Freaky Eaters, David Beckham's sarong and pointy red cabbage

 
For the entire summer of 1990 all I ate was toasted cheese sandwiches.  I tell you this, not as part of my audition for Freaky Eaters (a classic BBC3 offering that makes me seriously question how the licence fee is spent) but as an indication of quite how dull my eating habits can be.

Not only is this slightly embarrassing, but I have worried for a while that I may be passing on my bad habits.  Thankfully, a long-run war of attrition has meant that my elder two children are getting slightly better at trying new tastes. Archie, however... that's a different matter. 

The accepted wisdom is that a child will start to eat something after they've tried it about 15 times.  Archie is turning this theory on his head.  He'll eat something about 15 times - just enough to lull you into a false sense of security - before adamantly rejecting it in the manner of someone believing themselves the target of poisoners.

It really doesn't help that I currently have on the table yesterday's Evening Standard where my friend Viv has written a wonderful article on Nick Coffer and his son - aged two - who create and share dishes such as linguine with a crayfish and dill sauce (I kid you not) and post up the resulting videos on their blog - My Daddy Cooks.  And the name of this mini super chef? Archie, of course. I can almost feel them mocking me with every bite of their chicken tarragon stew...

Still, I am fighting back with my weapon of choice - the garden.  This year I am attempting to grow veg that will simply be too interesting to resist.  I enlisted Ava and Oscar in the task of choosing our ammunition and I have to say, they did a pretty good job.  Of course, the resulting crops might look great but fall down on taste (a bit like David Beckam in that sarong) but it's got to be worth a go.

Our chosen seeds include:

Carrot 'Purple Haze' - purple on the outside, orange inside

Carrot 'Parmex' - circular, bite-sized carrots

'Baugilde' climbing bean - dark purple pods

Cucumber 'Cucino' - mini-cucumbers

Aubergine 'Calliope' - cream-streaked purple fruit

Cabbage 'Kalibos' - red pointed cabbage

Onion 'Cipollini Yellow' - small, flat-shaped bulbs

Swiss chard 'Bright Lights' - rainbow coloured stems

Of course, the big test will be if Archie actually eats any of them - the bigger test is whether I do.  After all, it takes a lot to better a toasted cheese sandwich.

Comments

[Helen at Toronto Gardens]

After years of subsisting on macaroni and cheese, our eldest (almost 25) has only recently begun to embrace food that actually tastes of anything but salt. His younger sister, who went through an annoying vegetarian phase (she was vegetarian, but didn't like most forms of veggie protein) is now eating fish. I have one more to go. So far so good with her (she likes curry!). But when I see her at last eat a mushroom, I know my job will be done. Good luck with the veggies. They look delish.

[Claire Brown]

from my experience last year with my son's veggie patch, you might not get Archie to eat them (he'll be bored with them by the time they're grown) but if he has friends round to tea, they might. I had a little boy to tea whose mother said "won't eat any vegetables" - he was fascinated by the carrots picked from my sons's little patch and ate 2 - which is quite a big portion for a 5 yr old)

[Mark Waterfield]

This seems to be a very esoteric variety of vegetables. No doubt the photos on the front of the packet had something to do with the choice of vegetable.

I still marvel at how many vegetables are produced from one seed.

[TheMadHouse]

Helping to grow the veg, definitely made an impact on what the boys would eat. I am not sure I would know how to cook linguine with crayfish and dill. I am not sure my palate it that sufifticated

[JamesA-S]

When I was a toddler I was given sour milk by my mother (who compounded the problem by adding orange squash to disguise the taste).Haven't touched milk since. Children have long food memories and love a resentment!
The toasted cheese sandwich is a prince among foodstuffs. I was given a Breville sandwich toaster when I first left home aged 17. I thought it was haute cuisine: the only other thing I could cook was boiled eggs and Weetabix.(separately,obviously: two courses).
What girl could resist such sumptuous delicacies? *
Crayfish and whatsis is really wasted on most two year oldss. Unless you let them throw it around.

* actually, quite a few. especially as I was living in the cupboard under somebody's stairs.

[Jo]

I've employed the same tactics with my dear hubby. He's gone over 40 years without having a vegetable on his plate, but now that I've got an allotment and grow the veg myself (with his help) he's suddenly found a taste for it. Luckily he will eat bog standard varieties so I don't have to buy anything that's a weird shape or an unusual colour (but I do anyway because I like them. I'm a marketing manager's dream).

[Dawn/LittleGreenFingers]

Helen - I too became vegetarian but didn't eat rice, lentils, nuts, or indeed many vegetables. I was a joy to cater for. Good luck with the mushroom mission!

Claire - don't tell me I'm doing all this just to improve their friends' diets!

Mark - it was all about the pictures. The kids are as shallow as their mother.

TMH - I'm not fully sure I even know what Crayfish are!

James - did your sandwich toaster create scalloped edges to the finished product? If so, I'm not sure any maiden could have resisted - even given your slightly restricted living arrangements.

Jo - you give me hope!

[Metropolitan Mum]

I used to have a sandwich maker. I got seriously addicted and had to go 'cold turkey' (haha), giving the sandwich maker away.
Little L loves her food. So far.

[Dawn/LittleGreenFingers]

MM - mine is still tucked at the back of a cupboard, because you never know when you may need that cheese toastie hit.

[Pinny's mum]

You will be pleased to note that after reading your comments aboutour tree house ( which I agreed with I have removed the ladder and replaced it with a rope one. Looks alot better. Never blogged before. seems like fun!

[Dawn/LittleGreenFingers]

Steph - Can't believe you've posted as 'Pinny's Mum' - I love it! It should definitely be your online alias.

Also, delighted to hear you have bought a designer's eye to the tree house!