Dr. Reyes says I've turned a corner. Not that the PPD is gone — she's careful about that, careful to say 'managing' instead of 'cured' — but that the tools are working and the trend is upward and I should be proud of myself for getting help when I did.
'Most women wait six months,' she said. 'Some wait years. Some never get help at all. You came at three months. That matters.'
It matters because of Jen. Because Jen knocked on my door and said 'put on pants' and took me to the support group. Because Jen looked at me over donuts and said 'are you okay?' and didn't accept 'fine' as an answer. Because Jen had PPD after Dylan and almost didn't survive it and she saw it in me before I saw it in myself.
I owe Jen a lifetime of cookies. Minimum.
Caleb is four and a half months old and has discovered his feet. He lies on his back and grabs his toes and stares at them with the concentration of a man solving a complex equation. Ryan says he's 'doing recon on his own body.' Military metaphors for infant development: the Ryan Abernathy parenting method.
I've been writing more. The journal is full — the one Ryan gave me — and I've started a second one. A composition notebook from the PX, $2, not leather, not fancy. But the words are the same. The stories of Caleb's milestones and Mom's phone calls and the recipes I cook and the way the apartment smells at 1800 when dinner is on the stove.
Mom's call tonight: 'What did you make?'
'Your white chicken chili.'
'With the lime at the end?'
'With the lime.'
'Good girl. How's the baby?'
'He found his feet.'
'Your father found his zucchini. Everyone's finding things.'
Donna Abernathy. Comedian. She doesn't know she's funny. She IS funny. The deadpan delivery of a woman who has been through too much to take anything seriously, including her husband's zucchini.
The white chicken chili was perfect. Caleb slept through dinner. Ryan had two bowls. And I sat at the table feeling something I haven't felt in months: normal. Not the 4 PM emptiness. Not the desperate-fine of deployment. Just... normal. Tuesday night. Chili. A baby who found his feet. A husband who eats two bowls.
Normal. The most extraordinary thing.
Mom’s white chicken chili is the recipe I make when I need to feel like myself again — and that Tuesday, I needed exactly that. The Dutch Oven Chicken Thighs I’ve adapted from her method carry the same spirit: one pot, low effort, the kind of smell that fills the apartment by 1800 and makes everything feel manageable. When Dr. Reyes says the trend is upward, I want to mark it somehow — and the way I mark things is with food, the way Mom always did. This is that meal.
Dutch Oven Chicken Thighs
Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 50 min | Total Time: 1 hr 5 min | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, drained
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped (for garnish)
Instructions
- Season the chicken. Pat chicken thighs dry with paper towels. Mix salt, pepper, smoked paprika, and garlic powder, then rub evenly over both sides of each thigh.
- Sear the chicken. Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Place chicken thighs skin-side down and sear undisturbed for 6—8 minutes until the skin is deep golden and releases easily. Flip and sear the other side for 3 minutes. Remove and set aside.
- Build the base. Reduce heat to medium. Add diced onion to the rendered fat and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4—5 minutes until softened. Add minced garlic and cook 1 minute more until fragrant.
- Deglaze and add liquid. Pour in chicken broth, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Stir in diced tomatoes, thyme, and rosemary.
- Braise. Nestle the chicken thighs back into the pot skin-side up, ensuring the skin stays above the liquid. Bring to a gentle simmer, then cover with the lid slightly ajar and cook on medium-low for 30—35 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and an internal thermometer reads 165°F.
- Finish and serve. Remove the lid for the last 5 minutes to let the skin re-crisp slightly. Spoon braising liquid over each thigh, garnish with fresh parsley, and serve over rice, egg noodles, or with crusty bread for soaking up the broth.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 390 | Protein: 31g | Fat: 26g | Carbs: 8g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 520mg
About the cook who shared this
Rachel Abernathy
Week 157 of Rachel’s 30-year story
· San Diego, California
Rachel is a twenty-eight-year-old Marine wife and mom of two who has moved five times in six years and learned to cook a Thanksgiving dinner with half her cookware still in boxes. She married young, survived postpartum depression, and feeds her family of four on a junior Marine's salary with a freezer full of pre-made meals and a crockpot that has never let her down. She writes for the military spouses who are cooking dinner alone in base housing and wondering if they're enough. You are.
