January’s plan on my happiness project has been to organize and energize my life and so far so good. My cookbook “Around My French Table” has been awesome!!! Every recipe is complete with a little background story and just makes me excited to cook it. I have decided cooking is awesome. It is a little work, but you get instant conformation that it was worth it when you take that first bite, unlike so many other things we work at in life. When I go for a run my legs do not feel instantly thinner. When I finish doing my third load of laundry for the day the clothes do not thank me for getting them out of the hamper and it’s full again the next day. However, that first amazing bite of French onion soup with beautiful cheese bubbling over is instant conformation that a little work in the kitchen goes a long way for our taste buds and our hearts.
Speaking of which, this is what I cooked for dinner this week:
1st day of my cooking adventure I made homemade French onion soup and a great avocado salad with a lemon vinaigrette. We had Abbey as our guest. Was a little hectic getting it on the table with babies crying and life going on around me. McKenna had her shots that day and refused to cooperate about anything and Mason was not help. I should have turned up the heat on the onions a little higher to start and it took a long time to realize this. Abbey got there right in time to help put the kids in the bath for me while I finished. Well sort of she tried to hold her own baby while trying to convince crying Kenna to get in, but close enough. Carl, in the mean time was trying to figure out why my truck wouldn’t start. Dinner got on the table by 6:30 and it turned out being only Abbey and I to eat it. Not really the kids ‘cup of tea’ yet and Carl was still outside with the truck, but did have his later. Despite the craziness it was very good and I was so glad to have Abbey there to enjoy it with me!!
Wednesday night went a little smoother. It was Roast Chicken for les Paresseux and Gougeres. Mason actually helped me make the Gougeres (which are basically a cheesy puff biscuit) earlier in the day and then you can freeze them and cook them from frozen anytime. I was so fun to have him help. He mostly just stirred, but it was cute. After the crazy night before I decided preparation was in order so I decided exactly how much time I would need for everything and set out all the needed ingredients beforehand. It did also help greatly that the literal translation for Chicken les Paresseux is Chicken for Lazy People. You basically just through everything into a Dutch oven and let it cook! I also put carrots and potatoes in there so I didn’t even need to make anything else to go with it. It was great and everyone ate it including the kids. Abbey came over again and it was a great dinner. The recipe did call to cook the chicken liver with the chicken and Abbey dared each other to try it. I’ll try anything, but that is one thing both of us will only ever try once. Yuck! But the rest of the chicken was amazing!
Last night was kinda crazy again. We had Bistrot Paul Bert pepper steaks, les fritas (french fries), and asparagus and bits of bacon. Mom and Dad came over for dinner. The crazy thing about this meal was you had to make it a serve it right away. No making ahead here or it would get cold. The steaks had to be cooked a little longer, but were actually really good. Cooking I've decided is best when you have someone to share it with.
I have realized that I have really found a new hobby. I really like being in the kitchen and actually get why people get so fussy about the brand of pots they use and an oven that keeps good temperature. The one thing that I really have realized is my legs may not feel skinnier after I run, but they will feel fatter if I keep cooking this way. French people don’t get fat from this amazing food because they have small French appetites and savor their food, but I have an American sized appetite and two kids that keep me on the hurry clock- I’m working on it. In the mean time I did go for a three mile run today.
I may be an organized and energized cook, but I am also going to have to be an organized and energized runner too. lol
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