Round 2, Day 27: I Made That Up

I have another awkward confession for you, Audience: I have a serious addiction to Food Network's show "Chopped". You know the one, right? Professional chefs compete against each other using very specific and sometimes odd ingredients from the Chopped infamous "basket". I'm a little obsessed with the idea of being able to get a group of edible items together and create something amazing. I haven't branched into that kind of cooking yet. I feel too intimidated to do so. So far my skills have been limited to the duplication of someone else's creativity. Don't get me wrong, I'm totally OK with that because they've been AMAZING so far, but I still aspire to have the talents necessary to put together meals and menus based on my own brain power. Thus far I have lacked sufficient courage to do so. 

Tonight I was presented with my first opportunity to try it out. 

I was at my parents' house this evening and was invited to cook again, but this time I didn't have a planned recipe nor the proper ingredients for one. I searched the kitchen for a protein on which to base our meal. There were four pork chops, but five adults to feed. Not only did I have to concoct some kind of edible dish, I had to figure out a way to make this meat stretch without adding in rice or pasta. I gathered ingredients I thought might taste good together, took a deep breath, and went to work. I have to admit that I was a little nervous but also really energized about it (like the food nerd I am). My end result wasn't half bad. It wasn't complex, but it was edible. Tasty, even. This isn't something I could have done a month ago with as much success. Much less be able to do it in a healthy way. 

That's another smiley-face sticker for my "Yay" chart. 

What I ate:

Breakfast: Leftover salmon over wilted greens, topped with hollandaise.

Lunch: Leftover Chicken Chowder

Dinner: Warm potato, apple, and kale slaw topped with cubed pork chop and a poached egg