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Days 68-72: In The Groove

If one could get in the groove of this whole pandemic thing, this week would've counted.  Work was a busy buzz for both Jeff and myself, and the days flew by. Luckily, our food was taken care of and pretty low-key.  If previous weeks are any clue, there is unevenness sure to come. But I focused on enjoying feeling busy and engaged, and thoroughly did.

Today, I decided to sit a couple of sessions of an online meditation retreat with Alexis Santos,  It was really nice!  His teaching is calm and focused, and I found that I brought extra mindfulness to the chores I squeezed in between.  Pantry:  reorganized and mopped. Yard: weeded and vines trimmed.  Downstairs bathroom: cleaned and I repainted the baseboards (they look much better!).  Tonight?  I'm pooped.  We're settling in for a Movie Night and an early bedtime.

I also squeezed in some kitchen adventures today around all the chores.

Dim Sum
The first time I had dim sum was the summer after junior year of high school.  I was in DC for a week-long summer program, and came a few days early to visit one of my best friends from high school, Mary, who was in college at Georgetown.  We walked from her apartment across Key Bridge to have dim sum at the recently departed China Garden.  I loved the experience: the steamer carts bringing endless dumplings.  The fry cart with taro cakes.  And the dessert!  Red bean filled sesame balls and pineapple buns.  Mmm.

I picked up some frozen dim sum from the Good Fortune market several weeks ago, and finally got my hands on a bamboo steamer.  Down to business!  We had shrimp shumai, veggie gyoza, and sweet red bean buns.  All turned out great.  Chili oil and soy sauce as a dip for the savories.  And Darjeeling tea in espresso cups, prime pandemic style!

Mezze
Continuing the small plates theme, I got it in my head that I wanted to make mezze.  Pita from scratch.  Hummus from dried chickpeas, topped with a warmly spiced ground beef.  Labne (yogurt cheese) with cucumber, olive oil, and za'atar.  Fresh tomato and cucumber slices on the side. This picture does not do it justice!

The pita dough was a little too wet, I think, and was not easy to work with.  But by the time the 7th one came out of the cast iron skillet, it was thin and puffy with crisp parts.  I got this recipe for hummus and spiced beef via a recommendation.  The hummus was great-- I cooked the chickpeas from dried, and it turned out fluffy and flavorful. The beef needed... something more.  I added about twice the spice it called for,  some cinnamon and allspice, and then a little berbere for the heck of it. Not authentic, but delicious. It then needed more umami and acid.  In went some Worcestershire sauce and a dash of balsamic vinegar.  Then I made Jeff taste it.  He thought it salt & more vinegar.  In the end, it was quite delicious, but I can't say that I would suggest following that recipe.  It was a delicious combo, though, and I'll try another recipe another time.

It felt good to have the space for an elaborate feast.  Holiday weekends are the best.

What did we eat the rest of the week?

Tuesday
  • English muffin with almond butter and jam
  • Leftover seekh kebab
  • Teriyaki chicken thighs (we tried a different bottled sauce: Soy Vey. Would recommend!) with roasted broccoli

Wednesday
  • Steel cut oats with dried coconut and cherries
  • Sweet Earth Curry Tiger burrito
  • Dominos (at Jeff's request!)

Thursday
  • Egg and cheddar on an English muffin
  • Sweetgreen Spicy Thai salad (roasted sesame tofu, raw corn, cucumbers, shredded cabbage, basil, cilantro, spicy sunflower seeds, arugula, chopped romaine, lime squeeze, spicy cashew dressing).  What a joy!
  • A French-style lentil dish.  Puy lentils, roasted tomato and thyme mushrooms (from prep day), roasted asparagus, and goat cheese, with a dijon vinaigrette dressing. 

Friday
  • Avocado toast
  • The rest of the Rice a Roni, with fried egg, sriracha, and green onions
  • Baked salmon on bagged Asian chopped salad
Another week in the books!  And two more days off.  Thank goodness!

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