Monday's at work

Recently a co-worker an I have started bring food to cook in my slow cooker at work. It cooks on high for 3 or 4 hours and we have a nice hot soup or stew, jambalaya or what ever else we feel like making that week.  Recently others have joined in, and brought their contributions and so we share.  This is fun, but at the same time I understand very clearly what the "to many cooks in the kitchen" comment is all about.

Stone Soup

I must have been blessed with a great family and family-in-law to where we know how to work around or with others in their prospective kitchens.  In other's kitchens they take the lead, in mine I am the maestro of the meal.  This has not worked quite the same here at work, but there is only one unruly cook out in the group.  It must be because the space itself feels like theirs, because the rest of it certainly is not, but they do feel the need to water down things that the rest of us would want to keep thick.

I'm not sure how many of you have collaborative cooking events or have weekly meals at your work place, some places do monthly pot-lucks, some you just have to boobie-trap your lunch box so no one rifles through it and eats your food.  I learned quickly in those previous places to make notes about having licked and spit on everything in my bag already, and maybe alluding to colds or other communicable things as necessary.  I have found these notes do not have to have a shred of truth to them, but there must be that possibility to protect your lunch.  The saddest part of this is that this last scenario played out at two of my previous work places one of which provided lunch materials for all employees to eat from, and the other place was a religious house of worship.  The later office place I only had to make notes regarding licking and stealing being a sin, but it still needed to be stated as sad as that is.

This week our current group collaborated on Taco Soup, and it was delicious.  It was the Jambalaya that went less than stellar.  I prefer a thicker stew like meal, but this other cook decided she would have preferred a soup, and rather than adjusting her own bowl the whole pot was adjusted.  With some conspiring between myself and the other co-worker who began this with me, we made a few minor additions as well...we both like things spicy.  As it turns out our soupy co-worker is a light weight when it comes to spiciness.  Today  it worked out well, nothing was adjusted this round, and we shall see what happens in the future.  It does stand as a reminder that if one of you deviates from the recipe, the others might follow and make some changes of their own as well.

For the Taco Soup recipe.

A Hot Bowl of Comfort on an Uncomfortable Weekend

How ever familiar you are with PCOS, or me, I should warn you that I have moods, much like others with PCOS.  Sometimes they swing violently, and during those times I generally don't like to be around people much.  This weekend was working out to be busy, and fun, I was looking forward to it, and then things started piling up.  Let me give some back ground here for a minute.
I have two different sets of friends who are in the process of adopting, and I am so excited and happy for both of them. I was honored to complete a survey and let their different agencies know how wonderful each of them are.  I also have a younger friend whom I have worked with since she was in the children's ministry that I be-freinded, and she let me know that she is now expecting.  She is young and just beginning in her future, she will be giving her baby up for adoption, and she is very upset about it.  She will be graduating and heading off to college, and she had no family support to help her raise a child, so it is the best thing for her baby, it just hurts her to have to make that choice.  We are not the family that will be adopting that little blessing.
I'm here in full support, excitement and encouragement for all of my friends, but the baby shower for one of the families was this weekend, and it just hit me; overwhelming waves of "I wish that was me."  It's enough to drive me crazy, I can't share that with others or I'll never be invited to parties again.  In the true spirit of the moment I stayed home and hung out with my little doggies, they love me even when I'm in waves of sadness. Tears really don't wear well to parties, generally smiles are preferred facial attire.

So, today I made my PCOS version of comfort food.  I pulled out the crock pot and threw in my dried black beans, and some chicken stock (low sodium of course).  Since it took me until noon to decide to do this, I cranked the heat on high, and then I waited.  I had just received our new travel bags, so I packed my husbands toiletries and mine into our respective bags and had a great time throwing old things out.

After a few hours I checked on the beans and they were soft, so I rinsed and drained them.  Now the recipe that I made has been a favorite from my 5 Ingredient 15 Minute Cooking Light cook book.  The cookbook does assume that certain seasoning are pantry basics, and do not count towards the 5 ingredient list.

Black Bean Soup with Sausage

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 6 hours
Yield: 6 Servings
Cost per Serving: $1.53

Ingredients

• 2  teaspoons  olive oil
• 1  onion, diced
• 3  cloves garlic, chopped
• 2  (15.5 oz.) cans black beans (I used the dried beans, which are less expensive and bring the cost per serving down.)
• 1  (16 oz.) jar salsa
• 1  cup  low-sodium chicken broth
• 2  (3 oz.) hot Italian sausage links (I use the L.F. Turkey Kielbasa sausage)
• 1/2  cup  chopped cilantro
• (I added 2 bell peppers, one red and one green, chopped)
• Salt and pepper

Preparation

Warm oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until onion is softened and translucent, about 5 minutes.
Combine onion mixture, beans (with their liquid), salsa and chicken broth in a slow cooker. Stir well and cook on low for 5 hours.
Stir sausages into bean mixture in slow cooker and cook for 1 hour longer. (I have been cooking the sausage first to brown it, and then adding it into the slow cooker already chopped and browned.)
Using tongs, remove sausages to a cutting board, cut into bite-size pieces and then return to slow cooker. Stir in cilantro and season with salt and pepper. Serve soup hot in bowls, with chopped avocado and a dollop of sour cream on top, if desired.

Nutritional Information

Calories:  635

Fat:  11g (sat 3g)

Protein:  38g

Carbohydrate:  101g

Fiber:  29g

Cholesterol:  21mg

Sodium:  025mg

All You, SEPTEMBER 2007

This is typically served with quesadillas, I'm avoiding gluten for a bit, and my hubby wanted corn bread, so I made corn bread muffins.  Here is another version you could try if you would like to experiment a bit.

 

Spicy Black Bean-and-Sausage Soup

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 1/2 cups)

Ingredients

• 2  (15-ounce) cans black beans, drained and divided
• 2 1/2  cups  water, divided (I use chicken stock when I can)
• 1  tablespoon  olive oil
• 2  cups  diced onion
• 1  teaspoon  chili powder
• 1/2  teaspoon  ground cumin
• 1/4  to 1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
• 1/4  teaspoon  black pepper
• 1  garlic clove, minced
• 6  ounces  turkey kielbasa, diced

Preparation

Place 1 cup beans and 1/2 cup water in a food processor or blender, and process until smooth. (I don't do this, I leave them all whole, but I like a clear broth)
Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion, and sauté 4 minutes or until onion is soft. Add bean purée, remaining beans, 2 cups water, chili powder, and next 4 ingredients (chili powder through garlic); bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in turkey kielbasa; cook 1 minute or until thoroughly heated.

Nutritional Information

Calories:  291 (26% from fat)

Fat:  8.3g (sat 2.6g,mono 3.5g,poly 1.5g)

Protein:  17.8g

Carbohydrate:  38.9g

Fiber:  7g

Cholesterol:  23mg

Iron:  7.8mg

Sodium:  789mg

Calcium:  72mg

Cooking Light, OCTOBER 1998

It's been a long day, and I'm worn from all of this, but It seems that if my family would really like to know what's going on, and why we don't have a family yet, and how I feel about all of this, I really should share it.  I usually don't, I like to remain positive, and keep the faith.  It's only fair though, to let you in on one or two of those days where I just feel out of sorts, and upset, and I wish that things were different, and that we were the one's celebrating along with our friends. I will share my little doggies love and support with you all, and if you can keep a secret, they really like to help me in the kitchen.

 They like to guard the floor beneath the cutting board, and keep it clean for me.  Only that section though, because they bring in all sorts of mud after they have been out side. 

Well, dish yourself up a bowl of comfort and sit back and relax, it's going to be a wild weekend.