Maison Rustique

Last night was some grilled smoked sausage from the freezer with dill sauerkraut. I want to try those Madhur Jaffrey chicken bits and that okra salad. Doubt I would cut the veggies like that (my hands!) but might adapt the recipe somehow.

Recently, I got a frozen pizza from my milkman. I baked it a few days ago. I doctored it, but it was still dreadful--dry and no flavor. I tried a second time with leftovers and I still couldn't like it. Trying hard not to waste food, yesterday I cut it into pieces, Put in a baking dish with more olives, tomatoes and onions, and poured over eggs, milk and copious seasonings. Topped with mozzarella about halfway through baking. A pizza strata. Not the best strata I've ever made but it was vastly better than the original pizza.

Oh, @MetsFan5, I am so sorry for your loss. And then Maisey, too. I know that both @Smithy and I can relate since we both have gone through losses this past year as well. My eating habits changed long before I lost my husband. The stress of caring for him during the time he was home caused my appetite to diminish. Then when he went into memory care, I mostly kept a baggie of crackers in my car and ate them on the way there and back and called it food. I lost a tremendous amount of weight. 3 weeks after my husband died, I had a hip replacement. After that, my appetite just left and I could barely eat without getting sick. I think it must have been a reaction to the anesthesia. At any rate, people literally thought I was dying. During all this time, people continued to bring me all sorts of food and occasionally take me out. I just couldn't stomach more than a bite of two. Then I lost the cat a week before Christmas. It hit me hard, but I realized that I had to try harder to eat. Instead of worrying about eating good food, I started eating snack food--chips mostly, which I've never really done in my life. But somehow the salt sat well in my stomach. Once I got enough salt and carbs in me (potatoes and gravy sound great!!), I gradually began to feel better and have started eating and gaining back some weight. I still will pick salt and carbs If I'm stressed, but am gradually trying to eat real food again. I'm not sure I'll ever get my cooking mojo back, but at least I'm better than I was a few months ago. Hang in there!!!

@liuzhou, if you can believe it, the life insurance company we had (I am now done with them except for some tax info they owe me), would only use snail mail for any correspondence. They wouldn't provide info via phone or email and do not have a customer website. I spent the better of 7 months making daily or semi-weekly phone calls to them and racing out to my mailbox looking for info. I asked them when they were going to move into the current century. Also, my husband's credit card companies mostly want to correspond via mail. Crazy, considering these are major banks.

Thanks for reviving this @Shelby. I'd forgotten all about LGD. Mind you, my cookbooks are packed so I don't have the recipe and likely wouldn't make it right now anyway. I keep meaning to tell you after reading about how many tomato plants your husband is putting out that I plan to head west and raid your garden when they start producing. LOL!!

@Smithy, I keep wondering how you get your mail whilst you are on the road like this. I'm sure there are important things that need to be seen sooner rather than later. I hope that isn't nosy. I'm just curious on the off-chance that I ever take an extended trip of some sort.

I have one of those and just used it this week, too. Great tool!

Mine is sitting here. I used it once for something but I've forgotten what now. I'll see what I can decide to try in it soon.

Yum!! That looks delicious and now I want to rummage through my freezer to find any old bits of bread I stashed there.

I've been craving biscuits and sausage gravy. For only one person who doesn't eat much, I wasn't sure it would be worth the trouble. I discovered that Jiffy makes biscuit mix--easier than scratch and not nearly as wasteful as buying a box of Bisquick. The box makes 5 biscuits--I used half and made two, so I've got leftovers. The sausage is from a local producer via my milkman.

Some interesting info.

This all varies from city to city. Here, the clear plastic clamshells are not recyclable by the company that picks them up. They always say you can take them to a facility that does recycle them but I have no idea where that would be. They don't tell you. Plastics are confusing because you need to check the symbol/number on them to see what type they are and if your recycle provider takes them.

I tried the bresaola and didn't care for it either. I meant to post about it.

I hate it when I have my mind and taste buds set on something and it turns out to be a huge disappointment. Sorry it wasn't as expected.

Plastic is still very popular here in Missouri--bags in all the stores. I can only think of one store that offers compostable produce bags and it is no where near me. People here just don't care. Trash all over the freeways. Lots of people don't recycle at all. They don't pick up glass for recycle here, but a group started a glass recycle some years back--there are bins set up in many locations throughout the area, but you do have to take it there yourself. And I do that. The paper, aluminum and what bits of plastic they recycle here are picked up weekly. As far as the plastic bags, they tell you not to put them into your trash, but many people do. Some stores have bins set up for them but again, you have to take them yourself and many people are too lazy.