My new reality

Hey folks! It’s been a while. Not much happening to report. I took a few online classes this year making me feel more educated and less guilty sitting by the fire for hours at a time (though it is the warmest place in the house). I have a NYS Boating License which will be a requirement for all boat drivers by 2025 and am getting an auto insurance discount since taking the driving safety course. I also took the NYS Public Health Leaders course offered through Cornell University, so ask me anything about public health issues that other people take years to study.

We got the Covid vaccine fairly early this year as did most of our family and neighbors. Yay! But with more freedom comes the problem of Covid-quarantine side-effects: paying for all that online shopping, what’s with the hair, weight change (mostly increased), rehabbing from my internet addiction, and Covid etiquette.

Let’s start with etiquette. During the quarantine period, everything and everyone were NO TOUCHY! Post-Covid: do I accept the outstretched hand? How about a hug? Do I pick up that piece of trash that blew on the side of the road? Deliver someone else’s mail? Enter their house? Eat their food? This has really been a guilt laden roller coaster of a year and also one of ‘judgementalism’ (another word I invented). It just goes on and on. Did you quarantine? Wear a mask? Wash your hands 20 sec? Are you vaccinated? Did you vote? Do you support BlackLM? Do you support BlueLM? AllLM? Trump? Biden? Use less plastic? Bake sourdough bread? Bingewatch TV? Work? Take the stimulus check and use it wisely, or not? Learn a language? Call your mother, your neighbor, your congressperson? Gain weight? Eat? Breathe? Sleep? Shower? It got so bad, my kids were nagging me! Baaaahhhhhhhhh! It’s too much! Ok, ok, calm down.

The other Covid side effects are self explanatory. My hair is longer than it’s been in 28 years so I have to blow dry it and now I feel all ‘high-maintenancey’. Nicer weather helps me get away from the internet. And the weight. Whatever. I tried swimming, mat pilates, snowshoeing, x country skiing; check my Instagram and Facebook for proof. It is true, you can’t out-exercise a bad diet. And sourdough bread. Since our calorie laden Easter visit back to the old country of Buffalo, NY consisted of pizza, wings, kielbasa, zurek*, bread, beer, and butter we decided to focus on healthy eating upon our return. I’m keeping to the healthy goals pretty well so far and am having fun looking for interesting recipes. A few that I’ve really enjoyed are listed below with links. Everything turned out so well and, really, none is very hard to make so if I can cook, you can too!

Two-Potato Skillet Gratin Casserole https://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/view/207968549080445 Very easy to make, layered golden and sweet potato casserole with a little butter/oil and some parmesan or other grated cheese. I didn’t saute sage (couldn’t find it) and just sprinkled some oregano on it. To be honest, I forgot the oregano. Still delish.

Grilled Lemon Herb Chicken Salad https://cafedelites.com/grilled-lemon-herb-mediterranean-chicken-salad-recipe I’m finding I LOVE lemon anything. So fresh and good.

Slow Cooker Pork Goulash. I substituted chicken and added mushrooms and cooked it in the crockpot. There are no fat additions if you use my new Our Place ‘Always Pan’. I received this awesome pan for Mother’s Day from the kids and wow, it really is multifunctional with an awesome surface that nothing sticks to, not even egg whites. I leave it on the stove and it’s always handy. This meal is tasty too. https://sweetandsavorymeals.com/slow-cooker-pork-goulash-in-the-instant-pot/

Peanutty Kale Salad with Sweet Potato and Chicken. We had a ton of kale that had to be used up (Greg hates it) so this was a recipe I tried and really liked. I’ve never massaged kale before but it really works to soften up the fiber and gets the peanut butter in every nook and cranny, like when you have a scented body oil massaged into your skin at a fancy day spa (can’t wait for that to happen again sometime). https://www.self.com/recipe/peanutty-kale-salad-sweet-potato-chicken

Spring Fish Chowder. Fish chowder doesn’t appeal to me but my cousin Tommy gave me a ton of fish he caught so I thought I’d give this a go and use up some of the white fish (walleye) in my freezer. It was delicious and the leftovers were even better. Highly recommended. https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/spring-fish-chowder/

Grilled Asparagus and Prosciutto Salad. I’ve made this salad several times for different guests and everyone loves it, as do I. Tangy. So easy and yet so fancy. https://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/grilled-asparagus-and-prosciutto-salad.html

Lemony Quinoa Salad with Radishes, Avocado, and Basil. I think you may see the lemon theme going on here. I can’t find the link (it’s from my William Sonoma Salad of the Day cookbook), so I’ll type here: Cook 1 cup quinoa. Peel 2 lemons and release the segments (sans membranes) into a bowl, squeezing the membranes for the juice. Add 2 sliced avocados, 2 minced garlic cloves, 2 bunches trimmed and halved radishes, 1/2 cup feta, and 1 cup fresh basil (I omitted this). Whisk 1 tbsp ground coriander, 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, 1/3 cup EVOO, and salt and pepper and pour over the salad and toss and serve. Very tasty and a good way to use up all those radishes from the garden.

Grilled Salmon with Mango and Avocado Salsa. A tried and true favorite with some updates. Used grapes instead of kiwi. https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/grilled-salmon-with-spicy-mango-salsa/

Date Brownies. Gluten free, egg free, no bake brownie-like dessert. Christina loved them. I felt they were good and almost chocolate-like. This isn’t the exact recipe, which I can’t find, but basically the same. I refrigerated a few minutes, then made them into little balls for easy grabbing. https://www.eatingbirdfood.com/no-bake-brownies/

Berries with Lemon Creme Fraiche. Oh! What a lovely surprise to have this tangy, creamy sauce coating yummy fresh fruit. Might even be better than ice cream. You might be able to use sour cream if you don’t have Creme Fraiche. https://www.food.com/recipe/summer-berries-with-lemon-creme-fraiche-483255

I’m still baking Sourdough bread. After all, it took me a year to ‘perfect’ plus the mother is staring at me from the back of the refrigerator. It’s a flour-sucking black hole back there but since it took so long to become viable I hate to ignore it. Now, however, I make sure there are plenty of guests or hosts around to help me finish the loaf (or two). Just pulled jalapeno/cheddar and cinnamon/raisin loaves out of the oven for this weekend. However, I am meticulous with recording everything on MyFitnessPal for accountability. It helps that I cut back on alcohol and all ice cream has been banned from the house. Well, most of it. Just trying my best. As should you. No judgement. Be well.

*zurek: soup made with sausage broth. Also side note, my mom is going on 89 years old and served all that buttery, delicious fat laden food her entire life. And smoked for a while. And never exercised (except bearing and raising 7 kids). So maybe genetics will help. But I’ll still keep trying. Also, let me know if you tried any of the recipes. And do share if you find something worth making!