Shelby

Hello! What the hell was I thinking up there saying I'd for sure be back on my game by now? 🙄🤣 For reasons I won't go into here Thanksgiving week was..........rough. BUT, time marches on and deer week stops for no woman! And I'm here! For some reason I prodded myself into decorating for Christmas early in November. Which is good because I promise it wouldn't have happened if it wasn't already done lol. I'm glad it's done, though, because I find the twinkle lights comforting . A few pictures of the house to get us in deer season mood lol: My mom and step dad sent me this gorgeous FRESH wreath. It's been years since I've had a real tree or anything so I'm really enjoying the fragrance. It's hanging in the kitchen where I can see it and smell it all the time. It's turned off pretty cold--which is an excellent thing. No worrying about it being too hot to hang a deer. I wrestled with going to the big city to the grocery store and Sam's.....but it snowed a bit on Monday and I just felt like staying home. We have enough food plus I ordered a big Misfits delivery that hopefully will be here Thursday to supplement my fresh veggie stash. Speaking of veggies, before it froze my brother and sister in law gave us about 80 lbs of green tomatoes. I had thoughts of relish etc. but in the end we simply packed them in boxes and let them ripen. It worked a treat! Soooooo...although they aren't exactly as good as just off the vine from the garden, they are miles above grocery store tomatoes. Very grateful to them for sharing (our garden got beaten to a pulp in that hail storm). And yay! Good tomatoes with meals! So, I'm off to finish cleaning a few things. Our hunter friend's flight was delayed from his starting point so fingers crossed he's able to make his connecting flight to get here. In a bit I'm going to start on breakfast burritos and prepping for dinner. I'll be back after a while!

His special completely awesome one that is only sold in Canada does. *choking back my envy*

I just love reading your posts.

I still get a box --or boxes weekly. I am rarely disappointed except when FedEx screws up and doesn't deliver. I LOVE those jam grapes. Along with eating them plain I've been making galettes. I smear some heated peanut butter over pie crust dough and then take the grapes and sprinkle them with a bit of cornstarch and sugar and then put them on top of the peanut butter. Peanut butter and jelly elevated.

Excellent excellent job, Patti! SO much work....the cooking the cleaning up. I'm exhausted reading about it. I'd dive head-first into that pan of macaroni if I could.

I also think it's great that you reused those containers. I don't think it's tacky at all! I promise you the people who got the store bought cornbread loved their meals as much as those who didn't!

Well, I don't know if it's just the mood I'm in or what, but I'm really enjoying these shows. I've never heard of any of the restaurants but I'm sure having fun googling and finding out more about them. There is a restaurant in Chicago called Feld. I'm reading that it's very....polarizing. I guess Reddit had some seriously scathing reviews that went viral. The chef serves about 30 dishes from a set tasting menu. They say it's minimalistic. I can't decide if I like it or if it's absolutely ridiculous lol.

Here's a link to @kayb's egg bites

Nah, I'm afraid of my stupidly expensive pizza oven so I never use it either 🤣 I'll search around on the IP topic here and see if I can find someone doing egg bites--I know someone did. I don't know how you feel about sous vide, but I've read that method does wonderful egg bites.

Egg bites might be something to look into.......I have a silicone thing that fits in my IP to make them with or of course you can bake them. So you could put however many in a package or container. Like mini quiches. https://www.amazon.com/s?k=egg+bite+container&adgrpid=189287244151&hvadid=779610896374&hvdev=c&hvexpln=0&hvlocphy=9024300&hvnetw=g&hvocijid=4548578429737499858--&hvqmt=e&hvrand=4548578429737499858&hvtargid=kwd-827536223903&hydadcr=15254_13597211_8075&mcid=4caf7b7e0ce831bd87c89e6092c67243&tag=googhydr-20&ref=pd_sl_1r7wwqo7c8_e

Documentary that started on October 10 on Apple TV. Gordon Ramsey is one --or maybe the only--producer. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt36935784/ I've watched the first episode that is based in NYC. I found it interesting. It was focused on three restaurants Cocodaq --trying to make the best fried chicken ever, The Musket Room -already has a star so trying to keep it, and Noksu which is located in the subway I think?. Anyway, anyone watching? Anyone eaten at these places?

I've been thinking (I'm getting older so it's a slower process lol) and I'll post ideas when they come to me. I'm keeping in mind that some ingredients are expensive...but I figure I'll put out my ideas anyway and maybe they can be modified etc. to be cheaper if needed. People always seem to like the ever present (at least around here) broccoli salad: Broccoli florets (could also add cauliflower florets) Chopped red onion (or white) Shredded sharp cheddar Crispy bacon Optional: roasted sunflower seeds (but adds a lot imo) Dressing: Stir up mayo (not miracle whip) sugar and red wine vinegar. Salt and and pepper to taste. (google will give you lots of recipes if you need amounts but I think you cook like I do and just wing it lol) ------ Red beans and rice with andouille and like a fruit side or salad side? ----- Some kind of gumbo--probably chicken would be on the less expensive side or sausage? --- I think the baked potato idea is great--maybe chili for the topping? Those little containers could hold some sour cream, diced green onions and shredded cheese?

I think this looks super delicious. I like the addition of the veg and an orange. And YAY Patti's husband! The labeling and the clean up would be the parts that I wouldn't like the most lol.

Ohhhh ok I see now. (thanks for copying/pasting--I don't have Instagram). Wow, you are doing a LOT. So admirable.

Patti it is SO good to see you! I definitely remember you and always loved seeing your cooking (and your gorgeous Christmas decorations ) And I think what you're doing is wonderful. I'm very interested in this and I am certain that others here will be, too , and will also have great feedback. I'm impressed with the variety that you've made. I imagine coming up with new ideas each week can sometimes be challenging. (reading this on a growling empty stomach was not smart on my part) I have a few questions--and forgive me if they are dumb ones but I'm not sure about some specifics about how food pantries work. Does the pantry have specific ingredients and budget that you must work with/use each week or do you choose the ingredients yourself and it must be under a certain dollar amount? Do they provide the packaging? Do other people volunteer and do the same thing for the other days of the week? Are there ever any gluten-free options or other types of options for folks with dietary restrictions? Just questions I've thought of off the top of my head. While it's not exactly the same situation, I thought of this topic right off the bat --Cooking for 50 Senior Citizens. It might give you some helpful ideas. I can't wait to see more and tag along with your weekly updates