The moms from my Bible study class had a holiday lunch gathering. I knew there would be a Chick-Fil-A nugget tray, but after recently reading ” target=”_blank”>Eating Animals (and other books), I have moved from eating mostly vegetarian to being a vegetarian. No nuggets for me. At the same time, I also didn’t want to make a big deal about it with my friends and make anyone uncomfortable, so I made this salad for my meal.
In the spirit of keeping it real, my kids did eat the nuggets. I’m trying to navigate the waters when it comes to how I feed them in social situations when all of their peers are eating food that I don’t feel good about. My kids don’t currently share my convictions. They are 5 & 2 – clearly they don’t get the implications of factory farming and other moral dilemmas associated with eating meat. I don’t serve them meat at home and very rarely order it for them when we are out as a family. However, once or twice a month we are in a situation like this where I have trouble asking them to forgo what all of their friends are eating. I load up their plates with fruit and veggies and crackers and all the non-meat sides, but I do let them have the meat.
Okay, on to the recipe:
Curried Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas
- 1 cup quinoa – I used sprouted, but regular would work fine
- 2 cups water
- 1 Tbsp curry powder
- 1 tsp cumin
Bring all ingredients to a boil and cover, reduce heat and simmer 15-20 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.
When cool, toss with:
- 1 green apple, diced
- 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 1/4 c diced cilantro
- 2 carrots, shredded
- 1/4 c diced green onions
Mix up and stir in dressing:
- 3 Tbsp EVOO
- 1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
- Juice of 1 lime
- 1 tsp lime zest
- salt and pepper to taste
A couple of days later the kids and I went on an outing and I enjoyed the salad again as a picnic lunch, while they ate pb&j.
Any other mamas out there facing this same dilemma with allowing/not allowing your kids to eat something based on your personal convictions?
Do you agree that it is quite hard to explain to a child that young why they aren’t allowed to eat something with all their friends, or am I taking the easy way out?
