“Are you CRAZY?! Do you want me to call child protective services on you?!”

My nanny was going a little ballistic at me this afternoon when I told her that as part of her dinner, I’d add some shishito peppers to Kaia’s plate. I would pan fry them on the stove until blistered, then slice them in half. I’d test a half of each and then give her the other half to ensure they weren’t hot. With shishito peppers, there’s always a bit of a “surprise” element: you never know if you will get one that is mild to plain, medium heat, or HOT. I’ve been eating these tiny peppers for years, and while the vast majority have had no heat, a handful have had mild heat, and maybe one or two ever were actually spicy hot. Our nanny had never had shishito peppers, and she seemed wary when I described them to her. She thought it seemed a bit suspect that it was not predictable whether they’d be hot or not hot at all; she’d never heard of these peppers before. So I cooked them, then offered her some. She tried and said she liked them. Plus, neither of the ones she had were hot, so she seemed more open to having Kaia eat them for the first time.

“This is a very different house,” our nanny declared. “Kaia has quite the life!”

192nd food tried will now be shishito pepper. She’s doing pretty well at 10.5 months of age for variety.