36-degrees, and getting colder by the minute –
and not just weather-wise.
Life seems decidedly chillier.
Sometimes just thinking about all the ways my
life has changed in 22 short months, is like inhaling frosty cold air … and
immediately feeling your teeth ache.
I needed a distraction from the endless obamanite
madness, and the descending darkness riding the coattails of the obama-clinton-pelosi-biden-harris
trainwreak plowing its way across America; and causing a great deal of damage
as it bullies its unwanted presence into our lives.
September through December is always going to
be a crap shoot period in the forward momentum of my life; there will never be
an easy way to get through those 106 days.
Having the obamanite coup boldly making
things worse, is not welcome.
It’s frustrating.
It’s angering.
It’s just plain wrong: in every way imaginable.
Already, people who have strong objections to
the obama-biden-harris charade have lost their jobs: again, censorship is in
full force, and the INtolerant demonrats are applying political thumb screws
and forcing compliance; it is shades of obama’s first coup d’état all over
again.
It is 3rd world/banana republic tactics.
I feel like I am living in Hell.
So, today I baked the baker potatoes I bought
last week.
I baked all 6 of them … and I stuffed each
half with a different stuffing.
Each stuffing tastes as good as it looks in
print 😉
I stuffed the potato halves from the right
side of the cookie sheet layout, first: that was the easiest way to do it so,
that is the way I proceeded.
The recipes are as follows – EA recipe
MAKES 4 STUFFED POTATOES.
I broke the recipes down to ½ cooked/scooped
potato = 12 individual flavored potatoes.
These stuffed potatoes can be eaten as a main
course with a side of salad and a roll … or they can be eaten as a side dish to
accompany a main course meat dish; which is what I am going for.
I have not made my meat dishes yet, but
these potatoes are done – and in the freezer setting up before being
individually wrapped/labeled.
Frozen potatoes do loose some of their
fresh-baked-texture, but they work for me … and they taste a whole LOT better
than the frozen ones you buy in store-bought freezer meals.
What I do is freeze the potatoes, then add
them, wrapped in foil, to my freezer meals; remove them from the foil freezer
pan and bake them separately (about half an hour before placing them back
into the foil pan and continuing the regular cook time for my freezer meals,
which is about half an hour to reheat make-ahead-prepared meals) on the day
I want to eat them; because they are too thick to heat all the way through
in the 35-40 minutes it takes to reheat my freezer meals. It takes
more time to do things this way, but like I said in the previous
paragraph: they taste a whole lot better than store-bought freezer meals. For
me, it is worth it.
I also combined all the ingredients before
stuffing my skins; it’s just easier to freeze that way. When I wrap the frozen
stuffed potato, I label it with what is further needed – like ‘sour cream’,
‘chopped tomato’; ect.
The recipes are as follows:
CARMAMELIZED ONION – Cook 1 large thinly sliced Onion
in a skillet with 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil and ¼ teaspoon Salt, until
caramelized; about 30 minutes.
Spoon onto baked potatoes. Top with Sour
Cream (Plain Yogurt can be substituted).
MUSHROOM-ONION – Prepare the Caramelized Onion
topping in previous recipe; sauté 2 cups sliced Mushrooms in Olive Oil until
soft.
Add chopped Dill, and Salt.
Spoon onto potatoes; top with the Onion
mixture, Sour Cream (Plain Yogurt can be substituted), and more Dill.
FRENCH ONION – Prepare the Caramelized Onion
topping in previous recipe; scoop the flesh out of the 4 potatoes, and mash
with the Onion mixture, ¼ cup Beef Broth, and ½ cup shredded Gruyere (Swiss
Cheese can be substituted).
Stuff this mixture into the skins. Top with
more cheese, and broil to melt.
CHEDDAR-CHIVE – Scoop the flesh out of 4 baked
potatoes; mash with ¼ cup Butter (for each potato), Sour Cream, chopped
Chives, 2/3 cup grated Cheddar Cheese: stuff mixture into the skins.
Top with more cheese, and broil to melt.
IRISH – Cook 4 sliced Leeks and ½ head
small Cabbage in Butter, until soft. Add 1 cup Milk; simmer 10 minutes.
Scoop the flesh out of 4 baked potatoes and
mash with the cabbage mixture: stuff into the skins.
Top with grated Cheddar Cheese and broil to
melt.
GARLIC OIL – Cook 8 sliced Garlic cloves in ½
cup Olive Oil until golden in color; add Salt and chopped Parsley. Drizzle over
potatoes.
GUACAMOLE – Mash 2 Avocados, 1 Tablespoon EA
Lime Juice/diced Red Onion/chopped Cilantro, ½ teaspoon minced Jalapeno, and
Salt; Spoon onto baked potatoes.
Top with chopped Tomato.
SALSA VERDE – Coarsely puree 2 cups Parsley, 2
Scallions. 2 garlic cloves, 2 Tablespoons Capers, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, 1/3
cup Olive Oil, the zest and juice of ½ a Lemon, and Salt and Pepper. Drizzle on
baked potatoes.
CILANTRO-LIME – Mix ½ cup Sour Cream, the zest
and juice of 1 Lime, ¼ cup chopped Cilantro, and Salt & Pepper; spoon onto
baked potatoes, top with Salsa.
SAMOSA – Cook 1 chopped Onion, 1
Tablespoon EA Curry powder and minced Ginger, and 1 teaspoon Mustard Seeds in
Olive Oil. Scoop the flesh out of 4 baked potatoes; mash with the onion
mixture, ¼ cup chopped Cilantro, and 1 cup Peas.
Stuff into the skins; top with Plain Yogurt.
CURRY BUTTER – Toast 1 teaspoon Curry powder in
a skillet. Mash with 1 stick soft Butter, the zest of 1 Lime, and Salt: spoon
onto baked potatoes and mash into the flesh.
I’m a spoon licker (I can do that in my
own house; there is just me now 😉), and I can testify that these
recipes are ALL DELISH!
Now I just have to get busy cooking some meat
meals to eat these tasty spuds with :-D
Putting my feet up, and relaxing – I saw that
the setting sun had backlit the gray clouds; the sight inspired me.
As I looked at the sliver of fading sun rays,
gilding the topside of the gray clouds seen from my side of the skyscape … I
could see that the flipside was brilliantly favored.
That image, outside my livingroom window so seemed
to mimic life unfolding in the moment: all I could see was a rolling bank of
thick gray clouds and a darkening atmosphere. But there was also bright light bouncing
off the gloaming, that gave a lift to the spirit; and backlit the horizon.
So much like life unfolding in the moment.
For better or for worse, my life – every aspect
of my life is what it is. The tasty potatoes will feed my physical body, but
it is up to me how I play the game of Life I have been thrust into.
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