Well, this roller coaster is still moving. After last week’s events and then the impeachment events this week, who knows where things are going next. But I’m still cooking. In fact, when the world stresses me out, I go straight to my kitchen. So let’s review this week’s cooking adventures.
Thursday (1/7) – I made a lovely apple bread using the leftover cinnamon apples from New Year’s Day, and I made a very simple maple buttercream icing to go on top. It was delicious and pretty, too! I gave some to a neighbor and got good reviews, so I feel confident in saying so. I also made the French onion mac-n-cheese again, but this time with my own modifications. I switched up the cheeses based on what I had available, and I did a breadcrumb and parmesan topping on it instead of the baguettes. I liked it better, not that I would tell NYT that I think my version is superior. But it also got rave reviews from two different neighbors, so I feel pretty good about it.
Friday (1/8) – I made a broccoli, chicken and rice casserole. It’s a dish I’ve always loved. Last time, I made it in the instant pot, but I thought it came out too soggy. This time, I went traditional and baked it. It took longer than I expected, but it came out really nice. I got in trouble with my husband for giving half of the leftovers away the next day to a neighbor. Don’t worry, I made him enough food for the week.
Saturday (1/9) – Like the very adult person I am, I took some of the leftover French onion mac-n-cheese, and I put some bacon on top! So good! For dinner, we actually ate leftovers of the broccoli chicken casserole.
Sunday (1/10) – I started the day with a pork and potato hash. I had some leftover pork with herbs de province we had taken it out of the freezer for a hash. It was pretty good. Not as good as the pork shank hash, but good. For dinner, we decided to be total children. I made chicken nuggets using boneless thigh meat and some crinkle cut fries.
Monday (1/11) – I have no idea what to call this dinner. I cooked some angel hair pasta, tossed it with my homemade marinara, and then topped that with shredded mozzarella. I then baked it until the cheese started to brown. I also made garlic and shallot sautéed green beans. Both were winners in my opinion.
Tuesday (1/12) – We just had leftovers. At this point, we had so many. Even with giving the neighbors food and such, I’m gonna end up with at least a little food waste this week.
Wednesday (1/13) – I made a crab pot pie. I know this sounds very weird. Think seafood bisque meets corn chowder with a flaky crust on top. It was pretty good. I can definitely improve on it. For example, I used two different brands of imitation crab meat. One of them were big chunks and the other a bit more bite-sized. I liked the bite-sized better, so now I know I want smaller chunks next time. Also, I would let it cool a little longer before serving as the sauce thickens quite a bit. Oh, I should point out that we did have the vegetarian, but I served her some leftover cheesy pasta and peas. I really wanted to try the pot pie.
Well, there’s another week in the books for cooking during quarantine. I haven’t seen as many quarantine2021 hashtags as 2020 had, but I’m sure we will. It seems we will have to endure this new way of life a little longer, but I really don’t mind. I don’t know if I’ll have as much time to develop weird and interesting recipes if I have to go back to some fashion of “normal.” Anyway, until next week.
Foodie's Delimma 