorite food fibs?

Does Your Family Follow the Five Second Rule?

JeanneSager — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 21:22:00 GMT

I am not that parent. The one who starts shrieking when her daughter picks a piece of banana off the floor and shoves it in her mouth.

We are firmly in the five second rule camp, helped along by Amy's recent reassurance that a little dirt never hurt anyone.

Oh hush. While you're screwing up your nose in disgust, I've got news for you - I'm not alone. A survey performed by Kelton Research for Oreck (folks I'm not embarrassed to admit I'm not too familiar with) showed sixty percent of Americans eat right off the floor, following the three-second rule. I would have put that number a lot higher myself.

Maybe it was their terminology - really, have you ever heard of the three-second rule? Me neither. A 2003 survey by a University of Illinois grad student granted an extra two seconds of leeway, and rustled up ten percent more grubby Americans for a whopping seventy percent of us eating off the floor. Yum!

Of course Oreck threw this little thing together to sell more vacuums; the way they see it, if we're going to eat off the floor anyway, it might as well be clean. And did they mention their handy dandy new germ-killing product? This isn't a review - I haven't tested the thing (see above), so I can't tell you how clean it makes your floors.

I can tell you their scary numbers don't really change anything. Bacteria schmacteria. I'm hard-pressed to see how letting my daughter pick her cereal up off the floor and eat it is any worse than her drinking her own bath water (ewww, I know, we're working on that one). I find it even harder to believe that any parent out there is able to watch their kids SO carefully that they NEVER eat anything off of the floor. So go check out their ick factor if you're interested. Or would you prefer to stay in my camp for the next five seconds or so?

Image: OnNetworks

Would You Let the Kid Eat Dog Food?

JeanneSager — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 20:32:00 GMT

Inspired by National Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day (yup, it's real), I have got to ask - what kind of parent lets their kid eat dog food?

Don't think people do this? Guess again. I know parents who think it's absolutely hilarious. Others think it's a little weird, but eh, so is drinking bath water, or eating dirt.

Turns out it's not all that funny or just plain weird. According to the experts over at Kids Health, it's also dangerous. They list a series of pretty serious reasons to put your kid in the doghouse for chewing on dog chow:

It's not nutritious - meaning they're filling up on something not exactly good for them.
The dog bowl isn't sanitary (OK, true, but neither is bath water!)
Small dry pieces of dog food pose a choking hazard (and what of chopped up, wet pieces?)
Dogs can be territorial about their food - they might bite your tot for sticking his or her snout in the doggie dish.

Now who's in the doghouse?

Image: DailyHaha

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Study Launched to Examine Malnourished Breastfed Babies

JeanneSager — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 22:02:00 GMT

The first-ever study to examine what every breastfeeding mom fears has been kicked off in the United Kingdom: scientists will finally take a look at whether baby is really getting enough.

Although doctors say its rare that babies fall ill from lack of nourishment during breastfeeding, the doctors who have launched this project say there's a tendency not to talk about the very real risks involved - because no one wants to rock the breastfeeding boat.

"People are very cagey about saying anything that might give breastfeeding a bad name," Dr. Sam Richmond, a consultant neonatologist at Sunderland Royal Hospital, told the BBC News. "But it does need to be addressed - and properly studied - because the consequences can be so severe."

Writing an article for Babble that examines a few of the most common hurdles (just a few - to hit every hurdle would have taken me three books!), I found that every mom I talked to went through that phase - usually when they came home from the hospital - when they wondered how the milk they were producing could ever be enough to sustain a hungry baby. The best comment came from a pediatrician quoted in the article who admitted she felt the same way - and she KNOWS better. After all, she's a pediatrician. Kind of makes you feel better, doesn't it?

My hope is that these types of studies - which as Richmond points out are very necessary - will help put better information into the hands of worried mothers. If we could understand the circumstances of malnourished babies in breastfeeding conditions, moms who have nothing to worry about can have one less burden in those crucial early days of breastfeeding. What's more, for those who simply CAN'T breastfeed because of this very real condition, there will be evidence to use to back them up when a breastfeeding nazi comes knocking on her door.

Image: BBC News

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Celebrate the Holiday - It's Bake Pizza Week

JeanneSager — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 17:26:00 GMT

Sometimes the "holidays" are just darn silly (kiss a pig day? really?) But who am I to pooh pooh a week dedicated to our kids' favorite food? Especially when I might get an extra slice of mushrooms and extra cheese out of the deal?

It is, after all, Great American Pizza Bake Week (kicked off yesterday by Pizza Pie Day).

Apparently, pizza is so popular (do you know a kid who doesn't like it? Really?), it's celebrated in October - which is Pizza Month and again the second week of January which is Pizza Week.

This week is by far the best on the parenting front, however, because instead of calling out for a pie, it's one week when you can show them how you get your hands (and your counters) dirty. It's bake your OWN pizza week.

Inspired of late by our own Keri Fisher's mouth-watering Kitchenista posts, I've taken a renewed interest in getting my daughter into the kitchen with me - and at three, she's the perfect age for helping. Pizza, in particular, is one of those foods that kids can be a real help in making.

If you want to go real simple, go the English muffin route - they can break them open at almost any age, they can spoon on jarred sauce, they can sprinkle them with cheese and cover them with toppings. If you're ambitious to make your own dough, measure out the ingredients, and let them pour them into the mixing bowl. When the dough has to be kneaded, let their little fists do some punching. And when it's rolled out and ready to go - once again, let them at the sauce (homemade, jarred or canned - it doesn't matter), the cheese and the toppings.

Nothing makes a kid like eating dinner like getting involved in the making.

Image: Steffens Dinners

The Problem with Testing for Food Allergies

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 21:30:00 GMT

It turns out you may not need to buy that expensive hypoallergenic formula after all. After years of steadily rising allergies in kids, pediatricians are beginning to acknowledge that it might be the allergy tests, not the food, that’s the problem.

The rise in false allergy diagnoses is due to a little something called modern convenience. (Speed coming at the price of accuracy? No!) Instead of administering lengthy food challenges—in which doctors watch children consume a whole variety of foods—most doctors now test for allergies by giving kids a blood test for certain antibodies. The problem is that this test falsely identifies allergies more than half of the time.

Given this finding and other studies that have linked early peanut exposure to a lower allergy risk, doctors’ groups are considering revising allergy guidelines to encourage parents to introduce high-risk foods like peanuts and shellfish earlier rather than later.

In the meantime, parents may need to start relying more heavily on the only tried-and-true allergy test there is: if your kid can eat it, he’s not allergic.

Photo: MSNBC