19/01/2025

To the tune of about 38 mini quiches.

I have made a grave miscalculation. In my defence I was kinda winging parts of the recipe. So as well as 38 mini quiches, we also have some mix for scrambled eggs, since I ran out of crust and couldn't be bothered making more (I doubled every part of the recipe - big mistake, shouldn've just doubled the crust). The kitchen smells great tho so I recon they'll be tasty... We also had a bunch of old fruit and I have a fancy kinda food processor that can chill and mix at the same time, so I made some sorbet! Cooking is so much fun hehehe.

Sometimes I talk to my friends about this fantasy I have about what I might do if I retire (pretty slim, but maybe possible) - I wanna open up an american style diner somewhere near the beach, maybe Altona? It is a place that means a lot to me. Or maybe it would make more sense to find a place between cities, to get the truckers and interstate-travellers. Anyway, when I say american style, I mean a proper New Jersey Diner, with the black drip-brewed coffee and the case of pies in the front, and I wanna be open 24/7, but if I can't I'll settle for an 8-10 open hours. I call this a retirement fantasy cause I think I'd start to hate food if I had to cook for a living. I wanna keep the food cheap too - make enough to pay staff and buy what I need for the restaurant, but put more emphasis on feeding people. Actually tonight I figured out what I wanna call the place - Cecille's, after my grandma. She was a great cook back in the day and I still use some of her recipes. I'm still nailing down menu items, but among what I've figured out are silver-dollar pancakes (with maple syrup, turkey sausage and eggs - my favorite), club sandwiches, tomato soup (or lobster bisque, if I can source any lobster)... I might even attempt a cheesesteak! I also wanna put some aussie twists on stuff, and make sure everyone can eat.

Part of why I like doing lunches and dinners for my house is cause I wanna expand my repertoire with cooking. I like having it as a hobby - I don't want to go to culinary school (yet) cause again, if I started having to cook for a living, I would start to hate food. I'm trying hard to maintain a healthy relationship with food, to enjoy it, to have fun with it. And I like being able to take care of my friends - so far, the prepared lunches are a success, cause they're getting eaten, especially when the midday exhaustion hits. And y'know, if that day ever comes, that I'm able to spend my days enjoying my life, focus on making myself and others happy, and not have to worry about making a living - it means I'll know how to proceed. If in 40 years time, you come across a beachside diner named Cecille's, don't be a stranger - come on in; we have a menu the size of jupiter, but I recommend a cup of coffee, and a slice of cherry pie, and rest.

08/01/2025

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