Reluctant Eaters

I like couscous and mussels and fennel and quinoa. It wasn't all that long ago that these were all completely new and unfamiliar foods to me.  I enjoy tasting new foods and using them to make meals more interesting.  The problem is that my family isn't really on the same page and they don't feel the same excitement about experiencing new and unusual flavors and textures.  I'm not really sure how to impart my love of adventuresome eating to my children.  (Up until this point - I don't feel like I have been very successful at it.)  My kids are very tentative about sampling new foods and I reluctantly admit that it could be partly be my fault.  (Recall the cauliflower incident.)  I want my kids to know that food doesn't have to be boring.  There is a whole world of flavors out there to taste.  Even though I've made a conscious effort to expose my family to all sorts of different foods from all different origins, they still prefer the familiar.     

Have you figured out how to get your kids to try new foods?   If you have, send me a comment and let me know how you did it. 

One of the great benefits of being a food blogger is participating in the Foodbuzz tastemakers program.  It gives me the chance to try all sorts of new foods and then give my opinion about them to all of you on my blog.   Recently, Mrs. Paul's and Van de Kamp's provided me with the opportunity to try their new Parchment Bake fish.

Not by choice but simply due to the place that I have chosen to make my home, I'm forced to buy a lot of frozen fish.   There just isn't a whole lot of fresh seafood coming into my little suburb of Atlanta on a daily basis.  Of course, if I were to go downtown to the Dekalb farmers market or other seafood market, I could find all sorts of fresh fish.  Unfortunately, I don't often have the time to make that commute to the market so turn to quality frozen fish instead.  My go-to place for frozen fish is usually Trader Joes but I'm always on the lookout for new frozen fish selections at my local supermarket.   When the opportunity became available for me to try these new frozen fish filets from Mrs. Paul's and Van de Kamps - I jumped at the chance.  

These new parchment bake filets are the epitome of easy.  Sealed pouches of preseasoned tilapia that bake in 20 minutes.  I smade this meal on a busy weeknight when there was little time for meal preparation. 

The bags were puffed when I took them out of the oven.

I slit the bags open and then we sampled.  We liked the classic grilled tilapia the best. 

I put together a green salad, steamed some fresh green beans and warms some rolls while the fish cooked.   The entire dinner was ready in only 20 minutes!

These parchment bake filets are a great healthy meal to keep the freezer for busy nights.  Each filet has only 80 calories - and dinner will be ready in less time than it takes to go through the drive through.  

I'm giving away a coupon for a free Parchment Bake to someone who leaves a comment on the blog today.  I will randomly choose a winner announce their name on tomorrow's blog.  Everyone can try Parchment Bake with a special Buy One, Get One free coupon available at http://bit.ly/ParchmentBake. 

Ciao!