Pulp Non-Fiction

I am easily bored.  I am constantly trying new recipes for dinner.  Often times these creations end with embarrassment all around.

I spend the afternoon dicing and mixing, stirring and sauteing, smelling and grinning at my clever creations and adaptations...only to sit down at the table, open my mouth, and tasting something truly wretched.  Embarrassing...

Sir is staring at his plate.  He refuses to make eye contact with me...well until he is ready and then...You know, the kind where he looks up at me with an ever-suffering sigh and I look apologetically at him and then significantly at Madam Lu...as if to say "it really isn't my fault...how can I cook and raise that heathen you impregnated me with?"  Sir proceeds to "covertly" look around the room for one of those [blank] dogs...hoping one is close enough that he can give it a nudge to his plate.  Embarrassing...

Sir E and Sir M are in various states of confusion, gagging, glaring, "ochy"ing and flicking each other under the table.  Then the negotiations will begin...like two pirates bartering their hard-earned gold for rum...how many bites must they suffer in order to be released from this atrocity of a table.  Embarrassing...

Madam Lu is sitting on the table shrieking.  She has flung the offensive delicacies off of her plastic plate at the dog's face.  She then takes off her left sock...the one she has been wearing all day, walking in who-knows-what...and stuffs it in her mouth.  She grabs her sippy-cup of milk and sucks it down at once ending with a gasp of air.  The sippy-cup is then flung at my head, just to make sure that I know how displeased she is with this sad state of affairs.  Embarrassing...

Once in awhile my "new treat" is so bad that the a fore mention dog, upon eating the refuse thrown upon her snout by the baby, will immediately turn around and sniff under her tail.  She then runs to the door to go "out".  Humiliations Galore...   

Tonight was NOT one of those nights.  Tonight we had Caribbean Lime Chicken, Spring Salad, and Raspberry Gingerbread Trifle with Custard and Raspberry-Vanilla Whipped Cream.

 Sir told me he does not like limes but LOVES key-lime pie.  It takes FOREVER to juice key limes.

 There are 2 kinds of people...those who pulp and those who do not.  If you do not pulp you are not a foodie...you prefer McDonald's and Macaroni and Cheese out of a box...with the powdered cheese...

 Ready to marinade...lots of pulp...fresh thyme and garlic was added to the lime juice (thyme from your herb garden is still good in the winter, just dig away the snow and delicious, fragrant thyme will still be as usable as in July) i cut slits into the chicken and filled them with scallions, butter, s&p.

 Oh soooo wonderful!

 Dessert is 3 major steps.  1) make the gingerbread batter from scratch.

 Ready to bake.

 2)Homemade Vanilla Custard....oooooh this is gooood! (letting it cool covered prevents 'skin' from forming on the top)

 Let the layering begin.  Gingerbread/thawed raspberries (no sugar added so they are nice and tart!)/custard...again...

3)I made raspberry-vanilla whipped cream with the juice from the frozen berries.  Madam Lu LOVED it!

 Madam Lu and Sir M were racing to see who could "clean" the bowl the fastest...

Top the trifle with the whipped cream and fresh berries...cover and refrigerate for a few hours so the flavors can "meld" 

 glamorous...

and DELICIOUS!!!