There was a big fascination, as I explained to cut the bread quite thin, and then just push down..and wait for it to pop.

I bought my toaster on a visit home from Germany in 2009, after finding that grilling toast every morning in the five minutes before I leave for work takes far too long..and then it burns in the 10 seconds you look away! In Russia we don’t even have a grill, so six weeks of chocolate spread on bread was enough.

I do like my chocolate spread on toast for breakfast, but Nastya didn’t look impressed with my choice, shaking her head muttering “Nutella”. She fried me some egg and ham to have with more toast, and then made me eat ‘milk soup’.

I imagine milk soup is made from boiling milk with spaghetti and sugar. Bleughhh. She told me I had to eat it to stay warm in the Siberian winter..

and Nutella or Milk Soup…

Picture source from http://www.food.com/recipe/estonian-milk-soup-with-pasta-shapes-makaroni-piimasupp-472483

Milk soup. A simple concoction of comfort that I thought only my family made.

Jennifer mentioned it recently, bringing its simple wholesomeness back to me when she said that she knows someone else whose family makes it; rather like discovering a cabin nearby on the prairie, or that there is a bus stop is right outside your door. What? Someone else makes milk soup? Who are they? Where are they? We must talk!

Yia Yia, my paternal grandmother, made milk soup often, as did my own mother and my aunt. When we were feeling a little under-the-weather, there it would be, bowl swimming with comfort. In the winters of my childhood, after a brisk walk home from school, steamy bowls of milk soup were often our lunch.

I first made milk soup when I was in college. I often made it for our girls for lunch, sometimes for our family supper. A simple recipe of water, salt, and boiled noodles, with just enough milk for them to hide in. At some point, I stopped putting in a pat of butter, but it is really its best that way.

I’ve been thinking about making some all day. I needed its comfort.

This morning we congregated to say goodbye to a good and godly man. I served with David for 12 years on a local board of education. Initially my rival in an election for four seats, he became a mentor and trusted colleague. David was the chairman of the political science department at the local liberal arts college. Several of his former students spoke at his funeral, as did employees and professors from the college. A fraternity brother of more than half a century came in the blue jeans he was wearing to pay tribute to David; he had heard of his passing just 30 minutes before the service was to begin and rushed to be there. The minister said it was a time to celebrate a life well led, and it was. A brilliant scholar, David’s mind was robbed of all it held by Alzheimer’s, yet, the testimonials afforded on our wintry morning were of a kind soul, a family man, a true citizen of his community, with a moral compass that always pointed straight and true: clarion calls of the David we all remembered.

I thought of David, a man of character, as I drove home, yearning for a bowl of simple comfort with a pat of butter on top. How odd it is for me, at times, the things that come to mind when I’m sad or troubled, or just need to work things out, isn’t it?

“Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability.” – Sam Keen

It’s that time of year where I don’t feel like doing anything.  I don’t feel like going to school, studying, waking up in the mornings, praying, cleaning…the list goes on.  The only things I feel like doing are sleeping and eating.  Which is usually what I end up doing all day long.  Part of it is because it’s April, and summer seems so close (yet so far), and part of it is that I’ve just been in a sort of funk lately.  Today we had those April showers that you often hear of, and it was dark, gloomy, and rainy.  PERFECT weather for eating and sleeping.  And, believe me, I did not disappoint.  In fact, I ate FOUR portions of pasta, and TWO portions of apple pie with ice cream.  Least to say,  I feel very sick.

However, if there is one thing I don’t regret eating, it’s this lovely, albeit very simple, soup.  If you’re feeling lazy and under the weather, this is just what you need.  It reminds me of when I was little, because my mom always made it for us.

Milk And Pasta Soup

Home sweet home.

INGREDIENTS:

1. A bag of spaghetti (or any other shape you prefer).
2.  Milk
3. Butter
4. Salt

DIRECTIONS:

• Boil your pasta al Dente.  Drain all water.  On low heat, slowly add in milk until the pasta is covered.  Cook for two minutes, or until the milk heats up.
• Pour your soup into a bowl, sprinkle some salt, and add a dollop of butter. ENJOY.

Very simple, but very comforting.  Have a wonderful Tuesday, everybody.

Much Love,

Cooking Master BOY!!!

Malaking Kaserola
Malaking Frying pan
Malaking Strainer
Malaking Chopping board
Malaking Kutsilyo
Maliit na kutsilyo
Serving Spoon
Mangkok
Platito
Platita )

1 350 grams Shell Macaroni (Elbow Macaroni sana kaso yun lang ung pakalatkalat sa ibabaw ng rep)
1 Tbsp Cooking Oil <<< para di kumapit
2 tspn Rock Salt <<< it’s all about chemistry people….
5 L Tubig <<< CHEMISTRY…
12-13 mins Patience <<<< Theology….

3 cloves of garlic, minced <<< basta mapaliit….
1 Onion, diced<<< basta maliit…
1 small ginger, grated <<< Masakit sa daliri… Hindi masarap kumain ng isang tipak ng luya.
1 Carrot, chopped (really chopped) <<< nakakangalay
3 dahon ng Laurel<<< para mabango… amoy adobo…
1 dakot ng frozen green peas<<< para hindi masayang yung nasa rep namin
1 Knorr Chicken Broth cubes <<< kasi walang tunay na manok… ung kaluluwa na lang…
1 kutsaritang harina<<<< kasi walang magpapalapot…
1 pirasong manok… <<<< Ang sopas na walang laman ay isang sopas na malungkot…
250 mL Alaska Evaporada <<<< Masarap ang sopas na may gatas…
PAMINTANG ITIM<<< Masarap din yung maanghang pero hindi nakakaubo
ASIN<<< kapag walang lasa yung niluto mo, ito ang sagot sa problema mo
MANTIKA<<< kung ayaw mong maghugas ng sunog na kawali

(Masarap sana kung mas maraming manok kaso un lang meron sa rep eh, mga 1 day old tinola na xa…)

Ilagay ang 5 litrong tubig sa malaking kaserola. Maraming tubig ang limang litro at ayaw mong magkalat sa kusina.

Ilagay ang mantika pati na ang asin. Pakuluin. Seryoso, pakuluuin mo muna.

Habang pinakukulo ang paglalagyan ng pasta…

Gayatin ang Carrot, Sibuyas, bawang at Luya. Siyempre, talupan muna.

Malamang-lamang sa gitna ng iyong pagtatalop at paggayat sa mga natatangi nating sangkap ay bumubulak na ang tubig sa kaserola. Ihulog ang pasta at haluhaluin ito paminsan minsan upang hindi masunog ang pasta. (PHYSICS, mainit ung kaserola kakapit ung pasta sa ilalim.) Gamitin ang 12-13 minuto ng Pasensya…

Multi-tasking. Ituloy ang pagtatalop at paggayat.

Kung ayaw mong kumain ng isang tipak ng namumuong Knorr cubes, tunawin mo ito sa isang tasang mainit na tubig at kapag lumamig ito ng kaunti, ihalo mo dito ang harina. Huwag mong ihahalo ang harina sa mainit na tubig. Ayaw mo maniwala, cge gawin mo gusto mo.

Malamang lamang ay nagamit mo na ang 12-13 minuto ng pasensya at nakahanda na lahat ng SAHOG. Hanguin ang pasta kapag napuputol na ito gamit ang daliri at wala nang matigas sa gitna. Kung hindi ka sigurado, kainin mo. At husgahan sa sarili kung kakainin ko ba ito? Huwag hayaang maging soggy ang pasta. Huwag nang patagalin pa sa kaserola at salaain na ito sa isang malaking strainer.

Magmadali. Igisa sa isang PAN o kawali ang bawang, sibuyas at ang manok (Kung hindi pa ito luto). Hintaying maging GOLDEN BROWN ang bawang kasi maganda itong tingnan. Huwag hayaang masunog, mabaho ito. At syempre siguraduhin mong luto ang manok mo. Isunod ang carrot at green peas. Lagyan ng isang basong tubig ang ginisa. Ilagay din ang 3 piraso ng dahon ng Laurel (para masaya at amoy adobo ang niluluto mo.) Bigyan ng ilang minuto para lumambot ang carrot at maging un-frozen ang frozen green peas. Isunod ang pasta at ang tinunaw na Knorr cubes at harina. Haluin. Intaying lumambot ang carrot at muling mabuhay ang frozen green peas. Bigyan ito ng limang minuto para mag-simmer.

Kapag ang carrot, green peas at manok ay kaaya-aya nang kainin. Ihalo sa ginagawang kahibangan ang isang latang gatas at isang latang tubig (para equal parts). Season with Black Pepper and Salt. Tikman. Simmer for 5 minutes.

Walang lasa? ASNAN!!! Maalat? TUBIGAN!!!

Masarap ito lalo na kung umuulan at bagong luto. Masarap din ito kapag gutom. Masmasarap ito kung hindi ikaw ang nagluto o naghugas ng pinaglutuan. Pero walang tatalo sa kasarapan nito kapag taga-kain ka lang.

P.S. Massasarap pa ito kung maramiraming manok ang ilalagay.
p.s. Maari mo ding sundin ung recipe ng pagluluto ng pasta sa likod nung wrapper
p.s. may mga recipe din sa internet ng seryosong sopas. Hindi tulad nito na ginawa lang dahil sa gutom gamit ang mga sangkap na pakalatkalat sa kusina.

Creamy….