So another week, another new food. I’m still trying to figure out how to get through to the 4-year-old. One of the few fruits and vegetables he’ll eat is an apple, so I thought I’d buy a Red D’Anjou Pear. Since it would look similar to an apple when cut up, I thought might actually get him to try it! And we don’t typically eat pears in our house, so I thought it would be good for all of us to continue to branch out and try things outside our comfort zones.
So I sliced up the pear and put it on a plate without much fanfare, grabbing a piece and starting to eat. Then the 7-year old took a piece, thinking it was apple, and bit into it. When she realized it wasn’t apple, she made a face. I explained it was a pear and she tried it again. Here’s how the taste-test went down and the reports from our four food critics (some more critical than others):
Me: I expected a crunchy texture, but it’s soft instead. Sweet, not tart. Yummy! I have to say, though, I prefer the tartness of an apple. I think this pear would be really wonderful in a salad.
7-year old: I thought it would taste like an apple, but it didn’t. It was squishier than an apple, and tasted a little like an apple, but really squishy. (She wasn’t a fan.)
4-year old: (Heard his sister say she didn’t like it and refused to try. Finally coaxed him to put his mouth on it.) Ugh.
Daddy: I don’t like pears, do I really have to try it? (Takes a bite.) Wow, that’s not bad. Much sweeter than a regular pear. It’s actually pretty good!
I wonder how many of us have tried just ONE variety of a type of food, and made a decision to avoid the many varieties based on just that one type? It just goes to show that it’s really worth it to try many varieties of foods. There might something wonderful we’ve missed!
Next week, we’re branching out from fruit in an attempt to get the 4-year-old on board with trying new foods. Check in and find out if we were successful, and what non-fruit (non-veggie) new food we decided to try! What new food are you trying this week?
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Thanks for doing this Liz. I thought of you while I was at the grocery store the other day perusing the fruits and veggies. I finally got Kellen to eat Pineapple the other day and he loves them now. I look forward to seeing how your veggie sampling goes, I need some inspiration in that area.
Oh Jamie, I’m so glad to hear you’re having success! We’re not sampling veggies yet. I have something outside the fruit-veggie realm to try this week. But I will say that the secret to getting kids to like veggies is to offer them a lot, and use a lot of different methods. So you might have peas one week. One day offer them raw, with ranch. The next try them steamed. The next sauteed…you get the idea. The kids might find that they like them when they’re cooked a certain way. My neighbor’s son loves brussel sprouts, but only when they are roasted. Roasting is a wonderful way to try veggies. Roast potatoes and throw in some other things, like brussel sprouts, zucchini, asparagus, or turnips. YUMMY!
Liz,
I feel bad that I have not been following this but no more. I shall read the weekly updates. I am also going to ask my California Girl to get a new fruit each time she gets the weekly groceries (Monday). That being said we get about 6 to 8 types of fruit a week so we are not just eating the big three. A few weeks ago we had golden raspberries. Nice but I still like the red.
I like pears (I like all food) and they taste and feel like pears. I don’t compare them to apples like I don’t compare chicken to steak.
Hi Andrew! So glad you’re going to be tracking our weekly food experiments. In our roles as “food critics,” one of the things we talk about is how we expect a food to taste from how it looks, and then how it actually tastes in terms of flavor, texture, etc. You will see me comparing foods that look similar and commenting on whether they taste similar.
So while I might not compare chicken to steak, I might well compare chicken to turkey or duck. And I might compare steak to bison or venison.
I can’t wait to hear what you and CG are able to find at your local stores. Please share either here or on Twitter – use tag #TNFT.
Liz