Monday, February 13, 2012

MM #16

Today's Mindful Monday is about enjoying the simple things in life. I may not have learned a whole lot of Italian during these past couple of weeks in Gainesville (as was the initial plan...I'm workin on it!), but I have learned to open my eyes to the blessings that God pours down on us everyday.

Even if those blessings include a [very] simple, scrumptious dinner.

Some people might complain that all they have around the house is bread, cheese, and canned goods, but I've learned to see those things and be so thankful that I have bread, cheese, and canned goods when so many others have less. Deep, no?

Last night's dinner served as a refuge from the ridiculous cold front that has swept through. I don't know what was happening, but I could not get warm, even after a hot shower and being wrapped up in (get ready) two pairs of pants, socks, slippers inside of bigger slippers, two sweaters, a cardigan, a scarf, and a comforter. Geez Louise.

So I found some tomato-basil bisque and stuck it on the stove. And what better to go with tomato soup than grilled cheese? That's right: nothing is better. Here's what I did to fancy-fy my meal:

  • The bread: Arnold's "Health Nut" bread. This bread has tiny little pieces of nuts in it, and they provided the perfect little crunch to go with the crispy-on-the-outside-gooey-on-the-inside 'wich.
  • The cheese: A little bit of sharp cheddar, paired with some shredded pepper jack for a nice little kick at the end.
  • The extras: Spinach and pieces of sundried tomato. These would immediately slide out of the sandwich right when I took a bite, but oh well. The tomatoes added and especially nice flavor, and the spinach made me feel healthier, so I still consider it a win.
  • (and The soup: I prefer chunkier soups most of the time, and I've never really been a huge fan of plain tomato soup, so I also chopped up some onion and shredded some carrot to plop in there. Once I was done dipping the sandwich, I had a nice bit of leftover bisque (Is it still a "bisque" if it has chunks in it??) to warm me up.)
Did anyone ever have this meal as a child? I'd love to say "It immediately gave me flashbacks of growing up," but like I said, I was never a tomato soup girl. Grilled cheese? Definitely. Tomatoes? Not so much (I only started tolerating [and now genuinely liking] the things last summer). Speaking of tomatoes, I'll finish with a little quip that I've seen posted by various members of Andrews/Daniel/Bullock family today:

"Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, 
Wisdom is knowing to not put a tomato in a fruit salad."

So here's to knowledge, and to wisdom, and to being thankful for the simple things in life. 

Happy Monday.
-M


3 comments:

  1. Nice post. Makes me want to go home and have the same thing. Helpful writing hint: Never use the verb plop when writing a recipe.

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    1. Haha, I pondered over that word for about 1/2 a second and decided to use it anyway. Let's just consider it poetic license...

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  2. Pep up boring ole tomato soup by dropping white cheddar cheese popcorn into it rather than crackers or other random items. Makes it "souper" yummy!! Healthy...hmmmm...I don't lean towards healthy.
    I sure enjoy your upbeat positive posts! Inspiring! =)

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