My love/hate relationship with food may be part of the problem. So many different diets. So much confusion over the years about what I should eat. So many things to think about regarding food that at some point I must have thrown up my hands in resignation and thrown in the cooking towel on my way to the nearest drive-thru.
I guess it's time to go find that towel and pick it up again. Hopefully it will have some pretty embroidery on it which outlines several good ideas for what to cook for dinner. Otherwise I'm going to be spending a lot of time practicing my catatonic stare in front of the fridge.
Boy, can I relate! As you know, I don't cook any more. I only chop. But I'm fascinated at how he cooks. It's so simple. Basically, chop onions, carrots and celery. This is called a mirepoix (meer pwah). All of a sudden you are a French cook! Our recent Le Cordon Bleu graduate daughter points out that all the veggies in the mirepoix should be chopped the same size. Amazingly, this seems to make a difference. Saute the vegetables in a little olive oil, grill a piece of chicken or fish, add some fruit and you have dinner! But the fun thing is the variations--prepare a mirepoix, add garlic, capers, a few olives, a little browned bison and a can of crushed tomatoes and VOILA! Mediterraean spagetti sauce to serve over spagetti squash. Or prepare a mirepoix, add a can of navy beans, some chicken broth from a carton and a chopped-up cooked chicken breast and VOILA! White Chicken Chili. Or prepare a mirepoix, saute, cook a little high-fiber pasta in some flavorful beef stock. Top pasta with mirepoix and sliced grilled chicken. It's really endless! I used to make things so complicated with all my recipes, but he just starts with onions, carrots and celery, and we can almost always come up with a meal with something out of the freezer or pantry. Of course, this does not work well if all you have in the pantry is cat food and a package of rice cakes. Did I mention that he also goes to the grocery store? I know. I'm spoiled. He almost always has a few individually frozen chicken breasts, a half-pound of frozen bison, cartons of chicken and beef stock (unsalted--better to add your own), high-fiber pasta, and of course, onions, carrots, and celery (and other favorite fruits and vegetables).
ReplyDeleteThose are my cooking thoughts for the day. We're going out to eat tonight. :)
I love you and I'm so proud of you! Talk to you soon.
Love,
Your sister
Ohhh, Mary, thanks for the mirepoix suggestion. I know what I'll be making a lot more of. Yummy! As our household shrinks, I'll need to be making less and this is perfect.
ReplyDeleteCindy, on the days I am not sure what to make, I see what I have access to, go online and enter those ingredients and see what comes up. I've gotten some interesting ideas.
Thanks both of you. I am happy to report I have cooked a yummy dinner for two nights in a row now! This may be a record. ...Cindy
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