Monday 25 July 2011

Good Eats

Well, I kept my promise. Ellie and I had fun, and we ate very well, too. Rather than spending my vacation money on traveling, I indulged in a most amazing grocery splurge at Trader Joe's. It was important that my fridge be filled with delicious yet allergen-free foods since Ellie and I both have sensitive stomachs. Grocery shopping is always such a pleasure! Especially when your options are limitless and your pocketbook is feeling a bit less tight.

Ellie and I filled our cart with everything delicious: hummus, salad greens, a red and orange pepper, grapes, apples, sausages, bacon, different kinds of meat, ice cream, chocolate, and two kinds of cheese (herbed goat cheese and English Cheddar with caramelized onions). It was a very good day.
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It was a very good week!

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Despite the fact that I am not a very good cook, Ellie and I still managed to eat delicious suppers every evening. We agreed that they got better each time. I think I'm finally learning how to properly season and bake chicken tenders. Finally.

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Sometimes remembering our meals helps me feel a bit less sad now that Ellie is home in N.M. Here you go:

Proof That You Can Eat Delicious Meals sans Gluten/Corn/Soy/Nut/Nitrites/Guargum/Tropical Fruits:

Monday's Supper
Rice Noodles alla Puttanesca with Herbed Goat Cheese and Salad Greens.

Tuesday's Supper
Burgers topped with Caramelized Onion Cheddar and Bacon.
Served with Salad Greens and Steamed Sweet Potatoes.

Dessert: Flourless Chocolate Cake drizzled with Rum and served with Coffee Ice Cream.

Wednesday's Supper
Pasta with Sautéed Squash and Herb Seasoned Chicken

Thursday's Supper
Wednesday's Supper was so very delicious that we cooked the same meal again.
:)  

Friday's Supper
Pan Fried Chicken Sausages served with Green Beans, Squash, and Potatoes sautéed in Garlic Butter.  

Saturday's Supper
Scrambled Eggs, Bacon, and Tomato and Green Bean Hash.  

Sunday's Supper
Pork Chops with Apple-Onion Chutney
served alongside Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Sautéed Summer Squash.

Dessert: Dark Chocolate Mousse
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My little food adventures with Ellie taught me a few things about cooking:

-Garlic Salt. Use it. Enough said. 
-Chili Pepper Flakes. Use them. Also enough said. 
-Squash tastes delicious when cooked in butter. Everything tastes delicious cooked in butter. (Almost.) 
-Garlic Salt. Salt. Don't under salt. 
-Taste your food throughout the cooking process! Avoid over salting! 
-Be patient with yourself. Cooking is hard! There is no definite right or wrong method, but you know when something tastes good, and you definitely know when it tastes bad. Delicious or disgusting. You know what I mean. Think of term paper writing: Practice, practice, practice. Have a plan. Ditch the plan. Fail. Try again. Fail again. Try again. Practice, practice, practice again. 
-Perhaps the activity of eating becomes "meal-taking" or "partaking of a meal" when you are joined by all the people you love. Maybe this is why people get married and buy dishes together. They want to cook meals! What a happy little thought.

:)

Happy meal-making to you all!

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