Food for thought

As I was puttering around in the kitchen tonight, glass of wine on the counter and music filling the air I realized how much food, and the preparation of it, makes you think.  Not just about the task at hand, but of your life in general.  Slicing potatoes for some reason drifted me back to the days on my grandpa's farm in Western Maryland...back in those days, we were the ones up harvesting the food we would eat that night.

Tonight's dinner was another successful baby step.  For the most part it turned out beautifully, but I know there are ways to make the flavors explode in your mouth....rather than just taste good....does that make any sense?

I started our meal by sautéing some garlic, mushrooms, shallots, thyme and rosemary in butter and a little olive oil.  I wish there was a way to smell a picture, because oh my goodness I could not believe how lovely this made my house smell.....

I pulled the little 3lb free range chicken out of the fridge and sliced through the pieces of skin creating tiny pockets.  I then tucked small slabs of butter followed by some the above mixture into those yummy pockets....

Once the bird was "stuffed" I poured the remaining mixture over the entire top.....

I roasted the chicken in a bag at 350 degrees for about an hour and a half...probably could have done a full 2 hours, but I was too excited to feed the family....important note; if you have a teenage boy, make sure to get something larger than a 3lb chicken!  LOL!

For sides I pulled out some organic cauliflower and diced up some organic purple potatoes.

I simply boiled both of these until they were all nice and ready for their party outfits.  The potatoes were dressed up with some butter, cilantro, sea salt and a hint of pepper.  The cauliflower was made into a delicious mash using my kitchen aide mixer and then I manually stirred in some shredded cheddar cheese.  The finished product was pretty darn tasty!

The left over chicken carcass and the frozen vegetable scraps I had been keeping all week, went into a pot and are now simmering away for what I hope will end up being some amazing stock.  I've never made stock before!  I'm so excited lol!!!

So that was tonight's dinner.  Pretty easy to do and it really turned out nice.  Now I'm off to bitespirit's house next door for some wine!  She has a stock going as well and it's always such a fun time watching her cook...definitely inspiring : )