Sometime ago a tradition began in our household … Sunday pizza. Not that I don’t enjoy a good roast beef or a roasted chicken with potatoes and gravy (both aromas instantly take me back to my childhood and to my grandmother’s kitchen), but a hot pizza and a cold malted beverage have become a pleasant, very low key way to unwind after a busy morning and at the end of a full weekend.
As I was walking through the produce department while picking up a few items for dinner, a couple boxes of beautiful figs caught my eye. They were perfectly ripe.
Dessert!
Now you have to understand that dessert is not a regular occurrence at our table, not because we don't like it ... trust me, my kids would have dessert after every meal, including breakfast if I'd let them ... but because most of the desserts that we yearn for are rich, creamy, high calorie, high fat, decadent plates that delight all the senses.
A Rite of Passage: Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
There is a rite of passage in our family of foodies that perhaps goes back generations. The culinary journey begins when the little one is old enough to kneel on a kitchen stool, reach the counter, and be able to help pour ingredients into the bowl. From this comes practice not only in cooking, but also counting, measuring, fine motor control, and of course good communication and manners. But when that same child grows a little taller and has a longer reach, when s/he can stand up tall on the step stool, when an awareness of danger-caution (especially when it comes to hot appliances) is realized, then the next step is the making of Grilled Cheese.
Today, the second member of the Junior MHC members made Grilled Cheese on her own (fully supervised, of course, with plenty reminders of safety). She made 3 sandwiches and served them as lunch to Mom, Gregory her brother, and herself (Dad was advising a Graduate student over lunch this afternoon and thus wasn't able to be home for lunch today).
