The gravy can wait

The chop had the kitchen, and it earned the money. Cabbage and a can of beans carried the rest. That plate is in the archive. This week the spend is a pound and a half of ground turkey, and the list is written so you can buy it on Sunday.

November is how a turkey turns into gravy, stuffing, and a sauce that is mostly sugar. Not this week. The bird is ground. It browns in olive oil, mushrooms take the same pan, and lemon finishes it. If you reach for the jar of gravy, you are cooking a holiday that has not arrived.

Breakfast is mushrooms and eggs. The mushrooms go in first, until the edges color, and the eggs follow. There is no toast under it and no cream over it. If that sounds plain, good. Plain is the point.

Lunch is the cheap half of the cart. A pot of brown lentils, collards wilted with garlic, lemon. No cheese and no bread. Cook the lentils on Sunday and the rest of the week is a warm-up, not a project.

The rest of the week is those three pans on purpose. Cold lentils on Tuesday. The turkey warmed, not fried until it dries out. A second skillet on Wednesday so Thursday has lunch without a new idea. Sunday clears whatever is left.

Buy it on Sunday. Monday should not be a grocery trip and a new personality.