So, what started as sort of a tradition when I was a kid, has exploded into a funky New Year's tradition that the kids love and hate!

It's eating weird food. I can remember my parents waking us for the ball to drop and then offering up some oddities...calamari, escargot...caviar! Well...we have sort of taken it to a new level. Enjoy how we tortured the kids as we watched the ball drop for 2017!

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  1. Kalamata olives. The olives of my people. They hated them.
  2. Some weird wasabi cracker that Alden (8) loved and wants in his lunch.
  3. Kimchi - 'spicy pickled cabbage, the national dish of Korea'. I love it. Not a hit.
  4. Manchego cheese with fig spread. I believe the quote was, 'Yuck.'
  5. Hearts of palm with ham wrapped around it. I had to look up what hearts of palm even was. It's actually the core of a palm tree. It's a vegetable and it was not a huge hit, but not too much complaining.
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  1. Black eyed peas. It's actually a bean and suppose to bring you good luck when eaten exactly at the stroke of midnight. I can't stand them but have been doing this since 1990. So...27 years. It sorta works..
  2. Spaghettios. The kids have NEVER had these. They absolutely hated them. I haven't had them since I was a kid! Don't tell anyone - but I loved it and finished them off.
  3. Tofu meatless meatballs in sauce. Not bad. The kids reallllly hated these! I think one of them cried.
  4. Yucca root fries. We saw this thing in the grocery store and were like...what the hell is that? We bought it, made fries and they were terrible. It could have been the cook.
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  1. 12 green grapes each. You eat one for each month of the new year. Make note of the sour ones and what month they correspond with. Could be a rough month.
  2. Pistachio pudding. Everyone has to try it at least once! Chloe (11) LOVED it. I always knew she had a little grandpa in her.
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  1. Shrimp crackers. To quote Jen, 'Mmm...shrimpy.' Alden (who loved the wasabi crackers) loves these and they also will be in his lunch! I like them fine. The others not so much.
  2. Quadratini wafter cookies. It's a cookie. It was a hit.
  3. This is the can the weird wasabi crackers came in. Cool, eh?
  4. Cassava chips. Cassava is also a root and often used in place of potatoes. They got a lukewarm reception. I ate half the bag.
  5. Fortune cookies. Again, a cookie with a message. A huge hit.
  6. Tim Tam. It's a cookie from Australia. BY FAR THE HIT OF THE NIGHT! This sucker was like a really good Kit Kat with lots of chew caramel.

We end with the giant platter of super weird stuff!

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  1. Chayote squash. This is what happens when Jen and I shop at Hannaford. This squash is sort of like a cucumber that tastes like dirt. It's often used as a side dish.
  2. Kumquats. Ahhh, the kumquat. Love saying kumquat, this thing was the absolute LEAST favorite of the night! Everyone...and I do mean everyone, spit this thing out. Who the hell eats these things?
  3. Rambutan. These spiky looking weirdo fruits are cool. You peel the fur coat back to reveal grape-plum like innards. It has a pit like a plum and it was really tasty. 2 kids cried and then liked it.
  4. Dragon fruit. So cool looking. It was super nasty.
  5. Edible flowers. Ben (8) loved them so much, he ate two. I thought they tasted exactly like you think they would. Weeds.
  6. Star fruit. A returned classic. It's yummy. Tastes like almost a strawberry watermelon!

And that ladies and gentlemen is how we rang in 2017. I think Chloe (11) had the best quote of the night:

I don't know why I look forward to this every year.

 

We all went to bed hoping that we never see another kumquat as long as we live and hoping their were Tim Tams leftover!

Here's to a great 2017!

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