Withdrawals...........

The jars are barely cool in the cupboard and I'm itching to get them back out ! I ordered mustard seed today so I could make a couple craft beer spicy mustards- maybe for Christmas gifts but more likely I'll hoard those up too.

The Chef cooked dinner tonight- a simple fish dish with Chef Feiny's Citrus BBQ Rub, fresh tomatoes, fresh green beans and a very spicy Spanish-style rice.

Fresh tilpia filet liberally rubbed the Feiny's Rub, and all the delcious sides. It was a nice change of pace from our usual Monday night pasta.

But I still want to can things. Winter squash, gourmet mustards, whatever I can get my hands on that this time. I have a small amount of tomatoes changing to red that I can can or freeze soon. Then......the long months til springtime.

I joined a gardening group today. I've been buying seeds and making plans for next spring. Pretty sure I know what I'm NOT planting and what I am planting. Spring peas are almost a must and I have a super special little cucumber that I hope will bring me a ribbon at the county fair- a first ever !

The leaves are blowing around, the weather is changing daily and I'm so happy about it !! I can't wait for the frosty fall mornings and the first snowfall. In the meantime, I guess I'll find things at the store to can .......

A day in the life of a night shift widow

Fact of life, when you choose to spend your life with a chef, you will be spending alot of evenings and weekends entertaining yourself without your partner. That's the story of our life.

Last night when my chef got home from work, and we were catching up on eachother's  days, he asked what I made for dinner. Well.....cooking for just myself just doesn't happen very often. So my answer was "toast". The reality is my dinner was 4 slices of toast with that homemade peach jam !! I think he felt a little bad.......even though I didn't.

So today he sent me a message before he left for work: "Prepped dinner for you, tilapia filets, garlic, sweet and hot peppers, lemon, thyme, capers and tomatoes- just pop it in the oven". How adorable is that ???

My workday ends and I drive home trying to decide if I want to make another batch of jam or if I want to sit on the couch and catch up on mindless tv..... and eventually my tummy starts telling me it's time to take a peek at that tilapia. It looked fantastic !! So into the oven at 425 for about 15-20 minutes while I made a little bowl of whole wheat couscous, and the easiest dinner ever was done.

Now about this mindless tv..... I have been DVRing episodes of Toddlers and Tiaras so I thought I could catch up on a few of them. Wow.....biggest laugh of the night- one of the moms was talking about Cirque du Soleil and she called it Circka dee Solay. I had to giggle......

A Very Crabby Monday

Wow !!! It's been a long time since I've sat down and put a post together- quite honestly with our crazy schedules around here I haven't spent a lot of time in the kitchen, and neither has the Chef. So now that spring is in full swing, the herbs are growing like crazy in the garden and it won't be long til fresh veggies again grace our table, it's time to get back in the kitchen.

Normally on a night the Chef is working I don't cook a "real" dinner for just me. But today I thought it would be fun to throw a little something together and see how it turns out. Taking a quick inventory of the freezer I found tilapia filets, some flaked crab meat, some green beans from the garden......rummaging through the cupboard yields some breadcrumbs  and fresh garlic, and a quick trip out to the deck results in a handful of freshly minced chives. I'm all set !!

Crab Stuffed Tilapia

3 tilapia filets
about 1/4 cup flaked crab meat (do yourself a favor and use the real deal, that fake stuff just won't do)
about 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1/4 tsp or so shredded lemon peel
salt, freshly ground black pepper
pinch of thyme
big pinch of chives
3 tb butter
1/2 tsp chicken base or stock concentrate

Rinse the fish and set aside.

In small bowl toss the crab, bread crumbs, seasonings and set aside.

In small skillet melt the butter and briefly saute the garlic until softened but not brown. Add about 2 tb water and chicken base, stir til dissolved. Mix into crab mixture.

In a small plate place a fish filet. Divide stuffing into 3 equal portions and place one part on fish. Fold the filet over and secure with toothpicks. Repeat with remaining fish.

Place in buttered baking dish, top with a small pat butter and sprinkle with lemon pepper, lemon herb seasoning, whatever you like. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until fish flakes easily.

I served the fish with garlicky green beans- I cooked a small amount of frozen green beans in a little water til almost done, added a couple tbs butter and a minced garlic clove and continued cooking til just barely tender and still a little crispy.

And that is my big kitchen experiment for the day. Tomorrow is the Chef's day off so he will be hard at work in the kitchen and I will come home to an amazing meal.......ahhhh what a life !!