Cooking Projects

I have so many cooking projects (along with all my other projects), that I don't know how to complete them all in a fashionable amount of time. Should I try to work on them all at once, or should I focus on just one at a time? If my interest in that one project fades, should I switch to another one? I have slight ADD, so I have a feeling if I did that last idea, I'd be switching all the time and wouldn't get anything done.

I also have the issue of wanting to cook too many things at once, and then not getting anything done. Does anyone else have that problem? You have so many things you want to do, but don't know where to start, so you don't do anything? I really need to work on that.

I've become so inspired to cook lately, all thanks to another good friend I've made. They have really given me a lot of good ideas and inspiration and I have really enjoyed talking food with them.

I am determined to decide every Sunday what I'm going to make for the week and I am determined to stick to that plan. Like tonight, I'm going to be making steak with roasted root vegetables (potatoes, onions, carrots, beets, butternut squash) and quinoa. Yum yum!

I hope to be able to post photos soon. My old laptop is having a hard time reading the SD card, so once I get that figured out, I'll be back to posting recipes.

Being Present

I've recently been realizing that I have a hard time being in the present. I'm always focusing on the future or the past, yet rarely focus on what is happening right here, right now. I get so caught up in my thoughts that I can't savor the moment. I feel disconnected. I have for as long as I can remember. I was in a fog, and I didn't know how to get out of it.

I thought for a while that by meeting the right man, he would help bring me out of the fog. I don't think that's the case anymore. I think I need to carry myself out. I need to stop thinking so much and just live. I need to let my thoughts cease and enjoy the moment.

I have made a dear friend in the past year that I thank God everyday for bringing them into my life. They have helped me in so many ways, and they continue to help me. Today when I talked with them, they mentioned being present and how important it was. Later, as I was watching Eat, Pray, Love, I realized that I don't live in the present. I'm always thinking, about the future and how I want it to be, or the past and how it should have been. I don't know how to not think. Yet I have such a hard time expressing my thoughts and my feelings. I keep everything so bottled up inside, and everything gets so jumbled up that I don't know how to express them.

I'm learning how to say things out loud. I have a hard time telling people how I really feel about them, partially because I'm afraid they won't feel the same towards me and I'll end up looking foolish. I find it easier to write things down, but I need to learn how to say them out loud. I need to learn to enjoy the moment, to stop thinking.

My thoughts are my worst enemy. They cause me so much pain, so much frustration. I need to learn to calm my mind down when I get wound up. I need to learn to not get so wound up. I need to learn to live in the present and enjoy what is right in front of me instead of focusing on how it could have been better or what I should have done differently. That moment has passed. I didn't get to enjoy it, so I'm regretting it and feeling guilty. I need to feel less guilty about everything. I'm going to train my thoughts so they don't become my worst enemy. So what if things don't turn out how I want them to. Yes, I believe there is a plan for my life, but I have no idea what it is, and that scares me.

I thought I had it all figured out, had figured out exactly how my life was going to be. And then I changed it. And my life keeps changing. I have no idea where it's going to go, how it's going to end up being. And it's scares the living daylights out of me. But what I've learned in the past hour or so is that I need to learn to be present for every moment. Not just the ones I think are going to be important, all of them.

Today was one of the first days I actually felt myself living in the moment. I was walking with my dear friend I talked about earlier and we were standing on the bank by the river. We were both silent for a little while, and I realized, I had no thoughts in my head. For the first time in such a long time, my head was clear. I had no worries, no anxieties, no fears. I felt happy. My mind was so clear and I was so into that moment. I need to learn to experience that more often, eventually learning how to experience every moment.

I'm learning so much more than I thought I ever would. I'm coming to realize that I really don't know everything. I hardly know anything. I still have so much more to learn, about life, about people, about love. I'm learning new things everyday.

Life is full of surprises and I just need to learn to accept that they are going to happen and I have no power to change that. I do, however, have the power to change how I react. I can react negatively, like I have for my whole life, or I can learn to laugh and smile and look at the positive of the situation. I will learn to be positive and be present.

Smoked Salmon Quesadillas with Corn Salsa

Who doesn't love quesadillas? All that cheese, oozing out the sides. I sure love them! Smoked salmon quesadillas have become my favorite version. I know, this is a summer-y kind of dish, but it has recently become my choice go-to meal. I swear, in the past few months, I have made this at least 4 or 5 times. I was surprised at how delicious it was! I prefer to serve mine with some Greek yogurt instead of sour cream; it still gives you a sour kick, but without the fat.

Smoked Salmon Quesadillas with Corn Salsa

Serves 2

Adapted from Complete Seasons Cookbook

1/2 lb. smoked salmon (not lox!)

1/2 c. Mexican shredded cheese (mixture of pepperjack and cheddar)

4 flour tortillas

Corn Salsa:

1 c. fresh corn kernels (from about 2-3 cobs)

1/4 c. diced green bell pepper

1/4 c. lime juice

1 tbsp pomegranate molasses (optional)

handful cilantro leaves, chopped finely

For serving:

Sour cream (or yogurt)

1. To prepare the corn salsa, cut kernels off the cob. Bring water in a 3 qt saucepan to a boil, cook kernels for 1 min, then drain. Put kernels into a bowl and mix in remaining ingredients. Let stand while making the quesadillas.

2. Heat a saute pan large enough to fit the tortillas over medium heat. Put one tortilla in the pan, then layer on the cheese and chunks of smoked salmon. Layer some more cheese on top of the salmon. Let sit until cheese begins to melt around the edges. Top with second tortilla, and let cook for 1 more minutes, until cheese closer to center begins to melt. Carefully flip the quesadilla over and brown on other side for 1-2 minutes.

3. Slide onto plate and cut into wedges using a pizza cutter. Repeat step 2 with second set of tortillas and more cheese and salmon. 

4. Serve with some corn salsa and a dollop of sour cream.

Enjoy!

   

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Renton Museum Auction

Last night was our 4th annual dinner auction for the Renton History Museum. Usually, I help set up the auction tables and then help with check in, but last night I was in for a treat. The guy that usually helps the caterers in the kitchen had a cold, so our fundraising chair suggested that they ask me for help. Of course I said yes. And it was a blast!

I learned so much about working in a commercial kitchen and preparing food for a large group of people (nearly 150!). We served green beans with almonds, mashed potatoes and gravy with roast turkey and roast pork. It was delicious! And I enjoyed every second of being in that kitchen. From helping slice the meat to learning how to operate the dishwasher, I just soaked it all in.

The experience really helped me realize that if I'm going to follow my dream of opening my own restaurant (and bakery and sandwich shop and....), I really need to go to culinary school. I thought by just going to baking school, I would be happy in a bakery. But baking is not my passion. It's fun, but it's not what I want to do. I want to be in a kitchen, cooking food.

I realize that at first, I'll be low on the food chain and I will be doing a lot of menial tasks. I originally thought that would bother me, having repetitive work, but at my current job, a lot of what I do is repetitive. I don't think it would bother me that much anymore.

So I've decided, I'm going to culinary school, not baking school. It's an extra year and an extra $5000, but I think it would be worth it. And someday, I will have my own restaurant and bakery and sandwich shop and...

I'm gonna be a female version of Tom Douglas.

Thanks for reading,

Rachel

Italian Sausages with Braised Cabbage and Potatoes

I love comfort foods. Then again, I think everyone does. But I also think everyone has a different idea of comfort food. For some, it's mac and cheese; for others, it's their mom's chicken noodle soup. For me, it's Czech food.

Roast pork, dumplings, sauerkraut, potatoes, braised cabbages, caraway, and chicken paprika. Those are my favorite dishes to eat. I especially love braised cabbage and potatoes. It's such an easy dish to make and it surprisingly doesn't take too long.

This dish is great for fall and winter since it's more of a stick to your ribs kind of dish, but if you have been having the kind of weather we have been having where I am, it's perfect for a cloudy, grey day anytime of year.

Italian Sausages with Braised Cabbage and Potatoes

Serves 4

4 Italian sausages, mild or spicy

Vegetable oil

1 head savoy cabbage, halved, cored and each half cut into 3 wedges

2 potatoes, quartered

1 tbsp caraway seeds

1/2 to 1 c. chicken stock

salt and pepper

butter

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Heat vegetable oil in a large dutch oven over med-high heat. Brown sausages for 2 min per side. Add in potatoes, then layer cabbage wedges on top of potatoes and sausages. Sprinkle caraway seeds over mixture. Pour enough chicken stock to just cover the bottom of pan by 1/2 in of liquid. Cover and put in oven.

2. Braise in the oven for 25 minutes, tossing and adding more chicken stock after 15 minutes. You will know it's done by sticking a fork in the potatoes. If the fork goes easily into the potato, it's done. 

3. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve with butter for the potatoes.

Enjoy!

   

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