Ya Gotta Eat

A blog with recipes I use when I need food but don't feel like Cooking cooking.

[depression-cooking]

I'm 32 years old. I suffer from chronic back pain, depression, fatigue, and several conditions that are aggravated by the wrong diet.

As such, I have to invest precious spoons into cooking, and I have to be wise about the snacks I eat. I have to also invest money into my food. I can't survive on cheap hot dogs and ramen soup.

I don't really know what I want to do with this blog, but i hope someone out there might find it useful, or might could contribute their own ideas and recipes to help others.

[marxism-transgenderism]

THREE MEALS A DAY

[marxism-transgenderism]

AND TWO SNACKS

[marxism-transgenderism]

AND A DESSERT IF YOURE NASTY

[marxism-transgenderism]

IF YOURE KINKY

[mousegirlheart]

[podencos]

[only-knives]

it's never too late to start brushing your teeth again. i basically never brushed my teeth for a whole 10 years. a decade. A DECADE. i still struggle to brush my teeth once a week, but it all started with brushing my teeth once every few months. so i mean it when i say brushing your teeth once a week, a month, a year, or even a decade, is better than nothing.

and still, nothing is not shameful. it is not immoral to struggle with self care. and it is also not pointless to keep trying. anything you can do, even if its wiping plaque off with a towel, is enough. it is good to take care of yourself however you can, even if it's just trying to muster the will to. reading this post is good, too.

i believe in you and i am proud of you, even in the smallest of steps. it's okay. you can give yourself grace.

[keef-art]

a bunch of moles

[ms-demeanor]

hey, don't cry. one cup heavy whipping cream, two tablespoons granulated sugar, three tablespoons cocoa powder and whisk until stiff peaks form for three ingredient chocolate mousse, okay?

[ms-demeanor]

i realized that i like the format because it's the exact opposite of the recipe blogs with 1000 words before they get to an ingredient list.

[depression-cooking]

If you want a tasty shepherds pie but can't find the spoons for it to be fresh:

Dehydrated potato flakes

Green onions

Hamburger helper

Hamburger

Milk (or other requirements for hamburger helper mix)

Frozen veggie mix

Casserole dish

Seasoning of choice

Rehydrate the potatoes according to package. Set them aside.

Steam frozen veggies.

Combine hamburger and hamburger helper per directions. Rest as it's simmering.

Pour hamburger helper first, then stir in veggies. Season the gravy AND potatoes to taste. Add potatoes on top. Cook in oven on 375 for only 5-10 minutes. You just want a slightly firm potato, as everything is cooked.

You can also buy canned gravy or pot roast liquid flavor mixes to make sure your meat and veggies have a proper sauce.

[ms-demeanor]

Hey kids, wanna learn what signs of botulism look like?

[ms-demeanor]

Since the sell by date wasn't for another 4 days I returned them. I was checking out at the store and I was like "i'm not sure you want to take them out of the bag" and he did and a passing manager was just like "That looks like a bomb, I'm just gonna take it to the back" and was off like a shot.

[ms-demeanor]

Okay but seriously, if you have a package of food like this or especially if you have a can that is bulging like this, it is literally full of poison, do not open it and absolutely positively do not eat it under any circumstances.

Any food packaging that is bulging has to be considered unsafe to eat. A lot of people who might be living on their own for the first time don't know what that looks like, and this is a really, really extreme example, but yeah if the top of a can has become slightly domed from internal pressure that's going to kill you, don't eat it.

[kattahj]

Unless it's surströmming. Though it could be argued that surströmming shouldn't be eaten anyway.

[memesandmylife]

hey jsyk while hellofresh is dummy expensive and i wouldn’t reccomend it if you already know how to cook (if you’re a beginner like i was when i had it for 3 months, then it’s worth it), you should know that ALL OF THEIR RECIPES are free on their website and they all fuck hard

i will say that all the cooking instructions for veggies are pretty much the same (season with salt + pepper and roast on the top oven rack at 425F), but if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.

that being said, it also introduced me to methods i wasn’t at all expecting. i would have never thought to use cream cheese in my meat sauce, and now all my friends are constantly asking me to make my special rigatoni.

happy cheffin! :)

[bemusedlybespectacled]

I am a person who uses Hello Fresh for realsies because it is a bit cheaper than groceries here and definitely cheaper than takeout, but we also remake the recipes when we want a specific one and don't want to wait for it to come around in the rotation again, and therefore I know The Secret Translations of Proprietary Ingredients:

"Cream sauce base" = make a roux, add milk according to how much cream sauce base you're supposed to have (ex: 4 oz cream sauce base = 4 oz milk)

"1 packet stock concentrate" = either one tablespoon Better than Bullion or, if you want to be really accurate, Savory Choice Broth Concentrate packets are available on Amazon and allegedly that's what they use

"Italian Heat Spice"/"Blackening Spice"/"Fry Seasoning"/etc.: I promise you someone on Reddit has figured out what spices they use and in what proportions for each mix, if it's not just a straight up branded mix (like McCormick Grill Mates Brown Sugar Bourbon spice mix)

"Roasted Garlic Herb Butter" (and other compound butters, like truffle butter) = they're literally Epicurean branded butters, they do not hide this, you can buy them online

"Sweet Soy Glaze"/"Ponzu sauce"/"Hoisin sauce" = literally Kikkoman brand condiments: they don't hide that, either

"Sweet Thai chili sauce" = any sweet Thai chili sauce from the grocery store will do. We use Blue Dragon or Taste of Thai because that's what we can get in our grocery store.

[unpretty]

blue apron also has recipes on their website! i use it regularly to steal ideas when meal planning for the week.

[nerdygaymormon]

A reminder that sell-buy dates or best-used-by dates are not the same as expiration dates.

I love that a food bank is providing this info as they are experts in stretching food budgets and knowledgable in shelf-stable food items

[depression-cooking]

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTRV5tuEV/

[idionymon]

Tomorrow maybe I will prepare my favourite dish, Rice With Ingredient

[speaching]

This! Or I might mix it up and make…Noodle With Ingredient!!

[basic-bamboo]

I’ve been fucking around with Potato With Ingredient lately

[symptoms-syndrome]

Just a tip!

If you're in a place, mentally or physically, where you only have the spoons to take care of yourself in one way, I HIGHLY recommend taking care of your teeth.

Acne goes away. You can always start working out later. Stink is easily fixed with a single shower. Hair can be brushed and cut.

Issues with teeth are expensive, painful, and overall suck. Your teeth health can have an impact on other things, too, like jaw issues.

If you're faced with the choice of either taking a shower or brushing your teeth, I highly recommend brushing your teeth. Whatever tools help you to do that, disposable floss picks/toothbrushes, kids fun-flavored toothpaste, soft bristled brushes, anything is better than nothing.

[lasrina]

A further trick that will not work for everyone but worked wonders for me: if you struggle with teeth stuff overall (not me having trauma about bleeding gums, LOL), put out an electric toothbrush, a regular toothbrush, mouthwash, and floss. Then, instead of "oh God I can't possibly deal with my teeth tonight," use whichever one feels the least bad in that moment.

(It is not the floss. It is never, ever the floss. But sometimes I can't stand the brr of the electric brush, and sometimes it's too much work to go up and down with the regular brush, and sometimes the mouthwash is too burny. But the trick is, one of them always sounds less horrible than the others. Brains are weird, eh?)

My dentist has been complimenting me on how much cleaner my teeth are at regular visits since I started this. Also, my electric toothbrush is the $12 pharmacy brand, apparently really upped my game, and has lasted like... forever? So.

[depression-cooking]

When you're cooking with Low Spoons, or with chronic pain, you're going to have to rely on box mixes for a lot.

That doesn't mean you can't make your own box mixes during one of your good days. Two I use often are:

Muffin Mix [link] - for muffins, coffee cakes, or baby bundt breads.

Hamburger Helper [link] - for Shepard's pie, meatloaf, or pasta.

I also recommend investing in pre-making broths or bouillon. Nothing adds amazing flavor to something easy to cook quite like bouillon.

My favorite is to roast two whole heads of garlic in butter, and blend them with cilantro, salt, sage, and a pinch of sugar. Keeps for 7 days refrigerated, so make it when you're going to do a lot of cooking.

[depression-cooking]

I have recently had issues with my back spasming. This recipe is for the day after, when you want something tasty but you can't stand to stand very long:

Tools

Oven safe wire rack

Drip pan or deep cookie sheet

Aluminum foil (recommended for easy clean up)

Oven

Ingredients

12 pack of bacon, uncooked (not thick cut)

1 puff pastry roll

Your choice of oil (I pre-infuse red pepper or garlic oil)

Brown sugar, 1/4c to 1/2c

Rosemary or cinnamon, salt and pepper to taste

Lay out puff pastry and brush with oil. Cut into 12 strips of whatever size you want. Place bacon on strip and stretch dough to same length, then just twist them together.

Dredge the bacon wrap in brown sugar. Sprinkle your seasonings on top.

Bake at 375 for 15 minutes, or until bacon is cooked and dough is brownish.

Do not place directly onto pan to cook - use a wire rack with a drip pan. They WILL stick otherwise.

[depression-cooking]

Blueberry Coffee Cake -

Tools:

Medium mixing bowl

Baking dish big to fit 16-32oz of mix

Spoon for stirring

Oven for baking

Ingredients:

* Box mix of sweet muffin mix (blueberry, lemon or cinnamon is best)

* 1/2c dried blueberries

* 1/4c vegetable oil

* 3/4 cup water

* 2 medium eggs

* brown sugar for topping

* stick of butter

1. Pre-heat oven to 375. Put butter on counter. Do not put away butter

2. Rinse blueberries

3. Pour mix, oil, water and eggs into medium bowl. Stir only until there is no more dry mix.

4. Add blueberries to bowl. Stir just so the blueberries are incorporated.

5. Pour mix into baking dish. Should fill it up halfway.

6. Coat the entire surface with brown sugar.

7. Bake for 45 minutes or until you can insert a toothpick in the center and it comes out clean.

8. Spread the now soft butter over the top of the cake while it's still warm. Let sit until all the butter has completely melted.

This recipe takes very little spoons. Most of the work is lifting and light stirring, and waiting. When done, can be eaten straight from pan and lasts up to three days without spoiling.

Tastes good warm, reheated, or room temp