Our Dog Sally: 13 Going on 3 Going on Goodbye

May 14, 2008 – 6:10 pm

13-year-old Sally was diagnosed with intestinal lymphoma today. It’s usually a treatable kind of cancer — at least treatable insofar as you can use chemotherapy to put it into remission for months or even a year. We will find out more about her prognosis and our options at the visit with the veterinary oncologist on Friday.

Is it outrageous to treat a dog with chemotherapy? Here are a few things I’ve learned:

  • Most dogs don’t suffer horrible side effects from chemotherapy. We approach treating cancer differently in dogs compared to in humans — less with the goal of complete cure and more with the goal of achieving some additional months of good quality life.
  • Chemotherapy can be expensive of course. We will consider the probability of remission, the cost of various protocols, and the chance that Sally will feel more miserable than not if we treat rather than giving her only palliative care, among other things.
  • The decision to treat a dog or not and how seems in some ways more rational than how we make our human health care decisions. There’s rarely insurance involved so the owners bear the cost of treatment. Euthanasia is an option. Palliative care may be chosen even when more aggressive treatment might put the cancer into remission. Of course when a human life is at stake, we have a different set of values and priorities than when a dog’s life is. But it is an interesting comparison to think about, for how it might inform human health care decisions.

I always thought Sally would get to be a doddering old doggie before she died, that she’d reach the point where we’d say “it’s time for her to go.” But she’s not at that point yet, even though she’s 13. A neighbor recently commented, “she’s 13 going on 3″ because of Sally’s exuberant playfulness and puppy-like demeanor.

Now it seems we’re all too close to a goodbye.

*Painting of Sally by Susan Reed. A gift from my father.

By Anne Z | Posted in Uncategorized | Comments (1)

Spring Garden Notes

May 14, 2008 – 4:05 pm

I want to remember next year what worked and what didn’t this year so that I can improve my spring garden in 2009.

It was a good idea to plant pansies in the shade of the front flower bed (shown at left) — they’ve loved the wintery spring we’ve had. But next year I should plant purple ones instead of blue ones, because they are the exact same shade as the vinca blooms and don’t add any real interest to the garden right now.

My Claudia lily-flowered tulips (shown at right) are gorgeous. I don’t think I’ll bother with any other tulips — just these tulips plus a bunch of different kind of daffodils (my favorites are Ice Follies and Cheerfulness. The Cheerfulness blooms later than other daffodils, which is a nice bonus). The Claudias would have looked even better if my crabapple trees bloomed. I think the many freezes and snows we had kept the trees from flowering. I sure hope they bloom next year because that was a real disappointment.

The big yellow daffodils I planted towards the front of my main border mostly didn’t bloom either. They were cheap; maybe they’ll bloom next year. I am going to cluster them off towards the right side of the house next year where they look nice with the maroon Woodstock hyacinths I planted there last fall.

My neighbors have their hot pink moss phlox planted right next to mounds of candytuft. Looks great. My own candytuft did well in places and not so well in others (at left you might be able to see two big plants and two not so big ones further back). Next year I should pick up a few extra candytuft plants if I see them for cheap at King Soopers, like I did a couple weeks ago. My own moss phlox has done great, but I worry there’s too much of it. Still, it looked really pretty with the white Cheerfulness daffodils.

I have pink and white hyancinths planted amongst that lavender in front of the candytuft. They look pretty but got buried in the lavender. I will only plant more this year if I shear back the lavender significantly after it blooms this summer.

All in all, a pretty successful spring garden. I know more this year than last year — like not to pull out a plant just because it looks completely dead, which woody perennials and shrubs I should cut back and how much, and which tulips and daffodils to spend my planting time on.

By Anne Z | Posted in Gardening | Comments (0)

Tired of Transitions

May 13, 2008 – 12:10 pm

When I lived in Hawaii for almost a year and a half, I had a friend who was quintessentially Maui. She had a guru (perhaps the same guru featured in Elizabeth Gilbert’s in Eat Pray Love). She wore long swishing colorful skirts. She ran women’s art groups.

My Maui friend told me a story of an encounter group (I don’t know what else to call it) where the leader asked “if you’re in transition, raise your hand.” And everyone did. Well. It was an encounter group — or something like that — so of course everyone would claim to be in transition. Still, the moral of the story was supposed to be that we’re all thinking we’re in transition, all the time.

I am tired of feeling like I am in transition. I want to find everyday joy and presence instead of always trying to get somewhere else.

Always in transition?

When I lived in Maui I believed that everyone was in transition all the time because that’s how it felt to me. Maui was only a way station for me between a lovely life in Virginia and an even lovelier life in Colorado — it was pure transition.

For a year and a half after moving to Colorado, I didn’t really feel in transition even though things were changing. I was tech blogging and I was getting my children settled in and I was enjoying my new neighborhood friends. I planted a garden. I started to paint. I wrote a book. I worked online. It was good.

And then it was not good.

I was thrust back into transition or maybe I thrust myself into it. I ended up in nowhere land for far longer than I planned, for far longer than felt comfortable. Maybe I’m still there. But I see signs of a personal spring, like yellow daffodils against the snow.

The Everyday Cafe, now with an expanded menu of topics

My Maui friend found me again. She started her own blog that makes me remember the everyday joys of personal blogging — joys I want back in my life. I’m going to take that on here, by expanding my Everyday Cafe blogging beyond food and cooking to the everyday joys and pains of my life as a mother of three. Welcome to my new momblog.

Seems to me that whether I feel in transition or not doesn’t matter, as long as I can find everyday energy and attention to be a good mother, wife, worker, citizen, and human being each day. That’s what I’m going to be writing about here. Not trying to get any place other than where I am. Not trying to be anyone other than who I am. Just enjoying the great blessings of my life, every day.

By Anne Z | Posted in Asides | Comments (0)

Fancy Leftovers: Beef Burgundy becomes Beef Pot Pie

May 6, 2008 – 7:49 am

Lately I’ve been experimenting with doubling my main dishes with plans to use them as leftovers. But I don’t just throw what’s leftover into the fridge and serve it one or two nights later. I freeze the leftovers then fancy them up a couple weeks later so that they seem like an entirely new dish.

For example, I made beef burgundy stew in my slow cooker a few weeks ago. I’ll have to write down the recipe I used because I’ve come up with a good one based on The Dinner Doctor’s. I used two packages of stew meat — so maybe two pounds or so of beef — but added a lot of onions, carrots, and mushrooms so that there’d be enough for two meals. I froze the extra in a gallon Ziploc bag.

Last week, I thawed out the beef burgundy and made it into a beef pot pie. I started by sauteeing some sliced onions in butter until they were lightly browned. Because the stew gravy had been a bit too thin, I stirred in two tablespoons of flour and cooked it for a few minutes to remove the raw flour taste. Then I added the mostly-thawed stew and brought it to a gentle simmer. The gravy thickened up nicely.

As it was simmering, I took a refrigerated pie crust and baked it in the oven on a piece of parchment — not in a pie pan, but just as a big circle that I would slip onto the top of the stew when it was time.

When the pie crust was light golden brown and ready to come out of the oven, I seasoned the stew with a bit of soy sauce, then added chopped fresh parsley. I put the pie crust onto the beef stew in the skillet. Then I served it straight from the skillet.

By Anne Z | Posted in Main Dishes, Meat | Comments (1)

Deluxe Grilled Cheese Sandwiches with Tomato-Orzo Soup

February 11, 2008 – 11:50 am

Yum, yum! Loaded grilled cheese — cheddar, apple, and bacon — with a rich homemade tomato soup. You don’t need a real recipe for this dinner; just a few good ingredients and a little cooking know-how.

Make the soup. Saute chopped up onion and carrots in a bit of olive oil until soft, about 5 minutes. Add a big can of crushed tomatoes (28 ounces) and 4 cups of chicken broth. Bring to a boil. Stir in a couple tablespoons butter, then use a hand blender to make it smooth. Add 8 oz. orzo or other small pasta and simmer until pasta is tender. (Modified from a recipe from Rachel Ray’s mag).

While the soup is simmering, make the sandwiches. Spread sourdough bread with mustard. Layer on Vermont cheddar cheese, thinly-sliced Granny Smith apples, and cooked bacon. Grill in butter on nonstick skillet until bread is crisped and brown and cheese is gooey and melted.

By Anne Z | Posted in Easy, Main Dishes | Comments (1)

Celebrating Fat Tuesday

February 5, 2008 – 5:30 pm

king cake

I made two king cakes yesterday — I won’t share the recipe here because it was far too complicated involving folding and turning buttered yeast dough into flaky layers — but they came out pretty well, though slightly dry from overbaking. I put two plastic babies in so each of my girls could get one. I didn’t tell them that means they’re responsible for the cakes next year!

Tonight we’re doing a pancake dinner with bacon and scrambled eggs. I love breakfast for dinner but my family finds it weird, so I’m glad to have an excuse to serve it.

When we lived in Virginia, we attended an Episcopalian church. The Fat Tuesday pancake supper was my favorite event of the year, except for maybe the Good Friday choir performance. I don’t remember what music they sung, but it was full of the pain of humanity — and the pain of divinity too. I never understood Good Friday until I heard that music.

By Anne Z | Posted in Asides | Comments (4)

Superfast Salisbury Steak

February 3, 2008 – 12:33 pm

Have you ever had salisbury steak? It’s ground beef formed into a steak shape, cooked, and served with beef gravy. The idea is to make a cheap steak substitute.

Before making this recipe, I hadn’t had salisbury steak in probably 20 years — but I remembered it as a favorite. Apparently my family agrees because they gobbled up all six of the “steaks” made from 2 lbs. ground beef — which is twice as much beef as I normally cook for them.

Superfast Salisbury Steak

Adapted from Southern Living Busy Moms Weeknight Favorites

  • 2 lbs ground beef
  • 1/3 cup breadcrumbs
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 (10 3/4 oz.) can condensed French onion soup
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

Combine beef, breadcrumbs, egg, salt, and pepper. Shape into 6 oval-shaped patties.

Add oil to very large skillet — I used my 14-inch All-Clad 6 Quart Saute Pan — and heat over medium-high heat until shimmering. Cook patties 3 minutes on each side or until well browned and crusty. Remove patties from pan to clean plate, tent with tin foil. Wipe pan with paper towel to remove excess fat, if any.

Add water to pan and cook 1 minute, stirring with a wooden spoon to loosen browned bits from skillet. That’s called deglazing. Add soup, tomato paste, and Worcestershire sauce. Bring to a boil. Cook for three minutes, reduce heat, and return patties to skillet. Cover and simmer 10 minutes.

By Anne Z | Posted in Easy, Main Dishes, Meat | Comments (0)

My New Favorite Cookbook

January 23, 2008 – 1:32 pm

I picked up Southern Living Busy Moms Weeknight Favorites from the library, not expecting anything special since usually cookbooks put out by magazines are not that great (with the exception of the Cook’s Illustrated books, of course). But I love it! And my family loves these recipes.

So far, we’ve tried Ham-and Swiss Muffins (but I made them with cheddar cheese), Pimiento Cheese Chicken with Hot Buttered Grits, and Roasted Red Pepper-Caesar Tortelloni. All easy and yummy. Tonight we’re having Cheddar-Bacon Twice-Baked Potatoes and tomorrow Superfast Salisbury Steak.

What I love about these recipes is that they’re homey but still modern and quick but not boring. I’ll be buying this cookbook for sure!

By Anne Z | Posted in Cookbooks | Comments (0)

Halloween Week Menu Planning

October 28, 2007 – 4:10 pm

Haven’t blogged much of my cooking lately because my cooking hasn’t been worth blogging. The slow cooker Chicken Paprikash I tried yesterday was only okay — maybe because I tried to extend the recipe with extra veggies and chicken broth. I didn’t get the lush sour creamy mouthfeel I was going for. The slow cooker Beef Pepperoncini was way too spicy — maybe because the black pepper we got from Costco comes out way too fast, due to the large holes on the shaker top. The slow cooker Ground Beef Chili was sandy and dry — maybe because I used lean ground beef even after being warned by the recipe not to.

On the plus side, the turkey breast I roasted last week then turned into “Turkey Pot Pie” for a second dinner was actually pretty good. But Rick complained that the Turkey Pot Pie used biscuits instead of pie crust. I know, I know… pot pie without pie crust? I blame it on Cook’s Illustrated. It was their idea.

I also made some delicious French Country Pork Chops with olives and prunes. Got some great photos too, so I should blog those for sure. I would never think of making a pan sauce with olives and prunes. Those crazy French!

Here’s hoping my plans for this week turn out well:

  • Tofu and broccoli with spicy orange sauce and sticky rice for tonight. Perhaps I’m the only one in the family that truly enjoys tofu. But I’m the cook, so I decide what protein we eat. Will have to cook chicken nuggets and fish sticks for the girls.
  • Overnight pork kebabs marinated in garlic-herb vinaigrette with couscous. Rick bought a beautiful package of boneless pork chops from Costco. I froze most of them and have been using them each week just like I use my bag of boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Only problem is they’re so incredibly thick cut, over an inch… so when they’re still just barely frozen I cut them each into two thinner chops… unless using them for kebabs, then I can just cut them into chunks.
  • Slow cooker French Onion Soup with Swiss Cheese Toasts. I haven’t given up on the slow cooker. It’s just too convenient (plus I love my Chicken Chili Verde and Chicken Stroganoff recipes even if my other crockpot projects lately haven’t done so well). And I had this at my mom’s house. It was quite good.
  • Rotini with Ratatouille. Maybe naming it after the Disney movie will get the girls to eat it (it’s actually called Rotini with Summer Vegetables in the cookbook, a Cook’s Illustrated one, natch).
  • Tacos. I’m having black beans and guacamole in mine. Everyone else gets ground beef seasoned with an envelope of taco seasoning. One pound of ground beef is never enough, so I’ll bow out and have the beans. We’ll have this on Wednesday, because it’s fast and easy, and leaves lots of time for trick-or-treating.

What are you planning for dinner this week? Or are you winging it?

By Anne Z | Posted in Weekly Menus | Comments (2)

Slow Cooker Chicken Stroganoff

October 19, 2007 – 7:37 am

I modified this from a recipe for Creamy Cooker Chicken from the Fix-it And Forget-it Cookbook. My mom gave me the recipe after she had good luck with it.

Now that it’s fall, I’d like to do slow cooker meals two or three times a week. It’s nice to get some prep and cleanup done in the morning so I don’t have to quit working quite so early.

You’d think that cooking sour cream so long would make it curdle… and it does, a little. But when you shred up the chicken at the end and stir it all up, it comes together into a nice creamy sauce. It reminded me a lot of Beef Stroganoff, which was one of my favorite meals growing up.

Slow Cooker Chicken Stroganoff
Serves 4

  • 1 envelope dry onion soup mix
  • 1 (16 oz.) tub sour cream
  • 1 (10 3/4 oz.) can cream of mushroom soup — I used cream of mushroom with roasted garlic
  • 4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves

Mix first three ingredients together in slow cooker insert. Add chicken breast halves and cover with sauce. Cook on low for about six hours, or until chicken is cooked through. Shred chicken with two forks right in the sauce. Season with salt and pepper and serve over buttered noodles.

By Anne Z | Posted in Easy, Main Dishes, Poultry, Slow Cooker | Comments (2)