A POUND OF GROUND

I’m facing one of my standard dilemmas at the moment; the old ‘what to make for supper’ quandary.  And, as I stare at it thawing in the sink, I find myself brain dead.

Now, now!  Be kind!  I’m not always brain dead.  I do have moments of startling clarity – like two hours after a lovely/ awkward conversation with a person whose name I have just finally remembered – but after more than a half century of continually needing to come up with supper menus, well that part of my brain is wearing a little thin.

It’s not always like this.  Approximately two years ago when my deep freeze had run dry of all packages labeled ‘ground beef’ I could think of 1001 recipes I wanted to make with hamburger.  The possibilities were endless ... and useless, because all I had to work with was pork roasts and moose sausage.  I wish I had written some of those fantastic ideas down at the time.  Sure could use them this afternoon.

I suppose I could barbeque patties ... again ... but I don’t think I have any buns.

There are other choices downstairs in the deepfreeze.  It’s just that if I don’t keep the different cuts of meat going down at the same rate I pay the price with nothing but short ribs and chuck roasts for the last two months before we can order another half beef.  Better to stick to some kind of rotation.  Besides, on these really stinking hot days, one of the nicest places to hang out is in the dark, cool basement staring into the depths of the freezer.  Even when I know I’m going to end up with my pound of ground, it can take me a good five minutes to retrieve the package.

What about a pot of chili?  Nah, that’s a meal for a cold winter’s night.

I would ask Google for help but I’m pretty sure one of these times the response is going to be “Not you again!”  I’ve scrolled through pages of their ideas and it’s never any help.  The choices are either the same as what I already know or they list ingredients not found in the western world, let alone my spice cupboard.

Meat loaf?  Lasagna?  Spaghetti sauce?

Time is running out here.  The deciding time period must soon come to an end to accommodate the actual cooking time.

I guess while I’m burning through the last minutes of pre-prep time I could check out the garden for veggie choices.  Oh hey!  In my vexation over the meat part of the meal I forgot that this is gardening season.  There is Swiss chard out there, and fresh lettuce, radishes, and strawberries for dessert.  This changes everything!  When the veggies start rolling in the protein dish takes a back seat around here.  I can’t skip it out completely but if I do nothing more that brown it up with some salt and pepper it still passes muster.

The pressure is totally off now.  I think it will be hamburgers in mushroom gravy ... maybe there’s new baby potatoes out there too ...