While passing the dozens of rotisserie chickens today in the grocery store, it finally occured to me that "easy" seems to win out over just about everything these days.
Can the meal be made in 30 minutes or less, maybe even 20 minutes? 15?
Because, God forbid, we should roast our own chicken! Absolutely not! That would be WAY to hard! I mean, you have to wash it. [That takes about 1 minute.] Then season it, that will take another 30 seconds. Turn on the oven and leave it in there for an hour. Oh, wait! AND turn it over once...Holy CRAP! Who has time for that?
Do you see the insanity here?
So instead we buy these precooked, kept -warm- under -lamps- all- day chickens, shot up with a nice big water/sugar solution and we feel good about it.
Why is "easy" better? [I am not talking promiscuity...I get that!]
Does everyone just want the "most" in return for the "least?"
What about good, old-fashioned effort?
It's like the guy who honks because he's too lazy to get out of the car...
or the man that acts as if opening the door is, in some way, a huge display of a time long ago.
Where is the damn effort?
If I invite you to my home for dinner, it is because I WANT to wait on you. I want to think about you as I'm prepping that meal. I want you to taste the care, in every single bite and feel cherished and spoiled and taken care of. That makes me feel amazing.
When I make chocolate chip cookies for my kids, I think about them and their cute little faces as I make them. I swear my only secret ingredient is love and they profess my cookies are the best they've ever tasted. Do you think I make the best cookies EVER?
I know we are all short on time and some of us are short of amazing people who really want to put out some effort.
Effort that resonates...
effort that warms our hearts...
effort that makes us feel special.
All these rushed moments will be just a blur someday and we will be left with memories. I sincerely hope I don't look back on my life and think,"I did what was easy..."
Instead, I hope to say, "Everything I did was so worth the effort."
Homemade chocolate cake...active time: 15 minutes
An amazing steak dinner at home...active time: 15 minutes
Roasted Chicken...active time: 5 minutes
Are those closest to you worth your time?
I so hope they are!!!!
[Click on "previous posts" for recipe.]
Five-Minute Roasted Chicken
[provisions]
Wash chicken and dry thoroughly. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix thyme with olive oil and rub all over bird. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Heat a cast iron skillet on the stove until very hot. Place chicken breast side down in pan and immediately place in oven. Turn over at 30 minutes and continue cooking for another 30 minutes. Let rest 10 minutes before carving.
