Boss called me this morning telling me not to bother coming in to work today. The snow storm is so bad and the resto is so slow. I was glad for the break but was kind of disappointed I won't be able to earn back the money I spent the past two days wining and dining as if I could afford it.

I woke up with the sweetbreads still on my mind. I can't believe a dish can get me so high. I almost walked out of the apartment with the full intention of heading back there and having it again.

I opted to stay in all day though and finally print some photos I've been meaning to frame and hang on our hallway. The frames I bought in Ikea have been sitting there for weeks and it's time I used them.

Mica wanted chicken mami for dinner and despite not having ever made them, I decided to give them a go. I didn't have time to make chicken stock from scratch so I bought chicken broth and threw that into a pot with the chicken cutlets, celery, onions, carrots, scallion stalks, whole peppercorns, salt and a bay leaf. Simmered that while I prepared the rest of my ingredients. I refused to use chicken bouillon cubes since I felt like that would be cheating. I try to only use those when I'm lazy. Thankfully, my broth was just right without the help of a little MSG.


I burned my garlic chips but it was fine when added to the bowl in moderation. This was a cheap and easy meal, the only thing that took too much time was my obsession with making it look picture perfect. I julienned the carrots, sliced the scallions finely, steamed the vegetables individually and setting them aside so as to not overcook them in the broth where they would eventually lose their color. I even used an egg boiling guide to make sure my eggs weren't boiled to the point where the yolk's edge turned green.

Tomorrow I get another off day (fours days in a row!). This one was requested a month in advance since I'm attending my cousin Ana's baby shower. I'm thinking of giving her my copy of Wolves in the Walls for the baby. The baby shower invite said to give a book instead of a card to start the baby's library. I hope they don't find the story and illustrations too scary for the child. The pictures are quite beautiful.

The evening was spend eating a variety of items I currently regret. While Mica and I watched the Sabrina movies back to back (both the 1950s Audrey Hepburn and 1990s Julia Ormond version), I snacked on cassava cake, seaweed snacks, butter pecan ice cream while I drank malibu pineapple. I had a couple glasses soda with my dinner so all of that simmering in there gave me a bad acid stomach. Ugh. I wish I can just fart this all away and get it over with.

I knew there was going to be a snow storm today so last night I bought all the items I needed to make my lunch for today. I wanted a good, hearty winter soup and I had a lot of red beans available on hand. I wanted to make use of those before they wrinkled up and died.

For anyone who wants a good hearty soup on a cold day, try making this and enjoy it with good crusty bread. It will surely warm you up while you watch last night's episode of Lost. :)

Red bean and Kale Soup
1 1/4 cup dried red beans soaked overnight, or use a can of it if you prefer
1 med potato, peeled and cubed
1 med carrot, peeled and cubed
1 cup chopped celery
4-6 kale leaves, sliced
1 large tomato, diced
1 small shallot, or onion, sliced
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 can vegetable broth
2 cups water
2 sausages of your choice, cut into small cubes (I used a roasted garlic and herbed chicken sausage)
1 Parmesan cheese rind (what for?) - I call this the magic ingredient
salt and pepper to taste

optional: top with freshly grated Parmesan cheese before serving

Saute the shallots in olive oil until clear, pour in the vegetable broth, water, parmesan rind, beans(drained), tomatoes and sausage. Toss in your herbs. Bring to a boil then lower heat. Simmer for an hour. Throw the rest of the veggies on the last 15 minutes. Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese and devour.

I personally use my handy dandy pressure cooker and cook it for 15 minutes. All that contained heat brings out the flavor of the rind and the sausages which makes for a fantastic soup. Plus it cooks at a quarter of the time which is great for someone who doesn't have a lot of time.

You can make this in a slow cooker too. Throw all of the ingredients in the cooker when you wake up in the morning. You can do your chores and whatnot as it cooks for a few hours and you'll have your soup ready for lunch.

serves: 4-5

No access to parmesan rind? Throw in a cube of chicken/beef (depending on the kind of sausage you use) or vegetable bouillon. Cmon, I know you want to...