Soup, Mrs. Peters' style

Probably anyone who reads this blog familiar with the book "The Seven Silly Eaters" but for those who aren't, it's an absolutely charming tale of a couple who have a baby, and then another one, and then another one, all the way up to seven children in rapid succession, including twins. Each child is beloved and sweet... and each child comes with his or her own peculiar food preference and will not tolerate anything else.

The kind but harried mother is left preparing seven different meals for her seven silly eaters every single day.

It's told in delightful rhymes and the illustrations are simultaneously charming and hilarious as the happy but chaotic family life is chronicled.

My children love this book, and have large sections memorized from having read it to them over and over. I'm not sure what it says about me that the first line they learned by heart, and recited with the most enthusiasm was...

"Peeling apples by the peck, Mrs. Peters was a wreck."

Oh, it is so relatable, from the messy counters, laundry everywhere, to the vaguely frightened but mostly astonished children, and the affirming but seemingly idealistic father, with glasses and a beard, no less.

Ahem.

Thankfully, the book ends so sweetly -- the children learn, by accident, how to help out with the daily meal prep, and we see the book concluding with the mother relaxing, playing her beloved cello that had been neglected for years. Since she's no longer enslaved by so many ridiculous requests from her formerly picky eaters, she can finally enjoy leisure agaon.

Hallelujah.

Now, how exactly does this relate to our family?

Well, in lots and lots of ways!

We have our own team of 'silly eaters' -- between a gluten intolerance and sheer hatred of any type of meat that is not ground from one, the peculiar vegetable disdain for most vegetables from another, to the dislike of cheese and most pasta dishes from another, I feel like Mrs. Peters on her least flattering of days.

Only I can't even play the cello.

(Mind you, I've never experienced having twins. 

Not for the faint of heart, I would guess.)

About three months ago, though, a happy accident occurred. We had only a small amount of ground meat and six very hungry eaters to placate. I made a slapdash dish and crossed my fingers that my small people would actually eat, and to my amazement, they asked for seconds! Thirds! 

And, friends, I made it in one pot.

via GIPHY

Literally my reaction to that dinner.

Now it's become a staple in our house. They all call it 'stew' although it doesn't involve stewing beef, beef broth or most other ingredients a decent stew entails.

But whatever.

Every person actually eats it and enjoys it. And the kids eagerly take it in their thermos for lunch the next day.

And now that Isaiah has gotten proficient at peeling veggies and Noah has zero fears browning meat, my two oldest kids can nearly make it themselves.

via GIPHY

I've waited for this moment my whole life.

I'll share with you the recipe, although, truly, it's intuitive cooking and insanely simple. But if it gets a meal on the table quickly that everyone eats, I have zero complaints.

Mrs. Peters' style 'Stew'

or what my sister calls, Shepherd's Pie in a Pot

Ingredients

2 small onions

4 stalks of celery

5 carrots

8 potatoes

4 cloves of garlic

Fat of choice (olive oil, butter, ghee, reserved bacon fat. Whatever.)

2 lbs. of ground beef

2 cartons of chicken stock (or y'know, make your own... But really. Cartons are fine and that's what I use 75% of the time!)

Salt, pepper and thyme

Directions.

Peel and chop the onions into small pieces. 

Do likewise to the celery, carrots and potatoes. Peel and mince the garlic.

Heat a large pot to medium high heat with about 1.5 tablespoons of your fat of choice. 

When it's well heated, add the celery and onions. Cook until translucent. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly.

Add beef and brown thoroughly.

Add remaining chopped veggies and broth. Bring to a boil.

After it's come to boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer, add salt (about 1 tablespoon, depending on how salty your stock was) and pepper (about 2 teaspoons) to taste and about 1 tablespoon of thyme.

You can serve with a salad, or bread, or biscuits, but we actually find it filling enough to eat it by itself!

If you're feeling adventurous, you can add extra veggies. I attempted to add sautéed kale last week and was summarily picked out of hot bowls of soup by the three verbal children.

At least they didn't SAY they hated it.