Sundry does the mazurka with Various

[lagilman]

I have very little of writing-interest to report, as today, alas, was mostly given over to dealing with various idiots from the State and the Medical Insurance industry. I am pleased to say, however, that all the dragons appear to have been slain, via dogged persistence and the downloading of Stupid-Slaying forms from various web sites. Tonight, I get to go back to work. Yay!

Cat report, for them as were wondering:

Pandora is back up to her pre-Trauma weight, finally (a few years ago she was down to 5 pounds, from stress. She's now a much healthier 8 pounds). There are some concerns about her aging kidneys, but otherwise, all is well. She was remarkably well-behaved, even when they took her temperature (and really, who can blame a cat for protesting that?).

Boomer, after earning many "oh such a handsome big fellow!" comments, discovered that he is indeed a big fellow -- 20 pounds of it, in fact. *facepalm* The diet food clearly is not working. Draconian measures are being instituted (he should be, by my reckoning and the agreement of two different vets, about 17 pounds). Otherwise, though, he's hale and healthy and quite enchanted the staff in his usual charming-slut way. They were also amused by the fact that he was quite happy on his leash, although they agreed it's really the only way to deal with him -- if Boomer decides he wants Out, you'd better have a line on him!

And under the heading of "I don't know quite what it is but it tastes really good," in my hunger tonight I threw together the following meal, as reconstructed from memory:
Toss four skinless chicken thighs into the dutch oven, brown them in olive oil. Add a cup of long-grain rice and a couple-three sliced garlic cloves, a pinch of dried sweet marjoram, some paprika, and a smaller pinch of saffron threads thrown in with some more oil, and cook until they become translucent. Add a cup of chicken broth. Simmer until the rice and chicken are cooked all the way through, then add 1/4 head of shredded green cabbage. Remove from heat, fold in a few scoops of nonfat greek yogurt. Serve.

I'm not sure this should taste as good as it does. Also? OMG filling, yes. We'll see how the leftovers fare for lunch.

Comments

[sfmarty.livejournal.com]

You just might be luring me into learning how to cook

[lagilman]

just think of it as edible alchemy, and you get to be the mad scientist...

[fakefrenchie.livejournal.com]

What was Pandora's trauma? And why does Boomer have to diet? He is only 3 lbs overweight. Poor kitty. Boomer, I feel your pain.

[lagilman]

And why does Boomer have to diet? He is only 3 lbs overweight

The percentage of excesss weight those three pounds represents could lead to dangerous heart-strain and other medical problems as he ages. It's not as though we're trying to make him into a sleek, petite little thing-- just drop the excess off his solid bulk.

[fakefrenchie.livejournal.com]

But still…he will hate dieting. You tell him he has my sympathies.

[mizkit.livejournal.com]

Wow, that sounds really good.

[desperance.livejournal.com]

under the heading of "I don't know quite what it is but it tastes really good,"

It's a pilaff. Nom-nom-nom.

[lagilman]

Nah, not a pilaf. A casserole-ish thingy, maybe.

[desperance.livejournal.com]

Chicken and rice, cooked in stock? By me, that's a pilaff...

[lagilman]

That's a pretty broad standard, including as it does half of my stews, most risottos, and a handful of other recipes that have 'pilaf' nowhere in the description!

I suppose I tend to think of a pilaf as a drier preparation; cooked in broth, yes, and occasionally with meat, yeah, but served up as a base for something else, or as a side dish, not used as one ingredient in a larger, more liquid-based product... (it's all in the proportions -- rice is an ingredient in this, not the end result!)

[desperance.livejournal.com]

Ah, the dangerous hinterland between one clear definition and the next - 'ware peppermines!

I may have misunderstood your process, because yes, I too think of pilaf(f) as fairly dry, at least to the point where all the liquid is absorbed by the rice (but, one cup of rice to one of stock? I think all that's going to be slurped up, isn't it?). But also, for me, the pilaf(f) is the whole dinner, not a side dish. Risotto is different twice, once by process - with the liquid added little by little, rather than all at once - and once by ingredient, the particular varieties that benefit from that process. Stews I wouldn't think to put rice in...

As you say, though. All in the proportions. And a sense of proportion is the thing most often lost, across the internets...

[allaboutm-e.livejournal.com]

Yay for healthy kitties. Grey Mouser has had a chest cold for what seems like forever now ... she sounds like Darth Vader underwater. Hoping it will finish clearing up Real Soon Now.

[arouraleona.livejournal.com]

::shakes head:: a cat on a leash... wonders will never cease.