Holy Mackeral !

Our local grocery establishment is usually a treat in the early a.m. before throngs of people rush in and lines are long. I'm frequently the only customer if I get there before sun-up and it's fun to serpentine through aisles of stockers and bread men. If it's a week day I'll be on a mission  because I've run out of something so I don't take time to ponder the deals, just in and out, get it done and back to work.

Today I had a sugar emergency, so with  30 pounds of it tucked neatly in my cart I was walking to the checkout when a heavenly light shone above a sign that advertised 'Canned Meats and Fish'. As sugar emergencies go, it wasn't exactly dire, I'm having a slow pastry week, so I detoured to see about these potted meats. As I perused the offerings I noticed cans of soups and stews, beany type which would usually excite me but today, not so,  nothing to write home about.

I decided to cast my net on the other side of the shopping cart and what did my eyes behold but several cans of mackeral in soybean oil no less, and I was just talking about it yesterday. I bought one!  I could barely contain my excitement, but first I had to stop in the veggie aisle for tofu. I was like a kid on a sugar rush when I checked out, 3- 10 pound bags of sugar, 1 can of mackeral in soybean oil and 2 boxes of tofu, extra firm.

I needed the tofu for my newest taste sensation, tofu mayonaise. It's delicious, and I thought it I would try it with the mackeral if I got up the nerve to actually open it.  I still have a can of sardines in the cabinet I bought last summer that I'm afraid to open. I walk past it every so often with good intentions but I just can't bring myself to open it. I suppose it's some type of unnatural fear but then it's all relative just like my fear of beets and popcorn that doesn't have butter on it. My gentlemen husband once questioned why I fear real sardines but not fake mayo, yet I eat fake meat but won't go near real mayo. I plead the fifth.

Eventually hunger got the best of me, as it does every couple of hours and my mind went to the mackeral. I opened her up preparing for some horrific forensic type smell and there wasn't one. I poked at it a little with a fork and it was nice and flaky so I tasted a bit of it and it was mild and kind of good. It's not nearly as fishy as tuna so I prepared my tofu mayo and made a little salad out of it. I put it on a whole wheat pita pocket with roasted red peppers and romaine lettuce and it was a delcious taste sensation! 

With another recipe in my aresenal of healthy meals I was pretty happy with the day's findings. The recipe below is very subjective. You can pretty much add whatever you want to the Tofu to make mayo but you absolutely have to add olive oil. I often add horseradish and capers when I have them, of course my favorite capers are in rock salt which isn't great if you're watching sodium but rinse them off first and you'll be fine.
Another great addition is sundried tomatoes and basil. Have fun experimenting.

All the best, Kate

Tofu Mayo
Silken Tofu- Extra Firm -6 ounces
Olive Oil - 2 Tablespoons
Garlic- 2 teaspoons
Onion - 2 teaspoons finely chopped

D. Fish. Antsy

At a recent Drs. visit my  physician mentioned that they're seeing more and more vitamin D deficient patients this year than ever before.
"Moi", I interjected sternly " certainly, not, there isn't a ricket to be found anywhere near my person"
"True that, but you are deficient. Oily fish my friend, and a pill, that's what you need. Get outside and walk around in the sun."

I won't lie, the whole thing made me crabby. Walk around in the sun? It's gray everyday, the ground and the sky are the same imperceptible hue. I used to adore snow globes but now that I live in one, not so much. This IS the Winter of my discontent, thank you Shakespeare (or Bacon).

Take another pill ? I already have migraine maintenance twice a day,  and cholesterol pills, now another? It seemed crazy and I began to think the most intelligent thing to do would be to stop going to the doctor.

I walked into the local chemist to fill my new script and was horrified when the nice girl behind the counter not only recognized me but knew my address.  I had unwittingly crossed a line into some sort of medical zone that's reserved for OLDER people who require numerous prescriptions and special boxes to put them in.

I could end up that way. It starts out quite innocently I would assume. At first it's just a box to keep all the pills in one place, then it's a box just to sort one day from the next. From that point it moves to morning, noon and night and the next thing you know you're hooked on a box labeled days of the week, hour by hour and you have a registered nurse on the payroll to sort them out for you. I swore an oath then and there on a stack of diabetic magazines that I would never let that happen to me and handed over my script for vitamin D. The counter girl quietly slipped one of the magazines in my bag for me. I was appreciative.

I'm in the market for oily fish, sardines or mackeral and things to do with these oily fish. Salmon, is a staple for me, I love it and eat it frequently. I think Costco has fantastic Salmon and I usually just toss it in the oven with a spritz of olive oil, dill and a sprinkle of Kosher salt. I have no idea where to get mackeral, it sounds British.

I walked around in the, ah, sun and enjoyed it very much this morning as well as my breakfast of spinach and egg beaters. I can't help but feel a little bit antsy though, I'm anxious for the ground to be less slippery and the sun to actually peek through. A blue sky would be nice!

All the best, Kate