clean out the food week

I have declared this week "clean out the food week," at least in my apartment...but if you would like to join in please feel free. I am waiting on official approval from whoever it is who declares days, weeks and months different things.

What this means is that I am trying to use up all of the random food that has compiled in my pantry and freezer before I go out and continue to buy more food items and let older things sit there. It's also sort of like I am a contestant on Top Chef because I have to invent things with whatever I can find. Don't judge me, I take what small elements of fun I can during my mundane evenings. If only Tom and Padma were there to hang out.

Last night I decided for night 1 of "clean out the food week" I would take the easy way out and make this Safeway frozen skillet meal (chicken Alfredo with portobello mushrooms.) Now I did buy that meal when I moved into my apartment (in May of 2008) but I figured it has been frozen...it has to be ok. I once ate a piece of my grandparents frozen 50th anniversary cake on their 55th anniversary...and it was good! But, I was wrong.

As it cooked I began to lose faith in the water-y, off-white mass of gummy noodles and chicken in my skillet. There were two mushrooms. Maybe I could heat up some soup? K was on his way home and he eats anything so maybe I could feed it to him and pretend that I ate already?

Too late...he arrived home and the grossed out look on my face couldn't fool him. I told him I wasn't sure I wanted to eat it but he could have some. He took a sniff and declared that it smelled both acrid and sweet...like vomit. I held back from barfing in the kitchen sink.

It went into the garbage disposal. Then K looked at the bag it had come out of and noticed that it had a use by date...of April 2009. Yes, I can read, I really thought frozen food was good forever.

Thank God, Chik-fil-A is right down the street.