Pinocchio Magical Meal

Last night the Fitzmartin family viewed the Disney classic "Pinocchio," which surprisingly held my teenagers attention, even drawing a chuckle from them. The kids' comments were again hilarious. When Jiminy Cricket first appeared one said, "He's a hobo cricket or a bum cricket." Then a minute later, "This is the second time in two movies that we've seen breaking in. What are they teaching?" Later, "'Not practical' says the talking cricket." And then when Jiminy kept messing things up one said, "You're tempting us to squash you."

Our meal to go along with the movie included the following: Stromboli
Pinocchio Lying Nose Vegetables
Jiminy Cracked Corn
Blue Fairy's Berries
Geppetto Gelato

Here's how you put it together. Take half of a 17.3 ounce package of puff pastry (one sheet) and thaw it. You can find this in the frozen foods section of the grocery store. Heat the oven to 400. Unfold the pastry sheet and using a dusting of flour, roll it out to about a 16 by 12 rectangle. Layer half a pound of cooked deli ham, half a pound of cooked deli turkey and one cup shredded cheddar cheese on half of the pastry. Then starting at the short side roll it up. Place on baking sheet, seam side down and tuck under the ends. Beat one egg with one tablespoon of water and brush on the pastry. Then bake for 25 minutes. Yum!

While that's cooking, chop 1/4 cup onion, 1/4 cup red pepper, and 1/4 green pepper very finely. Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a nonstick pan. Add the veggies and saute for about 4 minutes. Drain one can of corn and add to the pan. Heat thoroughly and then cover and simmer until ready to serve.

For the Pinocchio Lying Nose Vegetables, clean long sticks of carrots and celery and put on a platter. When eating, tell a "truth" for every bite, making the "nose" smaller. I would say, "I love my children very much" and then take a bite. Cheezy, yes, but it never hurts to tell your kids that you love them. Clean a bunch of blueberries and set out for Blue Fairy's Berries (or mix in a smoothie, if you choose). For dessert, enjoy a scoop of delicious gelato (Italian ice cream), easily found with the ice creams in the grocery store.

Thomas's review: Pinocchio was a great follow-up to Snow White. It is the great story of an adventure of a puppet; the animation was nearly perfect; the songs were greatly memorable; the characters are also memorable. Pinocchio is just a boy that needs to learn to be a boy. Jiminy Cricket is so funny to see (alive for that matter). The fox and cat were memorable too. The movie is something to really enjoy. Story: 10/10
Animation: 10/10
Characters: 9/10
Songs: 10/10
TOTAL: 9/10