Monday, December 17, 2012

Back-up Plans

*So we had guests over for dinner last night. 5:00 sharp.

And unfortunately they had to run at 5:45, so it was critical we be ready on time. And yes, you can probably see where this is going.

At 4:55 we pulled the (whole) chicken out of the crockpot. I whipped up the gravy while Darling Husband cut the thing.

The door-bell rang. Our guests came in. We smiled and ushered them to the table when my husband uttered those dreaded words.

"Uh-oh."

Yep. Bad news.

Chicken NOT cooked.

My face turned red, but I smiled graciously at our guests and apologized (which they waved away very graciously as well).

"But no worries!" I said. "We'll just move on to our back-up plan. Which is . . . ummm . . . . which is . . ."

Uh yeah, I had nothing.

And then I remembered the frozen homemade soup. Not enough for everyone, but enough for them since they couldn't wait.

"Soup! Our backup is soup!"

Of course everything was fine. We still had the rolls which went perfectly with the soup, and they didn't utter a single protest as we sat there and watched them eat (in truth, we had pleasant conversation about Christmas traditions -- and I didn't have to worry about talking with my mouth full!).

So the point of all this? This is the second time a meal has gone wrong on me, and both times soup came to the rescue. So the point?

Always keep a container of frozen soup in your freezer, and everything will end well. :)

And maybe keep a notebook handy to record the fodder for a scene in a future book. Who knows, It just might save you one day!

P.S. I will be taking a blogging break over the Christmas holiday and will see you all back here in January. Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays!

*Yeah, the picture has nothing to do with this post, but I liked it and wanted to use it. Isn't it pretty? :)

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi, Janet! Hooray for the backup plan! Soup is always a great way to go in a pinch.

Yep, cute picture. : )

JennaQuentin said...

Being positive in the face of disaster is always better then giving in to it ;) Merry Christmas!

Old Kitty said...

Soup!! You seriously cannot go wrong with soup! Yay for you!!

Have a fantastic Christmas and New Year!!! See you soon! Take care
x

Susanna Leonard Hill said...

That is an excellent lesson, Janet! All I have for back-up in my freezer is part of the top layer of our 22 1/2 year old wedding cake and some frozen cookies which somehow have not been discovered and eaten :) Enjoy your holiday break, have a very merry Christmas, and all the best for the new year! See you in January!

Carolyn V said...

I've had that happen before and we ended up eating pizza. lol.

Have a wonderful Christmas Janet!!!

Unknown said...

Quick thinking!!!! Last Thanksgiving, the over decided not to work...we waited HOURS for the turkey...luckily the sides were all set to go. We ate stuffing and potatoes and pie, etc for lunch and then had turkey sandwiches for dinner, LOL!

A.L. Sonnichsen said...

Oh man! But thank goodness for soup! I never have frozen soup on hand, but this is a great idea. I'm glad everything worked out. You are amazing and I wish you a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS! <3

LTM said...

LOL! oh, Janet! You're so funny. I would love to have homemade soup just about any time! I love soup. But can you believe hubs does NOT??? It's crazy.

Great tip, and I always keep a can of chicken noodle on hand. Like for illness... it's similar!

Have a wonderful break and a WONDERFUL holiday! See you next year!! :o) <3 <3

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Janet .. I usually have a tin of soup around (the bread/rolls are another matter) in case I'm ill and just need something - rarely happens, but I'm grateful that it's there.

Well done is all I can say for having a back up plan .. gosh dinner in 45 minutes .. seems a little much ... then you had the well cooked chicken from the crock pot - good arrangement .. seems to me!!

Cheers Hilary

Marcia said...

This reminds me of the time I took the Thanksgiving turkey out of the oven and IT wasn't done. No soup, though. I just put it back into a very hot oven while we lingered over side dishes.

Unknown said...

Frozen soup for the win! :-)

I hope you're enjoying your break. Happy New Year!

Margo Berendsen said...

Oh this is the stuff that makes great fodder for books! Reminds me of some of the events in Jan Karon's Mitford series! Glad you got through it so gracefully, I would've been a wreck. In fact lately I've been feeling all I'm capable of in the way of hospitality is desserts. And even then I fret endlessly about dog hair, or cat hair, or child hair, or horse hair or my OWN hair ending up in the mix!

nutschell said...

glad soup saved the day :) hope you had a blast this holiday. happy new year!
Nutschell
www.thewritingnut.com

Myrna Foster said...

I'm so glad you had the soup. Phew! :)

Hoping your Christmas and New Year were lovely!