February 11, 2018

Sunday Morning

It's winter again in the north state. Not actually active winter, just threatening winter. Great day to do nothing. Too bad, we're not doing nothing!

My border collie, Rex, jumped up to catch a ball yesterday and sprained his back again. Not looking forward to two weeks of no throwing of balls or ropes. If you've ever had a border collie than you can understand that the next two weeks are not going to be fun. Rex needs to be busy. He gets a little neurotic if he isn't. Time for a prescription of doggy downers!

I made tomato soup from scratch yesterday. Not completely from scratch because I won't buy tomatoes in January, can't make me! Winter tomatoes are nicely red on the outside, shady color of green inside. They're totally lacking in juice, not to mention flavor, well, except for ethylene gas. Winter tomatoes are great for playing fetch with Rex, they're more solid than a tennis ball; have a good bounce to them and won't crack or splat!


Soup base was three large cans of organic chopped tomatoes. Onions, garlic (need I say lots of garlic), bell pepper, fresh cilantro, 1 very small, slender serrano chili, ground cumin, ground cayenne and a bunch of fresh basil. I let it cook on low heat for several hours. Just before serving, I tossed in a couple of extra stems of basil.

Not last year but the year before, The Guy gave me a Cuisinart Smart Stick, a hand held blender. Last night was the first time I used it! ("and Darth Vader said, "Whaaa!").



I can't believe I have had this awesome little tool in my kitchen and not used it! I love it! What else can I grind!!!!!

I blended the whole pot of ingredients with the fresh basil for a real smooth consistency. I had a loaf of Artisan Herb Olive bread. I cut a third of the loaf into small cubes, toasting them in butter and garlic salt, for croutons. The rest of the loaf I sliced, spread one side with butter, then toasted in the pan that the croutons had been in. OMG! Dinner was great and I have enough for all day today, so we can graze 'at will'! 

Later today, we are heading to visit with folks, do some grocery shopping for them, and The Guy will do a couple of chores around the place. I have to say, my sister has been a god-send. She has kind of taken the reigns for caring for Mom and Dad for the past couple of weeks. I miss being with my dad but Mom can be so mean that it is difficult to be around her for any length of time. I've been a very poor example of handling the situation with grace. I just kind of bailed on the responsibilities. Took a much needed (and dare I say 'deserved') Time Out!

It's strange that at a stage in life, when I've finally defined boundaries for what behaviors I will allow  that my mother is smashing the boundaries to tiny bits! Maybe having such a crazy mom is the reason it took so long to define boundaries.

Send some positive energy my way kids, I'm going in!!!!



Have a great Sunday and enjoy the Winter Olympics. 



12 comments:

  1. my niece swears by her blender stick. have a good week!

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  2. I used my old hand held blender so much, I wore it out! It is perfect for soups, isn't it? Sorry about how your mom affects you. I get it. Enough said. -Jenn

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    1. Perfect for soup, can't wait to discover other things! We may be eating a lot of "cream of whatever" in the near future!

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  3. that soup sounds amazing, made me very hungry, I am a new follower of your blog so I don't know if your mum has dementia or if she was always mean but I will stay and read some past posts to understand better,, sounds like you deserve a break for sure,, take care,,

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    1. Soup was pretty dang good! Still is!

      Mom has always been mean, aging has just made it more intense.

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  4. I hope all goes well with your visit. Enjoy that delicious soup!

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    1. Visit went well. Mostly!

      Going to go enjoy a cup of soup right now!

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  5. what a fun to read your humorous writing dear Toni!
    you are FABULOUS writer indeed ,hold the mind of reader completely and enlight it with your delicate irony and terrific humour :)

    our tomatoes are extra juicy in summers as shopkeepers feel compelled to sell them in cheap prices
    in winters tomatoes are like very nice well behaved gentlemen and incredibly perfect for soup

    i was good caretaker of my parents but worst about it that i was not with them when they needed me MOST and this guilt is eating me up(feel this way) Father was silent and easy to look after but mom was so tough and difficult to handle ,i stayed with them as long as i could but i had to got back to my own kids who were younger then some years back i think 5 years! and then they died in my absence terribly as my younger sister was not much sensitive about them and brother was not taking responsibility

    life has everything now but this thought that i could have done more for them is scorching my soul as they were who brought me to this world and took each possible care about me when i was little and helpless

    i felt sorry for Rex hope he get better soon and be able to catch ball soon

    hope you enjoyed this delicious soup
    i agree that food on slow heat though takes long time but tastes greater

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  6. Thank you for your sweet comment about my writing. I guess I was just born with the tendency to be reverently irreverent!

    Taking care of aging parents does have it's challenges. You should never feel guilt for having placed the care and nurturing of your children as your primary mission. Kids need mothering. Absolve yourself of all guilt, it doesn't help you, your children or your marriage! I believe it also cause the souls of your parents to not be peaceful if they are concerned about your guilt. You made the only choice you responsibly could make.

    You were what we call 'the sandwich generation'in the U.S. Caring for aging parents and children. I am lucky. My children are all grown, with children of their own. I am not forced to make a choice.

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  7. That soup sounds delicious! The fresh tomatoes this time of year do suck. And poor Rex. I hope he recovers quickly.

    I'm so sorry about your mom. The whole situation must be quite difficult to handle.

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    1. Rex is doing okay today. Must be all the love!

      Not that I have anything against marijuana, but when I think of all the greenhouses NOT growing tomatoes it makes me sad!

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