Ready, Set, Saute'

Whew! The fourth came and went with a bang. I partied. There was food and drink had. It makes me want to hit the rewind button and do it all over again. But since I can’t do that, and because we are already on Tuesday, we must press forward and make the best of it.  Of course I am staring down the long barrel of a six day work week, fresh off my three day weekend. As thankful as I was for the time off, it’s harder to get back into the groove.

 

Now we are getting into the hottest months of the year, it is becoming increasingly important that I have a pool to soak in. Thankfully, my parents have one in their back yard that fits my bill. (free) I usually have to share that pool with a crazy 9 year old boy, but we make due. This pretty much sums up my entire calendar for the next few weeks. Amazingly, I do not have plans. There are no parties to attend or assemble, no holidays to fret and fuss over. July and most of August should be quiet by comparison to the rest of the year. This immediately makes me want to start a project. Free time = Project time. Since my office still hasn’t been touched, I believe that is what I will be working on. Of course I would like to be working on our bathroom, but sadly, we are still storing a garage full of someone else’s worldly belongings. We have no room to store our items or work on anything. It doesn’t look like these items are going anywhere, anytime soon on their own accord. I hate to take action, but once again, we are left with no choice.

 

With the coming of some additional down time, I want to make it my plan to get my kitchen back into a healthier state. While I am proud of the additional veggies we have added over the past few years, I can’t help but notice how far out of the lean meats and whole grain pattern we have gotten. While I still occasionally buy ground turkey, I have been buying hamburger because of the cost difference. I have also been trying to use up all the boxes of hamburger helper we seem to have, when I know I can make my own, tastier and healthier ”helper” with just a little more effort. So I plan on keeping the addition of the kale, sweet potatoes and, zucchini to our table, be reintroducing lower fat preparations.

 

This reminds me that I haven’t cooked anything for the pure enjoyment of it in a while.  I cook to provide sustenance more often than I cook for the pleasure. While providing nourishment is the overall idea, I have a real love of creating in the kitchen. Sometimes I get one off “franken-dishes” that I couldn’t replicate even if I had a recipe. Other times I get meals that satisfy, but don’t make me ring the proverbial bell. These average dishes make me strive to make them into delicious victories. This is how I fought the cheesecake monster and won. Same goes for the bread beast. When something confounds me, I fight back until I win. I need to go toe to toe with something scrumptious and come out flour streaked and triumphant. I’m on a hunt for the next contender.