Well it was spaghetti tonight....how lazy am I?
There was a hunk of hamburger and canned tomatoes were on sale...so what else is there to do?  Leftovers for the brownbaggers.  What more can anyone ask for.
...tomorrow it's cream of cauliflower with bacon....yum. I've been craving that for a few days now.  I need soup.  It's soup weather.  So it's soup tomorrow.  I don't care what everyone else wants.  I just hope I have everything cause I'm sick to death of spending money at the grocery store.  I swear everytime I end up in one it's always $100+.  Just once I would like to get in...and out for $10.  The only place I've actually spent any money in the last month has got to be the grocery store or the gas station.  I need some retail therapy...It's been awhile.

There was a day last week I was channel surfing and stopped at "the view" though I don't usually watch this show and especially when Bill O'Reilly is on it.

They were talking about Lincoln so I kept watching.  Expecting the usual O'Reilly nonsense.  But he was actually "civil"  who knew he could be.  Since I love anything historical I kept watching.  We went to see the movie Lincoln and I had trouble staying awake.  It wasn't anywhere close to my favorite movie that's for sure.  So I ordered the book they were talking about from the library.

It was on the reserve shelf the next day.  So that's what I've been doing for the past two days.  The only reason it's taken me this long to read is because of the migrains from hell that I've been experiences every morning for the past three days.  So today I finally went to the pharmacy to renew my perscriptions and lo and behold it finally went away.  So I could finish the book.

Now I have to wait for the kennedy book

Banana Bread.
I had to get rid of some salad dressing...between her fridge and my fridge - and that day I actually bought yet another one (making coleslaw day) we had waaaay to many opened jars in the fridge.  So I made Banana Bread using this recipe.  It's very moist and just the best one around.  I doubled the recipe and actually used 7 frozen torpedo---esk bananas, that won't hurt anyone opening the freezer again. I also found a half bag of pecans that were blitzed in the food processor and about 1 tbsp cinnamon...cause we all just love the stuff.



Well we're (or I am anyway) on the "clean out the freezer" mentality.  I figure we should move with as empty a freezer as possible.  One of these days it's going to be a marathan day of chicken stock from all those random bags of breast bones and rottiserie chicken carcasses.

So Monday was spaghetti, Tuesday was spaghetti pie,(even though it added to the freezer one bag of sauce - but that's in the plans for lasagna on sunday)  Wednesday was sausage quiche with oven hash browns .  And today it's stirfry  (this has got to be the best way, and everyone loved it last time except add some ginger, balsamic and use a dutch oven in the convection oven if you have one instead of crockpot) because there is a small sirloin steak in the freezer and four sirloin steak precut for steak sandwiches both of which will work for the stir fry.  Since I'm not going to join them for dinner, quinoa and kale something or other.  I'll have to wait and see what my daughter comes up with for that.

 I've got T4's to produce for tax season.  So its the afternoon and evening off (from childcare) for me.  It's time to put on the bookkeeper hat.

I made some "everything but the kitchen sink" spaghetti sauce the other day.  Standing orders of trying to get veg into the g'kids.

Get the 'ol magic pot out and pour in a good glug of olive oil to cover the bottom of the dutch oven about 1/8 inch or more.  Dice up the biggest onion in the bag and cook it down for about an hour on really low until the onion is almost mush.  Nice and golden and mush, throw in about 600 g of a mixture of ground pork and beef and brown it down till no liquid is left and the meat is nice and dark brown...just short of burnt.  Throw in about 5 garlic through the press, 1/2 bottle of whatever red wine is sitting out on the counter, a good shot of balsamic and lea and perrins. cook down till liquid is all absorbed again.

Meanwhile I threw in a handful of baby carrots and 1/2 a red pepper into the food processor and pulverized the whole mess up.  Next time I will roast these up in the toaster/convection oven first.  I opened all the bags of frozen leftover tomato sauce bags ( plus a small probably 1/2 a can of paste that was also in the bowels of the freezer.) I  found in the freezer plus a can I found in the pantry.  I ended up with a good 6-7 cups (both the 4 cup measure and the 2 cup measure were full to overflowing) tomato, carrot, red pepper mixture.  Then I spied a baby yam that someone left in the toaster/convection oven from the night before.  So I took it out of the skin and mashed it up and poured the whole mess of tomato,carrot,red pepper + the yam over the mess in the dutch oven.  I probably started this whole process around 9:30 a.m. and just let the whole thing cook down all day long.  So by evening it was cooked to death.  I added a couple shots of hot sauce and red pepper flakes and italian seasonings from the spice rack.  The day before I found a huge bag of frozen pesto that I made last summer that I didn't even know existed.  I did the whole "happy dance" when that happens. After I turned off the sauce around 3 pm to cool down I added a huge dollop of pesto sauce and some strange sharp cheese I found in the drawer of the fridge and a handful of parm.  I was watching a marithon session  of "lidia"  episodes months ago that were all stacked up on the pvr and she mentioned /chastized all viewers to "never cook the pesto" .  Who knew???? So since then I "never cook the pesto".  And I gotta say....it's a good rule.

So while the sauce was "resting" I cooked up the spaghetti and made a ceasar salad.  Then warmed up the sauce just in time for the presentation.

IT WAS THE BEST SAUCE/GRAVY I MADE IN A LONG TIME. Too bad It will never be duplicated again.  I don't know what brands of tomatoes I was using, plus I was adding things all over the place,  but damn it was good.  And for a change the pot was absolutely full to start with.  And I was determined to have lots of pasta leftover for some spaghetti pie the next day.

Of coarse by the time I looked in the fridge the next day to access the leftover situation I noticed a consideral drop in the pasta container, and the sauce container.  Obviously the brownbaggers got to it.  It's a good thing I threw two big bags of sauce in the freezer....out of site.  Cause I had to make some additional pasta if I was going to get anything to line a pie plate with.

I've been trying to make spaghetti pie for months.  And last nite it finally happened.  Wow...it was very good.  I'm going to try....this everytime with leftover pasta.  Just have to make a huge pot of both to begin with. Maybe next time on a weekend so the brownbaggers won't walk out the door with so much.

I even made a special trip back home to pick up my huge binder of recipes that I've been ripping out of magazines and copying out of books for the last 20 years (pre internet access).  Just to get the recipe that I've been saving for years...that I really didn't need or use anyway.

Looks like it was typed.  That's how old the darn thing is.  And it's not really a recipe for leftovers....

So this is what I did instead.

about 9oz leftover spaghetti (probably about 6 cups loosely measured cooked) 3 eggs (though 2 would have done just fine) a handful of parm ...some sauce is usually ladeled over the spaghetti just before serving and mixed up to them pour however much sauce you want at the table.  So the pasta had a little bit of sauce mixed in it the night before, but only enough so prevent it was sticking up into a clump in the fridge.

I lined a quiche pan with it to form a crust (next time just for something different I plan on topping this with a sheet of parchment and weights and precooking it just a bit to make it crunchier)  then dump a container of cottage cheese into a sieve and drain most of the liquid out of it before topping the pasta.  Smear the whole mess with leftover sauce probably I used about 4 cups give or take.  Then throw some cheese over it, and into the oven for about 20-30 minutes, let it sit for about 10 min and serve.
Damn good.

There was a slice leftover...but I searched for it this morning....it was gone before i was out of bed...probably in a lunchbag miles away.....

I've been trying to decide if I should transfer my binder over to cookeatshare.com.....But I think I would miss the page flipping discoveries in the old binder.  The computer just isn't the same.  Everytime I go through the binder searching for insperation I discover things I didn't even know I saved.  One just can't experience that on a computer screen,  just like I really hate reading books this way.  I don't know how anyone enjoys reading this way.

Also discovered a whole wack of frozen bananas in the same freezer with the bags of odd leftover canned tomatoes...so theres banana bread in the works for today.  There just isn't enought junk food in this healthy house.  So I better start making some or I will surely starve...late at night.

The latest cookbooks from the library.

I was supposed to go home and pack some boxes.  Clean out things.  But instead...yesterday I started reading.

I picked up a few things at the library

I don't know where I saw this title LOVE BOMB BY LISA ZEIDNER.... But I will be searching out other titles of hers.  I started reading this Saturday and only got through like two chapters before I almost fell asleep.  So after b'fast I picked it up again...and that was it.  I finished around 3.  I kept interupting people around me to read them passages. I think I was pissing off my husband...what with football and all.  Honestly people in this house have no sense of humor.  If I was on a bus I would have insisted that total strangers listened to some.  It was very good.  I specially enjoyed the dead rabbit chapter.  I made my daughter read it out of context and she thought I was seriously twisted if I found that even remotely funny.  But I did.  I laughed so hard...I almost peed my pants.

I got totally involved with every character and only wished the book was thicker.  I'm very sorry that It all ended so quickly.

French Kids Eat Everything

I picked this book up from the libary the other day, and it spent a couple days sitting on the end table.  Yesterday I was a little bored and looked to my left....there was the stack of books.  This one was on top. Hmmm ....I didn't even remember requesting it.

But I spent the better part of yesterday reading it.  What a revelation.  Everyone with children should read this.  Bad eating habits start from day one.  The whole "breast feeding on demand" and pablum crap.

If the French can teach us anything......the whole approach to food has got to be the thing.

Since I'm in charge of "this" set of g'children for the time being with regards to meals before dinner.  It will be implemented.

Where did it start......
NO MORE JUICE.....ALL DAY LONG

I filled up the Brita water jug and set it on the counter.  "that's all you get"

NO MORE JUICE

And since I'm from the school of "milk is only good for calf's" , it's water or nothing.

It was kinda eye opening,   there were no complaints...yet.  I lost count of how many glasses of water were consumer...or drunk.

And then at dinner...it was one of those days were too many eggs were in the fridge and lots of itty bitty other things like couple slices of bacon, couple slices of ham, a zucchini, little bits of chunks of cheese of various kinds four mushrooms, half a red pepper...and six people to feed.  And since I was reading all day.  Who had time to actually prepare anything.  So it was Omelets to order.

First I diced up five potatoes and an onion.  Into the cast iron frying pan with some butter and grape seed oil.  For about 1/2 hour of stirring...quickly got fed up with all the potatoes being scattered.  The pan was too small, so I threw the whole mess pan included into the oven.  Turns out....best way to make hashbrowned potatoes.  Very yummy and crispy.  This will be the way to make them from now on.

Then diced up the bacon and fried it up, diced up pepper, mushrooms pan fried the rawness out of them.  Peeled the zucchini (cause kids always pick out ---the green stuff), pan fried it.  Then julliened the zucchini peels for the adults.  Grated the various cheeses.  Chopped up ham.  Whisked up a carton of eggs and dinner was served.

The kids got to make their own omelets, and ate them all up.  The adults ate all theirs.  And the leftover stuff was mixed up for a denver omelet for me and hubby for b'fast this morning.  And my g'son ate most of my husbands.  And he usually (the g'son) hates anything with cheese in it.

The test since yesterday about eating habits has continued today.  So far ...no snacks for anyone.  Even the adults.  Only water till lunch.

And there is more room in the fridge since all the odds and ends have been dealt with.  There's a little bit of omelet fixin's left over.....maybe a denver sandwich for me......I love leftovers

The best gift I received this xmas
I looooove potato chips.   usually have several bags all over the house.

Now I make my own.   And this thing is the bomb

you need one of these

and one of these...but get 2, 

soak in water for a bit to get out starch

until the water is clear, usually one will do it

lay potato slices onto tea towel

pattttttt dry...as good as possible

take all 4 corners and shake any liquid off...dry is the key word here

put them into a bowl and doctor them up with whatever is handy

into the micro for about 1 min 35 sec

turn over...back in for 1 min 35 seconds

then you get these, ...this was two potatoes worth plus a threw away a batch that were burnt

the papertowel has no special use here, except that the pie plate had sprinkles left over from a cupcake decorating session,.

The chips are not greasy....just very crisp and spicy and crunchy.   yum

doctor up some greek yoghurt or sour cream with some of the same stuff that was used on the raw potatoes

four days worth of snacks.....and that wine glass DOES NOT have any wine in it.  After all it's only 10:30 AM...Sheesh

Ginger ale.....in a fancy glass.  It's my strategy to reeeeduce my wine consumption.  The last trip to the recycler kinda shocked into thinking "maybe I need to cut down ...a bit"  So that's the plan.  Ginger-ale in a wine glass.  I should work

I woke up Saturday with soft boiled eggs on the brain.  So I went downstairs and prepared a breakfast-in-bed tray of coffee, eggs, and toast.

....it was okaaaaay. but the yolk was a little overdone.  A little less runny would have been ideal.  And on Saturday there were only 3 eggs in the fridge.  So I took possesion of the third egg, much to the dissapointment of my husband.  There was just enough stinky (greek salad) left over from the night before.


Later that day I went shopping and replenished the egg supply.

So on Sunday when I again...woke up with a desire for soft boiled egg I had a fresh supply.

Again...I prepared a tray

This time there were 4 eggs, and sausages instead of salad.  And I cut 3 sausages up hoping my husband wouldn't eat 3 or 4 all on his own.  Trying to get some weight off of him, I'm trying a strategy of making less look like more.  So far it's working.

And today's egg was juuuuuust right.  Nice and cooked ...but runny yolk.

I found this article  some time ago, But I reduce the cooking time to 5 minutes instead of 5 1/2 as stated in the article.  I take the pot off the burner at exactly 5 min and place the eggs into a large bowl in the sink, and pour the hot boiled water over the cooked eggs, then butter the toast that popped up, and then pour cold water out of the tap onto the bowl of boiled water.  It get's replaced with cold, then they are easier to handle the the cooking stops.

So far...this works for the perfect runny yolk

I don't know why I have gardening on the brain today....
But I remember seeing something interesting on TV last spring, so I tried to google around to find some more info about it

And I actually found it here, and here

courtesy of Vancouver Sun

S*le Food

The reason this caught my eye....well back in the day...1975/80.  I used to come to this site every.friggin.day

It's False Creek, in Vancouver
It used to be (back in the day ...pre stadium construction) a CP Transport Terminal and a HUGE railyard of gigantic proportion.  Container traffic from all places oriental.  What I like to call "crap from china"  but I'm not calling it that ...today.

Back in the day I used to be a "Container Transport Rate Co-ordinator"  I think that's what the "official" title was.  God only knows what it was called, I can't really remember.  Pre Computer.  Pre everything days.  I used to sit in an ATCO trailer on a huge piece of pavement, surrounded by multiple railway lines. And cost out the shipping cost of container after container of "crap from china" (but I'm not calling it that today") for most/all the department stores and retailers across canada, for ships that didn't want to offload at Centenial Pier in Vancouver.  Something about mandatory destuffing containers in union clause of contact of longshormen.....as in massive theft.  But you didn't hear that from me. Wink wink...It was a giant obstacle coarse, not to get hit by either a train running backwards, a huge container lifting thingy, or a multitude of semi's in various stages of either picking up containers or dropping off containers.  And don't get me started on the many STRIKES I had to endure at the Vancouver waterfront terminals.  Because OUR stuff came up from SEATTLE TERMINALS so whenever there was a strike.  ALLHELLBROKELOOSE.....anyway....sidetracked again

When the stadium was proposed back in 1980ish if I remember correctly, the company I worked for moved.   And I was having the first of many babies, and living an hour away...and I quit ...the long and short of it....I could not get around the whole daycare, and hour drive...thing.  So I quit. Lock stock and barrel...coarse the husband/father was not prepared for anything like that...but...I did. Instead I spent a year building a house 600 miles away.  But that's another story.

So anyhoooooo

Got sidetracked

Back in the 80's this particular site was deemed a "contaminated site"  ....and I wonder why I used to have all those stupid rashs.....

...and I feared my child would be born with two heads.....


...got sidetracked again....

anyway, there was cadmium, arsnic...and heavy metals etc etc scarry etc....

much of the original soil/dirt got carted away and ...I don't know...probably is sitting in a pit in the middle of a mountain range in Cash Creek/ Lilloette...somewhere...up north....


The soil, ( in containers of raised beds...but still) was sitting on the pavement of what used to be ....not an ideal place to actually plant veg.....But I was intrigued.  I watched on TV how they sprayed the soil out of a big dump truck full of soil....with these huge hoses.  It was the craziest thing I ever saw.  It certainly had the whole...wheelbarrow, shovel and a pile of top soil....all beat.


Too bad I completely forgot about this project the one and only time I was actually in the general vicinity, would have been a good thing to see.
And maybe get a soil sample for testing
  Dont' know when I will ever be back to Vancouver.  Seeing as how it's not really a fav place of mine.  But I should pinterest the thing.  Just in case.  To remind myself to go see.....

Too bad there isn't anything similar here.  I would get involved with something like that...for sure. 

As it is...I'm probably having spring fever or something.   Cause all I can think of is starting seedlings...I wonder if it's too early...probably.

What's this you ask?
.....and why do I have a picture of the stupid thing?

THE BAIN/BANE (whatever) OF MY EXISTENCE TODAY


It all started.....

I looked out the bedroom window this morning to check on the supposed overnight heavy snowfall that was predicted on the late news.
Sure enough...there it is
But...not toooo too much really. Just enough to have to clean the van off, not to onerous a task a quick swipe and I was good to go.  Hmmm even the roads weren't that bad.  Maybe the last 5 miles or so the roads were a little covered in snow....the snow plows that I noticed were all on the other side of the road as is the usual case at 530 in the morning.  But all in all ....passable, the other vehicles on the road were driving in what one would expect them to do....staying away from each other.

Then my phone tweets

It's a text

I sorta have to check....so I am on a straight stretch with no other vehicle around me...I check
"pls stop at petro stn out of tp"

wtf

I had to call on speaker phone, had no idea what she wanted

"toilet paper"


ahhhhh....yes.....I remember now.
It's all called INTUITION

 I really hate that stupid word.  
INTUITION....INTUITION.....INTUITION

And I hate the feeling, as it's happening even more.   I always wonder, as it's happening "why is that thing in your eye sight so significant"  "what's that stupid voice in the back of your head REEEEallly trying to say, anyway----SPEAK UP  stupid voice.

Just before I left home this morning.....I was using the facilities....

and thinking....for some reason the roll of toilet paper caught...and held my eye
because my daughter called me as I was driving home yesterday... to enquire if I could think of anything that she needed, specifically....as she was just about to go to the checkout line at the grocery store before she got home....(yes yes yes,...of coarse her husband was home with the kids ---that's why I wasn't sheeeesh)
I listed off a few things.  All food related
I also remembered this morning as I'm eye balling my own roll of tp that hmmm.  I remember searching out and finding the last roll of her toilet paper on monday.   And thinking......as I'm sitting on my own thrown this morning....."I wonder if she knew she need TP"

As it so happened I had to replace my own roll .....and that stupid voice in the back of my head that doesn't talk loud enough for me to actually pay attention....was making my hand hover over the package of tp....But that moment passed.

That's the scene that came back to me after the phone call about stopping to get some for her.

Shit....why didn't I take that stupid package .....honestly....i was cursing myself.  And saying how I really have to start paying attention to that stupid voice.

So I stopped at the gas station

I was only going to run in for a sec and grab a pkg ...."what the heck" leave the van running.
....grab my purse
....leave my cell phone on the seat----for some reason---that stupid voice never said anything.....just made me actually look at my phone for a good looooooong time.  duh ...left it on the seat
...for some reason
my mind's eye  ....caught the sight of the door look as I was leaving the van......telling this story I can still see that stupid ass image in my stupid mind.  What the heck was so significant about the stupid lock anyway.  It was up....goooooood. The keys were in the ignition.....gooooood.   The van was running....goood.   I'm asking myself at that moment ------"WHAT'S WITH THE LOCK ANYWAY, SPEAK UP.....STUPID VOICE IN THE BACK OF MY HEAD ----THAT SEEMS TO BE MUTE"---I'm in a hurry here, whatdoyouwant.........!!!!!

I closed the door
I grabbed toilet paper package
I paid
I walked up to van
I NOTICED THE LOCK WAS DOWN
WTFFFFFFFFF

I could not believe it.........and I noticed all the other locks were DOWNNNNNNNN
It's a quarter to 6 in the morning
I'm neither ...here...nor...there
I have my purse
I have noooooo cell phone
I have noooooo keys
My van is running.

I swore...alllllllllot

I went back into the store.....I remembered seeing my daughter with a spare set of my keys in her hands months ago...but it was at my place.  I hoped and hoped and hoped some more that they were in her house and not my house.

You think I could remember her stupid ass phone number
I don't know anyones phone numbers anymore...only the ones that I've known forever. Nothing really recent in the last 10 years.  And I especially don't know anyones cell #'s.  They are all stored in the stupid phone sitting on the seat of the van....the locked......running....van
And no one has home phones anymore....just cell phones. Including us all

whattodo   whattodo

I called my husband
his phone was going to voice mail\

ffffff...kkkkkkkk
...who the hell was he talking to at quarter to 6 in the morning.
....what does he do when I'm not there anyway
...and who does he talk to ........this will need further exploring

I tried a second time

....yay he answered
...couldn't figure out how to access his contacts while on the phone that stores his contacts
...I wanted to hit something......honestly learn to use your phone........!!!!!!!!

I'm getting loud...people are staring at me in the convenience store.  I have to call him back so he can find the #

I call him back
....He can't figure it out...".everything is speed dial no numbers are showing up"

....there are baaaaaad words exchanged
....people are staring
......text her.......then.!!!!!  you figure out the language used.  It's too much to have to spell it all out here

There is a women standing next to me at the register....she's about my age
I ask her
"are you in a real real hurry at this moment"
"why" she asks
"I need to get a set of keys at my daughters...just down the road"  I explain the rest
"You want a ride"?
"Would that be out of the question?"
"NO,come on"
It's not out of her way, and there is a short cut to the main road about a block or two away from my daughters, so she's happy, I'm happy, and thankful.

I run into her house.

In a panic...and praying she has a set of keys

In the meantime.......my husband.....finally figured out his stupid phone and managed to relay my predicament to her.

"what's the matter, calm down...yes I have a set"

CALM DOWN SHE SAYS.

The kids get woken up...dressed...stuffed in the car.  I have to make promises of chocolate bars just to get them in their boots.

So everything worked out ......

....except I was supposed to take them for flu shots....there's a mini epidemic here, and
THEIR MOTHER THAT WORKS IN THE HEALTH CARE INDUSTRY AND HAS TO GET FLU SHOTS HERSELF......
Didn't get them for her family.
...I know....
"I" can't believe it......Me and my husband have always gotten them...since I worked in longtermcare. I just automatically get them---even though I don't have to anymore.  I just really really hate being sick.  I'm a baaaaaaad sick patient.  And my husband is even worse.  So we always get the flu shot.

So now, today....I have to take them.
....except it snowing
....freeeeeking snowing....lots

There was no snow here yesterday.


But this was taken about two hours ago

...and I have to drive both to and fro......k'garten
....and to  and  fro.....shots

...I don't know......Maybe I will just annouce to the world at large


IT'S A SNOW DAY....AND I'M NOT GOING....ANYWHERE!!!!!!

...And it's not really me
...it's all those other stupid crazy ass drivers out there
...no shots ...today
...I'm still debating about the whole kindergarten thing today.

BECAUSE IT'S STILL SNOWING.

Someone brought cabbage rolls as a contribution to the xmas dinner....it was a nice addition.  Something unexpected.  Of coarse I didn't eat any.....everything that has to be mixed by someone else's human hands and has many steps to the process, has always been suspect to me.  It's a phobia, what can I say.  Anything with hamburger I have always had a problem eating if I didn't see it being made.  The only person that passes the test has always been my mother.  And that's about it.
But those cabbage rolls have been on my husbands brain since xmas.
He was walking around the kitchen yesterday and was wondering if some miracle of miracles happened and some cabbage rolls might appear for dinner.

Well that wasn't such an outlandish request...and sometimes...you just gotta do what you gotta do.   And I took some hamburger out of the freezer, then drove over to the grocery store for some cabbage.

I had a couple different bags of rice that I don't kknow what I was saving for...abviously this was a good time to throw them all together into the rice cooker.  I had almost 1 1/2 dry.

If your going to make cabbage rolls, use Savoy Cabbage.  It's just easier, it comes apart of the head easier, it only needs about a couple minutes precooked in the micro, it rolls easier.  I have never used regular since I was forced to buy savoy once years ago.
600g beef and pork mixture, raw
1 onion small dice
3 stalks celery with greens
1/2 scallion (because it was there)
3 cloves garlic minced
about 2 cups 2 1/2 cups cooked rice....I ate some while I was waiting for it to cool.  It was a good tasty mixture.
1 egg
1/4 red pepper, diced
large handful of panko
1 can heinz tomato soup, undiluted
big splash lea and perrines
big splash balsamic
celery salt, salt and pepper
srirachea (bad spelling)
fresh dill
I usually get a disposable glove (one of those found in the painting department of home depot) and mix the whole thing up with my hand.
Butter/oil your container that will cook them in the oven and smear another can of heinz tomato soup, undiluted ...on the bottom before placing the rolls

 I use an ice-cream scoop, and if you take my advice and use savoy cabbage, the rolling up process takes about 10 minutes ...tops

It's like savoy cabbage was made for cabbage rolls.  1..over, 2...3...the sides, 4...the roll
...viola....

 I can't believe I got them all crammed into there, but there will be shrinkage, so stuff them

smear another can of undiluted heinz soup over the whole thing...what's that 3 cans now?

Cover with foil and into 350 oven for about 50 min to 1 hr.  Then take the foil off for another half hour or so.  I usually seperate each roll a bit to get the sauce around each roll if any look a little less covered.
Unfortunately my husband got at them before I could take a pic....but the sauce should almost be diluted into the rolls by the time it's ready and the cabbage looks paper thin and browned

I'm looking forward for another feeding of them tonight.  Lets face it...another thing that's better the next day.

So
for dinner for the kids the plan is

Slow cooker beef and broccoli

I just happen to have some cut up beef in the freezer.  But I'm not going to use a crock pot...It's into the magic pot instead.  And I'm going to add fresh broccoli instead of frozen(bleck) and maybe some orange

with noodles instead of rice.

And for us....
reheat cabbage rolls with ceasar salad.

I also got a request to make one of these

snuggle blanket

someone had a new years day baby.

People are still having babies it seems.  Since I'm not expecting any more around me, I just assumed everyone else was finished too.   Not so much.

Well maybe my sewiing machine...since it's had some time to sit and think about what it's done with it's tantrum....and since it had to endure another machine in its vacinity....maybe---just maybe by some stroke of magic...it will suddenly start working.

After all there are no visible stray threads...anywhere
There is no excuses
I have things to do....get with the program and START WORKING DAMN YOU

Dinner A Love Story

I've been stalking a few blogs recently....and even read a couple of their books.
noteably this one
Dinner a Love Story

I was even going to leave a comment....well I started to, but then realized it was getting way toooo loooong.  So I figured I'd kill two birds with one comment....and post it here instead

Seven Day Challenge:
How many times have I read in my many years about menu planning.  Ughhhh
In real life....my real life
Doesn't work worth sh*t
When I worked in longterm care or small hotel kitchen....sure...rotation menu...seasonal.  Piece of cake.

Following ...is the Comment that got a little to long:

Its a great concept, and I've read your book....it's now sitting on the shelf at my daughters, we'll see what she takes from it.  And i've even started to write down every meal I eat since middle of December (why...I have no idea).  But....I've never ever been able to preplan meals ever.  I'm more a go shopping for what's on sale ( in whatever particular store I happen to be living around )for the next couple days worth of  eating.  That's sorta always been my challenge....to make a couple days worth of meals based on what's on sale.   And plan meals for only about 3 days if that. I've been doing this for 30+ yrs. Everyone should have a challenge.  And that's always been mine.  It's like that piece of new clothing you buy...what am I going to wear it with for the next two years.  Only...how many different ways can I use chicken breasts this week?  Or how much ham will the kids eat if I make a coked/root beered up pommegrante ham this week?

 While my kids were teenagers my husband was working out of town monday to friday. And there was hockey crap and dance stuff not to mention teenager stuff (I had three teenagers, and one of them was always learning how to drive it seems).  Plus having a small business didn't help. So who ever knew who was going to be home at any given time. And any spare time I had was usually spent on a golf green somewhere.  I usually made sure there were plenty of leftovers to nuke during the week.  How does one preplan a weeks worth of food faced with this household.  Now that we're down to only 2 of us.  A sandwich or nuked leftovers, or an omelette or takeout is usually on the menu.

Starting mid december, I'm the sole childcare provider for 2 g'kids 4 & 5 at their home so my down time is spent in traffic. I really hate HATE 1/2 day k'garten.

I leave the house around 5:30 am to arrive by 6am
The g'kids get up anywhere from 6-8am.  So it's breakfast.  Then entertaining them either at home or a car trip away at a gym, or park, or playpark in mall (after all it is winter and there have been some -40 days) then k'garten starts at 12:45 pick up at 3:15 ....you notice all the potential in and out of vehicles with little kids that usually don't want to go anywhere here.  If I don't like being in traffice the g'kids hate being interupted to get into a van even more than I do.
I sometimes make dinner for them if there's something in the fridge....but I usually have to go the the damn store (which is not very convenient from her place compared to my place)  But it's usually a trial in frustration cause I ALWAYS HAVE TO GO BUY SOMETHING TO COMPLETE THE MEAL.  Drives me absolutely insane.  I always want to start knocking on doors for some stupid igredient.  But NO ONE IS GOING TO BE HOME ANYWAYS....This is a street were you can't get a parking space for save your life after 5pm but the street is empty after 7am.
Like take friday.....I planned on pork chops...I even brought my husband to watch g'kids with me just so I wouldn't have to make two dinners....again.  Everything was all set.  Then I got it into my head to make coleslaw....
Drive to the store to get coleslaw mix, plus $30 worth of other crap that she didn't have....
Get back....start making lunch...plan ahead to make coleslaw
I thought I'd try something different....I should stop doing that....It usually just ends up annoying me.
The recipe called for
1 bag coleslaw mix
diced small onion
2/3 cups miracle whip or anything similar...not mayo
2/3 cups sugar
2 tbsp oil
1 tbsp vinegar
salt/pepper/celery salt
...i think that was it.
hmmm, this sounded like alot of sugar

You think I could find the damn vinegar....anywhere.
There was cider vinegar...with alot of floaty things ....how long it was sitting in the cupboard was a question.  I opened the bottle..took a wifff.   Hmm smelled like it should....tasted it.  Tasted like cider vinegar.   But the floaty's were a problem.
I went downstairs to search the laundry room (usually that's where my bottle hangs out)....no vinegar.
Searched high and low...  finally broke down and called her at work.  "don't think I have any"

.....WHAT ELSE IS NEW......
All I needed was 1 friggin tbsp,.  Do I really...really have to GO BACK TO THE STORE????
God help me....I couldn't face that again.
This is were I was tempted to start knocking on doors.  But a quick look outside on the barren wasteland of an empty street kinda made me guess no one was home anywhere anyway.
My husband was in the livingroom and just told me to get it over with and go.   Enough already.  Well there was no trip to k'garten today and this would have been the fourth time since I arrived that I was faced with driving back up the damn hill ....ughhhh
I don't know what it was exactly that made me so angry.  I made plans to take g'kids to farmers market for an afternoon of play in the indoor play area.  Have some perogies for lunch maybe.  Walk around pick up some veg and fruit.  Drove all the way there.....it was closed.  The only week of the whole entire friggin year that it's closed is the weekend after xmas to the first week of new year.  Crap

It just so happened that while I was leaving the parking lot that my husband noticed a gun shop/firing range. ....next door.  Who plans on this sort of business right next door to a farmers market.  Stupid ass planners.   How many times have we been here and he has never ever noticed this place before.  He picks this moment to explore....while I am sitting in the van with two kids that only wanted to stay home and play lego's.   and where pretty pissed to even be in a vehicle.  We waited like what seemed FOREVER for him to come back..I even called him a few times to warn him I was leaving.
So farmers market is closed
...what to do for lunch
....micky d's???
...blaaaaa
...I know, how about mac and cheese with weiners (that was my husbands suggestion) that they all three decided would be a great lunch.   Ugh
....of coarse a trip to grocery store was needed so....weiners, mac and cheese, juice, and other crap had to be purchased never mind the treats.
...back at daughters, and lunch was served.
...then the coleslaw issue came up
back in the van.....back to the store....jug of vinegar was bought...also miracle whip (cause she only had mayo...i checked)
....back at daughters
....coleslaw was made....stuck in the fridge
....just before everyone got home....I checked on coleslaw...to have a sample (I really love coleslaw)
woowww...it sure was soupy....Uck....drained it...left slaw in strainer hanging over bowl...spiced it up a bit....back in the fridge.
.....Dinner is served.... yum
...as I was emptying her fridge of stuff I was planning on taking home to my own fridge (thank you very much,,,,but I needed miracle whip at home too) .  What did I notice....I FORGOT TO SERVE THE DAMN COLESLAW.   The bane of my existance that whole entire friggin day.....And I forgot to serve it.
Here it is Sunday....and that's all I can think of.  It would have been tasty with the BLT I had for breakfast.

And you want me to plan a weeks worth of meals.   I don't think that's going to work.  Trust me.  Besides I usually have to "plan" two seperate dinners.  This whole thing sound tooo much like work.

After originally posting this....I thought I should add....

It could be expected that the following meal was either being made....or was currently in the fridge waiting to be nuked for a second dinner or lunch (my kids also usually came home for lunch, as the school was a block away....usually with two or three friends each that were "but they're bus kids mom...and the cafeteria sucks")

1 pkg Kraft Dinner
1 lb ground beef (500g)
1 pkg taco seasoning
2 cups liquid (crushed canned tomatoes, broth, water, combo of whatever liquid you have around)
1/3 cup sour cream or yogurt

Brown the beef till no liquid is remaining in large skillet ( i mean none, don't drain it,...cook it off)
add taco seasoning, pkg kraft dinner and 2 cups liquid
turn heat down, top with lid.  Check on it till liquid is absorbed.  If using canned tomatoes you might have to add some water to cook maccaroni a bit more.
While it's cooking away...mix cheesy stuff in pkg with sour cream.
Add this to pan.  Mix it all up before serving so that the last addition is incorporated.

You can top it off with chopped tomatoes, add some salad.  It usually tastes better and better the next day for lunch or a secondary nuked up dinner

I've added all kinds of things...like pesto, leftover roast beef chipped up with less ground beef,
It's like a smorgasboard of possabilities.  Add some frozen corn, or peas.  Whatever works for you.
If these is a carrot around, grate it in add it same time as noodles.
I either made this....or sheppard's pie with whatever leftover veg were around from the days before.

I was scrolling around pinterest a couple days ago and noticed an apple pie made in a cast iron fryingpan.

http://wellpreserved.ca/2012/12/26/a-great-use-for-a-small-cast-iron-skillet/

 And got the idea that maybe I should give it a try, except change it to a chicken pot pie instead.  So the day before I roasted three bone-in chicken breast for the sole purpose of having some left overs for the pie.  I made extra roasted carrots and potatoes as well.

So the next day I chopped 1/2 an onion, three center stalks top part only, of celery.  For the leafy greens, and chopped up a medium zucchini and about 1/4 of a red pepper, (well that's all I had left in the fridge for a pepper). About 3 garlic cloves minced or chopped.   Once this was sauted up, I added the carrots and potatoes chopped up into a large dice

I threw in a handful of frozen corn and frozen peas

then the shredded large breast of chicken

A can of this, inspite of my "no soup from a can except heinz tomato soup" I do use this when ever I make pot pie, primarily cause it tastes good and because I didn't have any frozen gravy and because I was to lazy to make my own sauce.  After emptying the can into a seperate bowl I added a heaping soup spoon of flour into the empty can, added half the can of milk. Take a fork or whatever is handy and stir the flour into the milk in the can then top this up with whatever stock you have.  Mix this all up with the original contents of the can in that seperate bowl.  Add this to the cast iron pan of veg and chicken.  I added about four or five spoons of butter before topping with the crust
                                 

Sprinkle some spice on the crust ( pepper and sage and celery salt) before rolling it out a bit

cover the pan, and then egg wash the top before adding a bunch of slits to release steam.

Clean up the mess

Into the 350 oven for about an hour


                                           


Look in vain for the pie lifter upppppper, Give up and use a very flat spatula instead

Expect a mess with the first slice to come out

VIOLA.....no mess ...hmmmm maybe needed a little more liquid

Wow best chicken pot pie I ever made,  After I put half away in the fridge for another day, I even scrapped up all the itty bitty remains.  It was that good.  The only down side....Needing another container for the fridge instead of the pie plate I used to use.  But this will be the only way I make this dish again.  What is it with cast iron that makes everything taste sooooooo much better.  If it wasn't so heavy for my lousy wrists I would probably use it all the time.  That's the other down side......it's friggin heavy to get in the oven and then out.....ohhh well.  I will suck it up

This has been my breakfast for the past two days.  It just gets better and better

Salty Pork Chops for dinner tonight.  Yum....I'm addicted to them.