Rainy Days and Delicious Mushroom Soup

Days that are rainy, cold, dark – I struggle to function. I want to stay curled up in my bed and never move. I want to close my eyes and listen to the rain drops plinking on the windows. I want to snuggle close with my cats and feel their belly-deep purrs. It’s a sense of comfort, of feeling at home.

Nittany

The struggle is more than just “it’s a rainy day and I want to stay in bed.” It’s the aches and pains and weariness of fibromyalgia. As much as I love cold weather and Fall and Winter, my body has come to absolutely hate it.  It’s very discouraging and depressing to know my body doesn’t work quite the way it used to.

Taz

There are things that help like taking hot showers, electric blankets, and ibproufen (tons of it). But it doesn’t “cure” it. Unfortunately, there is no cure. It just waxes and wanes like the moon. Some days are good, some days are not so good. It just is. I don’t let it define me. It isn’t who I am, but it’s definitely a part of me.

Fibromyalgia affects every part of my life. There are days where even holding a pen to write or tap away at a computer is just too much, too painful, too exhausting. Even the thought of it can wear me out.

I love to plan meals and to cook. It brings me joy to share food with others, even if it’s just me and my partner. It doesn’t have to be elaborate. Simple, but flavorful and comforting, will do just fine. But on days like this, cooking is an Olympic feat. When I’m feeling like the world and my body has beat me up, I crave comfort food. Warm, cuddly, delicious, earthy food. And simple. Because I don’t have the energy or ability to make something that has 17 steps and hours to cook. Not on a night like this.

This past weekend I went to the Easton Garlic Festival. The theme was Eat, Drink, Stink. Need I say more? I bought a 1/2 pound of blue oyster mushrooms (I bought a ton of garlic, too). Never cooked with them before, but I had to figure something out. They only last so long!

Blue Oyster Mushrooms

Since I was in the mood for something warm, cozy, earthy, and easy, I adapted the  recipe, Wild Mushroom Soup from Bon Appetit. It was exactly what I was searching for.

First, let me say that these are NOT wild mushrooms and the mushrooms in the original recipe are NOT wild mushrooms (their title is misleading). You can get them at any grocery store (except maybe the blue oyster ones). If you can’t find the blue oyster mushrooms, you can use regular white mushrooms (take a little longer to cook) or crimini mushrooms (better flavor than white).

So for my new title of the recipe…

Delicious Mushroom Soup

(not very original, I know, but go with it)

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 cups finely chopped onions
• 6 ounces crimini (baby bella) mushrooms, chopped
• 6 ounces fresh oyster mushrooms, chopped
• 6 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms, stemmed, caps chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 3 tablespoons brandy
• 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 4 cups beef broth (add more or less depending on how thick you like it)
• 1/2 fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 1/4 cup half and half

Directions

1. Melt butter in large pot over medium-high heat.

2. Add onions; sauté until golden, about 5 minutes.

3. Add all mushrooms, thyme, and rosemary; sauté until mushrooms begin to brown, about 8 minutes.

4. Gently whisk brandy and flour together in a small bowl until flour is dissolved. Pour and stir into the mushroom mixture. Slowly stir in broth and lemon juice; bring soup to boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered 10 minutes.

5. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in 1/4 cup half and half for creaminess.

6. Puree approx. 2 cups of the soup (pour it into a blender very carefully or use an immersion blender) and then add back to the rest of the soup.

7. Ladle into bowls and serve with good, crusty bread.

What do you eat when you’re feeling the need for comfort?

Food Memories and Stories

 

In addition to my love for all things books and writing, I’m a foodie. I love to eat. I love to read about eating and food. I love to write about food. I love to create succulent dishes for myself and others. I can’t help it. It’s been ingrained in me since I was a child. No one comes to your house and leaves hungry! One of my dad’s favorite sayings when company is over for dinner is, “There’s plenty of food here! So if you leave hungry, it’s your fault!” I don’t know how many times I heard that phrase and variations thereof.

Three generations – My Nana, my mom, and me (2011)

My grandparents fed people. My parents fed people. And now I feed people. I’ll never forget how my Nana (my dad’s mom) would poke at my belly and tell me that I was “too fat.” But then she would turn around and offer me biscuits with honey and butter, creamed rice with sausage and soppy eggs, sweet peaches fresh from her fruit tree, popcorn balls, southern sweet tea, apple pie…it goes on and on. Food was synonymous with being happy, or at least taken care of. It’s how you knew someone loved you.

Right now, I’m reading a book called, “My Berlin Kitchen,” by Luisa Weiss. It’s one of my favorite type of books – a life story woven together by food. Complete with recipes! Last night, as I laid in bed reading, I started thinking about the foods in my life, how different foods bring to mind different people and different parts of my life. It’s similar to when you smell a certain scent and instantly you are transported to a certain moment in time inside your memories. Food is just as powerful.

I have an unusual mix of foods in my history. My dad is from the South, in North Carolina and my mom is from the North, in Maine. Talk about opposite ends of the spectrum! It’s a rich heritage of an amalgam of foods.

For instance, when I think of my dad’s parents, my Nana and Papa, I immediately think of the rich Southern foods Nana would make that I mentioned before (see above). But I also remember the just picked from the garden juicy tomatoes and green beans from her garden that she canned the previous year (and I rationed those jars of salty, briny beans throughout the year, trying to make them last until it was canning time again).

When I think of my mom’s parents, my Grammie and Grampie, instantly molasses cookies come to mind. Grammie would make a huge batch of them and store them in a small, ornate container for when we would visit. Many times, I would sneak into the kitchen and gobble a cookie before I was caught. I also remember lobster rolls, clam chowder, fish chowder, and crab rolls made by my Aunt Ramona. Every Thanksgiving in Maine, there was a monstrous turkey, stuffed full with bread stuffing (always StoveTop), pearl onions in a white, creamy sauce, and homemade cranberry chutney.

My marriage brought boatloads of Kraft macaroni and cheese, steaks, hamburgers, potatoes every way imaginable, enchiladas, bread, and corn. He despised most vegetables. No matter how I tried to hide them, he would find them. It became a battle that I ultimately lost. I craved vegetables, leafy greens, and healthy foods. When the marriage ended, it was like a whole new world opened up before me. I could make and eat anything I wanted!

Bring on the veggies!

What foods carry strong memories for you? Have you ever written a “food” story? What was it about?

I’d love to hear from you!

 

The Kindness Chronicles #2

 

Acts of kindness bestowed upon me:

1. The numerous status updates I had on Facebook and in person wishing me a happy birthday on 9/11.

2. My supervisor being incredibly understanding and helpful when I struggle with the financial aspects of my job such as purchasing, invoices, purchase requisitions, etc. (I just don’t get it!).

3. The beautiful and inspirational words of friends/colleagues who wrote letters of recommendation for me.

4. My wonderful partner bringing dinner to me and other girls at the hair salon. It was a long night! (cut, color, etc.)

5. My parents came to listen to me read to the public a short story that I wrote at the Easton Riverside Arts Festival. Talk about nervous!

 

Acts of kindness that I bestowed on others:

1. Bought my supervisor a cup of Dunkin’ Donuts coffee when the cafeteria was out of coffee at work.

2. Helped a woman who got lost in the hospital trying to locate the appointment desk.

3. A listening ear to my co-workers who stop by my office to “vent.” (I think I’m part counselor at this job.)

4. This isn’t one that I did, but I observed as a friend and I sat on a bench to watch the people on Main Street Downtown. It really moved me. An older man, shabbily dressed in a lightweight coat and yellow knit hat, was sitting outside in the cold night at a cafe table by himself. He was reading from a book, out loud, and following along with his finger. He struggled with the words, but he kept persevering. Two young women who were standing behind me saw him and I heard them debating back and forth. Finally, they crossed the street and bought him a cup of coffee and something to eat from the coffee shop. He was incredibly grateful. If only we all were so kind to strangers. You never know who needs a warm, welcoming hand.

**************************************************************

This is a blog movement started by Jane LaFazio and two of her friends. The purpose is to do a blog post the first Sunday of the month telling of your acts of kindness and the acts of kindness bestowed upon you.

Do you want to participate in The Kindness Chronicles with Lyric Kinard, Tracie Lynn Huskamp, Jane LaFazio, a bunch ofothers and me? Grab the logo here OR email me here and I’ll send you the jpeg and you can put it on your blog. Do a blog post the first Sunday of the month. If you do a blog post, leave a link in the comments or if you did or received a kindness, tell me about it in the comments.

Really, there are no rules~ we just want to spread kindness…

 

Give ‘Em The Old Razzle Dazzle

Notice anything different about my blog this week? Seriously? You didn’t? You must be blind! I mean…how can you not miss it?

Okay…maybe not blind because it’s possible you really are blind and then I would be horribly offending you. So disregard the whole blind comment. Never happened.

Ahem….

Anyways…the blog has new, clean look that I think is much easier to read and navigate. Maybe it’s just my opinion, and frankly, that’s all that matters, so go stuff your head in a toilet and let the water flush around your ears for a bit. Then come back and continue enjoying my writing.

In all honesty, I really was struggling with the other designs. They just weren’t working for me. Some were clunky. Some were unorganized. This last one was just too much, too busy. I can’t handle that. So I changed it. And I’ll probably change it again in the future if this one eventually bugs me, too. But I’m hoping I don’t do that. It gets tiresome trying to re-adjust everything on my blog to the new themes. Not to mention I’m sure I confuse my readers. Ah hahahahahaha! You discovered my evil, diabolical plot!

Um, not really.

I tend to get bored after a while. Call it ADD, unfocused, too much passion, too much energy, too much sugar and caffeine, considering I’m drinking my second 16 oz. mug of coffee…Panama coffee no less which is much stronger, but oh so smooth! If you’ve never tried it before, you must. But I digress.

I had an epiphany of sorts this week. I think. As I’ve said before…my path is never quick and easy. More often than not, I’m meandering off the path to smell the roses, admire the butterflies, gaze at the sun and before I know it, I’m on a totally different path in a different forest in a different damn country. I suppose that’s the fodder for the imagination of a writer and artist (God bless my parents – I’m sure they never had it easy with me).

Back to the epiphany. You’ll discover after some time of following me here that I tend to have multiple epiphanies and you’ll want to smack me upside the head for taking so long to realize things when you knew it right from the start. I’d appreciate you telling me, you know. It would save a lot of tired, aching feet and fingers from the wandering.

BUT. Back to the epiphany. AGAIN. I’m a writer. Duh. You know that. And this blog is about writing. Again, you know that. Or at least I think you do. But my epiphany was that I’ve gotten too serious here. Where’s the fun? The pizzazz? The sparkle? The razzle-dazzle? I’m sure you get the point.

Just because I’m a writer doesn’t mean that I always have to write about writing. Really? I can hear the laughter. It’s okay. I laughed at myself, too. I have so many passions (hence the multiple blog problem which, thankfully, I’ve worked out…for now), how can I limit myself to just one topic? I can’t. So I won’t. Lucky you.

Don’t worry my writerly friends…I won’t forget you and there will still be plenty of tips and tricks and writerly discussions. But there will be a heck of a whole lot else, too. Like the foodie bits. I am a closet chef you know. It’s a burning desire to share with you the things I cook, create, and eat. Food porn. Now there’s something to go Google. I dare you.

So here’s to letting it all hang out!
P.S.  Book Reviews have now moved to their new location, Kat’s Book Reviews.

Crockpot Beer Chicken

Okay. I know this blog is predominantly about writing and variations thereof, but I’m also a closet chef. More like wanna-be chef. Alright, alright….I’m a self-taught cooking fool who loves food with an almost obsession-like devotion. I’m a slave to the Food Network and Travel Channel (Anthony Bourdain is my hero-I’m not exactly your cuddly chef like Paula Deen…although I have absolutely nothing against good Southern food).

So I couldn’t resist sharing my obsession with you. What else brings more people together in life than food?

Let the salivating begin….

Beer. There’s just something about it. Cold fizzing tickling your nose as the ambery bloom warms your spirit when you guzzle it down. What better way to use beer than in cooking? (besides drinking it as you cook. Or play poker. Or do nothing. But drink. No, I’m not a lush…although this post may make me sound like one. More, a fine appreciation of all things delicious).

Jessica, blogger of How Sweet It Is, posted a recipe for Crockpot Beer Chicken. Stunning, melt-in-your-mouth photos with the perfect recipe for a long-day-after-work-it’s-waiting-to-greet-you-meal.

Photo credit: How Sweet It Is blog, Jessica

The picture says it all! I followed her recipe almost to a tee, but not quite. I cut the recipe in half since it makes so much (8-10 servings!). I used Wegman’s brand Memphis BBQ sauce thinned with Yuengling beer. Only the sweet, molassesy, lick my fingers sauce for this woman.

The chicken was melt-in-your-mouth tender with a hint of smoke from the paprika and rich with the Beer BBQ sauce. We piled the chicken high on fresh rolls from the bakery that were buttery soft and sopped up the juices. On the side, we made fresh from the freezer tater tots. Yeah, I know. The height of culinary delight. But what do you expect when you’re rushing to eat because you have another appointment after dinner? Even us foodies take shortcuts every now and then. I do buy the tater tots that don’t have any added unnatural ingredients other than potatoes and seasonings, so that has to count for something, right?

Enjoy the Crockpot Beer Chicken from Jessica by clicking here and let it take all your worries away.

“I have long believed that good food, good eating is all about risk. Whether we’re talking about unpasteurized Stilton, raw oysters or working for organized crime ‘associates,’ food, for me, has always been an adventure.”  – Anthony Bourdain