Chef Holden

Today, Holden and Sydney went to visit Jodi, Nolan, and Evan. They had a great time! Thanks Jodi! They really loved her paved circular driveway. Holden brought his scooter, which he loaned to Nolan on the condition he use it on the flat part. Sydney honed her driving skills in the battery powered car. She's really starting to get the hang of it if you don't count the time she nearly drove into the trees, or the time she almost ran Nolan over. Fortunately, in that instance, Evan saved the day. He said the rule is "no crashing." Thanks, Evan! When we got home, we decided we needed a change of pace. So, it was decided that tonight, Holden would cook dinner all by himself. Dad only helped (but really very little). So, believe it or not, Holden made dinner. He put on my burgermeister white chef hat and a green apron and got down to business (I got pictures!). First, he got his step stool so he could be at counter level. Then, the first big decision... what kind of pasta to select. It was close between fusilli (sp?) and elbow macaroni. Ultimately, he liked the idea that you could pretend the elbow macaroni was like a teeny weeny phone. So, he filled a pot with water... added a touch of salt, and a gloop of cooking oil. After the water was boiling, in went all the little phones. Then, he was off to pick a vegetable. Green beans and broccoli were dismissed out of hand, making peas and carrots the clear favorite. After I voiced my opinion that we might need to add something to the pasta, he helped clean, kiss, and chop up some mushrooms. That's what I call cooking with LOVE! Next, he sauteed them up, which includes listening to them sizzle. But the master chef was not done. He also set the table and said we had to have parmesan cheese on our pasta. So, there you have it, Holden's buttered pasta with parmesan cheese and mushrooms with peas and carrots. Oh yes, he wanted slice banana as a garnish. Okay, so he picked all the carrots out of his carrots and peas, but he DID eat a spoonful of peas. A big spoonful! Okay, so then he made a face. But he managed to get the green goop down. And remained in good spirits. Then, it was all about toasts. We toasted his meal, being together, and Mom's coming home soon. Here's to you, Mom.