Fresh parsley is cheap. Fresh chives are not cheap (time to grow some at home).
Every now and then, take your dinner guests outside of their comfort zones. Make a chicken dish from a French chef who learned how to make the dish from his Mother. Make them drink something other than a massively fruit forward California red.
Memo to Self – For this dish one boneless chicken breast feeds two people. Jacques says this in the video but I didn’t believe him.
I’ve always preferred baking sweet potatoes over boiling and mashing sweet potatoes because my boiled version always turned out watery.
I just learned you have to boil the peeled sweet potatoes whole. After about 45-50 minutes check to see if the potatoes are cooked through. Then drain and return to the cooking pot. Turn the heat on to low and start smashing, and mashing while constantly stirring to avoid burning (I use a wooden spoon). After about five minutes a good amount of moisture will have evaporated from the potatoes. This is why sweet potatoes made this way aren’t too loose and watery. Add a splash of milk or half and half, a bunch of butter, salt and pepper to taste.
Memo to Self – buy more sweet potatoes, eat more sweet potatoes.
Celery leaves. I always tossed them out until The Boss informed me she doesn’t like big chunks of celery in dishes I make that use celery for an ingredient. I recently discovered you can use celery leaves like a fresh herb, finely chopped and added to your creation in lieu of big chunks of celery. So far I haven’t gotten any complaints about the tiny green stuff floating in the soup.
Memo to Self – instead of buying celery with less leaves buy celery with more leaves, especially bunches with dark green leaves which have a more intense flavor than the stalks.
I’ve been posting this chart for several years around the Holiday Season. The source has been attributed to the New England Journal of Medicine. but I could never find the original source article.
Obesity prevalence among older Americans has increased at an alarming rate. In a single generation—between 1988-1994 and 2015-2018—the share of U.S. adults ages 65 and older with obesity nearly doubled, increasing from 22% to 40%.13 – Fact Sheet: Aging in the United Stateshttps://www.prb.org/resources/fact-sheet-aging-in-the-united-states/
At the beginning of every month I record my weight in my personal journal. I started November at 176.2. I managed to survive two birthdays, one homemade Eddie’s Carrot Sheet Cake, a few cupcakes, and the recurring annual threat of Halloween candy. Two more months to go.
My doctor says I worry too much about gaining weight. But she’s a hell of lot younger so what does she really know about my aging metabolism?
Remember this from two years ago? Well the bakers showed up again this Thanksgiving.
It was so good we did it again.
This year’s Thanksgiving was wonderful and memorable in a number of ways. The first blessing of the season was I didn’t have to drive. Let’s just say The Boss wouldn’tlet me drive.
The next blessing was spending time with relatives we had not seen in several years. We shared stories, made fun of one another and had a great time. Thanksgiving was different this year; neither of our kids and their families were with us. So we had to borrow a Tiny Human for the occasion.
One Tiny Human, a lot more aunts, uncles, parents and grandparents.
The best blessing was I managed to gain just two pounds from this year’s Thanksgiving food binge.
The false dichotomy between conventional and organic isn’t just misleading, it’s dangerous. Our constant attention on natural versus synthetic only causes fear and distrust, when in actuality, our food has never been safer.
From a scientific point of view, organic foods are not superior. If you want to spend more money on them, go for it. But don’t buy organic because you think it’s better for you or for the planet, because it’s not. Organic foods are not healthier…or pesticide free. — https://news.immunologic.org/p/organic-foods-are-not-healthieror
I’m beginning to think I read too much. But every now and then I come across very interesting and useful information. The entire article is about a 10-15 read and is worth your time.
The amount of product labeled Organic in my freezer and pantry are minimal compared to everything else. But if the quality isn’t better or the nutritional value isn’t superior then my choice is to save money at the store whenever I can.
garyskitchen.net 