I made a ham last Sunday - it was good but I'll be honest there was not much "creativity" involved on my part. I took the ham out of the gold foil-looking cover cut open the vacuum sealed package and popped it in the oven - it was already cooked so I basically just had to warm it up. I also made mashed potatoes and frozen peas. I'll be the first one to admit, Julia Child I am not. I am envious of people who not only are talented in the kitchen but actually like it. Any time I have a chance to tell one of our Chefs how much I admire their talents I do. They usually respond with a response like, "I love cooking." A response that separates them from me. Oh how I (and my husband) wish that I loved to cook!
My husband had to go away this week for work so it was just me and the kids for dinner all week. Just the three of us and a whole lot of leftover ham (sealed and properly refrigerated or frozen for food safety of course). Two guesses what we ate all week.
Monday night I made ham fried rice. The kids were in heaven - they loved fried rice. Tuesday night I made ham and scalloped potatoes - not their favorite but if I go easy on the cheese they'll eat it. Wednesday night as I was making mini ham and cheese frittatas - a recipe I saw on Rachael Ray's 30-minute meals on the Food Network the night before - my children decided they had had enough. I tried to ignore their protests and whining with a, "too bad, so sad - you'll have ham and like it" approach but it's not like I wasn't a little tired of ham too. Ham four nights in a row is a little extreme. Either way I (not so) patiently reminded them that many children go to bed hungry every night and many more are at risk of hunger. As I said in my last post it is so easy to take for granted the basic necessities in life - food, shelter, comfort, and more. And that was how I got my children to eat ham yet one more night. Maybe I wasn't being creative enough with my ham dishes but, like I said, Julia Child I am not. Maybe if I had a Sodexo Chef helping me menu plan (and cook too for that matter) with their diverse and creative recipes, the ham protest would not have occurred. Who knows. Maybe I'll reach out to our new culinary sub group members on Linkedin for helpful culinary tips and ideas. My mini frittatas were not as pretty as Rachael Ray's but they were good (enough) and we did not go to bed hungry. And for that I am thankful.
But wait there's more to my ham story. I have a big pot of split pea and ham soup simmering on the stove right now. Wait till my children find out we are having ham AGAIN tonight. Are you as amazed as I am that one ham has fed my family for more than 5 days and we will still have leftovers after tonight?
What do you think my kids would say if I tried to serve leftover split pea and ham soup again tomorrow?
4 comments:
I love leftover ham and like to slice it thin, add cheese and stick in a panini maker until it's nice and cheesy.
Your post made me laugh. Still have leftover ham? make a breakfast pizza! take crescent rolls and place them on a pizza pan (use two cans of the regular size rolls and put them on like pizza slices). Scramble some eggs, saute some onions, green peppers and mushrooms (if you and the kids like), maybe some diced tomatoes, chop and fry up the ham. Put it all on the unbaked crescent pizza and top with cheese. Bake until the crescent rolls are done (following instructions on the can). It will brown around the edges. Oooooh yum! I had to fix it twice my kids and my sister's kids loved it so much!!!!!!!!!!!
Wow I admire your parenting - I have a hard time getting my daughter to eat her favorite shape of pasta 2 nites in row. Thanks for the laugh. (PS I freeze my ham in smaller packages and make bean soup and scallop potatoes because I too get sick of eating the same food more than 2 nights in row! lol)
I like the use of the ham two ways (double entendre)...menu and connections. Both were very appetizing, breakfast and inspiration for for the opportunities I have to impact the customers we serve within Sodexo.
looking foward to next weeks menu items!
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