As I am sure many of us are, a large part of quarantine is checking what's available in the 'fridge or pantry shelves. The freshman 15 has taken on a whole new meaning over the past six weeks. Sheer boredom, limited access to fresh groceries (if you value your life), inability to interact with others and no incentive to, or even care, about your appearance, has created an invisibility cloak upon us all.
Mirrors have moved off center stage as we attempt to preserve some energy to put real people clothes on these days. "Dress for whom?" Pleasing ourselves is the plan of the day and that generally leads to what I like to call "comfort clothes"; i.e., expandable waistbands without belts or tuck-in required, sloppy t-shirts and comfy slippers or socks. A daily change of underwear is desired yet not necessary and occasional showers and deodorant are appreciated by those with whom you have quarantined - voluntarily or not.
Though I did make the effort for the ZOOM meeting I facilitated. Hair still reasonably coiffed and colored and nice shirt. Though waist down was the aforementioned comfort variety. It has been awhile since a haircut so I have, through necessity liberated my forehead. I need to concentrate not to wrinkle my brow/face/forehead until I get my bangs cut again.
Amazing to think that not that long ago, carrying on commerce and business to such a degree would have been a sci-fi fantasy before recent technological advancements. As a member of the boomer group I still have the luxury of ruminating if this is a good or bad thing. Unfortunately our younger counterparts have no basis of comparison. They embrace all and sundry, good or bad, privacy be damned so to speak.
Ok. This is about food. Almost forgot. Anyone who knows me realizes cooking is not my passion or desire, mostly through sheer disinterest in the domestic arts. In desperation and for survival purposes my husband took on the task many years ago primarily so he and our daughter had regular dinners. My preference is over the sink and no dishes. He would actually make meals and store them for me when he was out-of-town. His fear was I would remain under nourished, not understanding that restaurants exist for just such occasions. He is quite skilled and adventurous as his multitude of cook books would attest. Though one of our notable arguments in the first year or two of marriage was whether one has to actually measure ingredients precisely or wing it on taste and fancy. In case you are wondering I came down on the side of science. I do believe a ceramic napkin holder lost its life over that debate. But I digress. I do bake!
Consequently out of a certain amount of boredom, I have been trying new recipes that I thought "looked interesting". 3 out of 4 failures thus far. I had to make my incredible crazy cake in the midst of my experiments to save face and reassure myself that I was not a total failure. I am of the attitude that when I'm having a party or I'm invited to bring a dish to pass it is the perfect moment to try a new recipe. The other half (OH) thinks that is flirting with disaster but I reason that if there are more people to sample and "love or reject" there is less for him to have to eat if it sucks.
First try- peanut butter cookies with only 3 ingredients including an egg. Abject failure. Those hit the garbage bin immediately after a small sample. Next was lime bars from ingredients that were, well shall we say, a tad over aged. The crust had an odd moth-ball type flavor but I thought that was just me. The other half (OH) cheerfully sliced a few (well carved them out with a chisel) and poured the milk. There was no attempt at all to put a brave face on it. I believe an immediate trip to the sink for a rapid removal and rinsing occurred. Ok, that was not good. At this point I inserted the aforementioned chocolate Crazy Cake into the mix to make amends. Gratefully accepted and devoured over the course of the week.
Latest attempt sounded extremely intriguing. Chocolate/Peanut Butter cookies. Combining two of the world's greatest flavors! Needless to say they came out neither chocolately or peanut buttery but they looked beautiful. Using only brown sugar and quite a bit of unsweetened cocoa (following the recipe) gave them a strangely flat taste very reminiscent of, well unsweetened chocolate. However, those are being eaten, albeit slowly, but ok substitute for store-bought goodies. Sigh
I am eager to try making cheese cake again or bread but unlike every other cook apparently, I do not as a rule have cream cheese or yeast in my larder as a regular thing. I did make a lime cheese cake once for a "bring a dessert event" of course. Followed the recipe and directions and it cracked-now I understand the bowl of water under the pan thingee, plus it was somewhat mushy. However it tasted outstanding! Which was the explanation I got for making baked potatoes by slicing it almost all the way across the entire surface to look like a little spud fan. Apparently how something looks is the first part of appealing to the appetite, regardless of taste. I am more of the taste vs looks team.
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