So...whats for dinner?

MinusTwo

Oh my goodness illimae - what is that restaurant? I need to go there this week!!!

SpecialK

minus - Can I go with you?

eric- genius idea for oven #2! You are Mr. Fix-it

ChiSandy

Magari, that lamb sounds amazing! Lucky you to have a Sardinian restaurant. (We have all sorts of Italian regional...except that). Not even Eataly has a Sardinian counter (though it does have some Sardinian pastas &. wines for sale).

Went "freezer foraging" for dinner: came up with a filet of wild king salmon big enough for two, so I split it the long way. Brined, then pan-seared. In my "crisper cache" were fresh asparagus, which I rinsed, nuked for 30 sec. and then sauteed with salt, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Despite having had rice for brunch (the leftover falafel platter), I nuked Seeds of Change brown rice/red quinoa pilaf. Gordy had dinner here after seeing Leslie off to O'Hare for her flight to see family in Houston; right now he's doing his regular Friday night improv show. Bouncing back from flu--missed just one rehearsal and did a writers' meeting via Skype.

eric95us

My mom had an electric range and a wall oven in the kitchen and an extra range in the garage. So, she had 3 ovens and 8 stove top "burners". I always envied that arrangement of stoves and ovens. :-)

Illimae, it's a good thing I've already eaten. That looks good!

I lost another post again, but I only had one line typed and I discovered what I'm doing to make it happen. It's a "my problem" issue and not a site issue. My laptop's mouse pad is just "below" the keyboard's space bar. If my thumb taps the lower right corner of the mouse pad twice in a very short amount of time, all of the text I've typed gets highlighted. If I then type another character, all of the highlighted text is replaced by the one new character. It is very easy for my right thumb to tap the mouse pad while I'm typing.......I will look to see if I can change what happens when I "double tap" the mouse pad.

There are a million ways to make something "break", so I'm sure there are other ways to lose a post...this is just one I noticed. If I were to type more slowly, I might be able to stop before I type the next character.

illimae

The restaurant is Mandola’s Deli. It’s not helpful for my weight loss goals but hey, life is short, right? Lol

ChiSandy

Hmmm....wonder if Leslie (Gordy's girlfriend who's from Katy) knows about Mandola's. She's down there now visiting her folks for spring break.

MinusTwo

Illi - oh my, that's a LONG way away. Not only clear across town, but past town & even east of 45. I thought you were on the West side? Unfortunately I won't be driving that far, but I will check the other Mandola restaurants to see if they have something similar. Maybe if I go fishing in Galveston this summer I'll stop on the way.

Sandy - the Mandola family has been around forever so the girl's parents will likely know of them.

illimae

Minus, yes I’m on the west side and it is far but I work near memorial park and the friend I went with works downtown and gets to lots of restaurants all over the city, plus he drives.

bedo

Well, I've been working at a gig in Boston for a bit so breakfast buffet every day... never want to see scrambled eggs, melon brie cheese and bagels again and I take a yogurt and make a cheese sandwich with mustard every day to take to work.

MOmmyof2 I aspire to cook as well as you. (you're practical)

Sorry I have had no time to catch up.

Family problems

CeliaC

Illi - Your food pics always look yummy. That cake - looks scrumptious!

Bedo - Lucky you, in Boston - hope you have had time to dine on some of the other great food in that city.

Dinner last night was a small pizza made on mini-naan (crafted, baked & served by DH). Organic mozzarella/shrooms/chopped tomato + a bit of chicken breast & canadian bacon, on thin layer of pesto. Dessert was a decadent cheesecake brownie from a local bakery.

Tonight will be zucchini sprials, organic sauteed shrooms & organic chicken/spinach sausage in organic tomato sauce. I use a hefty amount of zucchini spirals in place of pasta - add spices to taste to the rather plain tomato sauce. Also, will have a chopped avocado sprinkled with some balsamic vinaigrette & fresh grated pepper. Lots of yummy vegetables!

Magari

Hi, all and Happy Sunday. The sun is literally out today after several days of rain, which we badly needed.

Used some of the buttermilk I had left from the Irish brown bread I'd made last week to make buttermilk french toast yesterday morning, which was a new recipe for me and came out great. I used leftover sourdough bread instead of the challah it called for, added a bit of orange zest to the batter, and made Nigella Lawson's orange syrup (fresh OJ, marmalade and a bit of sugar) as an alternative to maple syrup.

I made split pea soup in my Instant Pot for lunch, which only took half an hour and now we have leftovers for the week.

Tonight we'll be having more of the leg of lamb I made a couple of nights ago, and my husband chose Yorkshire pudding over gratin dauphinois to go with that. I do not have the fat from the roasting pan to put in the Yorkshire pudding pan, so will likely sub olive oil and maybe a touch of bacon fat. Think I'll do some glazed carrots as well for both vitamins and color.

Lacey12

Eric, glad you discovered the dynamic working against getting your post posted! I think my issue is that I always post from my Ipad, which may render this site as unstable. When I can remember, I will write my posts in my notes, then copy and paste here. I am chuckling about your recent stove inheritance and fix em up. I can certainly see how using an outdoor range would be helpful during your hot summers. But if you collect any more ranges, I might place you in my category of Talenti container savers! 😉

Celia, nice veggie dinner!

Last night I was really tired after returning from the March For Our Lives in Boston, so we decided to just heat up some leftovers to have along with cheese and crackers and a nice red wine.

Tonight I’ll concoct an eggplant casserole (with no pasta involved) with the eggplant pieces I made last week breaded in chickpea flour. I’ll probably include some large mushrooms and artichoke hearts, a spicy tomato sauce, and some mozzarella cheese.

Tomorrow night we will have a stand up dinner at a local restaurant that makes delicious and interesting pizzas, where our state rep is having a fundraising event. They’ll have many kinds of pizza and salads offered casual buffet style. It seems I will be dining out a lot this week, since I am meeting friends for lunch and dinner on various days/evenings, and we have a neighborhood brunch to attend on Saturday, then a C’s game Saturday night. Sadly, I do better with my food intake being healthy when we eat at home....so this will be a challenging week as I struggle to get those extra lbs off. I probably need to cut down on my volunteer schedule so I can spend more time in the gym to take care of this weight concern.

Tomorrow, I have another follow up eye appt, and it will be interesting to hear what is going on since my eyes are clearly not seeing that well yet, and floaters show up often with my left eye, most recently done. The good news is that I have not fallen again, my bruises are healing, and my facial hematoma is lightening up, so I no longer look like a domestic violence victim. I need to give three powerpoint presentations at an elementary school this week to help reduce student anxiety about the state tests that are coming up, so I’m glad that I won’t look horrid in front of those audiences!

Minus, I hope you get to connect with some of our new threadmembers either in Houston or SF. I fondly remember our dinner here with Susan at erbaluce!

Lacey12

Magari, I missed your last post while I was typing. Realized that I forgot to mention how delicious your lamb dinner sounded. And your description of tonight’s leftovers’ effort sounds great. Your use of the Instant Pot reminds me that I really must rescue mine which has now lived unopened in its mailer box for almost a year! Yikes! I think if I learn some lower calorie/fat items it can be used for, I might get in the habit of using it. But first I must unearth it

Carole, I will be interested to learn if you try and like using your air fryer for making eggplant.

auntienance

The food pics are awesome. Minus, a while back you asked the difference between pork steak and chop. The pork steak is from the shoulder and is less lean, therefore (to me) more flavorful. Its kind of a Midwestern thing usually. We grill them often in the summer.

Homemade pizza last night and short ribs tonight. I think. My beloved instant pot is leaking steam when it shouldn't. According to tech support, I probably need a new one. It does still come up to pressure, so I'm going to try the short ribs anyway. If it doesn't work they will be tomorrow night's dinner and tonight will be a mystery. I feel like my right arm is being amputated without my pressure cooker.

Good thinking on the stove Eric. The first time I visited the Phoenix area many years ago, I was surprised to find the friend I was visiting had her washer and dryer as well as a stove on her covered veranda. She just shrugged and told me "It never rains here." Good thinking.

Hey Bedo - nice to hear from you. Wondering where you were.

Rain rain and more rain here too and more on the way. The lack of sun is getting to me as is the cold temps. Where oh where is our spring?

Cherry-sw

Hi all! I have been procrastinating like very heavily during the last two weeks until people started to contact me asking what has happen. By people I mean our ladies from triple positives thread, out FB support group and my manager))) I do not know what has happened but first, and still actually, I got this wound in my armpit during the end of the rads, that later became three wounds, that turned to be so painful in the beginning I did not have so much pain since my surgery in July( It got better eventually, the pain, I still have the wounds but they are not infected for what I am very grateful, but it still looks like I will need bondage under my arm even when we are going to be in Paris next week. Yesterday I changed my bandage on my own, it looks better but last week when nurse let me take a look at my armpitI asked her what was the reason why she chose this job, I mean, it looked like volcano eraption, sorry, TMI, I know and it sounds gross but it is what it is(

I have also been extremely tired, only was able to drag myself out of bed to exercise, not daily though, to cook)) always)) and to work probably twice a week, otherwise me and our cat spent two lazy weeks in bed, when has I ever had or will have a chance to do that?)))) I have been so tired that even when I slept the whole night, woke up, had my breakfest, went back to bed to watch The Americans and after Downton Abbey, I still had to dwell there with my eyes shut unable to open them to neither watch the movie nor fall asleep. Today I felt the same and I dragged myself out of bed, it was 10C and sunny outside, so I went for 10 km power walk and run half of the distance, because I just wanted to get home to my bed!!😂 My cat has been by my side almost all the time, here comes the pics.

Forgot the pics, now edited)

It has not been much about the dinners but what can I say, I prioritize cooking and there was a lot of it. Tonight was orange chicken with oven-baked potatoes, bearnaise sauce and salad.

Cherry-sw

Lacey, the pictures are perfect, the one with your grandchildren taken by your DIL is so beautiful❤️ it could as well come from a magazine. What a beautiful home too, delightful design, just pass my compliments to them)

Eric, you are quite a collector, aren't you?))) Two oven for two people)) in Arizona?))) I laughed at ChiSandy's comment on cosher and remembered that Carrie from Sex and the City stores her sweaters in her only one oven))

illimae, this chocolate delight looks amazing, I can only imagine how it tasted. I myself bought some locally produced organic coffee latte ice cream and are half of liter in a week, guilty as charged, so much for dieting. I also bough another one called Chocolate bomb but the youngest DD helped me to finish this one.

MinusTwo

Cherry - don't beat yourself up girl. The fatigue from rads was debilitating & it took me months to get back enough energy to even to read a book w/o my eyes closing. Treat yourself gently - or rather - you be the princess for now & let everyone else take care of stuff.

Cherry-sw

Whoever wrote about the lamb leg, gratain and the Yorkshire pudding, Down it was you, wasn't it? I am watching Downton Abbey btw)) I want you to adopt me, really, I never tried English pudding, I mean even though I been to London and GB many times this is a sort of food your are getting if you are invited home to people or you watch Jamie Oliver)) This dinner sounded amazing.

Carole, I know everybody says that eggplant takes so much oil, my mom is the first one on this list and therefore all her eggplant dishes are ouzing oil, snd hers is not olive but sumflower. But I myself slice the eggplant, rub it with salt and let it be for 15 min half of an hour and then I dry the slices with the paper and put them in the non-stick pan with a little oil, they will absorb it but I do not add more until they start to get soft because they will since the cells in the eggplant get cooked, break and start releasing liquid, that is when I add a little more oil. Just give it some time and it had to be teflon pan. If you for example put the eggplants halves into the oven they will still cook without any oil needed. I never bread them either, I like them fried in the pan with a little mayo and some chopped garlic, yam.

Magari and Chi, you mentioning Sardinian food made me think of Sicily and pasta alla norma. I have five middle size eggplants in my fridge and I will do it this week even though if it means I have to freeze it because we are leaving at the end of next week. I also did zucchini pasta sauce this Friday, something very Soviet, but so good, DD1 and BF liked it even though we need to feed him proteins for the most.

SpecialK, I have literally pictured myself eating a meal and watching a sunset, I will make it happen in rhe nearest future, I am so going to indulge myself))

Speaking of which, or not maybe, but we are getting a puppie, a Welsh Corgi Pembroke. Preliminary this little fellow on the picture below, but we are entitled to pick any of five male puppies of a litter of nine! But I always pictured him to be red, just like the Queen's)) And hus name will be... wait for it))) ... Mr. Darcy))) The kennel owner is thrilled))

carolehalston

Cherry, I have been missing you and feared that you weren't feeling well. I have heard that rads can cause extreme fatigue. Please take care of yourself.

Our outing to the Fairgrounds yesterday for the Louisiana Derby was nice. I found myself missing our friend Tom. He and his wife Sylvia were race track companions. Tom would study the racing form and actually had good reasons for his bets. He succumbed to Parkinson's Disease a few years after his retirement.

Our companions yesterday were keeping the bartender busy, drinking mint julips. I finally gave in to temptation and had one. The taste was delicious but the drink was small for $7 with only one shot of a good bourbon, Woodford. I could easily have drunk four of them poured into a decent-sized glass. It's difficult to sip an alcoholic drink that tastes so good.

DH and I shared a corned beef sandwich on poboy bread. It was good but not as good as I remembered. The price was higher but not outrageous by concessions at an event standard.

Nance, thanks for explaining the difference between pork steaks and pork chops. I first ate pork steaks at the home of a BIL who grew up in St. Louis, where pork steaks are much liked. He cooked his slowly on the grill and the result was delicious.

Tonight will be pasta with tomato sauce. I'm thawing 8 oz of ground turkey and equal amt. of ground pork that I will make into Italian sausage. The meat will go into the sauce. The side will be salad.

Lacey, I'll let you know about the eggplant cooked in the air fryer. I'm on the lookout for nice eggplants. So far, the air fryer is a thumbs up. I'm wondering if an Instant Pot might not be a useful cooking appliance for the summer in MN. In good weather I could set it up out on the deck. I already have a slow cooker and an outdoors gas grill.

auntienance

Ah cherry, nothing cuter than a puppy and corgis are especially cute!

SpecialK

cherry - I met a cat named Mr Darcy on my trip who lives two doors down from my friend! Seems like a good name for that adorable pup! Dining while watching the sunset is definitely to be done! Here is a photo taken from my seat, that is my beloved Pacific Ocean:

Cherry-sw

Minus, I was not so much tired during chemo! I mean, it was cumulative, but still the next days after the infusion I fel like so full of it but tired, only towards the end, but this is something out of my understanding, I am like Churchill, why to stand when you can sit and why to sit when you can lay down? I know I probably could just pull myself together and still sit UP on the balcony and probably go out and just walk but laying down with this furry ball of purring delight was just so cosy and so convinient, tomorrow I have salary increase talk with my manager, I might as well show him how we spent past two weeks)

illimae

ohhhh, puppy!!!

Tonight DH is cooking a pork loin in the rotisserie while I roast red potatoes and Brussels sprouts.

For dessert, I am recreating the chocolate delight using substitutes for the sugary ingredients (for the diabetics dinning tonight), the recipe is already giving me problems as I’ve burnt the crust (not too bad) with 5 minutes of cook time remaining. Wish me luck, I’ll post pics later.

Cherry-sw

auntinance, I would have taken a dog from the shelter but we do not have as many shelters here, people do not abandon their dogs or cats for that matter as easily here and there are no stray animals in Sweden, except for those in the woods) Besides, it is harder toqualify for taking an animal from the shelter than just to buy omen from a kennel. Compared to what’s I and used to see in Ukraine when I visit my parents the situation here is absolutely different. And I really do like Corgis. Last year I took my mom to England. Mind a visa aquiring procedure in Warszawa and missing the plane because DH drove us to the wrong airport))) when we at least were there we went to Windsor. When I was buying a Corgi toy the old gentleman who worked there, explained to me that Corgi comes from Welsh, naturally, and means cor gii - miniger dog, and that all Her Majesty’s dogs came from the first pup named Susanne or Susie. He was so old, this gentleman, that I believed him))) He wrote it on the post-it, I still have it somewhere

Cherry-sw

SpecialK, this sunset is by far the most beautiful thing I saw today. Honestly. And my 10 km power walk route goes approx 3 km along the shore since I live on an island but today I was running and did not look around, it was uphill and so hard, so what can I say, right now I would rather look at your sunse)) It is breathtaking, and that, as PoseyGirl says, this is all I have to say about that))

ChiSandy

Lovely sunset, Special! Where on the coast were you dining? Ate at a restaurant in Malibu a few years ago with a similar lovely Pacific sunset view.

Went to Cellars last night to watch the Loyola game. Bob had shrimp linguine in saffron cream sauce; I had fish & chips, well-done fries, awesome housemade tartar sauce & slaw. We both had half our dinners packed to go even before we were served. Gordy ate the leftover pasta, four mini-croissants, and 3 donuts, so I guess his appetite is back. (Tamiflu is a miracle drug). We're going out to Il Porcellino tonight (have a $25 off coupon, and there's enough stuff on the menu Bob can eat w/o "breaking Lent"). He went out to brunch this a.m. so he could have a Bloody Mary. I had a voice lesson, so I made myself a rolled French herb-gruyere omelet and toasted a mini-croissant.

SpecialK

cherry - There were just enough clouds to make the sunset interesting. You may be able to tell from the pic that I was in the right corner of the restaurant, but the whole center section has retracting windows so it is like sitting out on the rocks. It was a bit chilly so they did not open them this last time, but I have eaten there when they did, with a glass of crisp white wine, and a great meal then as well. I miss it already...

chisandy - Cardiff, and what I love about this restaurant is how close you are to the water, in addition to the great meal! I grew up in suburban L.A. and my high school beach was Malibu, what I love about the west coast is the rocky cliffs at the beach - the beach here in FL is so flat!

Tonight is reverse sear sirloins, steamed broccoli with lemon olive oil and lemon pepper, and chipotle bacon mashed potatoes.

illimae

The accidentally burnt pecan crust resulted in a coffee like taste but it was still tasty.

MinusTwo

Special - i would have guessed further north. But YES - beloved Pacific. Rocks, crags, caves, crashing pounding waves.... Galveston & Florida are just really ponds.

SpecialK

minus - southern California has a lot of rocky coastline, many areas with actual cliffs - it is kind of surprising!

DH is out exercising and it is kind of warm out so I am thinking main dish salad tonight - possibly a kale and berry salad with chicken. Not sure yet.

I have a hearing aid for the sudden hearing loss that happened back at the beginning of Nov - still trying to determine how I feel about it, I am doing a 30-day trial, so trying out a variety of environments to see how I feel. As I sit here typing, the keyboard clacking is super LOUD, lol! My husband, also with hearing loss, talks really LOUD! Also, I hate our new TV in the family room - a room with a rug over tile flooring with a whole wall of windows - the surround sound bounces and sounds like I am in a LOUD tin can. Our dog also hates that TV. I tried a noisy restaurant today with a friend - I could actually hear the server - yay! Then I went to Nordstrom Rack and was not bothered by the ambient noise. So, so far, the hearing aid at home is the issue, lol!