Cooking Up a Storm

The thought of cooking sounds so fun: Put on a some music, have a little drink, cook up something delicious while making the house smell yummy.  And some nights, it works out just like that.  But more often than not, I'm tired, and/or I feel hurried and it just feels stressful. But I may have stumbled upon an idea that can help me solve that problem.

One morning last week, I realized I needed to cook the chicken I had thawed a couple of days before, or it was going to go bad.  But I also knew that we wouldn't be eating at home for the next several nights.  I had just downloaded a new CD (Jonatha Brooke's brand new one, in case you were wondering) so I thought doing a little early morning cooking would be a great excuse to listen to it.  I have a recipe I love- a casserole dish that involves chicken.  I figured I could get everything pre-cooked and prepped, stick it in the freezer, and then cook it for dinner one night the following week.
 
One thing led to another, and since I was already making a big mess in the kitchen while still in my robe, I went ahead and made two other meals to freeze for later. When I was nearly done,Fermin walked into the kitchen and said, "Oh my gosh, you're cooking lunch?" (I NEVER cook lunch.  I'm very much against that whole idea. I like going out instead-- it breaks up the day nicely.)  I told him I was just cooking some dinners for next week. He said, "Oh, okay.  Well, are you about ready to go to lunch then?"  I had confused him by my morning cooking, and he had confused me by asking if I was ready to go to lunch in the morning.  Until I looked at the clock and realized it wasn't morning anymore.  I had been cooking for hours!  And it was time for lunch! All that chopping and stir frying veggies, grilling chicken, boiling rice, boiling pasta- and listening to the new CD I downloaded had taken up all of my morning.  Time flies when your having fun cooking, jamming out, and making a mess.

I thought I was cleaning as I went, but I'm pretty messy.  :(

I loved having meals this week that were home cooked, but not having to do it in a rush at the end of the day.  On the days I WANTED to cook (which was actually just one day) I did.  Fish. That needs to be fresh and it doesn't require a lot of prep time.  Easy. But on the days I didn't feel like cooking, hello?!?!  Casserole!

This gave me the thought that maybe I'll do a big cooking session once a week, preparing a few meals to have for later.  And that way, I won't have to clean the kitchen as often either! WIN/WIN.