Hester Family Food Network....

So, we were sort of stuck indoors-not just with Elijah's low counts, but I was pretty sick. Laid up on the couch, the best thing I could come up with was to watch a few episodes of Food Network Star.  (Disclaimer: that show is full of totally inappropriate stuff).

The kids, however, loved it and in the days to come could be found playing their own version in Ev's play kitchen. It was hilarious to hear them mimic the show with such detail.

Well, being stuck inside is just never fun.  I decided one day that we would have our own "Food Network" night.  The three big kids were the chefs, the two younger boys were judges along with Ben and I.  We had to work things a little differently to make it practical.  

Noah had the appetizer:

Toasted baguette with goat cheese, (chopped jicama), shaved melon, sliced almonds toasted with paprika, and (fresh parsley).

Caleb had the entree:

Farfalle pasta in a homemade Alfredo sauce with caramelized onions, broccoli, (sautéed mushrooms), (marinated artichoke hearts), grilled chicken, and topped with fresh parsley.

And Emma had dessert:

Lemon-lime bars with (caramel)-(whipped topping).

The whole experience was great! It taught the kids how much work goes into whatever you put on a plate...and how important it is to hear *kind words* in response to your dish.

Ezra worked with me on "curveball" ingredients-the ones in parentheses up above.  Now in the TV show, the contestants are all about sabatoge.  But Ezra and I worked hard to pick ingredients that showed them we believed in their ability to succeed!!!!

Each cook received their curveball ingredients just before they began cooking.  They had to incorporate them "on the fly". 

Each cook also had to film an introduction and a 30 second presentation of their dish.  They were judged based on taste, level of difficulty, food presentation, presentation of the dish, and their use of the curveball ingredients.

And the winner.....

Emma!  She took the win because she did all the work on her own.  Her presentation of her dish was personable and fun.  And it tasted great!

But we were BLOWN AWAY by all three dishes and marveled at our gourmet meal. Not to mention their great job on clean-up.

So Caleb took the award for most complicated dish.  His had the most components by far, and it tasted amazing.  Ben helped him with the barbecue chicken. We were especially surprised that Judge Ben Hester even enjoyed the caramelized onions!!!

And Noah!  He took the award for most beautiful food presentation.  It blew us away that he produced something like this at 8 years old.  I helped him with getting the skin off the jicama and the melon. And his dish was the two younger boys' favorite. 

Their prize? They each got to pick a kindle book, and Emma also received $5 to Starbucks. All in all, it was a night of great fun, great food, and great memories.  I'm hoping to combine all the video into a short episode for our family to watch together.

Or, maybe that would be another great project for them??? :-)