When the Smoke Clears

Friend: So I hear the Cadidiot is in France right now.
Me: Yeah, he’s staying with his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend. A little… strange… He must be enjoying the food though. Say what you want, the French do know how to eat well.
Friend: Crap. Hate to ask. Feeling inspired?
Me: Maybe a little.
Friend: Hit [...]

Friend: I love the fall. One of the best things is getting to relax with a really warm meal. I even had a can of alphabet soup for dinner. It was good.
Me: I know what you mean. I made a hearty tuscan tomato soup from organic tomatoes a friend gave me, with some fresh [...]

Waterdrops are striking the roof of the cabin randomly tonight, with the occasional violent acorn landing and rolling down the steel surface. The last several days have been blankets of rain. I’ve not been here enough recently. I’ve been chasing social butterflies elsewhere when the real color of the days can be found in my [...]

Hmmm…
what exactly does making something “from scratch” really mean? How far down do you really have to scratch? Is there digging involved?
All I know is that a professor at the local college contacted me and asked me to speak to her class full of teachers about teaching with the electronic gear in classes. [...]

Me: I’m pretty tired, I didn’t feel like doing much at all for dinner tonight.
Friend: Me either. Long day. I think I’m gonna grab a Lean Cuisine and a slice of leftover pizza. What about you?
Me: Grilled up some lime & honey-soaked chicken, cut it up and tossed it with some sweet sushi rice, diced [...]

Part 2
Friend: so did you bring anything in for a late morning snack today?
Me: yep, goat-cheese stuffed chicken breasts with tortellini and a balsamic sauce with fresh basil and tomatoes. What about you?
Friend: I think I still have one of those Apple-Cinnamon Pop-tarts® left in my desk…
Me: Want me to toast it for you?

—
®Pop-tarts are [...]

Chatting with a friend tonight:
Friend: hmmm… what to pack for lunch tomorrow…
Me: I threw together grilled chicken breasts over wild rice with a mushroom & wine sauce and a side of fresh broccoli.
Friend: …
Friend: I’m thinking can of soup and a turkey sandwich
Me: That works, too.

Sunday night and after a long day of clothes folding and other luxuriant activities carried out at a slow pace due to pain from yesterday, more on that later, it was time for a little creativity in the kitchen.
So with dogs walked and fed, hands washed, tonight’s dinner was great:
Lamb chops stuffed with [...]

Damn you and your yummy cookie goodness. All your baked goods are tasty, but in particular I complain about your Raspberry Chantilly treats, a sugar cookie with a layer of sweet raspberry preserves topped off with a sugar cookie lattice and dusted with powdered sugar.
Thankfully hard to find in most stores near the cabin, [...]

Cooking is one way I relax. I haven’t had a chance to relax much lately. After this trip, though, I went to play in the kitchen but I wanted something quickly. Also, I rarely follow recipes and have great results in my opinion, but my guests get frustrated because I often don’t remember how I [...]