Oddest inspiration for a recipe...

Among the 152 meals I’ve made since the pandemic began are several new and throwback desserts.  The family favorite dessert came about in an unusual and roundabout way…

Back in 2019, I wasn’t really a Columbus Blue Jackets fan. My husband was mildly interested because of a close friend who is a dedicated supporter.  I’m not sure why I didn’t get on the bandwagon because I LOVED to ice skate and regularly skated while attending graduate school at Ohio State.  The Chill had their practice time right after my skating classes.  My husband and I even set up a rink in our yard when our daughter was little.  She was an OSU Women’s Hockey fan and regularly attended games with her dad.  With working full time and spending countless hours in pools supporting our own high school, then college athlete, I just didn't think about adding another pastime.

At some point last year, I was in the living room with my husband who was watching a Jackets game.  Afterward he watched a show, Blue Jackets Conversations, with two players being interviewed at Cap City Diner in Grandview.  I was only half listening to them. I was probably knitting. One of them was Canadian, and mentioned some kind of pie.  While I didn’t absorb everything he said, I did get that there is a Canadian pie that he really likes.  I admit that I was curious about it, but didn’t listen closely enough to get any details. Again, knitting. My husband assured me that they re-air those Conversations shows regularly, and that I'd see that episode again to listen more intently about the pie. 

I began watching the games with my hubby, and found I really enjoyed them.  (The last time I watched the NHL was in high school in Reading, Pennyslvania.  A boy I liked was a rabid Flyers fan, so I watched with him. Ewww.)  I watched the end of that Jackets season, and the playoffs. I faithfully tuned into the Blue Jacket Conversations waiting to see the episode with the Canadian player (who I now know is Pierre-Luc Dubois) talking about the pie.  Not once did they show that episode! 

At the beginning of the new season (2019/2020), I was officially a fan and continued to watch for the Conversations episode with PLD.  My daughter graduated from college and moved home and joined us in watching the games.  It became a long-standing family joke that every time we saw the Conversations show, it was with Boone Jenner or Nick Foligno.  Mostly Boone Jenner.  No sign of Pierre-Luc. Honestly we still laugh about it now. 

My daughter works at Whole Foods to squirrel away money for graduate school.  She freaked out about working with the virus out there.  One day in May she went to work worried, as usual.  I wanted to have a surprise treat ready for her when she arrived home.  I had a pie crust in the fridge left over from a chicken pot pie recipe and decided to use it.  I searched the internet for Canadian pies, and found one that sounded good and seemed to match the limited information I had about "the pie."

I made it. Quebec Sugar Pie. We were all absolutely in awe of how delicious it was.  It might now be our favorite dessert.  The recipe is rather simple, especially if you use a pre-made pie crust.  It’s basically brown sugar, maple syrup, and heavy cream. The filling has a creamy light caramel flavor and a velvety texture.  We were surprised that a few uncomplicated ingredients could produce something so flavorful.  I chose to leave the top crust off, and was happy with more filling flavor than crust flavor.

I’m not sure if this is the pie Pierre-Luc was talking about, but thanks to him we have a new family fav.  You really should make this pie. Seriously. 

Here’s the recipe:   https://www.ourhappymess.com/quebec-sugar-pie/

Go Jackets!

Cooking...

As we enjoyed a meal at one of our much-loved restaurants, Harvest Pizza, Clintonville, on Wednesday, March 11, we had no idea that we should have been savoring every moment of the experience.  Life was about to change.

With Covid 19, came dramatic changes for everyone.  In our household, it meant that I would stay home from work because I’m in a high-risk category, my husband would work from home, and our daughter would be here with us, working and deciding on graduate school. 

Before virus (BV), we ate out…often.  Going to restaurants was our favorite form of family entertainment.  After virus (AV), we eat at home. That means, my contribution to the well-being of the family is cooking. 

BV - I cooked several times a week.  That consisted of dinners and at least one big breakfast on the weekend.

AV - I cook on average 7.6 times per week.  That includes some dinners, some lunches and breakfasts.  In the 140 days since the hammer dropped, I’ve cooked at least 152 meals.

BV - We ate out or had takeout two to three times a week. Many more if you include Starbucks runs.

AV - As a family we’ve chosen to be pretty careful, and have only gotten takeout food about 10 times. (Yes, Harvest has been at least  three of them!)

To cook that many meals for my family, and more importantly, to keep the menu interesting, I’ve had to find plenty of inspiration.  Some of my sources for inspiration are surprising, but according to my family, I’ve found a way to keep it interesting.

With no job, I’m able to devote lots of time to menu planning and organizing.  My husband shops for the weekly grocery order because I’m limiting my time in public.  I organize the list according to the aisles in the store to make it easier for him. It's all time-consuming, but worth it for us.  There are no, "what should we cook for dinner," or "what takeout should we order," circular conversations.  It's all planned and simple throughout the week.  I do ask for input from the fam when I make the menu.  But they largely leave the decisions to me.  This system isn't for everyone, but it works for my family.

While we have some regular favorite meals, I try to make new recipes regularly.  I’ve also tried not to repeat recipes too often. There are 22 meals that have been good enough to repeat.  Three of those meals were so well-liked, I've cooked them four times during the past four months.

BV, I thought I was a pretty good meal planner and a decent cook.  AV, I am a much better cook, and I am so much more organized!  Because this is the one thing I can do for the family, I’ve tried to do it well.  Our fruit and veg consumption has doubled, and I’ve incorporated meatless meals.  I have to shout out to Cooking Light. I subscribed to the magazine years ago, and still receive a quarterly publication.  Between those recipes and the Cooking Light website, I’ve found most of my meal ideas.

Here are three meals that we’ve repeated four times!

Green Curry Fritters with Cabbage Slaw – This is a light, flavorful meal that we love.  The fritters are made of ground chicken breast and the slaw is great with them. I generally don’t serve a starch with this combo, but rice or slider buns for the fritters might be good. It's a Cooking Light Recipe at:  https://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/green-curry-fritters

Garlic-Miso Pork Noodle Bowl – This is another Cooking Light recipe that’s become a favorite in our home.  Find it at:  https://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/garlic-miso-pork-noodle-bowl

Miso-Butter Chicken is a Blue Apron recipe.  If you’ve never tried this meal delivery service, it might be worth a trial.  We used it for a while when it was fairly new.  While we LOVED the food, they still hadn’t worked out some of the delivery issues at the time.  For our lifestyle (both working, some odd hours), it worked beautifully.  It was convenient and the quality of the ingredients was amazing.  You can find this recipe on the Blue Apron website:  https://www.blueapron.com/recipes/miso-butter-chicken-with-freekeh-sauteed-carrots

I have several posts in the works covering a variety of topics like sweets during the pandemic, gardening, throwback recipes and crafts.

Welcome to Cia's Garden Shed!

Starting a blog was not something I ever thought I would do, but lately, I’ve felt the urge to write. There have been so many changes in our lives, and some days I don't feel like I'm adjusting well.  Other days, I'm very excited about a project or meal.  In either case, I find comfort in writing about it. 

My name is Cecilia, but I named myself Cia for my blog and Etsy store.  I always wanted a cute nickname.  I grew up known as "Ceily," which sounds like Sealy of the posturepedic mattress variety.  I never liked it.  In my twenties, I met another gal named Cecilia, and everyone called her, “Cia!”  What a lovely nickname. It didn't remind people of a mattress. I was envious.  So, as a twenty-something, I dumped Ceily for Cecilia, and today adopted Cia.

The blog is named after the old white shed in the shade of our back yard.  I like to think of this e-space as a collection of thoughts, ideas, projects, and recipes...kind of like the old shed with its collections. 

I had been working retail for the last several years.  It was sort of a new thing after working in education.  The virus came along and changed my way of life.  I’ve decided not to return to work because I’m in a higher risk category, so I'm staying home for a while.

Being at home full time is an adjustment.  I stayed at home with my daughter until she was in fourth grade.  But it's a different situation today.  My daughter is 22 and at home, my husband works from the dining room table eight hours daily.   While I try to stay busy with cleaning, painting, cooking, gardening, and crafts, I still struggle with being at home for the foreseeable future.  

My goal for this blog is to find some normalcy for myself in the routine of writing regularly.  The bonus of this blog would be if it inspires, moves, comforts or makes a reader laugh.


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