Cookin’ N Bookin’

I’ve been getting back in the habit of cooking my own meals lately as opposed to eating out. Wit the old roomie moving to NY, I needed to make some cutbacks to accommodate the cost of absorbing all of the rent. My eating habits were an easy target as I tended to eat out a lot. Anyway, I’ve been getting back in the habit of cooking. With that comes old favorites that I enjoy immensely and are relatively easy to make. A big one is a simple but versatile dish called Hobo Casserole. You can use any ground meat of choice, (the leaner the better), fresh frozen assorted veggies, V-8 or tomato sauce, and biscuits. Brown the meat, seasoning to taste. Layer in casserole dish, cover with mixed veggies and then layer w/biscuits. That’s pretty much it. Cook at 300 degrees for about 45 minutes. Its a very versatile recipe as you can change up the meat, veggies, and the sauce. The trick is to make sure the casserole dish is full to the top with just a tiny bit of room to fit the biscuits; literally just enough to prevent the biscuits from cooking over the edge. If the dish isn’t full the biscuits will not cook all the way thru and will be gooey underneath. ^[1]An alternative is to cook the biscuits in a similar size dish and layer’em on top afterwards. If you are a cheese fan you can layer in a cheese of your choice between the meat and veggies. I swap the sauce from V-8 juice to tomato sauce, or my favorite, Campbell’s tomato soup. The tomato soup has a tangy sweet flavor which mixes well with the meat and veggies. I also love to add chopped okra with the veggies. DE-lish! It isn’t very ‘sophisticated’ but makes a filling and healthy meal.

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And speaking of roomies, I can’t remember if I told everyone but I found a new roomie. ^[2]And no, we haven’t slept together. As you know, I’ve been very ambivalent about searching for a new roommate. The thought of living with a total stranger has been very unappealing. It took me 2 months just to start putting feelers out. I’ve been very cautious as I’m looking for a good fit vs just having a body to fill a void. Home is my no-drama zone and I wanna keep it that way. Anyway, he saw a blurb on my Facebook profile and showed some interest. We’ve known each other for several years. He dated my ex’s best friend back when my ex and I were still together. While we aren’t overly close, I know enough about him to feel comfortable having him as a roomie. He also has a stable job, his own wheels, and he doesn’t smoke. All pluses in my book. lol Seriously though, I’m looking forward to it. I think he is a great guy and don’t foresee any drama. Unfortunately, this came about because he is breaking up with his partner. I guess he has reached his breaking point as he was originally gonna move in on the first but has already started moving his stuff. ^[3]Lucky for him, I’ve already had the priest over to perform an exorcism after the last roomie. heehee He seems to have a positive attitude about it though. Oh, and he also rides a motorcycle so we definitely have that in common!

He is supposed to finish moving in this weekend. I’ll be in LA visiting the boy so he’ll have the whole place to himself. I’m quite sure he’ll be fine. lol  For my part, I’m excited. As ambivalent as I was, the apt has felt empty w/o someone around. I can turn my attention back to paying down my debt in anticipation of buying a condo around years end.