D.Currie wrote:
> "Julia Altshuler" > wrote in message
> . ..
>
>>I've thought more about the question of what makes a fussy adult and how
>>to deal with them. I've decided that the definition of fussy is someone
>>who can't find anything to eat in a restaurant or social gathering or
>>someone who can't be polite in those situations.
>>
>
>
> Thinking even more about this, If you have to change the way you cook to
> accommodate someone's list of banned foods (barring medical or religious
> reasons) then they might be considered fussy. Unless of course your own
> cooking is quirky to begin with.
>
> But consider this list of foods that one couple has, at one time or another,
> said they don't like/can't eat: onion, black pepper, celery seed/celery
> salt, oregano, marjoram, basil, mint, rosemary, Mexican food, Italian food,
> spicy food of any sort, olive oil, winter squash, chocolate, cucumber, corn,
> garlic, chicken gizzards, liver, anything in the cabbage family, dressing on
> salad, raw tomato, cumin, most ethnic foods, and most
> spices/herbs/seasonings, asparagus, radishes, spinach, sourdough bread, rye
> bread...and I've never seen them eat any sort of fish or seafood. Oh, I'm
> sure I'm missing a few things; I'm still compiling the list.
>
> And, they've commented on other dinners they've had pointing out fatal flaws
> in the cooking. For example, one time they were served baked potato with a
> ham dinner and that "ruined the meal." Okay, baked potato with ham wouldn't
> be my first choice, but it wouldn't ruin the meal for me. There have been
> similar comments, criticizing other meals they've been served and each time
> I've thought that the comment was overly critical.
>
> When we dine at their house, the vegetable is invariably green beans
> (frozen, never fresh) with fake bacon bits on top, and there are no spices
> or seasonings used on anything. Not even salt. No butter, either. Anywhere.
> If there is butter on the table, it is actually margarine mixed with some
> sort of oil and either sugar or corn syrup as she doesn't like hard butter,
> and it's too much trouble to take it out of the fridge ahead of time. I'll
> tell ya, it's a shock when you butter a roll and the "butter" is sweet. And
> this is the same person who makes "gravy" from flour and water, and I once
> saw her dress a salad with watered-down ketchup. And the many times we've
> eaten ham there (one of their favorites) it's not cooked, it's microwaved,
> and then she pours maple-flavored pancake syrup on top.
>
> When they've dined with us, they've eaten a number of things on their
> "banned" list, particularly the spices/herbs/seasonings/flavorings. And they
> rave about how good it is, and take second and third and fourth helpings.
> But if you ask them if they like oregano or rosemary or sage, for example,
> they'll say no. Which makes cooking for them somewhat of a challenge because
> I'm never sure if they really don't like something, or if it's just
> something they say they don't like because they don't have it at home.
>
> And the list is getting longer. It seems like each time we eat with them,
> they tell us about more foods they don't like. It not as bad as it seems,
> though, as there are some things I know I can cook for them. But I wouldn't
> want to eat with them on a daily basis.
>
>

OMG. I have no words for this. It must be difficult to share meals with
such people (may I suggest going to the movies instead?). How can I
begin to express my sympathy?