food – Linda Ford

THE WORST AND THE BEST

Linda — Sun, 24 Feb 2019 00:00:00 +0000

Do you know the worst thing about travel–especially to a distant place? Jetlag. That awful state that makes you want to go to bed at supper time. And makes you waken at 4 a.m. That feeling like you are moving through the day in a constant brain fog. Thankfully, my jetlag is over but I have to tell you, it was very real.

One of the best things about Italy (and there were many) was the food. Not at all like I expected it to be. It was fresh, delicious and HOT (temperature wise.)

The first shows a soft boiled egg over half a baked potato and vegies. I don’t know how they made it so delicious. The second is one course in a meal we had at a vineyard. The meat was from their own cows and very flavorable. The roasted potatoes were delicious. Roasted potatoes were as common as pasta. The third picture is of a pear and walnut salad with a drizzle of honey and a bit of ginger. This one was so tasty and fresh that we went back again just to have it.
I very much enjoyed the food, the company and the sights.
I will leave you with this picture of the cathedral in Florence.

I DON’T LIKE TO BRAG BUT…

Linda — Sun, 24 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0000

I DON’T LIKE TO BRAG BUT…

1.I have a Fitbit. I hate to brag but I get most of my steps walking from room to room trying to remember why I’ve gone there.
2. I can buy a bag of grapes in town and have them almost eaten by the time I get home. This may or may not happen. It may or may not be something to brag about.

3. I can put together a meal from scratch in 15 min. or less. All is requires is pre-planning, pre-preparation or left overs (known fondly as planned overs.)

4. I recently completed the first draft of a book in 14 days Now that is braggable. All it required was knowing what I wanted to say and having less than 100 interruptions throughout the day.

I apologize for telling you about my successes but somethings we all need to acknowledge what we’ve done.
What things are you justifiably proud of doing?

HOW BASIC CAN YOU GET?

Linda — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 00:00:00 +0000

In the interests of efficiency I have reduced as much as my life as possible to the basics. I want minimal furnishings and ornaments so I don’t have to dust. I want no-care finishes. I want meals that can be made in less than 30 minutes. Yes, I’d be happy if they would invent self-cleaning toilets, windows, countertops and sinks. No, I’m not lazy. At least, not terribly lazy. (I don’t think.)
So I’m looking for desperation dinners–meals made in 30 minutes or less. I’ll go first.
Hamburger/ macaroni dish.
cook 3 cups of macaroni in a pot of water. (use amount of macaroni suitable for your family. This amount feeds 3 or 4 adults)
Meanwhile brown 1 lb. hamburger.
When it is brown add
1 can tomato soup,
1 can of milk
1 can of diced tomatoes
1/2 to 1 cup of salsa.
Drain cooked macaroni and add to hamburger mixture. Heat. Can be served as is or covered with grated cheese (cover and allow to melt). You can sprinkle on green onions if desired. Good served with hot bread and a salad. Good comfort food.
I guess I like to–and need to–reduce my story to a basic structure too–one that includes theme and a beginning, middle and end. Over the years I continue to amalgamate several different methods into something that works for me. I want bullets bits of description. I don’t want details at this point, only a blink of information. Most of all, I need the overall structure and the whys and hows.

(picture of story structure using W plot, theme and a storyboard)
Pretty basic stuff. But it works for me.
Anyone out there willing to share fast meals–especially ones based on beef? Or cheese, macaroni, etc. The more basic the better.