Linden's First Roast Bird, and Leftovers

Well I have finally gotten moved in and settled down and internetted up in my new flat, and I am starting to get to do some cooking, for the first time in a while!

Now, I'm living with Chris, and as we all know he is a little bit English. Which means, different food his entire life! I mean, there's the similar things, like sandwiches and pasta with tomato sauce, but much of his diet has consisted of shepherds' pies and cock on the van and beef barging on and of course roast dinners, some of which I had never heard of, and none of which I have ever made.

But compromises must be made, and so I have started cooking other foods - last weekend I roasted my first chicken! It was very delicious, and I didn't really take any pictures, so you will have to settle for this dark and close up picture of the already-plated meal.

Then, with the leftovers, I made tortilla soup! Which went very well and was very colorful.

Yum yum.

Linden's quiches, crusty or crustless

Good try, Xan, but you're going to have to wake up earlier than that to fool me! I've watched Ratatouille and No Reservations, so I think I know what happens in a proper chef's kitchen.

A proper chef's kitchen.

Of course these, days, it's just me cooking so I can't put any of that into practice. I know, you're thinking, "maybe she needs a pet!" but we have one, and far from helping me cook, he steals my food. One time, I put a scone out on my desk and went to make tea, and by the time I had, the cat had snuck into my room, a No Cat Zone, and jumped up on my desk and stolen my scone! I caught him walking out of my room with the whole thing hanging out of his mouth. So I'm not taking the risk of a pet, and I'll just keep cooking on my own for a little while longer.

But before I start all my cooking for the day I'm going to try and work through some of my backlog. This one is about quiche, which I know people don't really like for a variety of reasons, but I do, and it is super easy to make, so it happens a lot here.

Alas, the most delicious quiches involve bacon, which is solidly in the no-eat-zone, and while I can justify a little bit of it occassionally, I can't excuse a whole week of constant baconing (it's the nitrates, you can't trust them).

So instead, broccoli, which is much healthier, and vegetablarianer, than bacon. Swap in skim milk for the cream, add lots of cheddar to that, and delicious whole-wheat pie crust and you have a super-delicious weekful of lunches.

Plus, with the leftover pie crust, you can make proper pie! (Mm, look at all that rustic whole-wheat pie crust. (Don't be fooled by it's slightly darker color, that is not overcooking but wheaty goodness!))

If you are feeling lazy, you can leave out the pie crust entirely, and just have the delicious eggy cheesy bit. (This was a more recent go, the result of my lazy weeknightness and a leftover head of broccoli that wanted eating.

Linden's Turkey Meatballs

The last six months have been a bit splurgey for me, foodwise. After the time of darkness last winter (when I acquired a taste for lentils, brown rice, and cauliflower) while I was trying to identify my new allergy (methinks it's soy, but further tests to come this fall), I was in need of a little weight gain. Hence the abundance of cakes, chocolate, cheeesy lasagnas and deep dish pizzi, and savory tarts in my history.

However, this summer my fastwalks through Oxford (to lectures, seminars, and choir) have been replaced by sitting in a chair writing my thesis and moaning to everyone who will listen, which only exercises my hands and mouth (alas, not the bits that keep your tummy trim). So I am slowly trying to edge out the delicious-by-means-of-butter-and-cheese and edge in the not-as-delicious-but-makes-me-feel-virtuous.

So, because quitting cold turkey (hah!) would be too much to endure in the weeks before my thesis is due, I am taking the middle road. Last night, I made delicious spaghetti and meatballs, but instead of the traditional beef and veal and pork, I went for healthy turkey.

In my way, I combined two recipes from the internets, and opted for baking the meatballs rather than frying them (see? look at that healthy alternativing!) For the last five minutes of pasta cooking, I moved the meatballs into the sauce to absorb some delicious sauciness. Then, a bowlfull of pasta and zucchini (it may not look like much, but that is because this is Chris' plate, which is always slightly less green than mine, which we will put down to my jealous vegatative nature.).

 

The recipes:
http://thekitchensinkrecipes.com/2008/05/08/try-it-youll-like-it/
http://www.dinneralovestory.com/great-grandma-turano%E2%80%99s-meatballs/