Food, Glorious Food!

(name that musical)  I spent today cooking.  It occurred to me that tonight is the night to take out the trash so I should get all of the raw chicken skin and packaging out so it doesn't stink up the joint rotting for a week.  I also hauled up a small milk crate with all of the ancient canned food from the basement shelves.  There isn't a chance that I'll eat anything dated 2010, not even 2016.  Trash night, gotta love it.


First up was Chicken with Rice in the oven.  I had the devil of a time finding chicken breasts with bones and skin yesterday.  I had to buy Perdue instead of the store brand.  *sigh*  You take the skin off for all WW recipes but the bones add flavor and structure, plus I think that the meat doesn't dry out quite as much.  This recipe is one Durwood and I made a lot and really liked.



Next I made Spicy Chicken Curry on the stove top.  It smelled so good when it was cooking.  I was supposed to have red onions but I just bought a bag of plain old yellow onions and made do.  I made rice and even added some cilantro leaves for garnish before clapping the lids on and putting them in the freezer.



While the chicken for that was cooking I got the vegetables, herbs and spices, rice, and drumsticks (skinned, of course) for Chicken, Mushrooms, and Brown Rice Casserole into the slow cooker to cook for 7 hours.  (Are you sensing a theme here?  Would it be chicken and rice?  Ding, ding, ding!  You are correct.)

Then I mixed up the Asian Turkey Meatballs (still poultry), scooped them out onto a baking sheet and popped them into the oven.  Here they've just come out of the oven and are cooling before I take them off the foil, line the baking sheet with waxed paper, and put them into the freezer so that they don't freeze into a clump when I put them into a zipper bag.  I want to make a batch of Fast & Friendly Turkey Meatballs, probably next week, to go with the marinara sauce I made yesterday.  I grind up bell peppers, onions, and garlic, sometimes a few carrots too, to add to the regular ingredients, and then bake and freeze them.  I like meatballs and they're quick to turn into supper.


I have two more recipes to make tomorrow but I need to dash out for some orange juice for the marinade for one of them.  Once those are done, portioned, and frozen I'll be good for about 3 months.  Next time I can grill meat.  Yum.  Oh, and I found some grilled corn downstairs in the freezer.  I'll for sure find some way to get that into my mouth.



Spring is sprung-ing outside.  Yesterday's daffodil buds bloomed today, I saw the grape hyacinths are starting to bloom, and a dwarf white hyacinth is opening.

And the buds on the forsythia are swelling.  It's happening, folks, spring is really coming.









While I watched TV tonight I finished the last inch of the April Seaman's Cowl.


16 April--Georges Seurat, The Seine at Courbevoie.

Patches of color float
on wavelets,
quilt of reflections
atop a city river.
~~~~~ 

Not many words but I like it.  It was sunny most of the day so I opened the patio door and the kitchen and bedroom windows to let out the oven heat, the cooking aromas, and let in fresh air.  Two weeks ago I even slept with the window open one night but not now when it gets into the 30s or low 40s at night.  Pretty soon I can, though.  Tomorrow it's supposed to cool off and then rain for 3 days.  Yippee.

I just counted, I made 21 portions today with 16 more potential with yesterday's marinara sauce.  Eight more tomorrow and then I'll quit... except for more meatballs but I'll wait a few days to make those.
--Barbara