Hi everyone. I hope you all had a great Mother’s day and enjoyed Brian’s post on the blog. I received numerous emails telling me what a supportive and appreciative husband I have and I must say that I do.
In my private sessions and workshop travels, I have encountered people who are not as fortunate; their partners give unsolicited “feedback” about their cooking, compare their cooking to fancy restaurants they frequent in N.Y. and one women even told of how her husband said he was “hoping to order in Chinese” when she presented him with a special surprise dinner.
Some of us are discouraged from cooking because our partners don’t appreciate our labors in the kitchen, say they want dinner but eat a small fraction of it or change their mind and eat a bowl of cereal after the dinner has been made.
These behaviors may be infuriating to some but oftentimes, these are the actions of people who have simply not been educated. We may need to teach our loved ones how we would like them to respond if we go to the effort of cooking for them. Maybe we would be more interested in cooking for them if they showered us with compliments after each meal we made them. Maybe if they truly did not like the dish they could say, “you really look attractive tonight” which could be a goodhearted , jokey way of saying, “please don’t make this again”. What would you want YOUR partner to say or do or NOT say or do to get you more motivated to cook for him/her? How about your kids? We can train them too!
I am motivated to make this recipe for my friend Nancy Lasher because she told me she loved it when I made it for her. I got this from a cooking class at a great takeout place called Marc and Eric’s which has since gone under. Here it is:
Roast Chicken Salad with Grapes and Pecans:
1 lb boneless diced chicken breast
1 cup red seedless grapes, washed and cut in 1/2
1 cup Granny Smith Apples, cut into a small dice
1 cup lightly toasted pecans
1/2 cup finely chopped celery (I don’t like celery so I don’t use it)
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
Dressing:
1/2 cup Hellman’s mayo (can use light mayo but won’t taste as rich)
1/4 cup sour cream or creme fraiche (you can buy this at most big supermarkets ,usually in the cheese section)can use light sour cream but won’t taste as rich
2 TBS Extra Virgen olive oil
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
fresh chopped dill to taste
salt and pepper to taste
In a med. sized bowl, combine all salad ingredients. In a separate small bowl, whisk all dressing ingredients except for dill and salt and pepper. Pour dressing into chicken mixture and stir until all ingredients are coated with dressing. Mix in fresh dill and season with salt and pepper. Chill for 30 minutes and serve with a good brioche bread or Challah if you have some handy. Enjoy for lunch or dinner!
One Response
I love the “you look very attractive tonight” food critique. For us American Idol fans, its kind of the Paula Abdul method of softening the blow. I think I’ll suggest it to my husband instead of his usual “don’t make this again.”