Two Out of Three Ain't Bad

Well, it's official.  Despite my best efforts over the weekend the pump on the dishwasher is officially pooched.  That said, the new water filter is in, and there is a shiny new sink in the master bath, so I'm going to chalk it up as a win. 

Now that is a beautiful bird!

While there was a lot of unscheduled maintenance going down on the Hotel Cavell, meals still had to be cooked.  Sunday dinner in particular requires a special effort, with leftovers planned to make for easier weeknight dinners.  For this one I promised Suzy her favourite; roast chicken with rice.  The chicken was a six pound roaster from Fresh from the Farm, which cannnot be beaten for the quality of their meats.  The bird was prepared using the Joy of Cooking's recipe straight out of the book (with the optional lemon in the cavity) as it is both foolproof and delicious. 

How am I supposed to stir and take
a good picture at the same time?

The excitement came when the bird was out and resting, and it was time for the gravy to be made.  A certain young man decided at that very moment that it was time to be fed, and Suzy was left with her hands full.  The sky was falling, as now I was tasked with making the gravy, which is her specialty, requiring home-made stock from the fresh giblets and neck, carefully separated pan drippings, and the juice from carving the carcasse (my specialty... I'm good with knives...)  Despite my trepidation, and under her careful supervision, the deed was done, and everything turned our perfectly.

The lavender and tea steeping.

Sunday passed on to Monday, and the realization that we were actually entertaining twice this week: Tuesday and Thursday hit.  Fortunately, Suzy has ordered a sushi platter for tomorrow night, so we just whipped up a couple of pitchers of drinks.  We're trying out a couple of new things, including lavender lemonade and an herbal tea called Fruit Explosion from the Tea Emporium for iced tead. 

We'll see how they are received!