Tangerine dream

My mother goes through food fascinations where she is completely gung ho about a certain food for a period of time. In the past year she has obsessed about olives, popcorn, Werther's candies, back to olives, and now tangerines. Mom has now introduced little man to tangerines, it is so bad that when my mother arrives JG asks her, "Gramma we have our tangerines now?"

I on the other hand am not a big tangerine fan, they are simply too much work to bother with. There is the peeling, the seeds, the rind, the stickiness etc. I am not about fuss, if I want to eat it must be with the least amount of fuss. Why not pick up an apple? Apples are easy: wash and eat. My kids orange consumption has been primarily of the little mandarin kind thanks to Geisha.

So last night mom was over and she prepared JG's tangerine just like the pampered little guy likes it. He must have really enjoyed it because when he went to bed he asked if he could have a tangerine for breakfast, in my moment of weakness I agreed, "Yes, you may have a tangerine for breakfast."

I awoke this morning at 7:03 a.m. to very cold hands on my face and a little voice whispering, "It's time for a tangerine." I got up, grabbed the tangerine from the fridge and got out our handy dandy citrus peeler from Pampered Chef.

JG: Mommy don't use that. Gramma uses a sharp knife.
Mommy: I am going to use this, it should be fine.
JG: OK but that isn't how Gramma does it.

I peeled the tangerine and put into his favorite Darth Vader bowl. He picked up a section.

JG: Mommy, you didn't take the seeds out. Gramma always takes the seeds out so I don't choke. Because if I swallowed one I could choke and you know you can die if you choke.
Mommy: Honey, can't you spit the seeds out?
JG: No, that's not how Gramma does it. Maybe if I not choke on the seed I not want to grow a tangerine in my tummy if I swallow it.

I thought back to the fiasco to when he accidentally ate the sticker from the apple and decided I didn't want him examining his end product for the next week so took back the bowl and removed each and every blasted seed.

I returned the bowl to my son who immediately examined the tangerine.

JG: Mommy, you didn't cut it up. Gramma cuts it up for me into little pieces.

So, I cut it up the best I could with a semi-sharp knife and returned it for a third try.

JG: Mommy, you didn't take the string (orange rind) off it.
Mommy: It's ok you won't choke on that or grow a tangerine in your tummy from rind.

JG looked a me and said, "Mommy, I not eat it. I will wait for Gramma to come over to make me one the way I like it."

Sigh.

The dog ended up getting on the table after I left for some "alone time" and ate the tangerine. I don't think she liked the way I prepared it either because she threw it up at the top of the stairs.

You know, it would have been easier to clean up if I hadn't cut it into small, seedless sections.