MFO 4: A little chopping, a little sauteing, a lot of good eating.

MFO 3  Crack open some Patron and kick back, this is one’s easy!

“Dear Favorite Nephew,

Enclosed you will find a fantastic dessert to share with your new girlfriend. It’s something I whipped up at Woodstock, and was a smash hit. Of course, Hendrix wanted to smear it all over me, but Santana kept pushing his way in between us. Finally, I just had to have them both stop- I was exhausted! Enjoy!”

I now have recurring nightmares of rock stars violating my “personal space”, chasing me with ladles of chocolate sauce. Intensive therapy, here I come. Yay!

I like brown rice for a couple of reasons. First, it’s a great substitution for potatoes. Which, if you’re diabetic, like I am, you still want the starchy side dish, but know darn well that taters are pretty much a no-no. The starches (sugars) in brown rice are more slowly absorbed in the blood, helping to prevent the nasty spiking of blood sugars.

The second reason I like brown rice is for the nutritional value. White rice is devoid of a lot of the nutrients brown rice retains. I guess some marketing genius thought that white rice looks better on a plate. Unfortunatly, while it looks nice, it’s not the best option- remember, we want to eat WELL, and sometimes that means going against the GRAIN! (Get it?)

There are a few varieties of rice easily found in your supermarket. Basmati rice is great in Indian (India, not Native American) dishes. Long grain, or “dirty rice” is nice in Creole and Mexican dishes, while brown rice is very nice in Asian and Mexican dishes.

You can dress rice up by preparing it differently. Instead of water, cook it in chicken or turkey stock. Try adding a variety of “foreign” spices (think curries), or traditional American spices. Steamers are also a very good way to prepare rice. It’s a traditional Chinese method, and very effective for not only keeping the rice from becoming dry, but helping it to retain its’ nutritional value.

Don’t be afraid to try different styles and flavors in your rice dishes. These versatile grains are easy to make, satisfying and wholesome.

M.F.O. 3    Easy and nutritious. Look at me, I’m the poster boy for healthy eating!

This will work for any number of situations- whether you’re just hungry, you’ve got a “special” friend over, or you just don’t want to be confronted with some kind of science experiment gone awry in two weeks.

“Dear favorite Nephew,

I was just just thinking about you, so I thought I’d drop you a line. We’re doing okay overall, but your uncle seems to be having a bad day. I found him wearing a pair of my panties and one of your cousin’s half shirts, sitting on a bucket out in the yard. He had one of those knitted caps on- you know, those caps with the foldy-down ear flaps? It’s 83 degrees here, for crap’s sake! Oh, and I also caught him picking up used cigarette butts, and relighting them. But they weren’t our brand.

Anyway, Jeff got his disability check today, so were gonna make dinner- something real nice for me and that old crack pot.

Talk to you soon, Auntie G.

M.F.O.: 4, or 8, if Jeff gets in the kitchen. You may want to distract him with a magazine.

Chicken may be defrosted in cold water in its airtight packaging or in a leak proof bag. Submerge the bird or cut-up parts in cold water, changing the water every 30 minutes to be sure it stays cold. A whole (3 to 4-pound) broiler fryer or package of parts should defrost in 2 to 3 hours. A 1-pound package of boneless breasts will defrost in an hour or less.

Chicken defrosted in the microwave should be cooked immediately after thawing because some areas of the food may become warm and begin to cook during microwaving. Holding partially cooked food is not recommended because any bacteria present wouldn’t have been destroyed. Foods defrosted in the microwave or by the cold water method should be cooked before refreezing.

Do not cook frozen chicken in the microwave or in a slow cooker. However, chicken can be cooked from the frozen state in the oven or on the stove. The cooking time may be about 50% longer.

M.F.O. 7 You’ll need that same Bears lineman to help scrub the pots and baking dish, but given the less than stellar performance of the Bears this year, there’s probably a good chance this particular lineman is out of work, anyway, so he might be willing to lend a hand.