Monogambutchery. Cheating and the meat man.

Lets see. No I didn't mention how I caught the butcher red handed tilting the scale on Tuesday. He pushed it down while he was weighing a chicken and pressed the button for the ticket while it was on the way back up. The ticket said the weight and I promptly weighed it again when I got home. Just as I suspected. 480 grams of pricey nonexistent farm-raised chicken added to the bill. I had a guest coming for lunch and didn't have time to go back and tell him off, and I was supposed to meet her, and I couldn't find my cell phone, and I had to get the food in the oven, and and ... I cut my losses and didn't feel too sad, you see, he actually made things easy for me. I have been trying to balance a relationship between two butchers for so long, it was all getting to be too much. I was freezing a lot of meat to keep them both satisfied. Sometimes I'd go in to one of their shops or another and buy a little stub of bacon just to mark a visit. By ripping me off right in front of me and then actually looking into my eyes, winking, and saying "a vous de jouer" (the ball's in your court...) when he handed me that chicken, he made my choice rather simple.

I was on the way home going past his shop tonight I decided after all I'd better say something and get it off my chest, because I'd been thinking about it. He didn't apologise or admit to even the possibility of a mistake. He said he removed the head and that counted for the discrepancy. Oh yea. A 480 gram head. "The next time I don't care, I'll just leave the head on!" he said. Ha! I had to laugh when I heard that. Next time. I walked straight to my straight-on butcher, and when I arrived, there wasn't even a line. I stood there and calmed down. Things looked particularly appetizing this evening. The meat seemed to be glistening and sparkling. I asked him if it would be alright to start a weekly account. He doesn't take the carte bleu, see, and I don't always have cash on hand. "But of course madame!" he beamed. "A weekly account would be fine." Very good.

Mother's Visit

My mother's visit coincides with my having recently visited a medical nutritionist. I was referred to this doctor specialist because I expressed my concerns about diabetes (the big D word) to my general practitioner - it runs in my family. I don't have it, nor am I even close, but I have seen its effects on my family members. I watched a documentary on diabetes a few weeks ago and it freaked me out completely - I went crying to my doctor, and she referred me to this specialist.

What did the nutritionist say? Well, she looked at my numbers and measured me and stuff, and then said that while I was not actually going on a diet, she wanted me to follow a certain way of eating for awhile. This bummed me out me at first but now I am beginning to see that this way of eating will not curb my gourmandise in the least. In fact it is taking me one step further in my love of food, because I will have no excuse not to get out to the market and prepare lots of home cooked seasonal dishes.
I am cutting back on the creme fraiche and the butter. Very sorry to dissapoint, but I promise to make up for it in other ways. I'm also weighing what food I do eat to be aware of the nutritionist's recommended servings, being careful about how I flavor things with oils. After a few days of following her instructions, I see that really in the end it just means I'm going to be eating the same things, plus a little extra yougert!

What impact will this have on the blog? It means I'm choosing things that will be just as delectable, but probably healthier. I won't be posting desserts as much. I am making an extra effort to ensure my choices are creative and fulfil my need for a challenge in the kitchen as well as offer an equal if not more satisfying dining experience at my table. My projects and discoveries continue!