cooking and eating

During the school year, I don't really cook. Because P is retired, he has taken over all the cooking and most of the grocery shopping. That's good and bad, because I like to cook, but I hate cooking after a full workday. We make different things, and though I do cook some on the weekends, much of that's meal prep for breakfasts and lunches M-F.

This week, I've made a great recipe for couscous with lemon, herbs, and feta cheese, and a zucchini-chickpea stew. Both recipes were from The Washington Post, and were delicious. Here are the peppers in action:

I changed the recipe a little bit from the one in the Post. I added cumin, a jalapeno and a can of fire-roasted tomatoes; I wanted it soupier to serve over the couscous. It turned out really well, and with the addition of feta sprinkled on top, plus a squirt of sriracha, it was salty and spicy! 

Do you know the Utz Dark Russet potato chip?

 Our old gamer friend Chris (RIP) got me addicted to these on one of my visits to Richmond, and unfortunately, they can't be found in Atlanta, to my experience. I have only found them at the Food Lion about 3 miles from my mom's house, near Buena Vista, VA, and so when I visit, I always bring back a bag or two. They are a food I associate with cocktail hour at my mom's. She makes the onion dip with Lipton Onion Soup mix and sour cream, and we have these chips and red wine, every time I visit. The one rule about this (because my mom and I would have this meal EVERY day) is that the repast is only served when my sis or P, or both are also in town. Anyway, I brought some of the chips home, and wanted to make the dip, but we didn't have any sour cream, so we made it with Greek yogurt. No problem, and while it had a bit of a tangier taste, it was a perfect substitute. 

Today, I'm going to make a cold cucumber yogurt soup, with dill. I've been checking out recipes, and they all have essentially the same ingredients, so I think I'm gonna just wing the recipe. I'm doing it mostly because our fridge is overfilled right now, and I need to not go to the grocery store, but instead, to eat what's there, and this soup will be a cool addition to the leftovers we're drowning in. 

Little else going on. I'm in the midst of making Dr's appointments, taking care of the business I abandon during the school year, watching the Tour de France each morning while I spin along.