Sushi Night

 

While grocery shopping one day, I had mentioned that I would like to learn to make sushi. Chad remembered this and brought me a sushi making kit and cookbook for Christmas. I finally got to use it to make dinner yesterday. 

This book has some unconventional recipes (hotdog and kimchi sushi, for example) which is good because I have some picky eaters in my family. I landed on chicken and cucumber sushi. 

This was in some ways a harder process than I had imagined and in some ways easier. The kit I was given has what they call a sushi bazooka. All I had t do was load rice on each side, add the chicken and cucumber, close it up, and shoot it onto the nori sheet. That already made it easier than I had anticipated. However, I didn't read the instructions, I just looked at the pictures the first time. This means I didn't fill it enough and shot it the wrong way on the sheet. I ended up having to spread out the stuff and rolling it like I would have had I not had this tool. The next time I still didn't have enough stuff in it, so it rolled weird. The next two attempts were much better.

Sushi was fun to make and tasty. My pickiest kid even ate two pieces, and my other kid ate all but the nori of three. (They are 19 and 21 and still very picky.)

Bread Bowls and Memories

 

When I was in high school, I hung out with my brother here and there. (He was really a great brother!) One of the places he would take me was Perkins where I would order a salad in a bread bowl sitting in the smoking section, and we would talk and laugh and enjoy being friends and siblings. 

How 1990s is that memory? We used to be able to buy soups, salads, pastas, and more in bread bowls. That was before people were afraid of bread. We also used to have smoking and nonsmoking sections in restaurants in which there was either an accordion curtain, half wall, or just a sign between sections. If I was eating with Anthony, we were always in the smoking section. (Apparently, we didn't realize or care that it wasn't good for my asthma.) this of course was before we learned how dangerous secondhand smoke was for us. Also, Anthony died in 1996. He didn't live to see these things go away. 

While making my weekly sourdough batch, I thought of my brother, Perkins, and those bread bowls and decided that I would make bread bowls with broccoli cheese soup this week. I found a recipe online for the bread bowls and searched my recipe books for the broccoli cheese chowder that I love and waited patiently for Friday to come. 

Finally, that day came, and I got to make this meal I was looking forward to. I started making the bread bowls around 2pm (luckily work was slow) and carefully followed each step of the recipe. They were smaller than I expected, but that was a good thing because I can no longer eat like I did in high school. Then, I made the soup. As soon as it was all done, we sat down and put it all together. This was one of the best meals I have had in a long time! I will definitely be making it again. 

KFC Bowl Knockoff

 

First of all, I need to give credit where credit is due. I got this idea from Aggressive Tutorials on TikTok. Noel and I both saw the video, and thought it would be interesting to try. She didn't want to make it her night of cooking, so I did. 

To start off, I made mashed potatoes. My family prefers real potatoes over the flakes. That's easy enough. I just washed and cut potatoes and boiled them until they were so soft that they were almost falling apart. Then, I put them in the stand mixer with milk and butter and mixed them while working on everything else. 

Then, I put the chicken nuggets in the air fryer.

While waiting for those, I mixed two packets of brown gravy. (She did two types of gravy, but this is what my family likes.)

While that simmered, I opened a can of corn, drained it, and put it in a bowl in the microwave. 

Once everything was heated up or cooked, I put it all out on the table along with some shredded cheese for my family to build their own "bowls." (I sat out plates instead of bowls.)

Each person built up what they wanted. I think it was a success and will be trying it again. Maybe next time I will make it with baked potatoes. That sounds delicious! 

Thanksgiving

 

I can’t really say we have a regular Thanksgiving tradition anymore. I have alternated having the kids on Thanksgiving with their dad for most of the kids’ lives. For a while we would have dinner with my sister and Chad’s parents and brother. However, my sister and Chad’s mom have moved to another state just like the rest of my family, and we don’t see Chad’s brother as much anymore. This means that when it’s not my turn with my children for Thanksgiving, we have celebrated together a day late for while. I’m alright with this. I even planned it that way with them in September so they didn’t have to feel like they had to choose between their mom or their dad. 

Today, I got to spend a good chunk of my time making a big dinner for my family including a spice cake for those who don’t like pie. This was followed by decorating the house with Christmas decorations and a game of UNO. Then, we pulled names for our not-so-secret Santa. Overall, it was a good way to celebrate family and Thanksgivings while ushering in the Christmas season. 

Chad’s Ravioli

Chad spoils us with his cooking sometimes. He cooks Sunday dinner almost every week and often goes all out by either finding a recipe online or in one of the cookbooks he has been collecting. His dad was known for cooking really good food before he got sick, and Chad has carried on this legacy. 

This week he made four cheese ravioli with marinara sauce. (He has a ravioli making tool.) We all loved it. Even my most picky child, Sean. The only problem with him making such things is that he probably won’t make it again because he likes to experiment and rarely makes the same thing twice. 

This is 45

I spent a few years dreading turning 43 and 44. I didn’t want to be the same age as or older than my mom, but it is  better than the alternative. This year I let myself enjoy my birthday. I get to live longer than my mom and enjoy things in this life she didn’t have to opportunity to experience. 

This year, we went on a camping trip at Jackson Lake which is only a lost 45 minutes up the highway from us. We got there Sunday night and came home Tuesday (my birthday) which was the perfect amount of time. Chad, Noel, and I spent a few hours in the lake before lunch on Monday while Sean found a hiding spot in the trees to read. After lunch, I played card games with Sean while Chad and Noel went back to the lake. Those of us in swimsuits ended up sunburned and dehydrated, but we were better enough by bedtime. After we were all settled for the night, some raccoons unzipped our car top bag and stole our remaining breakfast food (the rest of the food was put away in the car). This made our decision for us to leave first thing in the morning rather than hang out at the lake for the morning and get fast food on the way home. Overall, we all had fun including the one that would rather read than play in the water. 

That night, we met up with Eric and his girlfriend at Red Robin for dinner followed by games back at home. I love my kids and love having them around me the most. 

I don’t know everything that will happen at 45. I know I will graduate from college with my bachelor’s degree in Marriage and family studies. I am excited to find out what else is in store for me!