Wednesday, October 21, 2009

The Creamy Perfiduosity of Cheesed Macaroni

Lately I feel like frame-by-frame I've been watching Jimmy turn into a cookie-vore (sometimes cheeza-vore...) so I broke out the book that I found so darling on a 2008 Oprah rerun, and then found last Thanksgiving at the Christmas Tree Shoppes for $6.99.



I chose to ignore the controversy mired around Jessica Seinfeld's Deceptively Delicious and to just focus on the tips and suggestions provided in its new, clean, fun three-ring binder. Soonafter I discovered I wasn't immediately prepared to complete any of the book's bondafide resssss-i-peezz, but felt that I had to do *something* with my veggie-deprived child, and the bag of cut cauliflower in our refrigerator's "crisper."

The only thing to do was to steam, cuisinart, and photograph my cauliflower purée next to the Annie's (pronounced the Cape Elizabeth Whole Foods way, with the clenched jaw, schwa-A, Vermonty, hybrid-driving thing) creamy mac and cheese box.



And then I did it, I placed half of a cup of cauli-puree into the Ahnnie's&Fromage and Jimmy devoured it. I was so pleased! Personally, I could taste the difference, but I also like steamed cauliflower so it wasn't a negative....so imagine my surprise when Hubby made an unexpected trip home for dinner and admitted that he too found the M&C&C tasted just great.

Nevertheless, the moment I told him that there was cauliflower in it, his lip started curling upwards.

I've decided to take Jessica or Missy or Nina or WTF'ever's advice about keeping the sneaky deceptive veggying a secret, because it is then that it sincerely works.

4 comments:

Eileen Emerson said...

I think the idea to add pureed veggies to things where they don't affect the flavor (much) is a dandy one. We add steamed & pureed veggies to mashed taters all the time and it adds to the flavor, I think. Makes it more "homey."

Libbytown said...

I thought it tasted good too, and added additional texture. Later last night I put a scoop of cauliflower in a Betty Crocker oatmeal/chip cookie mix, and thought "uh oh" when I could taste the cauliflower in them. But now that they've cooled off this morning, you can't taste it all all.

There's additional controversy about how concealing the veggies doesn't allow the child to develop good habits....but force-feeding Jimmy something he doesn't want to eat doesn't work out. We have to pick our battles, right....

Eileen Emerson said...

What young child is going to CHOOSE veggies? I ask ya?!

But, once they get a little older -- and I'm only talking 10, 11, 12 or so, you can certainly intrigue kids with much more "obvious" veggies -- and tell them that they've been eating them for years in all their fav foods.

Totally works. The Boy eats tons of veggies now and prefers them to junk foods. (But he's weird that way.)
Eileen

Molly Radcliff Headley said...

Cauliflower in Mac'n'Cheese is a fantastic idea! Thanks for the tip, Rachel!

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