All posts by Annette

The Challenge: Day Fourteen

Has it been two weeks already?

My original plan for the day went something like this the night before: get some sleep to recover from the party at my aunt’s, go to the farmer’s market early, cut the lawn (desperately in need of it due to all the rain last week), then cook something healthy and lowfat for dinner. I was kicking around ideas for dinner and asked my brother, who was up from Orlando with a friend, what he’d like. His answer? Steak. Broccoli with cheese sauce. Potatoes with garlic and parsley. Salad.

Not exactly lowfat, and not exactly wholesomely nutritious. Still, it’s a holiday weekend and he’s not up that often, so special requests can be granted.

I agreed, and shortly thereafter, went to bed, hoping to get some sleep in order to get an early start. Alas, my sleep was interrupted just after 4 AM for a trip to the NOC. When I returned just before 6, I was tempted to stay up but decided that was a Bad Idea indeed, and went back to bed for a couple of hours. Once up, it was time to get things started before the day turned into our usual inferno, but the schedule had to be rearranged slightly, so the first job was to cut the grass. I managed to do this relatively quickly, all things considered, and then took some heat from a friend for doing it myself instead of making someone else do it. From there, a quick shower, to the farmer’s market, and then to Costco for steaks.

Where, I will say, I found quite a pretty whole boneless loin for ribeyes, which I then proceeded to slice into 16 very nice individual steaks.

The marbling is fantastic.

We planned on nine for dinner, so I pulled nine steaks and rubbed them with olive oil, salt, and pepper. The rest went into the freezer to await another day.

Of course, people can’t live by steak alone.

Yukon potatoes with garlic and parsley.

Broccoli and cheese sauce.

The steaks? On the grill until medium rare. Except for two: one more well done, one rare as hell. Heathens. We wound up two people short, so had several steaks left over. These will go home with my brother, since he’s perpetually broke.

As an added bonus, I cooked up a couple pounds of shrimp.

Happy people.

They all took a swim and horsed around in the pool after dinner. I made cookies. Yummy.

So, what’s the breakdown for this grand fiesta?

Ribeyes, boneless – 9 x 3.64* = 32.76
Shrimp – 12.60
Potatoes – 4.99
Broccoli and cheese – 4.00
Salad – 2.50
Cookies – 3.20

* This is calculated based on the number of steaks I cut from the whole portion. If the steaks had been thinner, the cost per steak would be less; if thicker, the cost per steak would be more.

Total for the food: 60.05, with leftovers
Total per diner (7): 8.58

One of our more expensive meals, to be sure. If I’d had my way, I’d have replaced the broccoli with something that was in season, like zucchini or okra, and this would have lowered the cost a bit. However, it is a holiday weekend combined with special requests. It’s also incredibly reasonable for the type of food we had, which I suppose could be classified as luxury items, since we had both steak and shrimp. Finally, it’s also very affordable in the amount per person, since a good, already cut steak would run more than eight bucks a person on its own – not to mention the sides you’d have with it. Overall, I would count this as a success relative to The Challenge, but I’d also caution that it would be imperative to find a good place to buy bulk in meat (like Costco) and do the cutting yourself. Picking up nine ribeyes at Publix would have easily increased the food bill substantially.

With our final hurrah for higher fat food out of the way, beginning Monday we will refocus on lowfat meals, as my mom, both my sisters, and a dear friend are always complaining about their weight, need to eat healthier, and so on. Yours truly does not complain about that particular issue right now, as you might imagine (and today’s weigh in at Publix: 108 pounds). So tomorrow – or, rather, today, as I type this, since it’s now 3 AM because I kept watching a movie with the boys instead of finishing this – I’ll be working on menus that will fit in with the goals the women in my life happen to have. But it will still be tasty. Because what’s the point of eating healthier meals if you can’t stand them?

The Challenge: Day Thirteen – The Holiday Edition

OK, so day thirteen didn’t really count. It’s a holiday here, and this time, not my turn to cook everything – but I still had to make a couple of things to bring to the festivities at my aunt’s.

The ever-popular ribs.

A sneak peek at the interior before hauling them over to the party.

I also decided to make some bread for the masses.

The ribs vanished quickly as everyone gnawed away. There was a ton of other food there, of course, and we snacked throughout the evening on various cookout-related foods: ribs, pork, chicken, potato salad, beans, a delightful corn souffle made by a neighbor of my aunt’s, cupcakes (minis – I ate three!), mac and cheese, chips and dips, and so on. When the sun finally went down fully around 9 PM, we retired to chairs out front and watched partygoers set off fireworks in the street, some of which veered wildly off course and into the crowd, which always lends itself to hilarity.

At the end of the day, we all returned to our homes, full and happy. For myself, that included doing some work and planning out the next day. Those plans, however, are a topic for the next entry.

The Challenge: Day Twelve

Heading to the wire on month end. Which is fabulous, except that month end comes around every month. I suppose I should be thankful that not all month ends are also end of quarter.

Work, work, work. What do you do when you’re working all day long, don’t feel quite….right, and need a quick meal? Pull out something from the freezer and combine it with leftovers, of course.

Frozen shrimp, courtesy of my sister, who finally brought me another 20 pound box. Leftover garlic potatoes from Wednesday night, combined with some of the diced onion left over from the salad making on Wednesday. Put them together – well, not together in the same pot – and you have the makings of a fine meal.

Simplicity is key. The shrimp went in some boiling water and beer, with Old Bay.

For the potatoes, I melted a bit of butter in a saute pan, tossed in the potatoes and some of the diced onion, and sprinkled with pepper. The key to these is to heat them at a relatively high heat, as they were previously boiled and tossed with butter and garlic for the last meal. This will allow some crust on the potatoes without turning them completely into mush.

Toss the potatoes a couple of times, then turn them out onto a plate. My mom had a bit of steak and some salad left from yesterday’s lunch, so she had that as well. Some cocktail sauce (leftover from Sunday’s gathering) and a bowl of melted butter with lemon juice in it for the shrimp are necessities.

And then there is the shrimp.

An easy meal for all concerned.

Total cost: 13.40 for two pounds of shrimp. Everything else was leftovers. Plenty of shrimp left over, too.
Total per diner (3): 4.47

Did I eat? Indeed I did: five shrimp and some of the potatoes. Not like it used to be, I can tell you that: in the old days, I could easily put back a pound of shrimp on my own. Sometimes a bit more. These days, though, I take what I can. Today, I also ordered an ice cream maker. Time to start doing that myself as well.

Tomorrow, my aunt is having her 4th of July party, and I’ve been asked to smoke some ribs. I pulled out the two packages (that’s four slabs) I had in the freezer and they’re defrosting nicely for their date tomorrow morning with the smoker.

The Challenge: Day Eleven

Month end and the end of the quarter. No Challenge update, except to say that after a visit with the ENT (and waiting half an hour past my appointment time to see him), taking my mom and sister out to lunch, setting up new servers, and working on month end and end of quarter paperwork, there’s no time (or energy) for cooking.

See you tomorrow.

The Challenge: Day Ten

What do you do when you’re up until about 5 AM, fall into bed for a few restless hours, get back up at 9, work awhile, get ready to go to physical therapy – an appointment you thought was next week – go to physical therapy, and then need to cook dinner for a crowd?

Improvise.

Last night I and into the morning I was forced to deal with an assclown of the very first degree. At about 5 AM, I finally escaped for a few hours of much-needed sleep, but didn’t sleep well at all. Not because of any physical ailments (the Prevacid seems to be working pretty well after all), but because my mind kept turning over all the things I needed to get done and how much time was wasted on this guy’s asshattery. So after a few episodes of fitful dozing, I gave up and got up and went back to work.

The physical therapy is (of course) to build strength and flexibility back in my left side, which is becoming an issue as I am more active now. Unfortunatey, I did not discover that the appointment was for today rather than next week until last night. And since the appointment was in the middle of the day, it put a crimp in all the other things I wanted to do, like make bread and pickkles and chicken stock. It also presented me with an issue about dinner: I figured I could get done with (painful) therapy, hit the grocery store to find something suitable for the gang, put it all together, and get everyone fed.

And that worked out pretty well, all things considered. I found some huge boneless pork tenderloins – Carolina hogs! – at Publix on sale (1.99/pound), picked up a bag of yukon golds, some hearts of romaine, and some peas, and headed back to the homestead. Figuring I had about 20 minutes or so to grab a nap, I set my alarm and hit my bed. Then I do something I hardly ever do: I slept through my alarm. And no one woke me up. What did wake me was my sister setting the temp on the oven, which makes a soft beeping noise.

Up and at it. I rubbed the tenderloin – almost 9 pounds! – with some olive oil, then with salt, pepper, and garlic. A very simple preparation. That went into the oven and I started chopping the salad items and peeling the potatoes. A little late start on dinner, but well worth it.

The tenderloin, resting.

While it was resting, I whipped up a pan gravy. Tasty.

The vegetables, minus the rinsed lettuce, since my sister was a slacker.

Time for dinner.

Having a good time. Wish you were here.

After dinner, we were looking over the pears that were left from the last foray at the farmer’s market, and noted that some of them needed to be used, pronto. One of my sisters asked me to flame them. I, never one to pass up the opportunity to play with fire, agreed. My other sister managed to get a photo of the dying flames.

They also requested bananas be added to the pears, so naturally, that’s what I did.

Suitably stuffed, and packed off with leftovers, people went happily along their way.

The breakdown.

Tenderloin, 8.93 pounds – 17.77
Romaine – 2.99
Yukon golds – 4.99
Peas – 1.05
Salad stuff (carrots, tomatoes, cukes, onions, all from the farmer’s market last time) – 1.00
Dessert – 2.40

Total for the meal: 30.20, with leftovers
Total per diner (6): 5.03

Did I eat? Yes, I managed some peas, a little bit of potato, and a little pork, the latter two of which were covered in gravy to make it easier for me. I skipped the pears and had ice cream alone.

People are idiots

Some of them, anyway. There’s just no doubt about it. If I could tell you about the times we’ve gotten caught up in peoples’ kindergarten-level spats with one another, I would. Unfortunately, I can’t. I say unfortunately because you won’t get the same amusement level that we do from such things – amusement that, for us, rapidly turns into irritation as we waste more time on their silliness. This is the only reason I’m sitting here at 0400 rather than sleeping, which is yet another reason for me to be significantly irritated with the guy who started the playground fight with another person. Here’s a free tip to those who want to engage in this nonsense: save it for regular business hours.

The Challenge: Day Nine

Success is measured in centimeters.

Well, it is if you’re a recovering cancer patient with jaw muscle issues that prevent you from opening your mouth very widely.

Today – another lovely day in paradise, with dark clouds looming on the horizon, promising us our daily deluge – was a return trip to the dentist. People who have gone through radiation to their mouth and throat have to be particularly vigilant about dental health. Some of this is due to the non-eating during treatment and afterwards, and some is due to the reduced salivary function, which normally helps keep teeth bathed. While some people have teeth yanked before going into treatment, I did not, and I’m pleased to say that my dental health is still good, all things considered. Today was a return trip to see if we could do the cleaning we were unable to do last time because they couldn’t get their instruments in.

We could. And we did. For the first time in a year, I went through a cleaning. Painful, to be sure. But clean. People like me have to go every three months instead of every six like regular people, but if it allows me to keep my choppers, I’m all for it.

So, an unqualified success on that front.

Eating, however, remains elusive and rather puzzling.

There are a myriad of issues surrounding cancer: diagnosis, treatment options, the actual treatment itself, recovery in all phases of life, from eating to talking to even walking around and being able to care for yourself. Right now, the single largest issue for me has to be eating. I am simply not hungry most of the time, which contributes as much to the weight loss problems as the inability to eat does. However, I’ve found that at time, when I do manage to get something down, it’s like eating Chinese food – even after having a bowl of soup and some ice cream just a short while ago, for instance, I’m still hungry. Part of this is because I’ve not really been eating by mouth the past week and it’s always better to really eat and get the motions going rather than use the tube. Part of this is because when I do eat by mouth, I’m not able to eat high bulk items or items from the high fiber group as I simply cannot eat them with my current limitations, and thus not able to feel “full” when eating more liquidy type things. And part of it is the tasting issue, because when you can’t taste much of anything, it’s damn hard to work up enthusiasm to eat. It’s a bit of a conundrum.

Fortunately, I’ve dug around in my books and found this, which we had picked up between surgery and radiation/chemo, since we knew eating would be quite the adventure. I’ve also found this and this. I’ve been leafing through them for inspiration, much the same way I look through any cookbook. Hopefully something will come together and get me back on track here.

For the others: they had to fend for themselves tonight. I spent a lot of time after the dentist dealing with the bank who handles my business account, as that’s been a complete nightmare for the past three months, and talking with the manager at a branch of a competing bank, trying to decide whether to go ahead and change banks. And taking a nap, which I apparently needed since it lasted almost two hours. No breadmaking, no pickles, no chicken stock, but since the bread only take about three hours total including the rising times, I’m considering tossing it together tonight. Tomorrow, though, after a run to Fresh Market for some bulk whole wheat flour, those projects will begin, as will prep for dinner. One sister has requested a low fat menu, with a salad, and a steamed veggie of some kind (or some other preparation that won’t rob the vegetable of its nutrition – what does she think I’ve been making?), so I need to come up with something for that.

Your regularly-scheduled Challenge update will recommence tomorrow evening.

The Challenge: Day Eight

Eating is such a funny business sometimes.

I’ve been reading The Omnivore’s Dilemma. There’s a great deal of (expected) vilification of agribusiness and the manner in which animals are raised to produce food for those higher on the food chain – namely, us. These are necessary things, to be sure, and certainly there are arguments to be made on either side of the fence one happens to be. However, to many people, one of the more interesting things is going to be the question Pollan raises at the very beginning of the book: the question for most people thess days is not what can we have for dinner, but what should we have. Because these days, we can have just about whatever strikes our fancy at a given moment, like lobster – but should we eat the lobster from the live tank at the local supermegamart, or, like Whole Foods, should we protest the treatment of those lobsters by not purchasing them (even though I personally think this decision by WF is probably motivated at least as much by economics as it is by animal welfare, if not more)?

Anyhow, the reason this comes to mind is that today was another non-eating day for me. Formula, ice cream, and soup only, please. I also spent most of the day working on business-related things, like doing some work at the NOC, running to the bank, the PO, handling some paperwork, and so on. Around 4:30, it occurred to me that the natives would probably like something to eat, so I asked the standard question: what would you like for dinner?

Fortunately for me and the work I still needed to get done, tonight wound up being leftover night, with the remainder of the leftovers put to good use by those with jaws that actually work.

Total cost for dinner: 0

Instead of cooking, I did this between the other things I needed to get done.

Cookie porn!




Nice and chewy.

Total cost to make a couple dozen or so cookies: 2.15

They’ll vanish pretty quickly, I imagine.

Tomorrow: bread. Pickles. Chicken stock. And figuring out what to make for dinner, since the schedules of everyone that usually eats the dinners I make are going to be hectic, my own included.

The Challenge: Day Seven

Mother Nature can be a real bitch sometimes.

On Sunday, like on day one of The Challenge, Mother Nature decided that rain would be a very good thing to bring to us. Generally, this doesn’t bother me – after all, it is that time of year here, between the dryness of what passes for spring and the almost-scheduled nature of afternoon thunderstorms in the heart of summer. Our rainy season, if you will. Sunday, though, it rained almost all day long. Some drizzle, a deluge, a steady stream: we had it all.

What this meant, of course, was that it was impossible to get grilling. Instead, I had to adjust to do all the cooking indoors instead. This is not a big deal, really, but it made for a bit of a logistics issue – and made me think that I could put two stoves to use without any problem whatsoever.

We start with what my mom told me were short ribs, but which wound up being even better: boneless pork loin ribs. I rubbed them down with a slighter sweeter mix than usual.

I didn’t get around to making pickles, but I did make some more bread, which was met with good reviews by the crowd.

The bounty from the farmer’s market, tossed with some olive oil, salt, pepper, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, and some oregano, ready to hit the oven under the broiler. The grape tomatoes were not added until the last couple of minutes of cooking, as otherwise they’d have turned into mush by the time everything ese was done.

The chicken soaked for about an hour in fresh lemon, lime, and orange juices, along with some fresh ginger. The shrimp had their giant heads pulled off (and the veins, in these large shrimp, pulled right out, so deveining was a snap). Half the shrimp was reserved for the boil with copious amounts of Old Bay, and the other half went into a mix of fresh lime juice, honey, red pepper flakes, and olive oil. The ribs and the chicken both went into the oven at the same time, as they would take about the same time to finish. Once those were out, the veggies went in and the corn was tossed into some boiling water.

It looked something like this when set up buffet-style for everyone to fix their plates.

Roasted vegetables, homemade cocktail sauce, vine ripe tomatoes, chicken.

It wouldn’t be complete without the corn.

The shrimp.

It was quiet for a bit as everyone dug in. Yours truly had more formula and a couple bites of vegetables. As everyone finished and headed back out to the porch to digest, I thought it might be nice to do a little something with a couple of the pears we’d picked up. What to do, what to do? Since we couldn’t indulge our firebug side with the grill, I did the next best thing.

Sauteed pears, flambeed with rum, served with ice cream. We love fire around here.

I thinly sliced a couple of pears, then sauteed them for a few minutes in some butter and light brown sugar. A shot of rum, and they were set aflame. Once plated, they were topped with a scoop of ice cream and the remainder of the pan sauce drizzled over it all. The only thing missing was a fresh sprig of mint for garnish.

This went over very well with everyone who tried it.

So, you ask, what’s the cost breakdown for this feast?

Ribs – 13.73
Chicken (boneless, skinless) – 10 x 1.36 = 10.36
Zucchini – 1
Grape tomatoes – 1
Squash – 1.80
Red peppers – .66
Lemons – .50
Onions (Vidalia) – .33
Onions (Red) – .50
Large tomatoes – 1
Mushrooms – 1.80
Corn – 2
Pears – .50
Shrimp – 20
Ice cream – 1
Rum – .90

Total meal: 57.08
Total per diner (10): 5.71

There were leftovers, as well.

All of which goes to show that you can feed a good number of people, well, for a reasonable price. You can even serve dessert to those who have room for it…

The Challenge: Day Six

Today, another visit to the farmer’s market. This time, though, with certain requirements in mind, as Sunday will bring a larger number of people together here for sun and supper: if everyone shows up, we will have a nice-sized group of ten.

The answer: the cost to purchase items at the market that are tasty, nutritious, fit in with meal planning, and will last awhile.

The question: what is $51?

Now, $51 would get dinner for two at a midlevel restaurant around here (without drinks or tips), with an appetizer, main, and perhaps a shared dessert. What we picked up today will feed many more people for more than one meal. I kept meticulous track of each dollar spent this morning, and the tab came exactly to $51. The most expensive item was of course the shrimp ($7/pound, $20 for three pounds, head on, fresh from Mayport).

A closer look.

Cucumbers, green tomatoes, vine ripened tomatoes, lemons, grape tomatoes, shrimp, asparagus (from Colombia), pears.

Starting from the middle top, we have summer yellow squash, zucchini, spring onions, a five pound bag of Vidalia onions, carrots, giant ripe tomatoes.

Once again, from the top, we have mushrooms, plums, bicolor corn, celery, red peppers, cucumbers, avocadoes (from the last trip).

And of course, a closer look at the shrimp, which are huge.

The cost breakdown for all of this:
Red peppers – 3/$1
Cucumbers – $3*
Squash – basket for $2
Lemons – basket for $2
Grape tomatoes – pint for $1
Carrots – bag for $1
Green tomatoes – basket for $2
Plums – basket for $3
Zucchini – 3/$1
Vidalia onions – 5 pounds for $2
Ripe tomatoes (large) – 2/$1
Asparagus – bunch for $1
Celery – bunch for $1
Bicolor corn – 8/$2
Ripe tomatoes (regular) – basket for $2
Pears – basket for $3
Spring onions – 2 bunches for $1
Mushrooms – box for $2
Shrimp – 3 pounds/$20

Total shopping: $51

* A note about the cucumbers. They were priced at 6/$1. The woman then said, you can have all of them for $3. Since it’s time for some more pickling, I said sure, and took all that she had. People better be eating a lot of pickles around here in the coming weeks…

Now, having shopped for tomorrow, what on earth did we eat today?

I had formula. And ice cream. But I don’t really count here, as those are not “real” food for the purposes of this challenge. My mom and sister polished off the leftover chicken, roast, potatoes, and whatnot from the past couple of days.

Total eating cost today, two diners: 0

It doesn’t get much cheaper than that, I suppose, and is a very efficient use of the leftovers.

Now let’s turn our attention to Sunday, including a menu for ten. First up will be some swimming and sunning for those who are able. For me, swimming is of course out of the question, due to the nice sized hole in my midsection. Yours truly will once again be relegated to kitchen and grilling duties, but this is not a role to which I object.

I’m planning to make some chicken stock – hence the celery, which no one will eat but which I do use in stocks. Other items destined for the stock pot with the chicken carcasses and some roasted legs: onions, carrots, and various spices. The stock will have the fat skimmed from the top after it’s drained and cool, and then will be frozen in half cup and cup portions, ready for use in anything that requires it. I’d like to do this on Sunday, but it might be adding too much to the list, so may be reserved for Monday, when I want to try making some English muffins and perhaps get the starter going for baguettes.

The menu
Citrus grilled chicken
Grilled short ribs
Boiled shrimp with Old Bay
Grilled shrimp (marinated in lime, soy, honey, and ginger)
Grilled vegetables
Guacamole
Corn on the cob
Basmati rice
Fresh pickles
Fresh bread (whole grain and white/wheat)
Fruit

The chicken will marinate in a mixture of fresh lemon and fresh lime juice, with a splash of orange juice and some finely grated ginger before going on the grill. The ribs will be rubbed down and grilled over direct heat – no smoking for these. I made the guacamole tonight, and if it lasts through Sunday afternoon to the gathering it will be a miracle. I’d like to do something with all those pears we got today, like make a pear tart, and I’m hoping they’ll be ripe enough for that by Sunday midday.

The beauty of this sort of menu is that it doesn’t really take a lot of prep beyond throwing together the marinades. Most of the time spent on the food preparation will be waiting: waiting for bread dough to rise, waiting to pull the meats out of their marinades, waiting for the food to be cooked.

It should be fun, and there will, as always, be plenty of food. So, if you’re in the mood for a little swimming, a little sun, some good company, and some good food, stop on by.