Yesterday I cooked gluten-free chicken fillets in the Airfryer, with fresh salad from the greenhouse and my fluffy Afghan rice. Down in the basement, our worlds coexist. He with his order, me with my creative chaos. Yesterday it was chicken in the Airfryer, salad with greenhouse tomatoes, and Afghan rice – a dinner as simple as it was good. Today it is the same basement, the same us, yet the day carries something more: longing for Alfred and the afternoon ahead.

Läs det här på Svenska ->Glutenfria kycklingfiléer i Airfryer – igår i köket, idag i källaren

Yesterday – Food and Basement Life

Yesterday I sat here in the basement. Our little hobby room. We both have our desktop computers down here and sit back-to-back. He in his chair, me in mine. He with WoW, sports and horses, me with pencils, painting, knitting and writing. We may not say much, but still, it is togetherness. At the same time, it is comforting to be close, even if we are doing completely different things. This room was once a storage room, but now it has become our space to play and create.

You will have to excuse the mess. But the mess is mine. I spread out. Brushes, paints, yarn and paper all over the place. That is why it feels alive, and not stiff. Maybe it is also my ADHD that makes the mess grow so fast – yet at the same time, that is where creativity lives. Here lie the ideas that turn into colors, words, and sometimes into food on the table.

Kreativ hörna i källaren med staffli, teckningar och målargreje
Min målarhörna i källaren

My painting corner in the basement

Datorhörna i källaren med ritade figurer på väggen
Min skriv- och datorhörna

My writing and computer desk

Vårt hobbyrum i källaren med två datorhörnor och skaparrum
Vårt gemensamma källarrum

Our shared basement room

Yesterday – Dinner on the Table

And yesterday I cooked, as usual. I take care of weekday dinners, while my husband cooks when he is off work. Gluten-free chicken fillets in the Airfryer. A salad with tomatoes and cucumbers from the greenhouse. I also mixed in the shredded carrots left over from the day before, plus alfalfa sprouts, red onion, lemon, oil and vinegar. Fresh and good. I have also shared my recipe for homemade pizza salad – simple, fresh and perfect as an everyday side dish.

Panerade glutenfria kycklinginnerfiléer redo för Airfryer – krispiga och gyllene
Glutenfria kycklingfiléer på väg in i Airfryern

Crispy chicken with corn flour and panko

Gluten-free chicken fillets ready for the Airfryer

The chicken turned out crispy: corn flour → egg → gluten-free panko. Six minutes on each side in the Airfryer, and then into the oven for a while. It is important that they do not lie too close to each other. Alongside we had a cold sauce made of sour cream, mayonnaise, sambal oelek and chili sauce. And peanut sauce. Yes – you can easily make it yourself, and then all the flavors come through even more clearly. I link to an ICA recipe at the end, and I also include my own quick version.

Afghan rice – a family favorite

Perhaps not everyone’s favorite – my husband is not too fond of it. But my eldest son loves it, and that is mostly why I make it.

I cook it my own way – a twist on Afghan rice. I have said it before and I will say it again: rice must be washed! For a long time. The water must be clear. Then it needs to soak for a few hours.

Basmati-ris i vatten under blötläggning inför tillagning av afghanskt ris
Afghanskt ris i blötläggning

Afghan rice soaking in water

When I cook it, I use plenty of water, broth, curry, chili, garlic and onion. When it is done, I drain it and put it back in the pot with a paper towel under the lid. In this way the rice becomes fluffy and light.

Today – Longing for Alfred

But that was yesterday.
Today is a new day. Still, I sit here in the same basement. The same mess, the same chairs. But not quite the same us, because my husband will soon leave for work – so we are no longer back-to-back. Today my thoughts are elsewhere. With Alfred.

I am already longing, even though the day has barely begun. Later this afternoon I get to pick him up from school. That thought makes me warm inside. To see him, to hear what he wants to tell me, to be a part of his afternoon. That is exactly what I am looking forward to.

Between the Lines

Yesterday was all about food and flavors, even about quiet togetherness back-to-back. Today it is about waiting. Here between the lines lies closeness: it is about having a place. But it is also about sharing everyday life. It is about longing for someone you love. And maybe this too is part of living with ADHD – that everything happens at once, that the mess becomes part of the whole, but also that joy often hides right there.

Now I am curious about you – how is it for you?
How does your everyday clutter look – neat and tidy, or creative chaos?

Reflection

Maybe it is right here that life feels most real – in yesterday’s dinner, even if it is also in today’s longing. In the mess down here, and at the same time in the silence back-to-back. Here I experience, even while I see the small moments, which together shape everything in our lives. It is here we can feel within ourselves – in those everyday moments that, therefore, become life in its purest simplicity.

Yesterday has already settled into history, tomorrow waits further ahead. But right now – this is where life happens.
– Carina Ikonen Nilsson

Subscribe to the blog: Click here
Support my writing: PayPal link

Recipes from Yesterday

Gluten-free chicken fillets in the Airfryer

  1. Roll fillets in corn flour.
  2. Dip in beaten egg.
  3. Coat with gluten-free panko/breadcrumbs.
  4. Place on baking paper in the Airfryer.
  5. 6 minutes per side.
  6. Keep warm in the oven until all are done (place them with space between).

Serve with:

  • Cold sauce: sour cream + mayonnaise + sambal oelek + chili sauce. Taste your way – I often do this with all my cooking, letting the taste buds decide.
  • Peanut sauce: see quick version below or follow the ICA recipe.

Peanut Sauce – Homemade (Quick Version)

  • 100 ml peanut butter
  • about 100 ml water (adjust for consistency)
  • 1–2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 small garlic clove, grated
  • 1 tsp grated ginger
  • chili flakes or sambal oelek to taste
  • 1–2 tsp lime juice or a splash of white wine vinegar
  • a pinch of sugar or honey

Heat gently in a saucepan and stir until smooth. Taste and adjust salt, heat and acidity – homemade usually gives more flavor because you decide the balance yourself.

(ICA recipe link: add here)

Afghan Rice – My Version

  1. Wash the rice thoroughly until the water is clear.
  2. Let it soak for a few hours.
  3. Cook in plenty of water with broth and spices (my twist: curry, chili, garlic, onion).
  4. Taste – when done, drain.
  5. Return to the pot with a paper towel under the lid.

Result: fluffy, flavorful and the perfect side dish.