Imagine

On food!

Last night we went to our favorite Italian restaurant. Mr. kenju's brother is visiting and he treated - which is always nice. I wrote about this place recently. This time I ordered the calamari, and I was a bit disappointed. Previously, the calamari was tiny, crispy and salted to perfection. This time, it was larger and a bit soggy. However, I can tell you that the margarita made up for it! The drink was so strong that had I had two of them, I wouldn't have known what I was eating!

Below is the eggplant saltiletto. Very thinly sliced eggplant covered with prosciutto and mozzarella cheese, capers and sliced tomatoes. It did not disappoint! I may try to make this at home, but I'll use Monterey Jack cheese (less salty) and leave out the prosciutto, since it is not good for Mr. kenju's diet.

This is the calamari. Each of those larger rings was about 1 1/2 inch in diameter. I think I prefer the smaller ones. It was tasty, but not as satisfying as before.

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I had lunch with Alice yesterday (Anna's mom) at Chipotle, and mentioned that I had made a big pot of soup for my brother-in-law, who is seemingly always hungry and very appreciative. Alice expressed an interest in my recipe for the soup I make with anything I find in the refrigerator or pantry. Of course, there is no recipe, but I can tell you how I made the latest batch.

I thawed two large skinless chicken breasts (from Costco) with no fat. I washed and broiled them for 16 minutes, sprinkled with no-salt-seasonings and cracked pepper after spraying them with high-heat Pam. I cut the breasts in half first, since they were so large in order to minimize the broiling time. If you do them for longer than 8 minutes per side, they'll be dry and tough.

While the chicken was cooking, I put 2 cans of fat-free vegetable broth into my large stock pot/dutch oven. I added 2 cans of diced tomatoes, 1 can of black-eyed peas, about 1/2 cup chopped onion, 3 carrots (cleaned and chopped), 3 ribs celery, some left-over steamed broccoli and more water, about 2 cups. I usually add some green beans and corn, but not this time. Then I peeled and chopped 4 medium potatoes and added them. I let that simmer for about 30 minutes, after adding a palm-full of Sylvia's Secret Seasoning and coarse black pepper, with a dash of Mrs. Dash for good measure!

Sometimes I make a large pot and freeze parts of it for another meal. I don't use potatoes if I know I am going to freeze some or all of it - I use rice or barley. If you freeze it in small containers (maybe 2-3 cups worth) they will thaw quickly and you can have soup almost at a moment's notice. I'll try to remember to take a photo of the soup when I serve it today. Enjoy!