Sorry

  It has been awhile since my last post.  Recently we had to travel to our home state cause my Father in Law passed away.  The man was amazing, he lived one of those lives you would swear was from a movie or a book. Born on the banks of the river in a tent, no money, nothing.  He had the most amazing talent in art and music, he was just a great guy.  He wasn't always that way, alcohol has a bad habit of hurting others not just the one who drinks, but he over came that as well.  The man was also a champ in the kitchen.
  He cooked the best fried catfish I have ever eaten.  And I have no idea how he made it.  Even my husband doesn't know for sure the way his dad did it.  Hubby can get it close but it is just missing something and we can never put our finger on it.  He also made a believer out of me for eating food that might not normally be found in my parents house.  Rooster 'fries' (the dangly bits on rooster for those that don't know) where a surprise once I found out that it wasn't exactly popcorn chicken I was eating.  And Squirrel.  Yes I have eaten it and yes it was not bad at all.  Quite enjoyable.  He was a hard living man, one to go out on his porch, shoot the squirrel and then clean it in the sink (I know this cause I walked downstairs one morning to see a sinkful of fur and bone kind of shocking.)
  The family is still getting things together and trying to get back into a routine after 2 weeks away.  Once that is done I will be more than willing to get back on here sharing things with everyone.  Right before we flew out the hubby and a friend bagged an antelope so we will be experimenting with that.

Grater = Greater

  I have two small kids and getting children to eat veggies can be hard.  Especially with the girl child.  She loves veggies but only if cooked the way she is used too.  So if the first way she remembers eating broccoli is raw that is how she will eat it from now on.  So I have been finding ways to sneak them into her food.  One thing I can always get her to eat is potatoes.  So I have started employing my box grater to slip the other veggie in all the time.  Like tonights meal.  I took three small potatoes and baked them off.  While the potatoes are baking I grated 2 zucchini, 1 squash, a carrot, and an onion.  Let the grated veggies sit in a strainer and the moisture drain away.  Once the potatoes are done I let them cool once they are cool enough to work with I grate those into the bowl and add the grated veggies.  I then mix it with some egg, flour and salt and cook them like hashbrowns.  So Baby Girl thinks she is getting yummy hash browns and Mommy knows she is getting little potato and a whole lot of hidden veggies.

An amazing chicken pot pie.

  Chicken pot pie is one of those comfort foods that you are either on board with 100% or you just won't eat I have seen in the past.  I haven't really ever met someone who is like Chicken pot pie Meh I can take it or leave it.  Usually it is OMG best food EVER, or Yuck I would rather eat rocky mountain oysters than eat chicken pot pie.  But for those that do love chicken pot pie it is some of the most amazing food on the planet.

  I am a firm believer of a super creamy pie full of chicken and veggies and topped with a buttery puff pastry.  The puff pastry portion is enough to earn me the black list for true southern chicken pot pie eaters.  You are supposed to make it with a pie crust, preferably grandmas.  I am not a whiz with the pie crust so call me a cop out but I go the easy route with the puff pastry.  And when I am talking about creamy filling I mean think cream of chicken soup with chunks of chicken and celery and carrots.  The hubby likes potatoes in his and I can take them or leave them.  If I am putting them in there I prefer them to be diced fine and cooked in a skillet not boiled.  No one in the family likes peas so we leave them out.  However if we get a pot pie in a restaurant we will eat the peas, just don't keep them in the house.  I am going to make a pot pie tonight and once I see how it comes our having only made it myself once before I will let you all know how I did it.

Taking Comfort

  Sickness has hit the household.  OMG everyone has been sick the past week.  The amount of chicken soup we have consumed is enough to keep a certain MMM MMM Good company in business for awhile.  What is it about chicken soup that just makes us feel so good?  I like to make my own too.  But I don't wanna do the long make your own stock so I cheat alot and I am ok with that.  My fave thing to do when we are sick is go and get a pack of egg noodles, a package of chicken legs, a thing of chicken bouillon, and a parmesan rind.  I take the chicken legs and boil them in water with some of the chicken bouillon  ( I usually do one cube per cup and then add like three more I like the broth rich).  While its cooking I will add a little salt,  you should pick the amount cause some people like a salty rich broth and others don't, and i will slip in a parmasan rind.  I buy my rinds at Whole Foods, wrap them individually with saran wrap and put in the freezer.  Or if I use a wedge of parmesan I will save the rind.  There is a lot of flavor in that and its amazing to add to soups and stews.  Once the chicken reaches the fall of the bone area of chicken land I pull the chicken out and set it to cool to pick the bones clean.  While the chicken is cooling I add the egg noodles and boil them and right before they are done add the chicken to it.  Simple amazing chicken noodle soup.  If you like veggies add them.  I am all about doing what EVER you want to a recipe cause then that can be your thing that no one else knows.
 

The other 'man'

  I am not gonna lie.  I love food.  It is the other man in my marriage.  I love to cook it, I love to taste it.  A good day for us is wandering around the farmers market, and then on to Whole Foods for more goodies.  My nook is full of food magazines, and my book shelf is packed with recipe books.  Food Network and Travel are staples in my house and it is nothing for us to plan a road trip around places we want to eat.  Yeah we are that obsessed.
  But I mean who wouldn't be obsessed?  Honestly.  Have you ever thought about how sensual food is?  The succulent way that the juice trickles down your throat when you bust the skin on a little golden cherry tomato, or the crisp crunch or a romaine leaf as you cut it to shreds for a salad.  I am a huge fan of ice cream floats.  So taking the ice cold soda and pouring it over the ice cream of your choice and then the crack of the crust breaking to get your ice cream like when you crack into a creme brulee.  Oh creme brulee don't even get me started on the food porn that is creme brulee.  Now I am not telling you to go all out and have a calorie orgy.  Everything in moderation as always.  But if you have never savored your food or gone out of your way to find little nuggets of genius in the city you live in then let me tell you you are sooooo missing out.
  We have a habit of rejecting chain places for the more interesting mom and pop local own shops.  I mean come on I have kids so yes we do eat fast food or at a chain if we are in a rush or its easier, but we do search out those hidden gems.  And who knows those hidden places may be mediocre but in that ho hum place there may be something that changes your life.  For us right now we are obsessed with brown butter apple sauce.  There is this amazing tapas bar in Springs where I live called Nosh.  They have a chicken thigh that is browned in a skillet then I am assuming finished in the oven cause the skin is so insanely crisp and salty, like a poultry chicharrones but it is not over cooked at all. They pair it with a burnt scallion sauce, baked apples and this brown butter apple sauce.  Imagine if you will the most amazing caramel sauce.  Buttery, sweet with that dark molasses flavor.  But imagine it with a natural sweetness of apples and not sugar.  This apple sauce they made was thinner than what you would call a normal apple sauce so it really is a sauce, not mashed up apples.    The chicken paired with that was so amazing.  The sweet and the salty I seriously thought the hubs was going to ask for just a bowl of it.  I am presently trying to recreate this awesomeness and as soon as I do I will share my findings.
  See what I mean?  Food is a whole body experience you eat with your eyes, your nose and your mouth.  I guess your ears too with all the crunching and scraping of forks.  The purpose of this blog is for me to be me and talk about food.  Other than my children and my husband it is my fave thing to share food and stories with others.  If no one reads this but me I am ok with it cause I just love to write and why not write about something that is so very important to me.