Friday Food: Away

Friday

Short version: Birthday barbecue meatballs, garlic bread, leftover peas, brownie ice cream sundaes

Long version: I always make my own birthday dinner, because I like my own food best. But I also always find a way to make it with as little actual cooking as possible. This year, I used some meatballs I had formed and frozen some time ago, which I just broiled until brown, and then baked in (homemade) barbecue sauce.

The garlic bread was one I had baked a few days before when I was making bread. The peas were leftover from Christmas dinner.

Birthday plate.

Eldest son made the brownies for me, so we could have brownie sundaes with vanilla ice cream and a choice of chocolate syrup or salted caramel sauce. Or both! Celebrate good times!

Saturday

Short version: Different-birthday pizza and cake

Long version: This was the day I took the children to Poppy's friend's birthday party at a pool. There was pizza there. I think this is the first time my children have experienced pineapple on pizza. They were not enthused.

There were also a couple of store-bought birthday cakes. I tasted a bit of Poppy's after she informed me she didn't like the frosting. Yuck. I didn't, either. It tasted bitter. Maybe it was all the food dye. It was a very bright-pink frosting. I can't imagine you can add that much coloring to anything without affecting the taste.

Sunday

Short version: Fried ham and potatoes, leftover carrots

Long version: I just microwaved the potatoes until they were soft, then diced them and the leftover ham before frying them in some rendered beef fat I had saved from . . . something. 

I also added some cheese to the fried ham and potatoes. We currently have some extra-sharp Great Value (Walmart's store brand) cheddar that is actually extra-sharp. This means it's also extra crumbly which is handy when I don't want to grate cheese. If I slice it thinly, it just falls apart and I can throw it right into the skillet to melt. And then I don't have to wash the cheese grater. Yay.

Monday

Short version: Meatloaf, baked potatoes, still-frozen green beans, fresh bread and butter

Long version: I love ham, but it does get to be a bit monotonous when dealing with the leftovers. Meatloaf was a nice break.

Tuesday

Short version: Lamb steaks, rice, frozen peas

Long version: I made a sauce for the lamb steaks with red wine and cream, but this was otherwise a very un-fancy meal. 

Yes, I realize that most people would not consider lamb to be an un-fancy meal. That's because most people don't have a sheep flock.

Wednesday

Short version: New Year's Day health, wealth, happiness, peace, and joy

Long version: Pork (big pork butt), black-eyed peas, greens (beet greens from this year's garden, cooked with some of the liquid from the black-eyed peas), rice, and pecan pie. The children have assigned peace to rice and joy to the pecan pie.

Thursday

Short version: Restaurant food for me, tacos and leftover pie for the family

Long version: I was not at home this night.

Record scratch.

I try to go every year for one night at a hotel in a nearby (well, 100 miles away) small city for some time to myself after the craziness that is December in my house. This was my night. So I had a smash burger, french fries, and a vodka and soda for dinner.

I did not prepare or clean up after this in any way. Yay.

There was some ground beef taco meat at home, so the older kids used that to make tacos for dinner. And then there was leftover pecan pie and ice cream. Everyone was happy.

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

Scattered

It's Tuesday, and I should have something written right now. I do not, however, so you get whatever comes out of my brain and into my fingers to type. Whee!

The sun juuuust came over the horizon, lighting up my living room and highlighting the fact that I really need to take my pothos plants down from their shelves in the living room and rinse them off. So dusty. 

I actually got up from my chair and went all the way into the kitchen (maybe fifty feet) to take this illustrative photo for you. You're welcome.

I do appreciate how impossible pothos are to kill. The only live plants I have in my house are these two pothos and an aloe plant. I prefer to have my plants outside.

Poppy's friend is coming over in about three hours for a New Year's Eve tea party with their dolls. My dad made Poppy a rolling pin, and brought an extra for a friend if she could think of anyone who would want it. Of course she could. So I need to make some pie crust dough for the girls to roll out so they can make little hand pies--they can choose from several different jams to fill their pies--for their tea party. I think this will be a very popular activity. I just have to make the dough soon so it can chill.

This works out nicely, because the girls can use half of the two-crust recipe I make, and the other half can be for tomorrow's New Year's Day pecan pie. I promised I would make another pecan pie for the child who was sick on Christmas and couldn't eat that one. I will also, of course, make our pork, black-eyed peas, greens, and rice. It's not New Year's Day without it.

This is the last really big celebration meal I have to make. And thank goodness for that, because I am kinda over cooking celebration meals. I mean, I like it, but it gets to be a bit much by this time of the year. It starts on December 15 for A.'s birthday and continues with a son's birthday December 18, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, my birthday, New Year's Day, and usually Epiphany on January 6. It's a lot. 

I am not making tamales this year for Epiphany. I just . . . don't want to. We actually go back to school--and I go back to work--on Epiphany this year, so it's unlikely to be a very elaborate meal for that, although I do have some gingerbread I froze a couple of weeks ago, so at least I have something special for dessert without making a lot of effort.

I can hear the chickens squawking around on the porch. They're supposed to be shut up in their coop until afternoon, because then I can find their eggs without having to hunt for them. Also, if they're out all day, they just hang around the porch, making a mess right where we walk into the house. I don't know how they got out. Maybe the strong winds yesterday blew the coop door open. Guess we'll have an egg hunt today.

Okay, that's enough of that. I have pie dough to make and I'm sure you all have important things to get going on as well. Happy New Year to all. May 2025 bring us all good fortune, in all senses of the word.

Snapshots: Before, During, After

 Before Christmas we have new life.

The chickens--well, at least one or two--started laying again the very day of the winter solstice. Their laying is tied to the daylight hours, but that's pretty spot-on for the resumption of eggs.

And this little lady arrived exactly one week before Christmas. 

I didn't get a lot of pictures of Christmas Day this year. The oldest kid was sick, and we had a Christmas morning Mass this year instead of our typical Christmas Eve service, so we waited until we got home at 9 a.m. to open most of our gifts. 

By the time we got home, we were all in search of warmth, since the heat in our church hasn't been working for the past couple of weeks. I brought our space heater and a basket of lap blankets to share with anyone who needed one, and we all wore long underwear, but it was still only about 48 degrees inside the church.

The sun made it look deceptively warm, but I assure you, it was not. At all.

The younger ones did get to open their gifts to each other and their stockings before we left for church, though.

Poppy had sewed a stocking for her American Girl doll, Charlotte, and made sure there was something in it for each of her dolls. I didn't know she had done this until she had hauled them all out and started handing out their gifts.

Girls, man. They're built different for sure.

This photo looks like a crime scene, but it was very cute in real life.

Charlotte in her new outfit, and Poppy in her new slippers.

Two days after that, it was time to celebrate again. This time, my birthday. The celebrations started with what is apparently now a traditional 5K run.

Speedy purple shoes ready to go.

This year, I ran it in 34 minutes and 31 seconds, which is my fastest time yet.

I did make my own birthday dinner, because I prefer to do that, but someone else made the brownies for my brownie ice cream sundaes.

And there was salted caramel sauce left from the cheesecake bars, just to complete the deliciousness.

And then yesterday, more celebrating, as we drove 100 miles to a swimming pool for Poppy's friend's birthday party.

I prefer to stay fully clothed at pools and function more as a lifeguard.

We still have another week of our Christmas break left, so there's time for more celebrating! Next up: health wealth, and happiness in the New Year.

There you have it! My (celebratory) life, snapshotted.