Yukon gold potatoes were on sale last week at Schnucks, so I picked some up and made some delectable mashed potatoes. I’ve found with russets that I could really take them or leave them, they just don’t have the same nummy flavor. Maybe I should play around with red potatoes. I always keep potatoes on hand as a staple food and I have a feeling I may be eating them a bit more often. I should at least have good ones.

Celiac test is a week from tomorrow. This morning the donuts I usually love at church just made my stomach turn. As soon as the test is over I’m going to switch over to eating gluten-free and see how I feel. I ordered a cookbook so I can learn more about baking. Even if I don’t have celiac, I can use the book to make stuff for mom. I got some gluten-free spaghetti today and will try to pick up some cereal tomorrow. I’m making a multigrain hot cereal tonight in the slow cooker. It has wheat in it, but it should be good for this week. I will make banana bread, too. I’m saving up three bananas for my next batch.

Well, off to bake I go. Till next time!

I made some tonight in the rice cooker, burned the onions nicely, and added some seasoning from Penzeys and a touch of white pepper. The white pepper was lackluster but the rest of it was good. It’s amazing to have such an easy, delicious dish to make!

2 onions, cut into half moons

1/2 cup lentils

1/2 cup rice

Water

It’s best to make this in a rice cooker. Put lentils and rice in a rice cooker. Mine has measurements for the number of servings. I added enough water for two and a half servings of rice, then 1 serving cup of rice and 1 serving cup of lentils. I then added spices (salt, pepper, white pepper, and Sate seasoning from Penzeys this time around. The Sate worked nicely, but a little cumin would have been good and I will definitely use red pepper instead of white next time). Turn on rice cooker.

Next, I cut the onions and put them in a skillet with some oil, heated to medium-high. Added a bit of salt. After stirring to separate the onions and coat them with oil, I turned the heat down to medium and let the onions sit and cook for four 5-minute intervals, stirring in between. Next, I turned the heat down to low and let the onions cook for two more 5-minute intervals, again with stirring in between. By this point the rice cooker had switched to “warm” and the onions were nicely cooked, with blackened edges. This makes them super yummy!

This made about four servings for me. I could have used a third onion, but I only had two. Still very tasty stuff!

Sorry for the long hiatus, I was on vacation in Seattle. I have some good material to write about, though, so I’ll be posting more soon.

I got free range eggs yesterday and decided it was omelette time. So I made an omelette with herbs, tomato, and mozzerella cheese. Served with a couple slices of pumpernickel bread. It’s delicious. A bit dense (I’m out of milk!), but delicious.

Mmmm eggs.

Boil some spaghetti noodles.

Toss with some olive oil and herbs.

Add salt and pepper.

Add just a touch of cheese (Parm would be best, but I have none!).

The kale chips were an idea from Apartment Therapy. I’m trying them out. Someone at work said roasted kale is delicious, too. And since you should eat dark leafy greens because they’re healthy (I know, right? I sound like someone’s mom), I decided it was worth a shot. I’ve met few roasted vegetables I didn’t like.

These are amazing. Salty and crisp like a chip, a bit of kale taste action, whoa. I think I added a bit more salt than I should have, but these are good. Don’t eat them right off the pan. They’re kind of hot. But tasty. And a great way to eat cheap, healthy kale.

1) Combine 2ish teaspoons of yeast in a bowl with 1 cup lukewarm water and a teaspoon of sugar.

2) Let that mellow for about 10 minutes. This is a great time to sweep the floor!

3) Return. Add 1 teaspoon salt, 1/3 cup dry milk powder, 2-3 teaspoons garlic-infused oil (or olive oil), plenty of herbs, and 2 cups flour. Stir a bunch. Add more flour bit by bit till the dough forms a nice ball that’s not too sticky. Pour about a tablespoon of oil (canola or soybean works) over the dough, turn the dough to coat, cover bowl with a towel, and set near the stove. Turn on oven to 375 degrees.

4) The dough needs about 20 minutes for a good rise. Make sauce first: take a can of cheapo tomato sauce (like the 29 cent cans from Aldis!) and add some goodies. 1 teaspoon salt, some pepper, some oregano, some basil, some garlic, some red pepper flakes, and about a tablespoon of sugar (trust me on this one!!). Stir it up. You’re done and there’s time to spare. This is a great time to take out the trash, hang up the laundry, and sweep the floor.

5)  Grease your pizza pan, put a bit of oil on your hands. Spread the dough out, roll the edges to make a nice crust. Prebake for5 minutes or so. Don’t leave the kitchen. Use this time to put dishes in the sink and clean the counter.

6) Remove crust from oven, top with sauce, cheese, and whatever. Bake 7-10 minutes till golden brown. While you do this, this is an excellent time to wash the dishes, finish cleaning the counter and stovetop, and write a blog entry.

7) Eat. You got everything else done, after all!

You need: water, salt, oil or butter, one onion, four chicken thighs, about half a teaspoon of cayenne pepper, about a teaspoon of salt (for the chicken this time), 3-4 tablespoons paprika (buy it from the international market and keep it in the fridge!), and a can o’ biscuits.

Heat some salted water in a large pot. At the same time, heat some oil or butter in a pan.

Dice up one onion, add to the oil, and stir it around with a wooden spoon. Keep the heat at medium high and cook till onion is softened.

Meanwhile, cut up 4 chicken thighs into bite-sized pieces. In a small bowl, put a tablespoon of paprika (more is fine! I used quite a lot!), some salt (don’t use too much, I did this batch), and some cayenne pepper. Dip chicken in seasoning, add to pan.

Stir everything around. Go do something important, like the dishes. Stir the chicken around some more so it gets cooked evenly. Add more paprika. The whole mess should be red and glorious.

Get out a can o’ biscuits. I found that mixing up a batch of bisquick biscuits does NOT work in this situation, so make sure you have a can o’ biscuits. Tear the biscuits into smaller pieces and put in the salted water. Boil for about a minute or two, then remove with a slotted spoon and add to the chicken mixture. Don’t worry if some of the cooking water gets into the pan, it will help!

Stir everything around, keeping the heat on in the pan. When everything is red and lovely, turn off the heat and eat that stuff up!!!

Sorry for the lack of posts… I’ve had spotty internet access, been very busy, and just not been in the mood to post, sadly. It will come back!

And you know what? It’s still delicious. It’s delicious and nutritious, has a variety of textures and flavors, is filling, and is a good meal with some croissants, which I already have.

I’ve frozen my future servings because I do intend to spread them out a bit starting next week, but wow… sometimes it seems so hard to eat leftovers. Especially when I make a lot of something.

One big confession: My freezer often becomes a wasteland where leftovers go to die. And that is foolishness. Like freezing my food is going to make it inedible. I’m going to try thawing and eating leftover beef stroganoff and it should still be delicious. Next week I’ll probably have to thaw and eat a few more servings of pasta fagioli.

Will I die from eating the same thing? Nope. But I want to have the discipline to eat what I have and to not waste food. I’ve saved so much money this week by eating what I have instead of making something new. Tomorrow I’ll have whatever my sis makes for dinner. Saturday I’ll probably be back to the soup, maybe also have that for Sunday and Monday lunches. (I’d take it to work, but I really prefer reheating it on the stove instead of the microwave). It will still be delicious. I just need to stop being foolish.

Anyway, I’m just hoping that I can finish my leftovers with integrity and grace. I do not want to waste anymore. My house is full of delicious food and I ought to just eat it and stop pining for something else.

And yes, I’m totally satisfied after eating my soup. So it works out fine. It’s just the mind games I have to overcome.

Tonight I reheated a serving of soup on the stove and had it with some shavings of Parmesan (though my parm isn’t that good–I think it needs to be replaced). I also made some garlic croissant rolls from the haul of Pillsbury products I got last week. Since there is a winter storm on the way around here, this was a perfect dinner for a cold day. Yum!

Tonight, since I’m cleaning, I needed a fairly simple dinner. Since I have leftover sauce it was a good time for pizza. Pizza is actually really easy to make. I make mine completely from scratch and it’s simple. This is my kind-of recipe for crust:

• 2 tsp. yeast (or one packet)
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 cup warm water
• 1/3 cup nonfat dry milk
• 2-3 cups flour
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 tbsp canola oil

Okay, it’s really easy. Preheat oven to 375. Combine yeast, sugar, and water in a bowl, stir with a fork. Set aside for 10 minutes or so. Then add the milk powder, salt, and flour. Start with just 2 cups of flour and then add a little at a time until the dough forms a ball. Pour canola over the top, turn the dough so it call gets coated, set aside until it rises (20-30 minutes). Grease a pan or cookie sheet (or use cornmeal or use a pizza stone or whatever you fancy people have). Spread the dough out in the pan. Optionally prebake for 2-3 minutes. Put on toppings of choice. Bake 12-15 minutes until crust just starts to brown.

Yum yum yum! So easy. And in the downtime, I can clean!