home cooking

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Three Things Thursday

Let’s face it, Three Things Thursday is just Randomosity in a different jacket. 

Tonight is the last night of NaBloPoMo, and I am here not through gumption or grit but through gin. 

  1. Kids and Homework: My daughter attends a cushy private school and this is the first year that she has had homework. (I know.) (I was a public school kid; it is very different.) Being a parent while your child works on school projects is its own kind of challenge. You want to be supportive but also encouraging. You want to make sure your kid does their assignments but you want them to have their own autonomy and also you don’t want to exert undue pressure. You want to be available to offer help or support but you don’t want to hover. IT IS VERY CHALLENGING. My husband came to the dinner table tonight and hissed that one of the sentences my daughter wrote didn’t make sense, and he tried to talk it through with her, and she decided to leave it as it was. As a Straight A Student, Ivy League Educated Physician, this is VERY DIFFICULT. But. As his mother kindly pointed out: It is our job as parents to support and encourage. It is the TEACHERS’ job to correct and instruct. 
  2. Cooking for Not My Immediate Family: I made salmon and green beans and potatoes. I followed a recipe. Everything was cooked but it was not great. My husband, who is to-a-fault honest about these things, gave a shoulder-shrugging “meh” when I mouthed “how is it?” across the table to him. And, sadly, I agree. I HATE THAT. I want to be The Best Cook. I want my in laws to go home and talk about my cooking. I want them to request my recipes. I want my mother-in-law to brag about how great a cook her daughter-in-law is when she plays majohng. But the truth is, I am a mediocre home cook. My husband and I have a few recipes we jointly love, and the rest are just meh or winging it. And that’s got to be okay, even if it hurts my ego. The other problem I have is in not having ANY CLUE how much food to make for more people than my husband and myself. I think he and I tend to eat pretty giant portions, so maybe that skews things? But I made WAY too much food. Like, we are going to have to eat multiples of this exact same (mediocre) meal before all the leftovers are gone too much food. I have literally no idea how to figure out the right amount of food to cook. Recipes are no help. One person’s six portions is another person’s three.
  3. Introverting Hard: Tonight, my husband was falling asleep, my father-in-law was falling asleep, and my mother-in-law was on the phone, so I nudged my husband and told him I was going to bed. Yes, it was 9:10 pm. He narrowed his sleepy eyes at me and said, “But you aren’t really going to bed, are you.” This is after having come into our bedroom last night 45 minutes or so after I’d excused myself to go to bed, and I was sitting in our bedroom typing on the computer. I NEED TIME TO MYSELF, MAN. How does he not know this, after 15 years of marriage and 22 years of being together???? I am worn out! The thing is, I had a FABULOUS day. My in laws were out of the house all day, doing whatever it is they do when they visit. My husband was able to pick up my daughter from school. I had nearly unadulterated alone time from 9:00 to 5:00 and it was BEAUTIFUL. So why, after a mere two hours with my in laws, am I ready to throw in the towel and secrete myself away in my bedroom? Because I am the introvertest of introverts, I guess. 

Well. That’s all I’ve got tonight, Internet. Thanks for sticking with me, these past 30 days of NaBloPoMo. I cannot promise to post tomorrow, but I am sure I will be back soon with inane topics to discuss. In the meantime, I appreciate you for reading. And thank you, so much, to San for leading the charge.

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Saturday Superlatives: Thanksgiving Edition

For my outside-the-US friends, is your country’s celebration as food-focused as US Thanksgiving seems to be? I feel like it seems lower-key in Canada, and much more relaxing. Then again, maybe I’m one of the few who find Thanksgiving stressful. (I seem to find a way to make everything stressful.) 

If you celebrated this week, how was your Thanksgiving? Are you sick of leftovers yet? While I could happily eat a bowl of mashed potatoes and gravy for breakfast until Christmas, I avoid all other Thanksgiving foods until next Thanksgiving. Turkey is something I eat one day a year. My husband is a big fan of leftovers though. This year he has even vowed to make the infamous turkey tetrazzini that people swear by for transforming leftover turkey into something new and fabulous. 

This was a week of highs and lows, emotionally. But it was also overall a nice, low-key week. As the Holiday Table staffer at Whole Foods said when I told her we were down to three from seven people, “Nice! No stress!” And then quickly and ruefully added, “Well, there are pros and cons to all things.” 

Here are some of the superlative moments from this Thanksgiving week.

Worst Moment: When we had to tell Carla that her beloved cousin was no longer coming for Thanksgiving. She sobbed and sobbed. Hopefully we will find another time to get the families together. 

Sweetest Moment: Carla and I sat on the couch one day and watched movies together. Then after dinner we watched Jeopardy! together and she held my hand the whole time. All the heart eyes. 

Most Uncomfortable Moment: I think I mentioned previously that our real estate agent gave us a free apple pie as a thank-you for using them when we bought (and sold) our house. Carla and I were doing Thanksgiving prep work at the house when my husband texted me to remember the pie. So we dashed out to pick it up from the realtor’s office. I was wearing leggings and a sweatshirt under my winter coat (outdoor leggings, of course; not my bedtime leggings) and Carla was wearing a flannel shirt and shorts. Why yes it was only 40 degrees outside but PYB, people, PYB. It was pouring rain and we wore masks even though we’d both tested negative, just in case. I expected to run in, grab the pie, and run out, but no. There was a PARTY being held at the office. People in dressy casual clothing, milling about with drinks. A long table set with drinks and pastries. A special room set aside for children. A fire in the fireplace. My realtor was wearing slacks and a nice sweater. I was in leggings and a mask, dripping wet, my hair plastered to my makeup free face. Once again, Carla was wearing shorts. All I wanted was to get my pie and escape. But my sweet realtor wanted to chat about the house and our Thanksgiving plans. OMG. It was so horrifically awkward. Nearly as bad as those dreams where you go to school naked or you show up for your wedding without your dress. Also… I feel like this is probably rude of me to even ask, but do my realtor’s clients… enjoy parties like this??? Our orthodontist throws a party every year, too, and… it’s nice to do something festive for your clients, but… I don’t know any other orthodontia clients? And it’s not like a bunch of my friends and I all bought houses together. Are people who buy homes in the same year expected to form a club together? Maybe we’re supposed to be schmoozing about lawncare companies and the best place to buy lamps… but I just can’t imagine doing that on purpose. Is this what it’s like to be an extrovert? You just… go to parties purely to socialize with strangers? 

Most You-Win-Some,-You-Lose-Some Moment: The kind people at Whole Foods were so understanding about our change in holiday plans. They refunded me the cost of the green beans and asparagus. While I was standing in line at the Holiday Table waiting to “check in,” with shoppers pushing past us on both sides, and Carla asking if she could please buy a watermelon and what about the chocolate Advent calendar or maybe could she go look for some hot dogs? and what about buns, she really wants to try buns with her hot dog this time, I noticed a display of Ramona Ruby Grapefruit Wine Spritz. I glanced at the label which I thought said $8.99, which seems like a reasonable enough price for four bottles. (My husband and I had Ramona this summer and loved it, and I haven’t seen it anywhere before.) We checked out and it turns out that each four pack is $18.49. OMG. I mean, yes, you could buy a bottle of wine for $18.49 and probably wouldn’t bat an eye (although I am more of a $10-a-bottle kind of gal), but. OMG. Good thing we saved all that money on green beans and asparagus so I could turn around and spend it on booze. (It really is delicious. But still.)

Most You-Really-Should-Be-A-More-Careful-Reader,-Suzanne Moment: Turns out that every single box of Covid tests in our house was expired. And, while several of them had expiration dates that had been extended to nowish, I thought it would be prudent to get some new unexpired-in-any-way ones. I looked up my options at the local Target. The top results cost $35! That seemed like a lot, when I was used to getting them free (I just ordered the latest batch of free ones). I scrolled down a bit in the results and spotted a pack of four tests for $12.99. Much better. Carla and I put on masks and drove to Target for their drive-up service. It wasn’t until I got home that I realized I’d purchased drug testing kits. SIGH. 

Funnest and Funniest Moment: This year, Carla helped me with a ton of the Thanksgiving food preparation. She made the cranberry sauce pretty much independently, cut all the cornbread and French bread for the dressing, and helped chop mire poix for the various things that required mire poix. Most helpful was when she helped me deal with the turkey. I am very squeamish about touching raw meat and have used a variety of kitchen tools in past years to prevent me from touching the turkey. This year, I just powered through and touched it with my bare hands. *Shudder.* But one thing I will not do is touch any part of the turkey’s innards, and that’s where Carla came in. Like a champ, she removed the neck and giblets from the turkey cavities with kitchen tongs, while we both squealed in disgust. It was the most fun I’ve ever had dealing with raw meat. (Less fun for her, because I made her wash her hands about 80 times and then gave her a mini lecture about salmonella as I sprayed down the counter with antibacterial spray.)

Favorite Blog Comments: While I adore every comment you leave, sometimes they feel like they’re just for me, you know? Which is fabulous. Other times, they are full of GOLD that I want everyone to read. It was an utter delight to read everyone’s take on pets and pet names. But I think the GOLD this week is in the comments of this post. If you haven’t added your own thoughts, I would love it if you took the time to add your own thoughts about blogs and blogging. And if you haven’t scrolled through to find new bloggers to follow, please check it out. 

That’s it from me, Internet. Now I need to go scour my house clean after having my (ravenous and less-than-tidy) child home with me for eight days straight and prepare (again) for my delayed houseguests. 

Any stand-out moments for you this week?

I am kinda sorta attempting to complete NaBloPoMo, with the full expectation that life will make it impossible any day now. If you want to follow along, or join the fun, check out San’s blog here. 

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Dinners This Week

One of the things that makes me feel most normal – or maybe, most in control of my universe – is being able to cook Homemade Dinners. 

This is not to take anything away from Convenience Meals, which I both 1) love and 2) have made generous use of these past many months. There were quite a few weeks in there when my husband and child and I subsisted on a hearty mix of microwave meals (The Purple Carrot Vegan Frozen Plant Based Loaded Vegetable Fried Rice is quite delicious as well as nourishing, despite the lengthy name) and takeout (I am quite delighted to find that there are both excellent pizza and delicious, legitimately spicy Indian food within minutes of my new house). 

But even though I am grateful for them, and they have been a big help in getting us through the most chaotic part of the move, Convenience Meals aren’t something I want every day. I want to cook homemade food and eat it on non-plastic dinnerware. I like eating boring old Meat Plus Veg. I prefer spending $200-ish a week on food, rather than shelling out $50+ every time I set foot in a Five Guys or the grocery store to pick up last minute dinner options.

We are slowly but steadily getting back to eating Homemade Dinners. I am slowly but steadily figuring out how to prepare and cook meals in our new kitchen. I am (mostly) remembering to get everything I need out of the fridge in one go, because once it closes the door seals tightly for an undetermined number of minutes and not even the strongest member of my household can open it until it decides it’s done doing whatever it does during that time. I have no idea why the stove rattles like a freight train when the oven gets to temperature, but that seems like a problem for future Suzanne. It just feels good to make reasonably well-balanced meals and sit down and eat them together.

Here’s what I have on tap for this week: 

  • Sesame Soy Chicken Bowls: This sounds easy and yummy, and the coconut rice can stretch to another night. I will probably through in some edamame along with the carrots and cabbage, just because it seems like it would be a good addition. Plus, I can usually get Carla to eat edamame. 
  • Mediterranean Sheet Pan Bowls with Cilantro Vinaigrette: We haven’t had this in awhile, and the abundance of veggies reminds me fondly of Nicole and anything I can do to add more Nicole Energy to my life will only benefit me and everyone around me, plus the cilantro vinaigrette is really tasty.
  • Chickpea Curry: It’s been a very long time since I’ve made this, but it will scratch a food craving itch. Plus, I can use the leftover coconut rice to sop up the sauce. As is my custom with curries, I will add sliced bell pepper to the rice before topping with the curry.
  • Fall Salad: I am not going to allow the current lack of fall weather to prevent me from reveling in fall flavors. This salad is a longtime favorite and I am ready to eat it. Will I have salmon on my salad instead of chicken? Not sure.
  • Gochujang Chicken and Broccoli: I was pretty sure I had spotted an unopened bottle of gochujang sauce during the move, which made my ears perk up when I came across this recipe. Sure enough I found it in the pantry. But… it expired in 2021. Too late, though – I already committed this recipe to my meal plan for the week, so I guess I’ll be buying a new bottle of gochujang! (And finding ways to use it up.)

We also have a birthday to celebrate this week, so I’ll be making Mud Pie for the birthday boy, at his request. He prefers coffee ice cream to chocolate, and my plan is to buy a pre-made chocolate cookie crust rather than making my own. We will probably also go out to dinner on his actual birthday. I fear it may be kind of dull day, as far as birthdays go; we are both so stunned by all the costs of moving that neither of us has the fortitude to spend money on birthday gifts. (I did get him a couple of small things, but I did not get him the nugget ice maker of his dreams.) 

What are your favorite Convenience Meals? I love a good microwavable mac-and-cheese. Both the Hatch Chili Mac & Cheese and the Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese from Trader Joe’s are delicious. I also like the Life Cuisine Vermont White Cheddar Broccoli Bowl and the EVOL Truffle Parmesan Mac & Cheese. If I’m not eating mac and cheese, I’m jonesing for pizza, and Red Baron Classic Crust Pepperoni Pizza will forever be my favorite frozen version.