Make Your Own Family History

     Welcome to my food blog. My favorite time of the day is when my family and I sit down to dinner together and connect. Long hours, my husband's long commute, and teenagers' schedules make it a challenge, and we don't have this luxury every night, but we take advantage of every opportunity. There are so many benefits to having your family around a table. Years of studies have been consistent showing kids who eat with their families have higher grades and less depression, as well as better nutrition, behavior and manners. It's a safe place to build trust and learn about each other, to listen to one another and look each other in the eyes. This takes work when they are young but gets easier as children mature. 

     Last year I started a new tradition to make at least one night a week (Wednesday for us) extra special. I cooked a meal featuring family favorites, set the dining room table with china, lit the candles and turned on some good music. There are many ways and ideas to make dinner special, but this was mine. We all found ourselves looking forward to Wednesday nights.  This year with the upcoming election, our mealtime talk seems to be around politics and history. Maybe the opinion poll calls, that we do not answer at dinner, sparked this. Nevertheless, I ran with it. I wanted to carry on our tradition with a new twist…historic dinners. I polled the family on their favorite US presidents in history. We have taken turns chatting about them, and I even found some fun US Presidents placemats. We didn't realize how little we know…adults included. That said, I am starting a year of "Presidential Dinners" with my family beginning with one of our founding fathers, George Washington. I don't know what I will make from Martha's Booke of Cookery. Should I boyle a Legg of mutton the forc'd way or make a chicken pie? Don't worry, it has to be easy and edible, and we're not big on mutton. Whatever it is, we will have fun food, dinner conversation, and maybe we'll even learn a thing or two.

     I hope you can join me and start a new tradition of your own. Learn history. Make history. Press the pause button on everything around you if you can for 30 minutes. Turn off the tv, ignore the phone, and just listen and communicate with your family. It will make them feel valued and important, and you will not regret having spent this time together. Do what works for you and your family. Order out, microwave a meal, or make something special. If you want to try my "something special," then I'd love to have you follow along. Look for George and Martha's dinner around President's Day. While I'm finishing up some research I wanted to post some fun history facts and ideas.

Election Dinner - What will you serve?

Are you hosting an election night party or staying in with the family? In celebrating our great liberties to choose our president, I thought it would be fun to know what our candidates like to eat. Our current president, Barack Obama, enjoys many cuisines like Chicago deep dish pizza, but when he is at home cooking (well, maybe before he became President), he likes to make chili. Here is his family's chili recipe printed in The Huffington Post.

Obama Family Chili Recipe

1 large onion, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

Several cloves of garlic, chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 pound ground turkey or beef

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon ground oregano

1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/4 teaspoon ground basil

1 tablespoon chili powder

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Several tomatoes, depending on size, chopped

1 can red kidney beans.

Saute onions, green pepper and garlic in olive oil until soft. Add ground meat and brown. Combine spices together into a mixture, then add to ground meat. Add red wine vinegar. Add tomatoes and let simmer until tomatoes cook down. Add kidney beans and cook for a few more minutes. 

Serve over white or brown rice. Garnish with grated cheddar cheese, onions and sour cream. 

•  I read that President Obama likes to top his chili with Fritos.
• This is a very light recipe, especially with ground turkey. I also added salt and pepper to the recipe and used a large can of diced tomatoes since they are not in season.

Opposing Candidate Mitt Romney loves Meatloaf Cakes, and his beloved wife, Ann, makes them every year for his birthday, sided with mashed potatoes, carrots, and corn-on-the-cob. I served them with green beans and carrots and . This recipe was in the New York Times and adapted from Ann. 

Ann Romney's Meatloaf Cakes

FOR THE MEATLOAF CAKES:

1 1/2 pounds ground beef

4 slices bread, crumbled into small pieces

 or 3/4 cup dried bread crumbs

1 large egg

1/4 chopped onion

1/4 cup lemon juice

2 teaspoons seasoned salt

FOR THE SAUCE:

1/4 cup ketchup

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1. For the meatloaf cakes: Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef, crumbled bread or bread crumbs, egg, onion, lemon juice and seasoned salt. Mix lightly but thoroughly and shape into six small loaves. Space evenly on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes; meanwhile, prepare the sauce.

2. For the sauce: In a small bowl, mix together the ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, cloves and allspice. When the meatloaf cakes have baked for 15 minutes, brush each loaf with sauce and return to the oven. Continue to bake until the meatloaf cakes are 165 degrees in the center when tested with an instant-read thermometer, about 20 more minutes. If desired, serve with scalloped potatoes and steamed vegetables. Pass additional sauce separately.

Yield: 6 small meatloaf cakes (3 to 6 servings). 

Bites of History

• America's first presidential election was on Jan 7, 1789, using the Electoral College system, still used today. 
• There have been four elected presidents who did not win the popular vote. President Adams in 1824, President Hayes in 1876, President Harrison in 1888 and President Bush in 2000.
• President Obama is the first sitting president to ever vote early. He voted on Thursday, October 25th.

Watch for my Thanksgiving dinner post, Before There Were Presidents.