Food Methodology

Who has been clogging up The Twitter with all the whining about how hard it is to come up with dinner for her family every. single. night? Oh, right. You're looking at me.

Yes. I have dinner anxiety. I'm not a good cook. In fact, I kind of hate cooking entirely. (of course it more or less comes and goes) And yet my family has the gall to insist they are fed properly- a thrice daily basis, even! It's a nightmare.

One week I was particularly lazy with my weekly grocery run which left me whipping up meals like Nachos! Grilled cheese sandwiches! Chili-cheese fries! Pre-made meatballs you can get in the freezer! By the end of the week The Husband, dripping in melted cheese, announced this had been "the best week ever... food wise." I just stared at him. (in both disbelief AND horror)

Obviously, we have different "tastes."

Anyway, the normal fare around dinnertime is only slightly better than The Husband's "best week ever." So if you, like me, have little-to-no mealtime motivation, I recommend you stock up on some of my essentials:

- Red Pepper Flakes: A generous sprinkling really spices up a dull/bland meal; like pizza, spaghetti, baked chicken, etc.

- A small can of Sliced Black Olives: The most versatile armory in my kitchen. I throw olives into everything; Chili! Casseroles! Pasta!

- Cilantro and Black Beans: if you have these two ingredients, you are ready to make plain soft-taco-Tuesdays a little more expensive tasting.

My husband, of course has a different list of ingredients he insists on adding to his plate:

- Cheese: In any form, any kind, on any thing. I used to be insulted when we were newly married and he'd come home and dump a pile of cheese on top of the elaborate meal I had attempted. Now, meh. I'll just buy another gargantuan bag of shredded cheese tomorrow.

- Mayonaise: This man simply MUST clog his arteries at every available opportunity. It's madness. If his burger does not have mayonaise, he will glower in the corner (He'll still eat it, mind you. But he won't be happy about it)

- Sour Cream: (he's dubbed it the "mexican mayonaise") Non-mexican food gets mayo, tacos, burritos, all that south of the border stuff, it gets three serving-spoon-fuls of sour cream. I buy the tubs two at a time. Never does it sit and expire in our fridge.

Tonight I made Parma Rosa, a little powder mix that I poured ontop of Penne, dumped a can of olives in, and sprinkled it with mozzarella cheese. It was pretty fancy... for us. And yet, I am still guessing The Husband will waltz in and break out the giganta-bag of shredded cheese... as well as the sour cream.