Breaking the rules
Here’s the thing, sometimes a choice can feel so good, so right, and not actually be that good. Like s’mores. Yummy hot roasted marshmallows (read: corn syrup globules) melted on chocolate smeared on graham crackers. Nutritionally they are inexcusable. But in terms of happy children you’d be hard pressed to get a better bang for your calories. It’s more than just hopped-up sugar fiends; it’s sitting around a fire, it’s laughing, it’s being together in that sugar-coated moment. A family that binges on chocolate together, stays together. So says I, anyway.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not shirking from the Herculean task of doing right by my children. Broccoli and beans are a vital part of healthy development. I’m just saying that there are defensible reasons for breaking a rule every now and then. One, I need my treats. Two, it’s fun to keep the kids guessing.
Our family has packed up campfires, and so go the s’mores for the season. But as outside fires die down the heat of the oven kicks up. We haven’t let the spectacular exploding bread caper deter us from throwing things around the kitchen. This weekend, inspired by the wonderful book I just read, we made brownies. And when I say brownies I do not mean the same brownie recipe, that dependable and foolproof recipe that I’ve been making since I was 12. I mean these incredible brownies. We made them for guests that got sick and canceled. Our brave family of four heeded the call. And ate the decadent brownies ourselves.
Sometimes going green means eating your veggies. And sometimes going green means letting the flour leave poofy trails on the floor and on your cheeks. It means letting the little ones lick the bowl. And sometimes success is measured not in grams of fat or molecules of vitamins, but in globs of chocolate shmeared on smiling faces.