Spoiling the Old Man

Of my many hats, these days I wear the Chef for the Heart Healthy Diet hat most consistently.  I earn this privilege by preparing all our food from scratch without a trace of wheat, sugar, or dairy.  Other miscellaneous foods common to the American dinner table are also not allowed, like peanut butter and mayonnaise. I do this at the recommendation of my husband's cardiologist, who believes it will help support her patient's weakened heart.  I happen to whole-heartedly agree.

This evening’s lovely dinner was comprised of fresh pineapple, kale salad with pine nuts, baked chicken, quinoa, and spinach sautéed with onions and mushrooms.  Just as I was finishing up the dishes, my husband ambles into the kitchen and pops the inevitable question.

“So.  What’s for dessert?”

I hedge.  “What would you want if you could choose anything you wanted?”

I was almost sure he’d say ice cream, and had an alternative suggestion ready: full-fat coconut milk cranked into soft-serve goodness in an individual-serving-sized churn.  But he took a different tack.

“Fruit pie.”

“Like what kind of fruit pie?”

“Blueberry.  Fresh blueberry pie.”  He turned and headed for his spot in front of the TV, assuming that our conversation had been an exercise in futility.  Blueberry pie was certainly out of the question. 

But I took it as a challenge, cooked some frozen berries with tapioca and stevia, and made a few almond flour crepes to encase the berry goo.

Within a very few minutes after he issued his request, I appeared beside the TV with a plate of blueberry-filled crepes: mock blueberry pie.  “You want decaf coffee, too?”

He’s spoiled rotten, I tell you.