🍴:

Mon – Accidental Meatless Monday feat. mushroom tacos with refried beans, queso, corn, avocado, and pickled radish — possibly Hampton’s favorite veg tacos ever. Also, we took the new TJ’s frozen plantains for a spin in the air fryer. Hampton tried them at work and said they were a bit sweet, so we added chili lime seasoning and an MSG seasoning blend and let them cook a few minutes extra to get nice and caramelized.

Tues – bavette with gochujang butter/walnut/craisin Brussels and haystack potatoes 

Wed – pork schnitzel coated with homemade garlic breadcrumbs made from the last of the white bread bought before my colonoscopy and a Dijon gravy, spaetzle (not homemade), TJ’s kraut, & arugula/beet/goat cheese salad.

Thur – TJ’s new artichoke bottoms filled three ways: tinned calamari with capers and feta; jarred tuna with chopped cream cheese-stuffed sweet pickled peppers and cucumber with avocado; ponzu-dressed avocado and pickled ginger with caviar and furikake breadcrumbs

Fri – pork fried rice

Sat – Asado chicken thighs with cheesy zucchini and potatoes. Adapted from here for thighs and to add potatoes. And cheese. Because Hampton wanted cheese if he had to eat zucchini.

Sun – roasted (not homemade) gnocchi and Brussels with prosciutto and TJ’s truffle dip

🥃: ….how do I have nothing to report here? Is my life a lie??? Will do better next week.

🐶: The puppies were so snuggly this afternoon, I couldn’t even move an arm to get a picture. Thank goodness for reading on my phone one handed. I never thought I’d be an ebook person but I also never thought I’d be a dog person so here we are.

📚: I was so excited to get a NetGalley ARC from a Serious Author, the second one featuring a certain detective, that I immediately got the first from Libby.

Maybe I shouldn’t have.

The second book features the detective — but as upgraded in the Netflix miniseries based on the first book. Different name and a huge backstory that only exists on tv. Besides being disorienting, the plot was even more outrageous than usual and the writing itself was meh. I have read several of this author’s books in very recent history (because they’re always Available Now on Libby), and this felt like a phoned in, ghostwritten version.

Luckily, I had a great palate cleanser today in A LANGUAGE OF DRAGONS by S.F. Williamson. The story takes a bit to develop — I was afraid it was going to not have a chance to complete and we’d be left with an irritating cliffhanger — but once the intrigue and action fully get started, they barrel full speed ahead to a satisfying conclusion. But I won’t be sad at all if this does become a series!

🎭: Friday we had the opportunity to see an original show by one of the UNCSA fourth year drama students who was in the show I got to do there last year.

Chelsea also lives in our neighborhood and occasionally does cupcake pop-ups which is a lovely treat. The kids are all right.