Day Two, Meal Two

Day two, meal two

Monday 12:00 pm

Right on time, at 12:01 my stomach growls.  No, I never ate the mid-morning snack, so I haven’t had anything since 7:30 pm last night.  I probably should get out of the habit of going 16 hours without eating.  Looking forward to my tuna fish sandwich now.  Forgot whether to check if it was packed in water or oil. 

So it was tuna in vegetable oil, not the tastiest, but a good source of protein and surprisingly some vitamins too.   The can made one and a half sandwiches.  I was full after one sandwich, but wasn’t sure if I wanted to transport half a can of tuna home, so I finished it off….waste not, want not.   I had a nice golden delicious apple too.  Definitely ahead of where I was yesterday from a nutritional perspective.

Delayed Gratification

Monday 9:47 pm

Long day at work, but productive.  Instead of coming straight home I stopped off to sit in on a friend’s rehearsal and ended up getting home at 8:30, tired, grumpy and hungry.   I went right to work, grabbing things out of the fridge and putting them on the counter for inspection.  Checking on the rice and beans, I grimaced (ok..cursed) seeing that the rice would take 45 minutes to cook.  Patience with food has NEVER been my strong suit, hence I have always bought Minute Rice.   Tonight, tired and hungry as I was, 45 minutes seemed like an eternity.  Plan B.  I sliced a large white potato in half, skinned a large carrot, and broke apart one small head of broccoli.  I usually discard the woody stalk, but recalled that if it is cooked longer, it can become tender and not bad, so I kept it.  For a protein I decided to go for broke and pulled out the pack of chicken.  There were probably six “tenders” in the package, but it seemed like two would be an adequate serving.  Four different items require four different pots, pans, or steaming implements.  In the past when I was cooking for two I used to laugh that I could whip up a basic meal  (meat, starch, and veg) in 20 minutes flat.  Tonight I went for four, and got it done in about 25.  I browned the chicken, using a little butter and black pepper.   Okay, so I know browning chicken in butter is not the best way to live a long, heart healthy life, but I did not buy any oil and I am trying to do this thing by the books.  Talking to my mother this afternoon about the project, she encouraged me to allow myself some basics like seasonings and such, but my stubborn Irish came out…thus chicken a la butter.   Hey, don’t laugh…it worked.  

The carrot was tender, the potato hefty, the broccoli was tasty, and the chicken was really quite good.  By 9:20 I was really satisfied and feeling pretty good about the outcome.  Of course, the dishes are still in the sink and, curiously enough, the dishwasher hasn’t emptied itself.   It’s now 10:00 pm and I have to be in the office by 7:00 am.  What are the chances I’m cleaning up tonight?