First day

Paul and I went for a 30-mile bike ride today over country roads that were way too hilly for me. I had a cup of tea, and Paul had nothing, so we biked for several hours with no fuel. Pancakes were on the menu for breakfast, and we were really hungry when we finally ate our first meal about 1 o'clock. Paul baked a big loaf of bread, and we ate some very fresh, about 4. Dinner was at 7:45, but we weren't perishing with hunger. We had plenty to eat, and I even made some cookies for dessert.
Breakfast: Pancakes with butter and orange marmalade, coffee and milk
Lunch: Bread with butter and cheese, tea
Dinner: Chicken thighs with carrots, onion and red pepper, steamed rice, beets, tea and vanilla cookies
Recipes
Pancakes: 1 egg, 1/4 cup oil, 2T sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 2 cups flour, 1/2 cup milk and enough water to make a batter the thickness of heavy cream.

Coq au vinaigre: 5 small chicken thighs dredged in flour,salt, pepper and 1 teaspoon Italian herbs. 2 carrots, sliced , 2 onions, chopped, 1/4 of the red pepper, chopped. Over high heat, cook the chicken in 2 Tablespoons oil until it is browned on both sides. Remove from the heat, lower to medium, add the vegetables and saute for about 5 minutes. Add 1 Tablespoon of vinegar and 2 Tablespoons of water, put the chicken over top and bake in a 325 oven for an hour, turning the chicken a few times.

Cookies: 1/2 Cup butter, 1/2 Cup sugar, 1 egg, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon baking soda, 1 1/2 Cups flour. Combine all the ingredients, mix well. Divide dough into 3 parts, mix 1/2 teaspoon vanilla into one, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon into the second, and 2 Tablespoons peanut butter into the third. Roll each batch into a log about five inches long and chill several hours. Each roll makes about a dozen cookies. Slice thin, place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees for about 7 minutes.

What I learned today: We are eating way more butter than we usually do. I hope a pound lasts the week. A pound of carrots has only 8 skinny carrots in it. Canned beets are not as bad as I thought they would be. We had enough chicken left over for Paul to take chicken & rice as a lunch later this week.

I really need a cup of tea. Marilyn

My sourdough loaf was fairly good with cheap flour. It might have been even better with a longer rise time but we needed it quickly. Marilyn likes it but really wants a loaf-pan loaf so she can make standard toast (to go with her tea). I missed my before dinner drink!

Marilyn is very clever ... Paul