FRIDAY
I just finished a post at work, tidied up my desk and texted my man to ask if we were meeting at Vik's for some cold beers right after work. He texted me back saying he was in an accident, he's okay and to call him when I got the chance.
When I first read his text my heart dropped into the very bottom of my stomach.
He said he was fine but is he really fine??
My fiance rides a motorcycle, so him getting hit by a car is serious. Thankfully, he wears steel-toe boots and the asshole clipped the side of him with very little damage to his actual body. Because of the steel in his shoes, he didn't lose his foot. Instead he has an extremely sore foot and dented motorcycle with a really bad oil leak. Driving in rush hour through San Francisco usually means you aren't going that fast. Given these circumstances my fiance didn't get seriously hurt.
I left work early because I had no idea if I was needed. Dealing with the police, tow trucks, insurance and on-going traffic kept him a bit busy. When we finally spoke on the phone he said he was fine and the tow truck would have him home in a few hours.
I asked him if there was anything I could do in the meantime until he got home.
"Can we please eat some meat tonight?"
Yes. Yes we can.
We had two new york strips medium, baked potatoes with sharp cheddar and yogurt instead of sour cream, creamed collards, sauteed mushrooms and jus. Red wine. Chocolate brownies and Tillamook vanilla ice-cream.
If you get hit by a car, you get these features.
SATURDAY
Steel cut oats spiel: Love them.
It's like brown rice and grits had a baby. They're easy to cook, good for you and have great texture.
So here I took a picture a little later than I should have. Basically I sauteed some leeks, carrots, baby portobellos and garlic in olive oil on low. Once the veggies were cooked until just soft, I toasted some steel cut oats in the same pan.
Then I ladled in homemade vegetable stock, one ladle at a time. Much like risotto.
Vegetable stock is the easiest thing in the world to make and you can rarely mess it up..
Throughout the week, collect trim and scraps from cooking.
Examples: mushroom stems, leek tops, onion peels, carrots, tiny cloves of garlic that are too annoying to peel and chop, etc. Throw in a few bay leaves, peppercorns and fennel seed.
Simmer for 30 minutes and strain.
The end result of my savory steel cut oats is about here...
They take around 15 - 20 minutes to cook. You want to simmer on low and stir frequently. I forgot to take a picture of the finished dish. We ate this with cheesy, soft scrambled eggs with asparagus and kale and multi-grain toast. I drizzled everything with some California olive oil and cracked black pepper.
The rest our of Saturday was spent putting up a chicken wire fence so our dogs and our neighbors dogs stop trying to attack each other through the feeble wooden fence. It's a shame they aren't friends. I wish they were but I think the fence dividing them causes more aggression because they can never meet. I'd be willing to let them meet but I need the neighbors to agree. And they seem to like their privacy.
To be extremely honest, I really thought we might get some kind of casserole or a bottle of wine from one of our neighbors when we first moved to the neighborhood...
Is that crazy of me to think or hope for? Is this just a southern thing? I've made quiches and casseroles for my new neighbors back in Georgia...
Seems our neighborhood likes to stay divided by fences.
We're only three months in and I have to keep reminding myself of that a lot.
I count down the days until my sister and her family come to stay with us for a few days.
It'll be nice.
Saturday for dinner we went back to Vik's and sat out on the barge with some cold beers. I couldn't help but tear up for a minute, sitting next to my man..
I'm so thankfully he wasn't seriously hurt in his accident. I'm thankful we're able to sit out on a barge and drink beer without a worry. We have each other and that alone is more than a lot of people have. I'm thankful I found my soul mate and that he is with me for one more day and hopefully, for the rest of my days.
SUNDAY
We woke up early on Sunday. A lot of stressful worrying started to brew in the house. Just normal stress after an accident when your main ride to and from work is out of service..
A lot of annoying phone calls back and forth with insurance and adjusters not working on Sundays (understandably).
We can't let this stress ruin the day. It's Sunday Funday!
Leave your worries at the door.
There was nothing we could do about dealing with the accident. No one of any authority was working and to keep trying to get a hold of someone was pointless.
We decided to get out of the house and get some fresh air.
Before we got to the beach we stopped off in Larkspur for Food Truck Sundays with Off the Grid and got some Peruvian sandwiches from Sanguchon. Amazing!
I was little preoccupied with Hank on the leash and people everywhere to get a good picture. Plus the sandwiches were messy and too good to put down.
But here is a cool picture of a bee doing it's thing..
Rodeo Beach
When we first arrived we made our way onto the beach and quickly realized we were one of the only ones with clothes on. All around us were tan, naked bodies laid out all over the beach. We're not against nudity.. we just weren't exactly dressed correctly and kept walking.
We hiked through sand, dirt and numerous stairs leading us all over the hills and cliffs to different parts of the beach. It was breathtaking.
We finally reached a nice and quiet beach right next to the Golden Gate Bridge. We really couldn't have asked for a better hike.
Being his first time on a beach, Hank wasted no time letting loose.
Aaaaaaannnnddddd for dinner, I made chicken and rice that I'm pretty proud of.
It was just one of those meals where the flavors were just right.
I am a big fan of baked rice over stove-top rice or even using my rice maker.
For me, I do brown rice and cover with filtered water just above the first knuckle on my index finger, cover in foil and bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes, give or take a few.
As for last night goes, I seared chicken I fabricated into eight pieces and then baked them in the oven to finish cooking in the same pan I cooked my brown rice in (raw brown rice and seared chicken).
I made some chicken dashi using homemade chicken stock, a quick saute of red cabbage, snap peas and asparagus and made a sauce with soy sauce, sesame oil, raw honey, rice vinegar, pinch of salt, white pepper, toasted sesame seeds and raw sugar. I used the sauce for the baked brown rice and poured the chicken dashi over the chicken. We were a bit sun burnt and sore from the hike so a nice, home-cooked meal like this was very comforting.
There is no moral to the story of my weekend.
I'm just thankful now more than ever for what I have and live day to day.
It's all about today. Right now. Not yesterday and not tomorrow.
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