Ni How! KUNG POW! Picky Eaters!

My daughter is an amazing cook and mother of three with one on the way. She agreed that I should share her blog post with you...

"I love to cook most of the time. I think its fun to try new recipes and experiment in the kitchen. Some times its a curse I guess, because kids like things simple- and I'm not a huge fan of the bland. My husband even more so than me. We eat dinner together as a family pretty much every night- but since the kids aren't happy with much more than pizza, lasagna, or pasta (and those last two are Jake's least favorite foods) it can be a bit of a battle to get them to eat (although I must admit that Josh is great at trying anything- even if just a bite or two).

Well, last night I was craving lettuce wraps. I wasn't too optimistic that the kids would eat them. But there was a recipe for them in this recipe book my mom gave me that is supposedly proven for picky kids [52 Weeks of Proven Recipes for Picky Kids by Jill Mckenzie Cookbook]. The kids loved the smell, but when Josh saw me putting in cashews he didn't think it sounded too good anymore. So I told them that it was Chinese night and kept saying "NI HOW!" Josh asked if we could use chopsticks, and since we didn't have any I said "no", but explained how like in Mexican meals we often wrap things up in tortillas, for this meal we were gonna wrap up our meal in lettuce. I got a few moans, but said "Hey, it's Chinese night, and its FUN to try new things, NI HOW!!!" But I quickly blended up a green smoothie to go along with the meal (have I mentioned we love green smoothies? We have one every day at breakfast, and while Dekker doesn't usually love them in the mornings, he LOVES them with dinner. I know. Go figure.- So I often make one to go along with dinner as well).
Lo and behold though, the kids gobbled them up! Lettuce and all. And Jake and I loved them too! It was my greatest dinner success in quite some time. There was lots of "Ni HOW!" going around as well as "KUNG POW" (which was Jake's answer to "How do you say thank you in Chinese?") and everyone ate MULTIPLE lettuce wraps. So here's the recipe that I will be making OFTEN!"

Lettuce Wraps by Jill Mckenzie

12 large iceberg lettuce, washed and patted dry (I used green leaf)
2 Tablespoons sesame oil (I used Peanut Oil)
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 lb ground pork, chicken, turkey, or beef (I used turkey)
1 cup cashews
1 cup salted peanuts (I used chopped water chestnuts and added salt)
1 cup Craisins
1 package crunchy rice noodles or 1 pkg dry ramen noodles, crushed (I used ramen noodles, and could have doubled that)

Sauce:
5 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tablespoon sugar
Juice of 2 limes (I used 1 Tbsp each of bottled lemon juice and lime juice)
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1 Tbsp water
1/2 cup orange juice, prepared from concentrate

Wash and dry lettuce leaves. Set aside. Heat sesame oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Add onions and garlic (I added water chestnuts here too) and saute for just a few minutes. This will season the oil and pan. Add ground meat and cook thoroughly. Meanwhile in a separate bowl, whisk together sauce ingredients. Pour over meat mixture and bring to boil over medium-high heat. the sauce will thicken slightly. Stir in the cashews, peanuts, and Craisins. Let mixture steam for about 4 minutes. Serve on a bed of crushed noodles. The let each person spoon into lettuce and wrap up to eat.

"Yeah. It made my night to see everyone eating without complaining. And I really do think calling it "Chinese night" and saying lots of "NI HOWs" made a difference."