WEBVTT
00:00:22.829 --> 00:00:25.140
Well, the days are getting shorter.
00:00:25.140 --> 00:00:36.210
The air is starting to get just a little bit crispier, and if you still have kids in college, they are happily back at school right now.
00:00:36.210 --> 00:00:37.350
My wish for you.
00:00:37.590 --> 00:00:47.560
So it's time to start thinking about resetting our kitchen and really resetting ourselves for the fall.
00:00:49.167 --> 00:00:56.906
I remember our first fall as an Empty nester, and I was so nervous about it.
00:00:56.906 --> 00:01:00.597
And listen, my son was very happy going off to college.
00:01:00.837 --> 00:01:06.356
My daughter could not wait to go out on her own, but I was so nervous.
00:01:06.356 --> 00:01:14.846
I took a second job teaching at the local high school because I knew that if my days were not so jam packed.
00:01:15.566 --> 00:01:20.546
I knew I was gonna struggle with it, and I remember trying to figure out dinners.
00:01:20.576 --> 00:01:32.066
I mean, there were nights when I think we had a bowl of plain cooked pasta that I put Worcester shear sauce on because that is my comfort food.
00:01:32.516 --> 00:01:37.527
Or we would eat like cheese and grapes if we even had the grapes.
00:01:37.527 --> 00:01:38.757
I mean, it was.
00:01:39.221 --> 00:01:45.191
Such an interesting time because I just lost all will to cook, right?
00:01:45.191 --> 00:01:49.721
I just didn't wanna do anything because I no longer felt that pressure.
00:01:50.052 --> 00:01:54.102
When you've got kids in the house, you feel like it's your duty.
00:01:54.132 --> 00:01:56.591
Even if you get takeout right, you're gonna make.
00:01:56.606 --> 00:02:09.537
Good choices most of the time with the takeout and with the kids gone, it was almost like I didn't have to think about myself anymore and I didn't, you know, I do the cooking in the house, shocker.
00:02:09.776 --> 00:02:12.836
But I didn't have to think about my husband anymore.
00:02:13.137 --> 00:02:17.366
And bless his heart, he was really, really good about it.
00:02:17.727 --> 00:02:44.646
But it's totally, I mean, it's totally okay if you are looking for some mojo again, even if it's just from the summer, because we can all acknowledge things, get a little lazier in the summer and with in the best possible way, and with all of the good, fresh foods that you're just constantly being bombarded with a good piece of bread, loaded with tomatoes and a ball of burrata.
00:02:44.667 --> 00:02:46.706
I mean, that's fantastic.
00:02:46.796 --> 00:03:04.257
But now with the weather just starting to change, it brings us back to this place where we're gonna wanna put a little more effort in, because again, those tomatoes aren't gonna be great anymore, and there aren't any peaches anymore, or they're just the canned variety.
00:03:04.257 --> 00:03:04.646
So.
00:03:05.092 --> 00:03:06.711
The fall is a perfect time.
00:03:06.711 --> 00:03:08.002
I love the fall.
00:03:08.211 --> 00:03:19.012
Just like I love New Year's because I am such a new year, new me kind of person, that it is the perfect time to just bring it on back.
00:03:19.012 --> 00:03:21.081
So how are we gonna do that?
00:03:22.012 --> 00:03:30.442
I've got a couple of practical tips for you on how we're gonna reset our rhythm in the kitchen because we are all about.
00:03:30.687 --> 00:03:32.336
Little wins, right?
00:03:32.336 --> 00:03:41.187
Little doable things instead of that big monster list of, oh, I really have to take everything out of my cupboards and clean that.
00:03:41.396 --> 00:03:42.296
No, no, no, no, no.
00:03:42.326 --> 00:03:43.556
Baby steps, my friend.
00:03:43.826 --> 00:03:50.637
So let's start going in with a little bit of a pantry refresh, right?
00:03:51.651 --> 00:03:58.431
This is when I'm looking at more things like all of those yummy whole grains.
00:03:58.491 --> 00:03:59.812
I love that.
00:03:59.812 --> 00:04:02.722
10 minute farro from Trader Joe's.
00:04:02.722 --> 00:04:04.342
Oh my gosh, that stuff is so good.
00:04:04.611 --> 00:04:06.081
Make the whole package.
00:04:06.262 --> 00:04:17.422
Take what you didn't eat, put in individual freezer bags, pat it down flat and then freeze it so you cook once and you have it for three different meals.
00:04:17.422 --> 00:04:18.411
We love that part.
00:04:18.802 --> 00:04:20.182
Canned tomatoes.
00:04:20.697 --> 00:04:22.646
They have a lot of benefits, right?
00:04:22.916 --> 00:04:26.757
Canned is where we're gonna be at canned lentils.
00:04:27.026 --> 00:04:38.276
Now, a lot of people didn't know that lentils will come in a can, but if you're gonna try those lentil smash burgers, and I know some of you just want, you know, thinking about it.
00:04:38.797 --> 00:04:41.976
Trust me when I tell you I love a cheeseburger, right?
00:04:42.367 --> 00:04:43.927
These are not cheeseburgers.
00:04:43.927 --> 00:04:45.036
This is so important.
00:04:45.036 --> 00:04:47.646
This is not like a meat substitute.
00:04:47.646 --> 00:04:53.826
I don't really do the meat analogs like the Beyond or the Impossibles.
00:04:54.487 --> 00:05:00.757
I am not looking for that, but if I'm looking for something that tastes really good and feels really good.
00:05:01.182 --> 00:05:13.151
Well, that is when I'm gonna get into those canned lentils and doing a little lentil esque smashburger, a little bit of nutritional yeast, and we will talk about that in a future episode.
00:05:13.512 --> 00:05:21.822
But nutritional yeast is so great because it brings this umami and this cheesiness without.
00:05:22.406 --> 00:05:23.846
Being cheesy at all.
00:05:23.877 --> 00:05:25.137
It's really good stuff.
00:05:25.437 --> 00:05:32.427
So we're looking at bringing these things in and of course, you know how I feel about better than Bullion.
00:05:32.427 --> 00:05:42.026
I really like it, especially the lower sodium versions, because you just keep this in your fridge once you open it, and Costco has it.
00:05:42.026 --> 00:05:43.677
It has the chicken, the beef.
00:05:43.971 --> 00:05:45.081
And the vegetable.
00:05:45.081 --> 00:05:47.721
So I typically just buy the chicken and the vegetable.
00:05:47.932 --> 00:05:54.651
I know it's less than$10 for a gigantic container of it, so go check that out at Costco.
00:05:56.021 --> 00:06:04.242
Um, I don't mind buying a big old quantity of that because I use it so much for chicken broth and vegetable broth.
00:06:04.271 --> 00:06:08.682
It's so good to have, and it's gonna keep for months in your fridge.
00:06:08.951 --> 00:06:10.692
But do yourself a favor.
00:06:10.781 --> 00:06:17.442
Keep that little sharpie around so that whenever you open a package of anything, you just jot the date on it.
00:06:17.471 --> 00:06:19.476
It is going to help you so much.
00:06:19.937 --> 00:06:29.297
When you look in and you see that container of sriracha that you bought four years ago, it'll help you stay on top of all of that.
00:06:29.567 --> 00:06:31.937
But don't be afraid if you are just getting started.
00:06:31.937 --> 00:06:33.947
Don't be afraid to buy a little smaller quantity.
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You gotta do what works for you now.
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Believe it or not, I am not a music person when I cook, and I, I don't even like drink a glass of wine when I cook.
00:06:47.922 --> 00:06:56.802
It is so rare that I would do those things, but I've started, when I get in the kitchen, I'm now listening to like a favorite.
00:06:56.817 --> 00:07:07.377
Podcast and I'm kind of getting into the groove of being in the kitchen and having that be kind of the cap on my day.
00:07:07.677 --> 00:07:18.146
So I'm starting to set little routines, and that's something that you can do too, because I have said this a hundred times, you deserve to eat really well.
00:07:18.416 --> 00:07:21.656
That doesn't mean you have to spend an hour cooking dinner every night.
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Ew, yuck.
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Gross.
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Right?
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It just means you deserve to make it a pleasurable experience for yourself and do, if that's music, if that's a mocktail whatever.
00:07:35.307 --> 00:07:43.437
If it's a big old glass of sr, then do what you do to make it something that you enjoy, right?
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Look at that.
00:07:44.576 --> 00:07:46.257
How easy are these little steps?
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So good.
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Now.
00:07:48.401 --> 00:07:50.531
Small batch cooking right?
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Doesn't mean we're gonna make enough, um, tomato sauce.
00:07:55.302 --> 00:08:06.822
Have you ever seen, I'm obsessed with these videos of the Italian families, Italian American families, maybe that the whole family gets together to make sauce and it's like.
00:08:07.237 --> 00:08:20.437
A whole day affair, and everybody has their special job when they're doing it, and grinding the tomatoes and candy, the, I mean, it is, I look at that so lustfully.
00:08:20.497 --> 00:08:34.657
I know if it was me, I would be so annoyed to be doing it, but I look at that with such, you know, ugh, jealousy, because that to me looks amazing, and I can't imagine having good, fresh tomatoes, right.
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Canned in your pantry.
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All year long.
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Oh, what a fantasy.
00:08:39.572 --> 00:08:49.142
But what I can do is I can do the tricks like I do with that farro so that I cook once and eat it three times.
00:08:49.412 --> 00:08:57.392
I'm always looking at what's gonna freeze well when I'm doing things, what can I sustain as it goes through?
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And that's the kind of thing, those whole grains.
00:09:01.136 --> 00:09:04.167
They freeze really, really well.
00:09:04.466 --> 00:09:11.907
But again, a flat pack is gonna save you so much room in your freezer and make sure you squeeze as much air out.
00:09:13.136 --> 00:09:17.726
As you can because air is the enemy of all things frozen.
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Okay.
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And if you have those, like if you have a soup or something, you can add a little bit of the farro or brown rice or whatever you're making there to kinda up that fiber quotient.
00:09:30.956 --> 00:09:35.876
And then what if we are.
00:09:37.182 --> 00:09:41.547
I'm trying just one simple new recipe a week.
00:09:42.147 --> 00:09:42.537
It is.
00:09:42.537 --> 00:09:42.927
Okay.
00:09:42.927 --> 00:09:46.167
Most people repeat recipes all the time.
00:09:46.496 --> 00:09:48.537
Everybody has a standard repertoire.
00:09:48.537 --> 00:09:55.106
People go from like three to seven recipes typically that are part of that gig, right?
00:09:55.317 --> 00:09:56.966
I do the shrimp and white beans.
00:09:56.966 --> 00:09:57.716
I love that.
00:09:57.716 --> 00:09:59.817
I do my butternut squash, farro bowls.
00:10:00.057 --> 00:10:00.866
I love those.
00:10:01.106 --> 00:10:02.966
I kind of do it seasonally.
00:10:02.966 --> 00:10:04.496
My Turkey hominy chili.
00:10:05.606 --> 00:10:06.626
Stupid, delicious.
00:10:06.626 --> 00:10:15.236
You can find that on my website, but I will tend to make these things and try one new thing every week.
00:10:15.267 --> 00:10:18.177
If someone else is doing the work, I'll try two, right?
00:10:18.177 --> 00:10:19.437
Or maybe even three.
00:10:19.826 --> 00:10:31.976
But it's more about not getting stuck in a rut, but being open to trying new things and just getting a little creative every once in a while.
00:10:33.735 --> 00:10:40.966
And then that brings me to getting, oh, getting a little woowoo on this.
00:10:40.966 --> 00:10:47.711
Because here's the thing, I have always been the least woowoo person that you would ever meet, but.
00:10:48.405 --> 00:10:51.796
Um, a year or two ago, I started, I was so stressed out.
00:10:52.186 --> 00:10:57.735
I started doing a little bit of meditation and I started reading some books on mindset.
00:10:57.916 --> 00:11:03.645
Now this is so funny because my husband said that he can quiet his mind down.
00:11:04.260 --> 00:11:05.221
Like the whole time.
00:11:05.250 --> 00:11:08.850
And those are the people that meditation is so good for.
00:11:09.240 --> 00:11:18.421
But it is like squirrels on a hamster wheel in this brain, and I am not the person who can quiet my brain, so I try.
00:11:18.860 --> 00:11:20.630
It's really more important.
00:11:20.630 --> 00:11:22.400
I do like guided meditations.
00:11:22.610 --> 00:11:35.780
It's really more important to me that there's a message in there that I can kind of get behind and it's very, you know, I call it tinkle music when it's like doing the little bells or the little things to calm you down.
00:11:35.961 --> 00:11:38.120
I do actually like that.
00:11:38.120 --> 00:11:41.030
I kinda have to get into that, back into that a little bit more.
00:11:41.451 --> 00:11:43.671
But the thing I really, really.
00:11:44.000 --> 00:11:48.230
Love is kind of shifting your mindset.
00:11:48.230 --> 00:11:51.321
And a lot of people say that, like just think differently.
00:11:51.380 --> 00:11:58.850
And I mean, I don't know about you, but I'm a 58-year-old woman, and just thinking differently is not who I am at all.
00:11:58.910 --> 00:11:59.270
Right?
00:11:59.270 --> 00:12:04.326
That is, I am hard baked with what's in that brain.
00:12:04.860 --> 00:12:13.561
So thinking differently isn't really easy, and sometimes I get in a wave where I am, you know, writing it down every day.
00:12:13.890 --> 00:12:21.331
And I mean, I'm not doing these so much anymore, but the I am good enough or I, you know, no, I am, I am.
00:12:21.331 --> 00:12:28.620
So I feel pretty good there, but now I'm so much more into like, you know, I.
00:12:28.936 --> 00:12:34.456
Deserve to have a happy life or I have a happy life, which is even better.
00:12:35.025 --> 00:12:40.245
And for me, even pros get tired of being in the kitchen.
00:12:40.275 --> 00:12:52.995
I mean, trust me on this, any chef, I remember my chef Mike, uh, when I was in culinary school, and he told me he ate Chinese food and McDonald's and he worked at one of the top.
00:12:53.015 --> 00:12:56.946
Restaurants in the city and I was so horrified.
00:12:56.975 --> 00:13:08.375
And then when I got into it myself and it was like eating over the trash can or pulling up to the Roy Rogers drive through because their chicken tenders are the best.
00:13:08.765 --> 00:13:14.255
Uh, but it, whatever it is, you know, it just became.
00:13:15.225 --> 00:13:22.485
Something that I had to kind of tell myself that I want to eat well and that I really like to do it.
00:13:22.696 --> 00:13:29.265
So I have, you know, done the mindset thing of being like, no, I, I deserve to have a great evening.
00:13:29.625 --> 00:13:33.346
Like, not just, I deserve to come home and flop on the couch because.
00:13:33.966 --> 00:13:40.535
That couch has an imprint of me on it, let me tell you, from being prone all the time.
00:13:40.775 --> 00:13:44.916
But now I'm like, no, I'm, I'm pleased to go in.
00:13:45.216 --> 00:13:51.725
For me, a big part of that is having an actual plan of what I'm gonna do because I can cook on the fly, right?
00:13:51.725 --> 00:13:56.556
I can go in and see what I've got in the cupboard, see what I've got in the freezer, and pull something.
00:13:56.605 --> 00:14:11.785
Together, but I have found that if I even have just a loose plan for a couple of days, it, it helps me tremendously because getting that rhythm back is what I am all about right now.
00:14:11.785 --> 00:14:15.535
It's like finding that pace that's gonna get you through the fall.
00:14:15.596 --> 00:14:18.926
And I hate to say it because it's the middle of September.
00:14:19.235 --> 00:14:25.416
But the lead up to the holidays because we know, we know Halloween stuff's already out there.
00:14:25.625 --> 00:14:28.836
Before you know it, Thanksgiving, Christmas, bing, bang, boom.
00:14:28.895 --> 00:14:30.576
It's all here.
00:14:30.696 --> 00:14:37.686
But listen, if you are ready to get your rhythm back and to feel really excited again.
00:14:38.686 --> 00:14:45.225
I'd love it if you would join me for my free Mediterranean masterclass on September 18th.
00:14:45.586 --> 00:14:56.416
We're gonna talk about how this way of eating can bring like energy and joy and ease back not just to your kitchen, but to yourself.
00:14:56.995 --> 00:15:13.316
Even if you're just cooking for one or two, so that's Thursday, September 18th, there's a link in the show notes, but you can do it at Empty Nest Kitchen dot com slash or back slash masterclass, right?
00:15:13.346 --> 00:15:13.765
So.
00:15:14.240 --> 00:15:19.041
Easy, Empty Nest Kitchen dot com slash masterclass.
00:15:19.400 --> 00:15:21.110
I would love it.
00:15:21.110 --> 00:15:25.160
I'm gonna share all of my favorite tips with you.
00:15:25.160 --> 00:15:26.091
It's an hour.
00:15:26.091 --> 00:15:33.140
You can sit there and your bunny slippers sip in a glass of sanair and you're gonna learn a lot.
00:15:33.140 --> 00:15:36.831
That's gonna help you to figure out how to get your own.
00:15:37.120 --> 00:15:37.870
Rhythm back.
00:15:38.171 --> 00:15:45.431
So I hope to see you on Thursday and you know, as always, I'll see you in the kitchen.
00:00:22.829 --> 00:00:25.140
Well, the days are getting shorter.
00:00:25.140 --> 00:00:36.210
The air is starting to get just a little bit crispier, and if you still have kids in college, they are happily back at school right now.
00:00:36.210 --> 00:00:37.350
My wish for you.
00:00:37.590 --> 00:00:47.560
So it's time to start thinking about resetting our kitchen and really resetting ourselves for the fall.
00:00:49.167 --> 00:00:56.906
I remember our first fall as an Empty nester, and I was so nervous about it.
00:00:56.906 --> 00:01:00.597
And listen, my son was very happy going off to college.
00:01:00.837 --> 00:01:06.356
My daughter could not wait to go out on her own, but I was so nervous.
00:01:06.356 --> 00:01:14.846
I took a second job teaching at the local high school because I knew that if my days were not so jam packed.
00:01:15.566 --> 00:01:20.546
I knew I was gonna struggle with it, and I remember trying to figure out dinners.
00:01:20.576 --> 00:01:32.066
I mean, there were nights when I think we had a bowl of plain cooked pasta that I put Worcester shear sauce on because that is my comfort food.
00:01:32.516 --> 00:01:37.527
Or we would eat like cheese and grapes if we even had the grapes.
00:01:37.527 --> 00:01:38.757
I mean, it was.
00:01:39.221 --> 00:01:45.191
Such an interesting time because I just lost all will to cook, right?
00:01:45.191 --> 00:01:49.721
I just didn't wanna do anything because I no longer felt that pressure.
00:01:50.052 --> 00:01:54.102
When you've got kids in the house, you feel like it's your duty.
00:01:54.132 --> 00:01:56.591
Even if you get takeout right, you're gonna make.
00:01:56.606 --> 00:02:09.537
Good choices most of the time with the takeout and with the kids gone, it was almost like I didn't have to think about myself anymore and I didn't, you know, I do the cooking in the house, shocker.
00:02:09.776 --> 00:02:12.836
But I didn't have to think about my husband anymore.
00:02:13.137 --> 00:02:17.366
And bless his heart, he was really, really good about it.
00:02:17.727 --> 00:02:44.646
But it's totally, I mean, it's totally okay if you are looking for some mojo again, even if it's just from the summer, because we can all acknowledge things, get a little lazier in the summer and with in the best possible way, and with all of the good, fresh foods that you're just constantly being bombarded with a good piece of bread, loaded with tomatoes and a ball of burrata.
00:02:44.667 --> 00:02:46.706
I mean, that's fantastic.
00:02:46.796 --> 00:03:04.257
But now with the weather just starting to change, it brings us back to this place where we're gonna wanna put a little more effort in, because again, those tomatoes aren't gonna be great anymore, and there aren't any peaches anymore, or they're just the canned variety.
00:03:04.257 --> 00:03:04.646
So.
00:03:05.092 --> 00:03:06.711
The fall is a perfect time.
00:03:06.711 --> 00:03:08.002
I love the fall.
00:03:08.211 --> 00:03:19.012
Just like I love New Year's because I am such a new year, new me kind of person, that it is the perfect time to just bring it on back.
00:03:19.012 --> 00:03:21.081
So how are we gonna do that?
00:03:22.012 --> 00:03:30.442
I've got a couple of practical tips for you on how we're gonna reset our rhythm in the kitchen because we are all about.
00:03:30.687 --> 00:03:32.336
Little wins, right?
00:03:32.336 --> 00:03:41.187
Little doable things instead of that big monster list of, oh, I really have to take everything out of my cupboards and clean that.
00:03:41.396 --> 00:03:42.296
No, no, no, no, no.
00:03:42.326 --> 00:03:43.556
Baby steps, my friend.
00:03:43.826 --> 00:03:50.637
So let's start going in with a little bit of a pantry refresh, right?
00:03:51.651 --> 00:03:58.431
This is when I'm looking at more things like all of those yummy whole grains.
00:03:58.491 --> 00:03:59.812
I love that.
00:03:59.812 --> 00:04:02.722
10 minute farro from Trader Joe's.
00:04:02.722 --> 00:04:04.342
Oh my gosh, that stuff is so good.
00:04:04.611 --> 00:04:06.081
Make the whole package.
00:04:06.262 --> 00:04:17.422
Take what you didn't eat, put in individual freezer bags, pat it down flat and then freeze it so you cook once and you have it for three different meals.
00:04:17.422 --> 00:04:18.411
We love that part.
00:04:18.802 --> 00:04:20.182
Canned tomatoes.
00:04:20.697 --> 00:04:22.646
They have a lot of benefits, right?
00:04:22.916 --> 00:04:26.757
Canned is where we're gonna be at canned lentils.
00:04:27.026 --> 00:04:38.276
Now, a lot of people didn't know that lentils will come in a can, but if you're gonna try those lentil smash burgers, and I know some of you just want, you know, thinking about it.
00:04:38.797 --> 00:04:41.976
Trust me when I tell you I love a cheeseburger, right?
00:04:42.367 --> 00:04:43.927
These are not cheeseburgers.
00:04:43.927 --> 00:04:45.036
This is so important.
00:04:45.036 --> 00:04:47.646
This is not like a meat substitute.
00:04:47.646 --> 00:04:53.826
I don't really do the meat analogs like the Beyond or the Impossibles.
00:04:54.487 --> 00:05:00.757
I am not looking for that, but if I'm looking for something that tastes really good and feels really good.
00:05:01.182 --> 00:05:13.151
Well, that is when I'm gonna get into those canned lentils and doing a little lentil esque smashburger, a little bit of nutritional yeast, and we will talk about that in a future episode.
00:05:13.512 --> 00:05:21.822
But nutritional yeast is so great because it brings this umami and this cheesiness without.
00:05:22.406 --> 00:05:23.846
Being cheesy at all.
00:05:23.877 --> 00:05:25.137
It's really good stuff.
00:05:25.437 --> 00:05:32.427
So we're looking at bringing these things in and of course, you know how I feel about better than Bullion.
00:05:32.427 --> 00:05:42.026
I really like it, especially the lower sodium versions, because you just keep this in your fridge once you open it, and Costco has it.
00:05:42.026 --> 00:05:43.677
It has the chicken, the beef.
00:05:43.971 --> 00:05:45.081
And the vegetable.
00:05:45.081 --> 00:05:47.721
So I typically just buy the chicken and the vegetable.
00:05:47.932 --> 00:05:54.651
I know it's less than$10 for a gigantic container of it, so go check that out at Costco.
00:05:56.021 --> 00:06:04.242
Um, I don't mind buying a big old quantity of that because I use it so much for chicken broth and vegetable broth.
00:06:04.271 --> 00:06:08.682
It's so good to have, and it's gonna keep for months in your fridge.
00:06:08.951 --> 00:06:10.692
But do yourself a favor.
00:06:10.781 --> 00:06:17.442
Keep that little sharpie around so that whenever you open a package of anything, you just jot the date on it.
00:06:17.471 --> 00:06:19.476
It is going to help you so much.
00:06:19.937 --> 00:06:29.297
When you look in and you see that container of sriracha that you bought four years ago, it'll help you stay on top of all of that.
00:06:29.567 --> 00:06:31.937
But don't be afraid if you are just getting started.
00:06:31.937 --> 00:06:33.947
Don't be afraid to buy a little smaller quantity.
00:06:34.187 --> 00:06:37.307
You gotta do what works for you now.
00:06:37.872 --> 00:06:47.922
Believe it or not, I am not a music person when I cook, and I, I don't even like drink a glass of wine when I cook.
00:06:47.922 --> 00:06:56.802
It is so rare that I would do those things, but I've started, when I get in the kitchen, I'm now listening to like a favorite.
00:06:56.817 --> 00:07:07.377
Podcast and I'm kind of getting into the groove of being in the kitchen and having that be kind of the cap on my day.
00:07:07.677 --> 00:07:18.146
So I'm starting to set little routines, and that's something that you can do too, because I have said this a hundred times, you deserve to eat really well.
00:07:18.416 --> 00:07:21.656
That doesn't mean you have to spend an hour cooking dinner every night.
00:07:21.956 --> 00:07:22.466
Ew, yuck.
00:07:22.706 --> 00:07:23.156
Gross.
00:07:23.487 --> 00:07:24.026
Right?
00:07:24.086 --> 00:07:35.216
It just means you deserve to make it a pleasurable experience for yourself and do, if that's music, if that's a mocktail whatever.
00:07:35.307 --> 00:07:43.437
If it's a big old glass of sr, then do what you do to make it something that you enjoy, right?
00:07:43.916 --> 00:07:44.427
Look at that.
00:07:44.576 --> 00:07:46.257
How easy are these little steps?
00:07:46.257 --> 00:07:46.916
So good.
00:07:47.307 --> 00:07:47.726
Now.
00:07:48.401 --> 00:07:50.531
Small batch cooking right?
00:07:50.562 --> 00:07:55.211
Doesn't mean we're gonna make enough, um, tomato sauce.
00:07:55.302 --> 00:08:06.822
Have you ever seen, I'm obsessed with these videos of the Italian families, Italian American families, maybe that the whole family gets together to make sauce and it's like.
00:08:07.237 --> 00:08:20.437
A whole day affair, and everybody has their special job when they're doing it, and grinding the tomatoes and candy, the, I mean, it is, I look at that so lustfully.
00:08:20.497 --> 00:08:34.657
I know if it was me, I would be so annoyed to be doing it, but I look at that with such, you know, ugh, jealousy, because that to me looks amazing, and I can't imagine having good, fresh tomatoes, right.
00:08:34.657 --> 00:08:36.187
Canned in your pantry.
00:08:36.751 --> 00:08:37.532
All year long.
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Oh, what a fantasy.
00:08:39.572 --> 00:08:49.142
But what I can do is I can do the tricks like I do with that farro so that I cook once and eat it three times.
00:08:49.412 --> 00:08:57.392
I'm always looking at what's gonna freeze well when I'm doing things, what can I sustain as it goes through?
00:08:57.782 --> 00:09:00.542
And that's the kind of thing, those whole grains.
00:09:01.136 --> 00:09:04.167
They freeze really, really well.
00:09:04.466 --> 00:09:11.907
But again, a flat pack is gonna save you so much room in your freezer and make sure you squeeze as much air out.
00:09:13.136 --> 00:09:17.726
As you can because air is the enemy of all things frozen.
00:09:18.086 --> 00:09:18.567
Okay.
00:09:18.657 --> 00:09:29.817
And if you have those, like if you have a soup or something, you can add a little bit of the farro or brown rice or whatever you're making there to kinda up that fiber quotient.
00:09:30.956 --> 00:09:35.876
And then what if we are.
00:09:37.182 --> 00:09:41.547
I'm trying just one simple new recipe a week.
00:09:42.147 --> 00:09:42.537
It is.
00:09:42.537 --> 00:09:42.927
Okay.
00:09:42.927 --> 00:09:46.167
Most people repeat recipes all the time.
00:09:46.496 --> 00:09:48.537
Everybody has a standard repertoire.
00:09:48.537 --> 00:09:55.106
People go from like three to seven recipes typically that are part of that gig, right?
00:09:55.317 --> 00:09:56.966
I do the shrimp and white beans.
00:09:56.966 --> 00:09:57.716
I love that.
00:09:57.716 --> 00:09:59.817
I do my butternut squash, farro bowls.
00:10:00.057 --> 00:10:00.866
I love those.
00:10:01.106 --> 00:10:02.966
I kind of do it seasonally.
00:10:02.966 --> 00:10:04.496
My Turkey hominy chili.
00:10:05.606 --> 00:10:06.626
Stupid, delicious.
00:10:06.626 --> 00:10:15.236
You can find that on my website, but I will tend to make these things and try one new thing every week.
00:10:15.267 --> 00:10:18.177
If someone else is doing the work, I'll try two, right?
00:10:18.177 --> 00:10:19.437
Or maybe even three.
00:10:19.826 --> 00:10:31.976
But it's more about not getting stuck in a rut, but being open to trying new things and just getting a little creative every once in a while.
00:10:33.735 --> 00:10:40.966
And then that brings me to getting, oh, getting a little woowoo on this.
00:10:40.966 --> 00:10:47.711
Because here's the thing, I have always been the least woowoo person that you would ever meet, but.
00:10:48.405 --> 00:10:51.796
Um, a year or two ago, I started, I was so stressed out.
00:10:52.186 --> 00:10:57.735
I started doing a little bit of meditation and I started reading some books on mindset.
00:10:57.916 --> 00:11:03.645
Now this is so funny because my husband said that he can quiet his mind down.
00:11:04.260 --> 00:11:05.221
Like the whole time.
00:11:05.250 --> 00:11:08.850
And those are the people that meditation is so good for.
00:11:09.240 --> 00:11:18.421
But it is like squirrels on a hamster wheel in this brain, and I am not the person who can quiet my brain, so I try.
00:11:18.860 --> 00:11:20.630
It's really more important.
00:11:20.630 --> 00:11:22.400
I do like guided meditations.
00:11:22.610 --> 00:11:35.780
It's really more important to me that there's a message in there that I can kind of get behind and it's very, you know, I call it tinkle music when it's like doing the little bells or the little things to calm you down.
00:11:35.961 --> 00:11:38.120
I do actually like that.
00:11:38.120 --> 00:11:41.030
I kinda have to get into that, back into that a little bit more.
00:11:41.451 --> 00:11:43.671
But the thing I really, really.
00:11:44.000 --> 00:11:48.230
Love is kind of shifting your mindset.
00:11:48.230 --> 00:11:51.321
And a lot of people say that, like just think differently.
00:11:51.380 --> 00:11:58.850
And I mean, I don't know about you, but I'm a 58-year-old woman, and just thinking differently is not who I am at all.
00:11:58.910 --> 00:11:59.270
Right?
00:11:59.270 --> 00:12:04.326
That is, I am hard baked with what's in that brain.
00:12:04.860 --> 00:12:13.561
So thinking differently isn't really easy, and sometimes I get in a wave where I am, you know, writing it down every day.
00:12:13.890 --> 00:12:21.331
And I mean, I'm not doing these so much anymore, but the I am good enough or I, you know, no, I am, I am.
00:12:21.331 --> 00:12:28.620
So I feel pretty good there, but now I'm so much more into like, you know, I.
00:12:28.936 --> 00:12:34.456
Deserve to have a happy life or I have a happy life, which is even better.
00:12:35.025 --> 00:12:40.245
And for me, even pros get tired of being in the kitchen.
00:12:40.275 --> 00:12:52.995
I mean, trust me on this, any chef, I remember my chef Mike, uh, when I was in culinary school, and he told me he ate Chinese food and McDonald's and he worked at one of the top.
00:12:53.015 --> 00:12:56.946
Restaurants in the city and I was so horrified.
00:12:56.975 --> 00:13:08.375
And then when I got into it myself and it was like eating over the trash can or pulling up to the Roy Rogers drive through because their chicken tenders are the best.
00:13:08.765 --> 00:13:14.255
Uh, but it, whatever it is, you know, it just became.
00:13:15.225 --> 00:13:22.485
Something that I had to kind of tell myself that I want to eat well and that I really like to do it.
00:13:22.696 --> 00:13:29.265
So I have, you know, done the mindset thing of being like, no, I, I deserve to have a great evening.
00:13:29.625 --> 00:13:33.346
Like, not just, I deserve to come home and flop on the couch because.
00:13:33.966 --> 00:13:40.535
That couch has an imprint of me on it, let me tell you, from being prone all the time.
00:13:40.775 --> 00:13:44.916
But now I'm like, no, I'm, I'm pleased to go in.
00:13:45.216 --> 00:13:51.725
For me, a big part of that is having an actual plan of what I'm gonna do because I can cook on the fly, right?
00:13:51.725 --> 00:13:56.556
I can go in and see what I've got in the cupboard, see what I've got in the freezer, and pull something.
00:13:56.605 --> 00:14:11.785
Together, but I have found that if I even have just a loose plan for a couple of days, it, it helps me tremendously because getting that rhythm back is what I am all about right now.
00:14:11.785 --> 00:14:15.535
It's like finding that pace that's gonna get you through the fall.
00:14:15.596 --> 00:14:18.926
And I hate to say it because it's the middle of September.
00:14:19.235 --> 00:14:25.416
But the lead up to the holidays because we know, we know Halloween stuff's already out there.
00:14:25.625 --> 00:14:28.836
Before you know it, Thanksgiving, Christmas, bing, bang, boom.
00:14:28.895 --> 00:14:30.576
It's all here.
00:14:30.696 --> 00:14:37.686
But listen, if you are ready to get your rhythm back and to feel really excited again.
00:14:38.686 --> 00:14:45.225
I'd love it if you would join me for my free Mediterranean masterclass on September 18th.
00:14:45.586 --> 00:14:56.416
We're gonna talk about how this way of eating can bring like energy and joy and ease back not just to your kitchen, but to yourself.
00:14:56.995 --> 00:15:13.316
Even if you're just cooking for one or two, so that's Thursday, September 18th, there's a link in the show notes, but you can do it at Empty Nest Kitchen dot com slash or back slash masterclass, right?
00:15:13.346 --> 00:15:13.765
So.
00:15:14.240 --> 00:15:19.041
Easy, Empty Nest Kitchen dot com slash masterclass.
00:15:19.400 --> 00:15:21.110
I would love it.
00:15:21.110 --> 00:15:25.160
I'm gonna share all of my favorite tips with you.
00:15:25.160 --> 00:15:26.091
It's an hour.
00:15:26.091 --> 00:15:33.140
You can sit there and your bunny slippers sip in a glass of sanair and you're gonna learn a lot.
00:15:33.140 --> 00:15:36.831
That's gonna help you to figure out how to get your own.
00:15:37.120 --> 00:15:37.870
Rhythm back.
00:15:38.171 --> 00:15:45.431
So I hope to see you on Thursday and you know, as always, I'll see you in the kitchen.
