Snowbound!

Many apologies for taking so long to write; we've been snowbound here and still are until the county road we're on is plowed. We were without power for 30 hours, and although I don't think anything in the freezer thawed out completely, I'm doing my best to now cook up everything as soon as I can.

Yesterday, I grilled up a bag of thawed chicken breasts; two I coated with hot sauce and garlic salt, the rest with preserved lemon and pepper, sprayed them with olive oil and grilled them. The hot-sauce ones I then split lengthwise and used them as taco filling, along with slices of yellow peppers. I grilled 4 tortillas mounded with shredded cheddar on low until the cheese melted to make the taco shells.

While the power was out, we used the Coleman grill to cook up a tuna steak and a salmon fillet, with preserved lemon slices on each; we had them with leftover pasta alfredo and green beans and ate by candlelight before lighting a fire in the fireplace to keep warm. We didn't have much wood, so the place got pretty chilly. Luckily, we have lots of warm clothes, and it's surprising how toasty it can get under a down comforter. And we did have the foresight to locate all our candles and camping equipment before night fell.

By not opening the freezer at all until the power came back on, by opening the refrigerator sparingly and setting the refrigerated items outside when it was between 32 and 40, I think we were able to get by without any spoilage (even the milk made it through OK and I didn't have to open any cans). We could have eaten out of our pantry for at least another week, but water may have eventually become a problem, and firewood most definitely would have.