A DELICIOUS & square meal to make this week
My Swedish Christmas dinner and a Covid survival guide
This morning it seems I’ve emerged from the other side of Omicron. Last night I slept a full 8 hours straight, no clock checking, no peeing, no middle of the night personal steam inhaler sessions. If you’ve been 34 weeks pregnant OR had this new variant of Covid you can understand how shocked I was this morning. WOW, whatever brand of the virus I contracted was an extra special one. More on everything that got me through below. But it was still Christmas and although my planned Italian Christmas Eve dinner got replaced with Chinese (which my husband was so excited about) , I couldn’t let it go on Christmas Day.
Swedish Meatballs and the works
Like so many recipes I’m pushing here, this whole meal can be made in stages over 2 days (Yay!). I’ve made all the elements of this dinner before, separately, but as a whole it got rave reviews and it would be perfect for your holiday break or NYE. Surprisingly it’s relatively low carb and has lots of vegetables woven throughout. There’s the anchor of Swedish Meatballs with a creamy gravy, the bed of Cauliflower & Potato Puree, a side of Beet & Apple Salad and a side of Creamy Dilled Cucumbers. The day before make the meatballs mix, the beet & apple salad, and the cucumbers. All three of those benefit from an overnight stay in the fridge anyway. I think you’ll find that the Beet & Apple salad is worth your whole subscription price. It’s something you’ll make over and over in any season. The beets and apples are raw but get bathed in a creamy, horseradish-y dressing. The whole menu and the recipes will go out to subscribers later this morning. If you’re new this week (Hi!) you can subscribe by clicking that little green button below.
Chicken Stock
Here’s where we get into the “What got me through Covid, plus having to eat for Gestational Diabetes, while caring for a holiday hopped up toddler” section. I made 2 big batched of rich chicken stock over the week. It served a few purposes including the gravy for the meatballs, but warm mugs of the stuff were my favorite to sooth my extremely sore throat and with zero carbs I could have as much as I pleased. If you’re new to making your own, and maybe you only buy the can or box, TRUST ME this is worth your effort. It makes whatever you cook with it (or the soup you make!) 300 times better. Also, the store-bought stuff, even the organic one, isn't just chicken, vegetables and water. If you don’t believe me, read the label. Here’s 3 different ways to get to the same end result - all of which can be frozen for easy access later.
Method 1: Rotisserie chicken
Buy an Organic Rotisserie Chicken at the store, eat the meat for dinner and make sure no one throws their bones away.
Chicken bones + Carcass + nay leftover meat
1 small onion, a few cloves of garlic, 1 carrot
Optional: 1-2 ribs celery, a few peppercorns, a few sprigs parsley
Cover with water in a big pot.
Simmer for anywhere between 3-12 hours
Strain.
Method 2: Whole Chicken
Buy an Organic Raw Whole Chicken. If I’m going to spend the money on a whole chicken I don't use the whole thing for stock. I plan other meals for the meat. For example: I cut off the legs (your butcher can do this for you) and roast those, saving the bones for the stock. Then I cook the breast meat on the bone in the stock, but pull it out 40 minutes later, shred off the breast meat for chicken salad and return the carcass back to the stock pot to continue cooking. It’s not the meat that makes the stock, it's the bones. This is a very economical way to use 1 whole chicken.
Chicken bones + Carcass
1 small onion, a few cloves of garlic, 1 carrot
Optional: 1-2 ribs celery, a few peppercorns, a few sprigs parsley
Cover with water in a big pot.
Simmer for anywhere between 3-12 hours
Strain.
Method 3: Chicken Wings + Chicken Backs
Ask your butcher counter for “about 1 pound of Organic Chicken Wings and 1-2 Organic Chicken Backs”. What's a chicken back? It’s what is leftover when the butcher breaks down a whole chicken to sell it for parts. Some butchers or supermarket butcher counters save these to sell to people like you who are making stock. Those bones plus the collagen rich wings make a beautiful stock.
Chicken Wings + Chicken Backs
1 small onion, a few cloves of garlic, 1 carrot
Optional: 1-2 ribs celery, a few peppercorns, a few sprigs parsley
Cover with water in a big pot.
Simmer for anywhere between 3-12 hours
Strain.
Tips:
You don’t have to cook this all in one shot. I often start the stock while I’m prepping dinner, simmer it for a few hours, then turn off the heat, cover it, leave it right on the stove and start it up again in the morning. Bringing it back to a boil kills any bacteria if you’re worried about that - I’m not.
You can do this is some kind of counter top appliance. We all know I don’t use things like slow cookers or instant pots, but this may be the only application where I would.
The fat will solidify on the top in the fridge. I personally love this. 1. It creates a bacteria proof seal on the top. 2. FAT IS DELICIOUS.
What I’m Loving This Week (the “If you get Covid 19” edition):
Vicks Personal Steam Inhaler: This contraption got me through. A friend recommended it and I’m so glad I quickly placed a Target 2 hour delivery. The warm steam was the only ting that really soothed the burning in my nose and throat and the intense congestion. I’d wake up many times I night to use it. And I’m sure it was doing great things for my skin at the same time.
Weleda Everon Lip Balm: This has always been my hands down favorite lip balm. In normal times it gives your lips this matte looking moisture. But it’s also incredibly thick and saved me from all the mouth breathing I was ding every night.
Ginger and Lemon Fire Shots: My husband juiced a big batch of ginger and lemon juice (cayenne in his) and kept it in a big jar in the fridge. I drank mine mixed with hot water in a mug. Great for immunity, but also the ginger and lemon quelled the low grade constant nausea I was experiencing. If it didn't have so much sugar in it, I would have added honey for my throat.
I’m SO hoping everyone has a healthy and relaxing break. I’m 6 weeks out from McCool Baby #2 so there will eventually have to be a newsletter break, but I haven't decided when that will be yet. It might be planned or you might get a random poorly written email mid-week while I’m on my way to the hospital. But either way I’ll keep you informed on when I’m hitting the pause button on the newsletter and therefore your subscriptions. In the meantime, keep the comments coming, make this dinner and do your best to stay healthy! XO Liv