Tag Archives: dinner

What do I Like to Cook

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Oddly, I have some expertise on this one. I actually cooked for a living for a short time. Well, I couldn’t call myself a chef. However, in my brief history at the grill, I did cook a bunch of hamburgers. It was very enjoyable, which might surprise a few. Sometimes I wasn’t so perfect, though. One night a young man came running up and yelled that there was no meat on the his hamburger. It might be where Wendy’s came up with their slogan, “Where’s the meat?”

Well the guy was understanding and even had a good laugh about it. Don’t ask how I pulled that bonehead mistake. As they like to say nowadays, it’s complicated.

A question does come to mind though. Does the prompt only mean what I like to cook or what I like to eat after it’s cooked. I’ll try to answer both.

With just the four of us in the family, it was a little wasteful to buy a big bird, though we did a few years. Oddly, though neither my wife or I ever cooked a turkey before, it must have turned out good. The boys and their friends picked the bones clean in the next two days. Incidentally, on the days following Thanksgiving, they did have friends.

Nonetheless, we found a new way to cook turkey for the four of us. We found one pound turkey roasts in the frozen food section. Far easier to cook. Better tasting. Juicier. Just the right size for the four of us and it came with good gravy.

My wife’s grandma sure learned to like them. She kept 4 or 5 of them in the her big freezer all the time.

Nowadays, it’s just the two of us. No reason to even cook the roast. We just find a restaurant. Easier, faster. And no cleanup after.

Oh yes. That reminds me. When I cooked for a living, I loved it. It’s the cleanup I don’t like. And so it is to this day. It is the primary reason we normally eat out. No pots or pans to clean.

How-some-ever, turkey is still about my favorite meat. It just is, most restaurants only serve it on Thanksgiving or Christmas.

Daily writing prompt
What’s your favorite thing to cook?
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I Hate Being Dumb

Posted in Clintons by

Subtitle: I hate doing dumb things

My wife really likes Krystal’s chilidogs. Okay. I do too. But I was more in the mood for a couple of Cheese Crystals. So we got in the car and went to Krystal’s. It was the logical thing to do. I ordered two chili pups for my wife and two Cheese Krystals for me.

Don’t know why. Maybe the clerk just didn’t understand me or maybe I was the one to make the mistake. I think I am going to get me a pad and start writing my orders on paper. Maybe it’s my age but there seems to be a lot more misunderstanding of orders these days.

Regardless, we got four chili-dogs and two Cheese-Krystals I figured no big deal, we would eat what we could and take the rest home. So it was when we were done, I gathered it all up, went over and tossed it in the trash. I started back over to the table and realized, I really did put it all on the tray and I emptied it all into the trash, including the chilidogs I intended to take home.

Then, it dawned on me. I did something dumb. The first thing that came to mind. You know all those starving children I was told about when I was a child. Then I had a question: Is there a way I can mail about a dozen chili-dogs and Cheese-Kristals to the starving kids in Africa? No fries. They would just get soggy.

Not going to happen. Impractical to package such a thing. Worse, it would never reach the ones who really need it. They would be intercepted by a bunch of wealthy folks who really don’t need them.

Well, maybe I could just buy a plane ticket and put the food in a couple of suitcases. After handing out the food to those who looked like they need it, I could then hand out the food and return. Perhaps an expensive method, but I would think I would be doing better than the Clintons. Their methods of charity is even less efficient than mine. Less than 50% went to the “needy.” Truth be known, most of them were likely not that needy.

Let me see. Is that what is known as a slush fund?

I hate being dumb. Still: I would rather be dumb rather than ruthlessly power hungry and dishonest as the dems are.

Food. Now That’s an Interesting Subject

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I must admit I had to wrestle mentally with this prompt. Then it all became clear when I substituted the word do for the word would. I hope that will be okay. You see, if I would like to make something, I usually do. About the only thing I haven’t tried is homemade pie. Something about that crust that scares me. If and when we do make a pie, we buy the crust as well as the filling. In my book, that does not qualify as making a pie.

Right now I’m considering making a beef stew. When we bought the slow cooker, it came with a recipe that is great. The hitch is that I keep putting off the trip to the store. I am always putting off trips to the store these days. When I finally go, I spend $250 just for my wife and me. Then, it seems I got so little.

Mostly, these days, we eat out. With just the two of us and my wife eating so little these days, a lot gets wasted. She just loves chili dogs so we open a can of chili now and then. To keep it healthy, I generally open a can of veggies or pull out some that are frozen. I don’t know. Seems to me corn and peas taste better when frozen. (heated of course) To me, carrots and cabbage have to be fresh.

I try to keep raw hamburger patties in the freezer for those days when we just just don’t don’t feel much like going anywhere. It really is sirloin but in a different form. A little gravy, a little mashed potatoes or baked potato and we have steak dinners.

A couple of interesting stories about the potatoes. My wife’s grandmother was one of those who did not like the modern stuff. You know, before she visited us, she insisted on baking the potatoes in the oven and boiling the potatoes first for mashed potatoes. Before she went home, she loved the 7 minute potatoes that come out of the microwave and she was amazed at how we got the potato flakes to taste so good. The secret, add a slice of Kraft American cheese before adding the hot water.

Every now and again, we like the red potatoes too, you know the little ones. Add a few spices while they boil and they can really spice up a meal. Hint: don’t peal them.

It just is, it’s not nearly as much fun cooking when it’s just the two of us. Moreover, it’s no fun cleaning up after.

Therefore, when we go to a restaurant, I always thank them, not just for cooking my food, but also for doing my dishes. It does sometimes confuse them, but one day, they will figure it out.

Daily writing prompt
What foods would you like to make?
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Comfort Food

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I’ve heard the term frequently, but I can’t say I knew what it means, although I guess I did have a vague idea just from context. When I decided to reply to this prompt, I decided to look it up. They had a lot of examples, most of which I must admit presses my button.

One of the examples was chicken pot pie, which I really like, for sure. However, I prefer just chicken pie. Let me explain. There used to be a few restaurants called Three Sisters and they had the best chicken pie. Then, naturally the restaurant went out of business. That is not fair. That is not right. They should have given their recipe to another restaurant… or me.

It also reminds me of. the time I was going through the line at Kentucky Fried line, I spoke to myself, “I could make a meal off mashed potatoes and gravy.” Suddenly, from behind me, I heard a woman voice her agreement. “So can I.” I didn’t know anyone was eavesdropping on my private conversation. It was alright. I looked back and saw her smiling. I love it when I can make a person smile or laugh, even when I don’t mean to. Still love mashed potatoes. I’d just about have them with every meal.

I discovered fried rice when I was stationed in Japan. My wife doesn’t like it so I don’t get much chance to eat it. Maybe it’s a good thing. I would really put away a bunch of it. That and egg rolls.

Love roast beef when it is done right. Arby’s does not do it right. Used to like Denver’s. There was one a couple of miles from here as well as four or five in Memphis. I guess they have all disappeared. That seems to be the case. I find a restaurant I like and then they go away. I have found others that have roast beef but not nearly as good.

When I was stationed at MCAS, El Toro, the PX had a restaurant the served thinly sliced roast on two slices of bread with mashed potatoes and gravy over it. I am sure they are responsible for the 5 or 10 extra pounds I carried around at the time. Incidentally, I am not the only one that ate it. They had a huge following.

I guess, right near the top, has to be pizza. There’s just nothing like a pizza with pepperoni and pineapples all over it. The trick of course is, I have to order extra pineapples. My wife steels them off the instant I look away. I also like the pizza with the works on it, but I don’t get a chance for it that much. My wife doesn’t like it.

Daily writing prompt
What’s your go-to comfort food?
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Small Drink / Large Drink

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The restaurants have me confused. I thought the idea was to sell the most possible on each transaction. Yet, when I say a want a large drink, they want to sell me a small or a medium one. Well, it actually isn’t that way. I order a hamburger, a small fry and a large drink, they come back and ask, “Would you like the combo?”

I say, “No. I want a large drink and a small fry.”

“You will save (such and such amount) by getting the combo,” comes the reply.

“But I don’t want a large fry. I will just waste half the large one. I do want a large soda because, even though I can get refills, I do not want to be going back to the fountain every ten minutes.”

Maybe it doesn’t always go like that, but it would seem they all have pretty much the same dialog memorized. In many cases, to avoid angering the person behind the counter, I just order the large combo and waste the fries.

However, if you stop and think of it, it is to the advantage of the restaurant to sell me the larger drink. Let’s say, for convenience, the small drink is 50 cents and the large one is a dollar. If there is no charge for refills, I can drink one gallon (Sometimes I get thirsty just before eating) for the price of a small or a large. However, in the one case, it is a gallon for 50 cents and in the other it is a gallon for a dollar.

I mean, that is the way I figure the math. This makes me wonder all the more about the math the restaurants are using. Well, just maybe the difference is their cost of the large cup. Could it be that the larger cup is more than 50 cents more for the large cup. Could it be that they are afraid that I will drink more because I get a larger cup. Then, too, isn’t that kind of the idea.

Either way, why should I have to argue with them to get what I want. The irony of irony is that when I order the burger, small fries and large drink, they give me the large fries anyway, sometimes knowing I paid for the small one. By the way, it doesn’t do any good to tell them. I know. I tried it.

And so it is that I end up tossing half the fries they give me. Pardon me if I say, I really don’t understand their math. I really don’t understand their business plan.

Some Pizza Ain’t So Great

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This might seem strange to say, but I have come to the conclusion that there are just some things that don’t belong on pizza. The hitch is that this does vary from one person to another.

One time, I bit into a pizza that had anchovies on it. I thought I was being poisoned. Needless to say, I did not take the second bite. Don’t care what anyone says, anchovies don’t belong on pizza. I am not totally sure, but I am pretty convinced they don’t belong with any food. It does make me wonder just when and where anyone got the idea to ruin a perfectly a good pie like that.

Sometimes it can cause marital disputes. My wife loves Italian sausage. Me…not so much. Fortunately, the pizzerias invented this solution. They only put the stuff on half.

It’s not a perfect solution. If I am not watchful, she will eat my half, leaving only the pizza with the Italian sausage. That way she gets the whole pizza.

Some say pineapple doesn’t have a place on pizza. I guess. Maybe so. My wife pilfers them off before I can get to them.

I do have my way of getting her back. I just order a taco pizza. I know. Lettuce doesn’t belong on pizza but it makes it taste so good. Besides, my wife doesn’t like green leafy veggies so I get the whole pie. Sorta like Italian sausage in reverse, only different.

Now, my younger son would have eaten pizza every day if he could, even to this day. He is a little odd though. He’d just as soon all the toppings be left off. Nothing but cheese. Well, they are cheaper that way.

As a side note. I have been looking for that fella that likes anchovies on his pizza. I’m still looking. Let me see. Did someone say bacon is good on pizza? Might be. Haven’t tried it but bacon is sort of good on anything but ice cream.