You know my penchant for experimenting–and I feel it’s only fair to mention the failures as well as the successes. 🙂 The most recent lab project involved spaghetti squash. I decided to deviate from my standard way of cooking this lovely no-point vegetable, which I’ve described in other blogs, and do something different. ( I know you see it coming, but hey, if I followed my regular recipe, it wouldn’t be an experiment, now, would it?) I checked the pantry, where I discovered a lonely can of 99 percent fat free cream of celery soup. Hmmm. Since I’d already had ground beef that day, I opted for the lovely little “chicken breast pieces” I buy from Schwan’s, mainly to add protein. (I wasn’t particularly hungry, which turned out to be a good thing.) I tossed in onion and pre-chopped roasted garlic, my staples–I add them to almost anything I make that isn’t sweet. Having already baked a squash earlier in the day, I seeded it and removed the shell while the garlic, onion, and chicken sizzled merrily in the 2 tsp of olive oil I’m allowed per day–trust me, 2 tsp is plenty–then I dumped in the soup concentrate and my squash “pasta”. The whole thing looked all right, but it seemed a little thick, so I added some chicken broth–I use that in lots of dishes, too–and then some fat-free cheese. I poured the mixture into a glass baking dish and popped it into the oven at 350 degrees, for about 30 minutes.
It bubbled. It looked good. And it certainly smelled good–but, then, what doesn’t, when it contains garlic and onion?
This is marvelous, I thought to myself. (Sometimes I am overly optimistic, I confess.) That is, I believed I’d caught the culinary brass ring until I actually tasted the concoction, that is. It wasn’t horrible–just, well, not good. (Okay, let’s face it, it was horrible.)
All was not lost, however. As I said, I wasn’t all that hungry in the first place and, furthermore, I’d learned something very important–that this combination of foods doesn’t work, at least for me. 🙂 In one way, the spaghetti squash debacle could even be chalked up as a success…
As compost. 🙂
(I told you I’m an optimist.)
I must add another gadget to my list of favorites–my electric omelet maker. A dollop of egg beaters, some chopped and browned onion, garlic (there they are again) and mushroom, a sprinkle of fat-free cheddar, and I’m in business. Breakfast or supper in about fifteen minutes, from start to finish. (Lately, I’ve found that I like to eat lightly in the evening, since I go to bed early, in order to get up early–4 am to be exact–so I can wake up, ride my exercise bike, journal, etc.) And these omelets are delicious.
Now I’m wondering what would happen if I threw in a little spaghetti squash into the next batch…? 🙂
I’m kidding, right? Time will tell.
Tomorrow two more prizes will be awarded, so do comment and do stay tuned. Danielle LaPorte’s THE DESIRE MAP has really inspired me–to ask myself how I choose to feel every morning, when I journal, as I’ve mentioned before, but now there’s something new, and I think it might surprise you as much as it did me.
Tell you all about it tomorrow. 🙂
About Linda
The daughter of a town marshal, Linda Lael Miller is a #1 New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of more than 100 historical and contemporary novels, most of which reflect her love of the West.
Raised in Northport, Washington, Linda pursued her wanderlust, living in London and Arizona and traveling the world before returning to the state of her birth to settle down on a horse property outside Spokane.
