CELEBRATING CA

Happy Birthday, Grandpa!!!

Today is CA's actual birthday, so we are making a very special meal tonight--Macaroni Grill's Pasta De Pollo Al Sugo Bianco. WOW! Not a difficult or expensive recipe to accomplish, but lots of chopping and steps. It requires several cutting boards, at least 3 pans, and a choreography of timing.

CA grills the chicken breasts on the George Foreman while I mix the yummy asiago cream sauce and boil the water for pasta. We also preheat the oven to warm the La Brea baguette. He chops the pancetta while I mince onion and garlic, then fight with the fresh green onions (Such a sad offering for the first days of Spring. These grocery stores don't even try! A new pet peeve of mine, this pre-packaging green onions in a sealed plastic bag and then when you get them home they are overly mature, and this recipe asks only for the tops... wilted as they are.)

The butter is melted, the onions and garlic are sauteing. We add the pancetta and chicken, then deglaze the pan with cream (!). When the pasta is perfectly al dente, we toss it with that mixture, rewarm the asiago cheese sauce and toss it together. Topping it off with minced fresh parsley, we retire to the library and (for shame!) eat while watching HGTV and Food TV.

CA rhapsodizes (unless that sounds too gay?) over the pasta, calling it perfection. I love it, too, and am already planning to make it in Omaha over Easter for JE and MA.

I bought CA a black golf shirt and a very nice Calvin Klein shirt. Mr. Fashion did some of his own shopping today and exchanged the shirts for two Greg Norman golf shirts. I'm glad he got what he wanted. The shirts are very, very nice and he is happy.

CA decided that we should postpone making his Dutch/French apple pie until Omaha since we had a very fresh German chocolate bundt cake already on stage. There have been very many desserts around here lately. Good thing I haven't been too tempted. CA hasn't resisted much, but even he can't keep up with my recent production rate.

I have put in almost 40 hours already on this transcription job and am only about 1/3 of the way through the CD. They agreed to pay overtime hours through this weekend. And, I will be working away all of next week, too. I like the work, but it is killing my neck and back. I keep yoga-ing and take many breaks. Still, I have averaged 8 hours a day except yesterday when we took the morning off for our Chicago adventure.