I've Quit -- I Think

Lori Borgman
The News-Gazette, 8-8-2026

I think this pretty much describes my cooking routine. I was never much of a cook, but I would prepare meals. I even followed recipes sometimes. But more and more I rely on products from the freezer. We had a Birds Eye Voila meal last night. And to make it even easier to prepare, I cooked it in the microwave, not in a skillet on the stove.

I'm thinking tomorrow night's supper will be pork patties with biscuits and gravy. And probably whatever frozen vegetable that might be in the freezer. I will actually have to fry the pork and make the gravy and put the biscuits in the oven. Plus heat the frozen vegetables and hope they do not burn. That's a very sad story.

Looking back at the newspaper article, the columnist wrote that she asks other people what they are preparing for meals. We five sisters sometimes text each other around dinner time and state what each are having for the evening meal. It sometimes sparks ideas for future meals for each other.

But mostly, I just do not want to prepare anything that requires a whole lot of effort.

Having said that, I concocted a soup last night using leftovers. I do that from time to time and it mostly turns out pretty well. We had leftover cheesy rice and broccoli (Rice-a-Roni). I started with a can of chicken broth, added a little more broccoli (frozen, of course) and a couple chopped potatoes, dropped in the leftover rice. I enhanced the flavor with a splash of milk and a tablespoon of butter. I also added two slices of American cheese for a little more cheesy-ness. I'm glad I added the potatoes -- gave it some substance. I thought about adding chicken or ham, but did not have either.

Soup for Supper

I shoulda gone to the grocery store yesterday.

I shoulda gone to the grocery store this morning.

But I didn't.

Who Made It Best?

Last week I was prompted to purchase a Panera Strawberry Poppyseed Salad, a seasonal product, before they “went away.” J and I shared and enjoyed it for supper.

It reminded me of the McAlister’s Pecanberry Salad (which is also seasonal), so we shared and enjoyed that the next night.

Panera Strawberry Poppyseed & Chicken Salad $10.59	Grilled chicken, fresh strawberries and blueberries, fresh pineapple, mandarin oranges, crunchy pecan with fat-free poppyseed dressing on mixed greens including romaine
McAlister’s Pecanberry Salad $9.69	Grilled chicken, fresh strawberries and blueberries, candied pecans with fat-free raspberry pecan vinaigrette on mixed greens

Both salads were tasty. I liked the additional fruits in the Panera salad. And the mixed greens were slightly better. I enjoyed both the dressings. I especially liked the candied pecans in the McAlister’s salad. Overall, these two salads rated about the same.

I’ll look forward to these salads next summer.

Left: Panera
Right: McAlister's

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Who Made It Best is a take-off of Us Weekly's Who Wore It Best