THE PORTABLE CHEF^TM
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Chef Chip Desormeaux - 678.480.4973

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AMUSE BOUCHE                 by Chef Chip Desormeaux

/ah-mooz boosh/ def: A small complimentary appetizer offered at fine restaurants. From French, literally, "it entertains the mouth."

Food & Entertaining Tips from The Portable Chef

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I want to welcome all the new subscribers from the Ashford Dunwoody YMCA! We went there last week and prepared complimentary omelets on behalf of the Y for member appreciation. Had a great time! And I hope you'll remember us for your next dinner party.

This week I decided to write about getting kids to eat.

It's understandable that toddlers are going to do what they want when it comes to dinner time. But what happens when your 10 or 14 year old eats only "white" food?

This is an area that we've had good success so I thought I'd share some things that have worked for us. Enjoy!

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Children in the Kitchen

It's universally known among parents that children can be irritatingly finicky, fickle eaters. There's nothing more frustrating for me personally than to create something new for my family only to find out I'm the only one who likes it!

I do feel like our children have much broader palates than most kids. We have some policies in our house that have worked well for us.

First, I should say, if your children are healthy in appearance, have good energy levels and are generally not given to drama, then you probably don't have much to worry about.

At our dinner table, Policy One is taste it before you shove it away. After that, Policy Two, if you still don't like, there're always hot dogs or PB&J! Get up and fix yourself something.

We also always let our children help in the kitchen. They've been stirring meals on the stove since age one. My older ones know how to prepare their own grilled cheese sandwiches, can scramble an egg, fry a Bubba Burger on the stove, make biscuits from scratch.

Because of this, our boys know what kind of work it is to get dinner on the table for everyone. And so they're more temperate when it comes to eating what Dad cooked.

We expose our children to a wide range of foods. I never repeat anything within one week and usually can go three weeks or more without repeats.

I realize I have a small advantage in this area. Try making a list of everything you know how to cook and the family enjoys. Then expand that out by varying some of the ingredients from time to time. And every couple of weeks, try a new recipe. Intersperse that with some quality take-out, and you should be fine.

The most important thing above all else is that dinner should be an event—not something you catch between homework and tv. We have dinner together at home at least six nights a week and still have time for soccer and karate or whatever else the kids have going on.

But we really do make it an event. Cell phones are turned off. The table gets set complete. We all sit down at the same time and we stay at the table until everyone is finished. And we enjoy each other's company.

If you got this one thing established in your home, not only will appetites improve and palates expand, but you'll get along together as a family much much better!

And, if you happen to be the one who can burn water, there is help for you, too!

Bon Appetit!

Chef Chip Desormeaux

But, Wait! There's More!
(Recipes, Nifty Gadgets, & Stuff Like That)

Recipes. I love goofing around in the kitchen with my kids. They do, too. Last week we had homemade pizza for dinner. I had my four year old rolling out the dough, my two year old smearing the sauce out, and my nine year old was helping slice up the toppings.

And all three of them had a great time spreading out all the ingredients on the pizza! (Just look at that beautiful pizza!)

We made our own sauce but you can use jarred spaghetti sauce or marinara. And the Publix bakery carries pre-proofed bread dough balls that make great pizza crust!

Click here  to view the recipe.

Do you make your own pizza at home? E-mail me   and tell me what your favorite toppings are!

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