Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Little eats.

I think I missed a meeting. 






(it painnnnned me to buy fresh thyme when I know my herb garden at home is bursting with it...although I guess that is assuming the house sitter remembered to water it)  The meeting I speak of is when the majority of restaurateurs got together and formed a cartel on children's menus.  My goodness, what is going on here? It has been my recent experience that they are nothing short of dreadful.

I will pause for a moment, because it is has always been my intent, my hope that this space remains a positive one. I do not want to use it as a negative outlet. Not that I don't rant and rave numerous times throughout the day, for nor do I want this space to be anything but authentic. Its rather a conscience choice to spend the time I spend creating these notes, to be focused on good. The good food. The good people. The good. That said....c'mon fantastic restaurant owners. Come on.





(what would a dinner shot at sixtyone45 be without a raw meat picture?) As I mentioned in my vacay entry, we are in fact, on vacay. Which means eating out a little more than usual. All lunches...we just find ourselves out and about in the day and are usually ready to seek air conditioning by about 11:30. For the most part the adult food has been amazing. We have deliberately sought out a few places and I would be hard pressed to say we were disappointed with our meals. But the kids menus? Ugh. The latest (no joke, cause I am reading it right now covered in pretty crayon art from Little sixtone45) Chicken tenders w/fries. Cheese crisps w/fries. Cheese Burger w/fries. Hot Dog w/fries. Linguine w/fries w/cream sauce. I just think we are not giving the Little ones enough credit.





There is a great book out right now called French Kids Eat Everything.  I am bringing it to the next cartel meeting. Agree or disagree with the approach, but applaud a conscience effort to appeal to taste buds early in life.  At the recent BlogHer Food conference I attended, (and I regret not noting the speak who inspired me to write it) I jotted down "Get Little to smell his food".  I think we are better than this and those little darlings deserve better.

We had a beautiful lunch today.

Side bar: I actually packed him a lunch I was so exasperated with our experience vacay to date.

...where there was no kid menu

2nd side bar: best approach if you ask me...why not just make smaller offerings of the Big dinners, or here's a thought Mr. Cartel Chairman - with a fully stocked kitchen/ pantry/chef, why not ask the family what the Little may like.

... and because there was no kids menu we ordered Little a side of Israeli Couscous. For $5. No side of fries. And he pretty much licked the plate (they also brought out a mini-etch-a-sketch...that was cool too.) I don't know much about parenting at all, but I do think if we raise a whole bunch of little ones as foodies...




...the food I get in when I'm in the nursing home is going to a whole lot better.




Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken with Arugula & Green Apple Salad
This dinner was super simple, super fast and SUPER tasty. Sweet, bright glaze on the chicken with a spicy arugula salad and bursts of freshness with the tomatoes and apples. Inspired from Real Simple Magazine, July 2012.

6 T. Honey
4 T. Mild Dijon Mustard
2 T. Fresh Chopped Thyme
Juice of one lemon
Splash of Orange Juice
1 tsp. soy sauce
4 T. Olive Oil
10 Chicken Drumsticks

2 bunches arugula (about 6 cups)
2 T. White Balsamic Vinegar
1/2 Green Apple
8 Yellow Grape Tomatoes
1/4 Red Onion, sliced very thin

 - In a small bowl, whisk together the first 6 ingredients, plus 1 T. of the oil.

 - Heat BBQ (grill) to medium to low. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Grill, covered, turning occasionally until cook through (about 25 to 30 minutes) brushing frequently with the honey mixture during the last ten minutes of cooking.

- Meanwhile, whisk together the vinegar, remaining oil, a little salt and pepper. Toss the arugula with the dressing. Plate and then scatter apple, tomatoes and red onion on each serving. . Serve with the chicken.


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