Thursday, July 2, 2015

Before I Cook More

I'm a little stressed out.

I'm frequently stressed out.  That's how I roll.  So what I should be saying is that I'm more stressed out than usual.

What do I do when I'm stressed?  I cook.  Don't judge. 

I've been cooking for two days.  And I might not be able to stop.  What's stressing me out?  This:
  1. My father's sick, and it's not good;
  2. My cousin's daughter just got dumped by her boyfriend after eight years.  Also not good.  Girls, listen to me, I know what I'm talking about:  If he's still a "boyfriend" after eight years, he's a dirtball.  Set a time limit, and stick to it;
  3. I started a new job, and I'm trying to publish a book.  Neither of these activities is particularly hard, they just make me a little nervosa, you know what I mean?
So far, I've made:
  1. Sausage;
  2. Potato salad;
  3. Refried beans;
  4. Cranberry sauce;
  5. Linguine marinara;
  6. Nectarine/raspberry pie.
This sounds like more work than it was.  The sausage (chicken/spinach/feta) was store-bought, and delicious, I thought, though I'll probably never eat it again because my husband Anthony prefers the traditional heart-attack-on-a-plate variety.  The refried beans were from a can.  The cranberry sauce I'll give you at Thanksgiving.  (I have issues with making cranberry sauce at any other time of the year, but Anthony can't live without the stuff, so I make it with frozen berries.  It works.  Sort of.  But it's not the same.  Still, you gotta keep the old man happy.)

The potato salad was an experiment.  I just boiled some peeled and cut up yellow potatoes and tossed them with a chopped red bell pepper, some Greek yogurt, dill, parsley, salt and pepper.  Meh.  So I'm going to split the leftovers in two and add brown mustard to one, avocado and lemon juice to the other.  I'll let you know.

The linguine with marinara was perfect.  It always is.  Marinara recipe here.

The big surprise was the nectarine/raspberry pie.  It never really made it to a pie, because the stuff Anthony likes is the filling, and I prefer to save my calories for alcohol, so it stopped at being a compote.  I patched together a couple of different recipes:

Nectarine/Raspberry Stuff
Take four nectarines and cut them into pieces.  Don't bother to peel them, and I don't have to tell you to throw away the pits because you're not a gagootz, right?  Put a sauce pan on the stove and put in a half a cup of sugar, two tablespoons of flour and a pinch of salt.  Stir all of this together and then add 3 tablespoons of water.  Stir until it's a liquid.  Add the nectarines to the saucepan.  Stir again.  Then turn on the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  When it boils, cook and stir for two minutes and then turn off the heat.  Add a package of raspberries (rinse them first).  Done.  Serve alone, with yogurt, or with ice cream.  So easy.  I prefer to save my patience for holidays.

My kitchen is the perfect place to hide out.  Why?  Because:
  1. It's quiet.  My neighbor Ruthie complains that her husband doesn't talk to her.  Lucky girl.  Mine never shuts up;
  2. It's small.  I like womb-like places.  Only one person can fit in my kitchen.  Two at the most.  Anthony's claustrophobic.  What's not to love?
  3. There's wine in it.
Need I say more?






11 comments:

  1. Oh my little dumpling, I am so sorry that you are going through tough times. When I am stressed I STOP cooking. Your stress relief methods are much better. First of all, you're writing a book? And second of all, you made sausage?? I am beyond impressed!!! It is indeed a true fact of life that a good marinara sauce can soften the blows. Good luck with everything. XXXOOO

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  2. Omggggg let me know about the potato salad!!! That pie stuff sounds so amazing. I have had to give up sweets for alcohol calories, too----adulting can suck sometimes! Really sorry about your dad. Honestly, that stuff is the worst kind of stuff :(

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  3. I like your style! I see that you feel better in a small kitchen. My big, ie about 7m top, sink, oven and cupboards, but I still want a little more. :) I can not hide in the mine, because she is living and became worse when my husband and I decided to cook and I cook and photograph .... little crazy in such moments.
    I wish your father to get well soon!

    Would you like to follow each other via GFC? let me know and I follow you back)

    http://vkusnosbety.blogspot.com/

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  4. I see another comment left by my sister. When it's shorter than two paragraphs you know it's her ahahaha.
    I'm deeply sorry for your dad my friend. Anytime you need to talk or write about it, you know where to find me. Geez I think the exact same thing about relations. If you don't feel the need to live with the love of your life, then it's not the love of your life. Why didn't I know you are publishing a book??? When am I getting my copy???? I'm so excited for you, of course you are nervosa! When I'm upset I clean manically and bake tons of bread and focaccia. I'd love to try your surely scrumptious dishes. Seriously when you need to talk... Tons of love my dear friend
    Baci,
    Coco et La vie en rose fashion blog - Valeria Arizzi

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  5. My dearest,
    You and your father are on my prayers and the best thoughts and wishes are being sent your way in the hope that all' s well by now and that You mas have the strength to go through another hard road. Wish I could do anything besides this to help you. on the other hand i am so thrilled about the publication of your book - good things do come to good people after all! wish You all the good luck in this world, so, so, proud of You! As for your Cousin this will probably be the best for her in the long run, since 8 years of a long term relationship without a proper commitment Wouldn' t certainly have a good outcome and later it would even be worse. nevertheless one just never say never, who knowns if he repents and she forgives! I' ll be rooting for her anyways. As for the cooking it also releases me from stress so i totally get you, me those great treats coming!
    The tightest hug my luv

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  6. Wow. I just baked two pound cakes for the guys repairing the deck. They each wanted a whole one but I cut one of the cakes in half in order to steal a slice for my husband who was complaining. Whew. The last two years have meant 20 menopausally-distributed pounds as I cared for my dad, and now my mom. All of a sudden, decor and cuisine seem much more interesting than fashion, ya know? I ALMOST don't care anymore, but actually I really wish I could wear the clothes in my closet. I made most of them, and I really like them. In the meantime, I'm hedging my bets, dreaming about Moroccan tile instead.

    Hope your dad is doing okay, and that you are alright. XXOO

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  7. hope all's well with you and your father dear.
    a tight hug

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  8. Sort of drooling over the potato salad... both options. At least you have a decent way of dealing with your issues. Wishing you less stress. (: Btw, I save my calories for alcohol too. haha.

    ♥ | http://www.connect-the-cloths.com | xoxo
    http://blogspotter.co/connect-the-cloths

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  9. A big hug, dear. hope all is well.

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