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Fancy, Healthy, and Still Sober

This is my go to quick and easy meal to pair with my alcohol-free wine.

By Charity Faye AlexanderPublished 3 years ago 4 min read
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I'm a recovering alcoholic, so I don’t drink alcohol.

The holidays can be a little tense. It looks fun, what everyone else in the room is participating in. You know, tasting the different wines and all. My cousins wife brings a crock pot to Thanksgiving and Christmas every year that she uses to brew up some fancy, warm apple pie flavored wine. I've never tasted the wine. I'd like to be able to try it without loosing my freaking mind, but that's not a thing and I'm not confused about it.

So anyways, I'm not sure what to even write about as far as some family traditional pairings of drinks and foods that we stick to every year.

I read some of the other entries and I was like, "Well, I'm not gonna win this contest, but, what the hell!"

I got sucked into reading some of Lanu Pitan, she's another writer that uses vocal as a platform to share her nutrition facts and stories. You should check out her entry for The Perfect Pairing challenge, The Art & Science Of Food Pairing, It's really good.

''The Eyes Eat First Before The Mouth'' African Proverb

I never heard that African Proverb before I read Pitan's vocal story. I like it. I tried tagging her in the previous paragraph but I was unsuccessful. If you're reading this and you know how to tag a fellow vocal writer, please email me at [email protected], I'd very much appreciate the tip.

There is such a thing as alcohol free wine. I partook in my fair share of AF reds and whites while I was living in Louisiana for March, April, and May. Fre is the only brand I was able to purchase locally, but there are so many other brands to choose from, especially on the internet. Google is amazing!

It's not bad. Tastes like wine, without the horrible repercussions. And it's a little bit funny that I'd only usually have one glass. Whereas a regular alcoholic bottle of wine would easily not last through the evening.

What to pair this AF bottle of wine with? Anything! For me, I really enjoyed it with seasoned baked asparagus topped with parmesan, cooked beside sliced sweet potato chips, and four small chicken breasts.

I marinate the chicken over night in the refrigerator in a heavy duty zip lock bag. You can use whatever flavor you like. I'd switch it up every few nights.

For me, there's only one rule for seasoning asparagus, just do it. Use this one, use that one, just season the heck out of it. Then sprinkle some Parmesan over top and that’s it.

Find the most normal looking shaped sweet potato's you can, and chop one up into chips. Thin slices, but not to thin as you will run the risk of having burnt chips. I found that out by burning them...a few times.

The cool thing about letting the oven cook all three items, is it gives you time to do other things. Whatever you feel like doing for 30 minutes, give or take. Prep time is nothing also. Like, 10 minutes. It's very simple. And when you're finished, you'll have a meal that's Instagram ready. I'm all about some presentation. Even if it is just me with me for dinner.

Thats's my pairing.

I admit, especially during the holidays, and the fact that I'm single spending them alone, It can feel aggressively lonely. Drinking sounds relaxing. Drinking sounds like it would be a good time. I think about being able to enjoy myself more, and how the warm numbing feeling of alcohol will fill that void of loneliness. I get it.

Alcohol Free Wine

This brand Fre was my absolute go to while I was living in Louisiana over the summer. It was always available at the liquor store. I mean, not a whole lot of folks buying non-alcoholic wine.

Baked Asparagus with Parmesan

I buy the freshest asparagus I can fine from the produce isle. And I use Frigo Shredded Parmesan Cheese. Don't forget to season the crap out of it prior to popping it in the oven.

Baked Chicken Breast

I usually find a nice sized package of Tyson brand boneless chicken breasts. As I mentioned earlier, preparation is very simple. One Gallon Zip lock bag, marinate flavor of your choice, and season it to death. Marinate over night, or at least 30 minutes to an hour. It's going to taste great.

Baked Sweet Potato Chips

A fairly normal shaped sweet potato will do the job. Slice it up, rub them in oil, or my personal choice, coconut oil, then season and Voilá!

Bon appétit!

healthy
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About the Creator

Charity Faye Alexander

Advocate for living a clean and sober life, and currently daydreaming of hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Pichu.

Twitter: @sober_charity

IG: @cfaye.graffiti

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