FOOD GRAFFITI The Tiny Chefs [Part 2]

STOP if you missed PART 1, scroll to the bottom of this post and click over to meet Andrew, first!

This is Part 2; the Meissner Tiny Chefs  

The Tiny Chefs, Silas, Violet, London, Penelope

FU— Before we dive into those Tiny Chefs of yours, I think Emily has some pretty impressive skills as a baker. Looks like your family gets to have their cake and eat it too!

AM— Most of the delicious baked goods coming out of our kitchen are from my lovely wife, Emily. During her last maternity leave, she binged watched the British Baking Show. After that, she decided she was going to be a baker. So we were lucky enough to taste some lovely tarts, cakes, scones, and many other delicious baked goods.

Just a few of Emily’s divine creations.

FU—— Let's do names and numbers. 

AM— 

Alaina Anne- 18 

Ansley Bee- 18

Penelope June-7

Violet Lucille-6

London Guy-6

Silas Rivers-3 

FU— What are your thoughts about the dinner table? Here's what is served; take it or leave it? FOUR more bites for dessert? 

AM— I grew up in a family that didn't have much money, so we probably had the same eight or nine things for dinner. You had to eat what was on your plate, or you didn't leave the table. In our family, I like the kids to try a wide variety of different foods and different preparations. I divvy out a little bit of everything. As long as they try it, we're all good. It's taken a while, but all the kids are pretty awesome about trying everything and cleaning their plates, especially if there's going to be a dessert. I also bring my kids into the kitchen to help with meals, cooking, and plating. I think that definitely helps them want to try new and different foods. 

The Tiny Chefs with Chef Penelope finishing off her beautiful shrimp boil with butter!

FU— I hoped to share the kids cooking stories a bit more. What prompted that? 

AM— During Covid, when we were all kind of trapped in a little box, it just gave us something to do with the kids one-on-one. Being able to maneuver around a kitchen is a great skill to have!! 

We take turns, but Violet definitely is the one who enjoys it the most. I start by flipping through recipes with them either in cookbooks or online. Then, we watch Master Chef or Master Chef Junior or Anthony Bourdain and other different cooking shows. They'll point stuff out, and then we just try it.

Chef Violet Lucille

FU— Who preps?

AM— As far as the prep, that's a little different for each meal, and each child is at a different stage. I usually have them get all the ingredients in place, and then we go from there; if I feel comfortable letting them cut, I let them cut.  

First we shop then we prep! Violet doing her thing!

FU- These tiny chefs have Mise en place, and their knife skills look better than mine. Fingers curled, pretty damn good. 

Violet hard at prep.

L00K at this StUfF isn’t it nEaT.

AM— Yeah, I love having my children in the kitchen with me. Overall, it's a great skill to have; they not only help with prep, but they also help with the actual cooking, plating, serving, and clean-up. It's definitely very rewarding and one of my favorite parts of the day! 

Part of the Tiny Chef duties.

FU—That is so awesome. Do they have their own cookbooks? 

AM— As far as a cookbook, we have enjoyed The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs by America's Test Kitchen. Or any of the Test Kitchens family binders are pretty good too. I also got them the Master Chef Junior cookbook, which is a little more complex. We also have Christina Tosi's Milk Bar Kids Only, which has some fun baking recipes.

FU— is there a favorite recipe? 

Yeah, the Chicken Tagine with Fennel Chickpeas and Apricots is definitely one of our family's favorites. It is in America's Test Kitchen SPICED Cookbook. I picked that up at Counterpoint. I absolutely love it the other recipes. Another favorite is the 1-pound Chicken with Couscous Carrots and Harissa. [See blog post Part 1 for recipe]

FU— And, I hesitated to put the green harissa in your box. Err, did I?

Chicken Tangine.

FU— Well, hopefully, no disasters, but we all have had them. Anything to share here? 

AM— We haven't had any real big kitchen disasters, but there definitely has been a few meals that had to be scrapped, and I have filled the house with smoke several times as well 😂. I have, by the way, started my grill on fire before I really didn’t know how to cook certain fatty proteins. 

FU— AH, done that myself. Even wrote a blog post about it. 

AM— However, I do recall a time when I was 15 or 16. I was going to attempt to deep fry something without knowing what to do. We had this kind of decorative barn wood thing hanging above the stove, and I thought it would be a good idea to fill a pot with oil, turn it on, and then watch a Pearl Jam video. Well, the oil started on fire, and the 15-year-old me, not being too bright, grabbed a glass of water and threw it on the fire spreading it to the wall. I managed to get everything out, but it could've been a colossal disaster. 

FU— Yikes. Well, you have the knowledge now to pass on what not to do! 

FU— I know you did a chocolate tasting with some different ones I sent. I just did a chocolate tasting with my Lulu; she loves chocolate with salt. 

AM- The kids loved trying and talking about the difference and what was their favorite. Buttered Toast and Milk Chocolate and Chocolate with Espresso tied for first with 2 stars. Next Dark Chocolate with Pop Rocks and Olive Oil Chocolate came last.

Yay Silas, managing a smile holding the last place chocolate!

FU— Haha. The olive oil doesn't surprise me coming in last, though, have them try a good quality olive oil on great vanilla ice cream and a little flaky sea salt!

FU—FINALLY, we always ask— What is your secret FOOD UNION, something you eat that's unusual and you love? 

AM— Budae-jjigae! 

FU-- I had to look this up on Wikipedia! Budae-jjigae, or spicy sausage stew, is a type of Korean dish made with ham, sausage, Spam, baked beans, kimchi, instant noodles, and gochujang. The dish was created shortly after the armistice that ended the Korean War, using the scrounged or smuggled surplus foods from U.S. military bases.

AM— Also, I love cold spicy pickles right out of the jar, anything with ancho chili flavor or fresh ginger, Fried Spam, grilled meats, and kimchi. A big batch of guacamole with just the right heat and lime zest!! My food union would probably be more related to the music playing and the company. The aromas from the grill or stove and the overall experience of a great evening!

The service is more important than the product. Grab a drink from Bravo Espresso and you will see it in action!

FU— Perfectly stated, Andrew! Thank you!