Brushing Teeth

I'm going to give you a great soup recipe, but first a funny story….

The other morning I agreed to watch my 3-year-old granddaughter for the morning while her mommy acted as a chaperone for her sister’s school field trip. As usual, Little Missy was glad to see me, and my morning look like a walk in the park.

As my daughter-in-law was walking out the door, she called back to me, “By the way, could you please help Mylee brush her teeth?”

“Of course,” I replied. “No problem.”

Or so I thought.

“Which toothbrush is yours, Mylee?” I asked.

“I don’t want to brush my teeth,” was her response.

“Well, of course you must brush your teeth,” I said. “It will only take a minute.”

“I don’t want to brush my teeth,” she said again.

And so our morning went. I know this sounds silly. After all, I’m nearly 60, and she’s only 3. I outweigh her by a good 100 lbs. I should be able to make her brush her teeth. But, I swear to you Ladies and Gentlemen, there was no way she was going to let me brush her teeth. When I tried to use psychology (“all good girls brush their teeth; that way they will have pretty smiles”), she responded, “I don’t want to brush my teeth.” When I tried to use bribery (“I will read you that funny Halloween story AFTER you have brushed your teeth”), she said, “I don’t want to brush my teeth.” And when I tried more direct persuasion (that is, picking her up, carrying her into the bathroom, putting her onto her little stool and coming at her with the toothbrush), she clamped her mouth shut tighter than the doors at the Strategic Air Command in Omaha, Nebraska.

It was getting closer and closer to the time when Mommy was to come home. I had only been given one substantive task, and I had failed. I finally just crouched down to her level and simply asked her, “Mylee, why do you not want to brush your teeth?”

“I’m afraid of the toothpaste,” she replied.

There you have it. That was it. I don’t know now, nor will I probably ever, just why she found the toothpaste so scary. However, when I washed the toothpaste off of the brush, she opened her mouth and let me brush her teeth. This is a true story.

Doesn't she look innocent?

And Mom doesn’t need to know this story.

Now, about soup….

When I was newly married and a very bad cook, I joined a subscription service offered by, hmmm, maybe McCall’s Magazine (which I don’t think even exists anymore). Each month, McCalls sent me a series of recipe cards for a fee. As I recall, most of the recipes were not good or were too complicated for my little newlywed brain (which at the time was also concentrating on college as well as marriage). I also recall that it was kind of expensive, at least for two college students on a very limited budget, but hey, I really was a very bad cook.

Out of that subscription service, this was the only recipe that I continue to use. By the way, the image was posted online as a "vintage recipe card." It's the same recipe card I use. Guess that makes me old.

Sunday Supper Soup


Ingredients
1-1/2 lb. ground chuck
1 egg, beaten
½ c. soft bread crumbs
¼ t. salt
1 T. chopped parsley
2 T. butter
1 10-1/2 oz. can beef broth
1 28-oz can tomatoes, undrained
1 envelope (1-3/4 oz.) dry onion soup mix
4-5 carrots, peeled and sliced
¼ c. chopped celery
¼ c. chopped parsley
¼ t. pepper
¼ t/ dried parsley
¼ t/ dried basil
1 bay leaf

Process
Make meatballs: In medium bowl, combine beef, egg, 3 T. water, bread crumbs, salt, and parsley; mix lightly. With hands, lightly shape into 24 balls.

In hot butter in 5-qt. Dutch oven, sauté meatballs, a few at a time, until browned on all sides. Drain off fat. Set meatballs aside.

In same Dutch oven, combine 2 c. water, beef broth, tomatoes, soup mix, carrots, celery, parsley, pepper, oregano, basil and bay leaf. Bring to boiling, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, but stirring occasionally to break up tomatoes, 30 min. Add meatballs and simmer 20 min. longer.

6 servings