GHOST WRITER FOR
MICHELLE BERNSTEIN'S NBC COLUMNS
“As Zach tastes something for the first time, I watch discovery
and surprise spread across his cheeks, his eyes opening wide,
looking at me as if saying, Wow Mami…what was that?! I watch
as he feels a brand new texture on his tiny tongue, which is
usually followed by a funny little head bob, a wordless indicator
that an attack on his senses is taking place. He loves flavor and
things that make his mouth tingle and the chef in me just melts
over that.”
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"I began to experiment and have fun cooking for him: I made an
avocado smoothie and mixed it into his formula. He loved it! I
whipped cream cheese into mashed calabaza, spinach and
quinoa and created one of his favorites, which he announces
with a certain joyous leg kicking, head bobbing thing that
ensues when something delicious is happening in his mouth.
Once, after he spit out peas at me, offended I’d given him
something he didn’t like, I figured out a way to sneak them into
his next meal—this time folded into cooked plátanos drizzled
with olive oil and a tiny pinch of salt. It worked! Soon enough, I
discarded the advice books and instead tapped into a more
powerful source: my mother’s intuition.”