Friday, September 21, 2012
Okay, whenever I end up remaining in the dorm over the weekend I
am coerced into cooking meals for everyone.
(Well, not everyone, but certainly the people in my close circle.)
Normally I spend my weekends at visitation so I am away from the yard and my
circle needs to fend for themselves. Typically that means they get into my
locker and eat me out of house and home.
I am an excellent cook and attended Le Cordon Bleu cooking school
before prison. There is no comparison, but over the years, I have really become
quite the prison chef. The items available for us to purchase are an odd mix of
items but I have a very good imagination and use it. Cooking is of course, a
luxury because 90% of the population cannot afford to buy anything on the store
list if they only make $.10 - $.15 cents an hour. The fact that I am able to
spend $80. a week, is a luxury. Really, it is.
Since I have found out I will not be receiving a visit this
weekend, my friend’s request have poured in. It is very comical. I have decided
to make shredded beef and cheese enchiladas for dinner tomorrow. I will also
make fried egg, ham and cheese bagel sandwiches for breakfast on Sunday morning.
For dinner, I will make jerk pork pot pies and serve brownies for desert. (I
will try to get an itemized list of store items that we can buy so you can
see…)
The trick is taking items that are served to us in the mess hall
and combining them with store items to complete a meal. For example, we will
bring our fried eggs home tomorrow. The actual cooking process is dangerous.
Once we completely prepare the meal cold, we wrap it in small plastic garbage
bags. To heat it, we a large yellow industrial mop bucket halfway with water,
then plug in a large electrical chord that has been ripped at the end and
insert it into the water. This makes the water boil immediately. We then lower
the food bags into the water and cover it with a towel. It is all very dangerous.
Most items take about two hours to cook.
Pot pies are the most challenging. I moisten Saltine crackers and
form them inside of plastic bowls, add filling, and then place the cracker mix
on the top as well. I then wrap the entire bowl in plastic wrap and place the
bowls into the water. They take 6-8 hours to brown, but they are surprisingly
delicious.
Besides cooking all weekend, I will be able to call Joe tomorrow
and talk to him for awhile. I may even receive some letters in the mail today
or tomorrow that I can respond to.
The dorms that were involved in the assault, are still locked
down.
No comments:
Post a Comment