A Pack of Picky Eaters

by Larissa Phillips


Forget factories, nations and NASA. There is no greater need for efficiency and efficacy than during the dinner hour in a home with small children on a school night. At the same time, there is probably never a greater impossibility.


I'm sure there's a family or two out there whose members share identical taste buds, but most families with kids possess wildly disparate appetites. In my family of four, we all like one thing: steak. Regarding every other dish in the universe, at least one of us differs.










Desperate to make sure everyone gets fed, I have, on many occasions, cooked more than one meal: one for the kids and one for the grown-ups. They are simple meals for the kids - like cheese tortellini, which I boil, drain, then splash with olive oil and serve with a side of carrot coins or snow peas - while my husband and I eat the exotic or spicy meals that we love. No problem, right? A small concession?


But there are problems. There are always problems. Sometimes I don't have tortellini. Or one child is striking against the tortellini because I got the wrong kind last time (bought it fresh and homemade from a famous Italian deli, which is not as good, in their view, as the frozen tri-color supermarket stuff I've been getting for years). And so before I even realize what I am doing, I am fixing pb&j for one child and scrambling an egg for the other. It's ridiculous! It's in opposition to everything I believe! So, recently, I promised myself that I would never do it again.









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