Keep it low and slow
Call it anticipation. Sounds better than insomnia, right? In any case, I had some serious cooking to do, and I had to get the logistics clear before putting anything to heat.
The big job: a Julia Child version of Boeuf Bourgignon, sort of… I didn’t want to play with obscure spices, so I went with something more to my liking. A full package of bacon, reduced to give that touch of pork and the necessary fat for searing the beef. Which takes time…
Another step that required hands-on: my tiny pearl onions. Clean, parboil, peel, etc. The small tray (the only one available) gave up a smaller bowl of ready-to-cook matter. Add in some celery, and a bottle of red wine, chosen with the aid of the lady at the bottle shop. She said that the whole thing sounded tasty.
Cooking time: most of the day. No, really. Keep the temperature low and the hours will take care of everything else. All came to the table when my potatoes were mashed and spooned.
As well, I machined another loaf of my whole wheat bread. By paying careful attention to temperature of things, the rise was normal. Keep that in mind.
And on to an evening of visit. Call it a sleepover, if you will. We’re still hours away from the sleeping part. Call it the end of the season, because soon snow will fall, and others will judge us as living too far off the beaten track. In fairness, I don’t go to town much, either.
