How does something so small create so much poop?
That is all.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Cooking Spree!
Nick and I were sick last week, along with the majority of middle Tennessee, apparently. I got sick first, then Nick. Nick's was worse than mine and he lost his voice, so once I was feeling better I thought I would make him some chicken soup...from scratch.
After a quick trip to the store I started what would be an entire day of cooking. First I roasted a whole chicken. I had only done this a couple of times, but this was the most successful one yet, which just goes to show that you really do have to keep practicing to become a good cook. Thanks to some helpful hints from my brother, this bird came out perfectly.
As tempting as it was to dive in and eat the whole thing straight out of the oven, I managed to refrain because I knew other goodies were in store.
Once it was cool enough to handle, I shredded all the meat from the bone and set it aside for later. Then I put the carcass in a stock pot with the onions that roasted with it, some carrots and broccoli stalks (basically whatever I found in our frig), covered it with water and set it on the back burner to simmer for however long I could stand it (turned out to be about 2 hours).
In the meantime, I had more cooking to do! Well, in this case, baking. The weekend before, my mother-in-law had given me some over-ripe bananas for banana bread. I was already in the kitchen, why not make it now? I put Ellie in her high chair on the counter at a safe distance from the mixer. She loves to watch the mixer when I'm baking. I got the batter all mixed, and turned to get the loaf pan, and when I turned back I found this:
She had leaned over as far as she could to get the spatula out of the bowl! I certainly couldn't let her have the spatula covered in batter. So I gave her a clean spatula to chew on and went on with my tasks.
After a quick trip to the store I started what would be an entire day of cooking. First I roasted a whole chicken. I had only done this a couple of times, but this was the most successful one yet, which just goes to show that you really do have to keep practicing to become a good cook. Thanks to some helpful hints from my brother, this bird came out perfectly.
Once it was cool enough to handle, I shredded all the meat from the bone and set it aside for later. Then I put the carcass in a stock pot with the onions that roasted with it, some carrots and broccoli stalks (basically whatever I found in our frig), covered it with water and set it on the back burner to simmer for however long I could stand it (turned out to be about 2 hours).
In the meantime, I had more cooking to do! Well, in this case, baking. The weekend before, my mother-in-law had given me some over-ripe bananas for banana bread. I was already in the kitchen, why not make it now? I put Ellie in her high chair on the counter at a safe distance from the mixer. She loves to watch the mixer when I'm baking. I got the batter all mixed, and turned to get the loaf pan, and when I turned back I found this:
(They make great teethers!)
Banana bread was in the oven, now it was time to strain the stock and figure out what to do with the chicken. I knew I wanted to save some to make baby food for Ellie. Per advice from a friend, I kept the chicken in large pieces, placed them in my ice cube trays and covered them just slightly with the stock. Into the freezer they went! I also did an ice cube tray of just chicken stock; very handy for sauces.
Next I started chopping veggies for the soup: carrots, potatoes, cabbage. Once I got everything in the pot, I thought, "Soup requires rolls." So I started a batch of dough in the bread machine. At the end of this epic day of cooking, I had freshly baked banana bread, toasty warm rolls and a huge pot of chicken soup made from scratch.
Next I started chopping veggies for the soup: carrots, potatoes, cabbage. Once I got everything in the pot, I thought, "Soup requires rolls." So I started a batch of dough in the bread machine. At the end of this epic day of cooking, I had freshly baked banana bread, toasty warm rolls and a huge pot of chicken soup made from scratch.
Dinner is served!
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