Oldies but goodies

After a week of mostly made-up on the spot meals, thanks to grocery shopping without a list last Monday, I was looking forward to meal planning for this week.  Instead I went to the farmer's market on Saturday and came home with my first real haul of the summer--chard, broccoli, cabbage, little round potatoes, beets and an irresistible pack of sticky buns--thus changing the order of my usual recipe browsing, list making, grocery shopping, and then cooking routine.  This week went shopping (vegetables), recipes, shopping (everything else), followed of course by cooking, but it's only the second day in and I have already departed from the meals I planned.

rainbow chard and precious little potatoes from the farmer's market

When I got back from my run at a little past 7 this evening, I wanted my dinner to be something more filling than the couscous salad I had planned.  Dinner also had to be quick--enter the classic tuna cheesy, served with roasted veggies (that were originally going to go in the salad).  

roasted veggies + ketchup = "fries"

More protein, and really easy to clean up after.

Speaking of cleaning...another oldie but goody that everyone should put into practice is the magical power of vinegar and baking soda.  I like to use it on my stainless sink to get rid of soap scum and water marks, but this past weekend I had the idea to use it in the shower too.  Yes, the bathroom smelled a little vinegar-y when I was done, but only until I took my next shower, and I prefer vinegar smell to chemical fumes any day.  Baking soda, vinegar and an old toothbrush also took care of a pair of dingy earrings that hadn't responded to either jewelry wipes or a soak in a tinfoil lined bowl.  Simple, cheap, and I feel oh so accomplished--a feeling I hope to maintain throughout the week!