Checking In

There haven't been any blog posts in 12 days primarily because nothing much has been happening to write about.  But I wanted you to know I'm alive and well.  Life continues with my job two days a week that is going well.  I watched the Republican Convention on TV all three nights last week, followed by J.D. Vance's Netflix movie, "Hillbilly Elegy." Unbelievable, yet true!  I don't know how someone who endured so much dysfunction and abuse as a child was able to rise above it and make something out of himself in adulthood.  And yet I do - God, grit, determination, a good wife and probably some therapy.  Amazingly, through it all he was able to forgive his mother for the huge role she played in the dysfunction and abuse and love her in spite of it.  

Hubby and I went out to dinner on Sunday with some good friends after church.  The food and fellowship was great, and the Chinese restaurant helped me stay on my plant based fiber food menu [Chicken Subgum].

You may remember I purposefully began plant based fiber food menus on May 28th [for optimal gut microbiome] and I'm still staying with it.  Some days contain more fiber foods [fruits and vegetables] than others, but at least I'm conscious of its importance and am sticking with it.

As you know, I enjoy cooking and find it hard to resist cookbooks.  I ordered a new cookbook that arrived last Friday.

I'm a fan of Natasha's, who is a self-taught cook.   I've received her cooking e-mails in my inbox for a long time.  Her family fled Ukraine in 1988 to avoid religious persecution, and Natasha proudly professes her faith in Jesus Christ.  I'm anxious to sit down with the cookbook and a cup of tea to go through it.

Since yesterday was a low-key day, I spent a good part of the afternoon preparing dinner.  I got a recipe for Pasta with Spinach, Mushrooms and Caramelized Onions on the Internet and decided to give it a try.  The recipe began with making the caramelized onions - about a 30 minute process. The Internet is full of articles about the health benefits of onions.  The unsung hero is high in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber, while low in calories.

The recipe called for farfalle pasta, but I had whole wheat orzo in the pantry, so I used that instead.  We liked the recipe a lot and it made enough to enjoy for two nights.  I paired it with another recipe I found on the Internet - Crispy Parmesan Baked Cod.  The 'crispy' is obtained by mixing whole wheat Panko breadcrumbs with a little Parmesan cheese, butter and lemon juice, and sprinkling it over the cod before baking.  It's delicious.  I've found that Costco's wild caught cod is better than what I was buying at the fish market.

I also roasted a sheet pan of cauliflower and chick peas.  Really got my plant based fiber in last night's dinner!  ;-)

And as always, tea is a part of my day.