small steps

Today is Try A New Vegetable Day at Chez Drool.

So, this morning, I got on Pinterest (uh oh! are you noticing the trend, too?) and saw some clever mom who was putting together something like 34 crockpot-ready meals and freezing them. 

What the What?

Yeah, that's what I said, too.

I read and read and then I decided that her meals were basically for a small family and that I would be 78 years old by the time I finished dicing just the zucchini for that many meals. 

So I started smaller.  I found a couple of cheap, easy, yet healthy meals and made a grocery store list.  I planned on getting ingredients for one meal and meat for three other meals. 

I have a friend, whose name may not be uttered on my blog,

because she gets sort of clumsy when folks mention her online,

and she and a friend of ours would get together on Sundays

and make a gazillion things to serve their families for the week.

I never could get that motivated.  But this morning I thought I'd give it a try.

squirrel!

Oh wait, sorry, I was going to talk about today's new veggie.  Well, I have never bought or cooked this veggie.  It is a root vegetable, apparently a cross between a potato and a cabbage.

It's a rutabaga.
Russian in origin.
Has all the B vitamins and most other vitamin and mineral that your body needs.

 

Isn't is so cute?

well, in an ugly kind of way.

 

It was an impulse buy when I was picking out onions.  From now until the time at which they are no longer in season I will be buying them, because, my stars, there are tons of good looking images for recipes using rutabagas.  Just do a Google search for images of them.  Oh, heck, here's what I'm talkin' about. 

Anyhoo, so I watched some youtube video of a lady named Anita who said that she preferred to cut them into chunks and steam them.  That's what I did this first time.... yummo.

 

So, yeah, super productive kitchen time, because at the same time that I peeled, diced, and steamed those adorable little 'rooter-baygrrs', I also browned ground beef for spaghetti sauce, for shepherd's pie, and made white chicken chili, which my friend Michele (it's my fault if you fall down the stairs since I mentioned your name) taught me how to make a couple of years ago.  Of course, I promptly forgot I knew how to after the first time I made it.  But today, Pinterest reminded me that it was tasty.  

 

Day 2 without Facebook:  better.  still missing catching up on my friends, but my new addiction ain't too shab.  at least i am more productive with the Pinterest crack.  still haven't signed up for an account.