Adventures with Mrs. Doodlepunk

[bunsofaluminum]

Mrs D, that's great advice!

It's one of the things I remember from McD'ing before: bake 10 lbs of potatoes at the same time and have them ready to eat; cook a vat of rice and refigerate; big pot of stew and separate into serving sizes and freeze or refrigerate...so, right now I have three baked potatoes left from last week's 10 lb bake off, and about a gallon and a half of brown rice that is my base starch for this week, and made a big pot of split pea soup yesterday and using it, etc.

Yep, I'm getting it rolling, for sure maybe my jeans size will go down quickly...hope so!

blessings, HeidiW

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

Well. I have done semi-OK with eating. Late at night is my downfall. I will go no farther but will say that I found some Guiltless Gourmet chips in the cabinet.

My cousin's husband came through surgery OK and seems to be doing well. Things were as expected, it was a big malignant tumor and they removed what they could.

Today I plan on making another big vat of something that I like. Never did get to the tomato/basil/garlic/balsamic vinegar pasta thing yesterday. Maybe that will be lunch today. For breakfast I had a big bowl of chop suey with brown rice.

Which brings me to my next topic, cooking brown rice. I have used the pressure cooker lately and I don't like how it turns out. I know others have had stellar results with cooking brown rice in a PC but I just don't. It turns out one big heavy gluey gob. Definitely not fluffy. Cooking in just a pan on the stove is OK but makes a big mess and is ruining the burner on my stove. No matter how big the pot, I still have bubbling over even cooking on low heat! I'm wondering if a rice cooker would be similar, still bubble over and make a mess on the counter.

I am really curious about how a rice cooker would work and if it would work well for me. I really want the induction one with the GABA cycle, but having trouble justifying spending 300 bucks on a rice cooker!

[Letha.]

I am really curious about how a rice cooker would work and if it would work well for me. I really want the induction one with the GABA cycle, but having trouble justifying spending 300 bucks on a rice cooker!

I bought a Zojirushi a couple of months ago. I’ve used it every single day and not had one moment of regret for spending the money. The things I like best about it are that you can set the timer to have hot rice ready when you wake up or when you walk in the door. And it stays warm in the cooker all day long. You can put on a pot of rice in the morning to have for lunch and then just leave it in the pot for the rest of the day to have for snacks and/or for dinner. Plus you can make your cherry pie oats in it. I just made a batch of zucchini oats in mine yesterday using the porridge setting.
Letha

[f1jim]

You wrote:
"I found some Guiltless Gourmet chips in the cabinet. "

Since I am one of those people with zero willpower, I can't have these around. I mean zero, period. I couldn't eat just one if my life depended on it! So what's the story? Your significant other sneak them in? Left over from your non-McD days? Or did you actually purchase them for consumption on a shopping trip. I really am not trying to berate you, just trying to understand why they would be purchased given your resolutions to not eat that cr*p? Not sure how much you are like me but if I were to buy them I would have worse feelings of guilt than eating them! It's something about spending money to worsen my health.

I know one thing, the title of the chips couldn't be more wrong! Just as a personal note, they compress very nicely in the trash!!! It's easy to make baked chips at home to satisfy those late night cravings. I am a nut for chips and salsa.
f1jim

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

Gosh, Jim, you are so right. About them being total junk. Did you know that the salt free ones that Dr. Esselstyn has in his book as being no-oil-added NOW HAVE OIL in them? The added MORE oil the rest of them too. The customer service babe I talked to said the reformulation was based on market research and taste testing. I told her they should have asked ME.

These are in the house because Mr. D loves them and buys them. There are not supposed to be where I can find them. He paid for his sin already.

Oh, and they are not compressed in the trash, I put them in the compost bin! The joke here is that "we will eat it later" because it will become soil amendments by next year.

I am sitting here balancing the checkbook and figuring out if I can order my Zo right now. I think I can, I think I can.....

[f1jim]

I have a regular rice cooker that runs near nonstop but the ones with the gaba cycle intrigue me. I had a sample of the rice at SactoBobs and it was delicious. Maybe we can go in halves and each have it part of the year!
f1jim

[Birdy]

Mrs. Doodlepunk, if you want to cook brown rice on the stove, which is my preferred method, go to the hardware store and buy a "flame tamer." It's a round steel double sided vented gadget with a handle that you put on the burner to reduce the amount of heat under a cooking pot. It eliminates the boiling over, overcooking, and scorching. I started with one flame tamer and now have two. Rice cookers are also great but I think you do need a good quality one and I don't like cooking in aluminum which most of the rice cooker baskets are made of.

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

I did it. Got the biggest one with the GABA cycle from Pleasant Hill Grain because they are the BEST people to deal with. Fabulous customer service and you almost never see that any more.

So now I wait. <tap tap tap tap> Got the spot all cleared for it. I needed to reorganize my kitchen anyway. I plan on it being right next to the stove and ready for constant use, so it is living on the counter top. Mr. D will not be happy, but it's what he gets for buying Guiltless Gourmet chips and leaving them in my cabinet.

[sksamboots]

Mrs. D. Your doing great. Keep on keepin on

[ncyg46]

you are doing great...I want one with the gaba cycle but it won't fit in the clothes closet...doesn't everyone store their kitchen stuff in the closet????

I went to World Market today to look at their cast iron enameled dutch ovens that were on sale...I can't even lift the suckers let alone store them! Did good at old farts day at Goodwill though...got a chrome cooking/bakers rack with a wine rack and hooks in perfect condition for 20% off price which is now storing more plants!!!!!! I could have waited til Saturday for half price but I guarantee it wouldn't be there....

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

Nancy, our family had an old Gem travel trailer and we lived in it on weekends. 5 kids, two adults, one dog, in a 19 foot trailer with an added in bunk bed made out of a door. My mother had a sewing machine that we kept in the closet, also the stuff for cooking over the fire and the potty chair were in the same clothes closet in the bathroom! I guess the potty chair didn't stay there long, we got the thing when my baby brother was 2 and he didn't use it all that long. I guess. Hard to remember that far back! But I guarantee you my mother NEVER stored a rice cooker in the closet!

The first I ever heard of a rice cooker was when my aunt had one when they lived in Hawaii. They used a lot of rice there, not many potatoes back in the 60's in Hawaii, I guess. I remember how weird it was to eat rice then because I just wasn't used to it. And today I spent more than 300 dollars on - a rice cooker. Sheesh.

Anyway, I eat a lot of rice now and I can't wait to get my new cooker!

Tomorrow I'm heading out with the Geeky Son to a museum. It will be an All Day Trip which means baked potatoes, salsa and chips, apples - OH OH OH! - the Honey Crisps are out! Oh happy day! and bananas and maybe some refried beans for on the way home. Yes, and a big tub of watermelon to eat with our fingers!

[ncyg46]

i used my 3 cup yesterday with wild blend and lentils and it came out great. I keep some of my pots in the closet along with the rice cooker! We only have a 4 ft. closet and 3 drawers for both of us.....I usually don't buy clothes but we did great at Goodwill today! I got an 88.00 Rx bathing suit (tankini) for 7.99 with the tags still on it and a black lycra skirt to go over my old one. I realized I needed something to take to Florida with me!

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

I think Goodwill and other thrift stores are so cool. I never thought of shopping at those places until a friend showed me a really cute outfit she got and said it was from a thrift store. Then I started shopping and really did well. Some of my "new" jeans that are lined up in the closet in the smaller sizes are ones I found in thrift stores. New and not worn at all.

Well, if Jim is reading, I made a big bag of tortilla chips today and ate some for supper. I have been thinking about why I ate the GG ones last night. I was (and still am) very tired and stressed and feeling at the end of my rope and food is comforting. Especially forbidden crunchy food. So it's gone, and I have a new rice cooker coming in the mail this week! Hee hee. In going through the snack cabinet to clear out the forbidden foods, I found several old stale bags of Fritos, potato chips and Doritos, the boys must have put them there after a bike ride trip with Dad as leftovers. I know it was the boys because they were not clipped shut. No one misses them, since they've been there for months and no one ever finished them. I need to have speaks with them about what is OK to buy in stores and what is not. Or take along their own treats from home! Isn't that why we bought them the nice bike baskets? Hmmm?

Tomorrow I think I will go unlock Mr. D's work vehicle and see what he has hidden away in his snack box. I buy corn cakes for him that are OK and legal, but still high calorie density. He has been known to sneak in some really bad stuff and keep it out there where I don't know about it. It would be just a shame if a bag got left open and bugs got in or it got stale, or if mice ate it, wouldn't it? I'll see what I can arrange.

[ncyg46]

i have to admit I still buy baked tostitos...they have 3 gms of fat in them..It's sorta passing with 1 fat calorie more than the total calories and 1 sodium gram over. Aside from spending my entire life in here cooking, these are the best I have found....and Ed has his baked Ruffles...same info! if I could find corn tortillas here that don't have a 3 inch list of ingredients I would buy them and make my own. The Mission tortillas i sent to Jeff for his presentation is what happens here...they are just not around. In California I used to find corn tortillas with corn, lime and water as the ingredients. Here I can't even pronounce most of the ingredients!!! And I have tried the healthier stores and they turn green after three days in the fridge. I give up!

[bunsofaluminum]

hm, I have some corn tortillas that have like six ingredients:

stone ground corn, masa flour, water, guar gum and potassium something as a preservative.

is guar gum not good? I gotta assume the preservative isn't terrific, but I bought these because of the simple ing list. and they're tasty (eating one w/garlic powder and salt for a snack...)

???

heidi