Saturday night's dinner

                Saturday I was busy with a sewing project and other chores on my to-do list.  Since I’d not written it on my “Chores List”,  I’d forgotten to get something (meat)  out of the freezer for dinner on Saturday night.  I was half-way avoiding the kitchen, as I was feeling stymied about what to cook for dinner.  Mixed with the bafflement was guilt, as The Maverick had been up since 2.00 am to start his 4.45 am shift.  After finishing at the baggage hall at the airport, he had come home, eaten a quick lunch and then changed clothes to spend a few hours painting a couple of sheds for some friends.  This meant that I knew, he would be hungry as well as tired. 

            I apologised to The Maverick when he returned home from painting.  Meanwhile, I found the quickest thing to defrost in the freezer—bacon.  I checked the cupboard and found three staple ingredients I keep there; tinned chopped tomatoes, tinned sweet corn and thinned kidney beans. 

            The fridge held a two-pint container of yogurt that was closing in on its use-by date.  The fastest way to use a large amount of yogurt is to use it as a substitute of buttermilk and bake with it.  Cornbread—been thinking about it was a couple of weeks.  So, what goes with cornbread?  Bean soup…bacon and beans….chilli soup…okay…now I had an idea.

Cornbread was quickly stirred up and slid into a hot oven.  Now for the impromptu dish. 

I chopped up the bacon, letting it cook in my largest skillet.  Then I chopped up: purple/red onion, green onions (spring onions), four cloves of garlic, bell pepper.  When the bacon was browned, I chucked in the chopped ingredients and stirred it.  (The smell made my mouth water!)  When the onion was translucent, I stirred in the tomatoes, beans and corn.  This dish was feeling very Tex-Mex…so what to add?  I found some sweet paprika (smoked) and gave a big sprinkle. 

I let the “stew” simmer until the cornbread was done. 

I found myself thankful for:  a husband who will eat most things and is not demanding of a meat-and-three-veggies meal every night; standardised staples in my pantry that can be used in a multitude of ways; enough cooking experience to go from near panic to inspiration. 

I wish you could smell and taste it—but a photo will have to do.  I’d already cut the cornbread and put it on plates.  The bowls are ready for filling.  And like any normal, hungry person—I grab my camera for a photo! 

I wanted a photo for the blog.  

I hope your dinner is good!

Serving Jesus, Author of our faith

Lady Helene