Third Time's an Entrè
So, it was an effective clean, then prepare for cooking weekend. I forgot one thing. Half the week is holiday so I'll be freezing a lot of things this evening. I'll also be preparing my contribution for Thanksgiving dinner. I'd planned to make pumpkin pie, but forgot my oven is broken. It's a long and silly story, and I haven't had a chance to fix it. The broiler coil turned up dead despite appearing nearly new a couple weeks ago. So I wiggled it around, as well as the thermostat probes. So now the baking thermostat probe doesn't work, and I can't get current to the baking coil. The oven is now solely for storing idle roasting pans.
Instead, I'm making frozen mango dessert, the faux ice cream, that was so popular last year. And like pumpkin pies, I'll only be able to have a bite or two. My brother is a pumpkin pie nut, and makes the greatest pies and crusts. I make my own pumpkin filling by baking the pumpkin, and he swears it is the best ever. I like pumpkin pies too, but I don't see that big a difference from the canned filling.
With Dave, Kalon, and Cullen visiting I got my upstairs about half way squared away. The rest was fine, just the kitchen and living room were cluttered. Now they're a little cluttered instead of really cluttered.
I started up another batch of kid, and this was better than the first two go arounds. The coconut curry I did last time was a limited success, and I went back to a tomato base and longer simmer, to break down the fat. A hint of balsamic vinegar helped. It was a simple sautèing of the kid in a little olive oil, a lot of garlic powder and some salt. Then into the crock pot with two large cans of stewed diced tomatoes and two cans of hominy. I've found hominy is great in several kinds of soup, and it worked well with this too. I simmered on low for 24 hours. Had a bit with some rice then added some more hominy and several cut up Yukon gold potatoes, and simmered another 8-10 hours. There were a few other spices, mostly The Spice Hunter's Mexican Seasoning mix. It is quite good, if I say so myself. Pretty damned good in fact.
You may have noticed I added potatoes. I tried some potatoes several weeks ago, and this time no problem, though I had the definite feeling moderation is good. Nice because I really like potatoes, and can treat myself once in a while. I think my abrupt reaction several months ago, may have been as much from the morning coffee. My system seems to like variety, but at times rebels at too much new variety. How do you figure that out? I'm thinking at the beginning of the year I'll restart the elimination diet. My system has made some major adjustments, and it makes sense to go through the exercise again, now that my metabolism has adjusted. I seem to have slipped into a new lifestyle with regards to food, and while I still carry at least 20 extra pounds I actually feel slender at times, and that is some good positive feedback. I'm just starting to cross the 220 mark on my variable scale...
As I was cleaning up a bit this weekend something occurred to me. Cleaning up was generally something assigned as a punishment when I was a kid. Both parents had an unreasonable white glove approach for different reasons, so there was never a case of "Good job Scott." Got that good kind of feedback for lots of other things, but not cleaning jobs. I like having things neat and clean, but don't do the work voluntarily. Light bulb! Figured out the block. Will that be enough to finally make cleaning a regular routine? I'll let you know if I think of it.
I started off this morning with some more cooking. I'd been marinating some chicken for several days, the mild marinade that imparts a buttery taste. Some mistakes, or at least things to avoid in the future. Needed fresher rosemary, more cumin, maybe a touch more vinegar. I think a lot of driedparsleyy would create an attractive speckling too. I may have been low on salt, but it may have been the rinsing. Note: Light rinsing is great for more pungent marinades, but not for milder ones. It's still tasty, and made for a pretty nice breakfast.
Tonight it's rabbit, which has been marinating in teriyaki for several days. I'm trying to decide how to cook it, and am torn between sautèing and barbecuing. Maybe half each way... Then I'll have lots of kid stew, chicken pieces in sauce, and rabbit to freeze. At least I'll have some yummy lunches the next couple weeks.
It's been a food centric week. Some other things are going on, and I'll expound on another post.
Instead, I'm making frozen mango dessert, the faux ice cream, that was so popular last year. And like pumpkin pies, I'll only be able to have a bite or two. My brother is a pumpkin pie nut, and makes the greatest pies and crusts. I make my own pumpkin filling by baking the pumpkin, and he swears it is the best ever. I like pumpkin pies too, but I don't see that big a difference from the canned filling.
With Dave, Kalon, and Cullen visiting I got my upstairs about half way squared away. The rest was fine, just the kitchen and living room were cluttered. Now they're a little cluttered instead of really cluttered.
I started up another batch of kid, and this was better than the first two go arounds. The coconut curry I did last time was a limited success, and I went back to a tomato base and longer simmer, to break down the fat. A hint of balsamic vinegar helped. It was a simple sautèing of the kid in a little olive oil, a lot of garlic powder and some salt. Then into the crock pot with two large cans of stewed diced tomatoes and two cans of hominy. I've found hominy is great in several kinds of soup, and it worked well with this too. I simmered on low for 24 hours. Had a bit with some rice then added some more hominy and several cut up Yukon gold potatoes, and simmered another 8-10 hours. There were a few other spices, mostly The Spice Hunter's Mexican Seasoning mix. It is quite good, if I say so myself. Pretty damned good in fact.
You may have noticed I added potatoes. I tried some potatoes several weeks ago, and this time no problem, though I had the definite feeling moderation is good. Nice because I really like potatoes, and can treat myself once in a while. I think my abrupt reaction several months ago, may have been as much from the morning coffee. My system seems to like variety, but at times rebels at too much new variety. How do you figure that out? I'm thinking at the beginning of the year I'll restart the elimination diet. My system has made some major adjustments, and it makes sense to go through the exercise again, now that my metabolism has adjusted. I seem to have slipped into a new lifestyle with regards to food, and while I still carry at least 20 extra pounds I actually feel slender at times, and that is some good positive feedback. I'm just starting to cross the 220 mark on my variable scale...
As I was cleaning up a bit this weekend something occurred to me. Cleaning up was generally something assigned as a punishment when I was a kid. Both parents had an unreasonable white glove approach for different reasons, so there was never a case of "Good job Scott." Got that good kind of feedback for lots of other things, but not cleaning jobs. I like having things neat and clean, but don't do the work voluntarily. Light bulb! Figured out the block. Will that be enough to finally make cleaning a regular routine? I'll let you know if I think of it.
I started off this morning with some more cooking. I'd been marinating some chicken for several days, the mild marinade that imparts a buttery taste. Some mistakes, or at least things to avoid in the future. Needed fresher rosemary, more cumin, maybe a touch more vinegar. I think a lot of driedparsleyy would create an attractive speckling too. I may have been low on salt, but it may have been the rinsing. Note: Light rinsing is great for more pungent marinades, but not for milder ones. It's still tasty, and made for a pretty nice breakfast.
Tonight it's rabbit, which has been marinating in teriyaki for several days. I'm trying to decide how to cook it, and am torn between sautèing and barbecuing. Maybe half each way... Then I'll have lots of kid stew, chicken pieces in sauce, and rabbit to freeze. At least I'll have some yummy lunches the next couple weeks.
It's been a food centric week. Some other things are going on, and I'll expound on another post.
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