Stinko de Mayo

(It’s what happens when you forget to put the Hellmann’s back in the fridge…)

I slept lousy and woke up repeatedly. I finally got up for good on Sunday morning at 6:00 AM. I watched the news for a while and then got on with my day.

I made scrambled eggs with fresh chives for my breakfast. Then I went through the Sunday morning chores: winding the clock, refilling the pillbox, watering plants, etc.

After I shaved, showered and got dressed, I made a quick run to Home Depot. I needed some Groundclear to try to kill that damn Virginia creeper. While I was here, I picked up the few herbs I need this year. The oregano, chives, parsley, sage and thyme all came back, but the rosemary and basil did not make it over the winter. So, I got some replacements.

Back home, I treated the cats and changed into my work clothes. First item on my ToDo list was to plant the herbs.

I worked in some slow release fertilizer, dug the holes and planted the new herbs. Then I watered the hell out of the raised bed garden. I am still debating whether to put on some mulch (I have a lot of mulch, LOL) or just my usual Preen this year.

Back inside, I threw away the potting mess and was going to move to Item #2: Spraying the few dandelions near the front tree garden. I try NOT to use gasoline-powered equipment like the mowers before noon on any Sunday. I like to be a considerate neighbor!

But, before I did, I returned Melissa’s call from yesterday. We talked long enough that the “No Power Implements Before 12:00 PM” rule no longer applied!

Instead of spraying dandelions, I got out the push mower. Believe it or not, I needed to cut the front lawn again. So, I did. When I finished, I was hungry, so I stopped for a quick lunch. I ate two of the Irish –garlic brats with Dijon mustard. They weren’t bad!

Then I took the push mower out back and (with great difficulty) cut all the places I couldn’t get to with the tractor. I took a few photos for you.

Back inside, I decided to take a well-deserved nap. I woke up at 4:30 PM. I got the pruning shears and headed to the back wall. I needed to cut all the Virginia creeper before I hit it with the Groundclear.

I got about half done before bending over became excessively uncomfortable. On my way back to the house, I stopped and had a long chat with my neighbor, the contractor. He’s gonna help me build a 10’ x 12’ shed out back so I can clean out all the lawn and garden equipment from the garage. I have projects coming up that need the space.

He gave me the paperwork I needed to get a building permit and I ran an idea by him that Melissa gave me. I had told him I didn’t want homemade wood double doors, I wanted two steel doors (security concerns). But, today I asked him to check out a roll-up garage door, instead. That would eliminate both the threshold and the problem of the open doors potentially swinging in the wind.

We also talked about the fact that the concrete ramp up to the pad is not centered on the slab. We decided to center the doors on the ramp, which will leave me more room on one side to store the things I only use occasionally.

Back inside (once again), it was 5:30 PM and I thought I better get going on dinner. I knew I needed to marinade the flank steak, but didn’t realize until I re-read the recipe that it required a minimum of two hours in the fridge! So, I washed up and jumped on that!!

I was making Fajitas for Cinco de Mayo. I planned to have refried beans and Mexican rice (store bought) for my sides.

In my four-cup Pyrex measuring cup, I put the juice on one fresh-squeezed orange and two limes. I added four tablespoons of olive oil, two garlic cloves (rough chopped), three chipotle chilies (in adobe sauce), one teaspoon of ground cumin and one teaspoon of salt. I also put in three tablespoons of rough chopped flat leaf parsley as a substitute for cilantro. Then I used my immersion blender to puree the marinade until smooth. You could, of course, use a food processor, but my immersion blender cleans up a lot easier than my food processor.

Note to self: Don't lick your fingers after digging out chillies from adobe sauce. My lips were tingling for hours!

I put the marinade in a plastic bag along with the flank steak that I had cut into thirds. I massaged the bag a bit, put it in a bowl and stuck it in the fridge.

I changed out of my outdoor clothes, put on my trusty shorts and t-shirt and started the last load of weekend laundry. I caught the last of the news waiting for it to cycle through the washer and dryer. Then I prepped the veggies by thinly slicing up a large sweet onion and a red bell pepper. I also chopped a bit of the onion to put on top of the refried beans. Speaking of which, I opened the can and put the beans on simmer to warm up.

Finally, it was 8:00 PM.  I drained the marinade and shook off as much as I could. I lightly oiled my square griddle pan and grilled the steak over medium-high heat for four minute a side. The carmelization of the sugars in the marinade gave it a great crust! I let the steak rest. I tossed the veggies in a bowl after salting them and squeezing the juice of another lime over them, and then grilled them until limp.

I made the Mexican rice in the microwave per package instructions (60 seconds). I prepared the flour tortillas by laying them on a stove grate with the gas turned on medium low. I tried to char each 30 seconds per side. I charred four of them excessively by being distracted with cooking the veggies and slicing the steak thinly against the grain. I put the three good ones I ended up with between two kitchen towels to keep warm.

Then it was time to plate. I added a little hot sauce to the beans and rice and topped the beans with the chopped onion. I put the steak strips and veggies in a tortilla and topped that with some store-bought salsa. I skipped the guacamole (I dislike avocados).

It was pretty good! I had another fajitas just to make sure. By that time, I was beat, so I just soaked everything (my bad) for cleanup tomorrow. I watched a little TV, but nothing really caught my eye, so I went to bed before 10:00 PM