Chicken Noodle Stew

Somehow, food has become my hobby. Specifically, making food from scratch and freezing food. I have time now to make my own bread, tortillas, pizza, and other baked goods (like the brownies in my oven right now (but I substituted half of the oil for applesauce, so I don't have to feel guilty, right? (I made the applesauce, too))). I've also been doing research on freezing fresh foods. I have berries, onions, and avocados in my freezer, waiting for my whim. I use to have more, but I've been eating it. I'll make large batches of food for dinner and freeze up individual portions for lunches and quick dinners--soup, burritos, and stir fry have been my last few endeavors. I keep telling myself I will make frozen pizzas, but as soon as I start making the pizza, I crave pizza, so I eat it right away rather than saving it. My bad.

It's been really fun for me to play in the kitchen. Between Pinterest, AllRecipes, and my mom on speed dial, I've had some really great meals. Stephen has been happy with my hobby. He says he likes my fresh bread better than the store-bought kind (though I think that's because I use white flour at home and buy 12-grain loafs from the store). I'm happy I married someone who is not a picky eater. When I ask what he wants to eat, usually his comment is either "food" or "something edible." This is helpful when I tell him we're eating Brussels sprouts, artichoke, and winter squash for dinner. (BTW, the artichoke was weird. Would not recommend.) With my food storage and bountiful baskets, I'm given a lot of creativity and potential. Not everything has been successful, and I eyeball a lot of things so it's hard to write a recipe. However! I did pay attention when I made what I called Chicken Noodle Stew. Well, I kind of paid attention. I still always eyeball spices and change it to taste, but I figured it was worth sharing. So here it is! My first official original public recipe!

Chicken Noodle Stew

2 chicken breasts

½ onion

1-2 cloves garlic

1 TBSP butter

½ celery stalk

2 carrots

2 potatoes

~4 cups chicken broth (or water)

1 cup milk

½ bag noodles

thyme, rosemary, salt, pepper, chicken or beef bouillon

Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. Chop onion and garlic. Sauté chicken, onion, garlic, and butter in pot until onion becomes clear and chicken is cooked thoroughly. Add chopped celery, carrots, and potatoes. Fill pot until food is covered by broth and milk. Add seasonings. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, add noodles and boil for ten minutes. Remove from heat and adjust seasons as desired.

Fun tip! This freezes! I used an idea from Pintrest and froze the soup in a muffin tin for a while. I then transferred them to ziplock bags and put three to four "soup muffins" into each bag. I gave some away tonight to a woman who is pregnant and due next month, so she'll not have to worry about a few meals. 

I think that's my favorite part of my food hobby--sharing it with others. While I love eating what I make, having others enjoy it is where the thrill comes from. Stephen is good at complementing me. Sometimes, he's so good, I worry he's faking it. But when I ask him if he would want me to make it again, he doesn't hesitate--that's my trick into figuring out if he really likes it.

I've been working on perfecting my Mexican Crock Pot meal, and as soon as I get it down to where I can actually record a recipe, I'll share that here too. That meal, I'm more proud of, because it makes a looot of food for really cheap, and it's versatile. Some days, I'll use it in burritos. I've made enchiladas with it too. I love it as a base for a salad. Stephen likes it as a thick dip with tortilla chips. I'm sure I could come up with more ways to eat it. And that's good, because I have two dozen cans of each ingredient as a result of my case lot sale stockpile, so we'll be eating Mexican Crock Pot for a while.

I'm going to keep this post mostly about food because our lives are pretty standard outside of that. I am applying for apartment manager positions again in hopes of working after I graduate. I had a phone interview today for a complex that's really close to campus, nicely modeled, and rents to married couples, so my tenants wouldn't be crazy single people who like to climb onto roofs or rappel out windows or brawl in their kitchen over who does the dishes (at least, I hope not (and yes I've heard of all those scenarios--I witnessed the rappelling myself)). So if you want to keep your fingers crossed for me and maybe say a prayer or two, I would appreciate all positive vibes to get this job.

Well, Stephen wants to go to bed since he has to wake up at six tomorrow for work. The brownies turned out well--Stephen couldn't tell I used applesauce, so it was a success. He's really cute when he's sitting on the chair across from me and works on his computer--especially when he doesn't know I'm looking at him. He's tugging on his ear right now. Or maybe he's checking the hair cut I gave him for FHE tonight. I may or may not have trimmed a little too high around his right ear. If you see him and notice, please don't comment. Stephen also blinks a lot. And he scrunches up his face randomly. And drinks a lot of water. 

Yeah, I love him.