It rained today. Not the big, fat Texas raindrops that I’ve become accustomed to, but skinny drops that freckled my light grey suit as I scurried into the office. And now that we’ve had our little rainstorm, if you can even call it that, I’m hoping the metaphorical raincloud that has been hanging over my head will be whisked away.
I tend to be slow to embrace major life changes, so instead of wasting more time worrying about why life-after-law-school hasn’t instantaneously conformed to the fantasy I had in mind, I’ll focus on other things in order to give life at the firm time to fall into place.
Other things like comfort food.
My new neighborhood doesn’t hold a candle to Austin when it comes to eating out–especially casual dining. But this isn’t bad as I’ve always want to spend more time learning how to cook all order of delicious things from scratch. Since I have the time and some spare change to spend on groceries, there is no time like the present to pull out my pots and pans (and my Cook’s Illustrated app) and give it a go.
I started with a cream of tomato soup. I love Campbell’s canned tomato soup, but Cook’s Illustrated describes it as “cloyingly sweet, not unlike a cream of ketchup soup.” Well then! If CI thought their recipe bested Campbell’s, I would give it a try. As with most soup-from-scratch recipes, there were a lot of dishes involved, but I judged my effort victorious on multiple fronts. First, and very importantly, my blender behaved itself and did not propel scalding tomato puree all over my kitchen. Second, the roasted tomatoes and sauteed shallots filled my apartment with a delicious, homey smell. Third, the soup was excellent with a flavor that was much more interesting (complex, in a good way) than my usual bowl of Campbell’s. Of course, the recipe produced more soup than one person could eat, so I now have frozen leftovers at the ready.
A few days later and with Valentine’s Day just around the corner, I was in the mood to bake. I tried my hand at Tartine’s morning buns (hat tip to the Baking Barrister). If you like cinnamon-sugary rolls (and, really, who doesn’t?) this recipe is an easy win. (I should clarify that while it’s an “easy win” for tastebuds, the recipe takes a fair amount of time and effort to prepare.)
Practically speaking, I should focus my efforts on cook-ahead, great-as-a-leftover recipes that I can whip up on the weekends and warm up on weeknights. Any recommendations?
Read the full article: Little Raincloud Following Me