Weekly Gourmet

Today is Thursday. Ah another busy day and another winter weather advisory. Sounds like beef stew to me! I even used the annoying crock pot for you guys. Someone can explain to Steve why he had to clean a pot AND a crock pot because I do not get what the advantage is. I'll give instructions for both ways and you go ahead and choose how you want to do your stew. This homey meal warmed up my frozen little body (and soul) tonight. The meat seriously melted in my mouth and happiness rushed down my body to my toes. And my children devoured it. Heard around the table tonight: "Luca try a meat! It's so good!"  "I ate all my carrots and my peas and my meats and my green things!" (followed obviously with a request for treats, and a grammar lesson) "Mom, your hair looks wet. Oh it's just greasy."  "Sit down!" "Stop kicking me!" "Sit down!" "Sienna get back in your seat!" "Eat over your bowl!" "Moooom...

Today is Monday. Ugh we are stuck in the winter doldrums over here. It's so cold out and they say it's going to snow like one to eight inches or something so probably school will be closed tomorrow. Damn school district will do anything to get rid of my children. I'm on to those crafty, clever little buggers. Hmmm...I have just the thing to help shake the winter blues for me/celebrate the chance of a snow day for the kiddies. Big ole juicy burgers! With a side of Swiss chard (muhahahahaha)! Grilled food! I love my grill so much I literally would marry it if it took out the garbage and put gas in my car for me (the latter of which Steve DOESN'T do). I miss it a lot during the colder months and have a few tricks up my sleeve to get some grilled food up in here without burning down the house or catching a chill outside. Are you very impressed that I do all the grilling around here? I personally am very impressed with myself. I try to teach me one new life skill per year. ...

 Today is Thursday. Taco Thursday. My mom still comes over and folds my laundry for me. And sews things. And she brings me all the groceries she finds on sale. Tonight I got an eggplant and fancy onions. The point is, she is a saint, and she deserves a taco. So don't get any crazy ideas that I normally have dinner parties twice a week on school nights-- it just worked out that way this week. Party yet again tonight. Fiesta actually. For my Mamacita Carmelita and my Poppi Chulo. OK I don't really call him that. But she's my Mamacita, in my phone and everything. "Yo, Mamacita, I need some celery on the cheap." And she's on it. She has ALREADY bought it most weeks. In unrelated news: I got an instant pot for Christmas. Pressure cooker? I still don't understand how to refer to it. Liz is dubious of apparatuses. Apparati? Everyone's onto pressure cookers and air fryers (got one of those for Christmas as well) and I still don't even really know how to us...