Friday Food: Even Without Running Water

Had take-out been an option for me, I would certainly have taken it this week. Since it's not, however, this is what I did . . .

Friday

Short version: Sausage, leftover spaghetti, carrot sticks with ranch dip

Long version: We had a lot of spaghetti left from Wednesday, and A. had taken the child who didn't like it on an adventure, so we finished that. I supplemented that with the last package of smoked sausage from the freezer, and the last of the ranch dressing to go with some carrot sticks.

Saturday

Short version: Elk stew, cheese, garlic bread

Long version: I was making bread this day, and had been planning all day to make pizza with some of the dough. But then we got home from an extensive cleaning session at church that involved putting away all the boxes of Christmas decorations and . . . I just didn't want to deal with pizza.

The way I make it is a lot of work, and I didn't want to do it. So there.

I had made the stew in the morning, thinking I would eat it and then would have it for another night, but instead I made garlic bread with some of the bread dough and served that with the stew.

Good thing I hadn't told anyone I was planning on pizza. They would not have been pleased with the change in plans.

Sunday

Short version: Ham, rice, black-eyed peas, frozen green peas, pots de creme

Long version: While digging through one of the chest freezers last month, I came across a container of black-eyed peas I had made several months ago. I considered using them on New Year's Day instead of making another pot of them, but I decided to save them for some other time.

This was the time. 

The ham was one I had bought around Christmas when they were pretty cheap. 

Oh, and I should note that when I make the pots de creme now, I leave out the extra sugar entirely. The chocolate chips provide all the sugar it needs. In my opinion, anyway.

Monday

Short version: Leftovers, granola, bread and butter

Long version: This was the day I came home from work to find no running water. I had been planning on making cornbread to go along with the leftover ham and black-eyed peas, because there wasn't enough rice left for everyone, but I didn't want to dirty the several dishes used to make the cornbread. 

So instead I microwaved two potatoes, chopped them up, and fried them along with the ham while it was re-heating. 

A couple of kids had granola and yogurt after dinner, too, and they all had bread and butter.

I forgot this night that I had paper plates stashed somewhere for camping, so we used regular plates. But from the next morning on, we used paper plates. I hate paper plates. So floppy and annoying.

Good eggs, bad plate.

Tuesday

Short version: Tamales, cookies

Long version: Still no water, still didn't want to make a bunch of dishes. I had taken out some cube steaks to thaw, but decided the better option would be to steam the extra tamales I had frozen on Epiphany. 

After washing an entire counter's worth of dirty dishes earlier in the day with about two gallons of water carried in buckets and boiled on the stove, I was very motivated to conserve dishes as much as possible.

We had grape tomatoes, grated cheese, and lettuce to top them with, along with salsa, hot sauce, and the last of the sour cream. A nice dinner, although one I would have preferred to have saved for a night when I didn't have a lot of inclination to cook, instead of using them on a day when I was home and had the time. Oh well. 

I did make cookies earlier in the day, but I make cookies so frequently that I knew I could do it with minimal dishes. One bowl, one measuring cup, one spoon, and one pan. They were chocolate chip-peanut butter-oatmeal-almond cookies, and they were much appreciated. Worth the four dishes.

Wednesday

Short version: Bull and potato skillet, frozen peas, tamales, granola, cookies

Long version: The chunk of ham that was in the refrigerator when I went to work was not there when I got home, so I had to figure out something else to do with the several potatoes I was microwaving and planned on frying with the ham. Luckily, I had a small bag of processed bull meat in the freezer, so I used that with the potatoes instead, also adding some already-cooked onion that was in the refrigerator, garlic powder, paprika, chile powder, and shredded cheese.

To fry this, I used the big cast iron skillet I had used Monday for the ham. I never washed it, and I just used it again. And didn't wash it. Again. This is called "seasoning." Ahem.

I also didn't wash the smaller skillet I use to fry my eggs in the morning since, um, Monday. Whatever. It's just butter in there.

The bull and potatoes were all eaten before the basketball player got home, but I did have some leftover tamales. Good thing, because he ate FIVE tamales, and then used his milk cup to eat some granola (dishes conservation!), and THEN had a big piece of bread with peanut butter.

An impressive showing. I foresee a growth spurt and another round of buying shoes and jeans in my near future.

Thursday

Short version: Cube steaks, potatoes, carrots, brownie

Long version: Third use for the big cast iron skillet that I hadn't washed the night before. I used it to brown and then simmer the cube steaks in a tomato sauce. When the cube steaks were mostly done, I put some sliced carrots and potatoes in there with them and baked it until everything was tender.

An all-in-one sort of meal.

And then I really needed to wash the skillet. And I could! Because we had water! YAY. I even washed the egg skillet. Going crazy with the power of water.

The brownies were a very last-minute decision, since the oven was on anyway to cook the potatoes and carrots. I thought it would be nice to have something celebratory for our great water triumph.

Let's check in on the contents of my refrigerator, shall we?

Lotta cheese, not much else. Good thing I have to go to a basketball game today in a town with a grocery store.

Okay, your turn! What'd you eat this week?