I bet Sarah is going to be pretty happy when she opens her lunchbox today.
I cut the crusts off of her ham and cheese sandwich. This is a first for me.
I remember going to a friend’s house for lunch when I was little. Grilled cheese sandwiches were on the menu. My friend complained about the crusts and his mom cut them off for him. I was puzzled. I had never heard of anyone not eating crusts. How bizarre! Isn’t the crust just a part of the bread? Why didn’t he want it?
Ever since my children were of toast-eating age I have refused to cut off their crusts. In my pre-child days I refused to become The Parent Who Caves in to Their Child and Cuts The Crusts Off the Bread. Only bratty kids would want that. It’s wasteful. And dammit, they should eat their crusts. DON’T THEY KNOW THERE ARE POOR CHILDREN IN INDIA WHO WOULD LOVE NOTHING MORE THAN TO EAT SOME CRUSTS?*
Emma is a crust eater. Sarah definitely is not. And there is no reasoning with her either.
It’s just a part of the bread! I say. It just got a little extra baking time! It’s exactly the same as the inside!
No, apparently it’s not.
ARRRRgh.
Every time our meal includes a bread product Sarah asks me if she has to eat the crusts. I sigh, and tell her that she has to eat as much as she can. And I leave it at that.
But this morning something in me decided to capitulate to the non-crust eating kid and I found myself trimming the bread in its pre-mayo stage. I think, bite for bite, she might actually end up eating more of her sandwich. And isn’t that’s what’s important here?
I don’t know where I read it, but some people keep the crusts for croutons (I have made homemade croutons before, and I do recommend trying it) or pulverize them to make breadcrumbs.
So I looked at the forlorn little unwanted crusts, nestled in the palm of my hand, and tossed them onto the lawn for the squirrels. Someone should enjoy them. It’s not like I can ship them to India.
What about you? What’s your position on crusts?
* speaking of India. We just received the new World Vision Christmas catalogue in the mail. Buying a gift (or more correctly, making a donation) from it has become part of our Christmas tradition. We comb through the catalogue as a family, talking, deciding, and eventually making a purchase. Last year, after much deliberation we bought fruit trees. This year we might buy a few bunnies. (It’s funny that the girl who won’t eat crusts happily accepts the fact that the bunnies get eaten.)
I recommend you go check it out and do the same with your own family.
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