Playing in the kitchen...

So much for ... well ... I'm not going to mention that again.  If I do capture the missing memories, I do.  If not ... ARGH!

It has been an incredibly tough week.  Friday night, just about at the end of my rope, I jumped in the car to use my Menard's rebate to get a replacement squeaky bone for Amos (his new love that has caused him to leave all other loves in the dust) and some summer sausage for me (my childhood love).

This is what happens if you are drowning in upsettedness, have no one to talk to, and find yourself at Menard's.  Those are butter toffee peanuts, if you are wondering.

It helped to do some retail therapy, even though this is the worst possible time to do that.  The absolute worst.  But that's another catch-up post.  I then came home, still upset, turned on Adele, and played in the kitchen.

Someone mentioned a yogurt turmeric marinade to use on a whole turkey breast.  I thought that sounded tasty and worked out how you could use it on boneless, skinless chicken breast.  I bought the ingredients, thawed some chicken, and experimented.

The marinade I created is comprised of whole milk Greek yogurt, lemon juice, minced ginger, garlic, and onion, turmeric, cinnamon, coriander, sea salt, cayenne, and peppercorn medley.   I put the two chicken breasts in a larger bowl, made sure they were thoroughly coated, with no chicken peaking through, cover them with plastic wrap, and stuck them in the refrigerator for 24 hours.

I didn't eat all day and didn't even think about it with all that contraband that I bought.  I did, later on, think about just stopping eating all together.  Maybe I'll just fade away.  Hunger is yet another thing that I have lost through illness.  It is a very, very rare day when I am actually hungry.  The hunger didn't leave with dysautonomia, per se, but with the theophylline.  Hunger ceased on that medication and when I stopped taking it after getting the pacemaker, the hunger never returned.

Sometimes, I think I've been hungry, but it might be more accurate to say that I have been a tiny bit peckish.  Sometimes, I graze, again not of hunger, but of wanting a distraction from what is going on in my head or to pass the time.  It is a weird existence ... especially when doctor's ask me about my appetite all the time.  Well, no, because there is no need to satisfy hunger with this body of mine!   

Of course, spending so very many hours nauseated, eating tasty food has become a passion of mine.  Almost as if eating something savory or sweet, something that lingers on the tongue and mind, is a way of thumbing my nose at the nausea.  So, I really didn't cease eating.

I do think about that often these days.

Instead, Friday I worked on the marinade and Saturday I tried the first of the two cooking methods I wanted to explore with the marinated meat.

Holy Moly!  This was so darned moist I am still shocked!  I read up on roasting chicken and found a cook who said that the longer chicken is in the oven, the more it dries out.  So, naturally, we should be cooking chicken at higher temperatures for shorter times.  I roasted this at 450 degrees, and then broiled it for a few minutes to finish browning the marinade.

It has a thick coating of flavor.  I sliced it in thick slabs and then cut those in thirds.  Each bite had enough marinade to satisfy the desire for flavor.  And every bite was so moist I had to stop and marvel!  I ate half with the broccoli, a quarter cold from the refrigerator, and a quarter reheated with saffron rice.  I was especially glad to see the cold chicken was still tasty.  I do love me some leftover meat straight from the refrigerator.

Since I planned to use the skewers, Saturday night I took the chicken out of the marinade, cubed it, and then returned it to marinade.  Oh, my!  Marinating for 48 hours!   Tonight, I roasted the chicken on skewers.  Mmmm!  I still think that, next time, I will roast it both ways since it is just me here, but maybe not.  The cubed meat would be easier to freeze.

Gosh!  This really is an impressive marinade!

I ate half the meat with my beloved grilled ginger mustard summer squash.  Mmmm!  I am thinking about having the other half with either Lebanese rice pilaf or flatbread, either naan or gyro.  Or, of course, I could just eat it straight from the glass storage container!

Lots to consider.  Perhaps you could try the Turmeric Roasted Chicken and tell me the best way to eat it!