Happy Weekly Food Fun to You!

This was a week of bad weather,
good weather
and a trial with our Lexie dog.

We had a really windy miserable day this week, so some comfort food was in order.  I decided to make chicken and dumplings.  I cook the chicken in turkey stock with garlic, basil, oregano, salt and pepper.  It makes for a flavorful base and really easy to simmer on the stove for a few hours on low.  Dealing with a new puppy, I needed something easy, especially since he didn’t want to be out in the wind either, but, well he has to go out.

After the miserable windy day we had a beautiful sunny weekend with temperatures in the high 50s.  This means shorts weather when you have been dealing with snow and 30 degrees and below.  I couldn’t help myself and had to make some fruit salad and fresh lemonade.

The fruit salad is called Easy Apple Salad, recipe here.  I made a fresh batch of yogurt this weekend so instead of sour cream I used the plain yogurt and added some vanilla extract.  I didn’t put the marshmallows in the salad, I knew I didn’t want them but my son would.  So I used them as a topping for my son’s and I topped mine with granola.

The lemonade is from Betty Crocker Kids Cook cookbook.
3 cups water, 1 cup lemon juice, 1/2 cup sugar.  Dissolve the sugar in water, add lemon juice mix together and enjoy.

Another joy of warm weather is using the grill.  I admit I have used the grill in the middle of winter in the snow, which is nice, yet warm weather is more fun.  I don’t have to bundle up and put a jacket on to grill.   I was looking forward to the meal all day.  I planned on making hamburgers and kept finding more and more to load onto mine.

Although, we had a trial that completely postponed dinner.  As I was heading to the back porch to toast my hamburger bun our dog Lexie barked and ran to the back of the yard.  This is not unusual, deer roam out there and she barks at them.  By the time I got to the porch I saw her on her side struggling.  I ran to her and yelled for my husband and son.  It was terrifying.  We thought she broke her leg, hurt her hip, bloat, we didn’t know what, just really bad.  She was stiff, head lifted, legs slowly kicking kind of like swimming motions.  Eyes wide and terrified looking,  her whole body was shaking as if she was in complete pain.

Turns out it seems to have been an epileptic seizure.  Her vet says it is common, and all of her actions point to that.  I thought this type of issue would turn up as a puppy, and she is three.  Turns out it can turn up as a puppy, or as they get older.  After some research Labradors are known for having this issue.  So, her vet told us to keep a log of the seizures.  Date, time, events leading up to it, how long it lasted, what side she lays on.  If they continue or if they get worse she can go on medications to help.  We found some helpful information on this site – The Labrador Site, link on epilepsy here.

Back to the food side of things.  About an hour after her seizure, I was still stressed, my burger was cold and half put together.  I heated it up, tried to make it look appetizing to get some pictures for you.  Realizing if my mind isn’t together, my pictures aren’t going to be together either.  I am still going to post it because it did taste good, even after being heated up.  It had bacon, ham, swiss cheese, lots of mayo and spicy mustard. My intent was to top with a fried egg, although with the stress of the evening I wasn’t up to that.

Through it all enjoy the fun of food.

It is a comfort and gives us the nutrients we need
to make it through the smiles and the trials of life.