I Don't Know How You Do It

......with your health troubles, but your food pictures always look so scrumptious!......."

This was a comment left by a well meaning individual on my facebook page the other day, and although it was not in any way meant to be offensive, it bent me out of shape a little bit.

I don't like to think that others think that my ill health could effect my ability. I am still a photographer. I worked long and hard to develop those skills, I don't loose them because I'm sick.

Then maybe people think I shouldn't be able to cook this way, and that thought boggles my mind. How do you not cook healthy home cooked meals when you have a disorder of the digestive system? I'm not going to put food from boxes and shinny freezer bags into myself or my children. How much sicker would I be if I lived on processed precooked foods? So this is how we eat, every day.

The crazy part is how easy it is to eat this way, as long as you don't blow up the casserole dish (yes, yes I did)

The chicken was thrown in the oven with the spices rubbed on top an hour before Kurt got home from work and I just walked away and went about the rest of my night. I took the chicken out and let it rest while I microwaved the left over potatoes and corn from the night before. Also served was the pea salad and the apple jello for desert. Total actual work time was less then 10 minutes!

I guess some part of me is aware that many people don't eat this way. My children's friends tell me they love to come here because I am always cooking. They ask me if I like to cook, I tell them I do but I like to eat even better, and I like to eat really good food. The best way to do that is to make it yourself.

My obsession with eating good food is part of the reason I don't often post my dinners. I really do eat like this every night. Last night we had my favorite, "Brown Sugar Pork Steaks" there were not enough, I could have had 5 of them, they were that good. They looked good too and would have photographed beautifully, but I'm eating my food when it's hot, not letting it get cold on the plate while I take photos of it.

Which brings me to these photos of tonight's 'Garlic Roasted Chicken Leg Quarters'. They say you should always photograph your food hot, right out of the oven. That's just not going to happen here very often. I'm way to selfish. So I tried something new. The secret is after the last photo.

Garlic Roasted Chicken Leg Quarters 

4 cloves garlic, finely minced

1 teaspoon dried leaf oregano

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

dash freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 chicken leg quarters

1/2 cup chicken broth (part dry white wine, if desired)

Heat oven to 425°.
Combine the garlic, oregano, salt, chili powder, cumin, and black pepper. Add olive oil and mix well. Use a mortar and pestle to make a paste consistency, or mash with a fork.
Wash chicken leg quarters and pat dry. Snip off any excess skin. Arrange the chicken pieces in a baking dish and pat the garlic mixture over each quarter. Pour 1/2 cup of chicken broth (part dry white wine, if desired) into the baking dish. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until juices run clear.
Serves 4.

Every bit of this food was taken from the refrigerator, it's just plated cold leftovers. Can you tell?