Stepping Up to the Plate
The number of people stepping up to the mealtime plate at our house doubled last Wednesday with the arrival of our daughter and son-in-law. Their two week visit is hardly enough time to catch up on their year in Ohio, more than eleven hours away. And, it might not be enough time to get me back into the game of cooking for more than two people, either.
Not just any two people,
but two people a generation younger than us,
with metabolisms much higher than ours,
with one of those metabolisms encased in a 6’4″ frame.
I stocked up on groceries the day they came. When they opened the refrigerator door the first time, they were both taken aback by it’s stuffed-to-the-gills status. But they shook off the shock and put those active metabolisms to good use. By this morning, the refrigerator and the cupboards were looking pretty bare.
No bread,
one peach in the fruit bowl,
three small tomatoes,
one half-gallon of milk,
some scruffy looking veggies,
smoked turkey left over from Hiram’s grill-fest yesterday,
and a dozen eggs.
Almost enough to tide us over until we make a Costco run tomorrow. To fill the gap, I hit the produce aisle at the grocery store down the road and came home with a watermelon, a bag of peaches, and a container of grapes. I did a little cooking, too.
Four dozen honey-oatmeal muffins,
eight pints of turkey broth off yesterday’s carcass,
and four cups of meat picked off the bones,
which is why this post is a little late going up.
But I’m not making more of Abbey’s granola today. We’ve gone through two batches in the last week, kinda like the Japanese beetles on my rose bushes. Considering the gross leavings of those critters, I decided to distance us from that metaphor, so we’re waiting until midweek to make more. Besides, the daughter’s birthday is only a few days off.
So it’s time to gather the ingredients for her birthday menu of
grilled shrimp,
Greek salad,
corn-on-the-cob,
and German chocolate birthday cake
with coconut-pecan frosting.
Uh-huh, I think the old rhythm’s coming back. I’m finding my stride and getting in the cooking game again. It feels good. Though all this thinking about food, cooking, grocery shopping, and menu planning works up a powerful appetite. Which means it must be time for me to step up to the plate again. With the kids here for two weeks after a long year away, every meal’s already a home run.
