Mini Iron Chef

Typically dinner prep goes like this:
1. Mom stands in the kitchen trying to cook dinner while little Ethan cries, screams, and whines to be picked up.
2. Within 2 minutes, mom picks chubby up and proceeds to try to prepare the meal one-handed.
3. Within another 2 minutes, mom puts down the rascal because, frankly, if trying to cut up veggies and meat on the cutting board while holding a toddler isn't impossible, it's at least quite dangerous.
4. Repeat steps 1-2
5. Put down Ethan because stirring food on the stove is, as before, if not impossible then dangerous while carrying a munchkin.
6. Repeat steps 1-2.


Now:
1. Put Ethan on chair near me in kitchen
2. Let me him go hog-wild "cooking" with me (pulling everything out of a drawer and pretending to mix things together.
3. Periodically, I will make sure he feels important by letting him "pour" something in or at least hold some of the ingredients (for example, today while making enchiladas, he taste-tested each tortilla so they each had bites taken out of them).



For the past few weeks, Ethan has LOVED it when it's time to make dinner now. Phew, no more near cut off fingers or burned off hands from Ethan reaching down to "help" me as I held him.

Of course, a few days ago, he pulled the onions I had just chopped on the cutting board over to him. I knew it was a strong onion since typically cutting them doesn't bother me, but this one really made my eyes sting. I watched to see what he would do. He picked up a handful, took a bite, then took another bite, and another, and got a new chunk to munch on.
Feeling disgusted, I gave him a slice of apple I was now slicing. A bite of that and he spit the apple out. He's quite the picky boy, but maybe I'm just feeding him the wrong things. Maybe I should go against my instincts and feed him what sounds the worst.