Domestic Delia

[pegkerr]

Delia has always been the much more domestic of our two girls. I mean, this is a girl who within one week of getting her iPod had discovered and downloaded all the Cook's Illustrated podcasts and soon was seriously discussing the relative merits of various brands of cookware. She loves to make cakes and bread (which reminds me: she's been complaining again that OMIGOD she is out of YEAST, which is a CATASTROPHE and if I know what's good for me I'll make sure we get that on the next grocery shopping list). She has been busily exploring all my various linens I got for my wedding and even the linens I inherited from my grandmother, and frequently over the past month I've come home to find that she has nicely set the table with a whole other set of place mats and matching napkins and plates that it hadn't occurred to me to use for ten years. Or she'll have the table set for tea, using my Nana's tea set.

She is sewing all sorts of things. She is making beautiful jewelry. She is knitting. One of her birthday presents for her sister was a knitted cell phone case which was just so cute I just about exploded.

Cooking, other than baking, is rather problematic. She is extremely interested in cooking, and goes through and marks up all sorts of cookbooks--but her tastes are whimsical when it comes right down to making things. One of the side effects of some medication she is taking, I think, is that things sometimes taste weird, and her appetite is unpredictable. She is, as we have previously noted, a supertaster, and she is also extremely sensitive to textures, and she'll reject something if it feels "weird" in her mouth.

She is leaning, again, to wanting to be a vegetarian. Her reasons are mostly philosophical (loves animals, doesn't want to eat them) and her revulsion for the texture of meat is growing. Except she still ALSO has revulsion for many cooked vegetables. We are having a great deal of trouble identifying protein sources which she will deign to eat, which has meant (esp. since she's as skinny as a rail) that she's been troubled a great deal by hypoglycemic incidents this spring, especially after intense karate classes.

Does any one know of a, say a cooking class locally (not too expensive) to suggest for say, parents of kids, when the kid wants to become a vegetarian? I know a lot, more than most parents about vegetarianism, but I must admit, I'm somewhat stymied by Delia's endlessly changing reactions to tastes and textures--trying to keep her nutrition adequate on a vegetarian diet that she will EAT is like trying to hit a swiftly moving target. Or does anyone know any skilled vegetarian cooks who might be willing to tutor an eager-to-learn kid who is, really, quite a good cook already, but just needs to be shown the ropes on vegetarian cooking?

I just found Compassionate Cooks podcast, a vegetarian podcast, and told her about it, and she's gone ahead and subscribed to it on iTunes. Other thoughts, anyone?

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Comments

[mamculuna.livejournal.com]

What about cookbooks? My favorite vegetarian cookbook is the Moosewood series (Mollie Katzen), but Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone is excellent too. There are a raft of books on cooking for vegetarian kids, and I expect the problems-with-icky-veggies are universal, so they may have some great ideas.

My kids (and I) liked eating vegetables much better when we bought them and cooked them ourselves, and growing them made it even better. My kids also did better with salads and sandwiches and soups than with steamed and stirfried veggies, and purees and smoothies can sometimes make the most amazing things yummy.

[mamculuna.livejournal.com]

On the protein, read Diet for a Small Planet by Frances Moore Lappe and Recipes for a Small Planet by Ellen Ewald--you can combine vegetable sources to increase the protein. I was involved in the writing of both books and know they're good.

But, sadly, not kid-tested. However, the book explain the principles of combining foods so you can adapt most recipes.

[woodrunner.livejournal.com]

I've been vegetarian for years (and years) so I can understand the challenge of getting enough protein. It took me a long time to get used to tofu, and even then I don't eat it very much.

You can get some protein from beans, milk, milk products, tofu, soy products in general, and something called "tempe", which my brother told me about the other day and said it is an excellent protein replacement, though it can be difficult to find (he said to look in health food stores or asian grocery stores).

If Delia likes smoothies, maybe she can try adding a protein supplement (from the health food store, though I'd stay away from the big bottle, $$$ bodybuilding ones; the health food store I go to has something called whey protein that is much cheaper and has no additives) to the smoothie? I've done that and I can't taste the added protein.

I wish you a lot of luck in this. Vegetarian diets are tough. They're even tougher when the person is sensitive to tastes and textures.

[thomasyan.livejournal.com]

What versions of tofu have you tried? The normal soft white stuff you get can be rather tasteless.

But the super-soft has a nice texture and flavoring can be added.

Tofu-kan is braised or otherwise cooked in a spiced liquid and then pressed to take out the water and give it a firmer texture. For me, it tastes pretty good all by itself, even before you add other ingredients or seasoning.

Asian stores will also sell you a deep-fried version, which has a different texture, and can be used in soups. There are more holes, so it will hold the soup and thus be tastier.

You can also buy extra firm tofu, freeze it, and then use that in soups. Freezing creates ice crystals, that in a soup mean lots of holes and again, more surface-area that holds onto yumminess. Some people don't like the resulting texture, but I quite like it.

Asian stores will also sell you tofu in a dried skin form rolled up into sticks. You need to soak this before cooking in soup, but it is nice and chewy when cooked, and again, the fact that it is sort of liked thin pasta all crumpled up into sticks means that there is lots of surface area that will hold onto soup to add flavor.

As I recall, I've tried tempe and didn't like it, which is surprising since I generally like soy products.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Quinoa evangelist here: quinoa is a complete protein! If she doesn't mind the wee grainy texture, you can make quinotto the way you make risotto, and so many fine things can go in it, like dried fruits or barely-cooked veggies or nuts or lo these many types of goodness! You can get red or regular quinoa in wee boxes at Byerly's, or you can get it from the bulk bins in hippie groceries!

Everything related to quinoa comes with an exclamation point for me! Because I love it so much!

[naomikritzer]

If she likes smoothies, supplementing with a whey-based protein powder is a really good idea. I ate smoothies for a while; my basic recipe went something like

1 cup milk
1 banana (preferably frozen -- the result was more like an ice cream milkshake)
1 cup frozen strawberries
1 scoop whey-based protein powder

in the blender until smooth, drink for breakfast. You could put it in a thermos and send it along as a lunch or after-school snack, as well.

It HAD to be whey-based protein powder. I tried the soy-based once and OMG, it came out tasting like Not Food in a really fundamental way.

You can use any frozen fruit; strawberries are the cheapest because you can get them at Aldi. You can also buy a berry mix at Aldi and in the spring you can get frozen mangos there. Strawberries and blueberries are available in store brand at the Rainbow; you can also get cherries, mangos, raspberries, and other fruits from Dole, though raspberries are problematic because the seeds get stuck in your teeth.

If she likes ice cream, another option here is to blend the fruit, protein, and frozen banana, and eat it with a spoon. Or blend everything, freeze the night before, and crush the ice in the blender to make sort of a sorbet.

If you have a depressed appetite and are a slow eater, it can actually be hard to get enough smoothie down in the morning. I quit eating these while pregnant and never got back in the habit.

[bohemianspirit.livejournal.com]

I'm more "fish-a-tarian" than strictly vegetarian these days, but my actual cooking from scratch involves vegetarian recipes. What does Delia need to know? The main thing is to get a balance of vegetables, fruits, nuts, whole grains, beans/legumes, and dairy/eggs (assuming she's not going the vegan route--that is not a good idea for a "picky" eater). Everything I'm reading in recent times is emphasizing that we need to mainly get lots of vegetables, whether we eat meat or not, so maybe she can begin by exploring ways that she DOES like to eat vegetables. And "cooked" vegetables encompasses a wide range of cooking techniques and degrees of cooking.

One of my favorite, totally lazy-ass ways to get veggies in my diet is to steam about half a bag of frozen vegetables (usually centered around broccoli, as it's one of my favorites and very good for you) then toss them in a bowl with a bit of salad dressing and chow down. Some veggies do well with oven roasting rather than steaming or boiling, e.g., brussels sprouts, which seem to lose the bitterness with oven roasting (olive oil and rosemary or other Italian herb = yum). And there are also salads, which can be made pretty substantial with the addition of chickpeas and cheese and other add-ins.

Does Delia like soups? There are TONS of recipes out there, and vegetarian soups are as easy as just using vegetable broth (or water, if you have veggies in the soup and are simmering it long enough) instead of the ubiquitous chicken broth. It's hard to recommend a specific recipe not knowing what she likes, but since she's into research, anyway :-D she can do the legwork herself. Two good authors I know of are Mollie Katzen (the original Moosewood Cookbook) and Nava Atlas (she has a Mediterranean cookbook that I'm thinking of getting).

If you and Delia would be interested in getting together at Namaste or Common Roots some Friday evening (or whatever is best for your schedule), I'd be willing to chat and share such knowledge as I have. Just e-mail me (or call, if you still have my phone number) and let me know!

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I'll keep the offer in mind!

Delia is very unpredictable on soups. I've made dozens, many of them vegetarian, and she'll eat only about a quarter of them. She keeps going back to chicken noodle soup (despite the vegetarian thing). I think she dislikes the sensation of having different textures in one mouthful, and there are some things that are common as the base of many soups (i.e., cooked tomatoes) that she just won't tolerate at all.

Here's a web site, too

[bohemianspirit.livejournal.com]

Allrecipes.com has a Vegetarian Recipe Section. I bet Delia could have a field day surfing this, alone, and Allrecipes is supposed to be reliable in terms of the quality of the recipes.

Of course there are tons of other sites out there, too, as a quick Google on "vegetarian recipes" will establish.

[thomasyan.livejournal.com]

I'm going to guess that the answer is no (too bitter or other odd tastes), but does she like brewer's yeast? I believe that has a fair amount of protein.

I love gluten, but that's because it can have a meatlike texture, so in some preparations that could be a minus. I am very fond of the Morning Star brand of veggieburgers.

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

Haven't tried brewer's yeast yet.

We did try Boca burgers; she didn't like those much.

[huladavid.livejournal.com]

I should pick my sister's brain about this. She and Carl (her bf) have slid into vegetarianism. On the other hand, a 60 year old woman wouldn't have the same protein needs as a teenage girl.

[etakyma.livejournal.com]

Both my brother M and sister-in-law K are vegetarians (but are not raising their kids vegetarian). They both decided (at about the same age - ~14) to become vegetarian, and K also has a texture aversion to eggs. Unless they are completely mixed into something she can't even swallow them.

But they also have the bonus of loving all kinds of food. For a pickier eater, it can be very difficult to find something she'll like. Soups are good, in that you can find almost a ton of different textures - and a lot of pureed vegetables make good soup bases - and can seem creamier, even with no cream added. I've made a corn chowder with fresh corn (stripped the ears myself) that was in a base of pureed fresh corn as the base, and it was sweet and fresh and delicious.

Smoothies are a good idea - You can add almost anything to a yogurt/fruit base - chocolate, peanut butter, etc. And with some protein powder included you can boost her health a little.

I am very texture/scent oriented, myself. And kind of a picky eater as well. I've grown out of some of that, but I still have to modify almost anything I order in a restaurant - mostly to leave something off or out.

That she likes to cook is a bonus for you.

:D

[siriologist.livejournal.com]

I do a Spriotein Protein shake every morning. They have all different flavors and you can do them with juice or milk. That keeps my blood sugar pretty steady all morning. I feed it to my son when he can't eat anything due to braces tightening.

Oh ... and the tree picture I was trying to share (email was thwarted) was "The Lawrence Tree" by Georgia O'Keefe. Is a neat painting that people can't seem to figure out which direction to hang it. It was Ms. O'Keefe's interpretation of a large tree on D.H. Lawrence's Ranch, painted from the perspective of lying on your back looking up from under the tree. Really cool.

Good luck with your veggie gal.

[naomikritzer]

What Delia needs here isn't so much a cooking tutorial as an eating tutorial. You need a semi-evangelical vegetarian or vegan who will have Delia over a few times to eat a sampling of mild-tasting protein-oriented vegetarian foods, and get recipes and some instruction, if they're tricky, for the things she finds most palatable.

Unfortunately, the person I know who would TOTALLY do this lives in Boston.

Do you know Barth? Cooking classes for would-be vegetarian kids sounds like something the Wedge would do (or could consider doing). You could suggest it to him and also see if he knows any evangelical vegetarians.

I would actually think tofu -- plain, unflavored tofu -- would be a really good thing for Delia to experiment with, since she's a supertaster with texture issues. Unflavored tofu is almost tasteless. When I couldn't eat dairy, I actually made myself a pseudo-chocolate-pudding that used tofu, sugar, and chocolate -- this wouldn't be a good thing to eat daily as an entree because of the sugar content, but it does show how versatile the stuff is.

The problem with handing her some good cookbooks is that many vegetarian cookbooks are oriented towards providing food that is highly flavored and provides a variety of textures. What textures can she fairly consistently tolerate?

[naomikritzer]

Also, I know you've done this before, but if you want to write out the current version of what Delia consistently finds palatable, I could direct my vegan friend in Boston over here to see if she could suggest protein sources and cookbooks for a picky supertasting kid with texture issues.

[potionsprofessor.myopenid.com (from livejournal.com)]

A book that might help, since Delia enjoys cookbooks so much, is Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. If you're unfamiliar with the text, it's the nonfiction story of the family's year of eating local food, mainly vegetables, mainly grown from their own farm. Each chapter is based on a particular month (or period of a few weeks) and what foods are in season, as well as some recipes written out in story form by the eldest daughter, Camille. There are some really great introductions to "fresh produce, well prepared" that clearly speaks to picky eaters -- and the "let's see if we can do it" challenge of the story might well appeal to a teenage girl. There are some very clear, direct passages that talk about raising animals on a farm for food, which may prove troubling, though.

Really, what I think might be helpful for her is the conceptual excitement of a new endeavor, relayed via a narrative story, that challenges the reader to "try something new" and offers clear descriptions and recipes to make the challenge less than frightening or overwhelming. I know that I've never been so excited about asparagus and rhubarb as I am this spring.

Good luck to you, and to Delia.

[tinymich.livejournal.com]

Slight tangent, as I'm afraid I don't have much to share on vegetarian food apart from fervently seconding every word of Mrissa's ode to quinoa :-) -- Delia knits? How awesome!!! If she would like to share what she's made with us, I (as a fellow knitter) would personally love to squee over it :-) Hurray for yarn!

[norabombay.livejournal.com]

The book The Post Punk Kitchen is probably my favorite. It's a vegan cookbook, and the ladies behind it are highly entertaining. They also give a lot of recipies that are designed for being inexpensive- they teach making your own tempeh, gluten, etc.

Really a fun read. Their website is here: http://www.theppk.com/

Only downside- they are vegan, and if a teenage vegetarian who is extraordinarily picky about protein is hard to feed, a vegan is worse.

If Delia was a big fan of eggs, that would be my suggestion for protein. Eggs, eggs, and more eggs. But lots of people hate them. And texture can be tough to standardize. (That said- an electric egg poacher is a wonderful thing. Consistent results).

[norabombay.livejournal.com]

Replying to myself having read the list: poached eggs, especially when done in the 70's era electric cooker (easily available at a garage sale near you) have a really nice smooth as silk taste. Just skip the yolks, which are drier and crumblier if you cook them through, or slick and icky if you don't.

But the machine means that you don't have to mess with water, or fats or anything but the egg.

[eatsoylentgreen.livejournal.com]

It would be a lot of fun for me. I've only browsed your journal a few times, and enjoyed it when I have. I enjoy cooking for people, and I have made these vegetarian recipes:

bread, and I'm working on a chocolate babka recipe
pasta (I have a tomato-basil pasta recipe which is to die for)
chocolate truffles (can't live by bread alone!)
hummus, baba ghanouj, and a Romanian baba ghanouj which is... well, different. But very good.
falafel
pizza (both using tortillas for a base, and throwing my own pizza dough)
green thai curry
sushi
pad thai
tostones (fried plantains, how is she on fried plantains?)
potato salad (I have a 45 minute scratch potato salad recipe. I tried getting it down to 30 minutes but the boiled eggs were too difficult)

hmm that's all I can think of for now. I had a crepe period. Every day, chocolate crepes. That was a good period.

But the no cooked vegetables thing is hard to get past! I'm imagining she eats a lot of peanut butter sandwiches and salads.

In my world, good cooking is less about recipes and more about good ingredients. And good ingredients is not about a certain store, or a certain price, but rather living a life of grocery stores. That one is hard to explain, but I'm regularly surprised when I find out that people don't go to grocery stores 4-5 days a week like I do.

But if you guys are up for it, I'd like to teach you a recipe or two.

[eatsoylentgreen.livejournal.com]

or, um, not... I mean, I can understand it if you don't want to open up your kitchen to the whole internet.

[huladavid.livejournal.com]

Cook's Illustrated does a podcast? Coolness on two wheels. I've noticed that the downtown library has at least one America's Test Kitchen DVD. She might be interested in checking it out, since they're the same people who do CI.

Does she ever listen to The Splendid Table on MPR? (On a side note, the library also has a DVD of Ambulence Girl, which is based on a book that the female half of the Road Food couple wrote about becoming an EMT. It stars Kathy Bates and features a second or two of what appears to be a Lynn Rosseto Kasper* imposter...)
_____
*sp?

[lauzeta.livejournal.com]

I'm a really texture-oriented eater who eats mostly vegetarian food too, and it's honestly kind of a pig to deal with sometimes - and I'm much more open to taste than Delia seems to be. One thing I have found, and that you probably realize already, is that foods I can't eat in one form are often perfectly palatable in another form. For example, avocados literally make me want to vomit, but I love guacamole (which incidentally is really good on, say, a vegetarian baguette, I've discovered). I find that a lot of ethnic cuisines have textures that are much more palatable, too - maybe that's something Delia could explore in the kitchen, since she'll probably want to dial down the spices in a lot of them.

When it comes to protein, I had a total breakthrough with beans, for some reason, when I discovered dal, which you can sometimes even find canned. Might be a bit spicy, though. Oh, and I make a killer vegan coconut lentil stew that's heavily based on butter chicken, which has the benefit of being a good place to hide tofu or tempeh.

[(Anonymous)]

ok. just my 2 cents... I *think* I have read through these posts well enough to understand at least a few things about Delia's eating habits.

The ONLY thing I can offer, which may be offensive to you who tries so hard to provide nourishing and stimulating menus, is this:

yogurt mixed with cereal (not granola...too nutty for Delia)... it seems to have a nice texture and there are many combinations to choose from. At the very least, it could start her day off with a nice breakfast. The cereal (Life works well, or Kix) mixed in does not get too mushy, nor is it too crunchy, we have found.

Again. just a thought. I understand it does not come close to helping with your original plea...

[talimena.livejournal.com]

I nth the quinoa recommendation. Also, if she's okay with smooth stuff, blending soups changes the flavour more than I'd expected and it's super quick with an immersion blender, if you have one.

And, if you do want to look at other cookbooks, Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone (I think that's the title) has a huge variety.

[serenya-loreden.livejournal.com]

oh,yes! I personally hate the texture of cooked tomatoes (though I like tomato taste) and if I puree it it's fine in a soup. Also, I loathe the texture of mushrooms, but if they are pureed they add nice flavor to a lot of things, and I don't care if I can't FEEL them/have to bite into them.

[http://users.livejournal.com/anam_cara_/]

Are protein bars not in her texture comfort range? T. used to have a soccer coach that handed out Clif bars at every soccer practice. I like Pria bars myself. There are a lot of variations out there to explore, but not all of them are grainy like granola bars.

[darth-kittius.livejournal.com]

I'm sure I have some links and suggestions for you, but I'm not at the right computer at the moment. I'll try to come back and add those.

But my overall suggestion would also be to talk to her doctor the next time she goes in - or take her in specifically for the conversation. Besides recommending resources, it may be important to monitor several types of nutrients when she's starting out. And if it's a concern a doctor might want to use some light supplements for some or all days. It's worth having the conversation anyway to find out what options are out there medically given her young age.

And of course, I have no doubt from your comments that you'll do this - but encourage the cooking interest! Mine was pretty discouraged and it wasn't until I got back into it when I was on my own and older that I ended up starting to eat more types of foods I wouldn't have touched before. You end up liking Brussels Sprouts because you found a recipe that's AWESOME for them. Now they're one of my favorite foods and I wouldn't have touched them with a 1,000 foot pole for my entire childhood.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

The other thought I had about Delia and food today was: has she been to the Mpls Farmer's Market when it's at its summer peak? Often the vendors are willing to give samples of what they're doing (not just fresh veg and fruit, but that included, definitely), and if she comes out of it thinking, "Hey, I like saturn peaches!", that's one more thing than she knew she liked before, and if you had a spare summer Saturday morning, it might be a fun outing with Mom (or Dad or Aunt or whoever) rather than a more high-pressure situation. Also it's cheaper than wandering around to restaurants and trying to sort out whether it was X or Y or maybe the dash of Z in such-and-such a dish that made her dislike it. (Although that's only true if you have more willpower in the farmer's market than I do. Fresh garden peas, ohhhhhh.)

[jbru.livejournal.com]

It's probably very late for this, as I'm catching up after vacation, but Ericka has taught several of her PCAs how to make various things for her brand of vegetarianism. She's quite an enthusiastic, creative and patient teacher and would love to share some knowledge with Delia.