Mmmm, breakfast!

(Yummy Omelet, by "N")


I meant to post yesterday but I did not get around to it. I was too busy lounging in my pj's and reading. Turns out, the great storm that was predicted to dump a bunch of snow on us did just that! I can't remember ever seeing this much snow in our southern state. So, naturally (and luxuriously), two days worth of work and school have been canceled. We are in happy, lazy bliss over here. I really love to have only a few options for my day, and I do not feel imprisoned as some do (but check with me in a few days).

Last time this happened, I was in happy, productive mode. That hit at about 8:00 pm yesterday. I suddenly got this urge to have something to show for the day, other than a bunch of pages read, so I cleaned out some drawers and did a few other things I have been putting off. But today, it is back to lounging. (That antsy, productive urge will hit after dark sometime.)

While I was sleeping in this morning, my dear son was cooking himself breakfast. Seems I reminded him of his love for omelets yesterday when I made him one with bacon and swiss cheese. We had homemade biscuits on the side, which he adores. Anyway, after I got up, he showed me a picture he had taken of the omelet he made, since there was not one for me! (He knows I do not like them crispy, which is the only way he turns them out.) I was very amazed at both his photography and his use of chopped vegetables!

I never know what he'll do when I'm asleep. Maybe if I go back to bed, he'll cook some lunch.

Gotta Love an Appreciative Eater

I love an appreciative eater. After all, if you go to the trouble to cook something, you don’t want there to be silence about it. We have fun imitating Bob (Bill Murray’s character) from the “What About Bob?” movie, who groans over and over throughout the meal about his yummy fried chicken. This is a joke that N often pretends to grow tired of, but, in truth, he never does. Sometimes I provide my own commentary of my own meal and he frowns disapprovingly at me.

Baby Sister visited over Christmas, and I don’t think she knows about Bob or our imitations of him. She is a single girl who subsists on Chinese take-out, Chick-Fil-A and Starbucks. She does not mind cooking; she just does not have the time and energy. So, she is one of my favorite appreciative eaters who does not give a solitary courteous compliment, but often goes on throughout the whole meal with lots of exclamations that I love! N, however, watched her suspiciously each time she enjoyed her food, as though she would give away her secret love of the Bob movie. She never did.

“What About Bob?” made its way under our tree this year and we watched it last night. Maybe we have seen it too many times, but the only part that made me laugh was that scene at the table! The foods to keep on the menu for next year for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are the ones that made Baby Sister exclaim in delight (at least three times each): marinated flank steak, twice baked potatoes, cranberry crunch, Bobby Flay’s shrimp grits and chocolate cake with praline icing.

What did they appreciate at your house? (We are still appreciating over here.)

If you can't stand the heat . . .

Now I remember why I stopped all the Christmas baking about 4 years ago. Well, not all. I had to make one batch of each family member’s favorite. We had homemade Heath bar, peanut butter balls (or buckeyes), and decorated cookies. Enough, right? Well, for some reason I felt the compulsion to start it all up again like I used to. I am glad I do not like sugar as much as I did, but it still has a firm pull on me!

I looked up how to make pralines, something that has seldom turned out for me, and one reviewer of Paula Deen’s recipe said these tasted just like her grandmother’s. My result might have tasted like somebody’s grandmother’s, but not like my grandmother’s, which is the gold standard. That lady could churn out shirtboxes by the dozen, full of the most beautiful variety of homemade candy. I can do peanut brittle almost like hers, but the rest . . . well, I need some tips. My attempt at divinity today looked promising. Then it got all dry at the end. What did I do? Beat it too long? Cook the second half of the syrup too long? Oh, too many factors. Besides, I need to go back to the one batch of each person’s favorite. The trouble is, I can’t choose a favorite! Maybe that’s why I am attempting all of the contenders that would make it to my top choice.

Tonight I was doing several things at once in the kitchen and enlisted N’s help in doing a few dishes. He has taken several batches of chocolate mint brownies to school for different ones who have helped him so much. So while I was cutting into another pan of those, he was rinsing a plate on which I had mixed spices together to sprinkle on chicken. He asked if he could taste it, and I warned him he would not like it but he could try if he wanted. (Paprika, garlic, pepper, salt, red pepper, thyme, etc.) He put his finger in and licked it, then said, “Tastes tingly. I like it.” I was surprised. A few seconds later, “Is it hot in here or is it just me?” It is cute when he is waiting for my laugh.

Cooking up some minestrone

What’s in my Crockpot today:

Minestrone Soup!

I am searching for the perfect minestrone but cannot find it. As this one cooks, I am somewhat satisfied, but am still scouting for the elusive, ultra tomato-y recipe. If you have a good minestrone recipe, please do share. I cannot remember where I had what I have in mind because it has been so long and I have tried oodles since. (At least that is my story; it is not that I am o-l-d.)

For this recipe, I backed off of the thyme and sage a little, added another can of broth and some spaghetti sauce. I know, probably not what the originator had in mind! Here’s today’s version (plus what I added):

Ingredients

• 3 cups reduced-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
• 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 (15-ounce) can white (cannellini or navy) beans, drained
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 celery stalk, chopped
• 1 cup onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon dried sage
• 2 bay leaves
• Salt and ground black pepper
• 2 cups cooked ditalini pasta
• 1 medium zucchini, chopped
• 2 cups coarsely chopped fresh or frozen spinach, defrosted
• 4 tablespoons grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
• Basil sprigs, garnish, optional

Directions

In a slow cooker, combine broth, tomatoes, beans, carrots, celery, onion, thyme, sage, bay leaves, and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and black pepper. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours or on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours.

Thirty minutes before the soup is done cooking, add ditalini, zucchini and spinach. Cover and cook 30 more minutes. Remove bay leaves and season, to taste, with salt and black pepper. Ladle soup into bowls and sprinkle parmesan cheese over top. Garnish with basil, if desired.