Really. I’m an excellent speller. Yet I’ve managed to spell it “dilemna” for as long as I can remember. I had ABSOLUTELY no idea that it was spelled “dilemma” until I glanced at “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” on my nightstand the other day. How stupid do I feel? I honestly thought the word had a silent n.

Magic Middle cookies made by the boyfriend. I don’t think I’ve ever had these before. I should have been eating them all along as they’re yummy. They’ve got a peanut butter center and the dough itself is a little bit chocolate and a little bit peanut butter. They’re a little plain looking in person but they’re very photogenic (obviously).

I had the whole weekend off! We originally intended to go to the Outer Banks camping…even if it was going to be a little cold. Then we decided not to go. Then we decided to go. The flip-flopping lasted until about 1:00 pm yesterday afternoon when we determined that we couldn’t possibly get our act together. I really shouldn’t have been camping this weekend since I did *just* get over the flu and don’t want to get sick again.

So we stayed home and cooked. A lot. Yesterday the boyfriend made the Magic Middles and some super scrumptious white rolls with honey in them. They were both pretty near perfect. I made eggplant parmigiana and chocolate pie. Today I made potato salad, Sicilian sausage soup and pumpkin cinnamon rolls. I think we might have made too much food…but I hadn’t really cooked a thing in 9 or 10 days and I missed it.

For the record, I don’t like eggplant. I only learned yesterday that the boyfriend does like it. Somehow or another, I got it into my head to make eggplant parmigiana for dinner despite my disdain. Weird, aren’t I? My logic was that I’ve tried a bite of the dish at a few restaurants over the years and sometimes it was almost tolerable, so if I made it myself to my own exacting specifications, I might like it. I was correct. I peeled and thinly sliced the eggplant and salted it to draw out some of the moisture. Part of my dislike for eggplant may stem from having had slices that were way too thick and wet and mushy. So I solved that problem. I dredged the slices in Italian breadcrumbs with lots of Parmesan cheese mixed into it and lightly pan-fried them. The slices were then layered with a garlicky tomato sauce and unhealthy amounts of mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. I baked the whole thing until it was bubbly and golden brown. Then we ate dinner and I declared my eggplant parmigiana to be better than my lasagna…and I make good lasagna. I’ll definitely make this again and again. So…I guess I might kind of like eggplant now. It’s pretty astonishing how many things I’ve learned to like in the last few years.

Other than the cooking, I haven’t done much this weekend. We played Scrabble and the boyfriend beat me by a point despite my very strong lead at the beginning of the game. He also kind of taught me how to play poker as I’ve never quite learned. The last time I played it, I was drunk and kept trying to fold just to get out of the game. I now understand why that didn’t work.

I kind of want to knit a Koolhaas hat right now. Alison’s is so pretty and I just saw another gorgeous one on someone’s blog. I could probably use a kind of quick knit right now. Maybe I’ll go in the yarn closet tomorrow and see if I’ve got anything good for it. If I do, I’ll make it. If I have to buy yarn, I won’t. I should just finish the Chevron Scarf already. It’s so close to done yet I haven’t picked it up in a couple of weeks. A car trip might be necessary for completion…fortunately we’ve got one of those next weekend when we’re heading up to DC for a couple of days.

More tomorrow…with more pictures of the food I made this weekend.

Tweet This Post