The Rare Chef
January 5th, 2010

The Rare Chef.  That’s me.  And by “rare”, I mean rareLY, not as in uncooked food!

I am great at defrosting, sticking things into the microwave or oven, making one pot meals or meals that are partially prepared already.  My goal is to not spend more than 30 minutes in the kitchen for each meal prep.

As a mom of a toddler and a preschooler and who is also self-employed, I can’t afford to spend hours in the kitchen!  Plus, I’ve learned early on that the longer the meal takes to prepare, most likely it is directly related to the amount of time needed to clean up after the meal!  Eek.

But over this past holiday, I don’t know what happened!  I spent quite a lot of time in the kitchen… cooking!  It is so unlike me, that one night, I even took photos because even I couldn’t believe it!

“Homey Chicken”

I made a roasted chicken and vegetables dish, called Homey Chicken — a recipe I cut out of a food magazine back in the ’80s.  Yes, that’s right.  1980s!  (The recipe article is sooooo old that it has discolored into a lovely shade of yellowish-brown.  It actually cracks me up when I see it!)

Lots of fresh veggies went into this dish.  Yum.

DSC_8336bg

The Secret is in the Sauce

This sauce was what took the longest to prepare.  So many good things went into it.  Prep time for Homey Chicken was 1 hour in total!

DSC_8347bg


Ready to Roast

I basted the chicken and vegetables with the special sauce before it went into the oven, then about 3 or 4 times during the roasting process for a super juicy and tender chicken.  That’s tarragon and orange zest you see on the chicken.

Then I cut up some mushrooms to saute and put in rice pilaf. Mmmmm…

DSC_8348bg


Voila!

My Homey Chicken is out of the oven and ready to serve.  It only took 2 hours to make!  TWO hours.  =:O

DSC_8417bg

Was It Worth It?

Surprisingly, I didn’t mind cooking for 2 hours.  But I don’t know how some people do that every day.  Kudos to all you parents who can juggle taking care of your family, keeping your house tidy and clean, having your own business (or just working for The Man – aka, in the Corporate World), AND can cook meals from scratch every night!

If that sounds like you, please feel free to invite me over for dinner!  I’d like to meet you… and eat your food, of course!  :)

DSC_8476bg

Posted in Personal

Delicious | Stumble It! | Share on Facebook | Become a fan on Facebook | Link to this Post | Email a friend | 4 Comments »

« Previous Post
Next Post »

^ BACK TO TOP ^

4 Responses to “The Rare Chef”

Myra | January 5th, 2010 at 10:34 pm

OMG Annie!!! You have been holding out on me!!!! Looks great.


Ria | January 8th, 2010 at 3:33 pm

Ok, now I’m hungry!


Anneliese | January 10th, 2010 at 2:04 pm

ooh, you must try making your own mac and cheese- reasonably healthy if you use whole wheat pasta and veggies in it, all in one pot, and oh-so-good! Chicken looked great by the way, winter makes me crave roast chix. happy new year!


Greg | January 17th, 2010 at 1:36 pm

I cook every day. You and your family are more than welcome to come eat with me, though it means braving the wilds of West Oakland. It would certainly make for a great chance to catch up after… ummm… more years than I care to say.



Leave a Reply







Comment:



Recent Comments

Google Income Kit: Does your kit show me how to make my very own web ...
Cheryl and Elizabeth: Elizabeth had a wonderful time at the princess hig...
Meghan: Those are fabulous! I just ordered some square tin...
Angela, Livermore: I love the last picture!...
Angela, Livermore: What a great party!...
Derek and Sydney: We had a great time at the party. I liked Melia b...
SIMPLY DASHY PHOTOGRAPHY: CONGRATS Annie! =) These images are so great! Y...
Brenda: That smile in the last photo says it all! Pure jo...
sieviešu friz?ras: its definitely worth a try to change my hairyle an...
amy (san carlos): WOW!! What an awesome party! I wish we had a Super...
Ria: LOVE the handmade tags and favors! How adorable! ...
Ria: Annie...of course, you a natural. Love all your p...
Melia's Dad: Such a fun party for little Melia. She really enjo...
amy (san carlos): so glad that you guys squeezed in a trip before ba...
Hip, Modern Wedding Photograpy | Kim Sayre: Love it! It's also always cool to see how another ...
Hip, Modern Wedding Photograpy | Kim Sayre: Oh, Annie, these are so completely precious! Congr...
Meghan Davis: So cute! I loved weeble wobbles as a kid. Not sur...
Julie (Gigi) & Keith (Grandpa): Wow, thank you so much for allowing us to see how ...



Looking for something specific? Try a search: