I know there’s been a HUGE lapse since my last blog, but those of you who follow me on social media know I haven’t been idle. I mentioned in a facebook post yesterday that a psychologist said in times of stress find SOMETHING you can control, and control the hell out of it. I can control the kitchen. So I’ve been cooking. A lot. 

It’s not like I haven’t had time to write, but somehow when we were called back from Mexico early and corona virus cases in Massachusetts began to surge it finally hit me what a huge deal this was, and, as in the past with other overwhelming emergencies (think 9/11) I have a tendency to go to ground. I circle the wagons. I watch too much news. I provision for weeks, I get things delivered, I bake bread, I make comfort food. And if there were a time to drink, this would be it. Cocktail hour, with appetizers, happens nightly. Steve says it’s “the funnest time of the day”. 

I’ve discovered some wonderful local resources I hadn’t used before, like Weatherlow Farms in Westport for meats and the delivery service from New Bedford Farmers’ Market. I’ve discovered the wonder of microgreens! Southcoast Direct Source Seafood has organized scallopers and lobstermen to sell direct to the public, and Fisherman’s Market has online ordering with pickup from a refrigerated truck. My freezer is packed to the gills. I have eggs from my cousin Claudia’s chickens. I can hit the grocery store once a month. I got this down! Even the liquor store delivers.

Meal planning in a pandemic is not much different than cooking on a boat, and I have some experience with that. Fresh and perishable first, stuff on the brink goes into soup, long lasting veggies go last. Even if I feel like broccoli I might need to eat salad just to use the ingredients up. It’s amazing what you can put in an omelet. My pantry has lots of staples, so it’s been easy making marinades and sauces, which I’ve been really into. Yup, comfort food.

I planted a garden, since we’ll be home to water it. Perhaps it’s something to keep me busy, perhaps it’s therapy, or perhaps it’s just something else to obsess about. 

I pray for a vaccine, as my wanderlust can only be tamped down for so long. We watched an Indiana Jones movie the other night, which ended in Jordan at Petra. I cried. Steve asked what was wrong. I told him it scared me that we might never get to see all the places we still want to go. I’m usually a brave and adventurous person. The thought of a virus that attacks the breathing is my worst nightmare. The thought of one of us catching it and the other not able to advocate for the other in the hospital compounds that.

Things are now gradually opening up in Massachusetts and in neighboring Rhode Island. I’m not sure I’m going to be comfortable going to a restaurant for a while. A quick shopping trip in a mask I can do, spending hours in a crowd unmasked while eating I’m not so sure about. It will happen eventually, but for now I’m happy cooking, eating, and spending “the funnest time of the day” at home, safe with my husband. Mask at the ready. 

Cheers. 

Deborah

Some of the things I’ve made, and a recipe for a great sauce for fish and vegetables:

Click on image to view full size

Caper sauce for fish