Hip, More about Bugs, Bowling, Plastic Surgeon

So I went to see this 16 yr old kid today (Thursday) about my hip. No really, he did not look old enough to be a doctor, let alone a surgeon. I told him so too. However, I liked him and he was very good at showing me and telling me all the problems. I do not need a hip replacement, hurrah, he said the pain I had had a month or so ago was a flare up caused by my fall before Christmas, but he proved to me that I have bursitis in my upper thigh/hip area (that is the pain I have suffered in bed at night) and we have arranged for me to have a cortisone injection in a few week's time. I think that must have been weighing on my mind, along with a few other buggy things, because I felt very much better, mentally, after we left. We then went bowling and I thrashed the old man. Woo hoo.

I had a phone call in the morning from Terry, the manager/owner of the real estate company which is returning.

runs this building. She says the pest control people are telling her that we are not co-operating with them and doing what tenants are requested to do before they come in. Really. I wonder what all that stuff was in plastic bags, not to mention all the pictures taken off the walls and switch plates removed, dresser drawers emptied, ornaments removed from all the rooms and so on? As I pointed out to Terry, we did what we could but as a couple of oldsters etc. some things were difficult to do anyway. We have spent over $150 on the laundry machines in the last few weeks. amazing how quickly $2 a time mounts up. That's for both thedryer and the washer so if using them both, $4. But we are not co-operating? I actually think I am beginning to get on top of the job anyway and once I spread the diatomaceous earth around (Matt says I like that word), I firmly believe we will not need them any more. I spoke to a woman in our corridor who has the same problem and she tells me she hired a company to do all the vacuuming which is necessary etc. and it has cost her $700 which she is going to claim from the landlords. She'll be lucky. I told her my cleaners would have done it for a lot less. I think she was nuts to pay that kind of money. I have also been told, by the same neighbour, that the guy where it all started, across the hall, is not coming back anyway. Not sure how true that is. The super says he

Friday Matt has to see the plastic surgeon about his skin cancer again. Should be fairly easy to deal with this time, unlike when his leg had to be treated. I assume they can do it in their own clinic instead of going to the hospital If only we had known how dangerous the sun was 70 years or so ago. He will not be seeing the same doctor as she is on pregnancy leave I gather, but this one looks just as attractive on line. I wonder if she too will be a disappointment when we see her.

I kind of invented a dish for supper on Wednesday. It was an amalgum of two or three recipes but it worked pretty well. Looks a bit messy but I am no photographer I'm afraid. It was pretty good to eat though.

Chicken in Foil

2 leeks, washed and cleaned
1 carrot
Seasoning
2 chicken breasts
Thyme
olive oil
2 Tbs yoghurt
1 Tbs Dijon mustard
wine

1. Prepare two pieces of foil to be made into packets. Big enough to cover everything above in two packets. Place on a cookie sheet with the edges turned up.

2. Slice the leeks in rounds. Use mainly the white parts. Slice the carrot. Divide the vegetables between the packets and season.

3. Season the chicken with salt and pepper as well as some thyme. Place each  breast on top of the vegetables and drizzle with a little oil.

4. In a small bowl, mix yoghurt, mustard and wine (not too much of the latter, just enough to make it spreadable) and cover the chicken breasts with the mixture.

5. Close up the packets tightly so they don't leak and place in a 375°F oven for 25-30 minutes. Unwrap carefully to ensure the steam doesn't burn you. Place the chicken on a plate and tip the vegetables and juice over top. Arrange more prettily than I did.

Servings: 2


Have a great day
 

Almonds, Bowling, Chicken in Foil.

Churchill nailed it when he said "two nations divided by a common language". I posted a recipe for salmon last week which called for slivered almonds so I used slivered almonds and they burned. I then ran out and asked Matt to get me some more when he shopped. I got slivered almonds but to me they were chopped. I checked it out and what I call slivered almonds are actually what North Americans call sliced almonds so maybe this is why the almonds got burned. I now will have to remember what name to use. The one's on the left are American slivered, and on the right American sliced or what I mean when I say slivered. After all this, I still need some sliced almonds anyway. I keep nuts in the freezer. They last forever.

Whoopee, I actually had a really good game on Wednesday bowling league for a change. So often it I only bow well on Thursdays lately. But today I did well. Our team is still in 3rd place though. We don't seem to be able to pull up any higher.

Wednesday night I kind of amalgamated a bunch of recipes I have been getting lately. The idea was cooking in foil which always appeals, less cleanup. What I did was peel and slice a large carrot, sprinkling it over the bottom of each piece of foil, then some sliced onion, and some tiny peas. Everything was seasoned. I also added the zest of a lemon to the packets. I then took a chicken breast for each of us which I slathered with a mixture of Dijon mustard, olive oil and salt covering both sides. After that I placed lemon slices on top of the chicken and closed up the packets. I cooked them in a 375°F oven for 25 minutes. Not long enough. I think 35 would have been better. I had to microwave them to finish them off as the chicken was quite pink. However, the end result was delicious. Me being me, I forgot to take a picture. This kind of looks similar.

I could make a mess of these brownies right now. I have really gone overboard for the salted chocolate salted caramel stuff going the rounds at the moment, I think it is delicious. There are a lot more recipes where this came from.

Salted Caramel Brownies

Take indulgent, fudgy chocolate brownies to the next level with a layer of salted caramel running through the centre of each bite


BBC Good Food Show

Makes 16 larger or 32 bite-sized brownies

Ingredients

200g (7 oz) unsalted butter, plus a little extra for greasing
100g (3 1/2 oz) chocolate, 70% cocoa solids
100g (3 1/2 oz) chocolate, 50% cocoa solids
397g (14 oz) can Carnation caramel
1 tsp flaky sea salt, plus a little extra for the top
200g (7 oz) golden caster sugar (just regular sugar for us)
4 medium eggs, at room temperature
130g (4 1/2 oz) plain flour
50g (1.8 oz) cocoa powder

Method

1. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Grease then line a 23cm square tray/bake tin with baking parchment. Melt the butter in a medium pan, break in all the chocolate, then remove the pan from the
heat and wait for the cubes to melt.
2. In a small bowl, mix 175g of the caramel with 1 tsp sea salt – it will loosen up. Put the rest of the caramel in a large bowl with the sugar and eggs, and beat with an electric hand mixer or balloon whisk until even.
3. Whisk in the chocolate and butter. In another bowl, combine the flour, cocoa and a good pinch of table salt, then sift this on top of the chocolate mix. Beat briefly until smooth.


Have a great day