biscuits

I've held onto this photo for quite some time hoping to do a calculation of how much it cost me to make these biscuits. But now, my receipts are jumbled together as I've been too tired to keep them well organized, and it would be a great challenge to get an estimate. Maybe I'll update this with the facts around tax time when I don't have a choice but to go through all of them.

All that being said, this is one of those recipes that is worth a fortune to us. I frankly don't care how much they cost (but with only 5 ingredients, don't expect it to be much). They are so easy and fast to make and are completely delicious. One accidentally dropped into my soup, and it was still wonderful!

I have a confession to make. I'm not as much of an adventurer when it comes to food as most people think. In fact, I'm really boring and conservative. So much so that I thought about adding to my New Year's Resolutions that I would try a new food every month or so, but was too chicken to do it. Well, maybe I should have added that resolution because already in one week I've tried two new foods! First were the cheese curds that I used in a recipe on Sunday. Then came the lentil stew pictured above. I based it on the gluten-free recipe from Lisa Hardinge, but couldn't follow it explicitly because I lacked potatoes, etc. As proud as I am of these successfully delicious creations, I cannot take all the credit. After all, I didn't go out and buy the items myself. The cheese curds were a gift from my aunt and uncle. The lentils were acquired when Paul's parents were here. I guess that means I still have a long way to go in the "adventurous" department.

Lentil and Rice Stew

• 2 cups cooked rice, I used a mixture of brown and red
• 1 carrot, sliced
• 1 stalk celery, sliced
• 1 cup lentils, uncooked
• 1 cup onions, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons McKay's Chicken-style (vegetarian) Seasoning
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 cups water

In soup pot, warm olive oil and add onions. If the onions are frozen, they cook faster, so add the celery and carrots pretty quickly after the onions are coated in oil and warmed. Add the water mixed with the McKay's, then the lentils. Bring all to a boil, turn down to medium and simmer about 30 minutes. That's what it took for me, and they were still a little crunchy. Add the rice and warm through. Add less rice or more water for stew.

The sides are not gluten-free. Worthington Skallops are from a can and pan-fried in just a touch of oil to keep them from sticking. The biscuit recipe came from Smitten Kitten and tasted so good dipped in the broth.

At least one of us is back from New York City, and I had a blast. (Paul comes home late tomorrow.) I can't wait to share all the photos and reviews of some really good food. Although, I'm sorry to say sometimes we only had two meals in the day because we were so busy being tourists.

When I got back, I got really nervous cause my fridge was completely empty. I had to make a trip to Publix for some basics like fruit, cereal, and milk to survive tomorrow. My plan for the remainder of the week is to eat what we have in the pantry and freezer because I still want to clean out and restock after the first of the year. Two meal ideas: Wild Rice, Brussel Sprouts (Me) or Peas (Paul), and Butternut Squash; and Pasta in a Garlic-Almond sauce (similar to Gourmet Mag, only the almonds in the pantry are already cooked. I don't foresee it being a problem and will be creative necessary.

The biscuit recipe came from my mother and the gravy recipe came from Paul's mother through her mother-in-law.