lakegran walks the beach again

[lakegran2]

Good morning amalfi girl......
I have great luck with sweet basil in a big planter on my deck..........I buy a hearty plant at my favorite nursery.
We had a frost warning , but no frost so I hesitate putting stuff outside right now.
I will plant basil seed ( Italian) down in my garden too but I've really only had success there once in 4 years...but that year was a bonanza So I keep trying. The frozen basil ( in olive oil) from last year is gone now ... and I miss it.......I will do more this year.
I still have a few bags of tomatoes and 1 of chard from last year so I consider the expense of the small freezer a great investment.

3 days of good p2 ( mostly vegetarian) I feel good !
Shopping today for vegetarian golumbki ingredients for Sunday night (family) supper.
I use soy sausage and chopped mushrooms to replace ground beef Any suggestions anyone?
They are OK but not REALLY a golumbki to me.

This sounds as if I have become a vegetarian...not so... Its just easier for me to keep the calories down eliminating beef and pork.
Lunch out tomorrow, so ..one more day of sauteed cabbage and such and p3 tomorrow

[Chris55]

Have you tried ground turkey instead? I don't know how it would taste, you'd probably have to season it to disguise the taste. I usually use brown rice and lean ground beef, but make mine just boiled in it's own juice - no tomatoes or anything exotic.

I'm still using basil from my first Aerogarden crop. I needed to replant the lettuce so I pulled the basil pod out and stuck it in a glass of water and so far it's still happy! I have lettuce about 4" high, and planted 5 pods instead of 3 this time, so hopefully I'll be able to harvest more this time around.

I haven't planted anything outside yet, either, but I did buy snap pea seeds and have one small tomato plant that I got for free. I need to work on the garden over the weekend, if it ever stops raining - in the 50's here today I bought a couple of cheap planters to make do this year. Our new deck still needs some work and I bought a wrought iron table and chairs, plus we need a new grill, so the fancy planters will have to wait. Just got an oil delivery, too, and I've used up my monthly budgeted pre-buy from last year.

I have a chest freezer that I think was a good investment, too. It doesn't cost much to run, and I pack it with things I get on sale. I still have a $6 turkey in there from Thanksgiving sales, so one weekend soon when everyone is home, we'll have a nice meal or two or three! I'd like to freeze veggies this year if I can, so I don't have to buy imported ones next winter. I doubt if I'll grow enough of anything to freeze, but there are plenty of local farms and my farm share starts in June, too. I thought I'd be eating piles of salads by now, but I was so cold today that I had soup.

[jhderm]

Hi Lakegran,

Came by to see how you are. Your journal always has these (intimidatingly complex) recipes, I am at awe and a little jealous. I don't cook much these days, so it all looks like a tall order to me, but must be fun if you enjoy doing it.

Hope your weight shows the results. I am having my second "good" day after a bunch of not so great ones, so I am feeling good today.

Judi

[lakegran2]

Judi (((hug)))) ....Hooray for good days!!!!!!!!
I will not be cooking so much during the hot weather.......I am trying to load up my freezer with home made "TV" dinners......
so I can just barbeque or nuke most meals .....I love veggies on the grill .... mmmmm can't wait

Chris I am cooking for the vegetarians ( the golumbkis) I can't use turkey either......
I may make a batch of the authentic recipe for the freezer though.....yum .....Also about a dozen spinach/feta stuffed chicken thighs double yum... I am addicted to those things.
ALMOST P2 for lunch yesterday (Is beer P2?)

[Chris55]

Spinach/feta stuffed chicken thighs sound like heaven. Do you stuff it under the skin or do boneless and roll them up? Yum, yum.

It's still raining here. We may have a one-day break tomorrow and then another week of soggy. It's not helping the gardening projects. I think I may go out and work between the raindrops anyway. I am so looking forward to BBQ season - getting a new charcoal grill as soon as the rain stops. I am craving roasted veggies today - way too much rich eating the past week.

[graffitigarden]

Oh, the spinach and feta stuffed chicken thighs sound amazing. I would also like to know how you do it. I have tried a couple of times to do a stuffed chicken breast, and it just never seems to work out right. I love the concept, though.

[lakegran2]

Chris we have been having storm warnings every day, but just a little ( enough) rain.... and some nice summery temps, with the sun peeking in and out.
feta/spinach stuffed thighs
I got this recipe from the SB ( quick?) yellow ..recipe book.
But...... I am a cheapskate and improvise a little.... I use thighs from ( 10 lbs leg and thigh $5.90 with the skin.....) I trim the fat, separate legs from thighs, make a pocket as best I can next to the bone, pull skin away as much as I can without completely detaching..... salt and pepper and thyme,( sometimes rosemary too) both inside the pocket, and under the skin. Stuff with a little sautee'd spinach and feta or goat cheese. (cheese in first ) close with toothpicks..... I brown them nicely in hot- hot Iron skillet, and finish in 450 degree oven. ...oven time depends on size of thighs. 25 minutes for x-large bone in..... maybe 10 or 15 for smallish boneless.
This would be much easier with boneless, I am sure, and would require less time..... but .....I have drums left which I use to make giant hot wings

I am getting plenty of exercise these days trudging up and down those blankity -blank stairs to the garden...I hope to be running up and down by next month

The golumbkis got rave reviews from the veggie heads......not MY favorite but edible, and the company was good.
I bought a yummy sweet watermelon for dessert, If we had not had mashed potatoes. we would have been pretty SB. ( Iced tea rather than wine )
Finally back in the 150s again.....Yea!

I have ALL of my veggies in the garden ( unless I can find a pablano pepper plant). most of my flower beds ( all tiny) are ready to plant with annuals. Now to get the pots and hanging planters done....I will probably wait until next week, when my favorite nursery puts their flats on sale

[jhderm]

Hi Lakegran,
Love the chicken recipe. I do the same w turkey for TG, put some good stuff inside the cavity plus under the skin some spices. I am sure it works for chicken all the same.
Me, after blowing the weekend, back to trying to make good choices. And the HELLiptical. Can't believe I am actually doing it...
See you over my place?
Judi

[Chris55]

The stuffed thighs sound great. Maybe I can make them for the rest of the family and do something for my spinach-hating son. I sometimes pound out boneless breasts and roll them up with herb cheese - boneless thighs are too floppy unless you get big ones. I decided to make life simple and put a whole chicken in the oven tonight. It will help warm the kitchen. I finally got fed up and turned the thermostat down to 58 since the heat keeps coming on and I don't want another oil delivery this season - just enough left to heat our hot water until fall!!. I've been sitting in a polar fleece sweatshirt all day today. Ugh!

[jhderm]

Lakegran, just loved what you said about the 2 steps forward, one back but still getting there. Glad that you have. I hope to follow. I am fighting the demons that make one eat food instead of being out there and doing constructive stuff...but I am not giving up. At least, I came down from 174 (my starting wt last year) and mostly held my loss. Now, I would love to move on down, but life and my head seem to get in the way. So I will just have to remember your dance. Hope it will happen.
Judi

[graffitigarden]

Thanks for the stuffed chicken recipe, it sounds delicious. I am going to have to make that soon!

[lakegran2]

73 today
birthday splurge.......KFC original Yumm. It's been years....... 2 pieces dark meat w/ mashed potato........forgot they were instant..gave them a pass ...... but savored that biscuit

rain rain rain oh well....... my garden loves it

[Chris55]

Happy Birthday!!!!!!!!!Now you have to change your name to Lakegran73!!

Hope you enjoyed your KFC and at least the chicken and biscuit hit the spot. I'm finding that some things I used to like don't taste so good any more.

My aerogarden is going nuts - growing much better the second time around, so much so that I need to move it to a roomier spot. I'm still trying to figure out where I'll have sun in my yard - built a new deck last year which is taking up most of the sunny space, so I think I'm just putting some tomatoes in planters and moving them around! DH still has to finish one edge, which is the sunny area where I'd like to plant some peas and kale, but don't want him to trample them while he works, so may wait for next year!

[lakegran2]

Thanks Chris I think I will just keep my head in the sand..... I don't need that daily reminder of how swiftly the years are passing
I am soooo blessed I actually am feeling better today than I did at 60...I am healthy and am able to do anything I ever could....just a little slower
You sound as though you have good plans for growing goodies for the summer. If your deck is large enough you could do what I do .... I have a pot with basil rosemary and thyme, another with a grape tomato, and this year I will try a bush cucumber????? You do have to keep them picked back but soooo convenient.
Time to start looking for an aerogarden again on ebay ( I have a gift cert burning a hole in my pocket.) I am hoping spring cleaning season might turn up a bargain or 2.... I don't want to have that aerogarden envy again next January
Kale is a great choice for those of us who need to make the most of our small garden space. I prefer swiss chard (rainbow) .... not as attractive but so yummy and quick cooking almost like spinach...

[graffitigarden]

Happy Birthday!