Cooking is fun ... when it's optional

I enjoy cooking most when I don't have to do it, when no one is depending on me to keep 'em fed.

It's one thing to feel duty-bound to bake cookies to feed a child's soccer team or an entire parish at church coffee hour-- quite another to get an out-of-nowhere yen to bake cookies, knowing I can freeze 'em to share I don't-know-when with I don't-know-whom. Obligation is the great sapper of creative energy.

Dave likes what I cook, but if I don't feel like cooking anything, no problem, he'll cook, or (more likely) we can order out. Consequently, I almost always feel like cooking.

I got home after 8 last night, so we went out to dinner, to Bella Luna, a favorite neighborhood restaurant. The meal was dandy, but I think we both enjoyed tonight's dinner at home so much more. I tried a parmesan chicken recipe I found on Alanna Kellogg's excellent website, and it was delicious.

I altered her recipe a little, just because I didn't have all her ingredients on hand. I used Sauvignon Blanc instead of white wine vinegar, and prepared breadcrumbs instead of ground English muffin crumbs. I also used chicken thighs in addition to boneless, skinless breasts. I served with left-over baked potato pieces fried in olive oil, and fresh steamed broccoli. Yum. And it was fun.