Eating to Live!

Cooking for ourselves

Some days, when I come home from a tough day at work, no one at my house feels like cooking. Often I don’t get home until 6 p.m. or later, which means not only do I have to jump right into cooking as soon as I walk in the door, but by the time it’s finally ready, on the table and we eat, it will be close to 8 p.m. before I can settle down for the night. It’s true that my husband cooks our dinner much of the time, but he has his off days as well. Is this a problem? Not usually.

As long as I have an idea of what I plan to make for dinner before I walk in the door, cooking for my husband and myself is a good way to unwind and relax after a tough day. Besides, if we do decide to go out, which we sometimes do, it will be the same time, if not later, that we get back home anyway. So why not spend that time in my own kitchen? I can turn on the little countertop television and watch the news as I chop vegetables and get the seasonings together. Besides, no one cares what we eat more than we do.

Restaurant food is great, but the chef’s that prepare our food in their stainless steel kitchens, only want to make it taste good so that we will remember it and will want to come back. That taste is often in the form of lots of butter, seasoned oils and deep-frying.

One of my favorite things when my granddaughter comes to visit is to cook together. We often make cookies and cake and she is just coming into the age where she can use the stove a bit and start to learn how to use a sharp knife safely and with supervision. During their holiday visit last winter, we made breakfast nearly every morning and this child, who normally picks at a Pop Tart in front of the television each morning, was actually sitting at the table with the rest of her family eating a balanced breakfast of protein, grains and fruit. And the fun part was, she helped create that healthy meal.

We’ve all been conditioned to believe that a home cooked meal meant love, motherhood and security. Even restaurants will have on their menus, a “Home-cooked” section to appeal to those who remember our favorite comfort foods; foods reminding us of pleasant things or childhood. For my husband, it is hot roast beef sandwich with mashed potatoes and gravy. For me it is breakfast or a big Thanksgiving turkey dinner.

I like doing my own cooking because I am able to control what we are putting into our bodies. Even my anti-veg husband has eaten vegetables he has no clue about because they were served mixed with other things, seasoned and hot, looking and smelling too good not to try. And cooking isn’t just for the mom in the house. As I mentioned many times, my husband does a lot of our cooking. Families with children can cook together for some quality time. In many households, dinner is the only time that some families are together anyway. Why not make it more enjoyable by enjoying what you are making?

Wednesday began early with breakfast at my office. I wanted to enjoy breakfast with my husband, but some days that isn’t possible. That’s no excuse; however, for not having something healthy. I opted for a dish of instant oatmeal, although I would have rather had my regular bowl of cooked rolled oats with fruit and nuts. My oats were accompanied with a cup of tea.

Lunch was from Subway, with lots of extra vegetables and oil dressing.

Although hot soup is more of a cool weather meal and Wednesday was a particularly warm spring day, my husband made a nice pot of chicken noodle soup with vegetables. He used the leftover grilled chicken from our Sunday dinner. I don’t keep food for more than three days and this was the last day for the chicken before it would have either gone into the freezer for another time. The grilled flavor on the chicken gave a unique flavor to the soup and it was probably one of the best chicken soups he has made. I will be bringing leftovers for lunch Thursday. To accompany the soup, I had a slice of my homemade wheat and oat bread. Making my own bread ensured I am not eating any extra preservatives or sugars that are usually present in factory-produced bread. And besides, I love making bread by hand.

Later in the evening, I treated myself to a dessert of a cup of hot tea and a 100-calorie package of Girl Scout cookies