When I can, I prefer to sleep in on Sundays, but I had a mission today, so I couldn’t. I did sleep later than I normally would, but that just meant getting up a little after 7. After a quick breakfast, I drove out to Council in the rain to go grocery shopping. The rain was coming down fast enough that I went under the speed limit for much of the drive.
I picked up a bunch of vegetables for my oxtail stew. I was going to buy some brown sugar, but then I decided to use some of the palm sugar that I had at home instead, because the recipe literally called for “a pinch.” No point in buying a full bag. I didn’t find any fresh thyme or spice berries, so I decided I’d use some spice from my cabinets at home instead. I was working from a recipe, but if there’s one thing Ambrose taught me about cooking, it’s that improvisation often results in something delicious.
I was surprised at how low my total was, but I hadn’t picked up much besides the veggies. I was hoping to find silver polish, but I didn’t see any. My ring and necklace are both tarnishing, and the lemon juice and salt trick doesn’t seem to be helping them long-term.
I got back home just in time for family zoom, which had the addition of one of my aunt and uncle in Canada. That was nice. My aunt is planning to go on a trip to Portugal this spring.
My headache did not go away overnight, though it was much reduced. But after the zoom, it was getting worse and worse, so I decided to go ahead and take another dose of the medication. I’m so glad that I did. That headache was just sucking the life out of me, and once the medication started working, I was able to get motivated for cooking.
The recipe called for three celery stalks, but I had to buy a whole package, so I cut four up for my stew and then chopped up the rest and put it in a gallon freezer bag and froze it. Same with the extra scallions, and the excess tomato paste (the freezing part; no chopping required for that one). I also chopped up an onion, three large potatoes, and one carrot.
I browned my oxtails in a large pan, then put them in my large soup pot while I cooked up the veggies (except for the carrots and potatoes), and then added spices. Then I added the palm sugar and water into the big pot, along with the veggies from the pan and a couple dried peppers for heat. That all got to simmer for a couple hours, and then the potatoes and carrots got to join.
Between stirring, I cleaned both my bathrooms. I’m trying really hard to create a habit of cleaning them both every week. I also cleaned my kitchen counter. I’ve been slowly doing the kitchen; I need to get the floor next. And I got my eggs boiled for the week and my breakfasts prepped. I decided to just do flax seed this week. I’m not sure I like the texture the chia makes in the oats.
I also got my exercises done while the stew was finishing. And I walked to check the mail during a break in the rain before I started cooking. Got a credit card offer from yesterday’s delivery.
The stew was delicious. I think Ambrose would be pleased with it, if I could share it with him. I had it tonight by itself because I’d been snacking a bit before it was ready. But tomorrow I might make some rice to accompany it. I’m hoping the meat continues to fall off all the bones, though I’ll leave the bones in because they’ve got flavor.
My period started today. Between that and the migraine and the migraine medication, I’ve felt very tired. Though the cramps aren’t too bad, so far. Not like they usually are. I’ve gotten a bit of nausea this time instead. At least I’ve got my meals sorted for the week.